Remember Emil Foley, the pitiless drill sergeant in ‘An Officer and a Gentleman’? Well our own National Defence Academy (NDA) is populated with drill sergeants who make dear Emil look like a particularly cuddly teddy bear. These merciless Gorillas (also colloquially called ‘Drill Ustads’), are the ones entrusted with the…
Category: Humour in Uniform
Personal Life Story. Who is the Most Important Woman in your Life?
Most dutiful males would indubitably reply – my wife/mother. Not me. I can say without hesitation, and I can’t stress this enough, that it is maid servants. I used to hear quite often during my years in the Navy that nobody is indispensable. Ha! Obviously, the Navy never had maids….
Military Service Reflections. Leaders Need Dash, Chutzpah and Daring
What is the best military leadership style for the Armed Forces? Difficult question. We have all seen some genial souls succeed. On the other hand, absolute tyrants also succeed. Professionally competent ones succeed and so do those whose IQ equals that of boiled potatoes. I guess nature loves equilibrium and…
Life in the Forces. Coursemates! Devils and Angels
Navy Coursemates Reunion Ahoy! “There is not a word yet, for old friends that you’ve just met” – Jim Henson. This could well describe the joy of meeting old friends at a Navy coursemates reunion. We were a batch of 297 coursemates at the National Defence Academy (NDA). And even…
Humour in Uniform – If it is Simple, Make it Difficult!
As most of my 12 readers will know, I spent 35 years plus in the Navy. And, I loved every moment of it – the camaraderie, the ceremonies, the uniform, everything. The stand out feature however was military bureaucracy – the ability of the powers that be, to add a…
Naval Tales. May God Bless the Ethereal Ms Madhu Sapre!
Okay, this post is about Ms Madhu Sapre and me. Most of my 12 readers will know that the Navy conducts a ‘Navy Nite’ (earlier called the ‘Navy Ball’) every year sometime in early December as part of the Navy Week festivities. This Ball is quite popular amongst the citizenry…
Humour with a Twist. What’s in a Name? Or for that matter, in a Number?
This is one of the many funny navy stories. The Navy decided one fine day, sometime in 2011, that handsome Captain RK Dahiya (my seven readers will know that that is me) was the most appropriate guy to commission (ceremoniously induct) a new ship for our Navy from, and in,…