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"The New Year Poem :) "

January 7, 2014, 7:30 am
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" Every dawn has a dusk and every dusk has a night.
To watch the changing sky in different shades is a delight.
Every man has a life and every life has a wrong and a right.
To be or not to be is the biggest question and the longest fight!"
Pic Courtesy: Imran

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The "You" and "Me" War!

January 8, 2014, 11:05 pm
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If I do a mistake I don't think twice.
If you do a mistake you are experienced and wise.
If I am used to something you call it a vice.
If you are used to something you say it is nice!

If I break a promise I am heartless and take you for granted.
If you break a promise you understand the situation and are sainted.
If I am judge-mental I probably don't know the world's way.
If you are judge-mental you know it all and hence you dare to say.

If you pass on an opinion you are true, frank and honest.
If I pass on an opinion I am rude, thoughtless and blankest.

For once If I were you, will you be me ?
For once if we shift our roles will we have a new way to see? 

If you cut jokes on others and mock them you love having fun.
If I cut jokes and laugh I am just not fair to that person. 
If you talk and talk and not listen to me, you have better things to speak.
If I talk and talk about me, my monologue is boring and may also reek!

If I shed tears uncontrollably, I am just being cynic and weak.
If you shed tears in fear and pain I should understand and you need no critique.
If you don't stay in touch and cannot talk to me you are just being busy.
If I have a reason for not talking to you, I am just acting and being lousy!

If you shut others mouth when you open yours you are speaking with heart.
If I try to open my mouth you think I talk with anything but heart and you retort!

For once If I were you, will you be me ?
For once if we shift our roles will we have a new way to see? 

PS: Feels good to write poems after so long :)
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In the memory of “Uday Kiran”

January 10, 2014, 4:06 am
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Uday Kiran in Telugu means the morning sun or the morning sun rays but sadly the actor Uday Kiran did something which negates the meaning of his name. He ended his life on the midnight of 05-01-2014. The glitz and glamour of Cinema blinds us so much that we never really understand the actual emotions of any actor or actress. Suicides are not new in film industry but every time I hear a suicide news I am really not sure, how to react or whom to pity! Uday Kiran is famously called as hat-trick hero as three of his consequent movies, Chitram, Nuvvu Nenu , Manasantha Nuvve were super hit. Manasantha Nuvve was even remade in other languages including Hindi. I remember the time in 2002 when all teenage girls had a crush on Uday Kiran after watching his movie Nuvvu Nenu. The songs, the pair (Anita and Uday) and the simple teenage love story charmed the audience. Even Nuvvu Nenu was remade in Hindi in which Tushar Kapoor paired up with Anita but definitely the magic couldn’t be recreated.

Uday Kiran was praised to skies and he got the chocolate boy image instantly. He rose in his career and the roles suddenly dwindled whatever may be the personal or professional challenges. He tried his best to come back on the track but failed due to various reasons. The competition and the passion to be a notable hero and the financial issues weighed on him. Few news articles claim that few heroes have conquered the filmdom and there is no scope for actors like Uday to rise and shine here. This is partially true as we all know that it is easy to survive in Cine Industry if you have a god father. However there are proofs that if you are a bad actor survival chances are meagre. I can understand Uday’s depression but what I don’t understand is the impulsion to die. Last year when Jia Khan committed suicide I failed to understand the same thing. There are many popular figures and celebrities who became famous only after their death. The life and death of these stars is quite dramatic. Most of these stars are young. The urge to die at the age of 20-30 scares me.


When I read that Uday informed his friends about his depression and the will to die that fateful night I felt that somewhere in the corner of his heart he wanted to live. If only someone stopped him that second may be he would have come out of the mental trauma. If only he received proper counselling may be he would have plunged back in his career. If not in cinema may be he would have acted in TV. If only his family recognised his suicidal tendencies and took some serious precautions may be they could have saved him. If only Uday Kiran thought about his wife and saw the future with her for a minute, if only he imagined for a second how doomed his well-wishers will be after his demise, if only he fought with life rather than embracing death so easily he would not have taken this hasty decision. But, now we have only many ifs and buts looming in front of us.
These ifs and buts will haunt his wife Vishita throughout her life. They will haunt his friends and family as well. He hanged himself in the gym room of his flat but that one second just before he died I wonder what would have crossed his mind. I wonder what all he wanted to say to the world before leaving.
Uday Kiran with Wife Vishita  - Image source - here

It’s not abnormal to feel suicidal at some points of time. Feeling dejected and hopeless at one point or the other is quite normal. Suicidal crisis is almost always temporary. When I was browsing I found this interesting piece. Please give a read every one – How to prevent Suicidal thoughts

 I felt sad on knowing that he sent the sms, “I love you too” to his wife. If only he loved himself little more and filled his heart with courage he would have seen the morning sun rays of 06-01-2014! All in all Monday morning was gloomy to me. I just couldn’t get his face out of my mind. His smile and the dimple were dancing in front of my eyes and I couldn’t sleep properly. May his soul rest in peace.
Some other good movies in which Uday acted are Holi ,  nee sneham and kalusukovalani

A famous song from his movie Manasantha Nuvve. One of my most fav songs. R.I.P. Uday Kiran
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Head-Heart conflict to feel alive again!

January 12, 2014, 9:08 am
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 I knelt down by my bed side that night and prayed to god for long.
 I was not asking for a favor or a help but wanted to know what's wrong.
 In my heart I want to be happy but my head thinks differently.
 Heart says, "You are mad. Bothering about your hair is so silly!"


 Head responds, "What do you know heart? You ooze blood. I bear the hair!"
 Heart says, "Heart knows everything. It just feels the happiness and despair."

 Head: "My friends have a strong tuft of hair and I have measly strands which is not fair."
 Heart: "But your friends cannot think like your head or mind. Is it not fair and square?"
 "Oh! What do you know heart ? It is the external beauty which charms all."
  "But history has proved that no brainers can rise but they soon fall!"

"History doesn't know all the mysteries. We humans are a challenge to history!"
"How can you say that? History witnessed the wars and the victory."
"I for sure know history can only witness but not resolve the conflicts between you and me."
 "You and me can be one and the same if we sit and talk by not letting the differences just be!"
 
Head laughed loud: "Ha ha. Resolving the differences? You and me? For that you have to first listen heart."
 Heart clearly puzzled replied: "But that's what I do starting from the morning to noon and till mid of the night!"

 "If you know what I want, you would have done a miracle to make my hair silky."
 "I know no miracles. If I interfere in your matters, you call me nosy and pesky."
 "From this second I will not call you nosy. Now will you listen to my desires and wants?"
 "If only you sit and talk and not get worked up and bang the doors and chant the rants!"


 "You have no idea that I have been chanting prayers and not rants. I feel blue!"
  "I am a part of you. I have seen your good and bad hair days along with you!"
  "I tried to meditate along with my friend to ignore the hair problem."
   "And you failed horribly even after chanting for hours , your Om Om Om!"

 "I destroyed the idiot box which shows in the ads a lovely long mane."
  "And I tried to stop you from doing the stupid act but you were insane!"
  " I was frustrated to the chore as my hair looked like entangled set of wires."
  "But your frustration lead to a decision which was hasty and unwise!"


   
     "Then tell me what to do heart?  Give me a permanent solution to fix this."
      "I can't do it overnight but this can help and give you some bliss!"
       Saying so heart handed over a magic solution to head.
       After few days head stopped whining and it felt like the happy time started!

      Head felt light and recharged. It felt like a final good bye to the loneliness.
      Head hugged heart and smiled broad due to the new found happiness.
      The hair felt lively and the life never felt so refreshing before.
      Head and heart wanted to experience this more and more!




        Bad hair days affect my mood and my office work.
        Bad hair days lead to an ill-temper which makes me a jerk.
        Good hair days keep the mind fresh and cool.
        Good hair days make me feel that you lose and I rule.
       
        From then on days of good hair finally kicked off.
        Hair looks smooth, shiny, healthy and there was no huff and puff.
        Heart and head became friends again and even talk over a cup of coffee.
        Heart warns head not be obsessed with hair and not to fall for a taffy!

       

      Both heart and head feel alive again and live happily ever after.
      Their motive is to lead a peaceful life and never compare themselves with some other.
      A perfect balance between good looks and a warm heart is their art.
      Hair got shiny but the heart should be more glossy to win another heart!

This post is written for Indiblogger's Recharge your HAIR, RECHARGE your life contest in association withsunsilk .Do visit - http://www.sunsilk.in/

Thanks for reading :)
Note : All the above cartoons are made with the helps of bitstrips.com
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Five Off-beat films to beat the monotony!

January 13, 2014, 3:17 am
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Religion, cricket and Cinema rule India. We discuss Cinema importantly. Arvind Kejriwal may sign a new policy in Delhi but the movies which are queued up for release this week will grab our attention. Cinema is in our pulse. It flows in our veins. It twitches our nerves and rules our minds. When Blogadda posted  Misslovely , An Off beat Hindi film - Weekend activity I first thought of skipping it as there are too many movies which I love, but being a movie buff I finally succumbed to it.

Mass movies which are most of the times unrealistic may earn 100 crores and attract more public by an item song or a skimpy clad heroine but off-beat movies which are close to reality instantly form a bond with movie watchers.Movie goers like me feel good as they watch something which makes them think rather than just sitting there for 3 hrs of colors, masala and entertainment. It doesn't mean that commercial movies are bad. I only mean I like off-beat  movies more. Off-beat actually means unusual or unconventional.

I thought a lot to list down those top 5 Off-beat movies which I feel every one should watch and came up with the below list.

1.) Gangs of Wasseypur 

The first and foremost person who comes to my mind when I think Off-beat is Anurag Kashyap. The movie Gangs of Wasseypur he made 2 years back in 2 parts impressed me a lot. Keh ke lunga became a cult and O-womaniya became a soothing song for all the women out there. This movie proved that women in remote areas can also be bold and can revolt back. This particular point won my heart. The smashing star cast - Manoj Bajpai , Richa Chadda, Tigmanshu Dhulia, Nawazuddin Siddiqui , Huma Qureshi , the Bihari slang and locales, interesting story line, brutally honest dialogues , wonderful music by Sneha Kanwalkar and many more reasons just made it the most interesting watch of the year 2012 for me. Do read my detailed reviews atGangs of Wasseypur 1 and Gangs of Wasseypur 2 to know how much I loved the movies!
O womaniya song from GOW

Anurag Kashyap is so far the best story teller in Hindi film industry to me. There are many other good movies directed or produced by him like Dev D,  Shaitaan , Luv Shuv tey chicken Khurana, The Lunch box and many more. Almost all the movies where he is involved have won applause! With Gangs of Wasseypur the number of his fans tripled!

2.) Dasvidaniya : 

Dasvidaniya which in Russian language means good bye was directed by Shashant Shah and written by Arshad Syed has VinayPathak in the lead role. When I watched the movie back in 2008 tears welled up in my eyes. It is about a boring person Vinay Pathak who lives with his mother. He does even the daily tasks with the help of to- do post its. The monotony of his life ends only when he realizes that he is about to die. That moment he actually starts living and sets out in to the world to fulfill all his dreams and desires.

The movie is about how the journey unfolds and how he ticks off each wish in his bucket list. This is a feel good movie with no-nonsense. I love Vinay Pathak and his performance in almost all the movies. The song meri maa makes any one cry! It made me emotional even now when I was uploading the video.
Image source : here

Mumma song from Dasvidaniya
3.) Black :

The 2005 movie Black by Sanjay Bhansali was a huge success. It touched millions of hearts and redefined Rani as an actress and needless to say Amitabh Bachan rocked. It is the story of a blind and deaf girl in whose life a teacher brings a ray of hope. Black received awards and accolades and was listed in top 25 must watch hindi movies by India Times movies. Again I love black as it is a sensitive story which is heart touching.

Great performances by Amitabh and Rani made it tough to decide whose job was better. I wish to see Rani Mukherjee in a good movie again! The role Debraj Sahai  played by Amitabh is an unforgettable one. Black would be forever etched in my memory. Sanjay Leela Bhansali is known for his colorful movies. By far Black worked the best for him :)


image source : here
4.) A Wednesday 

The 2008 thriller drama written and directed  by Neeraj Pandey - A wenesday is my all time favorite movie. It stars one and only Naseeruddin Shah and has Anupam Kher,  Jimmy Shergill and Aamir Bashir. I loved the movie due to the simple message of not tagging religion with terrorism. Naseeruddin steals the show through out and the movie makes you sit glued to your couches till the end.

