As I ponder...you wonder!

A Message

2012-01-29T22:54:00.001+05:30

I come from a family which is extremely well-knit and close. Each member has his or her own ideals, habits, idiosyncrasies and characteristics which have endeared them to the rest of the family.
Yet, each one of us is singularly different. Each one of us has something unique which adds that bit of 'extra' to our family.
My sister brings her compassion; my father his patience; my mother her impatience; my aunts bring their exuberance; my uncle brings his cheerfulness; my baby brother brings his mischievousness; my cousin sister adds life to just about anything...

Having said that, I know for a fact there is one person who is the most different from us all - and it is this difference that makes him the most beloved in our family.

He is my brother.
I don't like to think of him as merely my 'cousin', because he is more than that to me.

Right from the time when I was in mother's womb I guess, I've loved him. Although, I don't say it enough to him, I know he knows the place and importance he has in my life.

Along with him I have had the most wonderful adventures, bike-rides, junior-college embarrassments (what with my friends swooning at the sight of him), chinese take-out binges...memories that I will always always treasure.

Today, when he's at the brink of realising his dream (a dream even I have dreamed for many many years just for him), I just want to tell him this,

You gave me the courage to always smile

You gave me the spirit to conquer every mile

Yet, today I wish that you would see,

You are 'courage' and 'spirit' for me

Times may befall upon us hard

But together we can scale the highest bar

I am here for you my darling brother

Love always, your beloved sister...

Transition

2012-01-01T11:50:00.001+05:30

2011,

As awesome, deadly, heart-breaking, heart-warming, tear-wrenching as you have been, you were most definitely one of the best years ever!

Why? You ask...

You gave me Zindagi Na Milegi Dobaara, Rockstar; you put the soul back into A.R. Rahman; you gave me Anna Hazare (fortunate or unfortunate I don't quite want to go down that path); you made us World Champions only to lose sorely to England (well that that was unfortunate); you gave my life a new purpose altogether (all 6 ft. of him); you gave me a new family; new memories to treasure...

There's been so much that has happened!

2012,

You'll have a tough time beating your predecessor!

But I've got my money on you ;)

Copywriter Files - Spoke too soon!

2011-12-30T15:42:00.002+05:30

I was just beginning to like the quiet when,

TRRRINNGG TRRRINNNGGG!!!

"...yes I know it's last minute. But I need a New Year Card asap."

(after 20 minutes or so)

"...actually, on second thoughts let it be!"

This time, I'm smarter sucker! I didn't even move a muscle and start with your card. Bwahahahahahhahahaaa...

Oh wait, jerk! You're on a holiday!

Grrrrrrr...

Copywriter Files - New Year Resolution

2011-12-28T11:06:00.003+05:30

I pledge to not take anymore crap from clients, marketing 'geniuses' and other people who think they might know wayyyyy better English than me.

Further, I also wow to not try my hand at 'coming up with something different'.

Alas! No wonder New Year Resolutions are always broken.

Copywriter Files - Role Play

2011-12-27T21:45:00.000+05:30

"Hi Sir. We just saw the hoarding on the express highway. It looks good."

"Hmmm...I still need you to negotiate the cost. Please speak to the publicity person and get the rates down to a more acceptable figure."

"Ummm...Sir, actually I am the copywriter. Our servicing person will get in touch with you."

"No need for that. Tum baat kar lo publicity walon se. Copywriter ho ya servicing banda, dono toh ek hi agency se hain!" (You speak to the publicity person. Copywriter or Servicing person, both are from the agency only.)

"Right Sir."

wondering whether he's a simian!

Copywriter Files - 'Something Different'

2011-12-27T21:36:00.001+05:30

"Can we try something different this time?"

Absolutely Madam. How about my foot in your mouth?

Now that's effective communication.

Copywriter Files - Wretched New Year

2011-12-27T21:31:00.002+05:30

"So, are you working on New Year's?"

"No Sir. It falls on Sunday this year! But we are working from Monday onwards."

"Ohhooo...too bad yaar! I am going on a holiday to Sri Lanka. Will come back only on January 9."

(thinking to myself)

Too bad you won't drown in the Indian Ocean.

"Have a great holiday Sir."

Or not!

Copywriter Files - Laawaris Brief

2011-12-21T12:38:00.000+05:30

"This is the client's brief. He doesn't like any branded communication."

(guy next to me asks)

"Bhikhaari hain kya?"

*run to the bathroom to lmao.

Copywriter Files - Occupational Hazards

2011-12-21T12:25:00.004+05:30

"For every word you have used in the copy, I want the meaning for it mentioned in your mail."

"Sure Sir!"

"...also give me your mobile number. I can contact you directly for changes. I'm sure you know the softwares used."

"Absolutely Sir!"

*for every action, there is an equal, opposite and inopportune reaction.

Copywriter files - 'Self Slaughter'

2011-12-20T18:34:00.004+05:30

"Yes Ma'am, I am just completing the write-up. Oh what's that? You've sent me another line of thought that your daughter liked and you want me to develop that too?
Sure I'll work on that one too. Is there anything else I can help you with?"

(client thinks for a nanosecond)

"Yes! I can help you with your husband's 50th Birthday Card."

*the gun was just a little far away!

Copywriter files

2011-12-20T18:23:00.000+05:30

Every word you use (even in speech), has to be creative or else you're just an out-of-work individual who's only way of earning a livelihood is by writing together nonsensical parts of speech!

*but who's complaining here?

Imagination

2011-11-10T11:29:00.000+05:30

...the deep dark recesses of the forests were unexplored terrain. The desire to tread further was burning from within, yet the fear of the unknown was also lurking around the corner.

But that's when a thought burst onto the forefront. What if instead of roaring and eating your head off, the lion smiled like Mufasa (Lion King) and his little cub Simba came along to play with you?

---

...the paper was the last one. The subject of mathematics wouldn't even haunt her in her dreams from now on. And yet again, thoughts began to sprout. The numbers started dancing on her answersheet. Were they giving her the right answer? Did she just have to mark that one on the OMR sheet? Who could tell really!

---

...imagination. The fickle friend who makes a mockery of reality. And is still arrogant enough to always rear its 'pretty' head every time I'm in a bit of a pickle; and sometimes just for the fun of it. And that's what I really love about the riotous brainwaves that keep springing about inside my head. For how else can we escape the seemingly monotonous drudgery that we sometimes lead as lives? Transporting to yourself to a land of make-believe isn't all that bad is it?

And yet, if you notice, invariably your imagination is merely a more convoluted version of reality. In the sense, I don't think after the age of 5 years I ever thought I was a princess. Yes, I still dream about being one. But I don't imagine being a princess.

So is there a subtle difference underlying here? Between dreams and imagination?

Reality grounds you with a resounding thwack when you land on your bottom.

But the imagination lets you have a cushion just to safeguard your bottom.

Oh the beauty that is imagination!

Sometimes...just sometimes...

I feel that the people I see outside will disappear as soon as I go back inside (home/office/gym)

The obscenely heavy weights that I'm forced to lift will magically turn to dust when I touch them

My computer in office is actually a piece of trash (Oh wait! That may be the reality.)

Hogwarts isn't just J. K. Rowling's imagination

I eat all the chocolates, desserts, pastries in the world and somebody else gains all the weight. At the same time they workout like crazy and I lose all the weight. (Mutually beneficial society I'd like to call it).

I just think of slapping somebody and then the Hand of God smacks them. THWAACCKK!

My Fairy Godmother is actually me! (Well that's my belief)

Rhett Butler would really give a damn (about me anyway)

---

Unbroken...

2011-09-21T11:42:00.004+05:30

In the stunning silence of the night, as I walked down the broken road, I feared nothing; I wanted it to engulf me. Consume my core and never relinquish its control.

For I had nothing to live for. Everything had ended, it looked like that, felt like that. And I had no wanting to change that. I knew I could if I wanted to but the will to do so had long deserted me. I wonted for nothing now.

Life seemed a sham.

I trudged down the winding road. Not knowing where it would lead to, but welcoming the mystery.
The light came then. Shone in a mere haze, but enough to pull me forth. I welcomed its dim warmth as it poured through me, lightly filling my head with thoughts of balmy afternoons and orange twilights. It rolled into my thoughts, pounding out the misery and lent a new rhythm to my step. I changed my course unknowingly, my thoughts wandering in a new direction.

And before I knew it, I was back to where I started from. Only this time something was different.

I wasn't alone.

The light had followed me and was now resonating from within.

The bane of a copywriter

2011-09-14T14:47:00.000+05:30

It is always a nightmare. The rants and barbs shared between a copywriter and the inventor of the English language are incomparable to any other grievance. Not only can we not do anything about the said grievance, but it just seems to get aggravated by the very minute.

Almost everyday a new word, a new phrase, a new style comes into the picture/usage by some anal weirdo sitting in some godforsaken dungeon in Waterloo for all I know.

Surprisingly enough, clients who are usually nimwits and aren't abreast with regular news are quick to grab onto these lose tidbits.

And then the call comes, "Hi! I was thinking may be we can try something new. I'd seen this thing online and I want you to incooperate it."

Do you see my dilemma?

How do I explain it to the poor chap that I am sick of trying something new every time for your old, deteriorating and almost dead product; and that I don't want to 'incooperate' the said 'thing' he saw online?

My grievances are aplenty when it comes to writing copy. But where to start is the question. For instance should there be a logical sequence? Should I adhere to certain standards set earlier? In short, is there a set way to write copy for a regular no-brainer of an ad?

The simple answer is, NO. There isn't a set way.

Why? you ask...it is essentially because of:

The douche who decided to have American English and British English.

Colour is NOT color

Favourite is NOT favorite

Centre is NOT center

(the red line has decided to make its annoying appearance)

The confusion with 's' and 'z' is another matter entirely.

(Now there is an advantage to this too. If ever you make a mistake in your proof reading, you can always tell the client, "that is the american way of spelling".)

The dilemma of the comma and the semi-colon.

Aaahh yes! This one I really hate.

"Arre woh semi-colon hatake comma laga do!" (Remove that semi-colon and put a comma there.)

Dude seriously! Wouldn't I know the correct usage?

Just when I start thinking that the client shoots the next one.

Brand Standards

This is their arsenal. Literally.

Apparently one particular brand standards dossier strictly forbade the use of semi-colons. So we are stuck with obnoxiously long sentences and breathing problems.

This one is also a very convenient and handy dismissing tool for the client.

"Oh this is against our brand standards. Please take this off!"

Madam, I would have obviously read your brand standards (pinned it to memory) and only then written even an article for you right.

But who is going to explain this to the client?

The 'Dumb' end-user

Okay this one I seriously do not get! Don't all management books and bibles preach that the end-user is the intelligent one? So am I not technically writing for him?

So if he is smart then where is the problem? I'm not trying to prove that you're dumb and your consumer is intelligent.

Oh wait! May be I am.

The feminist client

I have actually come to like these cuties. "Please make the he a she" is a common one I get.

And why should I correct you here. I am a she too ;)

The servicing guy/girl

Can you for once just trust me and send this to the client?

No!

Instead, you make me edit the copy to suit you and send it to the client only to come back the next day saying "Yaar woh pehle jo likha tha woh hi bhej de!" (Whatever you had written earlier, just send that only.)

I don't think any copywriter will ever be able to overcome this hurdle.

Options

Oh yes! I have sent you 4 options apart from the 5 I had sent you earlier. Yet I totally understand your need for more options. After all, the earlier 9 I had written were gibberish.

So wait, I'll send you some more. I am after all a go-down for 'options'

And the ultimate 'The Brief'

Apparently this can change more number of times than you change your actual briefs in a day.

Nevertheless, I am duty-bound to come up with a new concept every 2 hours.

...

It sometimes is the best job in the world no doubt. But there are times when you wish you can just punch your fist straight into the monitor or the guy next to you!

No street light - PMC wants to become a mass murderer!

2011-09-05T21:30:00.000+05:30

Now reading the title to this post is going to raise many an eyebrow I am sure. But I am hard pressed to use such an obviously deviant title so to speak.

It's true and if you lived in Pune you will know exactly where I am coming from and what I'm talking about. Far from being worried about the potholes and malfunctioning signals at every nook of the city, the scarcity of street lights are a cause for worry for a lot many of us living in this supposedly developing city.

Nothing and I repeat nothing is being done to increase the number of street lights around the city. Roads are being widened by the hour (with as usual no proper demarcation for a divider) and with absolutely no street-lights on any of these new roads.

Repeated letters to editors of various newspapers and tabloids have gone unnoticed and nobody seems to want to take a step towards making the roads safer. One of the worst stretches of dark roads I've been on is the Viman Nagar main road. Not only are the dividers an abysmal name for what can only be called a handful of rocks, but the absence of street lights is a positive death trap waiting to snap its jaws at a poor traveler.

Buses and trucks travel at break-neck speeds and the only sufferer is the poor two-wheeler who unknowingly either rams into the 'divider' or gets hit in the back by the bus / truck.
And don't even get me started on the headlights some of the cars have. I mean are they installed with the express purpose of blinding anyone who so much as looks at the car???

What I can't seem to understand is where does all the supposed road development and infrastructure cess or tax levied go? Into some official's pockets no doubt.

This is really a growing issue we need to address folks. Please do something about this. Share this link with your friends, parents, families, neighbours...whoever you can find. Let's make this happen.

We need more streetlights!

