Yeh jo halka halka suroor hai

I was pleasantly surprised to come across a different version of the popular ghazal - Yeh jo halka suroor hai. I found a really old cassette in the drawer which had a collection of Nirmal Udhas songs (The brother of Pankaj Udhas who didn't become nearly as famous). The only version I had heard so far was by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. I almost didn't recognize the new version. A ghazal is only brought to life by the singer!

Here's the version from NFAK. (a complete version can be found here - http://www.egothemag.com/urdupoetry/archives/2006/01/ye_jo_halka_hal.html)

Yeh Jo Halka Halka suroor hai

yeh jo halka halka suroor hai

yeh teri nazar ka qusoor hai

ke sharaab peena sikha dia

this mild intoxication

is due to your eyes,

that taught me drinking

tere pyaar ne teri chaah ne

teri behki behki nigaah ne

mujhe ek sharaabi bana dia

your love and your longing

your intoxicating glances

made me a drunkard

sharaab kaisi khumaar kaisa?

ye sab tumhari nawazishein hain

pilayi hai kis nazar se tuune

ke mujhko apni khabar nahin hai

what wine, what intoxication?

all this is your kindness

you served me in such a manner with your eyes

that I do not remember myself

saara jahaan mast jahaan ka nizaam mast

din mast raat mast sahar mast shaam mast

mast sheesha mast suboo mast jaam mast

hai teri chashm-e-mast se har khaas-o-aam mast

the whole world is ecstatic, the order of the world is ecstatic

day is ecstatic, so is dawn and so is evening

glass,cup and wine are all ecstatic

because of your intoxicating eyes, everyone and everything is

ecstactic

ye jo saqi har tarah ki tere maikhaane mein hai

wo bhi thodi si jo in aankhon ke paimaane mein hai

of all the wines which you have in your wine-house

serve me a little from your eyes

sab samajhta hun teri nazar ai saqi

kaam karti hai nazar naam hai paimaane ka

I understand all the methods of your glances, O cup-bearer!

they do the job of a tavern!

tera pyaar hai bas meri zindagi

my life is only your love

na namaaz aati hai mujhko na wuzoo aata hai

sajdaa kar leta huun jab saamne tu aata hai

neither I know prayers not ablutions

I prostate whenever you come in front of me

main azal se bandaa-e-ishq hun

mujhe zuhd-o-kufr ka gham nahin

mere sar ko dar tera mil gaya

mujhe ab talash-e-haram nahin

I am a servant of love since the beginning of life

I do not care for piousness and paganism

my head has found your house

now I do not search for the mosque

meri bandagi hai wo bandagi

jo ba qaid-e-dair-o-haram nahin

mera ik nazar tumhein dekhna

baa khuda namaaz se kam nahin

my devotion is such devotion

that is not bound by the temple and the mosque

when I sight you once

by God, it is no less than a prayer

tera pyaar hai bas meri zindagi

Your love is my life .

qayaamat mein tera daagh-e-muhabbat lekar uthuunga

teri tasveer us dam bhi kaleje se lagi hogi

On Judgement Day, I will rise with the wound of your love

your image will be clinging to my heart on that day too

kyunki

because

tera pyaar hai bas meri zindagi

my life is only your love

teri yaad hai meri bandagi

jo teri khushi wo meri khushi

ye mere junoon ka hai moajzaa

jahan apne sar ko jhuka dia

wahan maine Kaa’ba bana dia

your rememberance is my prisonment

your wish is my wish

this is the miracle of my madness

that whereever I prostated

I made a mosque there

mere baad kisko sataaoge ?

to whom you will inflict pain after me ?

dil jaloN se dil lagi acchi nahin

rone waloN se hansi acchi nahin

dillagi hi dillagi mein dil gaya

it is not good to play with the emotions of sufferers

it is not good to laugh at the mourners

I lost my heart in this game

Oh mera dil gaya dil gaya dil gaya

my heart is gone, O , gone is my heart

Khuda ke liye apni nazroN ko roko warna

mera dil gaya dil gaya dil gaya

for God's sake change your glances, else

my heart is gone, my heart is gone

meri tarah Khuda kare tera bhi kisi per aaye dil

too bhi kaleja thaam ke kehta phire ke haye dil

I pray to God that you also fall in love with someone

and you also suffer in separation with hands on your heart

mera dil gaya dil gaya dil gaya

my heart is gone, O , gone is my heart

dillagi hi dillagi mein dil gaya

dil lagaane ka nateeja mil gaya

main to rota hun ke mera dil gaya

tum kyuN hanste ho tumhein kya mil gaya ?