The movie just shows that a common man can do anything if he decides to implement what he thinks. The story  focuses the 2006 Mumbai train blasts and makes the viewers feel sad and bad about the terrorist attacks on which one has no control. At the same time it makes us think about the cases where terrorists are not punished the way they have to be in India. A realistic take on the whole scenario with top notch performances by Naseeruddin Shah and Anupam Kher.
Image source : A Wednesday

5.) Barfi :

The last option is tough as I want to list down many movies made in 2012 as good off-beat movies. How ever I am rounding on Barfi written and directed by Anurag Basu. Here is one more Anurag who raised the bar of Indian Cienma. Barfi is a feel good movie . It is the story of Murphy "Barfi" Johnson who is born deaf and mute but lives the life to the fullest due to his optimistic attitude. Ranbir Kapoor excelled in the movie and Priyanka Chopra as Jhilmil who is autistic is brilliant too.
The movie gave way to Ileana in bollywood and all the performances are memorable.Love doesn’t need perfection but love at times is a impulse of  heart without any pre plans and so  beautiful that you can lead a perfect life even with 100 imperfections. This is the beautiful message in the movie when Barfi and Priyanka start living together. If only every one who is physically strong could live in such a dream land of BARFI life would be easier and better. This movie can be savored just like the sweet dish barfi!
Image source: Here
Aashiyaan- My favorite song from Barfi

I want to write about many more movies but I am stopping here as we have to list down only the top five movies. The other movies which I want to watch are The Lunch box, Ship of Theseus, Girl in the yellow boots , Udaan and many more. Few other movies which I loved watching are Dilse, Swades, Iqebal, Ishqia, Do dooni chaar, Vicky Donor, Fukrey, Madras Cafe, Go Goa Gone and the latest Dedh Ishqiya charmed me. The list is quite long so I want to end my post here.

Gone are the days for the bollywood where hero is poor and heroine is rich or vice-versa and then they fall in love with 12 odd songs through out the movie. The hero doesn't have to take revenge on the villain and save his sister and mother always. Bollywood has come out of that comfort zone and changed the equations and is all set to make wonderful off-beat movies which are also faring well at box offices. The big sponsors and the planned releases across the world is also helping a lot as many viewers are recognizing a good movie !

This post is a part of the Miss Lovely Activity in association with BlogAdda.

Miss Lovely, an off-beat film directed by Ashim Ahluwalia is set in the lower depths of Bombay’s “C” grade film industry. It follows the devastating story of two brothers who produce sex horror films in the mid – 1980s. A sordid tale of betrayal and doomed love, the film dives into the lower depths of the Bollywood underground, an audacious cinema with baroque cinemascope compositions, lurid art direction, wild background soundtracks, and gut-wrenching melodrama. Miss Lovely is scheduled for commercial release on 17 January 2014.
You can check the trailer of the film
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Dedh Ishqiya - Watch it to be enchanted!

January 15, 2014, 5:01 am
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Originally published at viewspaper

Cast: Naseeruddin Shah, Madhuri Dixit, Arshad Warsi, Huma Qureshi
Director: Abhishek Chaubey
Image Source : here
Set in the milieu of a small town Muhammadabad of UttarPradesh Dedh Ishqiya is all set to break the records and steal the hearts. Khalujaan and Babban  (Naseeruddin and Arsad Varshi) come back and prove that their duo is unbeatable and their chemistry just gets better in this part. From the opening scene the movie grabs audience's attention and proves that it is going to be a better watch than Ishqiya.
The movie is raunchy , hilarious, dazzling, charming and poetic. The whole movie is like a poetic rendition with heart touching Urdu shayris and of course Madhuri Dixit is like the dazzling verse of the most beautiful poem and the fiery feisty Huma Qureshi complements her effortlessly! Writer-director Abhishek Chaubey and co-writer Vishal Bhardwaj have come up with a brilliant story line with many turns , twists and the humor which easily blends with the story and makes it a delightful watch. The director and the team have put all the efforts to make this sequel a non-redundant one and an extra entertaining watch!
 Jaan Mohammed as  (Vijay Raaz) is brilliant with his top notch performance and the rest of the star cast's performances are worth applause too. The cinematography , sets , costumes , jewels and the whole aura is grand and exquisite. Editing is flawless. Kudos to the story writer Darab Farooqui. The witty and funny dialogues and music by Vishal Bharadwaj spice up the movie. 
Nawaab Iftekhaar and Begum Para
Muniya and Babban and their sizzling chemistry
Both Khalujaan and Babban just like in Ishqiya are deceitful and continue the shady affairs and when they come across beautiful women , they lose all senses as mush rules their brains :) The mush finally spoils their plans and exposes them to bizarre situations. The evil boss Mushtaq played by Salman Shahisand's intelligent scenes will make you clap in the movie.  Begum Para uraf Madhuri Dixit the enchanting widow of Muhammadabad will keep your gaze fixed to her.  The unique Nawabi Swayamwar adds a special touch to the movie and Naseeruddin who acts like Nawab of Chandpur will make you laugh out loud and you will also feel awesome on hearing all the shayris. The urdu language, dialogues and Shayris will steal any one's heart and  are definitely not over done. Dr Bashir Badr owns the shayris and we can only thank him for adding elegance to the movie.The brilliant step taken is to provide English subtitles. This comes handy as many may not crack all the dialogues. I felt the necessity of subtitles while watching Matru ki Bijlee ka Mandola.

No spoilers in this review but if you want to watch good cinema go for it with out any second thought as in the recent past  bollywood had dished out only the 100 crore club movies with meaningless story lines and bluffed us in the garb of entertainment . Dedh Ishqiya is a respite from all such trashy scripts with multiple twists, shoot-outs and of course, lots of humour. And there's Madhuri Dixit-Nene, looking extremely graceful . She's still capable of engaging the audience even during the end credits by dancing to Humri Atarya pe. She looks divine and the movie is like the seducing wine.
The fantastic duo. Image source : here
After Gangs of Wasseypur this is the movie which is equally good or may be this is much better. Go watch this paisa vasool movie to refresh your self and learn a new language "Urdu". The movie has everything which a good cinema can provide. Good story, rib tickling humor, two ravishing beauties, Khalujaan and babban ,heady language , nawabi grandeur , the Muslim upper class's love for shayris , ghazals ,etiquettes  and memorable performances. Watch it today and get charmed! You will be amused to know that there is a combination of Gulzar , Rahat Fateh Ali khan and also Honey Singh (for the horn Ok please song) in the movie! 

Highlights and memorable dialogues from the movie :



  • The  “Seven Stages of Love” described by our beloved Iftekhaar uraf Khalujaan. Dilkashi (attraction), Uns (attachment), Mohabbat (love), Akidat (trust), Ibadat (worship), Junoon (madness) and the last stage is Maut (death).

  • The hilarious scene where Arshad Warsi is given options to get punished by Mushtaq.

  • The dance sequence- Humri Atariya pe by Madhuri

  • Dialogues which you will remember for a long time : 


Para Jaan (Madhuri Dixit): Aapko pehle kahin dekha hai

Khaalu Jaan (Naseeruddin Shah): Yaad aaye kahan toh itilla zaroor kijiyega, hum bhi dhoond rahein hain kab se apne aap ko
  • Lyrics by Gulzar : 


Na bolun main toh, kaleja phoonke
Jo bol dun toh zabaan jale hai
Sulag na jaave, agar sune woh
Sulag na jaave, agar sune woh
Jo baat meri zabaan tale hai

  • And all the shayris ofcourse




Thanks to the entire cast and crew for gifting us a great movie just in the start of 2014 which reminded us of Umrao Jaan era! I will eagerly wait for a sequel with an intriguing title again :) 


The trailer




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If you are single you can't mingle in India ;)

January 19, 2014, 2:38 am
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Originally published atHalf Baked Voices .

Being single in India is challenging . It is a crime as you are expected to get married before you touch 25 and become a mother at least by 30. Many elders (read morons) here decide the fertility rate of every woman. They start their requests for kids from day 1 of marriage. Some think delivering a kid is as easy as getting a chips packet from vending machine! I know I am getting drifted away from the topic. I can write a lot on the "being single" scenario in India. But for now I want to narrate an incident from my own life.

I used to have lunch with a group of colleagues in the office pantry some 3 years back. Half of them were married and the a quarter of them are engaged and another quarter were committed to get married (hopefully to the same person). The conversation started some thing like below.

Madam X: "Hey today my husband wanted me to make this curry. He loves it." 

Madam Y:  "Me and Raj love the coriander soup of Main Land China."

I was already feeling out of place but still was hearing to them faking a pinch of enthusiasm just for courtesy sake.

Madam Z: " Afshan! When are you going to invite us to a lavish dinner which has biryani and haleem?"

Me: "Any day. Lets plan it . We can go out."

Y and Z in chorus : "Oh! Not like that. She meant about wedding bells re."

I realized I had to understand almost every thing they talk in the marriage context as they talk mostly that.

Me: "Oh! Not any sooner."

X: "Then. When? What are your plans? You already have some one? Every one in your batch is married na!"

Even if I was feeling like kicking myself. I controlled the urge and responded.

Me: "Nope. I have no one. I am searching for the guy you know. So when ever I like some one you all can have your biryani."

Y: "What are you looking for in a guy? You should lessen your expectations. There is no perfect guy you know."

Now I don't know if Y is spying on me and my expectations list but this time I felt like kicking her.

I controlled the anger and remained silent.


Z: "By the way. In your religion mother-in-law ties the mangala sutra na. That's it and marriage is over ?" This sentence was followed by a series of giggles.

That's it . I couldn't resist any more, even if they sounded ignorant, idiotic and harmless.

Me: "You think people around the world follow the same tradition of wedding? and what do you know about my expectations list to comment on?"

Y, Z: "Arey , we were just advising yaar. Don't be serious."

 "No I am not serious. I just can't talk and take the nonsense and innocence which is some times pain in ass." I told

After that I did not go for lunching with them as I didn't feel like it. I definitely felt I can do better with better people around me. On that day I realized how nosy people are and how they bother you if you decide for yourself. Specially most of the married folks feel , they have all rights to nose around. Yes there are others too who mind their own business but its not uncommon to come across the nosy bunch. They sound just like the aunties and vamps in serials. Whenever I come across them I feel that serials are not very unrealistic!

Once you are married don't think that the questions will stop. Recently a friend with whom I went out asked me, "When are you planning kids?" I had the standard answer ready with a sheepish smile, "Not any sooner."

The friend who recently turned mom exclaimed in utter amazement, "Not any sooner means. You gotta plan yaar."

You know what I did? I counted 10 to 1 and inhaled and exhaled for some inner peace!

Once an American during a tour in Manali expressed his inconvenience whenever Indians question him about his marriage / kids and settlement. He was happy that I did not ask him the same. I told him there are more interesting things to talk and cleared to him that not every one in India is interested in personal affairs. 
That's why I say if you are single its tough to mingle in India and ignorance might be a bliss but some times it's a pain in ass to the one who faces it.
Image source : "here"

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This day That Year - Jan 22, 2012

January 21, 2014, 4:30 pm
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Today is our second marriage anniversary. Day before yesterday I was idling and reminiscing this day that year (2012) when I was all jittery thinking about my new life and thinking about the challenges of being a wife. No. I am not going to say now that it has all been rosy and all my fears were countered. I can definitely say that I have grown to a "woman" from a "girl". No. Keep your naughty thoughts to yourself. I have become a woman as in I realized how the new responsibilities will throw new challenges at me everyday and I actually had to mentally grow. I had no choice. I realized that I am no longer a "girl" who is lot pampered by parents, who rarely does the household chores and who doesn't even know what is what in the kitchen. I have realized the secret capability I possess to face the challenges though not always with a smile plastered on my face! I realized I ace at multitasking and that I love decorating my "home". Home - The word always rises my spirits. How ever small or big it might be the first home at Gurgaon thrilled me. As I resigned my job I took my time to explore my hobbies , learn cooking , decorate the home in whatever possible way.

My husband being a great cook was a blessing. He is my teacher too. I developed interest in cooking only due to him and not due to my mum who is also a magical cook.The downside of it is I didn't feel like standing on the weighing scale for more than an year :-/ Like they say necessity is the mother of invention and when I started living away from parents I just had to learn cooking and surprisingly I was enjoying it too though it's not my hobby and I am not innovative like hubby! My husband unlike me can conjure a dish in no time. These two years have been a great learning period. I am not saying I am an expert now. The lesson I learnt in these two years is that marriage is a continuous learning process where one needs to inculcate qualities like patience , loving thy-self and also thy-partner no matter what kind of the day it is! Some days are sunny , some rainy, some too grey and some bright but all the days are etched in my memories! Before marriage I was scared thinking how will I like a stranger ? What reasons do I have for actually liking/ loving him ?

Strangely after 2 years of married life I like/ love him with out any specific reason! YES. I am shocked by my own words as it was and is always tough for me to believe in the "marriage and LOVE" concept. My brains might have intimidated (thoda self dabba chalta hai na :P ? )him but his sense of humor got me! In our very first phone call the very first thing I said to him breathlessly was ,"I don't know cooking. I know just the basics."