And possibly lesser consumption of electricity on billboards and the flex-decorated walls of some newly developed or upcoming building.

Yesterday...Today...Tomorrow... (In the face of corruption)

2011-08-21T21:10:00.004+05:30

A nation that is in a perennial state of turmoil and duress; this has always been the story of India. Yet in all the years of its independent existence, India has never seen an uprising so immensely 'revolutionary' (as those part of it laud it as). A nation which is on all-fours and even bent backwards; you couldn't find a more precarious or awkward situation ever.

In the past, as a principle we have been a country, a nation, a state; that has survived and overcome insurmountable odds. From the peripherals though, we appear disgruntled, distant and sometimes even a little irritable. When questioned about the way we are, invariably talks have turned to our 'rich and varied heritage'. As independent as India is, we are still not free from the burden we carry of our past.

Today is no different. Given the country is in mass protests- but there is widespread confusion and disillusionment looms on the horizon for most of us. As once again we are reminded about a past. A past in which a hero rose to lead the nation to independence. A Mahatma propelled a down-trodden and debt-addled India towards freedom. Today, we find ourselves in the midst of a self-proclaimed Mahatma. Granted he has practically half the nation in support of him, but I realised one very important thing a few days ago. Almost half the people out on the streets crying slogans do not know what they are supporting.

Jan Lokpal Bill - said to rid the nation of corruption by having a Lokpal (an autonomous entity at the national level) and a Lokayukta (an autonomous entity at the state level to eradicate corruption). Now in a country like India, where absolute power comes with the territory and almost always corrupts absolutely; how long before this autonomous entity (who is most likely above the Prime Minister and President) will fall corrupt?

Sovereign | Socialist | Secular | Democratic | Republic

The words stand tall and powerful in the preamble of our constitution. The world's largest democracy however, today stands on the brink of being diagnosed with juvenile delinquency.

A fight against corruption is what the revolution is being touted as.

Yes. We want to fight, we want to rid our nation of this filthy ideology; but slandering the present 'elected representatives' is the way forward?

So what if Sonia Gandhi is an Italilan? So what if she has only cleared the 5th grade? Do you doubt her intention or her dedication towards our nation? So what if Rahul Gandhi has a Columbian or Bolivian or some other nationality girl-friend? That never stopped you from touting him as the most eligible bachelor in India for God alone knows how many years!

And if they really are such an eye-sore, then why the bloody hell did you vote for them?

Oh wait a minute. You didn't vote right! And now you regret not voting? Or are you the cynical degenerate who thinks that nothing will happen or change no matter if you vote or not?

If you do belong to the latter, then trust me, you really shouldn't be supporting the movement or even partaking in the rally.

Understand what is being asked of the government. Dissolving a Republic form of government isn't what the forefathers of our constitution envisaged. And constant upgradation in the form constitutional amendments aren't in the best interests of our nation.

In 61 years of its existence, the constitution of India has been amended 94 times.

(In the 224 years of its existence, the constitution of the United States has been amended 27 times).

Which kind of makes one wonder - will we have any similarity in the constitution of January 26, 1950 and the constitution of January 26, 2174?

*I am not against the fight against corruption. My point of view differs such that I believe we have a fundamental duty to respect our constitution and its salient features. As flexible as it may be, we cannot fail to understand its intricacies and therefore decide to do away with said intricacy.*

I want the black money stashed away in foreign banks to be brought back as much as you do. I want to see my nation stand tall as a financial super power just like you do. But I seriously cannot see this bill going down well. I am the youth, I belong to a nation which may be progressing with caution and stealth (therefore may appear slow) yet is being hailed as the next super power. I am proud to be an Indian.

Which brings to my next point of argument. In the recent past (so I will address it as the present) I heard someone say, 'Hahh! She supports the Congress' and the saddest of the lot 'We are anti-congress, so we support the movement'.

This is the attitude, the prejudice, the malice. I am not 'pro' any political party, nor am I 'anti' any. But I vehemently disagree with the notion that corruption in our country is the Congress' sole doing. Not at all. I would consider you to be either ignorant or a blind fool if you thought otherwise.

You voted them, brought them to power...supported them...and now suddenly they are treated as felons or conspirators who should be shot down in their next rally?

Mature India? I think not!

In the wake of preparing for a better tomorrow, are we wiping out today? How will tomorrow surface then? Alone, desolate and possibly even more corrupt than today?

I supported Anna Hazare when he first burst on to the forefront of the Indian revolutionary scene. I condoned everything that was said and lent my voice to the movement. But today, the idiosyncrasy of it all is so blatantly visible.

By proclaiming to be a modern day Mahatma Gandhi; and by calling the movement 'the second freedom struggle', how are you contributing towards the progress of the nation? The cynic in me puts this all down to a publicity gimmick. Why else would you have Baba Ramdev or Sri Sri Ravi Shankar in support? Their followers would be enough of a voice.

I know I am going to face a lot of angry comments and wrath from a lot of you when you read this, but just stop and think just once...

Burning the first draft of the bill in public as though it were some silly invoice from a flea market is the mark of maturity? Is it the mark of a Mahatma?

Satyagraha was a principle which led to years of oppression and torment and the final result of peace and independence. Are we as a nation willing to wait out this untenable waiting period? Passive resistance...is it not a past ideology that we are trying to weave into a present and future which are a lot different circumstantially?

I want to find the answers too.

Hurry up and come back!

2011-08-05T10:59:00.005+05:30

Midnight epiphanies are not my kinda thing. Hence I wouldn't call what I am about to tell you, an epiphany.

Last night was quite a depressing night for me as it wore on. I started off with my usual routine. Dad and I saw White Collar and a truly depressing soap on Sony (Bade Achhe Lagte Hain). Don't judge me for watching it. The cast was what initially pulled me towards it. But now, it's like a gag-fest every 2 minutes. After skimming through a 30minutes' soap in under 5mins (thank God for Tata Sky), I switched over Two and a Half Men.

With Neal Caffrey (White Collar) and Charlie Harper (Two and a Half Men) playing havoc with my already hormone-driven mind, I changed into my night-clothes and got into bed; ready to work through the night.

However, as the night wore on a grim feeling was cast over me. And I suddenly realised the cause of my depression.

My baby sister wasn't home.

Now ordinarily, had she been there I wouldn't have been able to stay up beyond 12midnight. But with her not at home last night, even at 2am in the night I was awake and beady-eyed.

I just couldn't wrap my head around the fact that she wasn't there sleeping next to me. Come to think of it, my baby sister is actually my security blanket. With her around, I don't think twice about turning the bed-side lamp off. But last night, I couldn't turn it off. I even had my laptop plugged in so that the feeling of loneliness would leave me.

That though, didn't happen. So I texted her at 2am saying, 'Miss you Bum :( :* '

I have never really allowed myself to feel this way. But now when I look back, I realise that whenever my baby sister goes for a sleepover, the bed-side lamp remains turned on until 6.30 in the morning; when dad comes to wake me up.

----

I know she's going to get all misty-eyed when she reads this. But she knows me well enough to know that this is the only I can express myself - words. They come easily to me.

I now understand why my parents wanted me to have a sibling after 7 years of being lonely (not that I realised it then). Today, I'd like to thank them for giving me a baby sister, who for all intents and purposes is not just my sister; she's my friend, my guardian angel, my security blanket; she bosses me around, mothers me half the time, scares the shit out of me at most times, tells me my sense of dressing is pathetic; saves the last 2 marzorin sandwiches for me, goes and watches TV inside if I'm watching something on the one outside..and above all, sleeps in a pink room that has (by default) curtains and bedsheets which almost match the colour of the walls; when actually her favourite colour is blue.

Love you Niksuuu... you have no idea how much!

Mmmmwaaaahhhhh

Bum

WARNING/WANTED...homonyms and synonyms

2011-07-26T10:59:00.004+05:30

MARRIAGE: the dreaded 8-letter word which seems to be hovering above my head for reasons unknown (if you don't count that I am 23, the obvious marriageable age for a malayali girl), is now becoming a condition which is only giving way to histrionics in my family (immediate and extended).

The fever which has lasted nearly two years now is almost maniacal at times and is sometimes missed when its not shooting mercury levels. Both mum and dad seem to have their own timings when it comes to missing the fever, though I must say that mum favours it the most (although she will never let on).

For strange reasons now, I find this fever becoming a part of my everyday existence; what with it lasting nearly two years now anyone will think so. I am only human after all. And a girl at that. A girl who has grown up reading about tall dark and handsome strangers, charming and chivalrous.

But as unfortunate as it is, mallu boys bearing all the the above-mentioned attributes are rare to find. Dark yes, charming and chivalrous I have no clue about.

And as for being tall and handsome, all I can do is sigh in utter sadness. The matrimonial sites are helpful at times but can also be a girl's worst nemesis. Really, some of them are so weird, that I only get goosebumps every time I see one.

And for God's sake if you have your photo on a matrimony site would you please be kind enough to not put up any photos with you being surrounded by a bunch of girls? I for one have no problem, but at least don't show your true colours to the rest of my family just yet.

I am not shallow here and trying to say that I want a good-looking and strikingly handsome husband. Let's face it. I'm no Aishwarya Rai.

But that doesn't mean I can't wish for an Abhishek Bachchan or a Hrithik Roshan (and if they were horses, wouldn't I ride them).

On an average, in a week mum calls me to the bedroom at least thrice to see some boy's photo on the matrimonial site. Fortunately, I have an immediate screening process embedded in my younger sister. Knowing exactly the kind of person I want, she scans the photos mum has shortlisted. Sometimes she hollers out, 'Bum come and see' and most of the other times I can hear her tell mum, 'Have you gone mad?'

Dad of course places himself above all this. But still there are times when even he calls me in and together they both wait with baited breath to know my response.

Sometimes though I wish the matrimonial sites weren't in existence. The thought of being swept away in love by a handsome and mysterious stranger is all but throttled because of these sites. I may not want to go looking for somebody anymore, but who is to say that there could be somebody who is looking for me. I really don't want a random site to triumph and leave me to utter the typical words of a Yash Chopra movie, 'meri kahaani adhoori reh gayi'.

Then again, as corny as it sounds, 'Picture abhi baaki hain mere dost!'

Bollywood Masala

2011-07-17T23:48:00.003+05:30

Words are perhaps the most profound and remarkable gifts bestowed upon the human race. Communication through the ages has sought various languages and its words to express. To use the words freely and however we please is somewhat of a right we have always felt is ours and have left no stone unturned in mangling it every so often.

Bollywood these days seems no different. While the order of the day is to write lyrics which are quite 'hat ke', but somewhere really the essence of music seems to be getting lost. Item numbers have always had a way of being visually 'hat ke' and different (in the years gone by). However, today it is not just an item number which may have content which is not just crass but sometimes so degrading that all one feels like doing is burn down the radio.

Gulzar Saab prides himself on being a master at writing 'rubbish lyrics' as he puts it. Yet, even in his rubbish lyrics the musical element is never truly lost.

Songs like "Pappu Can't Dance Saala", "Munni Badnaam Hui", "Character Dheela Hain", have made quite their own space in our hearts and playlists.With D. K. Bose still making a run for it, the lyrics have still (I would say) managed to hold the essence of the music and communication. Sometimes rubbish lyrics have a way of making sense and reaching out to people even better than regular and sensible lyrics.

But every now and then, a certain song is heard which literally makes you wonder what kind of mental trauma was the lyricist going through when he was penning down the words for this particular song.

One such song which comes to mind (in fact I heard it on the radio, not too long back) is 'Pyaar Do Pyaar Lo' from the movie Thank You.

I don't wish to torture you with its profane lyrics for too long, so just pasting a small snippet here:

Gul batti kamre ki ho jayee toh ...toh...toh pyaar do pyaar lo..
Arey bechain dil tharkii ho jaye toh..pyaar do pyar lo

Benamak pe asar ,daal jaisi agar
Ghar ki murgi aa jaye toh
pyaar do pyaar lo...

The lyrics are so pathetically repulsive that I had to literally stop myself from gagging.

I'm not saying that I don't approve of profanity in the lyrics. But still there is a certain style and class which can always be maintained. Even asking Ganpat to bring Daaru wasn't defiling music in anyway.

But this...bechain dil tharki ho jaye????????

Is this really what music is becoming?? With new-age music discoveries and prodigies like Ram Sampath (of D. K. Bose and Jaa Chudail fame), do we still need to have wannabeish lyrics? The censor-board doesn't seem to have a problem with these lyrics??? And to think, Bobby Deol and Akshay Kumar actually danced to such a number! Gaaagggg some more!!

Clearly, class is an attribute which only the rare few in Bollywood possess. The rest feel like a single salted popcorn (kernel) in a pack of just caramel.

When Lightning Struck

2011-07-15T23:14:00.005+05:30

Harry James Potter came into my life in the year 2000. I was a mini-miscreant of sorts with no interest in reading books at all. I never fancied myself as a reader until that eventful day came along when my mother forced me to go to Crossword and pick up a book on some 'Potter something', which was quite the rage.

Grudgingly I went that day. I still remember it as clearly as though it were yesterday. And that's how I remember the day I bought/got each of the 7 books.

The day Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows was released; my brothers, my sister and I woke up at 5am and walked down to Crossword (2.5kms at the very least) and were squeezed and pushed and shoved until we managed to grab ourselves a copy.