I lost my heart just in fun

and got the measure of falling in love

I lament the loss of my heart, (but)

why do you laugh, what did you gain ?

accha phir.....

fine then.....

mere baad kisko sataaoge ?

mujhe kis tarah se mitaaoge

kahan jaa kar teer chalaoge

meri dosti ki balayein lo

mujhe hath utha kar duaayein do

tumhein ek qaatil bana dia

Who next will you inflict pain to after me ?

how will you remove me from your life?

where will you cast those arrow like glances

value my friendship

raise your hands and pray for me

with these (arrow like glances) you have gained a killer instinct

mujhe dekho khwaish-e-jaan-e-jaaN

main wahi hun Anwar-e-neem jaan

tumhein itna hosh tha jab kahaan

na chalo is tarah tum zubaaN

karo mera shukria meherbaaN

tumhein baat karna sikha dia

watch here, O desire of the life of my life

I am the same suffering Anwar

you did not even had senses

Long time come back blog

Yeah I know it's been a long time since I blogged. The last time was the night before we left for Cape Town. It's a beautiful place, but I'm a bit lazy to put the pictures - I'm a bit tired of doing nothing at home. Some things have happened. I've got good results in my matric - 7 distinctions. People still congratulate me, long after all the hype should have been ended. Full house distinctions are rare here in South Africa. Pricewaterhouse Coopers even offered me a full bursary to study accountancy.

The situation is a bit depressing - all my friends are at UCT or UKZN, and I'm just sitting at home trying to do something useful on the computer, like learning java or photoshop, but all I end up doing is sleeping till 10 in the morning. It's just lousy, and I feel totally guilty about it. Sad I know.

I've heard from a couple of universities - Florida Tech, Purdue and Embry-Riddle. Embry-Riddle is still on it's way, I just got the email confirmation that said I got accepted. Florida Tech offered me a scholarship of $15000, that means about $25000 for the total cost of education in 2008-2009. I got a presidential scholarship of $7000 per annum from Purdue, which means a whopping $29000 for us to pay. It's looking totally bleak right now. I hope to hear from Princeton and Caltech by the end of march.

Pros and cons of studying an undergraduate programme in the USA.

Pros:

1) Receive a world class education. There are a large variety of majors and specializations, which are accredited by organizations such as the ABET. The degree you receive is internationally marketable.

2) U.S. welcomes international students. These students will get to experience a new culture, and will be able to share their own with the Americans.

Cons:

1) Huge expenses involved. It can cost between $30000 and $50000 per year. In some institutions, your affordability is a criterion in the admissions process. For example Caltech and Duke require an international student to make it clear whether they will be applying for financial aid. The applications of people who do apply will be evaluated separately among themselves, in order to locate the most qualified applicant. This also means that the applicants who are denied financial aid might be denied admission as well. Although USA is known to be generous with scholarships, scholarships are given to the most qualified candidate. Full scholarships are both rare and extremely competitive. There are usually 20 highly qualified international students who apply for these scholarships. These students are the academic crème-de-la-crème of their respective country. They also possess unique leadership and extracurricular qualities. You should know that financial assistance from other American foundations and especially the American government is limited.

2) Limited work opportunities. Prospective students should not consider an education in the USA in order to finally emigrate there. USA has tightened up its immigration, and foreign nationals can only work up to a maximum of 12 months outside their campus, so long as the work pertains to their field of study. This also means that you cannot “work your way through college” as your American friends might do. However this is possible in Canada, where you can basically fund your own education while gaining valuable work experience in programs known as “co-ops”. I've heard that University of Cincinnatti has a good co-op program. And also if you are fortunate enough to get recruited by Caltech or MIT, you can also earn good money by researching for them. Caltech offers a S.U.R.F programme (Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship) in which you can research an approved matter and get paid upto US $600 a week over summer. Pretty good hey? I'll be earning more than my Dad if I do that.

Where should you begin your search for universities in USA?