He who scrutinized me well enough laughed in a silly way and replied ," Basics as in boiling water for tea?"

 I was speechless. I mocked anger and he coaxed me saying cooking is damn easy and as he knows cooking that should be my last worry. So the first demon which bothered me till that point of time vanished in to thin air! I was greatly relieved. Believe me it was a huge SIGH OF RELIEF. I loved the fact that he came all alone to meet me. I was scared about the relatives and the whole cast and crew who will bore their eyes in to me. The very fact that he too feels all the procedure quite embarrassing made me jump in joy. Those who would have gone through the arranged marriage ritual will understand what I am saying! We wrote a lot about each other on the wedding site but can't share the link as it is taken down now. We just have the keep sake Cds. When he gifted me secret of Nagas before wedding I was glad as he knew my taste. He doesn't read much but he makes it a point to read what I write and I for sure never sit on his head to make him read whatever I write but I for sure am going to make him read this one ! :)
My wedding Mehndi which I immensely loved

After getting Mehndi on hands. My haldi- Manja function

In the initial days of wedding , post the honey moon phase when the marriage actually started I was missing mom dad badly. He was one patient soul who understood what I was going through and always tried his best to cheer me up. Some times he gets disappointed as making me smile is a herculean task but as I can't see his drooping /dull /defeated face I always try and stay in high spirits.  I slowly got used to the new life, work , new challenges and all in all the two years have been a roller coaster ride. There were many ups and downs and some times valleys too but the most important point is that we were and are together in all of them!
Imran's first photo which I saw and shared with cousins / friends :) :)

I was not getting a job and was quite frustrated. Now I got a job but in Hyderabad and he is in Bangalore. I took the name of Allah and came to Hyd and for sure it is not rosy. I miss him like hell. This is the first time in my life when I realized that I AM PRETTY USED TO HIM. Well you can call it "Love" :D. I am so used to him that it is getting tough to stay at my parent's home. I know my mom will scowl (and secretly feel happy) when she reads this line :) I hope and pray that we both stay in the same city by mid of 2014 at least. This is the major wish I have this year :)

My status updates from 2012's Timeline ;) Gotta thank FB for this.


June 14, 2012
When ever I cook food for my self, I remember home :-|
When ever I try clearing the mess around I remember my mom!
Ya ya they say you should be a Roman when you are in Rome.
I guess wherever I stay in this world I will always miss The "Home"!!
Afshan


April 30, 2012
100 days !


January 21, 2012
Bachelorette bomb is ticking away!!! The wedsite says 01day:7hrs:13min:22sec!! Mixed feelings   :-|



January 18, 2012
Today Morning I woke up to a dream of lights , flowers and dazzle and heard every one talking about the same !!!  Gosh!! 4more days..Time realllllllllllly flies!

I again feel like a bride after writing and reading all this.I am still learning what marriage is and I know the whole life will fall short to excel in the institution of marriage :-) And now I will not bore you more. Below is the video I made for my wedding website. Have a good day! May GOD BLESS US and you all for blessing us ;)  (( Touch wood :)))


PS: Waiting for the weekend when we both will meet :)

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Whats (Y)apping!

January 26, 2014, 10:22 pm
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   Image source: here
When I decided to write on this topic this week for Half baked beans, I was smiling to myself as anyone and everyone is addicted to what’s app these days. Yes it does save time when you have to share some photo-graph or a video or a file from your mobile with other person who has what’s app downloaded on his mobile but what next? It for sure doesn’t stop there.

Everyone keeps checking their mobiles for some what’s app fun message or a forward or a pic. It’s not an exaggeration if I say what’s app is one of the top five communication platforms in the world now, first being Facebook closely followed by twitter. Many other chatting apps have come to light after what’s app like we chat, wow talk etc. but no other app could beat what’s app. From a maid to a carpenter to a gym trainer to a shop keeper, everyone has what’s-app downloaded on their mobiles.
         
My father can use internet but is not well-versed with the day to day changing techno trends. He has a smart phone. I downloaded what’sapp on it but he never used it. He wanted to finalise a function hall for my brother’s wedding. Before visiting the hall, the concerned person asks my father if he can use what’s app! My dad was not very sure. The person in charge wanted to share the snap shots on what’s app for a primary approval. The second experience was when a carpenter asked if any of us have what’s app on mobiles as he wanted to forward some designs. Like this I had many encounters with what’s appers. Whenever I save a number I get curious and check if he/she is using what’s app. Few days back I saw that a Mehndi-wallah who came to apply mehndi on our hands during my brother’s wedding was what’s apping and smiling.

Read rest of the article at Half-Baked Beans 
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Pelancongan Kepada Malaysia ( Tour to Malaysia) !

November 15, 2013, 9:36 am
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We went to Malaysia – Singapore for honeymoon on a holiday package with Welfare Holiday Tours whose offers seemed exciting in the beginning but we were dissatisfied by their implementation which made us hop around the places with certain time limit allotted to each place which was very less. 

As soon as we landed in KL (Kuala-lumpur) the capital city of Malaysia I was flabbergasted by the size of the airport and it took us some 15-20min to understand from where we need to collect the baggage. We boarded a subway-metro which took us to the point where we had to collect the baggage. The first thing we did was to search our cab driver who was holding a placard with our names on it. After a tiresome journey in Srilankan airlines and tasteless food we were so relieved to find him . Of course we had no idea then what all food options we would be having in the forthcoming days! The cab driver Raja is from Tamil Nadu and got settled in Malaysia . It was my first international visit so like everyone else I was also surprised by the clean – wide roads and neat traffic and more surprised by seeing too many Indians especially Tamilians who were settled there from long. I am not sure on this but may be as TN is the nearest Indian state to Malaysia Tamilians were high in number there.

Raja dropped us at hotel Ancasa saying another Guide Christopher will be picking us from hotel next day in the morning. Meanwhile we can roam on our own in areas around the hotel, he said . He told just adjacent to hotel there is China town which is good time pass as it is Chinese New year. We were greatly relieved as soon as we entered our magnificent and luxurious hotel Ancasa.  Our room was in 11th floor and the view was great from there as we were able to see a huge Bank – May bank and KL tower and also Petronus- Twin towers from the room window.
Below are the snap shots ofHotel An-Casa , KL tower & MAY-bank (in order) from the hotel room window
Another interesting thing we spotted was Mc-D from the room window so it was decided we would have lunch there as we reached very late and the free unlimited buffet breakfast closed by 10:30 and we were in no mood to try any new cuisine. So we headed straight to Mc-D and had the usual French fries and non veg meal along with coke which seemed heavenly then .
PS: I never liked MC-Donalds!

After a satisfactory meal we headed to China town which was all glowing in red due to various decorations as part of Chinese New year and there was too much of hustle bustle in shops . The note worthy things there were chestnuts which were yum and also guavas which were the size of small coconuts. The vendor who was selling them seemed to be Yo-Yo with all his DJ kind of pics pasted on his cart. He was very vibrant and gentle when he was dealing with us  and did not mind posing for us!
Chinese New year celebrations at China town
Chest nut and Guava Vendor
We roamed for an hour or so and in some shops we found it amusing and funny to see that there was a recorded tape of an old lady shrieking in a very happy tone regarding the sales/offers/products. She was shouting some thing like Pork for some ringgits and that offer was valid only for that day. I was not able to make out exactly what it is but understood only one thing that ringgit is Malaysian currency and 1 ringgit = 16 Rs and a word of advise here.If you keep converting a ringgit in to rupees you will never be able to purchase any thing there. Even if I converted I found some fruits/ food items and clothing (T-shirts etc) were reasonably priced . After purchasing chest nuts and T-shirts and having some juice we came back to hotel to rest for a while. In the night we came out on our own asking the Taxi for near by famous shopping center in KL and got down at BB plaza surrounded by KFC and the majority of the crowd were Chinese celebrating the Chinese new-year!
     KL-tower in the night
After roaming around and having some veg-roll from an Indian stall which was tasteless, purchased an orange juice to drain it. I purchased a leather belt and came back to hotel as we didn't find any thing interesting to buy .Below is the pic showing Malaysian currency.
Malaysian currency
Before describing the city tour we had the next day let me brief Malaysian History for those who are interested! Malaysia is a country in southeast Asia consisting of the southern Malay Peninsula and the northern part of the island of Borneo. Malays probably moved into the peninsula eventually reaching northern Borneo and displacing the indigenous Dayaks. Europeans arrived in the 16th century. Gaining independence in 1957, it joined with Singapore, Sabah, and Sarawak to become the Federation of Malaysia in 1963. Singapore gained independence separately in 1965. Kuala Lumpur is the capital and the largest city with a population of 24,800,000. This is what our guide MR. Christopher briefed to us on the first day of the tour which covered the city tour. For more information you can google.

Christopher also explained that the type of Govt in Malaysia is constitutional monarchy nominally headed by paramount ruler (commonly referred to as the King) and a bicameral Parliament consisting of a non elected upper house and an elected lower house; all Peninsular Malaysian states have hereditary rulers (commonly referred to as sultans) except Melaka and Pulau Pinang (Penang); those two states along with Sabah and Sarawak in East Malaysia have governors appointed by government. Sabah and Sarawak retain certain constitutional prerogatives (e.g., right to maintain their own immigration controls).

Our first stop was Istana Negara which means National palace, the royal residence for the King and queen. They did not allow us to enter inside , so we took some snaps at the entrance of the palace where there were boards with details of the palace, constitutional monarchy as well as the hierarchy of all the sultans who ruled till then.
Istana Negara Entrance
Our next stop was a monument built in the memory of dead warriors in 1st and 2nd world wars. You can check it in the image below.
War memorial
We in Game OVER tee shirts bought at China Town :P
Then we visited Masjid-negara which means National mosque, one of the largest mosques in the world. As we entered inside we realized that wearing a burqa is must to walk inside till the point where tourists are allowed. All foreigners maintained hijab as they entered inside. It was very bright to watch all sea of people dressed in purple hijabs.
Masjid-negara
As told by our guide Christopher and as we roamed we realized it’s a strict Islamic country and we were told that there Muslims are even punished if they are caught eating food in day time during the month of Ramadan! They can carry food items to their homes but shouldn't eat in open. There were even Islamic museum and one of the largest bird watches in Asia but due to time constraint we couldn't stop by!  Our next stop was the world famous KL tower or Telecommunication tower which is the seventh tallest tower in the world used for broadcast purposes with an observation deck on the top most floor and a floating restaurant.The tower also acts as the Islamic falak observatory to observe the crescent moon which marks the beginning of Muslim month of Ramadhan.(go to wiki for more). The tallest telecom tower is Tokyo sky tree in Japan.
This KL tower image is from wiki
We went to the top most floor of the tower from where we had amazing views of the KL city. Petronus towers were also visible from the windows of the KL Tower.Check the snapshots below!
Petronus towers
KL- city view
We had lunch in Little India where there were shops selling clothes from Mumbai, Kerala etc. We had some south Indian food which tasted lousy! Next stop was obviously Petronus/twin towers .The night view of Petronus towers is extremely beautiful. There are offices inside and you are not allowed to go in. Tower 1 has Petronus offices and Tower 2 is given for lease to other offices like Accenture, Mc Kinsey etc . It was the tallest building in the world from 1998 to 2004 till it was surpassed by Taipei-101 in China but they remain the tallest twin towers so far. Both towers are connected by Sky Bridge and it’s an amazing sight to watch in the night where the zenith of the towers shine like twin stars competing with the sky!


That night we picked up courage and tasted veg noodles full of vinegar in China town. They were edible but the surrounding crab and frog dishes were not so welcoming. Hence we finished the dinner asap and enjoyed the rain outside. Being a tropical country there is sun as well as a daily evening drizzle in Malaysia. The two day stay was enjoyable with occasional drizzle , little India (which almost gave the feel of home :)) , China town, visits to all the tall towers and knowing the country's  history! 

One more thing is hibiscus is national flower of Malaysia and we could see lampposts in the shape of hibiscus almost everywhere and you can see the hibiscus flower on the currency note too!The 2 day stay was noteworthy if we keep aside the food and the whiffs or sight of the food ! We thought may be they will react in a similar way when they come across Indian spicy food.:)

The next day we packed and were all set to go to “Genting Highlands” .Its my most favorite place in the whole trip . On the way we also visited “Batu” caves which is to the north of KL city where there is a Hindu shrine of lord Muruga. 

It acts as a focus of Hindu  festival Thaipusam which was happening when we visited Malaysia . You can witness many Indians there , mostly Tamilians and it’s a famous pilgrimage site for Hindus all over the world. While climbing the steps to go inside the cave you will come across many ferocious monkeys scaring you and trying to snatch things from you .I almost ran on the steps to escape from all the mischievous monkeys! Outside there is world's largest Lord Muruga’s golden statue which is 140 ft tall , a golden shrine and inside the caves also there is a shrine.
Lord Muruga at Batu caves
If you travel further north you will reach Genting highland-resorts with a Theme park also called as Genting Island which is more like a man made island developed to attract the tourists! As we were taking many hair pin bends and were about to reach Genting highland there was a remarkable drop in temperature and we didn't feel like having the local cold drink Kickapoo which we bought at Batu caves as it was burning hot there. We felt as if season changed from summer to winter in minutes and we started groping our bags for sweaters and shawls.