Every book taught me as much as it taught Harry, Hermione and Ron. I lived every adventure with them.

I felt the elation when Harry was sorted into Gryffindor House. I felt the anxiety and fear when they tried to get past Fluffy and down the trap-door. I felt the sheer disgust when before drinking the Polyjuice Potion, Ron cries, "Uugghhh! Essence of Crabbe!" I could sense the black dog watching me from behind the trees. I felt the wind in my hair as I rode Buckbeak for the first time. I felt the thrill of Quidditch during the World Cup and like every other girl, fell in love with Cedric Diggory. I cried my eyes out when Sirius died. I still have the slight stains on the pages of the book onto which my tears fell. I wanted to scratch Ron's eyes out for hurting Hermione. I was shocked when Snape kills Dumbledore. I could feel the bile and venom rising in my throat every time I heard 'Voldemort'. I wanted to tear Bellatrix limb by limb for torturing Neville's parents and killing Sirius. I felt my forehead burn every time Voldermort touched Harry. I loved Dobby (he was one of my favourites) and I cried when died. I fell in love with Harry when he engraved 'Free Elf' on Dobby's gravestone.

I felt the anger, hate, pain, hurt, fear, wonder, amazement, friendship, respect and above all LOVE.

I grew with Harry, Hermione and Ron. I learnt spells, I dreamed of my footsteps on The Marauder's Map, I saw my deepest desires in the Mirror of Erised...

Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson were perfect. In Ron's words, "Brilliant!"

As years went on, friends around me grew out of their 'Harry Potter phase'. I couldn't. I just couldn't.

Even now, after watching part 2 of The Deathly Hallows; the first thing I did after I came home was to take the first book from my shelf. Start all over again.

Thank you J. K. Rowling! Thank you for giving us Hogwarts. I still sometimes wish to rummage through my mother's old files in the hopes I'll find that letter which came for me on my eleventh birthday.

I'll never tire of reading about 'Lightning'.

...cos I know he never really will leave me. He'll be with me forever, in here (my heart).

<3 <3

PS: if I could, I'd want my patronus to be Dobby.

Love...in every moment!

2011-04-24T10:01:00.002+05:30

How often is it that you fall in love? How often does it happen that to show our appreciation/liking for something or someone, we use the word 'love'?

People say its an overused and over-abused word, 'LOVE'.

But think about it...is it?

I really don't think so. The word is such a poignant feeling, with its varied connotations and implied meanings that its usage is almost always justified.

Falling in love is another matter entirely. And yet, I wouldn't go very far in critiquing this phrase either. For yes, 'falling in love' also comes with a lot of implied meanings and sometimes (yes I'll give you sometimes) innuendos.

I fell all over in love with Shah Rukh Khan last evening when I was watching Kal Ho Naa Ho. Every scene in the movie led me to fall a little more in love with him.

It just mirrors the state of the heart, don't you think. So why unlove the word you've come to love so much?

My kids in school also have similar views on the usage of the word.

They tend to love every little thing around them in all their childhood innocence.

So why can't we be like that too? Why take the innocence away from the word which actually deep down inside (if we're honest to ourselves) we'll admit is the sole reason we all want to live on.

LOVE...its a beautiful word, its a lovely word.

It's Free Love Day tomorrow...so I urge all my lovely readers to a Draw a Heart on your wrist and change the world for the better.

I couldn't help myself from making lists again (something that I 'love' doing) ;)

So here goes...

----

I love:

1). Watching the stars just before going to bed every night (there's something about the stillness in them which engulfs my ever-hyper heart with peace)

2). Kissing my father goodnight (the hug I get from him in turn, assures me that nightmares can't even come dare to come close)

3). The carbon that sticks to my fingers after reading a newspaper

4). The smell of newly laundered clothes

5). Seeing new clothes in my closet

6). Going on long drives in the night, with music playing softly in the background

7). The colours I get to play with everyday (being an Art Teacher does give me that advantage over the others)

8). Each of my students, who in their own unique way light up my day everyday

9). Knowing that I can fall in love everyday (crash and burn sometimes and still have the courage to fall in love all over again)

----

Spread the LOVE...find it in every moment... :) <3

The When and The How

2011-04-18T13:41:00.004+05:30

I've spent most of my life seeing the world through rose-tinted glasses. Never have I wanted to quip them off my eyes. I've always felt that I'm better off protected from the gory details that shroud our everyday existence. Yet, time and again the tints do slip away and I see the world in a light-pink hue. My optimistic nature refuses to completely do away with it altogether. But now, my patience is being tested. I do not know if I have it in me anymore to keep finding the goodness in everything. Life seems to bitch and balk at every turn and everything around me seems to be dwindling rapdily. I cannot let this go on. How should I proceed in this inexhaustible labyrinth? Should I let life engulf me in this? Should I swallow my sense of being and just let go of everything? They say you make mistakes so that you can learn from them. How many more mistakes do I have to make before the enlightened halo hangs from above? I'm not in search of moksha or any such philosophical euphemism. All I want is to have my heart in the right place.

So We've Won the Battle and the WAR!

2011-04-03T23:06:00.007+05:30

On the morning of February 19, 2011 the Gods above woke up to hear the chants and prayers of a billion hearts. The ensuing six weeks, the former became a tad richer with their coffers filled by the million fans of a sport which is a common religion to all.

Newspapers, magazines, websites...everywhere I read permutations of the sentiment 'This Time for Tendulkar'.

The road to victory and celebrated triumph had just begun and on course were our Men in Blue. With a lot of debate on their abilities, attitudes and more importantly the overall squad selection, 'the boys' started their World Cup with an emphatic (albeit slightly nail-biting towards the end) win over Bangladesh.

The following matches (England, Ireland, Netherlands, South Africa, West Indies) were all a spectacular display of the game at its Zenith.

The penultimates of course being when we ousted the World Cup defenders Australia and when we maintained the stats of never having lost to Pakistan in a World Cup!

At 37 years, standing in his 6th World Cup with 21years of experience backing him - anyone would be mighty exhausted! But then I'm not just talking about anyone am I?

GOD doesn't tire out! Naah! He goes on to become the 2nd highest run-getter in the tournament (was outrun by Dilshan only in the finals).

Sachin Tendulkar needed just this to put the final feather in his cap.

And boy did MS Dhoni give it to him in style last night.

The Lankan innings were wonderfully thwarted by our Men in the start. The first 15-20 odd overs were the tightest ever bowled by us this World Cup. But then Mahela Jayawardena and Kumar Sangakkara did what we actually wanted, gave us a match on hand ;)

(I'm saying this now, but then at that moment I was frantic with worry about the target of 275).

How in God's name were we going to achieve that score? Text messages started pouring in with predictions and lame forwards. The highlights being:

"India cannot lose a match when Rajnikant is in the stadium!"

Not only are we a cricket-fanatic nation, but we're also a nation who takes every superstition or myth surrounding the game very seriously. This World Cup the unfortunate superstition was that if Sachin Tendulkar scored a 100 then India goes on to lose the match (draw with England, loss at the hands of South Africa).

So when fans and fanatics entered the Wankhede Stadium, they were in two minds. Should they cheer on the Master Blaster and lead him to his 100th ton or witness a prolific knock of say 90 runs and wave goodbye to him?

Unfortunately for us, Lasith Malinga (and we'll never forgive you for this Malinga) made short work of Sachin's World up Innings.

For me however, this was the turning moment. As I saw Sachin walk back to dressing room, head hung low; my father looked at me and said, "We are going to win this!"

My best friend, at round about the same time, messaged me saying we're going to win this.

So I believed.

When Virat Kohli fell, that's when panic bloomed once again; only to be doused entirely and completely when MS Dhoni walked in. I couldn't take my eyes off the TV after that. I knew he would do it. I knew it right down to my very bones.

The way MSD and Gautam Gambhir pulled through, it was a cake-walk in the end for us.

With intense and nail-biting quarterfinals and semifinals behind us and backing our ever-growing confidence, it was just one man who fell into the shadows and boy did he silence and thumb all his critics in their noses!

Yet again I'd like to reiterate my personal (self-writ) quote on MSD...

"He has made people selling humble-pies considerably richer"

...for that's where all those critics and supposed analysts would have gone after witnessing India's best captain play a match-winning knock, being crowned the Man of the Match and handing over the World Cup 2011 to the great Sachin Tendulkar.

Cricket lovers couldn't have asked for a better final than this.

Sachin didn't need to work hard for this one. His teammates and Captain handed it over to him on a Golden Platter!

Stellar performances by Yuvraj Singh, Zaheer Khan (whom Sunil Gavaskar rightly named 'The Unsung Hero' after the media hyped only Sachin, Yuvraj and Dhoni's performance); bold and sometimes lucky decisions by the captain; magic moments like Sachin reaching 18000runs and Virat Kohli playing his first World Cup match and scoring a ton; Viru's brilliant knock of 175; 4 time Man-of-the-Match award winner Yuvraj Singh's dedication of the World Cup to Sachin Tendulkar; Sreesanth once again proving to be a lucky charm; Ashish Nehra's comeback in the semis against Pakistan; and finally Virat Kohli's statement about Sachin Tendulkar...

"He has been carrying the burden of the nation on his shoulders for 21 years, it's time we carried him..."

...just about sums up the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 for its victors - TEAM INDIA!

BLEED BLUE!!

rrrrraaaaaaaaawwwwwwwwwrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!!!

GOD and the DEVIL

PS: Thank you Rajni Sir!

Half full...Half empty

2011-03-14T11:07:00.002+05:30

The heart is a strange beast. It knows the underlying emotions struggling to foray out but tries its damnedest to just keep it under wraps. Personal ties and pseudo-family bonds be damned, is all what the mind is screaming blatantly.
Yet the heart is naive and gullible. It doesn't learn from past errors in judgement nor does it insulate itself for the future. It remains naked and vulnerable, ready to be crushed as you please.
The mind keeps humming the 'I told you so' tune, yet the heart is numbly deaf to its melody and beats its own rhythm.

But the questions of how and why still remain unanswered. Hoping against hope and the languid despair that has set in, the heart yearns to find happiness once again and churns every ounce of willpower in this neverending and doomed search.
How can happiness be found when others are stifled? Does happiness seep in through open wounds? Do smiles appear when tears of anguish are sliding down? Does laughter ring in your ears when you've been hearing pained cries for a while now?

How much does the heart have to bear before it realises that its just a weak and impotent organ? How much does the heart have to go through to realise that its better to leave it to the mind?
Whoever coined the phrase 'it is better to have loved and lost than to have not loved at all', obviously didn't go through the hardship which is an obvious byproduct!

An empty mind is the devil's workshop no doubt, but a lonely, bleeding and broken heart is the soulmate of despair.

Funeral...

2011-03-04T22:24:00.004+05:30

The sun hid surreptitiously behind the clouds. The perpetually howling winds gave no inkling of their presence. The birds in the sky flocked unceremoniously helter-skelter. The fallen leaves of the autumn trees, lay still and unmoving.

The procession of black figures drew no attention. Silently joining the group, men women and children alike bowed their heads and filed behind. There were no passersby.

It was a black dawn that morning saw. All across lands people awoke to the sound of the screeching silence. It was as though breath had been sucked out. Nobody knew what to do. Yet the heavy emptiness in their chest made them realize that something was amiss.

As they all joined in, anxiety began to creep in. Pangs of fear, hatred, animosity, vengeance, guilt began to seep into every one of them.

Smiles had vanished from the faces. Irises swam in tears. Escaping their environs the tears slid down, caressing the cheeks. Yet nobody lifted a hand to wipe them away.

Will had been lost. The hope of a brighter tomorrow mitigated by the onset of hideous bitterness. Nobody to rally, nobody to fight.

Even hell refused to break loose at such a dire event. For who would want to partake in sorrow and suffrage? Hell too seemed to have better prospects!

As night approached, a young man came by the procession. In his hand he held a lamp unlit. In his pockets he had a box of wet matches...what a waste!

The irony of his predicament didn't bother to dawn upon anyone as they silently slithered down the road, their black cloaks swishing in the eerie silence.

Resigned to their fate, they just kept walking down the path of uncertainty and despair.

In each of their hands however, they carried a small black casket with the lid open*.

It seemed they were attending a funeral.

Funeral of Happiness.

*happiness couldn't be preserved even for a while in the casket. It escaped. Never to return!

To All

2011-02-15T22:49:00.002+05:30

Hello,

For a while now I've been toying with the idea of actually publishing my book of poems. But lackadaisical as I've been the past few months, this dream of mine seems to be confining itself to within the proverbial 'pipe'.

Now however, I think it's time I stepped up to the threshold and dove headfirst.

I don't know what lies ahead. Whether I shall be appreciated for my efforts (random and otherwise) or will I even fall flat on my face.

Only time will tell. But I should tell you this...

Rather than falling down,

I'll never back down

My pursuit for greater excellence shall continue.

In doing so however, I've decided to delete all my poem posts from La Push and Noir Me.

It's gonna be short-lived, as I hope that all of you get a copy of my book when it comes out (and I promise you it shall be very soon).

I thank each and every one of my wonderful readers and followers for supporting me the last couple of years, for witnessing my journey of a writer and for being critical and appreciative as well :)

I wouldn't be taking this step were it not for your and love and support.

