Highway - The road less travelled - A review!

March 7, 2014, 7:36 am

≫ Next: Pelancongan Kepada Malaysia ( Tour to Malaysia) !

Originally published at Viewspaper

Cast:Alia Bhatt, Randeep HoodaMusic: A R RahmanDirector: Imtiaz Ali

The Alia Bhatt and Randeep Hooda starrer Highway with a story based on Stockholm syndrome made it to headlines from the day the shooting started. Movie goers were curious to see Alia in the new challenging avtar and her flawless performance deserves a huge round of applause. Randeep Hooda fits in the role with ease. The story starts with the pomp and grandeur of a rich Delhi wedding which is shown like a reality show is being shot. It is like a real life wedding which shows snippets and scenes like it is shown in a documentary and what happens next is just unexpected. When Imtiyaz Ali and A.R.Rehman work together, the crafts man ship is always worth applause. We don't have many songs in Highway but whatever we have will not fail in stealing the show.

Image source: here

Story line and Review:

Veera (Alia Bhatt) the daughter of a rich industrialist is a crazy , cute girl who loves adventures. The most exciting thing for her in the opening scene is to run away with her fiancee who is quite opposite to her and keeps cribbing about the impending danger. He is not wrong as danger is waiting to engulf them on that fateful night before Veera's wedding. When Veera shouts for help the impassive nature of the nerdy fiancee who keeps saying only one thing- "I told you so" makes Veera as well as the viewers angry. Randeep Hooda the rough and gruff head of the dacoit gang shows no mercy and tortures Veera. How the story unfolds is just exciting. It has equal amounts of pain , humor , thrill and confusion.

The transformation of Veera from a fearful girl who wants to escape the kidnapper's den to the one who warms up to him is little fast but that's how it was supposed to be taking Veera's behavioral traits in to consideration. The songs and music blend well with the backdrop. Kahan hoon mai song when she tries to run just touches the audience. She singing Sooha saaha - a lullaby to Mahabir (Randeep Hooda) is odd for normal people but she has stockholm syndrome and like the tag line of the movie goes she finally feels released in the bondage!

The scene where she reveals her childhood tragedy to Randeep made me cry. Alia's expressions , emotions , craziness , smile , tears everything will be etched in your memory. You will wonder if she is the same girl who made her debut in Student of the year. How ever the movie is a drag at few junctures. That's where Anil Mehta's excellent cinematography comes to rescue. The camera angles are unique and the heavenly landscapes, snowfall, rivers, mountains are jaw droppingly beautiful. One thing is clear that Imtiyaz Ali wants the girl to be extremely crazy , adventurous and she has to love mountains. His heroines from the past - Geet from Jab we met, Heer Kaul from Rock Star and now Veera Tripathi from Highway have few similarities :) !

This movie is all about Alia. Even in the song ali ali ali (Pathaka Guddi) I could only hear Alia Alia Alia! She is natural to the core and she doesn't seem like she is just a film old in bollywood. You feel like going on that dangerous and adventurous journey along with her and explore the world in a different style. Her enthusiasm is infectious. The scene where she laughs and also sobs is touchy. She most of the times talks to herself which is both crazy and cute!

Randeep Hooda as Mahabir Bhatti does justice to his role. The gujjar accent some times looked forced but he convinces us as he is apt for that role of a true blue dacoit.

Imtiyaz Ali's movie always is calm , peaceful and charms the audience as it flows like a beautiful poem. Like in all his movies the heroine wants to break-free from the clutches which are holding her to the norms and conditions of the society. Imtiyaz weaves the story such that he sets her free.The thing I love about Imtiyaz Ali's movies is that he shows all the dreamy , impossible happenings blended with so many emotions that the viewer gets lost in thoughts. By the end of the movie the bubble is burst as reality comes in to picture !! Hats off to Imtiyaz for delivering such a soulful movie and three cheers to A.R.Rahman, Resul Poolkutty and Amrita Pritam for adding the heart touching music to go with the journey on the roads across six states. Last but not the least hail the Nooran Sisters who have sung the Pathaka guddi song which will get stuck in your head! If it has an energetic vibe associated with it, maahi ve has optimism embedded in it even if it is all unreal.

Scenes that will stay with you :

1.) Alia trying to escape from the kidnappers' gang and coming back to them as she has no where to go

2.) Alia dancing to the English pop song and one of the kidnappers does his own dance which will make you laugh loud.

3.) The tender moments when Alia feels that she and Mahabir can live together in a hamlet on top of a hill and she cooks maggi and makes bed for him.

4.) Last but not the least - Maahive and Pathaka guddi songs.

Image source : Pathaka Guddi

Be a passenger and travel along this slow and steady road which will mesmerize you!

The only lines I remembered when I traveled along these roads and across the woods are

"The woods are lovely, dark, and deep, But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep" --- Robert Frost

AR Rahman, Resul Pookutty, Amrit Pritam churn out some soulful music - See more at: http://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/bollywood/movie-review-alia-bhatt-randeep-hooda-s-highway-is-bumpy-yet-deeply-enjoyable/article1-1186094.aspx#sthash.86ZMWvdl.dpuf

mtiaz's female protagonist wants to break out of the existing rules and regulations - See more at: http://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/bollywood/movie-review-alia-bhatt-randeep-hooda-s-highway-is-bumpy-yet-deeply-enjoyable/article1-1186094.aspx#sthash.86ZMWvdl.dpuf

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Pelancongan Kepada Malaysia ( Tour to Malaysia) !

March 11, 2014, 8:00 am

≫ Next: La belle dame in the beau France!

≪ Previous: Highway - The road less travelled - A review!

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 11^th 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!

Five things which I experienced in Malaysia and which I would love to experience again are listed below:

1.) Chinese Newyear : 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).

I love history and the facts. I loved visiting Istana Negara and Masjid-e-Negara

2.) Masjid- Negara 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 1^st and 2^nd 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 is an Islamic museum which we wanted to visit but missed

3.) Kualalampur Bird Park and KL tower: KL has one of the largest bird watches in Asia but due to time constraint we couldn't stop by! The next time I visit I will definitely take time to spend at KL Bird park . It has world's largest freeflight walk in Aviary and houses some exotic birds. Being a nature lover I am sure I would love it there.

Image source : Here

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. It was a unique experience and I would love to go there again. 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!
4.) Petronus Towers: 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.:)

5.) Genting Highlands: 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 4^th 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 20^th 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!

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. Next I would love to plan it better and explore some more places leisurely like Bukit Bintang, Lego land , Gunung Mulu national park and many more which we missed in our first trip :)

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

I am participating in the MalaysiaJao Blogathon Contest in association with BlogAdda.com.

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La belle dame in the beau France!

March 12, 2014, 10:20 am

≫ Next: The "Caged" Love

≪ Previous: Pelancongan Kepada Malaysia ( Tour to Malaysia) !

Allo everyone:) .The mere thought of a holiday to France is enthralling to me. I read about few destinations in Southern France during one of my journeys and decided that I will sort out my finances and visit France when ever I can.

France is the land of love and romance with extensive history. If the delicious French cuisine is to die for, the wine and champagne should be tasted at least once in life. There are many holiday destinations in France. The land of Eiffel tower attracts majority tourists. People who love adventurous skiing in the snowy Alps in winter and mountaineering in summer will love holidaying here. The natural beauty of France, marvelous landscapes and beaches are mesmerizing. If I get a chance I would love to holiday in France for sure. Below is my agenda the day I plan flying to France :)

Skyscanneris an amazing app which helps in comparing the flight rates and rounding on what suits you best. It also helps in searching the hotels and book cabs at your desired destination. Thanks to Indiblogger which helped us in knowing more about this cool app. Below screenshots show how this app helped me with my search! After a lot of research I rounded on a place called NICE to visit first in the France. I needed solemnity, solace and rejuvenation and this place looked like it had what all I needed for!

A glimpse of Skyscanner website

I explored little more with the help of skyscanner on my mobile and rounded on British airways which suited my budget. Find the screen shots below which helped me with my search. I have seen apps and websites like Makemytrip and many more but there is nothing like skyscanner. It is a one stop shop to know the flight rates and explore the places and know the duration and many other small big miscellaneous details.