The main attraction of Genting is The First World hotel which held its place  in the Guinness records as the world's largest hotel in 2005 . it was the largest hotel till 2008 when The Palazzo of Los vegas replaced it. Now The first world hotel is the 4th largest.

Nevertheless if you go to Genting should stay in this place which is like a township full of entertainment and fun. We thought of going for foot massage and fish pedicure but we felt we had no time and to be honest we didn't feel like spending a lot on it ;)


Below the hotel is a 500,000 sq ft (46,000 m2) plaza called the First World Plaza, housing shopping malls, arcades, foot outlets, Starworld Casino, and the Genting Indoor Theme Park. It has a mini stage for weekly performances (such as magic and music shows) at Time Squares, surrounded by a replica of the Statue of Liberty and an Oscar statue. Other attractions include the Watersplash Pool (an indoor water theme park for children), Genting Sky Venture (Asia's first free fall simulator) and a Cineplex. The colorful building below is the first world hotel and as it was too foggy and nothing was visible from our room which was in 20th floor!
First world hotel
We visited Robert Ripley’s Believe it or not museum and also scary house which was lot fun! Like in any scary house there were only visitors who were scaring each other and it’s needless to say Ripley’s was very interesting .It was fun to know some facts, face some illusions and solve puzzles , capture our shadows , feel dizzy inside a room as it was slant and many more. We spent long time there.
At Ripley's
At Ripley's Believe it or not
Genting sky way (Cable car ride) was good and theme park was extremely interesting to people who want to enjoy all the rides where as I was just spending my time clicking pics here and there and observing people who were having food, the odor of which was so unbearable to me that I had to cover my head and nose with my scarf. I saw people eating some thing called herbal egg, a boiled egg dipped in brown solution packed in a plastic bag!! Well I don’t want to mention the smell of it  :)
skyway ride
We were very relieved when we found a North Indian food outlet in a vacant unoccupied corner among all Chinese, Thai food outlets. I couldn't bear the smell any longer so we almost ran to that outlet and ordered some biryani and pakodas and satisfied our eyes , nose and stomach even if the food was not so great! After a half-hr to 1 hr stroll in and around the hotel we came back to room and packed our bags as we had a bus the next morning to Singapore. Genting highland was awake even after midnight!

Our memories from Malaysia are firm and wide awake even now. All in all Malaysia is  a historic country populated by very kind people. People wear amazing traditional silk- ware and pretty women there wear the baju kurung, a knee-length blouse worn over a long skirt and also wear beautiful silk scarfs. Malaysia a country filled with attractive colorful flowers mostly orchids and has beautiful beaches. The add-on during our trip was Chinese new-year which made Kualalumpur even more bright with beautifully decorated lights, lamps and dragons .The time we visited Chinese new-year was the year of black dragon.
Few words I learnt from the Malay language are

Negara- National
Keluar – Exit
Kedai – Shop
Maaf- sorry
kiblah (also an Arabic word) - Orientation or direction of Mecca
terima kasih – Thanks!

A word of advice : Do carry lot of fast food along with you if you go to Malaysia. It can range from fruits to biscuits.

All in all I loved the Malaysia trip as I love exploring new cultures , traditions and ways of life. As we explored we understood Malaysia is an Islamic country and has rich culture and history which will not bore you. Any new place rejuvenates me and I came back with many memories. I would love to visit Malaysia again to get amused by the KL and petronus towers and to stay for long and enjoy the beach and understand the people and everything  but this time with a better plan .

The only dissatisfaction was the holiday package and the airlines we chose for our trip. 

How I wish we should have opted the “ World’s Best Online Travel Fair"- AirAsia but as we can't go back in time I will remember to fly with "AirAsia" the next time I plan a trip!


That’s all for now friends and terima kasih for reading my post !!

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My Dream Home!

February 2, 2014, 5:40 am
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Home is where the heart is. It is rightly said. We have not bought a house for ourselves but I know that when a family builds a house every brick is dipped in love and dedication. Every stroke of that paint brush is filled with hopes and aspirations. Home holds many memories. Memories of our childhood, of our victories, defeats, friendships, parties , weddings and many more. Where ever you roam in the world you simply have to come back to your home to be at peace! Whenever I think of home I think of my mom. The way she puts all her effort and pushes her limits to make it the best place to live is commendable. Specially with her age and everyday joint pains it gets tough for her but as she is passionate about beautifying the home she forgets everything. I keep dreaming of becoming like her and on one fine day I believe that I will simulate her as much as possible :)

When Asian Paints Home Solutions  announced the contest along with Ripple links, all I could think is of the new flat my mom and dad bought in Hyderabad. It is a happening community bustling with life always. It has amenities like gym, swimming pool, beauty parlor, Super market, basket ball court , childrens playing area, park to relax and many more. At the first glance I loved it. Since the first brick of this home was laid I was observing it and this house instantly gave me an idea of my dream house. I loved how mom was involved in every single detail of the house starting from the paints , cement , bricks, size , shape , colors and so on so forth. The recent biggest event at this new home is my brother's wedding and I pray and hope that this house witnesses many more such beautiful events where all of us take part !! 

Let me first share the pic of the balcony of our home which is the most beautiful area and my most favorite part. The below pic is on my brother's D-Day when we decorated it with a string of lights. The flat is in seventh floor and it overlooks the event area of the apartment which is like icing on the cake. We can watch the movies on the projector in the event area sitting in the balcony! It is easy for us to know whether the event is starting as per the schedule or not! Another plus point of this flat is, every room has it's own balcony with wide area to dry the clothes and the balconies have in-built cloth dryers!
Welcome to our home!
The event area from our balcony
My mom dad and brother took their own sweet time to make this place a perfect home. Gardening is the best part of any home. My mom loves gardening and needless to say the efforts to make this a clean and green space are always on. Our balcony is a vibrant area with all kinds of pots and plants and it  will be a peaceful abode for readers and writers :) Right now I am sitting there and typing all this!
Balcony Sitting area. Morning tea will be extra delicious with chirping birds and rising sun next to you!

The beautiful balcony - My mom's effort

Vibrant colors to lift your mood
As and when you enter our home you will face the sitting area for guests. It still has to be designed. The flower pots and plants which suit the hall are yet to be placed there. The kitchen / dining area and the TV room have a partition separating them from the sitting area which is again my favorite part due to the cylindrical lights which brighten the barrier!It is always better to have the TV room separately so that your TV watch won't get disrupted even if some visitor is sitting in the hall!
Hall/ Sitting area

The partition with Cylindrical lights
The TV area is huge. You can decorate it with paintings and other decors and also place books in the stands as it is very spacious. Photoframes help us revive memories and they are a must in a home. Nothing can beat the mere memory of a good event and nothing can beautify a home more than hand made paintings and art works!
The spacious TV area. Mom's paintings on either side of it
The Corner stand in the TV room with a family photo. The pot again is made by mom.

 One more fact I love about this house is the POP/ false ceiling. These are of different shapes and have many antique lights to accompany them which give a dazzling effect to the room.
POP ceilings in the hall and TV area

Trendy design in my brother's room for cup boards

The POP ceiling in bedroom

Stars in the POP Ceiling in my room.
 The favorite area which is unanimous to all in any home is Kitchen / dining area. At our place it is not just mom's tempting food which attracts me to the dining area. I love lazing out there sitting under the antique light's brightness and awing at my mom's cuisines! All the beautiful antique lights add the zing to the bed rooms ! We also have Venetian blinds in bedrooms which are stylish and save us from the scorching heat during summer!
Dining area. My favorite yellow lamp adorns the ceiling
These traditional lamps give a royal aura to all the rooms. They always remind me the saying from Harry potter "Happiness can be found even in the darkest of the times if one only remembers to turn on the light!"
Many houses in Hyderabad do not have the almyrah / cupboard provision which is painful. Having beautiful closets is a must. You can't put things in open racks at-least when you are a family of two plus. The below snap shot is of the guest bed room aka my room as of now ;) This is my peaceful abode where I read, write and spend lazy relaxing evenings. Just outside my room is my treasure trove- The beautiful white book rack which hosts all my favorite books and has many of my brother's books too.
The book rack

My room
Books- The real wealth
There is lot more to be done to this house. Mom is planning on purchasing wall decals, flower vases , plants and photo-frames to design it the way she wants to. Work is still in progress at our home and it may take another year's effort to make it look the way we want it to. Still my mom dad are excited as their dream came true and I am happy for them. I hope I too own such house in future :)

I am not an expert but I want to list down few do's and don'ts for people who are planning to purchase a house or are getting their house built!

1.) Get involved in every single detail. Take leave from your job if needed and be a part of it. No one takes your decisions seriously unless until you directly dictate them.

2.) Choose the paints , cement , flooring , tiles and everything carefully. For instance Asian paints personnel give you excellent inputs and ideas.You can take expert advice, plan your budget and easily track every thing. You can do trial checks with paints and finalize which suits your home best. You can decide wall themes, wall decals and wall fashions with the help of Asian paints. To know more go toAsian Paints Home Solutions.

3.) Invest your money intelligently. When you are investing a lot see that you are given what you asked for. It is quite possible to come across many cheaters in the real-estate business.

4.) Be patient. Patience is the virtue of success. If you are impatient with your own home's progress the others who actually build it will become disinterested!

5.) Go that extra mile to make it happen. If you are searching for a particular lamp or a particular shade of paint keep hunting till you find the same. The fruits of your efforts will definitely be the sweetest.

Lastly I want to wish good luck to all who already got their own home and who are in the process of getting one! May you all be blessed with good health , prosperity and great memories

This post is for the Beautiful Home Blogger Contest in association with Asian Paints and Ripple Links 

When you paint your home you don't just paint yourwalls; you paint your dreams with Rainbow colors!
Click on the pic for better resolution :)
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"Wordinie- The best genie"

February 2, 2014, 5:30 pm
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I was reading Arabian Nights that night and reliving my childhood days. I finished "Alibaba and the forty thieves,""Sindbad the Sailor" and finally came to the page where "Alladin and the magic lamp" tale starts. I was immersed in the story and flipped the page by gently touching it so as not to destroy the brown tattered pages of the book! Suddenly there was a blinding flash of light. I instantly closed my eyes. When I opened I saw a bluish white genie glowing in the bright light holding a pile of books. My jaw dropped and I couldn't speak anything more than , "Who are you?!"

The genie: "You rubbed the page and here I am at your service. You rubbed the exact spot where I live. If you observe carefully you touched the spot with the picture of the magical lamp."

Me: "But you are supposed to come out of the lamp right?"

Genie : "But I am the reading and writing genie. You can also call me Wordinie!"

Me: "Is that your name?"

Genie: "Yes. I live in books and grant the reading and writing wishes. I am the bestest genie and you will not regret having me master." Replied the genie with an air of importance by folding his arms as a gesture of respect.

Me: "I am still in shock. If you lived in this book, were you not summoned before?"

"Of course I was summoned a couple of times. But I appear only if the pages are gently touched. Few readers were reckless. They swiftly turn the pages and don't relish reading. I don't grant wishes to such impatient readers."

"Oh! Then I am the lucky one Wordinie. I feel glad." I replied smiling broad.


Wordinie bent his head low and conjured few books for me instantly based on my taste, interest and mood!

I jumped with joy. "Wordiniee. How do you know all this?"

"They call me Wordinie for a reason master! I know everything."

From that day Wordinie became my best friend. He is like my guardian, my sooth sayer, my best pal and my everything. I need no friends when Wordinie is around. What can be the biggest treasure than having a room full of books!? Wordinie also built a magnificent library just for me in nano seconds. It looked better than an ancient British library and it is trendy and humongous. It looked like the replica of Mysore Palace! Books were neatly categorized and placed in each floor. If first floor is for fiction, second is for non-fiction, third for poetry and fourth for fun and humor. If fifth hosted the suspense / thriller books, sixth and seventh have the general literary and self help books, eighth one has classics , Ninth has comics and kids books, Tenth - which is the top most floor has the legendary books like "The Fountain Head,""Atlas shrugged" and many more which are on top of all. As they are books which can never be forgotten Wordinie placed them on top of all the books!

When I first saw the library it felt more than magical. I couldn't believe my eyes. I for sure felt I was in a dream and my mom will soon pinch me hard or splash water on my face to wake me up from my deep slumber. But none of this happened and I actually entered in to the magical library named as- "The Royal Library"-For the one who wants to get lost in the books! I did a jig in my heart and hugged Wordinie who was pleasantly surprised by my act!

