Monday, November 17, 2008

Sensory association.

Sounds like a neurological term, innit?Well, don't worry, I won't bore you more than usual.I'm totally blanked out right now and hence will apologise in advance for any unintended grammatical or factual errors.This idea about writing how I remember things based on smells and sounds occurred to me last evening when I sprayed on my Nike and instantly remembered someone.I took this timepass test on blogthings.com which gave me the result that I appreciate and understand sounds much better than other senses.Smell came in a close second.Ironically I suffer from sinusitis in cold temperatures leaving my nose and ears blocked.Fascinating, I know.Anyway, leaving gooey matters behind, I discovered that the results were quite accurate.I usually tend to associate certain songs to certain people, certain smells to certain periods of my life.It's not that uncommon, I know.But just the idea of how a melody can transport you back in time or how a whiff of a familiar fragrance can cause pangs of lust, pain or nostalgia is so, forgive me for the blunt delivery, so poetic.The thought of an expression of a memory in wordless subtlety is just too beautiful.Inexplicably, the smell of Sunsilk black shampoo transports me to my 10th std. school days, the smell of clinic plus to summer holidays as a kid, the smell of rain always reminds me of him and that trip to Dharwad, the sound of the Santana song 'Smooth' reminds me of this guy I had a crush on(who turned out to be phenomenally dumb by the way) and at present, the song 'Hazaaro khwaishein aisi...' reminds me of this person who is kinda like my current muse :).If the said person is reading this, feel flattered and do not forget to thank me later.Every single day turns out to give me excuses to say "Do you remember...?" or smiling to myself when I'm alone in the remembrances.Oh, by the way, my handwriting slants towards the left(my brother terms my handwriting as the 'most unscientific handwriting he ever lay his eyes upon') which supposedly implies that I live in the past or think about it way too much.I couldn't agree more.
So if you have special sounds, sights or tastes, please go ahead and share.Maybe they'll help me remember you :)

4 comments:

SD said...

Very true.!
The music from the movie "mohabbatein" reminds me of my 8th std trip 2 Hampi, tracks by "Linkin park" remind me of 1st yr engg and "Metallica" reminds me of 5th n 6th sem.
I am very sure that in the future, music from the movie "rock on" will remind me of my training days here in Chennai.!
The smell of rain reminds me of Hubli, betta and the fragrance "Incidence" reminds me of this special person.!
It is indeed amazing how we remember things, people, places or even incidents(amazingly sometimes you remember something you thought was long forgotten) when we hear or smell things.
Memory indeed.!

Shruti said...

hello shripad,
i can see the rock transition in engg days...happened with me too...started off with linkin park and then went up to something heavier...i think everyone's first thought is about their hometown when they smell rain...kinda reminds me of the song 'woh kaagaz ki kashti, woh baarish ka paani'...nostalgia is so bittersweet innit?:) Thanks a ton for dropping by!

Anonymous said...

I applaud to your blog :)
Cant think of the last time i read such "personal" blog n yet potrayin such an immense meaning to a stranger like me..
It made me THINK! Bravo..!

Shruti said...

Hey Abhimanyu,
Thank you for your kind words.You made my day!:)