I will make a checklist before my travel starts. The highlights would be like below

· Passport, Id card and other essentials should be in place.

· Plan for the currency exchange to Euros after arriving in France

· Planning proper accommodation with the help of SkyScanner.

· Planning the trip in the right time of the year, preferably from April to October.

· Learning basic French words to not face any difficulty during the local sightseeing :)

· Meticulously spending the Euros and being vigilant so as to avoid getting lured.

· Last but not the least carrying the medical kit in case of emergency during the travel period.

When I Scanned the Sky :)

Where to holiday in South France ?: It is a big question as the place is vast!. A holiday in Southern France is purely divine in winter as well as summer. Other than the crowded July and August rest of the year is off season and is calmer. The city which you must visit in South France is “Nice” in Côte d'Azur. It is easy to plan day trips to places like Monaco, Canes Saint-Paul-de-Vence and Menton from there. Aix-en-Provence situated further east is beautiful. You can book accommodation in a rental villa too. One can go hiking in the golden yellow fields or a day can be spent by visiting the nearby ski resorts. Cities in Provence such as Avignon, Arles, Nimes and Marseille are great to visit during the winter season as winter is sunny and pleasant. Even if swimming in Mediterranean is tough as it is cold one can enjoy a sea side stroll. The calanques are a major attraction of France holidays, which are steep-walled inlets of the sea, good for adventurous hiking and the sight is breath taking. Shared below are few glimpses!

The wide beach in Nice. Image source- here

This is a calanque. Isn't it breath taking ? Source -here

Camping holidays in France: A holiday to France is incomplete if you miss the beaches of southern France. Camping in France should be in your to-do list. Camping is the best family holiday and you can stay in a luxurious tent or a mobile holiday home or a caravan. For an enjoyable camping holiday in France you have to first decide your budget and location. Again the skyscanner app will come handy here if you are facing challenges to contact people and know the details. French alps and beaches can make you dreamy. With mouthwatering Croissants, magnificent lunches, coffee and amazing weather camping will make holidays to France memorable. Holiday caravan secluded from the hustle bustle or a mobile home make the duration in France more interesting.

A camping holiday in France

Beach holiday: France is a place for perfect beach holidays with clear blue waters and warm climate. There are many pristine beaches. Cannes and Nice are famous for beach holidays and for family outings. A visit to Alps for a ski holiday makes a France holiday quite adventurous. Whether you are a professional skier or not you will have the ski slopes fitting your skills. Along with diversified cultures the holiday destinations in France are good for an adventurous trip. The treks, rock climbing, camping, cycling, canyoning, white water rafting and hiking make the trip more thrilling. With excellent beaches, rides and facilities France holidays are peaceful. Fishing holidays in France are good for fisher men and also for anglers who just want to fish for fun.

Holidays of choice in France:-)

Walking holidays in France altogether give a different perspective. With necessary maps one can walk carefree. The self-guided walking trips or couple walks can be short or long and exciting. France has an amazing coastline with variety of beaches. If shores of Brittiany are rugged, Mediterranean is sun drenched. You can swim, surf and relax and also get a hotel accommodation overlooking the beach. You can hire a boat and enjoy the French Canal Boating Holidays. You can enjoy the scenery, rich heritage and history during boating. Driving holidays in France are good too. You can self-drive or rent a car and plan your trip. Villas, gites, apartments, hotels and chateaus provide an excellent holiday accommodation to tourists in France. There are many cottages and hotels at affordable prices for a perfect France holiday with in the budget. The luxurious accommodation and facilities like crèche, babysitting provide relaxing time for families with children. I would love to sit relax , enjoy the French wine and other cuisines and just get lost in the dreamy land of France!
Oui. A holiday in France will totally leave you in awe.

This is the true blue color of water in Mediterranean at Nice - Source : here

Walking Holiday in France. Solitude can be a bliss!
Image source : here

From learning French to eating the mouth watering Croissants and holidaying in these exotic locations of Southern France , every thing linked to France is in my to-do list. I started dreaming about France from the day I read a beautiful ballad "La Belle Dame sans Merci" by John Keats. I am charmed by the place, history, Leonardo Davinci, the art and the rich culture. I want to visit the Cannes Film Festival. I want to get amazed by Monalisa at the Lourve and get amused at the Palace of the Versailles. I will be visiting the fashion capital of the world and the most romantic city- Paris and stand on the top of Eiffel Tower with my man as well but the place"Nice" is just etched in my mind , so it would be nice if I plan my trip by starting with Nice.Let me know your dream destinations and how you will plan for them ?

The famous French Wine, Bread , cheese and grapes. Source: here

John Keats- Source - here . I love his poems and quotes :)

"Merci for reading my dream trip to France.
After writing all this I am definitely in a trance!
Bonjour my dear readers till we meet again here with the same fervour.
If you liked this write up share your views and vote for me. Au revoir!"

This post is submitted for #TravelsmartwithSkyScannercontest by Indibloggerin association with SkyScanner

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The "Caged" Love

March 16, 2014, 9:46 am

≫ Next: Why this Kolaveri di ??

≪ Previous: La belle dame in the beau France!

Tahir joined the college to pursue his MBA. He is a very talented boy. He is gifted with the writing talent. His friends always used to exclaim that he is a store house of enthusiasm , energy and he has a ocean of emotions which when he penned always felt magical! Only thing which no one understood about Tahir is his dislike towards parties and social gatherings. He had an aversion to people. He used to come to college , finish his classes and go back to library or his room. Every one wanted to know the secret about Tahir. They wanted to crack the code and share it with all. They used to force him , probe him with questions but he was always cool, composed and just passed on a sweet smile when ever people crossed the limits.

There is no girl in the college who didn't try to get close to Tahir in whatever possible way but he was always shy and used to retort when it used to go beyond limit. Some thought it was just cute as he is shy. Some others thought he is too naive or too rude! He never bothered about what others have to say but he always used to shun when ever there is a pretty damsel trying to woo him in the vicinity!

"A bundle of boredom,""Weirdo" , "Nerd" - He got all possible labels a person as boring as him can get. Nothing flinched Tahir.

Finally the day came when every one will be leaving the college with flying colors. Tahir was recruited on the day 0 of interviews. One of the prestigious banks, Bank of Scotland recruited him and every one was obviously jealous of Tahir's success as he was the only one selected in interview. The gang of boys despised the fact that he will fly soon, where as few threw remarks that even if he succeeded it is of no use as he neither has girl friend nor an interesting life style!

His parents and sister came from Delhi to Lucknow to attend his convocation. Every one was in high spirits but they seemed dull. Fellow students were surprised as one more puzzle loomed in front of them and they were not able to crack it. They just couldn't understand why on earth were the topper Tahir's parents so gloomy.

Tahir's Mom : "You can't stop him Hussain. He is going to Scotland. It is a job which half of the Indians can only dream of."

She was shouting in a high pitched voice in a corridor next to the library. Rajesh, Tahir's class mate who was standing inside the library at a window near to them started overhearing their conversation.

Tahir's Dad: " We got to stop him. Now we can hide the secret under the wraps but if he goes the whole world will know."

Mom: "Why should the whole world know? What is the big deal even if they know Hussain? We can't just let him live like a dead body." Sobbed Tahir's mom.

Dad: " What about our religion ? community ? relatives? What will I tell to them when they ask me when I am planning to get my son married?"

Rajesh came closer to the window so that he could hear better!

Mom: "People will not keep firing questions at you through out their life. They have to stop on some day Hussain!"

Dad: " I can't take all this . It is so shameful. I can't bear this trauma." Saying so Tahir's dad removed his spectacles. Tears welled up in his eyes.

Tahir's mom approached him. She held his hand gently and told in a soft tone, "He is our son Hussain. We can't just spoil his life."

Tahir's sister Nazia entered the scene.

"Mom, dad where have you been. Bhayya is searching for you. He needs your help to get ready."

Looking at their expressions she realized what they would have been discussing.

Nazia: "Mom, dad just let it go na. Atleast for today. Today is Tahir's day. If you can't be with him atleast stay silent. Please don't start an argument here."

Dad: "Why not ? I know why he is going to Scotland. To meet him!" said Tahir's dad seething with anger and frustration.