The set up inside will surely make you all jealous. Needless to say it was calm , soothing and enthralling. Depending on my mood and the book I am reading the look and feel of the corner where I am engrossed in the book or the floor where I am walking to select a book changes! For instance if I am reading Harry potter and I am in a page where Harry , Hermione and Ron are walking in the forbidden forest, I almost become one among them as my surroundings become forest like. Sometimes Wordinie even surprises me by placing a sorting hat on my head. I can even wish in my head and my surroundings instantly change as per my wish. Once I was thinking to myself to sit in the Gryiffindor common room and relish the chapter where Sirius black talks to the trio from the fire place and the next minute I was snuggled on the red comfortable couch of the Gryffindor common room.

The corner of my library which resembles the gryffindor common room :) The scene changes depending on the book/ story - Image source : here
The magic doesn't stop there. Wordinie even surprises me with a hot mug of chocolate or mug of frothing butter beer now and then. The royal library is my home. No one can find me there as it is just conjured for me. Every one else will just see an old heritage building in the place where my royal library is built. This fact fills my heart with thrill and over joy. No one stands in between me and my books. Not even the facebook or a free wy fi. If I am reading Ruskin Bond I can see snow out of my window. .If I am reading any Indian book I get a hot glass of kaapi to go with the book! If I am reading a crime-thriller the library transforms and has a mystic ambience and there were moments when I was scared to death while reading the paranormal books and the genie had to turn off the new changes :) !

Same happens when ever I write. The aura around me instigates my mood and I can write more and more. If I am very emotional and am trying to write a nostalgic post then my atmosphere is so calm that even my words echo from my blog or my paper. If I am happy it is all vibrant with bright flowers and a sunny back ground. If I am writing about movies / current affairs Wordinie projects the data and pages on a near by wall which I have to go through while writing. 

Under normal circumstances I have to sit in-front of my laptop and open 100s of windows google searched by me for may be an hour, so as to be sure of what I am writing but with a genius genie like Wordinie around me my present effort is cut to 1/10th of my earlier effort! Wordinie obviously provides the free wyfi when ever I am in the mood to write. Rest of the time its all "No Wyfi- Only Read" time. If my wrist is paining he types the words for me. I just sit there and dictate munching some cup corn or biting a chocolate bar!  I daily go there and read for hours and hours and come back home bubbling with enthusiasm and overwhelm. With wordinie around my days are bright and nights are always spent in the anticipation of how to plan the reading hours for the next day!

On one such fine sunny day when I was reading "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" by Mark Twain sitting by the window from where I had a view of Mississippi river Wordinie approached me.

I instantly recognized that he was not in his usual high spirits. His dull / droopy face bothered me.

"What's wrong Wordinie. You don't seem OK ?" I asked.

"The time has come to leave master." Wordinie replied.

The earth below my feet shattered. I couldn't bear the thought of Wordinie abandoning me. 

Me: "What ? But why?"

Wordinie: "Another master summoned me and there are no other genies available so I have to go."

Me: "But there should be some arrangement right?" It first time stuck me that I never bothered about the world of genies from the day I met. That second a surge of questions popped in my head and were fighting with each other to come out of my mouth!

Wordinie: "If there is shortage of the available genies then we have no other go master. We have a leader who decides all this!" replied the genie with finality in his voice.

I was speechless even if I wanted to shout loud and express my displeasure. Wordinie hugged me and tears welled up in my eyes.

Wordinie: "Don't worry master. We will meet some other time. The books I gave to you will be with you but I am very sorry as I have to dismantle the royal library. It will be owned by some one else now!"

I burned with anger and jealousy that second.

Wordinie: "But you are one of my most favorites. I planned a surprise for you at your home. Hope you will enjoy that. Till then adieu master!" Saying so Wordinie shook my hands and vanished. The royal library vanished along with him and I was in the mid of the road with my books sack. I rushed to my bed room to witness the stylish book rack below.

I wanted to kiss Wordinie the same moment. I longingly looked at the page which hosted Alladin's lamp as Wordinie said it will glow bright when he decides to meet me next...


[This post is written for the Project 365 program at We Post Daily aimed at posting at least once a day, based on the prompts provided. I am the guest author for the month of February. The prompt for today is "Writing room- A genie has granted your wish to build your perfect space for reading and writing. What's it like?"]
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"Mystic Manali!"

February 10, 2014, 4:30 pm
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When I read "surreal" all I could think of was traveling and how poetic my thoughts become when ever I travel. I have been to Manali in the year 2012 when I used to stay in Delhi. The 3-day travel experience is a memorable one and the trip included many things which I did for the first time. In this post I want to narrate my first rafting experience and the visit to Rohtang Pass which was challenging!

God cannot be everywhere, so he created mother. I very much agree but I want to modify it a bit. If you look around,God is everywhere and it feels motherly! Whenever you are near to mother nature, it always feels you need nothing else as you are already in God’s lap and her various phenomena are so very much intertwined with one’s own life!

“The path leading to love is always a tough one.
You have to walk in a storm or scorching heat and it is no fun.
At times you are surrounded by folks, at times there is none.
But you are love-thirst and wanderlust and walk and walk as you have sworn!” 
River Beas in Manali

“Paths are smooth, paths are rough, paths are torn and new paths are born.
You walk with a desire so strong that paths are always shown.
A river flows with more speed due to rough wind or when it hits a stone.
Be like that river which no matter what flows with high spirits all alone!”

        
These were the first lines I wrote when I saw the hills , the gushing icy cool river water , pine trees and much more. It felt like a dream land.

 People say - "What is life with out some adventure?" . I am zero adventurous but first time tried rafting that too in rough waters and loved the experience. I always was and am little hydrophobic and keep imagining that bridge may get destroyed and that the wave may eat me up but after 2-3 icy cold waves I felt it like a friendly wave waving hi to me :- ) ! It is a memorable experience after which we went to Manikaran -not to say thanks to GOD for saving us from water but to see the hot water springs and to silently wish that we should over come our fears eventually!! Manikaran (Punjabi: ਮਨੀਕਰਨ) is located in the Parvati Valley between the rivers Beas and Parvati, northeast of Bhuntar in the Kullu District of Himachal Pradesh. It is at an altitude of 1760 m and is located about 45 km from Kullu. This small town attracts tourists visiting Manali and Kullu to its hot springs and pilgrim centers. (Source :wiki)
Manikaran Hot water springs
Rafting
 Our day 2 in the itinerary was to visit Rohtang pass. I actually want to rename the place as Rohtang DUR (far) as we spent a good 6hrs on the road to cover a mere 52kms which will not take more than 2hrs! The trip increased our patience, controlled our temperament, taught us to cooperate with each other  and reminded GOD and gave the stark realization that the godly places are always tough to reach!
This was when we started



Rohtang Pass (Hindi: रोहतांग दर्रा) (Bhoti: Rohtang , lit: pile of corpses, due to people dying in bad weather trying to cross the pass) (altitude 3,978 m or 13,051 ft). It is a high mountain pass on the eastern Pir Panjal Range of the Himalayas around 51 km (32 mi) from Manali. It connects the Kullu Valley with the Lahaul and Spiti Valleys of Himachal Pradesh, India.(Do refer wiki to know more.) and I am dedicating the below poem written long back to this road journey.

Some times road is smooth some times with friction.

Some times life is real some times with fiction!

Road has many milestones to cross.

Life has many phases to pass!


Road shows us mirages at times.

Life shows us dreams And dimes! 

Road ends with destination.

Life ends with re-incarnation!
 --------By Afshan----

The first glance of Himalayas was some thing like below which made me sing "Kyun nai lagrahi hai ye dharti gagan . Maine Poocha to boli ye pagli pawan Pyar hua chupke se" - It is a song from the Hindi movie 1942 a love story. Call me mad, I was even changing songs on my I-pod so that they suit the locations. The below one is the most classic shot . Don't you feel like living in that house along with grazing horses and cattle? It is like living in heaven.

The below pic shows the back yard of the house where we asked permission to go to loo. I clicked so many pictures here. I wanted to stay there for long but as driver started scaring us mentioning the land slides and the traffic jam we left the spot. Isn't the spot dreamy ?

As we started taking turns and zig zags it started getting hazy , foggy and icy. We visited in the month of  July and hence we did not have any snow fall . It was actually the best time to visit Rohtang pass as during winter all the roads will be blocked with ice chunks which are about 5ft in depth.  Sometimes people get stuck due to land slides and when there is no transport they may also die it seems hence the title of the place - "Rohtang. Not sure how many hot bhutta (corn) and tea breaks we took. Nothing passed the time and we were exhausted as we were stuck at the same spot for a good 2 and 1/2 hours. Finally the traffic moved slowly after a total halt of 3 and 1/2 hrs. The ice chunk was dirty as there is sadly no snow fall. The road flanked by ice on both sides made me sing the song - Ye ishq haaye baithe bithaye jannat dikhaye from Jab we met. The song was shot on these roads and I was continuously recollecting the song when our driver mentioned it. Needless to say I tuned to the same song on my I-pod :) Trips and bollywood go hand in hand!


The day was both sunny and icy which troubled my sinuses. Many people puked on the way. I was later told it is called Acute Mountain Sickness. We ate nothing but still people were following the ritual to puke one by one which made the atmosphere uneasy and I got a bad head ache.We were lured by the shops on the way , who charged some 500 for the jacket and the special boots which we took on rent. Boots were useful but jacket was a waste as it was not freezing!

Isn't the above scene scenic? After all the hard ships , too many people falling sick in our jeep and an unnerving traffic jam it was worth it when we touched the ice. We were actually on the Himalayas. That made me sit on cloud 9 :)


I started feeling slightly cold as it was evening 5 and as we ate nothing since morning my stomach started rumbling and the head ache got worse. I just rested on the shining rocks by the side for a while where we got a chance to get clicked again.
 


Finally this stall made me happy. We had piping hot ginger chai(tea) and maggi . Where ever you go you can find solace in maggi - the universal food and you can say the staple food of hill stations in India. Due to dizziness and nausea-tic feeling I couldn't have more than 2 spoons :(


Maggi - hot
The sight of this energized us


The below pic is my most favorite. I appreciate myself every time I see it . My best Rohtang pass pic
Lastly my pic with my favorite travel partner - Harnoor from Chandigarh who made me smile all the way with her silly jokes and doubts . She was a relief when ever the journey seemed endless. Enjoyed her company hence a click was must. Among other partners there were Harnoor's parents , 3 fiery, feisty girls who worked in Delhi and Gurgaon, who were very co-operative and offered us the middle and front seats when the back seat of the jeep made us sick! Half of the clan fell sick and I just wanted the trip of that day to end but in the return journey we again faced a jam though it was not a prolonged one!
we enjoyed the sledge ride too on the ice where the person
pushes the sledge down the ice slope.
me with Harnoor
Thus our trip ended and even if the journey was little stressful I can never ever forget this first time Himalaya experience in my life.
Image source : here

My next dream destination is Leh- Ladakh.  A tunnel is being constructed from Rohtang to Ladakh to travel in all seasons. The works get halted now and then as its very challenging to build the "tunnel" due to extreme weather conditions. I hope it soon gets completed . Next time probably I will go to Ladakh and see a real snow fall. Lastly a beautiful song for you all which continuously played in my mind on that day (It was shot in Rohtang Pass).
[This post is written for the Project 365 program at We Post Daily aimed at posting at least once a day, based on the prompts provided. I am the guest author for the month of February. The prompt for today is "Whoa!- What’s the most surreal experience you’ve ever had?"]
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"My Unlimited London Dreams!"

February 11, 2014, 9:31 am
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 I dream of a fairy land. 
I am the fairest fairy with a magic wand.
A genie, all time ready for my command.
A life so colorful , bright and so grand!

I felt there is a real magic world.
There are stories and mysteries untold.
A kingdom which I ruled.
A warrior who can fight and be very bold!
A castle which is strewn with all gold.
When no owl arrived and nothing caught my hold,
I had to back off and my dream had to mould!

I dream to be a  teacher.
Teaching Maths ,Geography and Biology of every creature!
Unfolding the realities of the life still felt magical.
Exams ,marks, results and ranks made it mechanical!

I dream to be useful to nation and be in politics.
I realize I don’t know the poly-tricks.
You have to change your face and play many flicks.
The dream is still in the corner of mind as the clock ticks!:-)

I dream to be a a singer or a dancer in delight.
I think of becoming a lyricist or to own a roof top restaurant in twilight.
I dream to design a marvelous art works gallery.
A lavish boutique and there is no need of day to day salary!  :-)

I dream a new thing daily.
I wake up thinking will all these Dreams work really?
All the overloaded dreams and desires fight back.
I calm them down, relax and write back !


As I write down my dreams desires and facts.
My brain is getting light and heart is on flight!
EUREKA--This is my dream job, which is writing down all my thoughts.
Wrong, right , delight ,plight and every thing in my sight !