Love to all,

Priyanka

What I Like to do

2011-02-08T22:47:00.001+05:30

1). Pretend I'm a princess and that I'm trapped in a castle by a wicked queen

2). Look into the mirror and pout...mmmwaaahhhh myself

3). Think of getting WILDER (wait...is that possible?)

4). Pretend to be married to Cristiano Ronaldo and cheer him at the Santiago Bernabeu

5). Wake up at 2am in the morning, hungry and rush to the kitchen to have scoops of Bournvita

6). Watch movies like 'A Walk to Remember', 'PS: I Love You' and quote mushy dialogues as my status message :)

7). Reading conversations of friends on my phone (thank God for my blackberry) :]

8). Counting down months, weeks and days to my birthday

9). Ring the bell at Pizza Hut (hey! I just got that today) :]

10). Chat about random crap with J...seriously random!

11). Making little pieces of craft with things lying around (to my mother's annoyance)

12). Clicking random photos of my friends

13). Dance to shaadi songs with proper story lines and situations playing out in my mind :]

14). Talking on the phone for hours together and then sending a goodnight and <3>

15). Quote random dialogues and catchphrases of FRIENDS on my way back home with Abhi :]

16). Stare at my wardrobe for like an hour and finally tell Dad that I don't have anything to wear...as a result point no. 17

17). SHOPPING!!! (the very next day) :]

18). Play 'two steps' with Mischief :]

19). Talk to myself while I'm walking alone

20). Step on dry leaves (the crunchy noise...I laaauuuu it) :]

and lately...designing art modules for kindergarteners

Sunday - Yesterday...and a Lifetime of thanks

2011-02-07T14:15:00.004+05:30

My week of positivity has ended. And let me tell you something...it feels amazing!

It's liberating at the same time very poignant when you thank the little things in life. It's not that without them life wouldn't go on. But without them, life wouldn't be as wonderful and joyous as it is today.

For yesterday's thanks, I'm going to combine it and make it 'Thanks I want to give for life'.

So here goes... (some of them maybe repetitive, but the fact of the matter is that these few people/things have affected me positively and I wish to have them with me throughout).

1). To my two best friends - Prachir and Abhijeet (J and Motu to me) :]

I will always be the one indebted to you. I thank you both for making my life a little more special, a little more colourful, a little more chaotic everyday :]

2). To my parents

For being annoyingly and uncannily right at most times. The rest of the time I just want you to feel good about yourselves, so I agree with you :]

3). To my teachers at St. Helena's

I am what I am today all because of you. Right from my L.K.G teacher Ms. Menezes to my Std X teacher Ms. Upadhyay, I thank you all.

4). To my girlfriends

Munchu and Dabba for being my only girlfriends. Love you bitches <3>

5). To Thomas Daniel

For becoming my Tom Tom

6). To the Moronic Menon Brothers

For being that ^^^

7). To Shahrukh Khan

For always making me dance to your tunes :]

8). To my Dad especially

I may never admit it. But yes, I have gotten my writing streak from you

9). To my Mom especially

For sooo many things. But mostly for trying to make me a better person everyday

10). To my sister

For being the livewire that she is

11). To my brother

For all the surprises, late night birthday wishes...I love you

...

I have so many people to thank in just this one lifetime...I have so many expectations I have to live up to.

I promise each and every one of you mentioned in this post here, I shall endeavour to never ever let you down!

I love you all too much to do that :] :]

Saturday - Yesterday

2011-02-06T13:47:00.003+05:30

Yesterday was a super super day. Not only did I enjoy myself immensely, but I also shopped!

Well...all I bought was a pair of leggings, but still 'yayyyness' all the same :)

Okay now about the giving thanks part. Here goes...

1). To Shahenshahji

I was Anarkali who danced to 'Maar daala'

2). To a pub in New York

For playing 'Saat Samundar Paar'

3). To Whatsapp Messenger

For not letting the 'Saat Samundar' come in the way.

4). To J's camera

For making me look so pretty :)

5). To Amit, at Cafe Aroma

For the best pouches and salads I've ever had!

6). To Abhishek Bachchan and Cristiano Ronaldo

mmmmwaaaaahhhhh...

More for Sunday later...

Friday - Today

2011-02-05T00:05:00.003+05:30

Ooooopppssss!! I almost forgot Friday :P

Today, I give thanks

1). To Mark Zuckerberg

I just saw The Social Network and seriously Mark, thank you :)

2). To my wonderful teacher, Milinda Natu

You're just an amazing lady to know.

3). To my little niece, Saree

You make my life more beautiful baby girl :)

4). To the pink walls in my bedroom

I love you :) :)

5). To the little 'ping ping' I hear when I get a message on my BBM :)

6). To my mother

She bought me two pairs of very pretty chappals :)

7). To my girlfriend

For living my fantasy :)

8). To my care-package sender

I love you 'marshmallow' :) <3>

...

Thursday - Today

2011-02-03T23:32:00.002+05:30

A day full of ups and downs. I let the waterworks flow at some inopportune moments. But I just couldn't help it. As excited as I am to embark upon a new chapter in my life, I fear that the people I leave behind will forget me. It's a fear that has rooted itself so deep within that try as I hard as I might, I cannot come to shake it away.

I pray however, in absolute earnest that no such thing happens. I pray that the people I have come to recognise as an important part of my family, some whom I consider a part of me, always stand by my side as they have done so this last year or so.

My Thursday thanks are on a very poignant note...

1). To all those who have always supported me in whatever I decide to undertake.

2). To all my critics who know how to make me feel lousy yet always goad me enough to try and push myself further towards betterment.

3). To all my readers out there. It's your love and warmth (and sometimes, really weird emails and questions which propel me forward).

4). To my best friends, for being my shadow even in darkness.

5). To 'Thursday'

For getting over soon. I really didn't like you today!

...

Wednesday - Today

2011-02-02T22:01:00.004+05:30

My friend just called me a while back wondering whether I'd decided to abandon my 7-day positivity experiment. I had to assure him in every possible way that I obviously haven't and that I was just about to sit down to post about today. On hearing this his exact words were,

"Stop wasting your breath talking to me woman! Blog dammit!"

Sooo...here goes.

I have a lot of amazing thanks to give today.

1). To my best friend Abhi

For accepting me the way I am and for always making me feel wanted. I know that I can never go wrong with you. Our spats and quarrels may go on for days, but like you said last night, we'll always make it through :)

2). To my zodiac 'Aquarius'

For being so wonderfully eccentric that I get away for a lot many errs. People just tend to attribute everything to me being an aquarian :)

3). To Jack Nicholson

For making every woman fall in love with him over and over again upon hearing him say, "You make me wanna be a better man," in the movie As Good As It Gets.

4). To facebook

For being a silent and acquiescent witness to all my mood swings, tantrums, eccentricities et al.

5). To Apache (F.C Road)

For knowing how to make me feel wonderfully wicked!

6). To my iPod

For having absolutely no personality. I tell you the kinda songs that are there in it, it should probably crash 'cause of an identity crisis :P

7). To Amerigo Vespucci and Christopher Columbus

For giving us 'America' :) :)

8). To Jane Austen

For giving to the world 'Mr. Darcy'

9). To the brightest star in the sky

For sparkling along with me tonight :)

...

Tuesday - Today

2011-02-01T17:49:00.004+05:30

Today has been liberating to say the very least...and still there's so much unraveling every minute that it's just overwhelming.

In keeping with my resolution (7-day positivity), I give thanks

1). To my wonderful blackberry.

For just being too goddamn awesome!

2). To God for my hair (which cannot seem to decide whether it should be straight or curly)

I just plain love you!

3). To the yummiest paneer I've had in quite a while.

Abhi if you're reading this, you missed out!

4). To my best friend.

For being gross and sweet all at the same time!

5). To my best friend's girlfriend.

You're my girlfriend too Munchu!

6). To the speakers playing Munni Badnaam in the next room.

I just cannot get over the lyrics...also dear speakers, you will be missed :( :(

7). To the colour pink.

How is it that you're so awesome? :))

8). To my camera.

You make my heart sing for all the memories you give me.

...

More tomorrow :) :)

Monday Today

2011-01-31T15:32:00.006+05:30

For a while now, I've been wanting to post something very vague and random. Something which in many ways speaks of what I'm going through, yet is at the same time over the top of my head. With the constantly over-swelling conundrum that life draws up every day, sometimes all I want to do is just forget all else and be my own self.
But living in the society that we do, such an act would immediately outcast me. Which is not to say that I will be affected by this. Rather, social ostracism would not be unwelcome given what I'm going through. Nothing constructive ever comes in the form of advice at such times. All people do is offer what they think is sagacious advice, which is never even asked for.

Today, however I decided to follow one piece of advise (which albeit I've been getting for quite a while). The reason why I choose to follow this one is 'cause I don't think of it as advise. It's more of a sisterly word given to me by my best friend's sister. Owing to the fact that she knows exactly what I'm going through, it was rather easy for her to relate to me and for me to seek comfort in her words.
Some may think me gullible for this. But know this...I follow what I want to and not every piece of vagabond advice flung my way

The advice you ask...

It's just so simple that I (figuratively) kick myself in the arse for not having followed it sooner. I know now that it's a but natural way to feel better about the world we live in, rather than constantly complain and bicker about all that's wrong with it.

So starting today, for a whole week I am going to blog about one thing I am thankful for (minus all the above verbosity. This was just for introductory purposes).

Monday, January 31, 2011

I really am thankful...

1). To whoever came up with blogs (I'm sorry I'm just too lazy to google whoever did it).
But seriously, whoever you are have made life so very simple easy. Rather than lugging around a journal, this is just so much more convenient and lighter on your back

2). For the amazing set of friends I have.
They are as critical as they're supportive. It's amazing how anger and love for them almost flows simultaneously.

3). To my mother for yelling at me when I used to bite my nails as a child.
As a result today...ooo the compliments just keep flowing :) :)

4). To God for Johnny Depp and Brad Pitt.
Just imagining the world without them makes me weep.

5). To J.K Rowling and Stephenie Meyer
You know why.

6). To Mills and Boon for coming to India

7). For already having something to be thankful for...and the day's not even over yet!

Inner Sanctuary

2010-12-21T17:21:00.003+05:30

Knowing that things are never going to be the same again but still hoping and praying that they do...

Its like a never ending entrapment of emotions! I wish everyday, I pray everyday for things to go back to being rosy and peachy...but life has to hand you a hard blow.

Complaining about things not working out the way they should be seems so juvenile and nincompoopish. But how else does one ever vent it all out? Where does one find the rare and mysterious sanctuary craved for? How does one overcome emotional trauma and still carry on with everyday life with a plastic smile spattered across the face?

The answer is simple I guess. Inner strength.

I've always considered myself to be emotionally dependent on my closest kin (friends namely). I've always run along to my best friend whenever I've been in a state of upset.

But lately, his not being around has had its side effects on me. Decisions which were taken in consultation with him are now on the back-burner. Not wanting to disturb his emotional equilibrium, I chose to keep things to myself.

Not very successfully though. Nobody is as cognizant and perceiving about me as he is. He can make out when my voice drops an octave that there is something bothering me!

Yet if there is one thing I have learnt about myself in the last month or two, is the astonishing amount of inner strength and perseverance I possess.

I may never be able to look a few people in the eye without ever judging them, but I know I have enough self-restraint to keep a few things to myself.

In finding myself, I fear I may be wrong-footing my best friends.

To them I have just one thing to say...

Please do not judge! Its my only request to you!

The Today!

2010-12-03T19:10:00.001+05:30

India...a single word enough to give me goosebumps, a small wave of excitement buzzes about my entire body and at once I feel a certain kinship with my fellow Indians who are essentially regarded as 'my brothers and sisters'.

Being 'proud of our rich and varied heritage' but naturally runs in our blood. This isn't something that is taught to us by our parents or even for that matter engraved in history. The sentiment of pride automatically seeps into us all and in more ways than one and on many occasions is channelised.

Today however, national pride is not just limited to our glorious past. Kings like Chandragupta Maurya and Ashoka The Great are revered and given due respect no doubt. But we do have leaders like Narayan Murthy and Ratan Tata who have in so many ways given India a global orientation - a bonus to her cultural heritage and background.

Mahatma Gandhi, will no doubt be always regarded as the Father of the Nation. But where on one side we do have those who believe in his ideals and philosophy, on the other we do have those who are rather skeptical about whether or not his way delayed our independence.

In a country with a population of over 2 billion, it is but obvious that chain of thought need not be the same. Different people from different backgrounds, different ethnicities, different regions all contribute a great deal to India's Magnum Opus.

When it comes to the way this country is evolving on a day to day basis, things tend to get the larger than life look. However no mirages and illusions have been created with regards to India's rapid growth and development. Whatever is there, it is out in the open for all to see. Time and time again we hear that by the year 2020 India is going to be a force to reckon with.

With the debacle before the Commonwealth Games that had been the talk of the entire planet literally, athletes pulling out due to various reasons, the final result and the way the Games were conducted speaks of the character the nation has. All said and done, whatever the behind the scenes and under the table activities and dealings may have been, the fact that the Games were carried out without a hitch speaks miles about the way the nation has matured and evolved over the years. Sure enough, the blame game is still on. But with the Games being such a huge and roaring success, the matter is no longer being given any kind of importance.

I'm afraid I have deviated quite a bit from what I actually wanted to speak about. For quite sometime now I have been chewing on something - what is it that the foreigners who seem to be touring our country (here I am talking about leisure travel only) rather too often come looking for?