Nazia : "Dad, you can't change something which already happened. You will be disappointing him and yourself too!"

Dad: "How can I show face to my relatives?"

Tahir who was hearing all this by standing behind a pillar entered the scene. "Dad. Michael knows me from long. We are meant to be with each other. If you can't accept us please don't come in between us."

Tahir's dad had mixed expressions of sadness, anger and pity! Rajesh left the library in two long jumps and the news travelled in university like a wild fire!

Every one started eyeing Tahir and giggling. Girls finally understood why he was an introvert and some boys teased him, some maintained their distance where as some bullied him. Tahir did not flinch.

"Sheesh. You are gay! You are not a man. You can't play with us. You are untouchable. You should be abandoned from the cricket group. " These voices echoed in Tahir's head at that moment. He is used to them now. There were moments in his past when he felt so vulnerable that he even thought of suicide many times. His own mom and dad were aghast by their son's acts.

His liking towards woman's products, his desire to get nailpolish on his hands, the way he wanted to dress, all these things used to shock his parents. His father beat him mercilessly with a wooden cane till his body could take no more. His dad made him take oaths that he will try to at-least pretend to be normal till he finishes his graduation. He googled every thing about being a transgender and showed to his mom and dad but his dad never softened! His mom however , read , empathized and warmed up to him eventually though she always used to face the wrath of the neighbors and their perennial questions. Tahir never spoke to his dad after one night when he beat him with his leather belt. No other punishment could repair Tahir's mind or mend his traits.

He was 18 when he got attracted to Michael, a boy whom he met during a trip. They became pen friends and then facebook friends and skype friends and they were inseparable. Tahi'rs life bloomed all of a sudden. Michael was the first guy in his life who understood him. Michael felt the same about Tahir. Their relationship was going strong much to the disgust of Tahir's dad. His mom kept mum but sister used to talk and try to understand him with each passing day. Finally she was in a position to just let him go and not cut his wings of freedom.

"Caged" love: Image source : here

Tahir was a bright student and Michael was highly creative. Michael wanted to become a professional photographer and Tahir wanted to be an investment banker. He is quick witted and a hard worker who used to finish all friends' assignments but never used to mingle with any! The day has finally come when he finally would get an MBA degree in hand and would be able to fly to his dream land where Michael lives and pursue his career and live happily!

The same day his open secret became the talk of the college campus. Every one eyed Tahir with curiosity as he started walking in the corridor fuming, towards his room. His sister tried to console him and his mum stayed mum as always. Convocation started and every one's name was called. Tahir was awarded the best student of the batch award. He got a gold medal too. He was asked to deliver a speech. He shivered and it took a minute for him to stay focused. After he gathered his composure he started talking.
"Today's date will be permanently etched in our memories. I feel privileged to receive this award for outstanding performance from the hands of our honorable Chief minister. Today I want to thank my mom, dad and my sister for making me what I am. My mom is my pillar of strength. My sister is my admirer and I adore her. My dad hates me and this my friends is the biggest reason for my success."

Many people gasped. Few shuddered and a murmur started in the crowd.

Tahir continued, "I am not a normal person as per the norms of the society. Few used to call me weirdo, few tagged me as a psycho and few took the authority to even abandon me from their colony, community and society. Few more had the guts to suggest me to commit suicide! All because I am a gay."

This statement received more gasps and aaahhs and oooohs from the crowd!

"Yes. I am a gay and to me it is as normal as being a guy who falls in love with a girl to get married and to bear kids. Actually my situation is much better as population can be controlled."

Few chortled at that statement.

"I tried to change. I tried a lot but I couldn't. My dad beat me with a thick leather belt and there was a night when I almost killed myself. After 19 failed suicide attempts and completely broken heart I was wandering aimlessly when I met Michael in one of the seminars during my twelfth standard final days. We clicked in nano seconds and there was no looking back. I realised he had similar "normal" traits I had and in our own small world we were gay, I mean happy ;-) "

This lead to some more smiles and cheers in the crowd.

"Obviously there was resentment at home. One fine day my dad even tried to get me married to a girl even before I finished graduation. She ran away the moment I said, we can live together but I swing the other way. I am a gay. I still remember her perturbed reaction :). I was in touch with Michael via skype, phone and we met once in an year. It has been 8 years now and we are still going strong. You see there is no other girl to hamper our relationship and if there is a handsome guy I make it sure that Michael doesn't get a chance to look at him." Tahir said this with a wink which made people whistle and clap.

" I am gay and this was a punishment to my dad. This is my bad karma, he likes to say that always. The good thing out of this bad karma is that I have put every drop of my sweat and blood in my MBA and here today I am in a position where I can earn a living and the icing on the cake is I am going to Scotland. That is a dream land as my Michael lives there. A lavish life, lovely partner in midst of alps and doing what you really want to do. How many among us are lucky enough to achieve this?"

There was a pin drop silence and every thing Tahir spoke echoed in the auditorium.

"I am handsome, so is my partner and you need not pity me that I am wasting my good looks by falling for a guy. In fact I can write a book titled "Advantages of being a gay" in the next 5 years!"

People were listening to him with rapt attention now.

"However I will never be able to write a book , "How to get in to good books of your dad or society in general if you are a gay!"Sorry dad, I can neither make you proud of my decisions nor can I make you happy by my success but I don't want to be sorry to myself through out my life,so I can't alter my decisions! Irrespective of the memories I had, I will miss home. I will miss you sis and mom. We shall meet soon. Now I would like to call Michael on stage, my true inspiration , a creative person , a professional photographer who loves to write and paint, a person who always and all-ways had my back. He is a Phd in psychology and we will soon start living together." Michael ran on to the stage and hugged Tahir. There were mixed reactions among audience . Few had tears in eyes. Few expressed disgust and few were neutral.

Whatever may be the varied expressions and reactions Tahir and Michael celebrated the best day of their life. Tahir flew to Scotland in few months. They got married. It was a simple event with just few close friends and colleagues. Tahir's dream life started but he had to go further from his parents to get closer to the love of his life and he is still waiting to see if his dad will warm up to him.

Image source: here

Let us hope and pray that in the coming years may be he will change his attitude towards Tahir!

"To love and to be loved is the biggest victory.
To love and to get the approval of everyone is the biggest mystery.
Love has no boundaries or logic and at times it is caged.
Lovers in bloom always rekindle the love and stay young even if they are aged!"

After many hurdles Scotland has legally approved the same sex marriages. Read this news on BBC- Registration opens for same sex marriage in Scotland . It becomes legal on 29 March. Let us hope change comes eventually through out the world!

This post is submitted for Indiblogger's Go Further to get closercontest. Do watch the British airways ad below on youtube

and do visit Britishairways.com when you are here! Thanks for reading!

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Why this Kolaveri di ??

March 17, 2014, 10:12 am

≫ Next: The A to Z race - "Randomness rules again"- The Theme Reveal!

≪ Previous: The "Caged" Love

When Sid tagged me on the Project 365’s mind boggling prompt – Bone contention, I was in a fix. Not because I have no content for this contention topic but I was confused as to what name I should give to this post. I finally rounded on Why this Kolaveri di!? I am sure all Indians are aware of this song. The song got viral some 2 years back and it was on every one’s FB page, mobiles and was forwarded feverishly! Will you believe if I say this song was played even in the taxis of Malaysia and Singapore when I visited!

Dhanush might have dedicated this song to the girl who cheated him but I am stealing his song title and dedicating this post to all people who accelerate the urge in me to kill them or sometimes the urge to slap myself due to the mistakes done by me. Well coming back to the topic, here I have to enter in to the skin of the person who opposes my thoughts or issues I strongly care about or has differential opinions to mine! Here I am writing down scenarios where a person misunderstood me and we kind of had a big argument and disagreement. I am actually not giving out all the details and I have cut down the conversation to 1/10th of the original one. I will present you two scenarios here where I am myself in the first and I am the one who is in the opposite position in the second. Let us name that friend/ relative / cousin or an on-line friend as Mrs.Helen Good. Don’t ask me why I chose this name :P.

I badly needed her help and yes I bothered her, bugged her and bombarded her as I felt I can take the help, she being a good friend who helped me in times of trouble. Below is a conversation which actually didn't happen. It is tweaked a lot. In the first scenario I am myself. Read on!