The EducationUSA network provides a wealth of information and services for international students at all stages of the college search. There are more than 450 EducationUSA advising centers around the world, and I’m sure many of them are located in the American Consulates in the major cities in India. Just get the number of the American Embassy or Consulate in your city and call them to find out more about this service. I know that in Durban, South Africa, the American Consulate provides free seminars about studying in the USA at the end of every month.

Why are these resources important?

First, EducationUSA advisers know the differences among the many types of U.S. colleges and universities. They can give you the tools you need to identify the best options for your educational and professional interests and choose an institution that meets your needs. I think that this alone is the most important step when applying to Universities. Why spend 4 years in an institution in which you are not going to happy?

Second, they know how the admissions process works; can advise on issues such as testing, essay writing, and letters of reference; and can often assist you in identifying financial aid opportunities as well. When I enquired about the financial aid opportunities in USA, I was given a thick booklet detailing the amount of financial aid given to international students by Universities. If you are like me, who finds foreign based education very expensive, then this is also going to be a critical factor when you are applying. The booklet helped me narrow down my options, and was also a good indicator of the amount of financial aid that I might receive. Don’t assume that all the institutions in the US are generous. Almost all state sponsored universities don’t offer any financial support for international students. But the fees of these universities are also kept quite low (because they are not-for-profit and are state sponsored).

In addition, EducationUSA advisers receive constant updates about U.S. visa and security requirements and can offer guidance to help you successfully negotiate the student visa application process.

Finally, many EducationUSA advising centers also provide specialized services, such as essay and resume writing workshops, academic and cultural pre-departure information, and translation and document verification.

I advise any prospective student to visit an EducationUSA advising center in person. Interacting with an expert is the best way to begin your search.

College Admissions: Hitchhiker from India’s guide to the process from his own journey.

Great, it’s the beginning of December right now, and I still don’t know where I will be next year. Is it going to be India, with all the AIEEE and IIT-JEEs and the CETs and what not entrance exams, or the US, will they accept me? Did I do enough ECs and did I write a stellar essay, and where my SAT scores too low?….aargh! But I finally did manage to send off my applications to the US universities….great relief!

I have to admit, last year, the day I signed up for Brilliant’s 2 year correspondence for IIT-JEE 2008 course; I had no idea, about what I was going to get into. Apparently, other students were 3 months already into the course, but I thought nothing off it back then. I thought I could pull off like an hour everyday for it, (with the exception of the weekends, for which I had planned about 6 hours in total).

After a complex arrangement with my uncle in Chennai, who promised to send every set to us, as soon as he received them, we finally received our first set at the end of July. You see, my uncle had enrolled me at the course as an Indian student, because those people charge extra for NRIs.

Hooboy! August went, and then September, and then October, without me even opening a single book, while my uncle religiously forwarded every set to me! And then the grade 11 November exams came and it was then that I decided to postpone all the IIT related stress to the December holidays.

Exams went so-so, and then the dreaded December holidays came. (drumroll here please) It was time to perform the ritual.

The first chapter of math was trivial – Sequences and Series. But oh God, the subjective matter proved so difficult to handle, and those examples really freaked me out. All those problems required a really good acumen to solve. Sure it was easy to learn the formulas, but in order to know which one to utilize and where exactly, required a higher level of consolidation. Even Physics - which I have a steep inclination towards - busted me. Chemistry’s first chapter was Quantum Mechanics. Even though the chapter’s problems were a bit rigorous, I later endorsed this section as being my favourite.

I planned to finish each chapter in 10 days. But oh boy, even at the end of December, I hadn’t completed single chapter in PCM. It was pretty demoralizing to hear that my friends back in India, were studying 16 hours every week, at these top notch coaching institutions (Narayana, Ashok, and tones others in Delhi etc). It was then time to go into emergency mode. I started making black coffee every day, and used to gulp it down 3 times a day, hoping to cut down on my sleep time to like 4 hours, and study the IIT courses as if the world is going to end today. Eventually (about 5 days after), my mother noticed some very odd things with me. Like how dark circles started appearing under my eyes, and how I became very grumpy with anything. Once my Dad came to the kitchen for a glass of water, and noticing light emanating from my room, he came inside to see. Apparently I was slouched on my desk with all my books sprawled over the table, and with a pen grasped in my hands. So yeah, that was when my parents advised me to stop preparing for the IIT-JEE, and so that was what I did.