Do they still carry the impression that India is a country where spiritual healing and yoga are the way of life for most? Do they know anything about our past and its principle? Do they know anything about our freedom struggle? Do they know how we cope and survive and fight as a nation? Do they know the prevalent mass poverty, unemployment and illiteracy that plagues this country? Do they believe that our cities are also villages?

How many of them actually come here with the sole intention of learning a new culture? Sure they wear our salwar kameez and saree, but do they eat the same food that we eat, spices and all? This I highly doubt!

For some reason I fail to understand the purpose of their visit to my country. Is it just another notch on their travel itinerary?

Have you seen the movie Outsourced? The day Todd (Mr. Toad) lands in Mumbai, his train journey, his experience at the railway station, his ride in the auto rickshaw...a tad bit too dramatic? And why the Eastman colour?

For the purpose of entertainment, yes I do agree and allow the writer and director that creative discretion. Yet, my question remains...why show it in such a light? Is that the real India? The real Mumbai?

Why not show Colaba, Breach Candy, Marine Drive as a part of India? A part of a developing India. Why show disgust/humour at the way our dialect forces us to pronounce a certain name? Aren't our names also pronounced in a rather awful way with their tongue-rolling and eyebrow-lifting?

Where does one draw the line in impersonation and genuineness?

Is there one...?

A few days back Emotional Atyachaar on Colors showed a young woman hailing from Chicago (but who has been in Pune/Mumbai for the past 2 months) doing a loyalty test on her boyfriend.

*you may judge me for watching the show on a later date*

Now this young woman and her beau so to speak are dancers/event associates.

Now typically, you and I will think of them as the background dancers behind Kareena Kapoor on the Filmfare Awards stage...perhaps that is who they are.

Their knowledge about India is limited to what is being fed to them by another. Experiencing the real India so to speak is never part of their itinerary.

The move Love Aaj Kal also shows the ignorance of the 'Goras'.

Saif's new girlfriend Jo 'loves India'. And when they come to Delhi, he puts her on a tour bus while he visits the Chor Bazaar, dances in a baraat, drinks 'rang-biranga paani' at the local dhaba...the real India?

We all pride ourselves on being a part of a brilliant heritage. Historical heirlooms have always had a place in our hearts.

But today, I'd like to say

I am in love with the real India - the one who's coloured spices and scented incenses waft through the air as I walk down the lanes...the India who's music is world renowned (Grammy nominations anyone?)...the India who's 9 o'clock has Amitabh Bachchan and a small-time farmer hailing from a small village on the hot-seat...the India where night-time visits to Chowpatti lead to horse-carriage rides...the India where politicians fight and bicker and (never mind)...the India where Tandoori Chicken Pizza is a favourite...the India where size zero looks gorgeous in a lehenga choli...the India where 'Jawaan Sheila' is egotistically in love with herself...

My India has so many faces...she is urban...she is modern...

Yet she is adaptable and timeless...

She is...The Today!

The TAG...its back!

2010-09-04T16:49:00.007+05:30

Its been quite a while since I've posted something totally random on my blog. The last few posts have been on serious notes and I started to realise that my blog was becoming a little too heavy.

So I am going to 'un-heavy' it now ;)

And the best way to do that...TAG!

At the end of this post I am going to 'TAG' some of my favourite bloggers. I leave it up to you whether or not you will want to post this TAG on your blog.

It would be fun though to read all the answers...some of them are gonna be fun...trust me ;)

So...lets begin!

Four Jobs I've had

1). I really don't know whether this would be considered a JOB now but back when I was about 8years old, it was quite a Job for me. As you well know, I am quite the blabbermouth at most times. The same was the case when I was younger (except when puberty took over and my gawkiness made me awkward and reserved). I was 8years old, when an uncle of mine said he would pay me 100bucks if I kept my mouth shut for an hour. Now this was no mean feat considering the amount I used to snigger and talk. Even giggling wasn't allowed in this stake!

Nonetheless, I did win and was awarded 100bucks (although, initially I was given a 1Re coin, which is 100paise)... :)

2). In High School, I was once asked to stay back (for detention) by my librarian to help her sort out the messy and haphazardly arranged bookshelves. Although I have been sworn to remain mum on this subject, I was given 10bucks. (Sorry Mrs. Coelho)

3). My third job is something I take immense pride in even today (although I was 17 when I was handed that one). My Carnatic Music teacher asked me to take class for a batch of tiny tots. This was my first real class where I was looked up to as 'Teacher' or 'Miss'! :)

4). My fourth job has been rather off the charts and here and there and everywhere. Reason being - my freelancing spree! That was quite a hectic phase I went through...but I enjoyed every bit of it immensely :)

----

Four Movies I can watch over and over

Here I'd like to make one small change and go with the four movies I've watched over and over again.

1). Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge: Obvious reasons!

2). Sholay: Again obvious reasons!

3). Sweet November: I actually fell in love with the name Nelson :)

4). Pride & Prejudice: Mr. Darcy!!!!!!!

...there are so many more movies I'd like to add here - Bright Star, Legends of The Fall, Sinbad and the Seven Seas, Two Weeks Notice, Bridget Jones' Diary, Gone With The Wind, Kabhi Kabhie, Abhimaan, Mili et al!

----

Four Places I've lived in

The first three places will actually have to be subsets of just one point.

1a). My parents' room: The first 7 years of my life I've slept between Mom and Dad.

1b). My parents' room: The next 5 years of my live I've slept on the pull-out bed in my Mom and Dad's room :)

1c). For 10 years now I've been sharing a room with my sister. And guess what...we've both survived! What with all the fights, abuses (in the mind), curses(in the mind again)...survival is but obviously something to be proud of

2). Bangalore: My sweet love! I love this place...despite the heartbreaks, the messiness towards the end...I love this city for its didactic nature. It taught me to breathe...it taught me to fly...it taught me that I can survive...I can be my own person!

----

Four TV Shows I love

1). FRIENDS

2). How I Met Your Mother

3). The Bold and The Beautiful (even though I've lost touch now, I can still watch it from anywhere)

4). Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi (I just had to...)

----

Four places I have vacationed in

1). Kerala

2). US

3). Singapore and Malaysia (that was one vacation so I guess I'll put it under one tab)

4). Dubai (over and over and over...)

----

Four of my favourite dishes

1). Dal Khichdi (my recent but eternal favourite)

2). Mom's Sambar

3). My Grandmom's Maggi Noodles (nobody makes maggi noodles like her)

4). My own Cold Coffee (I know its not a 'dish' dish as such...but still, this should sooo count!)

----

Four sites I visit daily

1). Facebook: Aahhaaaaaa!! No surprises there!

2). Pink is The New Blog

3). Youtube

4). xkcd

----

Four Places I'd rather be right now

1). Drinking Tequila

2). Jumping up and down on my bed

3). Getting a head massage

4). Mumbaiiiiiiii...

----

Thats it! Phew!!!

All done...

Now I tag - Hamsi, Ansh, J, Reem, Merlin and anybody else who wants to have this annoyingly long (yet cute) TAG!

Yayyynesss....

Bright Star...

2010-08-31T23:12:00.003+05:30

How often does it happen that you're loved by one and all? How many people do you know who are actually genuinely loved and adored by all?

Its so rare to find a person who is so greatly valued and cherished. Its so rare to find a person who is so much a part of everyone's life, that life seems to come to an almost standstill when the former's presence is no longer felt.

I knew of such a man. A wonderful human being with a big heart and kindred spirit.

My Velliamama (Oldest Uncle) was a man who was loved and adored by all. Never once have I heard anybody speak ill of him. He was such a sweetheart of a man who spread smiles, laughter and love wherever he went.

There was never a dull moment with him around. Be it the oldest member of the family in the room or the youngest monkey around, we were all treated to the same charm and humour always.

My earliest memories of my Velliamama are when the entire family had met up for my Great Grandmother's 90th birthday. Family gatherings meant the usual entertainment with dance and music.

So I sang for the first time (in front of all my family). The only person who came up to me personally and told me that I sung very well, was my Velliamama. I was elated with what he told me.

Years later, when he came to Pune (again as tradition would have it) I did a small dance number. I still remember he had tears towards the end of my dance, he hugged me so tight afterwards that a tear or two strayed away from eyes too.

Pranks and witty humour were my Velliamama's trade. He was quite the expert when it came to pulling somebody's leg, imitating somebody over the phone..and generally keeping the atmosphere always light and peppy with his constantly witty disposition.

His last few days were something of a torment for us all. We couldn't bear to see the way he suffered and at the same time we were loathed to see him leave us and go. There was a very thin line between selflessness and selfishness.

I am glad though that God decided to finally put an end to Velliamama's misery. I am sure that as I am writing this post he is watching me from above, a smile lurking on his face, his eyes crinkling and his lower lip caught between his teeth (as was his patent expression).

I love you Velliamaaam...

Nothing's going to be the same without you

----

The sun hath eternal set

Night fallen all

Laughter falters, smiles fade

I see no happiness anymore

My life is but a dark void

Thou hath left an emptiness

But I knoweth thou shall

Be there always, throughout

In moments of trial and fear,

I just need to close my eyes,

And see your smile bright...

Letter - I

2010-08-17T22:57:00.003+05:30

My dear girl,

This letter may come as a shock to you (I do pray that it is a pleasant one). I do hope that you read it with an open mind and with patience abundant.

For a while now, I have been building my nerve to speak my heart out to you. Each time I will myself to speak to you, my courage deserts me the moment I see you at the marketplace or even at the shop by the corner.

For long now I've been wanting to write to you. But several rough cuts later, I still don't know whether I have perfected what I want to say to you.

I fear my rambling is boring you now, so I shall stop.

I write this letter to you with the solemn purpose and intent of spilling my heart out. I am indebted to you my dear. I know not what would have become of me had you not walked into my life that sunny afternoon when I was all but idling my time down at the creek. I didn't know it then. Or perhaps I did, but was too afrighted to accept it.

As I write this letter to you, I feel a strange happiness and contentment engulf me. Perhaps my letter is just a way of assuring myself that you are the object of my undying affections and that I am truly and deeply in love with you.

I do hope that you are not offended in the slightest, for I would never want to be the cause of any kind of affliction to you.

I do not want to think wishfully that you would accept my affections. However I pray that you wouldn't hate me for writing to you either.

I end my note to you now.

Your reply I await.

I remain an immortal slave of your angelic beauty...

Flailing...

2010-08-16T21:34:00.002+05:30

My blogging habits have been rather erratic lately. Sometimes I sit down and actually write out pages, but just when I should hit the 'publish post' tab I erase it all.

Today...I realized what I have been trying to do all this while.

I've been trying to erase memories - the past. I've been trying to separate reality from the shadow of the past shrouding it. Life always knows how to land you a terrible blow when you least expect it.

Things seem to be falling into place when all of a sudden, the sham breaks. Everything is seen without the rose-tinted glasses I am adamant enough to wear.

Were it in my hands, I would never remove the glasses. Seeing life in its goodie goodie way is better than crouching aghast from the dreadful reality.

Memories and Past

Two words. Same implication. But the connotations of both are so very different. Memories can be good or bad (either). But a past, often when referred to is always bitter, wanting to be forgotten and sometimes heart-wrenchingly painful.

The nightmares only bring pain. The desperation to get out of the amaranthine maze is clearly etched on one's face. Yet, helplessness is all one meets.

Depression is the next to come knocking on the door.

Why is it that we can't take a stance against all of this? Why does the past still have the power to affect us?

Some say its because we let it affect us. But how easy is it to switch off?

To err is human they say...but how do you expect the same human to switch off from emotions?

The poignancy of the pain that one goes through is hard to define, dangerous to control and sometimes difficult to console and lessen.

For a while now, I've been going through my own personal turmoil. Ups and downs have clouded my pathway. A decision which normally comes to me so very easily, is now elusive. The power to hold onto myself is flailing.

I know I cannot drown in this wallow of grief.

I know I should not let the past and even its memories affect me even slightly.

But where is the common sense when I need it? Why is my rationale not my constant companion? Why is it that I am left in the dark with a candle but no match to light it?

...

Find these answers I must

Or lie in my own miserable dust

I know what needs to be done

But I've been sapped off my sun

Tenacious I was; just weak now

Coming out of this

Is a long way undone

I shall though; I must...

God's Favourite Child...She!

2010-08-05T13:39:00.000+05:30

She rested there. Her haven it was.

Her life was wonderful. Friends she adored and who adored her in turn.
She’d had everything she’d ever wanted.

Sorrow was an ephemeral experience for her. Her life had abundant happiness. So now as she stood at the pearly gates, her heart wasn’t shattering. It was enriched with the memories of her beautifully pleasant life on earth. She was waiting for her next journey.

She would be God’s favourite child. His favourite disciple.

Follow-Through

2010-07-27T13:55:00.002+05:30

Tormented and fearing
The last hour hath come
Beyond her she saw
The end of the tunnel

The road hath finish
Help in no measure
To her escape came
The tragedy that is the end
----
But then...in the distance
Lightning screeched
Thunder rumbled
What should have been
Death Knells from above
Was the sound of a horn blaring

Her reverie broke
She opened her open eyes
The tunnel end had come
But the road ahead was abright

She smiled herself silly
Her heart singing wild
The winds of change were blowing
Madness was the call

Everything seemed utterly rapturous
Gone was the melancholy
Her buoyant spirit once again
Rode towards a new beginning

(In times of utter despair, one often forgets to switch on the light...but then if one remembers the Being above, optimism is the most obvious follow-through)

She felt...