Scenario 1 (I , me , myself):

Me in the face-book chat window.

Me: “Hello. How are you doing?”

Mrs. Helen Good: “I am fine. How are things at your end?”

Me: “All well. So how is your health now?”

Mrs HG: “Doing great. Little weakness is still there”

Me thinking, should I ask for help or not as she is still sick!

Mrs HG: “Hope you are excited about the blogger meet we are about to have.”

Me: “Yes. I am. Sorry to disturb U but can you please let me know if I really will get a special pass where we get a chance to interview Amitab Bachan and Shabana Azmi likes?”

Mrs HG: “Yes there is a chance :) "
Me: "You think I should contact the PRO first for that or can I directly go to venue and ask."
Mrs HG: "I think you can go and ask."

Time flew and after two months, on one fine morning after repeated pursuits to talk to HG I pinged her again.

Me: "Hey. How are u doing ? You are not visible these days."
HG: "What help do you want me to do now madam?"
Me: "I did not ping for any help ! What opinion do you have about me? Not sure why you asked like that. Sorry for any inconvenience. "
HG: "I can't talk normally right now. I don't have a problem helping or guiding you but I should set my limits before some one burdens me or takes me for granted."
Me: "Did I burden you? I am shocked to hear that."
HG: "I can't be a selfless helper anymore. I have my own challenges and blah blah blah.It will take time for me to converse normally with you."
Me: "OK. Please forget this and me and move on."

Image source : here

Scenario 2 : (I am Mrs.HG here)

Me in the face-book chat window.

Me: “Hello. How are you doing?”

Mrs. Helen Good: “I am fine. How are things at your end?”

Me: “All well. So how is your health now?”

Mrs HG: “Doing great. Little weakness is still there”

Me thinking, should I ask for help or not as she is still sick!

Mrs HG: “Hope you are excited about the blogger meet we are about to have.”

Me: “Yes. I am. Sorry to disturb U but can you please let me know if I really will get a special pass where we get a chance to interview Amitab Bachan and Shabana Azmi likes?”

Mrs HG: “Yes there is a chance :) "
Me: "You think I should contact the PRO first for that or can I directly go to venue and ask."
Mrs HG: "I think you can go and ask."

Time flew and after two months on one fine morning after repeated pursuits to talk to HG I pinged her again.

Me: "Hey. How are u doing ? You are not visible these days (I need some help actually)."
HG: "What help do you want me to do now madam?"
Me: "I did not ping for any help ! What opinion do you have about me? Not sure why you asked like that. Sorry for any inconvenience. "
HG: "I can't talk normally right now. I don't have a problem helping or guiding you but I should set my limits before some one burdens me or takes me for granted."
Me: "Did I burden you? I am shocked to hear that."
HG: "I can't be a selfless helper anymore. I have my own challenges and blah blah blah.. It will take time for me to converse normally with you."
Me: "OK. Please forget this and me and move on."

Did you notice that I copy pasted the same conversation twice? In the first set where I am myself and in second set where I am Mrs.HG I highlighted few words in red. These words are the ones on which I laid emphasis when I was myself and when I was Mrs.HG respectively. OK. Let me make it easy for you. In the first scenario I laid emphasis on , "please" coz I asked Mrs HG's help even if she was sick. I hesitate a lot. I am a good person according to me and hence I added please but I needed help urgently so I didn't hesitate asking. My emphasis was on words , Sorry and please. I can never gauge the reactions or thoughts of the other person so I was happily unaware of the fact that she was burdened all the time till she blasted me after 1-2months and she is happily unaware of the words which offended me!!
Here my emphasis was on all her rude words. I was too shocked and too surprised to react!

In the second scenario I am Mrs HG and may be Mrs HG is me. Here the emphasis is laid on the repetitive requests and sorry and please are trashed. I even read between the lines and understood the conversation as per my convenience .I was sure that the other person asked, "I need some help actually".

Mrs HG found me rude and I found Mrs HG rude. The conversation, arguments and disagreements I had with Mrs HG are not as simple as I mentioned in the above conversation snippet. They are HUGE, COMPLEX and the story is long so no narration as of now as it may become a novella which no one would be eager to read but one thing I want to conclude here is -> It is very tough to crawl in to other person's skin. It is tough to wear their thinking cap. It is not always possible to be empathetic!

If they are fighting their own demons they may treat you as that demon at some point of time. Yes. I am not aloof of such complications.I might have also done that at sometime. They expect you to thank them 100 times and zip your mouths even if you want to get few things clarified or need some guidance. If you ask guidance you will be projected as a selfish person who only knows to take help. What ever good you do before and after that will be wiped off from their memories. Similarly you may not realise that there actually was a possibility that you might have pissed him/her. You may not be aware of the fact that he/she is doing a big favour and the friendship won't stand in the same line of FAVOUR!

I decided to break all my ties with that person coz I was not able to fake friendship after a weird conversation and disagreement we had. When I spoke in the same style I was tagged as a weirdo and that I am highly offensive. I just reminded the message I got months back and walked out of the conversation and also her life! No one loves the other person more than they love themselves. Every one has the challenges, demons, vulnerabilities and emotions but no one thinks that the other person's challenges are bigger than theirs'! .

The guest prompt for the post is to be in the friend's shoes and let readers know what it was like doing it ! To me it was like Kolaveri.I named it as Kolaveri – as Kolaveri means murder. There are various meanings of kolaveri, ranging from the urge to kill someone or a deep anger to kill someone. Kolai means murder, very means mania says yahoo . Click to know the variety of meanings. Whatever is the range of meanings the gist is kolaveri di is murderous intention. Not that I want to kill some one now but putting myself in the shoes of someone who is opposing me brought an urge in me to kill myself as it was deadly tough, bone chilling ,mind numbing experience. So I will never be able to defend the opposing person. I can definitely think like them and understand why they spoke like that but can never defend them. Ya I can definitely offend them :)

Have a great time friends. Happy Holi. I am glad I successfully posted this one on Bone of contention. I had a different intention before I started writing this but right now am not in a mood to write an explosive post , hence this one! Lastly Dhanush's Kolaveri which inspired my post's title and more than half of my post! I dedicate this song to Sid;)

Try not to be some one's Kolaveri and live your life. Do read a poem- "You and me war" written by me more or less on similar lines few days back :) Two stanzas from the same poem :

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.

This post is a part of the WordPress Daily Prompts : 365 Writing Prompts program where the aim is to post at least one post a day based on the day's prompt.Today's Prompt was a 'Free Prompt' provided to all of us, Guest Authors.

The Prompt!

Thank you Sid for pushing me to write this :) Have a nice time!

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The A to Z race - "Randomness rules again"- The Theme Reveal!

March 25, 2014, 10:26 pm

≫ Next: Being "Afshan" :-)

≪ Previous: Why this Kolaveri di ??

When I saw more than 100 comments for the theme reveal post in the group (A to Zeders 2014)I joined to stay motivated and to feel energetic, I thought why not give it a go ? After all this post will kick off my A to Z madness. I saw many of my favorite bloggers listing out their themes in the group and thought I would write down few lines on my plan for A to Z!

My plan for A to Z is absolutely having no plan!

Even if my thoughts are hazy for now I am hoping they will surface in my brain and ooze out of my finger tips and I successfully type any thing and every thing which may be sensible and also nonsense sometimes and attain the nirvana I attained last year!