IIT dream ka-boom?

Naah, around March I figured out that I can finish all the sets, if I managed 12 pages a day. And so, like a phoenix shooting up from its ashes, my IIT hope rekindled. But now, it wasn’t only IIT – there was school to worry about. It required great commitment, and my Dad warned me against it.

It wasn’t really bad the first month, even though I had to redo all the stuff I did in December, because I found out that my long term memory had a lifespan of a few nanoseconds J

But all that learning had taken its toll on my exams. My June exams went really bad. I was given a long lecture from my father, with all the usual drama associated with such incidents. Like how he clutched his chest with his hand and said to me – “Ishwar, give me an explanation about your bad results, because it is really affecting my health. You knew that I am under medication for high BP, and yet you caused me this pain.” He was upset for a couple of days, and until then I had kept my profile low in the household.

It was around July, that my mother’s friend told us that they are sending her daughter to Canada. Actually until this point of time, I didn’t really plan to study abroad. But the more I pondered about it, the more I liked the prospectus. Yeah, forget the IIT rat race because it’s so much easier to get into a reputed university in the US or Australia. But the huge expenses associated with it daunted me. It’s going to cost about Rs 50 lacs for a 4 year undergrad course at University of Sydney. By the way, I wish to pursue Aerospace engineering.

I heard that the girl who went to Canada went on part scholarship. So maybe can I try for some too? But oh, where to start looking? It was sometime around my trials (pre-boards in Indian lingo) that I found out about Lexi, a girl in my class who was also quite interested in going to the US for higher studies. Around that time, my father paid a visit to the American Consul General in Durban to ask him more about studying in America. So far so cool. But after coming home, my Dad told me that studying in America seemed a viable option for me. He told me that it is possible to obtain a loan to finance my education. What? No ways! I don’t want start my career off with a Rs 1 crore debt! He also told me that American Universities are offering countless athletic scholarships. Ah what great news, if only I could transform these lean biceps of mine into something beefy and if only I could run a mile under 4 minutes. So no entry there. It seems that academics are the only way I can prove my mettle.

Anyways, after talking to Lexi, I found out that I have to write some SAT test. She was also going to attend an information evening at the American Consulate, so I figured that I could also go there. I had to ask my school counselor for the phone number of the lady in charge at the consulate. I called her and the first question I asked her was about the scholarship opportunities. Scholarships are there, and so that was enough to motivate me to go to see the seminar.

The security at the American Consulate is enviable….or not. I was actually quite mesmerized by all the high-tech gadgetry and the technical hocus-pocus. The consulate was located at the 30^th floor of a building in the CBD of Durban. At the ground floor, there was a special entry point for the visitors to the consulate. I was told by a security guard to face a camera, where a picture of my face would be taken. That was hurdle number 1.

From the ground floor, I had to take a lift to the 30^th floor. At the entrance of the Consulate, I was told to wait outside a bulletproof barrier, by another security guard. The guard came out, and asked me what I wanted. I told him that I wished to attend the EducationUSA seminar. With a hint of suspicion he took out a printed list of names and asked me for my name. I told him, and I saw him ticking off my name from the list. All this time, I was technically outside the office. He then led me through the bullet-proof glass door, and asked me for my ID card. I told him that I didn’t have one and gave him my passport instead. He flicked it open and smiled. “Oh, you are related to the man who came here yesterday?” Yeah, that’s right, but could you please let me through, I’m a bit late you know? Didn’t say that, but that was what I would have screamed out. I was told to switch off any cellphones and put them in a locker. I was also instructed to hand in any sharp items and any firearms. Yeah, like they really expected me to carry a gun in my backpack to school everyday, and pow-pow anyone that gets on my nerves. A couple of my teachers would have been non-existent if I was allowed. After signing the registry, I was let through into the library. It wasn’t a great one though. I saw a map of USA hung on a wall, and there were a couple of shelves with books. All from America I suppose. The Indian Consulate’s one is so much bigger. There weren’t many people in the library. About 15 I’d say. Fortunately, I wasn’t in a American consulate in India, where the room would probably be packed with prospective students. The building overlooked the Durban harbour, and the views from the 30^th floor were spectacular.