Image source : here

I did not get a letter to join Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry.
But it was equally magical to come across knowledge is great which ended my worry!
To pursue a career of my choice in my favorite place and favorite school is like a dream.
Looking at all possible course options with joy filled heart and bright eyes, I beam!

The course options of English and Creative arts opened doors to my career.
I embarked on this journey with a hope filled heart, with out any fear.
The University of East London was an answer to all my dreams.
The college and the stay feels great and my passion on any day gleams!
University of East London - Library . Image source : here

To roam around my dream city is an added asset.
With all the enthusiasm in air I am always in zest!
"LONDON" - the city of Buckingham palace, the city of Big-Ben and the city of river Thames.
 When I say, I am in London studying what I desire the most, everyone in awe exclaims!

I will not let any one show their sympathy or pity.
I will take a careful step and know all the nitty-gritty!
One day I will be making my dream come true in this city.
I will have command on English literature and nurture my creativity!

My city of dreams , hopes , desires and aspirations is London.
I will never miss any chance which helps me to prove that I am the one and only one! 
:-)
Image source: here


This post is submitted for Knowledge is great contest on Indiblogger.in

Do visit Knowledge is great  to know more!

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Take a resolution to stick to your resolutions!

February 18, 2014, 9:12 am
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The resolutions which are easily given a miss and forgotten overnight are New Year resolutions. The only resolutions which give a competition to them are political resolutions and promises made by our eminent leaders. Jokes apart, we often hear these words “New year resolutions” as Christmas ends and countdown starts for the dawning New Year. Some people do that as a commitment towards personal goals or habit reformations. Few scribble them down for fun-sake and forget them even before the celebrations end. As per wiki there are even religious parallels to this tradition. The ancient Babylonians and Romans used to make promises to God at the start of each year that they would return borrowed objects and pay their debts (as per wiki) . There are many more beliefs associated to these New Year oaths which people take. The question here is, do people actually succeed and fulfil their resolutions meticulously throughout the year and who all can actually do it?
Image source : here

Few famous resolutions which top the list of any common man are to lose weight, eat healthy, progress in career, earn more, quit drinking and so on so forth. There’s a saying “Obesity doesn’t run in the family. It happens as nobody runs in the family.”Every one starts day dreaming as December approaches and quickly scribble their diet charts and plans on a note pad and even paste them on their cupboards. First week, they will be in high spirits. They buy some amazing stuff like  heavy priced gym tracks, tees, Adidas trainers, sneakers, towels etc.  The couch potatoes who never experienced exercise get jealous seeing the gym kit.

They curse under their breath hoping that the guy/ girl should not look like Hrithik Roshan / Kareena kapoor in the next few months. Their wish totally gets fulfilled as the person’s New Year resolution is thwarted in no time. A project party, a get together, a wedding event and diet will go to toss. A trip with friends, long lazy winter nights and running becomes a long lost dream. Starting from scratch is painful. They slowly lose vigor, enthusiasm and strike out their resolutions. One fine day you wake up and you see that the cello tape of the scribbled note also lost vigor .The note smiles meekly and looks at you weakly from the dustbin. To stick to your exercise regime or to that matter any other resolution you need to resist your temptation, let go off your demons which stop you from doing it. You should prioritize your to do list. You should think every minute about your resolution. It’s hard at first but slowly it becomes an addiction which you can’t get rid of.  Demons attract you faster than angels.  For instance the chances of a non-smoker becoming a smoker when a smoker friend accompanies him are high than a smoker quitting it. The mantra for the success of any resolution is a strong will. Strong enough to shoo away anyone who stands between you and your resolution.

Few tips for long lasting resolutions are like below:
  • Start small and slow: You may do just a 20 min work out in the first three days and increase it slowly day by day. Sweating out 1 hr for 3 days and relaxing for the rest of the week is not done. It’s similar to quitting smoking and drinking for a month and restarting again.
  •  Learn to say No:  Say no with a gentle smile to whoever offers you a burger or a double scooped ice cream etc. You must have a real brave heart to say no, but the end result tastes sweeter than the ice cream- the taste of which lasts for few min.
  •  Focus on the process rather than the end result: As they say success is a journey and not the destination. You will never even notice when you accomplished your goal. Complete every small step carefully and religiously.
  • Celebrate: Never forget to celebrate your accomplishment. Reward yourself. If you get a new job after a thorough search you deserve to treat yourself. If you lost few pounds by the end of 3 months a small scoop may not harm. DON'T GET DROWNED IN THE JOY OR DISSATISFACTION.
  •    Face the fears and waning enthusiasm: Your enthusiasm may lessen and totally vanish at some point. When you are in such a danger zone try getting diverted. Take your time to come back.
  •    Think and think more: Think of your resolutions before you sleep, when you wake up, when you cook, gossip, eat. In short think of it every second. It shouldn't be that tough considering the fact that we think and rethink few useless things endlessly.
  • Get good compatriots:Get acquainted to people who can assist you in your goals, who may have similar goals to reach.
  • Be clear and specific about your goals so that they are not thwarted. Make resolutions which are achievable. Don’t overdo and avoid them. Important of all is to choose a resolution for yourself. Don’t do it for other’s sake. Start now because “Now is the new tomorrow“
  • Don’t be over confident like our Calvin in the below cartoon who thinks he needs no resolution


That’s it. If the tips increase in number the spirit of the New Year (2014) will be lost in the hue and cry of the resolutions. Lose weight, change your wardrobe, get more social, take a dance class or a singing class and start planning to fulfill your passions. Do anything and everything which pleases you, but remember to not make fun of your own resolution due to self-deception. Resolutions always make you a better person if followed. You will be amazed by the immense happiness you will be subjected to once you taste the accomplishment of your goals. Are you feeling geared up? I definitely am!

Happy new-year once again to one and all.!
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For the love of "Food"

February 21, 2014, 4:30 pm
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Indians are great eaters and great fighters and their most favorite fight is their fight for food. With so many states and endless cuisines every one has their favorite cuisine and unique customizations.  Our love for food continues through out the year and the festivals which mark the calendar every month , the wedding season which is an integral part of our lives, a baby shower , a fun-fair, a house warming or this or that, every event just strengthens our food-bond.We worry about weight and take the new-year resolution to lose weight only to break it later on in the year when festive season starts  :- ) :- ). Jokes apart, the first and the foremost thing which people in India miss when they move to abroad is the food here.


The food love of people can be seen on the facebook. Come the dawn of any day you can see too many food pics on your facebook news feed. Some times I wonder if I can dig in to the "feed/ food" with a spoon and fork and relish but sadly I can only watch the wide range of foods mercilessly shared on my wall ! The prompt this week on project 365- "Seconds" lead to my status update last sunday where I had a funny discussion with the authors of project - 365 - Sid and Sakshi :) The status goes like below.

"Going through the news-FEED as and when I woke up confused me. I felt I was reading animated online Menus of restaurants all over the world There are so many cuisines explained on my wall, that I can actually get a plate and spoon and dig in to the news-food I mean the feed ! Definitely the first and last love of most of the FB junta is food (whether it is tasty or not is an open que ). Today my Faacebook looks like Food-book. From healthy to greasy to greeny - I have all kind of foods on my wall. This gives me an idea for the next theme Sakshi Nanda and Sid Balachandran "

I did not post this to make all others admit their guilt. I posted this as I was amused to see the food love of FB junta. From morning till evening the only bond which never fades is the food bond. A person may leave your side but food will never leave your side. It will be your honest companion for ever ! Some call the artistic way of presenting food as food porn , but not all presentations generate that tantalizing feeling on our taste buds. Some clicks are not at all appetizing. You can actually hear the echoing burps from those half emptied plates and utensils. Presenting food is also a great art which only few master at. You should be an excellent photographer too if you want to make your food look good. Sigh! Too many good cooks fail in this aspect as they don't have the presentation skills!

Anyway before I lose the track, I want to get back to the subject of the matter ->which is food ;) . This status update triggered my thoughts and I finally had enough food for my post this week :) . The word "Seconds" made me all dreamy as all my favorite foods got projected in my mind's eye. Which food should I choose and explain in detail? If I chose the aromatic Chicken Biryani my mom cooks, the haleem made by my dear husband will definitely feel bad as they both win the race when it comes to teasing your taste buds. If I chose my favorite naturals ice cream with all the fruit flavours, the eclairs cake made by mom will get angry and stop melting in my mouth like it always does. What about that Bombay chat bhandaar, that yummy Kareem's kebab, the unforgettable Hyderabadi double ka meetha, the mouth watering gol gappe, the hot MTR's idli sambaar in Bangalore, Rasgolla of Kolkata and so on so forth.

I already have a tickling feeling on my taste buds. Before I get attacked by the imaginary aromas let me list down my mom's cuisines which deserve not just the second but third , fourth and "n" number of servings. We had a small festival at home the same day I updated the status message above. I thought of updating the pics on FB but on a second thought I decided to share them in this blog post. The occasion was the gyarmi ka Fateha or Gyarveen which is celebrated in the memory of  Abdul Khader Jilaani  a Persian Islamic preacher who is highly esteemed by Sunni scholars! Most of them in South India celebrate this, distribute food among poor and invite friends/ relatives to the feast!

Every celebration is just an excuse to eat in India! Even if we are diet conscious some times it is extremely tough to resist our love for food. The below are the food items made by mom on the festive day.

  • Mutton Biryani
  • Chicken Shorba (gravy) - Yummilicious of all
  • Dal-cha (Hyderabadi delicacy)
  • Bhaaji and Raaita
  • Zarda (a simple sweet dish made with rice)

 The Hyderabadi mutton/ chicken dum biryani is to die for but it is no match when compared to mutton  biryani made by my mamma. The fragrance of biryani reaches the garage from the 7th floor where we stay!
 
Mutton Biryani made on Gyarmi
This is a file photo . Biryani made on my bday. A ladle of this Biryani is enough to take you till the gates of heaven. I can vouch for it and my apologies to the hardcore vegetarians
Dal-cha is an authentic Hyderabadi cuisine. It is made with various kind of dals and choicest spices . The aroma will make you crave for it. Below video shows an easy to make Dal cha recipe.

Chicken gravy made my mom is extremely delicious. We even have chicken shorba soup with pepper before having the main course . Trust me it is the chicken soup for soul , heart , mind , brain and every thing. It energizes me and  is a best cure for the common cold and many other ailments. Below is the snap shot of yummy Chicken Shorba (We call it sherva in south) . If you are a non vegetarian you should taste shorba atleast once in life! This link has 16 different recipes of Chicken Shorba - just check -  Chicken Shorba recipes
 
Yummy chicken Shorba
Raaita is a delicious gravy and we all (Indians)  are very much aware of it. Curd is well beaten and spiced up with onions , harimirch (green chilli) , Kothimeer (coriander) and salt as per the quantity. This is very tasty and goes well with Hyderabadi biryani!
Raita made at home
Zarda is a sweet dish made with rice. You can find a detailed recipe here. It is topped with fried cashews and kismis (raisins) and I am sure any one will love it just after having biryani! Other sweet dishes which are made by mom are Sheer Khurma and Dum ke sevayyan . They are usually made during Ramzan and if you have tasted it once there is no need to give details of it. When sheer khurma melts in your mouth you just feel like getting soaked in that flavor, taste and aroma!


Zarda and the cashew and kismis toppings

Sheer khurma and Dum ke Sevayyan
I will not post more pics and torture you. I will end my post just with one more surprise which will give nawabi feel to this luncheon and also my blog post ! Nothing will give you a high than the sweet pan after having biryani. Hyderabadis have special chai too and they think it is good for digestion but I love having pan ! Yes I am crude  :P I just love the sweet pan . There are many varieties in paan too
Image source : here
 Eating paan may damage your teeth so don't make it a habit ! I know you all are feeling hungry now ! Just the pics are making me burpp ! 
So"Khaaike biryani Hyderabad waala and paan banaaras waala 
       to Khul jaaye band akal ka taala" :p
       
:) - source - here

And do remember to work out little extra in the gym the next day !
Have fun . Have a feast :) 

Note: Do not waste food. If you have extra food during parties and weddings please call the food banks or orphanages and NGOs. They will be more than happy if you offer help. There are help line numbers too in your respective cities. Find out the details. We do the same in Hyderabad!

Image source : here
[This post is written for the Project 365 program at We Post Daily aimed at posting at least once a day, based on the prompts provided. I am the guest author for the month of February. The prompt for today is "Seconds- Describe the most satisfying meal you’ve ever eaten, in glorious
detail."]

Some of my food posts from archives if interested -
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Teen Bandar Blog-gaga ke andar!