Last year was my first A to Z challenge and this year I am more jittery because I am working now and shuttling between two cities almost every week. I don't have ample of time in my hands to read others' blogs or to even proof read my own blog. But still I am jumping in to the fire of A to Z because I know this challenge tremendously transformed me last year. I know it is not going to be easy for me but I am hoping that doing this challenge as a group will definitely boost me and I won't drop dead in the middle of it. Some of the blogs I love reading from the group are Serenelyrapt (her theme already intrigued me), IndianAmericanMom (I met her and she is a sweet heart) , Shail Mohan (her love for nature is contagious and she is also themeless just like me and I am sure you will be glued to her blog), JanakiNagaraj (her poetic skills are worth applause), BlogwatiG (She will make you laugh, think and love her blog), Pooja Abhay ( My new blog friend- She for sure will mesmerize you with her 4 liners and rhymes), Deecoded (met her last year. Her theme Love actually is lovely) , Arpita (Be prepared to get nostalgic. She will take you down the memory lane), Lizzi Rogers (She will teach you about different kinds of writing . Make sure you read her), Cynthia ( a good blogger friend who promises, just like last year to imbibe wisdom in her kids which we all need too) , Sfurti (Another blogger friend who will take you every day in to her life with her theme -“A day in my life”)

There are many other bloggers whom I met last year, to read whom I am looking forward this year too. There are many other new bloggers and I can't wait to know their style of writing. After all this challenge is a door which opens up to a world of endless exploring. You can learn, laugh , support each other when you are panicky and you can carry this memory for life time. Only thing is don't let the challenge defeat you! Fight it with all might and you will be the winner and don't let others' support and love get to your head, bones and nerves. Have faced this bitter scenario last year and would love to be miles away from such people who in the hoodwink of motivation behave like God Mothers/ Fathers !

Image source: here

Lastly *whistles please* . Now I am gonna reveal what you can "expect" on my blog. They will be totally random things. I am a person who thinks in a haphazard way but some times even my haphazard jottings and ramblings have a pattern. You may mostly read "few random pages of my life", "few posts on movies (Bollywood)", "few tributes to famous personalities,""few happenings which impacted me big time this year and last year,""may be few poems" and if nothing hits me that day may be a random cuisine by mom or an art work or a photograph!

Be ready to be bombarded by my randomness guys! . Will try to keep it simple silly for most part of the challenge this year. I will try to visit all your links when ever I can. I will be late but make sure that I visit most of you. Please excuse me if I miss your blogs due to time constraints!

Lastly have a great APRIL! Brace yourself as my Fb wall and google+ , twitter and everything will be flooded with blog links:). I am sure we all are gonna bake our brains and make the April month hot and happening!
Love you all!

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Being "Afshan" :-)

March 28, 2014, 9:49 am

≫ Next: A for "Aliens" and "Aeroplane mystery"

≪ Previous: The A to Z race - "Randomness rules again"- The Theme Reveal!

Being myself is a puzzle which I try to solve with each passing day.
Every day I discover a new side of me which may or may not stay.

I am like that season which passes by but will leave its mark.

I am like that glow which enlightens you, yet keep you in dark!

I rhyme with out a reason and I write a poem any time, any day.

Poems make me sing, make me smile and they make me sway.

I heart my blog and even my man can't come between us.

I talk to myself here and at times trap my soul in my words!

"Being Afshan is a puzzle to solve,a mind to evolve and thoughts which revolve or dissolve!"

Reading and writing keep me sane and I write to know me more.

Even as I am writing this I realize there is something more in store.

I love celebrations, I love getting decked up and I love travelling and nature.

I am thoughtful at times, watchful many times and sometimes I am a premature!

I travel in to memories and keep the kid in me alive to enjoy life's smallest joys.

The man in my life helps me maintain poise and also bears my noise;)

I can never write a short post, so please tolerate these few lines about me.

To know more you and me should sit and talk over ten cups of coffee or tea!! :-D

This post is Written for"Being ME-the HERstory montage" hosted by Indiblogeshwaris.com. To know more and to participate click here!

↧

A for "Aliens" and "Aeroplane mystery"

March 31, 2014, 11:30 am

≫ Next: "B" for "Bloggers' meet- My very first"

≪ Previous: Being "Afshan" :-)

We all know what or who aliens are. If you have never heard the word "alien" then you will be an alien here too! Generally we use the word alien for an unfamiliar person and we feel alienated if we are facing an unfamiliar situation. You would have heard friends saying, "I feel so alienated here!" The most interesting alien is a hypothetical or fictional being from another world. "ET" or extra terrestrial as we like to call it. Now almost all of us would have watched or at least heard of the movie Extra Terrestrial. We all have a mental image immediately surfacing in our minds when ever we think of Aliens. Thanks to all the Sci fi and alien movies we watched so far. This is the list of -- 25 best alien movies made so far. I am a fan of alien stuff too. I have written sci fi write ups in the past where an alien abducts an earthling and where Martians (people from Mars) take our help for improving life on their planet. Neither a movie nor any of my stories triggered this post.

The alien thoughts ruled my mind in the recent past after the Aeroplane MH370just vanished in to thin air. Various analogies , assumptions and estimations increased my anxiety. I read a piece by Mike Adams-Six important facts you are not being told about Malaysian Airlines flight 370- where it was mentioned that there are mysteries unknown to this universe. He almost convinced me that a parallel universe exists and the flight for sure would have traveled via some portal which opened up in the sky. Some unknown force would have plucked the airplane he says. He tried ruling out all possibilities and rounding on only the existence of some extremely powerful creatures from a parallel universe who made the airplane just vanish with a poof sound. When I think now it seems silly but I was really intrigued the day I read it. The plane for sure is mysteriously missing and there were no traces of remnants , no black box records, radar signals and so on so forth. The expert who seemed to be having more knowledge than me convinced me that an alien abducted every one who boarded the plane. You may laugh if I say that I had weird dreams the day I read this piece. The hopeless optimist in me thought that every one must be safe. They would have been transported to some no man's land via a portal or whatever magical way but I hoped and prayed that one fine day they may just come back as miraculously as they vanished!

The impact of that article was still ruling my mind when I read Mark L Berry's (an ex pilot) blog post- High Alert until MH370 is found. He gave a new angle to the mystery by saying that it for sure would have been a hijack + terrorism . The way WTC was destroyed this also is a different way of killing people, he wrote in his article. This article literally made me jittery for one whole night. I couldn't rule out even this possibility! He made it sound so convincing again. He mentioned his Fiancee in the article who died in TWA flight 800 air crash but he was sure that MH 370 is hijacked by terrorists. He described the whole scenario so effectively that I imagined it. Passengers would have been asphyxiated. After reading that line , I could only close my eyes and pray !

Again I bumped in to this article which described all the top 10 theories about MH370 starting from fire, mechanical failure to hijack, theft , terrorism and many more. I was ready to pick any possibility where the passengers would be sound and safe but contradicting my thoughts one more news came to light on 20th march that debris was found in south Indian ocean which resembled MH370. Even though they were not sure, the Australian rescue operation team stated that there are some traces of the missing flight in the ocean! The search operation is still on and it is quite challenging for them too to keep the search on with bad weather which is an obstacle! I also read one more article which made me believe that an electric fire would for sure have occurred that fateful night in MH370- Read this startingly simple theory which explains what would have happened on that horrifying night after the departure!

The debris is the only hazy clue for this aviation mystery which was found two weeks after the flight disappeared on 8th March 2014 and it was almost concluded that the flight crashed in to the Indian ocean!

Whatever may be the assumptions this news is just haunting my mind. I am not able to imagine the trauma the passengers would have faced when they knew there is no chance to get out of this alive! What thought would have crossed their minds that last second? Too many thoughts are buzzing in my head right now.

My heart goes for their families and relatives. More than the incident and the most traumatic death the hope wall below brought tears in my eyes! There were total 239 passengers in which most of them were Chinese and there were few Indians too. My prayers are with their families, friends and well wishers. May God give them the strength and power to face this trauma. Funnily we pray and ask God to give us every thing but whenever there is a demise I feel it is God himself in disguise. We always fail and in power he rises.

Image source : here

I got the below pic as a fwd and was not sure whether to believe it or not. If it is true it really is ironical :(

Sorry for starting the epic AtoZ Challenge with a sad topic but I just had to talk about it today. Welcome you all to the challenge. Hope we all finish this successfully !