A cheery woman, maybe in her 50s came through a door, and welcomed us all. She introduced herself as Ms. Susan Knowles, and led us into a conference room. There I found out more about studying in the USA. Although the seminar was meant for prospective South Africans, it wasn’t difficult to comprehend in terms of my Indian perspective. I found out that it would be difficult to pursue medicine in the United States, because one would be required to do a 4 year premed course first and then do a full scale MD program. Yes I know, very expensive, both economically and also in the time spent. Also accounting would not be a good idea, because the Americans use a different format, and that format is not acceptable anywhere else in the world. Interestingly she left the cost of the education right till the end. “Education in the USA is very expensive”, she said. “It might cost anywhere between $30000 and $50000 per year”. This is of course including the tuition and ancillary fees and the basic cost of living. This is ridiculous, let me ask about scholarships, and this is what I did. “There are a limited number of scholarships available, but these are usually for people who are academically strong, and who also possess some leadership skills”. “I also advise you to not to apply to top-ranking institutions only, as there are many universities which are lesser known, but offer high quality education”. This is so true; see my tips on going abroad to study. She also mentioned the SAT tests. Most major institutions require your scores from the SAT, because it allows them to assess the quality of education that has been offered to you while you were in high school. But as Susan said, that’s not the only aspect they focus on. It is divided into 3 sections – Critical Reading, Math and writing. Apparently the sections Critical Reading and Math it are indicators of how well you think. The writing section is just there so the colleges know that you can write good English. In fact many colleges only look at your combined CR and Math score. At the end of the seminar, we were offered a free EducationUSA CD, a book by Peterson’s – Applying to Colleges and Universities in the United State. In fact this book proved very useful in my American college search, and I advise you to get one from the local American Consulate.
I later registered for the SAT reasoning test for October 6, somewhere in September. My best advice is that you register for at least 2 consecutive SATs. The first test gives you an experience of the test conditions, and while writing it, you do know that there is the safety of the next test. Nothing can replicate the actual test conditions, I experienced this first hand. On the day of the test, you should pay careful attention to all the instructions read out by the proctor. I didn’t know that different people get different sets of test, and when I was doing my maths section, I looked over to, Lexi’s question set and saw that she was doing an English section. I looked to my left and I saw another person doing English too. It seemed that I was the only one doing Math. I totally freaked out, I thought that I was doing something wrong. I panicked and failed to finish that section. Don’t let this happen to you. Prepare well in advance, and as I said, let the first SAT be your “practice test”. But don’t let this feeling make you think that you shouldn’t do your best in the test. Most colleges take your highest scores in each section, so it is a good idea to always do your best wherever you can. Suppose you wrote 2 SATs and you got the following scores:

	1st SAT	2nd SAT
Critical Reading	600	620
Mathematics	660	710
Writing	590	570

After taking the best scores, the Admissions officer would produce something like this:

SAT scores

CR 620

Math 710

Writing 590

Anyway I didn’t plan to write another SAT reasoning test, and I ended up screwing up my first test, and writing the next one as a standby, wasting about $40 in the process. When I came to write the standby test, the person in charge freaked me, by saying that there was no place left for me to write. But soon it was resolved and she did get me a paper, and I did write it. Scores are usually not supposed to improve from the first test to the 2^nd, and mine didn’t really improve much. But I improved my math by 100 points (went up from 660 to 760!). Don’t let the seemingly elementary content of the mathematics section fool you. The idea is to measure how critically you think. That’s why the multiple choices are sprinkled with “booby traps”, to make you immediately jump to the wrong answer. When you near the end of each math section, you should always double check that you have read the question properly, and make sure that you don’t fall for any dead easy answers.

And the best way to prepare for the SATs is by learning to answer the different types of questions. Obviously, you don’t know what’s going to come up on the test day, but what you can try to do is to master what type of question content is going to come up. Get a SAT prep book, and work on it religiously for at least 3 months. Usually these books provide you with a study schedule. My best advice is that you should stick to it as much you can. Also practice full length SAT tests as much as you can. Practice at least 6 full length tests. Bring your practice test conditions as close as possible to the actual test conditions. In this way, you won’t be in for any nasty surprises at the test centre. Remember that SAT is an important but not the only factor in the admissions process. Getting combined SAT score of 2100+ can assure you a considerable amount of scholarship in universities which are moderately difficult to get into (like Purdue, Embry-Riddle, Florida Institute). Most Ivy League colleges look for 2200+. Lower ranking Ivy Leagues like Cornell and Dartmouth look for around 1400+ for CR and Math composite.

