Birthdays...kal, aaj aur kal!!!!

Have you ever thought about this. How things change over a period of time... and things as small as celebrating your birthdays.
Celebrations were so different when you were a kid, how it is now and how different it will be in the future. Amidst these differences, one thing will still remain the same - FUN!!!

So, taking the fun part out, lets try to compare how we celebrated birthdays in the past to how we are doing it now and what it will be in the future.

Kiddie Times:
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This was the time, when you didnt have much control over how your birthday will be celebrated. The only choice was for the type of cake you want. (flavor as well as shape - a maruti car shared chocolate cake. Yum!!). Apart from this everything else was taken care by your mom and dad. The guest list included your friends from school and building apart from your relatives, near and far. There were decorations, baloons, the customary "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" thing that was put on the wall. The snacks/dinner after the cake which had to include potato wafers (oopz...chips), which I hated then and hate it now. Gifts from everyone and ofcourse the RETURN GIFTS!!!

You didnt have much choice in the gifts that you got from your friends but it generally included a pencil box, drawing colors set, G.I.Joe, Hot Wheels car, Ludo or some other board games. After the thank-you's and the good-byes, you sat down opening all the gifts. "WOW" on some gifts - I wanted this game, good he/she gave it to me. "AAh" on others - I hate this, dunno what I am going to do with this pencil box. I already have so many nice ones!!!

As time went by and as the number of candles started increasing, the flavor of birthday parties also changed.

Woh College ke Din:
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Birthdays started at 12 in the night. Friends surprising you by landing at your place in the night. Getting a cake along with them and a surprise party followed. The cake had changed and so was its utility. Something which tasted so yummy, was put on all parts of your body, apart from the one where it should actually go - mouth. and the more you protested... the more you paid for it. Then came the "Birthday Bumps" - a chance for all and sundry to hit you. why?? its your birthday...thats why!!! Initially, the bumps equalled your age, then your friends forgot what came after 20. The kicks continued till you actually pretended that you pulled a muscle and thats when someone saw your feigned pain and told everyone to stop.

Mind you, You have to be very attentive during these "birthday bumps", make a note of who all kicked you and how many times and then wasool-ofy on their birthdays.

The birthday evening followed. Something sweet prepared by your mom, and you remember the hindi film dialogue "maa, tumhe kaise maloom mujhe gajaar ka halwa pasand hain!!!" [:)] A dinner party for your friends followed. Relatives slowly went out of the picture. Now your friends knew what you were craving for - (no, not that hottie in the college. You can never have a friend who will give you such a gift). But all of them contributed and gave you that gift which sometimes became your prized possession. The ferrari cap, the UB pullover, the Anna Kournikova Calendar, the foosball table et al.

To think of it now, you didnt have much control over your birthday during this period as well.

A Look into the Future:
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So, what will birthdays be like in the future??
The surprise parties will vanish.
The dinner parties will be restricted to a 'romantic candle-lit dinner' with your girl-friend/wife. So will the cake-cutting be. Some of your friends might drop-by.
There will be no cake fights.
The gifts will slowly vanish into thin air.
slowly, birthdays will be just another day in your calendar. You will have a deadline due on your birthday and you will end up working extra hours in your office.
Then, you will have kids and you will start celebrating their birthdays. The parties will follow. The decorations, baloons, cakes and the "customary"chips. Well, it might be replaced by tositoes and salsa and as your kid closes his/her eye and asks for a wish before blowing the candles... you close your eyes as well...and think,

" hum bhi agar bacche hote... naam hamara hota bablu, dablu...
khane ko milte laddu... aur duniya kehti
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!!"