This is my 1st post for "A to Z blogging Challenge 2014" ! Welcome you all to the party of A to Z. For people who are not aware of this, I will blog for 26 days in April excluding sundays. An alphabet a day will keep me busy till May! I hope I will last till the last. Good luck to all of you :)

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"B" for "Bloggers' meet- My very first"

April 1, 2014, 5:30 pm

≫ Next: "C" for "Corporate Cartoons"

≪ Previous: A for "Aliens" and "Aeroplane mystery"

I was very skeptical before going to the meet. I know all of them but only in the virtual world. Other than Nandana who blogs at cheerful tornado I never met anyone else. Roshni (IndianAmericanMom) came to India and wanted to meet all of us during her shortest stint in Hyderabad. As every one had their prior plans, only a weekday evening was the best timing for all of us! Shail Mohan who blogs at Shail's nest luckily came to Hyderabad around the same time and on one fine evening we all planned to meet at a cafe- Beyond coffee in Jubilee hills- Hyderabad . Bhavana (theEarthWoman), Nandana and Arpna-a new girl in blogosphere, atleast to me (http://04arpna.blogspot.in/ ) happily joined! I never went to any bloggers' meet other than the one organised by Indiblogger.in in Bangalore and I didn't enjoy it much. I was all the while searching for some known face or a group to mingle with. I did make new friends but that meet was my first and last as I didn't feel like going to any "BIG" meets after that. I felt like a small fish in the sea of whales and sharks then but this time it was about meeting blogger turned friends and I was pretty excited.

Most of us met in the group indibloggeshwaris and bonded during the A to Z challenge- 2013. We were talking our ears out before we realized it. Like Shail said after the meet on her FB album, friends do come in all sizes , shapes , ages and regions! I too realised that to bond and speak your heart out you need not be of same age or study together or speak often. We all traveled back to our school/ college days. The way we giggled endlessly goes to prove this :D We spoke anything and everything other than blog , bloggers and blogging. We all forgot our life inside or outside the blog for those few hours and enjoyed every second we spent together. I eagerly listened to Bhavana's travel experiences, Roshni's and Shail's anecdotes and it was great meeting Nandana after so long. We all posed to Shail's and Bhavana's amazing cameras and I managed clicking some good ones too with my phone!

As our spirits our rising high we got our order which just multiplied the smiles. The chicken manchuria was a hit as our Roshni hearted it. She wanted to taste some more chicken manchuria and said "Chicken Manchuria" please when the waiter asked for desserts ;) Food was not great but we anyway found our conversations more interesting than the food. After food came the turn of goodie bags ! Shail bought the special kerala chips for all of us. I got my favorite Banana chips. Roshni bought a cute purse which had Ferrero Rocher chocolates, a lovely nailpolish and moisturiser. I just loved her assemblage! I gifted a pair of ear rings to each of them and I was so glad the pair I planned for each matched with their dresses (more or less). I was glad they loved them!

We sat for a long time. The cafe was sparsely populated and it gave us a chance to click to our hearts' content. Below is the collage which gives the glimpse of that day! We were happy as the cafe was not crowded or noisy ! After tasty chicken manchuria, taste less vanilla pudding , some veg pizza and some other items from the menu which were not great, we idled , chatted and clicked some more. We didn't want to but we had to disperse. Heart longed for more but it was getting late in the night and we just had to bade bye to each other :-( ! We hugged and promised to each other that we should plan this often! Now , I am not sure when we will meet again but these moments will be cherished by me forever. Roshni left for US and every one got busy with their lives. If life throws such an opportunity again I am sure I would love to take it. In April we have one more blogger meet. I am hoping I won't face any obstacles then!

The Blogger-Friends meet (No pic courtesy as I am not sure who clicked whom;) )

Meeting the bloggers turned friends was truly exciting! I will cherish the day *12-12-13* and the moments. We all surely turned 16 again ;) . ♥ u guys! It feels so good to write in this challenge about people whom I met during "A to Z blogging Challenge - 2013"

This is the 2nd post for "A to Z blogging Challenge 2014" !

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"C" for "Corporate Cartoons"

April 2, 2014, 5:30 pm

≫ Next: "D" for "Despicable me"

≪ Previous: "B" for "Bloggers' meet- My very first"

I love doodling. I love making cartoons using paint brush or any other tool or website and toondoo.com is an awesome website which helped me a lot in blogging. Some times things which we fail to explain in words can easily be displayed in the form of a cartoon. If we cannot reflect few expressions using words or exclamations(!) we can definitely take the help of illustrations or cartoons.

The below cartoon shows various kinds of corporate cartoons/ flirts. They are incorrigible , unbeatable and unrepairable flirts. Some are harmless where as some cross their limits which is irritating.

Below are few categories of flirts

1.) Always on a look out for a hot lady : A new joiner, new team mate, receptionist so on so forth. They are always on a look out for a pretty woman! They will have their eyes , ears and god knows what other senses get active when ever they spot a hot lady. They can't resist ogling and discussing her and sometimes they give ratings to her too - 7/ 10 , 10/ 10 ....!

2.) Shaking hand unnecessarily : I also faced this. It is very easy to demarcate between people who shake hands as a polite gesture and who just hold hands just for the heck of it. There is a difference in the "touch" so the battalion of men need not start a war of words by saying that they are scared to be even polite these days. Of course men face such scenarios too where every polite gesture is considered as flirtatious by few women who think importantly about themselves :)

3.) Saving the damsels in distress : They will push their limits to help the lady. They may have to burn the midnight oil or skip some thing important to gain few brownies and needless to say many women take advantage of these heroes!

4.)Too friendly.. too Intrusive: You shoo them away but they will be behind you. You turn around and change your direction, if you spot them but they will always be on their toes and cling like a parasite on your back. This is the toughest category of men to whom you need to give a blunt response at times to keep them at the bay.

Hope you enjoyed this cartoon :) This is not a post to start Men Vs women fight. This is just to share some laughs. I know there are many women who take advantage of poor flirts and there are many other categories of flirts too. It needs a different blog post. Will meet with some other toon doo doodle before the challenge ends. I have made some cartoons which depict a typical corporate boss - Mr. Half Baked Head- Read my posts with label Half Baked Head Doodles if interested!

Thanks for your readership and support :) This is my 3rd post for "A to Z blogging Challenge 2014"

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"D" for "Despicable me"

April 3, 2014, 11:30 am

≫ Next: "E" for "Excitements"

≪ Previous: "C" for "Corporate Cartoons"

I became a bigger fan of animated movies after my husband started working with Dreamworks. I got a chance to watch many animated movies and many a times for free. I have been to premiere shows and thoroughly enjoyed every time I go watch one. I download and watch them and I even watch when ever they are relayed on TV.

On one sick day when I applied leave due to some severe wrist pain I was getting bored and I downloaded Despicable me and Despicable me 2. By the way these movies are not made by Dreamworks :) Illumination Entertainment and Universal Pictures made these movies! I was strictly warned by Doc to not use the keyboard for atleast two days (I have carpel tunnel syndrome. Now it is an open question as to how I will survive A to Z with out getting shooting pain in my thumb and index finger :-( !). I realised the best way to pass time is by watching a good movie.

I heard a lot about these movies and with out any delay downloaded them and I immensely loved them. The beauty of animation movies is in the subtle moral hidden in the movie, the crystal clear emotions expressed by the characters which are rarely seen in a normal movie , the overflowing cuteness which steals every one's hearts, the brilliance of camera and the fact that these can be watched by anyone and every one. This post describes what all I loved about this movie. This is not exactly a review but highlights my favorite things from the movie

The story line and Characters

Gru, a ferocious looking villain on the block who deserves the song and the title-Despicable me. He is detestable and hateful and is a thief who has a secret army of the yellow globular beings called Minions in basement who fulfill all his wishes which are commands to them. He has a Scientist working in his lab who implements all his innovative ideas, few useful , few useless and few senseless.Vector, another young talented thief beats Gru by stealing pyramids and Gru decides he would steal moon with the help of a rocket and shrink ray. Gru uses three little girls from Orphanage- Margo, Edith and Agnes as baits to steal the stolen shrink ray from Vector!

Gru's encounters with Vector and the escapade are all well executed. Humor is intact and as it is an animated movie everything is possible from stealing a pyramid to shrinking the moon :) The story becomes interesting and adorable once the 3 girls enter our stubborn and emotion-less Gru's life. Even if he is not actually pleasant with them, they like him and make him like them. I just loved the way they bond with each other. Agnes is the cutest of all. I love it when she holds a white unicorn stuffed toy and shouts - "This is so fluffy. I will die.":). Edith's attitude and Margo's calm are impressive as well. Minions need a special mention here. These cute characters speak in an accent which will make you giggle and laugh. They empathize with each other, tease each other and obey their master's commands. They are CUTE! Below is a glimpse of the minions

Cute Agnes- Image source- here

The minions. Image source : here

The plot is not extremely adventurous or super-heroic but the girls , Gru , minions and all other characters and the dialogues make it an interesting watch. You will love the bed time story which Gru narrates in the end where he represents himself as an Unicorn and all the three girls as kittens :) In Despicable me 2 the tables get turned and our Gru becomes a "Good" man and acts as a spy for an investigation bureau! Will not discuss more and make this a long post ;) Do watch the movies and I am sure you will love them. If you already watched, I am sure you would have liked most of the aspects in the movie!