February 23, 2014, 4:46 am
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The three unwise monkeys some times called the three mystic apes stand for "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil."Now who doesn't know this but some times when we get carried away and fail to use all our senses, we come across three other monkeys who see no truth, hear no truth and speak no truth. They go to any extent to meet their ulterior motives and if one of those monkeys tries to hear out to our pleas, the other two close his ears and make him/ her do what they believe just like in the pic below.


Image source : here
The story written below is fictional and resembling anyone and everyone is very much possible.

Once upon a time in the Blog-gaga jungle lived a beautiful Dove. She was beautiful in and out. The way she thinks, talks and writes is beautiful. Not all were happy in the land of blog-gaga. Some used to rant, some just used to suppress their expressions, some were too expressive and some were always edgy. One common dream which all the blog-gaggers had was to get published one day. To see their work on paper written with a quill dipped in the magical ink provided by renowned Bubble-ishers is their long lasting dream. Bubble-ishers do the work of bringing the creative people's work to larger audience. For instance a Dove's work will not be restricted to just Doves. Crows, Elephants, Dogs, Snails and even the king of the Blog-gaga jungle, Simba the Lion will have access to her work if she gets bubble-ished. The very thought of this used to elate the Dove. She was talented than a couple of other Sparrows and Pigeons who got bubble-ished by few renowned bubble-ishers. On one fine day a fellow Pigeon brings a message to all the jungle dwellers.

"A contest to get bubble-ished by none other than Heera , Ranjha and Laila."They are the three monkey bubble-ishers whom many of the blog-gaggers didn't recognize. The name of their bubble-ishing company is "The Monkey Bubble-ishing house." Dove's happiness knew no bounds as she felt she can give her best this time as she loved the themes. She was hopeful to get bubble-ished. She knew and heard about them and she thought she could trust them and so did not ask many questions.

She dived in to the contest with a hope and a dream to see her work in the magical ink. Results were getting delayed and she thought due to some technical glitch. Mean while Heera , Ranjha and Laila added her on the Blog-gaga's social network which is called ,"The Jungle-Book." She asked them about the results a couple of times. Other than that she had nothing else to get clarified! One day Ranjha replied.

"Soon they will be out. Meanwhile please check out my page and like it and do buy the book written by me too. It will be helpful."

Dove ordered the book. Yes. Her senses were not working that minute. All she thought of was her story in the book and a good rapport with the bubble-ishers!

On one fine day results were announced. The overjoyed Dove took a flight to the top most branch of the Neem tree holding her I-phone as and when she saw her name in the email sent to her by the bubble-isher group. She was about to announce it to all her friends when she saw an attachment in the mail ! She read it and immediately the pure white color of her wings turned to off-white. She was asked to get 30 copies of her own book and in return she has to transfer the price of those 30 copies at a discounted price. When she said she can't do that, the number of books was reduced from 30 to 15.

The winners were not announced publicly yet as quantity of people who commit to pay the price was given importance over the quality of the stories. Dove's trust factor was broken and she in a rage pinged Ranjha on the Jungle Book.

Dove : "I didn't get the clause in the contract?"

Ranjha: "Which clause?"

Dove : "The clause that I have to pay for my own books!"

Ranjha: "Yep. Sorry about that Dove but Heera decides it. I can't help."

Dove: "What does it mean by Heera decides it? Was it already decided? If yes why aren't we informed well in advance."

Ranjha: "I am as helpless as you are. Why don't you talk to Heera?"

Dove obediently pinged Heera to know what this monkey business is all about.

Dove : "Heera, why was it not informed before  hand about the payment to participants?"

Heera: "It will never be informed prior. Once you are chosen only then the contract will be disclosed."

Dove : "But that is just sad and disgusting. It is cheating in the name of contest!"

Heera: "Madam. You need not rant or show attitude. Go prove your self in the big bad bubble-ishing world and you will come to know how much the Monkey bubble-ishers helped you!"

Dove: "This is highly demotivating and I would like to walk out of the contest."

The dog barked, cuckoo shouted in an off-beat tone, the cat howled and the sparrow squealed  when Dove disclosed this. As of Dove she got stark silent after all this. She finally realized that the effort spent on her story was sheer waste. To her surprise many have agreed to pay and she refused to sign the contract. She thought for a second if she was a bigger fool but her conscience did not agree with her!

Few walked out of the  contest while few gave in to the temptation. After all seeing one's own work in the magical ink is everyone's passion!

Dove was feeling bad due to the tiff with Heera and his rudeness. She thought if at all she has potential one fine day she would be equipped to fulfill her ambitions.

Meanwhile Laila spoke to Dove like below in the chat window.

Laila: "I heard about it only when results were being announced Dove. We never knew this. I will never be working with Heera again."

Dove : "Heera was rude as I objected and said that I am showing attitude."

Laila: "That was quite unexpected. I am sorry for what ever happened!"

After empathizing with Dove both forgot each other and moved on with life. After a couple of days Dove came to know that all three were together in this Monkey business. Laila updated on their Jungle book page that there are three other surprise winners. It was funny because those three were short listed after they agreed to pay money. Like this the three monkeys flourished in the business.



The only thing Dove could do to soothe her angry soul was  cancelling Ranjha's book order she made weeks back 

Like Abraham Lincoln said ages back, ""You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time,but you cannot fool all the people all the time!"

This post is submitted for Indiblogger's    #ConditionSeriouHai contest.

Do visit the cadbury 5star's FB page when you are here :)
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"Half Piece of Ass!"

February 23, 2014, 9:15 am
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Here it is ,yet again the day when I remember a Telugu comedy movie Money  where the villain KotaSrinivasa Rao says “Same card . Same story. Only names different”– when a person comes to invite for his wedding! Do watch that hilarious scene. Those were the days when Ram Gopal Varma was not that serious about film making and used to make many master pieces and humorous films. Money is one such film. 

 Anyway coming back to seriousness ,at office as and when the much awaited hike letters arrive the much unwanted analysis follows. I can see people clapping around my cubicle. Some are distributing sweets. Some are feverishly using the calculator option for a long time on their phones/ laptops / desktops, hoping to see a changed equation and a big number at least the third time they calculate it . Some people give a treat , some stay indifferent , some are over joyous , some just discuss among themselves . If some announce their achievement in a high pitched tone, some sulk at their not so great hikes! 


But in midst of all this there will be one and only person who can be named as HPOA— “Hugely possessing the  Over smart attitude” . Where ever he goes, whatever he does he will not miss a chance to poke his nose around and to shoot questions at people and bug and bother them till he gets a response. Even if people shoo him away he doesn't care. He would patiently wear a fake smile and try to get a response till his last ounce of sweat and blood are used in this effort. These are few traits of HPOA. Let me explain what exactly happens when he approaches a bunch of colleagues randomly!



I don't own this image. It is googled and modified by me


He will go to person x.

HPOA: “ Hey what's your hike % ?”

X : “Not much.”

HPOA: “Tell na yaar! Every one has got less. There's no harm in revealing right!?”

X: “ 10 %”

HPOA: “Oh My God! That’s it! You know Nag? He joined 6 months after you joined. How come he got a role change and more hike and you did not get?”

X was boiling by now. He responds,  “Ask him”!

HPOA : “Don’t worry ! You will also get it soon or else try hard and shift no?"

X : “Whats your hike % ?”

HPOA:  "Not much yaar . Just 12%."

X: “ You know Reshma. She joined as a lateral and has less experience than you and her CTC is much better than yours." Replied X with a sly smile.

HPOA Walks away but this dirty business of mocking each other starts running in each others blood that moment!

HPOA Goes to person Y.

HPOA: “ Hey. You got a role change?”

Y: “Nope.”

HPOA: “ You should ask your manager and fight yaar. You shouldn't sit silent.”

Y : “ I have asked. There are lot many in queue he says!"

HPOA: “ Then go to SPM or DM.”

Y: “ See it's OK. I am fine. If I want to go , I will go."

HPOA: “Arey. Don’t get frustrated. There are lot many opportunities outside. Try your luck.”

Y: “ I was not frustrated till you started suggesting sir.”

HPOA giggles and walks out.



HPOA: “ Hey Z! Wow . what a nice dress you are wearing yaar.”

Z : “Hmm Thanks.”

HPOA: “You seem low! What happened ? Don’t tell me it is about hike!"

Z: “ Yes it is the reason.”

HPOA : “ Come on. How does that bother you?! Your would be is in ABC company and he will any way bring lot of fortune to you . You can just sit back and relax.”

Z: “ I can’t. Actually I gave my best this appraisal cycle. Still it went to dumps!”

HPOA: “Oh! Come on dear. Come. Let's just forget it and celebrate. Lets go to Coffee day!”

Z still sulking replies: “No I am not interested.”

HPOA: “ Oh. Come on! Don’t be a spoil sport. OK. I will take you to a new restaurant which got opened in Banjara hills and then some shopping! OK? "

Z : “ Yep fine! Great idea. Chalo and ya I am not bringing my card. It is your treat right ?!!”

She hit him just under the belt.



HPOA (gulping) : “ Yep!”

So HPOA’s big nose can never hesitate from smelling what's cooking in the neighbors broth.

I remember Raju Srivastava (a stand up comedian’s interview) when he was voted out of BigBoss !

Amitabh asked him : “You are so jovial , fun loving but still people didn't like you to such an extent that you got a chance to stay back for some more days.”
Raju : “I am a jovial person. I can create fun atmosphere. But I can't express the immense happiness or joy like many are doing there. When BigBoss sends us dal and some chawal  I feel content and enjoy my dish but I am not so serious about it. I  don’t dance and party shouting, "Hey dekho daaaaaaal aagaya ! Chaawal bhiii ! Thank You big boss. Thanks a ton!""May be I didn't qualify at all to join the clan." He said.  I don't want to debate on why he was voted out and who was actually HPOA -- the other residents or Raju but yeah if dal chawal is a hike there can be variety of reactions !

Over celebration of one’s joy is fine but over celebration, highlighting other persons defects is a demonic feature which few like HPOA possess. This condition is seriously serious! Its a must to learn to ignore such HPOAs or shoo them away or trap them in response or shut your mouth, because WHEN YOU ARE IN DEEP SHIT IT IS BETTER TO SHUT YOUR MOUTH as reacting to them or sulking more will lead to the victory of HPOAs!



This post is submitted for Indiblogger's    #ConditionSeriouHai contest.


Do visit the cadbury5star FB page when you are here. Watch the cool ad below.

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"Why so serious!?"

February 23, 2014, 10:03 am
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Image source: here
I am not sure if my face is like an “agony aunt’s” or I seem to be an “astute listener” but some times I come across some weird situations which involve people who are so serious that it gets humorous at few junctures! We all know the joker's funny dialogue from the Dark Knight - "Why so serious?" I also think of smirking in an idiotic way when ever I come across few serious people! I  want to narrate few anecdotes from my own life here.

Scene-1

I was inside the lift in my old apartment. Light was dysfunctional . It was blinking continuously.The maintenance paid by the residents never goes in the right direction and the lifts are not spacious like the office lifts . They are cramped, shabby and dark and only 4 can fit with lot of difficulty.
When the automatic door was about to get closed, a lady in mid 30s entered with thoughtful/confused/dazed look on her face and gazed at me with those mingled expressions. She seemed to be a Trelawney to me. The door got closed. She fumbled for buttons pressed 3 different buttons--  3,4,5 . I ignored and pressed 2. She immediately turned to me.
 
Trelawney: “What do you do if someone teases you in lift?”

Me: “Pardon!?" (stars on my head of course)

Trelawney: “I mean there is even no light in this lift! What to do if some one misbehaves? What if some one touches you or grabs you from behind?”

I shuddered at the thought. I instantly pictured a scene from some horror movie where a man in black stabs the lady with a knife as soon as the lift opens.

Me : “No. (in my mind it was a "Noooooooo.") At least in this apartment nothing of that sort will happen. Wait. Did it happen to you any time?”

Lady: “No . The whole 5th floor is full of spoiled brats. They keep playing Xbox, put the music player on full volume , get drunk , and obviously travel in the lift. What if one of the sturdy guys does it?  I just got scared by the thought, that’s it.”

Oh god! Sturdy guy does what?This lady is scaring me now with her what-ifs !?!Obviously lift stopped at 2nd floor but I was still talking to her.

Me: “No ! I don’t think any of them will do it and any way in the time you use lift I feel they won’t be using it. They come back very late in night I heard!”. Some how her dreamy troubled look made me utter these words. I was surprised by myself.

Trelawney, finally managed a weak smile and still looking dreamily at me uttered a meek thanks and the doors got closed. I smiled to myself and walked towards our flat!

Scene-2

I was checking the watch and hurriedly completing the last round of my morning walk. I got up late and had to catch the bus in the next 30 min. I was walking in the apartment compound like I daily do. At the park, near the swing I was about to take a turn where a very old man with head full of grey hair carrying a basket which had 4 heritage milk packets and news paper stopped me all of a sudden . 