I also finished writing the SAT subject tests on December 1^st. I wrote them in Maths Level 2, Physics and Chemistry. Most universities do not even look at your SAT subject scores. SAT reasoning test is usually the most important. It is mainly the top 20 universities in the United States which require your SAT subject test scores. Princeton requires 3 subject tests in 3 different areas. I know it is ridiculous but I could not help but write the subject tests in Physics and Chemistry. I couldn’t write any other subject test because I do not do French, History and other languages. There was the option of literature, but it required at least a good background in English in order to do well in it.

Admission criterions in US universities are usually based on:

Academics (most important)

SAT scores (most important, although some universities do not require them. Scholarships and Financial aid are based on your SAT scores.)

Teacher Recommendations (important)

Essays (These are usually required by the top institutions, often it can be a deciding factor between 2 equally qualified applicants.)

Leadership and Extra curricular activities. (Important in some universities. Especially in the Ivy Leagues)

TOEFL or IELTS (required for non-English speakers. I know that some institutions can waive the requirement if you get a good SAT Critical Reading score. Purdue requires 480. Embry-Riddle requires 420.)

I also got a chance to meet a person from the US here in Durban at the SAT test centre. While conversing with him, I found out that it is quite easy for a qualified international student to get admission in a reputed college in the US. Cornell and Dartmouth, UCSD, U of Mich., Purdue are wanting international students. A good CR and Math score and a good essay from you can assure your place. You would need at least something over 700 in either CR or Math and at least somewhere in the 600s in the other. For financial aid, you would need a definite 800, and prove that you have achieved something in your high school and demonstrate really exceptional qualities.

Right now, I’m hoping for the best from the colleges I have applied to. Watch out for more posts by me that detail what I did for each college I applied to. Also I did not mention here what I did for Australian and Canadian Universities. Watch out for what I did for those too. I will provide extensive tips for everything from the SATs to the teacher recommendations.

यह दिल, यह पागल दिल मेरा....

Here are the lyrics in Devanagiri script of my favourite ghazal by Ustad Ghulam Ali : Yeh dil, yeh paagal dil mera.

The lyrics are by Mohsin Naqavi. By just reading the beautiful lyrics, one is transported to a world of a devine order. It is very nostalgic to me.

यह दिल यह पागल दिल मेरा क्यों बुझ गया आवारगी इस दष्ट मे एक शहर था वह क्या हुआ । आवारगी

कल शब मुझे बेशक्ल कि आवाज़ ने चौनका दिया मैंने कहा तू कौन है। उसने कहा आवारगी। एस दष्ट मे एक शहर था वह क्या हुआ । आवारगी

एक तू के सदियों से मेरे हमराह भी हमराह भी। एक मे की तेरी नाम कि नाम से ना-शाना आवारगी इस दष्ट मे एक शहर था वह क्या हुआ। आवारगी

यह दर्द की तन्हाइयां यह दष्ट का वीरा सफर हम लोग तो उकता गए अपनी सुना आवारगी इस दष्ट मे एक शहर था वह क्या हुआ। आवारगी

अजनबी झोंके ने जब पूछा मेरे गम का सबब। सेहरा की भीगी रेत पर मैंने लिखा आवारगी । इस दष्ट मे एक शहर था वह क्या हुआ । आवारगी

ले अब तो दष्ट -ए -शब की सारी वुसाते सोने लगी। अब जागना होगा हमे कब तक बता आवारगी इस दष्ट मे एक शहर था वह क्या हुआ । आवारगी

कल रात तनहा चाँद को देखा था मैंने ख्वाब मे “मोहसिन” मुझे रास आएगी शायद सदा आवारगी

यह दिल यह पागल दिल मेरा क्यों बुझ गया आवारगी इस दष्ट मे एक शहर था वह क्या हुआ ॥ आवारगी ॥

Notice how मोहसिन which is the name of the lyricist, comes up in the 2nd to last sher?
It is a ghazal tradition to discretely mention the name of the ghazal writer in somewhere in the shers

Happens only in India

This is hilarious. Obviously the workman is too illiterate to realize that gas cylinders are meant to be handle with extreme caution.