How People React
Before, I get into the details of it, let me also pen down the kind of guess people make about my name. Based on the response, I have received in the last 20 odd years, I have tried to make an assessment of the percentage of people in each category:
- You must be kidding, tell me your real name please (20% of the time)
- It must be based on the movie Satyam Shivam Sundaram (70% of the time) and a few comments on various scenes of the movie
- You must be a South Indian and your father's name may be Shivam or Sundaram (10% of time)
- It must be to hide your last name (twice till date)
- Your parents much be teachers or religious in nature - hinting at value system etc - (once till date)
- With a gentle smile, "no this is my name. Please have a look at the identity card/pan card/any other card where my name is written "
- With a bigger smile than the first case, "in fact none of my parents are movie buffs. They rarely go to theatre to watch movie. I also watched my first movie in theatre in my third year of B Tech at IIT Madras." With those who are familiar with IITM, I add another line "My first movie in OAT was also in my second year. BTW, I must add, thanks to my friends, my first movie in theatre was a cartoon movie Sindhbad !!!
- The response to this question has changed over the years. My earlier response used to be "No, I am from Jharkhand/Bihar and my parents are also from Bihar". After staying and working in South India for 7 years, my response now is, "Well, My permanent house is in Jharkhand".
- I have no answers to such statements!!!
- I did hear this comment from one person. I smiled and acknowledged and went on the explain the reasons...
Why This Name
I did ask my parents as to why this name, not because I don't like it but b'coz of the inquisitiveness. Actually I love my name. It has become one of the reasons for not forgetting me.
As a student my father had little resources at his disposal. He did not have enough text books to study and people to guide. He could not study Engineering or for that matter even science during his bachelors due to lack of financial support. He had to join 'Teachers Training Program' and became a teacher at a very young age. After he joined the job, he kept studying further and completed in Masters in English as well as Hindi literature and LL.B and moved to higher secondary school as a teacher.
When I was born as a first child, he could see some of his ambitions getting completed in the form of me achieving them. He is a firm believer that name does influence your behavior.................. It is like continuously reminding that you need to live up to certain expectations and hence he decided on this name. My grandfather had thought of another name 'Satendra or Sarvendra'. The meaning of Satyam Shivam Sundaram and the novelty attached to it, helped me secure this name. I would also like to add here that the name had nothing to do with the movie which was released a couple of years before I was born.
Meaning of the Name
Satyam- Satya - Truth
Shivam - Kalyan karak - Virtuous/Comforting/Nice
Sundaram - Sundar - Beautiful
It represents Satya hi Shiva hai, Shiva hi Sundar hai. The three words together represent the God as He is the only one who is true, virtuous, and beautiful at the same time. These three adjectives are to remind me of these traits.
There is a lot of literature both in Indian philosophy as well as in those of other civilizations (the words have been used by Plato as well). I am keeping them for another blog some day.
At last, thanks to my parents for such a novel name.