I could almost hear the "screeeeeeeeeech" sound when we apply sudden break to the Pulsar vrooming in jet speed and I stopped just a feet away from the old man! Adidas has a strong cushion and I didn't topple over him. I unplugged my I-pod to listen to why he stopped me!?

Old man : “Don’t mind.I daily see you walking this side!”

I had a so-what kind of look on my face.
 
Old man : “ I actually wanted to ask you some thing!”

I thought he may ask some kind of favor like you see in those 60s' or 70s' melodramatic movies to read a letter for him , or buy something for him or some other similar help.

I nodded as if to go on and not to make me wait. I was already getting irritable but counting the number of grey hairs on his head I controlled my impatience.
 
Old Man:  “Actually do you know in which direction earth revolves?”

What the eff? Of all things in the world you stopped me to ask this! I don’t know about earth's revolution but I felt  a galaxy around my head.

Me(suppressing the anger): "I didn't get you!"

Old man: “Listen beta! Earth revolves around the sun in counter clockwise direction and you are walking in counter clock wise direction. Ideally you have to walk in clock wise direction. It is scientifically good and I can prove that to you.”

Well, I am really not good at physics or electromagnetic effects and I was in no mood to recollect what I was taught in school or college. I gave a puzzled look at him and said,“ Ya ! Actually fine. Thanks for the suggestion. But I have to  go now. I am getting late for office.”

Old man: “ No no! Listen .You do not understand the importance of it. You youngsters usually don’t try knowing the reasons. Whatever you do is going to dogs. No use even if you walk.

What the heck :( :( . This old man has lot of free time.

I was dancing tip toe unable to decide whether to go or not. I was thinking to myself will it be rude if I just make a move.

OM: “Even if you sleep in this direction it’s not good for health or prosperity and bad omens will haunt you.”

Ya this bit of info I felt is true as by that time I felt one omen is for sure haunting me!

Old man/ Omen : “Do you go to temple?”

Me : “NO!”

OM: “If you go you will know the reason even better actually.”

I was trying hard to not bang my head .

Me: “Sorry but I really don’t have time for all this. I will miss my bus. So c ya”

OM: “Ya ya ma! Sorry! You are like my daughter so just letting you know."( I have lot-of-free time and no one to prey, so eating your head).

OM: "Please walk in clock wise direction ma!".

Me: “OK,” and I left with out turning my head . When I was about to take one more turn I gave a side glance and saw that OM was preying on one more lady who was looking at him as if he escaped from mental hospital.

I respect old people! I don’t want to be rude at them. So I stood for 5 long minutes and listened to what he had to say. But do they understand that preaching too many things to youngsters and giving free advice to strangers is not fair?

PS: I remembered Kareena's "Kyu ki chiller nai hai mere paas scene"from Jab we met!
Scene-3

This was in my office while eating the Prism biryani. Prism is not a biryani cuisine. Prism caterers were pretty famous in the office I used to work earlier.

After a long time I went humming to food court , took the 50/- token and without even looking at the surroundings I straight away headed to the PRISM biryani counter. The taste is  not exotic but when nothing is exciting around food is the best possible thing to be excited about.

I told him,  “Bhayya thoda spicy chahiye.”

Vendor: “ OK.” 

As there was no crowd he took his own sweet time to decorate the plate with some good pieces and stretched his hand to give away the hot steaming plate of biryani to me which I happily took from him.

It was sharp 12 so food court was almost empty. I occupied the nearby table and after enjoying the sight of biryani(yes I do enjoy the sight of biryani too) I called my friend who was on the way.

I was about to put a morsel of steaming rice and chicken in my mouth when a person came and stood in front of me.

X: “Sorry to interrupt madam! How do you feel about the food?”

I thought to myself: "Now who is this alien who has come as a haddi between me and my biryani !”

Thinking so I gave back a confused look at him.

X:  “I am actually PRISM’s manager and I am taking feedback from every one.”

I looked around and sighed as no one had a damn biryani plate with them.

I gave a vague smile at him and nodded.

X: “Can you please give the feedback about the quality of biryani, how they are serving and other details? We want to know the level of customer satisfaction."

Me: “Ya. It is good !” (I was only concentrating on shooing him away as I didn't want biryani to cool down.)

X: “ No mam! Please tell us if  you have any complaints. We are here to serve you better.”

It seemed like he was waiting from a week to blurt these lines and he couldn't hunt any till now to use them.

Me: "Well. At times even after giving my specifications I don’t get good pieces and biryani is not hot some times"** I looked longingly at my biryani which was cooling down:-(**
 
X:” Oh ! What happens na mam, when there are too many people, at times it gets tough.” He explained leisurely.

Me: “Ya. I understand." Saying so I again tried to eat.

X: “But next time if you feel that you didn't get good pieces feel free to return the plate and take another mam.”

Now how will  I  know that with out digging in to my biryani ?!

Me: “hmm OK!”  and I started eating...

X: “ Please tell me if any other complaints mam!”

Me: “ You serve only biryani . Yours is not a 5 star hotel that I keep on complaining about your service that water is not chilled enough, AC is not on or waiters are not polite. Can you buzz off so that I can have my biryani?”

Well I thought of saying this. But ended up saying , “NOTHING AT ALL!”

X:” Please note down whatever you told in the complaint book mam. We have a meeting actually daily evening by 5 and as am the MANAGER (he stressed on it) , I will let all know that they note down the specifications of the customers.”

Oh boy that’s the limit ! Now I was irritated! Even in the midst of irritation I remembered the Cleaning manager of ANGREZ.

I started eating totally ignoring him.

X: “Sorry to interrupt you while eating mam . Really sorry. Your good name mam?!”

Any thing to kick him out of the arena . 

Me : “Afshan.”

X: “Oh! Nice name Mam. Where are you from?”

I have put the spoon down and asked, “ Why !? Do we have to write even that in the book?” with sarcasm mingled with glare!

X: “No! Simply mam. Please write the feedback.” Saying so he left.

After biryani I didn't bother about the feedback.

Next day I went with different girls to the same food court and I had my box that day. Another girl took something from the same prism. Roti and  chicken I guess and we started eating.

To my horror X was standing just opposite to me and shouting: “ MAM ! MAM!!” 

I called my friend whose back was facing him(the one having food court ka khaana): “ Hey. I guess he is calling you.”

She turned around. He pointed me and told: “ I am calling that madam!”

Shit!

Me:  "Ya!??!"

X: “You didn't write feed back in the book mam.”

Rest of the girls were suppressing giggles. I was feeling funny and mad too.

Me: “ I forgot . Will do it.”

X: “ Please do it . I checked it yesterday mam."He replied with a super Chipmunk grin!

What the F!

I gave the feedback without fail in some notebook downstairs .My friends told  that he was observing if we were writing or not and she advised to add in feedback “PRISM manager tortures a lot by asking continuously for feedback” but I chucked the thought as I didn't want him to haunt me again!

In sabki #ConditionSeriousHai aur seriousness contagious hai. Isiliye aise logon se bachke raho , hosaketo unko 5 star khilaao, haso aur hasao!




This post is submitted for Indiblogger's    #ConditionSeriouHai contest.
Do visit the cadbury5star FB page and do watch the cool ad below :)

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When I Think Loud!

February 27, 2014, 4:30 pm
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When ever I think loud Facebook comes to my rescue more than my blog. The fad for FB will never fade. I don't use twitter much and hence I am not sure about the good / bad feel embedded in those 140 characters and they always fall short when I have some emotional thought to share ;)  .I was and am used to Facebook and it is interesting and amusing to see the queue of comments whenever anyone posts their opinions or thoughts. It feels good to see that some are nodding at it. It also feels good to see that some one else has an equal and opposite reaction to yours :)

All in all thoughts are food for FB and FB is food for thoughts. At least to me it has been like that so far and that is the reason I love FB more and hate it less!

Coming to Project 365's prompt, today the first thought I had today morning which I posted on facebook is below. In fact I had this thought the night before.
Afshan Khanfeeling grumpy
"If having emotions in right amounts and projecting them in the right direction is an art, having over emotions and bombarding them in all directions is like a fart and having "NO EMOTIONS" is both art and a fart as it possesses the art of accelerating the fart !"

Yes I was feeling grumpy due to few experiences and I had to post this awesome line on FB. You may just feel it mediocre but I felt that this quote by me is the awesomest when I compare it with all other quotes I penned till now! It is one of those haphazard thoughts which bother and bicker you till you write it down! Writing is like nirvana sometimes. I wonder the way it relieves me. At least for a short span of time I feel like I conquered the thought and can celebrate my grand victory. It is amusing how the pen comes to rescue when a man can't ;-) 
Coming to the thought I had it is not a thought which formed in my mind overnight. It is some thing which is bothering me from many years. I can't really recollect when the first seed of that thought germinated in my mind. It might be when I saw a class mate who was beaten up by her own parents as she was not studying well during my primary school days or when I saw a standard grumpy expression a class teacher used to have no matter what happened. Even if you tickle her she will not laugh. She is like that live statue in the VGP Golden beach of Chennai. You tickle him, poke him, crack a joke, whatever you do your efforts will go futile. He is the living man statue. Golden beach is an awesome place to hang out. Don't forget to visit if you go to Chennai!
 
VGP man's statue at chennai
Emotion and expression go hand in hand. Even if you are feeling some thing, if you can't express it, then your emotion is as good as NO EMOTION! The emotional quotient of few people is standard. It will not budge however hard you try where as few people have an interesting statistics of emotions. They are emotional chameleons who are happy and cheerful one second and grumpy and gloomy the next second. They will praise you to skies one second and when you are not in the frame they don't give a hoot to reveal news about you to others. The EQs of people can be seen every day in the form of their status messages on face book or in the form of their tweets and so on so forth as this is the only medium which is easily accessible but most of the times it can be deceptive too as people may not update something they really and actually feel on FB or on any medium which is accessible by all!

As far as my emotional intelligence is concerned I am also strong sometimes and weak some other times like any other human being but there are few moments when others' emotions control mine. If I am not getting a reaction I wish to get from the other person who is pretty close to me I become weak. I lose all my senses and I become fartoholic err I mean over emotional :) I don't understand the unresponsiveness of folks around us , who are pretty close to us and whom you think you can take for granted for most part of your life but truly and absolutely we cannot take anyone for granted. We can only bombard them with our thoughts and use our authoritative tone but we can never guess what is truly going on in their mind. No one wants to  be taken for granted. Not your kids, not even your mom or dad or your bestest friend! I can sense few people nodding in agreement and few others shaking their heads in disagreement!! 

I know most of us have those 3 O clock friends, a lovely spouse, a beautiful family but at few junctures every one goes in to a self-operational mode where they have no time, patience or energy to think about any thing else! May be they are fighting some demons which we are not aware of. May be they are tired and just need time for themselves. I am really not sure of the reason but all I know is to let them go and concentrate on resolving the issue all by myself. Sometimes we have to forget our expectations. We cannot rub them on a person who for sure has a different view of the whole scenario!

Get up and get going. Fine tune your mind to avoid friction in the relation ship with your spouse/ boy friend / girl friend or the bestest friend!


  • You want him/ her to listen to you but he/she is not listening. You please stop talking. I am sure there is some one else who might be a good listener. NEVER lose other FRIENDS.
  • You are waiting for a reaction but not getting one and you don't get one even after expressing it. Stop expressing. At least try. Clinging to some one emotionally is something which makes any one instantly weak.
  • You like some thing and he/she doesn't like the same thing. IT IS OK. You both are neither cloned nor from the same gene pool.
  • You feel your demands are silly and can be easily met. He/ she might be thinking your demands are unusual.
  • You feel he/ she is insensitive and non-emotional . He or she might be feeling you are unreasonable and illogical! 
Saying is easy, doing is hectic. Yeah, I know but rather than being mum, speaking out sometimes gives the strength to try! Lastly I want to share a fun quote by Aunty acid. If you don't know who she is - go to AuntyAcid.
You will love the page.



That's all. I don't want to rant much and spoil your day. Sorry for this cribbing post but I had to write all this as this is the first ,second and the last thought I seem to be having today. Some times we need to talk to ourselves and my blog is the only clear and louder way of communicating to my self on any given day :)

Thanks for bearing with me. My stint with Project 365 ends here. It was a great experience. Feels good that I am writing the last post for February! Thanks to all of you. Thank you Rekha for inviting me and thanks Jairam, Sid and Sakshi. Special thanks to Sid for clarifying my doubts and guiding me when ever I asked. Wish to write along with you guys some other time. Till then rock on. I love this initiative!


[This post is written for the Project 365 program at We Post Daily aimed at posting at least once a day, based on the prompts provided. I am the guest author for the month of February. The prompt for today is  First light - "Tomorrow morning, jot down the first thought you have upon waking, whether or not it’s coherent. Remember yesterday, when you wrote down the first thought you had this morning? Great. Now write a post about it. "]
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