Three cheers to the movie makers- Directors- Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud , Producers- Chris Meledandri ,Janet Healy and the entire cast and crew. 90% credit goes to those who lent their voices to the characters. The list is like below!

The below details are picked from IMDB.

Steve Carell	...	Gru (voice) --- I love Steve Carell
Jason Segel	...	Vector (voice)--- Oh ! I love him too. Our very own Marshall from HIMYM
Russell Brand	...	Dr. Nefario (voice)

Kristen Wiig	...	Miss Hattie (voice)
Miranda Cosgrove	...	Margo (voice)
Dana Gaier	...	Edith (voice)
Elsie Fisher	...	Agnes (voice) --- She is the cutest

Last but not the least Pharrell William's HAPPY song is an icing on the cake. I love love love this song. Do watch the movie to get happy :) I will write about some other movies during the challenge, when I feel like!

Few Blogs I love and the "C" posts You must see are Dagny sol's Compassion (Much needed for all of us) Cynthia's Cinema ( I never saw a better way to explain CINEMA) Hrishikesh's Canara Coffee (he daily teases your taste buds) Shail Mohan's Count Bawa (A sweet note to a friend :) ) This is my 4th post for "A to Z blogging Challenge 2014"

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"E" for "Excitements"

April 4, 2014, 5:30 pm

≫ Next: "Fir Tree at Kissanpur"

≪ Previous: "D" for "Despicable me"

The excitement at times flows out of the brim,

when it becomes magnanimous it is hard to trim.

A baby screams loud looking at her granny after long.

It sleeps happily when mom sings a sweet lullaby song!

The excitement on the first day of the school.

The same revival of memory in later days is so cool.

The first time crush which makes everything more beautiful,

The drowned excitement when you realize you are just a fool! :-(

The excitement when you enter the age of thir-teen.

A pimple on your cheek and the feelings unseen.

The muscled boy next door also seems like a puzzle to solve.

Around the dream boy and Mr. Right all your imaginations revolve!

The excitement when you plan the first date out.

The over excitement when you hide so as not to be spotted.

You are extra cautious when you get dressed and make plans.

You don’t sleep the whole night as you are in a kind of trance!

The excitement when you see her daily in the lift.

The overwhelm in the stomach creates a rift.

The neatly framed words die before they touch the lips.

For a single glance of her per day.You take too many trips!

The excitement when you get what you desire the most.

The excitement when you decide you will write a blog post.

The excitement when you succeed and your friends toast.

The excitement when your kid excels and you happily boast!


Image source : here Nerd Flanders is a fictional character in the famous TV sitcom- Simpsons

Aah the excitements, they make us feel alive!

They make us some times do a jive.

Excitements fill the spice in the mundane life.

Small or big, these excitements make us forget our day to day strife!

This random poem is my 5th post for "A to Z blogging Challenge 2014"

Some D posts which deserve a read are :

Prathima's Death- When Joe Black comes calling - I pondered a lot

Prudhvi Latha's beautiful sunset clicks - Dusk

Take a look at Jean's amazing Fictionary :) :) - I am her new fan!

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"Fir Tree at Kissanpur"

April 6, 2014, 11:30 am

≫ Next: "G" for "Gangs of Cribb-a-Nagar"

≪ Previous: "E" for "Excitements"

Rimmi, Susan, Lisa, John, Prem and Sachin finished their annual examinations and wanted to have some fun. They all stay in the same gated community and study in the same school. Rimmi is the eldest of all who just finished her Xth standard (SSC) exams. Every one calls her didi. Susan finished her 5th standard. Lisa , John and Prem finished their 6th where as Sachin is Rimmi's class mate. On a hot sultry April afternoon they were lazing around at Rimmi's place. Some were doodling , some were reading, some were watching IPL. Then out of the blue Lisa shouted, "Why don't we all go to Kissanpur next week? I heard the place is awesome with too many birds and too much greenery.I am sure we will have loads of fun there. There is an amusement park too!"

Prem: "But will mom dad allow us to go there all by ourselves?"

Rimmi: "Come on! You are not a baby boy! Ofcourse they will allow."

Susan: "My mom for sure will not allow. Remember how my sister fell off a tree last time we went to picnic?"

John: "No. Please persuade them Susan. It will be too much fun. You know Kissanpur has many exotic plants and birds. We will have a grand time there."

Sachin: "Ya and I will get my new Canon too. We will post some amazing clicks on FB and make every one jealous."

Rimmi, Lisa and Prem in chorus: "Yay. That sounds like a plan."

Susan: "I don't know if I can join."

Rimmi: "Why do you worry? Leave it to us. We will convince your mama papa." With that assurance Susan smiled broad. It took at least 2 days to convince all their parents. With out any delay they all backpacked and carried all the essentials for a day long picnic at Kissanpur. It was a sweltering hot day and they carried cold drinks, Tangs, Lemon soda and many things to munch on the way.

Kids being welcomed at Kissanpur

As soon as they entered Kissanpur, they all were awed. The lush green ambiance and the rare birds, plants and fruits were just perfect. It was like they were sitting in mother nature's lap. The food in the outlets was so fresh and green. There were no artificial flavors or colors. The trees and the cool shade excited them. In the city and the hustle bustle they never get a chance to take a whiff of fresh air but in Kissanpur the experience was enthralling. They totally forgot the food they got from home and relished the natural fresh food at Kissanpur and clicked hundreds of pics. They explored various fields and the plantations there. It was a 200 acre land. Part of it is used for farming , part of it for kids' amusement with all the eateries and rides but there was a third far flunged part which was fenced and no one was being allowed inside. Rimmi went to one of the organizers and spoke.

"Hey. Why is that area barricaded? Are we not allowed to go in there?"

The organiser: "Nope. That area doesn't belong to Kissanpur and it definitely is not for kids. Err.. I mean that area is under development and entry is strictly prohibited. Please don't go there." Saying so the organiser left and he got busy with other duties.

John spoke, "Let's go and see what is in there. We may click something which no one clicked."

Susan: "Why to take risk John : ( ?"

Rimmi , Lisa and Prem: "Hey. It is ok. It is just under development . It is not haunted." Saying so they laughed loud which scared the shit out of Susan.

Susan: "I don't know. I am scared."

Sachin: " Don't worry Susie. We will just go, click one or two pics and come back."

They carefully crossed the fence and walked and walked and found nothing. The land was mostly barren and trees were life less. A factory just next to the land bellowed a siren now and then and the smoke which was coming out of factory chimneys made them breathless. Susan and Lisa both were hyperventilating as it was getting dark.

Susan : "I told you not to come. There is nothing here. Let us go back."

They were just about to leave when they heard a voice....

"Why are you leaving so soon? Explore the land little more." The voice was deep and threatening.

Susan jumped and got hold of John's shirt. Lisa gasped and every one stood shell shocked at the same spot.

They all looked around but no one was in vicinity other than a Fir tree which was almost leafless.

Lisa: "Rimmi didi, I am scared." Susan started crying.

Rimmi: "Hushhh. Don't cry Susie. Lisa , please keep quiet."

She continued, " Who is this ? Why are you not coming in open?"

"I am the Fir tree. My friends named me Florence. We breathe life as much as you do and sometimes we talk too if we want. The morons have been thinking this place is haunted." Fir tree replied in a stern voice.

Prem: "Is this some kind of a joke? Come on, show your self."

Fir tree: "Why is it so tough for you humans to believe that we are also living beings?"

John: "Err.. Is this some kind of game the Kissanpur team has set up, coz it is no longer funny dude. Please let us know." Susan was looking petrified by that time.