2010-07-25T11:45:00.002+05:30

Her heart was racing madly as she waited. Her ragged breathing, her pacing feet, all signs of her restless mind and eagerness to see him. The gentle pitter patter of the rain, the quiet gush of the puddles as tyres churned into them...all adding to her nervousness.

She was dressed in her finest that morning. She knew she'd taken the extra effort and primped herself. When she'd stared at the girl in her mirror that morning, she'd blushed a plum at the sight. She knew she looked pretty, beautiful was for somebody else to say in her opinion.

And then in the distance she saw him coming. As he drew nearer to her, she began wringing her hands. His opinion mattered a great deal to her (a whole lot more than she was willing to admit to herself). She couldn't see his eyes from this distance, but his smile touched her heart instantly. Her nervousness all but evaporated and a coy smile spread across her lips as he stopped his bike in front of her...

That moment...those few seconds were critical to her self-esteem, her emotional balance and her youthful effervescence.
He smiled then. And that was it for her.
Her entire world went soaring high. Nothing anybody said, could have bogged her down.
She was elated....exuberant... :)

She felt.................................................

The Girl, The Knight and The Rogue

2010-07-17T23:06:00.003+05:30

For generations and perhaps even centuries now, girls have been brought up saying that one day their knight would come, in shining armour on a white horse with his sword drawn.
As young girls, we dream about this day and blush about with the excitement and tender happiness that comes naturally with innocent love.

Gradually, as we grow up, we mature in our thinking and are able to make our own perceptions about the world and all the knights that wrongly came our way.

This is where we actually grow up. Most of us outgrow the idea of a knight coming along, while some of us still want to hold on to the fairytale happy ending.

Fantasies today have a new entrant.

The dashing rogue on a black steed - who due to no fault of his own is regarded as a hostile opponent by the knight himself (knowingly or unknowingly). While they wage their own private battle, the girl is now suddenly entranced by the dashing rogue.
His winsome charm and rakish air, makes her stomach go all fluttery and she pauses in mid-stride.

She now not only has to keep her Knight happy, but at the same time she also has to be wary of how she progresses with her Rogue.

----

The Girl, the Knight and the Rogue - three very simple characters made complicated by fate are now so deeply interconnected that pulling the thread of one affects the others as well. Cutting one, makes the other one bleed too.
The Girl finds herself swaying towards the Knight, most times. But in times of darkness and when she is looking for a ray of hope and laughter, she turns to the Rogue.
The Knight clearly loses out on this opportune moment.
However, this is where the Rogue can change his colours. When the balance is clearly weighing heavier on his side, if he provides more than just the comfort and consolation asked for, he could edge passed the Knight as well.

But in most cases, the Rogue (if known well) doesn't resort to such dastardly behaviour. He keeps his decadence to a minimum and offers just what the Girl wants - a shoulder to cry on.

*Is this why most girls invariably have a thing for the bad guy - because they are somehow always there when you need them? Or is it just a well-planned coincidence?*

In your fairytale - whom will you fall for? The Knight or the Rogue?
Would you rather be the Knight or the Rogue?

One Thought

2010-07-09T14:54:00.002+05:30

For what seems like eons now, Indians have been harping that we're a culturally diverse yet intricate society with as many as 150 languages and dialects, a multitude of communities. We take pride 'in our rich and varied heritage' and always emote a feeling pride and elation at the thought of being a citizen of this beautiful country. The site of the tri-colour or even a waft of the National Anthem instills in us a chest-swelling emotion.

However, there are times when the cynic in the being sets in. This ugly growth settles for quite a while and refuses to budge. At times like these, we often forget the patriotism and sense of happiness and well-being that are all but supposedly ubiquitous in this mammoth country.
We forget to love our neighbours, utter blue-streaks for our foes and just propel with a disillusioned outlook towards life.

I was going through such a state of nomadic hallucinations where nothing and everything seemed to be going wrong. I felt the entire world was conspiring against me.

I felt like an Indian Princely State, during India's Golden Age.
I had to defend myself from all attacks and also prepare myself for any potential attack. I couldn't differentiate between my friends and foes. I couldn't even keep them close (as the saying goes), lest they assume a frontal attack.

I was lost...

----

A few days back, Pune had all but come to a standstill with Palki processions blocking roads, throngs of people peppering the streets with their small jholaas perched on their heads, while those who weren't part of these processions stormed across the city complaining about the traffic, blocked roads and inconvenience caused to them.
On the last day of the Palki, as I sat waiting patiently in an auto-rickshaw, waiting for the traffic to ebb away or to find a route which would take me home, a strange sort of epiphany pushed its way into me.

The route the autodriver had taken was a secular one. In the sense, on my way, I had to stop for about 30 seconds each time near a Krishna Temple, near a Mosque, near a Church and even near a Gurudwara.

And it was only when I reached home did I realise that at all these half a minute stops I prayed (a conditioned response).
Thats when the epiphany hit me - at the Temple, the Mosque, the Church, the Gurudwara - I prayed the same prayer. I asked God for the same thing (notice how I said God and not Krishna or Allah or Jesus or Gurunanak).

An errant tear slipped from my eye as I realised the simplicity of the thought and the wonderful lesson I'd learnt during my journey home.

No matter how distressed or disturbed you are, even in your darkest moments if you go upto His doorstep (unknowingly or knowingly), all pressure is lifted, tensions alleviated. You heave pure, unadulterated sighs of relief.

That night, on Youtube I heard our National Anthem and felt the pride and warm feeling of elation oozing through every pore of my being.
I didn't think about our cultural heritage, nor did I think about the many communities and languages that are all an intrinsic part of my country.
I only had one thought - 'India is my country'.

The Nothing

2010-07-01T22:31:00.002+05:30

When everything seems dreadful and dull, when all your plans fizzle out, when nothing is going right...one tends to become disillusioned and gives up on the smaller and finer things in life much too soon.

I was probably like this for quite a while. But something changed within me.

Today even though, certain things aren't in order, issues still seem to be sore points for others (here, by issue I even mean myself)...I imagine myself to be much bigger than all these trivialities.

This morning, while at work a certain epiphany struck me If I were to pay heed to all that is being said around me, I would be a puppet all my life.

Yet having said this, I also realised, that being accommodating and understanding the plight of others is also an important of 'living in harmony'.

So keeping this synergy of thoughts in mind, I vowed that I wouldn't be bogged down by these silly little nothings; because that is essentially what they are - nothing!

I've been smiling all day. I feel fresher, I feel lighter.

I just feel...

I Hate FIFA 2010 - on principle!

2010-06-30T10:20:00.004+05:30

Its one of those sports which has the entire globe hooked onto any sports or news channels telecasting it. For that matter even the internet and youtube seems to be a daily dose for most of us who are head over heels in love with this sport.

Yet, when after all this, your favourite teams let you down, it is but natural that depression and numbness of mind will follow.
Such has been my state of mind, ever since I saw that Spain (what?) had ousted Portugal (my sweet love) from the tournament.

I didn't really have much to say last night, what with being numb and all, but speak now I shall!

What the hell is the matter with FIFA 2010???

With the defending champions and runners up, bowing out in the first round, many lost interest with the tournament. Some changed their allegiances and began supporting the teams which looked stronger. I however, still had my hopes high with Portugal still there.

With matches like Spain vs Portugal and Argentina vs Germany, a sense foreboding seemed to have settled.

All chanted the same - 'These should have been the semi finals of FIFA 2010"!!

But as the saying goes, 'Man proposes and God disposes' - He very obviously disposed this thought too. Portugal, last night (loathed as I am to say it) were no match for Scholari's Spain. The latter outsmarted their every move and turned the tables of fortune in their favour.
Portugal had one golden opportunity with Cristiano Ronaldo's free kick almost surpassing Ikor Casillas, but then that too seemed too good to be true, as Casillas managed to knock the ball out.

I know I sound highly hypocritical when I say this, but this just reeks of how unsporting I am feeling right now with my favourites out of the World Cup.

Now, shifting my loyalties to another team should obviously come but naturally to me.
But I just cannot do that!

Even if it is on principle - I hate FIFA 2010!

The Thin Line

2010-06-04T14:04:00.002+05:30

My good friend Anshu, recently celebrated her grandparents' 55th wedding anniversary (see here).

On the same day, her uncle and aunt also celebrated 25 years of being married.

Such a poignant and momentous day in their lives. Good wishes and blessings raining on them, I am sure they must have had a wonderful time reliving those moments of getting ready for the wedding, the jittery butterflies, the tying of the knot, the celebrations that follow, the relatives surfacing from unknown corners of the world and demanding a piece of the cake ;)

When we are a part of such happy moments, the phrase 'Marriages are made in heaven' flash across the mind and the heart for once is in sync with what the mind is saying.

Cupids arrows hitting the lovers, old love-songs in which carnations and gerberas are motifs of love...the imagination is pampered with such beautiful (sometimes corny) visuals that mushiness touches even the most cynical person (however much he would try to deny it).

The whole concept of wedding and marriage, the way they're so articulately different and yet so intricately intertwined, is something which has always fascinated me.

Reading this, my family would probably have 'the thoughts' entering their mind (I daresay they already have them).

I have one thing to say them...

The day I see Cupid's arrow coming my way, the day I start humming tunes of flowery romance...I would be ready for a marriage.

Today, a perfect wedding is something I dream about.

But, marriage is what gives me the butterflies winging about in my tummy, the uncertainty, a slight trepidation.

Its a very thin line, but a line nonetheless!

My Daddy and I

2010-05-31T12:44:00.006+05:30

I am a Daddy's girl.

I love the fact that I am a Daddy's girl. In all my 22 years, I've seen so many different phases of my father. All of them endearing (even if some were kinda irritating at some point).

My father has never been the over-expressive, over-demonstrative kinds. He's never had a way with words to express himself. So I've never been smothered with love from him.

Yet, I've grown up in the safety net he's always had around me.

Today, I could even go to the extent of saying that I'm not the quintessential girl who grew up watching not just Santa Barbara and Bold and the Beautiful.

While I did watch quite a bit of those, I also grew up watching Remington Steele, The Real Radial Show, Pensacola: Wings of Gold, The Wonder Years, Doogie Howser M.D et al.
I grew up collecting stickers of WWE (WWF at that time) stars like Bret Heart Hitman, Hulk Hogan, Shawn Michaels, Rick Flair.

Movies like Guns of Navarone and other war classics were like everyday features at home.

While we did watch soaps like Tara, Parampara, Saans and all those saas-bahu nautankis, never once did we lose sight of the good stuff.

Harrison Ford and Pierce Brosnan were my favourite actors while growing up. Ford for his Clear and Present Danger and Brosnan for The Thomas Crown Affair (and his Bond series too).

In the Bond series, my all time favourite Bond is Roger Moore, followed by Pierce Brosnan. Sean Connery never really had those dashing looks (I've to be girly at some point).

My mornings were programmed to AXN (Pensacola: Wings of Gold), followed by WWF and then onto Spanish football - La Liga.

The days when Hero was the captain of Real Madrid and Casillas was Boy Wonder!

Growing up in a cricket-worshipping country, I was educated on this sport too. I am still jealous of Pakistani fast-bowler Aqib Javed's hair :)

I can safely say that I know more about cricket and football than most girls.

This of course is all 'cause of my sweetheart of a father.

In school, Emma was loved and hated by both of us equally (reading Emma was different, but learning Emma was an entirely different thing).

Today when Cristiano Ronaldo scores a goal, I actually call him at his work and start gushing over the phone. If Sachin Tendulkar is wrongly given out, we curse the umpire together.

After TripleH was beaten up by Edge and Randy Orton, we both started hating the latter (except for when he is in a tux - thats when I can't hate him). We always hated Edge.

We watch reruns of FRIENDS and How I Met Your Mother together :)

My love for books is a gift to me from my father. Tom Clancy, Robert Ludlum were devoured by both of us. I've even made him read The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks :)

That's my Daddy!

----

After I've started working, I don't find enough time to actually spend watching football and movies with him.
Yet we always manage to text each other the scores :)

FIFA's beginning next month. As I know it, WE are supporting,

1). Portugal,

2). Brasil,

3). Italy,

4). Germany and

5). Argentina

Who are you supporting?

Safe Passing

2010-05-26T12:38:00.002+05:30

Weak-willed and grief stricken

The pain wrenching his heart

His mind numb in miserable agony

His spirit on the brink of extinction

---Happiness a mere memory.

**Priam placed the coins on his son's eyes. He prayed to Charon and asked him for a safe passing for his beloved Hector**

Moving On...

2010-05-18T15:34:00.003+05:30

Bruised ego, bleeding arms

Shattered heart, battered pride

Abandoned hope, dried tears

The ex-files...

Scorching anger, fuming wrath

Pulsing vengeance, ominous rants

Boiling emotions, wreaking animosity

The ex files...

Buried hatred, defiant anger

Resilient spirit, weakened hostility

...

Open heart, happy thoughts, tinkling laughter

...Moving on

What happened to Daddy's lil girl on Mother's Day...

2010-05-09T22:21:00.003+05:30

Mother's Day, 2010 has been by far the most momentous day in my life!

It was sort of like a day of reckoning for me.

Okay okay...it wasn't so dramatic as I am making it out to be. But still it was a big day for me all said and done!

I took my family out for lunch today - I paid! So thats like a big moment for me (hence the title of this post).

Initially, the plan was just to take my Mother, my grandmother and sister out for lunch, what being Mother's Day and all...

But then the realisation hit me that I would like my Father to also be there since its my first time :)

Lunch was as usual a splendid feast - my undying love for Sigree will always remain that...undying!

I felt such a sense of elated pride when I whipped out my card after dessert - jalebis and rabri :)

Across the table, I could see my mother watching me, my grandmother watching me...and beside me, my father was watching me too.

Thats when it hit me...Daddy's lil girl is all grown up now!

----

But then deep down...I still am the same girl. The girl who used to fall asleep on her daddy's stomach while playing with her mother's hair...

The Flight Plan

2010-04-17T19:17:00.003+05:30

"Ladies and gentlemen, we request you to switch off all electronic and wireless devices. Mobile phones' usage is strictly prohibited, as they may interfere with the navigation systems of the aircraft. Thank you."

Simple enough isn't it...yet the implementation of the same is a bit of a herculean task for some air-hostesses.

The obnoxious passenger is hell-bent on being a nuisance and could easily be considered as somebody on a suicide-mission. The people sitting next to him are ready to hit the panic button any minute.

By now the flight is air-borne, the 'fasten seat belt sign has been switched off' and people have rolled down their window blinds and their seat backs are lowered to such a degree that the person sitting behind has his/her knees locked. The air-hostesses strut down the aisle, offering water and candy...the cheap snicker and pass their lewd comments, some are too busy with their noses buried in books, some have reached their very own sleepville and some are just least bothered by whats happening and seem to have a great interest in the passing clouds.

All this while...the guy sitting a row adjacent to me, has been busy talking on his mobile-phone. He's probably made calls even to the President of the United States, discussing trash like why Royal Challengers Bangalore deserved to lose the match and how he'd lost money in the stock market last week.

Barack Obama probably had to head out for a meeting, so the obnoxious passenger now decides to call his girlfriend and begins to cucheecoo with her.

The people sitting next to him are all ready to kill, but then the air-hostesses come with 'an array of snacks and beverages to choose from'.

Soon people have forgotten about the obnoxious passenger, who, still oblivious to the air-hostess (I don't know how she missed the obvious), was still conversing over the phone.

But then...

The plane hits an 'air-pocket' or so they call it...and trouble starts to brew again. The bumps and turbulence now add to the passengers' worry. Their faces say it all. All of them have just one question on their minds, 'Is this fool going to be the reason we plummet down to our deaths?'

Finally...the person sitting next to obnoxious passenger tells him to switch off his cell-phone.

Miraculously that was all it took...he switched off the damned instrument and just like that closed his eyes and slept off like as if he hadn't caused heart-fail to almost every passenger on-board the aircraft.

----

"Ladies and gentlemen welcome to Pune Airport. Please remain seated until the aircraft has come to a complete stop. Mobile phones maybe switched on only after the doors have opened. Thank you."

Obnoxious passenger is up, opens the overhead bin, pulls out his suitcase, switches on his cellphone and starts yakking again!

The air-hostesses once again fail to tell the scum to shut it.

Once people have started disembarking, obnoxious passenger squeezes his way out, in the process knocking an old lady back into her seat, smiles at the (useless) air-hostess at the door and steps out!

Why is it that following instructions is like swallowing a mammoth? Why is it such a daunting task to tell somebody not to do something? And most importantly...

Which training institute did the air-hostesses pass out from??????

I...proud to be a MENON!

2010-04-07T12:10:00.004+05:30

"You still listen to your parents? Don't you know how to make your own choices?"

O how often I get to hear bullcrap like this!

In fact this is just one of the many exclamations I hear from friends (self-proclaimed ones, mind you).

And all I say is, "Yeah...our wavelengths match. So why not?"

And then some of them go a step further with, "What?? Your wavelengths match?? Are you friggin serious?"

Aaaagggghhhhh!

Does growing up come with obvious side-effects of having to deliberately disobey/go against what your parents say? Does it mean that I too am old-fashioned if my Mother and I have similar opinions?

Why is there an overpowering and compulsive need to go against whatever they say?

Goddammit!

I get furious with people who tell me that since I now live away from home, I can have all the fun I want. I can stay out as late as I want, I can go partying...blah blah blah.

Well...I'd just like to set all you moronic primitive-minded losers straight by saying,

"I come from those fortunate few anomalous families, where freedom and independence are values instilled right from childhood. I was brought up by parents who also grew along with me. They're as modern and eccentric as I am."

I...proud to be a MENON!

Direct Hit - coming soon!

2010-04-04T10:13:00.002+05:30

Blogging after a short sabbatical always cheers me a great deal. Invariably, I wouldn't really have much to say except that I've missed the whole blogging scene and all the wonderful comments that keep pouring into my inbox.

This time however, such isn't the sentiment. Far from being busy, I've had quite a lot of time to spare, but was just plain lazy to post anything. Its not a writer's block, or in this case, a blogger's block.

Its just the classic case of laziness creeping in with boredom. Together they make quite the combination, as I would know :)

Yet, I'd like to thank all my wonderful blogger friends, who've emailed me to ask me if all was well and wanting to know why haven't blogging as often as I have been.

I got an email that said,

"WTF! Where are you? And why is Dreamland so drab?"

For some reason, I found this to be the sweetest email ever, kinda put a smile on your face :)

Alright, so now that I'm back to my blabbering ways, I'd also like to let you know that I've completed my fourth short story on Dreamspinner :)

Rishi and Neha have finally found happiness (together).

----

Yesterday, a friend of mine (after having read The Journey ) had something quite wonderful to say to me.

He's quite a fan of not just my writing (had to say this Ruman).

To Ruman, I have a flair for description and 'bringing the scene to life' (which another friend of mine very obligingly translated it for me as 'a flair for dramatics').

So now, he's trying to get me to turn to another direction - fiction.

So...my interpretation of fiction (as I'd like to call it from hereon) is being anticipated by quite a few of my other friends as well.

This morning, I got yet another email from a blogger friend demanding that I get off my lazy hiney and start blogging again :)

Sooo...now that I've accomplished the latter half of that demand (I can still post lying down can't I)...next on my agenda, would be a direct hit on fiction as it were.

You'll know how soon enough.

Have to rush out now. The shower beckons ;)

Toodles

Wrong Turn!

2010-03-24T20:50:00.002+05:30

Human beings are such a peculiar bunch.

We all have our quirks, our idiosyncrasies...yet when it comes to self acceptance of the same, we some how manage stick our noses in the air and defenestrate the old rule (call a spade a spade).

Why is this really? Do we really not know that we're faulty? Or is it just a way to shush the other person (who thinks he knows better)?

Why is it that we can never be up front and accept our mistake, tender an apology before things get soured for life?

Questions such as these will always be open to unceasing debates.

Ego hassles, the pride factor...all come in the way and that moment of apology, the feeling of remorse is invariably arrived at a little too late.

By then, the seed of strife has already taken root, germination is just a matter of time.

The entire equation changes, paradigms shift (a phrase that I don't particularly adore)...nothing is the same again.

The past which was once iridescent is now absolutely disconsolate.

Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;

Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world...

W.B. Yeats

Enee Menee Minee Moe

2010-03-22T15:20:00.002+05:30

Okay...so if you don't know who is the culprit, what do you do?

Aahh...simple!

Close your eyes - and rhyme!

Enee Menee Minee Moe...wham bam! Its you!

Alright! I know its you. I am not blaming you! But I know its you!

----

So what is the lesson learnt?

"Don't get emotionally involved or attached to any homo sapien! It just comes back to bite you in the rear!"

Lesson learnt (the bloody hard way).

Surprise Surprise!!

2010-03-14T08:52:00.002+05:30

11.15pm - Ringing of the doorbell.

"Who is it...? WHO IS IT??"

"It's ME!!"

Belated Happy Birthday Maa..." :) :)

----

Last night was spectacular! Just the way I wanted it to be. Mom, Dad and my sis were totally totally surprised - translation: happy and ecstatic I was home, even though it may have taken a while for it to sink that I was actually standing at the doorstep.

I am going to have to dash now. Precious time to spare as I am home for just 3 days.

Will post soon on Dreamspinner and Noir Me soon (just like I promised)...

See ya soon!

No bloody time!

2010-03-13T14:58:00.003+05:30

I normally don't swear on La Push (baah! I am sure you would balk), but this time it really calls for some of the choicest words known to the English language.

Yet, I still don't have time to even do justice to the wonder that is 'abusive language' and 'swearing'.

This week, has been quite a roller-coaster.

Equations have changed, what looked like a somewhat unsettled and disturbed life, is now slowly gaining shape and is turning to be rather wonderful.

The wonder that is friendship played its magic card once again. I now have a new friend who I seriously have come to like quite a lot - given the similarities we share and that somewhat weird yet powerful bond which comes from going through similar experiences.

Its really been a gleaning time.

Unfortunately, while all this was happening, work has also been taking its toll on me. A lot has been going on on this front, which is why I haven't been able to make time to post anything on La Push and Noir Me. Gosh! I don't even remember when was the last time I updated my short story on Dreamspinner.

I deeply to apologise to all my readers for the same.

But I will surely update the other two within the next few days.

Hmmm...I must scoot once again. Deadlines are again getting the better of me! Remember...I said something about the need to swear (to the Hades)!

See ya soon.

Happy weekend y'all! :)

Just something...

2010-03-09T10:47:00.002+05:30

So you may be wondering about whether or not I am adhering to my new resolution (you know the one where I've decided to control my wonderfully healthy eating habits)...

And to answer you, yes. I have been adhering to them.

"The Scale" as it were is doing wonderfully well, no miscarriages and abortions as of now. So will continue with this gestation (not) period and see where this takes me.

My roommate of course, seems to have abandoned all hope when it comes to controlling her appetite and its sinful cravings - having binged on a chocolate excess pastry just this weekend.

I for one sure am glad that I have been able to stick this herculean plan for so long. Usually, this would have been scrapped two days into its inception, but yayyy :)

I am sticking by it :)

There's been a lot happening in the last few days. Been enjoying myself to the fullest for sure - yet there is that fear deep down that something maybe amiss or something unpleasant is surely on its way. But I know this for sure, whatever it may be, I am not going to run nor hide.

I have super friends and family who (now I know) can pull me out of any damn rut.

----

This morning, I had a wonderfully touching email from my best friend. He obviously knows me inside-out (this even makes him act like an insufferable know-it-all) and leaves no opportunity in pointing out the obvious to me.

So this letter was so beautiful, it really touched me :)

And the best was the last line -

"if we were not the best of friends, there would have been no other relationship we could be in..."

J, fortunately for us, we don't have to even venture into thinking in that direction right ;)

Filmfare - I love thee :)

2010-03-08T12:03:00.004+05:30

How cool was Shahid! Man.., he literally scorched the Filmfare Awards last night.

Michael Jackson would've been sooo proud.

Man!!

Shahid Kapur, if its possible, I love you even more!

Amazing!

Every nuance, every move was so perfectly and brilliantly captured by him :)

My flatmates and I were absolutely speechless.

----

During one of the breaks, in the "Coming Up" space, there was a tease of a Michael Jackson tribute. I knew without a shadow of a doubt that it would be Shahid Kapur. Only he can do full justice and pay a rightful tribute to the King of Pop!

And he did it fantabulously!

My flatmates and I were glued to the box from 8pm last night - waiting for Shahid. At 9.45 I couldn't wait much longer and just had to go down for my usual run. I told Deepti to text me when Shahid comes.

I was about 20mins into my run when she texted "Come fast".

I sprinted like as if there was a crazed bull after me.

I ran up home, but to my disappointment, the damn advertisements refused to end. For the first time, I cursed my industry...now knowing exactly what people go through when advertisements (we make) ruin their 'television viewing pleasure'.

But then, he came!

And what an entry!! His performance was 'absolutely miiinndd blowing' (Farah Khan style)!!

The best was of course saved for the end - THE MOONWALK!

I mooned...I howled like an ecstatic Jacob Black would have had the frigid Bella loved him instead of the ice-sculpture!

Go Shahid!

Chocolate Excess Ma'am? No Thank You :)

2010-03-06T22:32:00.005+05:30

I am very very proud of myself today.

Can you guess why...?

Well...I'll tell you.

Today, I was able to look at a Chocolate Excess pastry, straight in the eye and say, "Hah! I am not tempted by you no more!!"

Yes...thats right.

Deepti and I saw It's Complicated this afternoon. In this movie too, Meryl Streep is this amazing chef/baker. So but naturally when she baked a Chocolate Truffle Cake in the movie, temptation dangled in front of us like live bait.

I am very proud to say that I didn't surrender myself to this almost carnal temptation. Deepti however fell prey to it!

Its amazing really, how different everything appears now...suddenly the words "I can do anything" are just running helter skelter inside my brain.

All this just because I resisted temptation and didn't indulge in the pastry??

Well...this is no minor feat for me to have achieved. Chocolate being my ultimate weakness, it certainly speaks a lot for my will power (if I do say so myself).

----

"The Scale" has been doing wonderfully well the last couple of days.

Not once did I budge from the unspoken oath I have made to myself and not even once did succumb to temptation!

The ruse

2010-03-05T09:16:00.004+05:30

The human being can sometimes be so devoid of sentiment or emotion. Nothing can ruffle his feathers and he invariably appears cold and distant to others. Sometimes though, to reach this stage, requires a whole lot of perseverance and the actual desire to attain the same. This stage could be hailed as an unlikely nirvana, a personal nirvana more like.

Every girl, at some point in time in life goes through a phase where male-bashing becomes a drug to her. She ends up hating the 'stronger sex" for whatever reasons best known and left to her.

Divulging her reasons for this kind of animosity is sometimes too painful not just for her, but even for the poor listener who ultimately regrets lending an ear.

A few days back, Deepti and I were on one of our usual close-to-midnight-strolls. We wandered aimlessly and chanced upon a Cafe Coffee Day. A Tropical Iceberg sounded magical and absolutely blissful at that time so we went in.

A few minutes of random chit chat and then somehow we got on to what is now becoming quite a favourite topic for us to debate on - MEN.

Now, here of course I should clarify that neither of us belong to the male-bashing cult and hope that we don't ever need to join the same (despite being disillusioned a time or two).

This is pretty much the gist of what was discussed that night...

***As children, we had always seen the world through the typical black and white mould. Never once did we think that there would be shades of grey/charcoal to a person. The world was either 'good' or 'bad'. There were no shady and hazy areas which were difficult to explain or accept.

This perception remained in tact all throughout school and college.

But the moment we entered the workplace, it was firmly tossed out of the window. Man simply changed for us.

Suddenly, a lot of unknown entities, characters started peppering our perception.

Soon, the entire bubble burst, the droplets simply evaporated. And we were left dumbfounded.

Infidelity seems to be the way of life today for many.

"What you don't know, doesn't hurt you" is the motto adopted by one too many.

There are dark times, when one feels compelled to follow this route. Succumbing to the same leads to absolute torture and disjointed relationships (but obvious).

But what of the people who are involved indirectly? The husband, the wife, the boyfriend, the girlfriend?

It could be anybody.

At this point, I sort of had this epiphany kind of thing - I realized that the whole male-bashing phenomenon is simply a smokescreen...a facade...a ruse. What is happening in actuality, is that one is just berating oneself, for straying.

Self-doubt but obviously rears its pitifully ugly head. Men and women (alike) do not want this self-doubt to gnaw away at their emotional peace and stability, so they take to (figuratively) murdering the "opposite sex" (as the case may be)****

So, this is where I say,

WASTE NOT, WANT NOT!

The smart would obviously get it. Those who aren't can continue with their ignominious bashing.

The day that was yesterday!!

2010-03-05T08:29:00.002+05:30

Okay...I succumbed! :( :(

And in my first week! Terrible will power I say.

But now that I know how plaguing my guilty conscience is going to be, I guess it should be easier for me to control my cravings!

Anyway, The Scale yesterday read:

Date: March 4, 2010

Breakfast: Milk and Cereal.

Coffee at 10.30am

Lunch: Cottage Cheese grilled Sandwich (30% low fat)

Coffee at 3.30pm

Coffee (again) at 4.30pm - can't really refuse coffee when my client so benevolently offers!

Dinner: CHINESE - Veg Noodles and Manchurian!!!

Water: 7-8 bottles (3 after Dinner)

----

Today, my day has started off rather well. Everything seems to be in order, nothing is amiss. I sure hope it remains that way today and for the rest of the weekend :)

Ooo...which reminds me. I have great plans for tomorrow. My friend and I plan to go to Nandi Hills. A beautiful and scenic locale, apparently not far away from Bangalore :) ;)

So far, this weekend promises to be a good one - just as the last one was :)

March 3, 2010

2010-03-04T11:08:00.002+05:30

Date: March 3, 2010

Breakfast: Milk and cereal

Lunch: Two chappatis and chicken

Coffee at 3.30pm

Dinner: Soup and garlic bread

*Water: 4-5 bottles (4.5ltrs approx)* :) :)

----

My best friend gave me quite the lecture yesterday, telling me to stop with this fad diet. I had to put him straight of course. So I told him, the only thing I am going to be avoiding is fried stuff, sweets, chocolates (sad smiley) and anything that goes straight to my hips :P
I said to him, "J, I am eating healthy food you know. Thereby, not messing with my health and also making life easy on the pockets!"

I could see him snorting in his typical sarcastic and cynical manner, that is always endearing to me.
Just want to tell you once again J,

"I am FIIINNEE!" (Ross' style)
;)

Happy Birthday Mom :) :)

2010-03-03T11:20:00.003+05:30

So "The Scale" couldn't be updated last night, owing to my laptop dying on me. But I did adhere to whatever I had promised myself.

My diet yesterday wasn't thrown out of the window. Its still very much in progress and is working quite dandily (even though it is just the second day today and I shouldn't be speaking too soon, lest I jinx the damn thing).

"The Scale" as of last night read:

DATE: March 2, 2010

Breakfast: Cornflakes and Milk

10am: Coffee at work

Lunch: Paneer (cottage cheese) roll - non greasy.

4pm: Coffee

Dinner: Soup

I hit the bed rather early last night. I had Sivamani drumming away to glory inside my head. Headaches couldn't have gotten worse than the one I was suffering from last night. No amount of medication could stem the damn thing.

I know what my Mother would say now - "You took the medicine too late Priya. You should have it at the first instance."

Well, I know she is right, but in the middle of work I couldn't really get the time to filch for the damn bottle in my bag.

----

But for now I have this super important message and birthday wish to pass on to the most beautiful woman I know -

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMMA!! :) :) :)

Love you.

Miss you terribly!!!

"The Scale"

2010-03-02T13:57:00.002+05:30

My roommate and I are on this weight-loss mission (once again).
This time though we plan to adhere to it.

But as always I am pretty sure there are bound to be slip-ups, eating/binging on the sly and the ultimate giving into craven temptation.

But in order to not break away from the regime completely, I plan to start a small section on La Push. In this section, every night, I will mention all that I have eaten/avoided throughout the day. I will also of course be relating to you all as to how I plan to overcome temptation and how I did overcome it and in some cases, how I gave in to it :(

What I would be needing from you guys is your help. This is something I really need to do.
Part of the whole turning a new leaf/chapter in life's great big book and all.

Sooo...pleeeeease do not comment saying that I should allow myself to binge once in a while, your body needs sugar so do not deny it that...etc etc!
You have to help me out here alright.

Hopefully, by the end of March, I will have a better reading on "The Scale".

So let's call this March, "Weight-loss March", shall we?

You are also requested to share your own experiences if you to lose weight, in the process of losing weight, trying to lose weight but the damn scale is your biggest foe - and also if you have lost weight (baby fat/puppy fat or whatever you wanna call it), do share some valuable inputs and suggestions!

Thanks y'all :) :)

La Push' first ever...

2010-02-26T12:49:00.006+05:30

Light filtered through the curtains

Dust motes flying in gay abandon

The blanket all russed at the feet

He sleeps oblivious to all around

The grasshopper on the pillow

Looks at him through squinted eyes

The honeybee on the windowsill

Waits for him to awaken

The swaying trees green

Peep into the window wondering

When would his eyes snap open

They all had just question in mind:

Was he done for this time?

...hours later, the maid walks in to wake him...she gathers all his strewn clothes and then she screams!!

----

What does she find? What makes her scream?

*The best answers, will obviously win nothing but the virtual tap on their shoulder and a 'Well Done' note from me!*

But all the same...do send me your answers.

I am waiting...

**UPDATE** (March 4, 2010)
Winner: Sanjay Answer: The maid, upon entering the room, watches the trees swaying and realizes that she hasn't harvested her farm on Farmville!

Now, you all may think that this isn't quite that funny... but it actually spoke to me.
So many times in the last few months, ever since I've started playing Farmville, I remember things like harvesting and seeding when I am actually on my way to a meeting, or when I am having chicken and I realize I need to hatch some chicken eggs etc etc.

So congratulations Sanjay :) :)

You win!

Letting bygones remain just that...

2010-02-22T10:49:00.002+05:30

How many times do we promise ourselves that things would be different this time around? How many times do we convince ourselves that in the end all will be well?
And yet...when things turn out to be just the opposite, there is that niggling voice in your brain that says, "I told you so" and sometimes even, "What the hell were you thinking?"

These voices kept ringing through me practically the whole of this weekend.
Came Monday morning and I decided to zip the damn thing!

----

As of today, as of now, negativity has had its way with me. Dullness shall never surround me ever again. Darkness will just be a mere illusion which would be kept far far away from me. Happiness would be my middle name...laughter and radiance would be the currency of my life!

Here's to a very happy beginning of endless opportunities and a life full of hope, happiness, love and frivolity...

Here's to LIFE!

Some grey matters

2010-02-15T22:29:00.002+05:30

Aaahh...yes...the time has come for me to officially announce the arrival of my third blog on the blogosphere :) :)

I am all but thrilled to present Noir Me to you!

Now Noir Me, would be a tad different from Dreamland: La Push and Dreamspinner.

You'll see why.

Happy blogging!

Pune...inspiration :)

2010-02-15T17:03:00.002+05:30

I'm a year older now - wiser? Hmmm...only time will tell I guess.
Anyway, my 22nd birthday was quite a special one.
Its so funny really. I was never a gregarious child, but now...you see me and I can't stop yakking along with you. Its all a part of growing up I guess.
So, like I was saying - the month's training in Pune was cut short to about two weeks, I'm now back in Bangalore, working.

Yet - the last two weeks have been absolutely fantabulous!
Yes, I was home with my family and all of that. But I especially enjoyed the last two weeks 'cause of a certain few people, namely - Kiran, Joy and Matin:) :)
With them, I never knew how time flew by, work seemed like a piece of cake, (there wasn't much to do but still), there was never a dull moment ever.

And as you can see, my list has been updated - I haven't been able to do everything on it, but I'm happy that at least 50% of the things on it have been accomplished.
On this list, there is one particular task which I failed to accomplish before the 12th. In fact I felt most upset that I hadn't been able to do this.
What is 'this' you ask?
Its no. 13 on my list!

Start another blog

While sitting and reminiscing the last couple of weeks, the brainwave hit me.
I've got an idea for a new blog.
Stay tuned to know what this new blog is going to be all about.

PS: Joy, I have you to thank for this :)

Where's the party tonight?

2010-02-05T10:25:00.003+05:30

I've never been much of a party person. I've never so much as entered a pub or a discotheque (shocking I suppose).
This status quo has never really bothered me in any way. I've never even felt the need to ask for permission to go to any of these 'happening' places. Not that had I asked, I wouldn't have been allowed, hence didn't ask altogether. But the thought has never even entered my mind.

For me, all this was because of:
a). the way I was brought up and
b). my friends' circle.

While justifying the first point I would like to defend my parents and say that I've been given quite a lot liberty in terms of being my own person - yet there has always been an invisible constitution of do's and dont's if you will, which inadvertently I have always adhered to.

The way my sister has been brought up has been a tad different according to me. Being so much older to her, I figure that I've always been a kind of buffer for her. There are times when I feel that she gets her way a little to easily. But then I let it go, saying to myself that we're two completely different individuals. What may apply to me obviously need no apply to her.
Yet, the hypocrisy of parents is never truly forgotten. Its always running riot at the back of the mind.
I'm pretty sure that when the time comes, my sister is bound to ask my parents whether she can go to a discotheque with her friends. Hell, she already goes to malls and bowling alleys with them, why not the disc too. I for one didn't do half the things that she has been allowed to do. Then again, the idea of malls and bolwing alleys and arcades hadn't really taken much root in India while I was growing up (or so I'd like to believe).

To be honest, I wasn't very bright about all that was happening around me. In my sister's case she has me as well as a circle of friends who are quite street-smart and know how to get their way too.

This brings me to my next point.
My friends in school, were never really the typical friends you would find in movies like Dil Chahta Hai and the likes. We were so bloody competitive in everything we did, that we hardly gave much thought to going out to malls et al. We were more keen on knowing how much she scored in Physics and how many marks did she leave in her History paper.
At home, the question always was, 'What is the highest in class? If she could get why couldn't you get that much?' and sometimes it would escalate to "I don't care how much she got. What I can't understand is why can't my daughter do better than her?"

College for me was an eye-opener at sooo many different levels.
My parents have never been the kinds who've said that you can't have any male friends. In such matters, they've been quite cool and cosmo.
Born and brought up in Pune, my Dad has his people in every corner of the city. So if I so much as stepped out of college, word would reach home that I'm out. For Mom, these people were God's messengers.
I hated these messengers!
So now, in order to move out with friends, bike-rides came in to the picture. But then again, a guilty conscience plagued me to no end - and also my Mom's words cheating on your father ate me alive!
So this practice was also stopped soon.
Slowly, I began asking permission to go out with friends for a movie, or maximum a lunch. Many a time, this has been denied.
Even then, my friends were never the kinds who would go to a discotheque. So the curiosity to know what was inside those infamous four walls never caught the better of me.

When Bangalore happened to me, a lot of my cousins remarked that now I would have free reign to do whatever I wanted. Yet, I've never felt the need to visit a discotheque, a pub or any such place.
I've never felt the need to call a friend and ask, "Dude, where's the party tonight?"

Please note that I have nothing against these establishments and the people who visit them either. You're different. So am I!