Fir tree : "This is not Kissanpur's land. Can you see the factory near by. It emits lot of smoke day long and the wastes from there have many harmful metals like chromium. Due to the extensive pollution I have shed all my leaves and so did many other plants around here. Before the factory was built, this area was also as green as the Kissanpur which is adjacent to this."

"So you mean you are actually speaking to us now. Right?" questioned Rimmi in disbelief trying to understand what ever the Fir tree spoke.

The Fir tree bent it's branches as if to signal that it actually is speaking.

Susan and Lisa shrieked. Rimmi silenced them and continued , "So why are you talking to us now. I mean why did you choose us?"

Fir: "I saw that you guys were enjoying nature and appreciating mother nature's beauty. I felt you can save us. Meet my friend sunflower. His name is sunny."

Sunny : "Ya. Hi guys." Sunflower shouted in enthusiasm which startled every one.

"Don't be scared of us. We have started speaking in human language only to scare the people who want to encroach this land. If we don't act we all will be killed." Continued Sunny.

The kids conversing with Florence the fir, sunny the sunflower and other plants at Kissanpur

By now Susan was hiding behind Lisa. She was watching around her with wide eyes. Rimmi was the only one who seemed a bit calm. John and Prem gained composure and spoke to Florence.

John: "But how is this act going to help you?"

At this Sunny laughed loud and even Florence chuckled.

"You just spoke to the Kissanpur's organiser right? Everyone including him believe that this place is haunted. They think it is due to the burial ground near by and they are scared of occupying this area." replied Sunny with a sunny smile spreading across its petals.

All other trees also started speaking.

Tree 1: "Only this act could save the rest of us."

Tree 2: " I was a happy tree too but due to the polluted water, air and the harmful wastage from the factory my health is also deteriorating."

Every one was silent for a minute. Sachin spoke first. "But how can we help you? How can we stop the encroachment? "

Florence: "You can report to authorities and also spread the word in your school. Post this issue on social networks. Talk to your dad who works in the department of Environmental sciences and help us. Social media is a big thing these days. We all know that. When I was just a seed I was bought from a shop which has a facebook page too. You people can generate the uproar and help us."

" OK. We will see what we can do but do continue the talking till the issue gets resolved. Now we have to leave as it is getting dark. We will come back soon." Rimmi promised with a smile.

"Oh. Ya. We can do the talking. Humans are most scared by humans. It is not tough imitating them. I am hoping you passionate kids can bring a good change soon." Replied Florence in a hopeful tonne.

Rimmi nodded. Every one left the place after waving bye to the trees!

They all came back home with a sense of purpose in their minds. They spoke to their dad and reported to the concerned authorities and did what ever they can do to resolve the issue. They dedicated their summer holidays totally to this. Finally by the end of May, the concerned people responded and the land encroachment was cancelled. Also a law was passed according to which the polluted water and garbage should be diverted and for the good health of the plants a dedicated team would work in that area, for regular gardening and watering of plants and much more.

Rimmi and the team jumped in joy. Just before the school reopened they all went to Kissanpur again to say "hi" to their old friends. Now the barricades were removed and work was in progress in that area.

Florence conveyed thanks and Sunny winked at them when no one was watching. A mango tree offered the best of the mangoes to the kids' clan and a Neem tree swayed little more to give the coolest shade to them. It for sure felt that life was back in Kissanpur and every plant became their new friend which proved that if you love nature, nature will love you back! After few months even that land became a part of Kissanpur and was looked after with extra care and the owner of Kissanpur gifted the kids and their families some rich ripe juicy tomatoes and awarded them with tickets to Kerala - God's own country. Every one was happy with the new extension of Kissanpur but the happiest of all were the trees of Kissanpur now full of life.

I end this post with a wonderful quote.

Image source: here

This fictional post about "Florence the Fir tree" is written for Indiblogger's Nature's Friends Contest. Do visit Kissanpur's page when you are here.

PS: I made the cartoons with the help of a website toondoo.com but ideas are my own

I am also linking this to "A to Z blogging Challenge 2014" . This is my 6th post for the letter "F"

I am part of a group for A to Z challenge which makes this activity more interesting.

Some "E" posts worth reading:

Vinay's interesting story "E3"

Anuradha's English ease a funny language. (From Pjs to funny stories her posts are unique)

Want to improve your vocab and share few smiles ? Do check out Roshni's Weird words which she is using to describe her family.

Thanks for your love and support :) Meet you tomorrow with "G!"

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"G" for "Gangs of Cribb-a-Nagar"

April 7, 2014, 5:30 pm

≫ Next: "H" howls "Horror"

≪ Previous: "Fir Tree at Kissanpur"

Only few excel in the art of cribbing. Below are few scenarios from a place called Cribb-a-Nagar where people do nothing but crib! Take a sneak peek in to the "Gangs of Cribb-a-Nagar"

Scene 1 ( Some one who desperately projects his/her hard work)

XYZ : “ Hey Yaar! You came so early today . Have lot of work ?”

Me: “No ! Just that it is easy to catch first bus. It is traffic free."

XYZ: “What yaaar? You have no work and still you come so early . Enjoy life na?"

Me (in mind) : "Why does he have to bother about my work or my timings!?”

I manage a weird smile.

XYZ: “ I have tons of work! My PM has involved me in 2 3 extra projects also. Seriously yaar, You need to learn how to deny work too.”

Me: “ Why are you not denying then?”

XYZ: “ He will raise it during my performance appraisal?”

Me : “ Then why are you cribbing with me ?”

XYZ: “ What ! I am just sharing what I am feeling!"

Me : “ See XYZ. If you are happy with your work and you are doing it for some results, be happy. Don’t cry checking out other's life style. I may have to avoid you every time I see you." I wanted to tell this but what I actually told is

Me: “ Oh! So sad. Why of all you have to suffer? You really have got lot of bad luck haunting you."

XYZ : “----------“ !

I finally felt what I actually told was a better answer :-)!

Scene 2 (Some one please pull the chain of their rant train!)

PQR: “ you seem so fresh even in the evening”

Me: “ &#*@(!) ”

PQR: “ At least some body is happy on the floor unlike many others!”

Me:“ @)(#@(@# (Some choicest swear words in my mind)”

PQR : “Have you seen Raj? He has been hitting gym and got in to a good shape. This god damn project doesn’t give me time at all.”

Me : …………….

PQR : “Have you watched the Queen movie? “

Me : “ Yep.”

PQR: “I am just so busy that I don’t get time to go to even a movie”

Me : “ hmm.”

PQR: “ You even bought I phone. I hardly have any savings.”

Me : “……….”

PQR: “ How do you manage to buy all trendy clothes with this salary? I just cant save much."

Me(eying his Armani shirt): “…………”

PQR: “ You even got those new Ray-ban sun glasses . Poor people like us cant afford it.”

Me: ……………..

PQR : “ Don’t you feel bad on salary days. It is hardly any thing. It doesn’t last for even 15days in my case.”

The threshold limit of my tolerance crossed.

Me : “ What do you do? Go to Casanova and gamble with all the money?”

PQR: “ No.I just live life king size.”

Me: “Why don’t you go in to politics? There you can earn and eat even with out working.”

PQR : "hehe. Who will vote for me?"

Me : “ Stop cribbing and start planning. May be some half baked heads will always be ready to vote!? And moreover if you leave this place at least you will be out of misery and even we will be."

PQR : ……………..

Me : *feeling good*

Scene 3 (This is the killer of all)

AssB(Attention Seeking Syndrome effected beauty) : " God you look so bright and different. What have you been doing?"

Me: "Just gym and at times parlor :P"

AssB: "How do you manage to go to gym so regularly? I don’t get time."

Me: "I just dig it out somehow. But you told you are not in need of gym, some time back?"

AssB: "Just to be fit dear. What if all boys follow you? hehehhe."

Then she fluttered her heavily shadowed eye lashes and looked back at the mirror pursing her lips to uniformly spread the lipstick she just applied and continued, " Do you have any difference after gymming?"

Me: "Well.I lost a kg or two but I never gained weight."

AssB: "But you didn’t lose much. I see no difference. You are just like you were when I saw you before joining gym."

Me (feeling energy drained) : "Well, I feel good when ever I do gym. So I don’t mind."

AssB: "You know what you need to diet a lot . This way you are not gonna lose."

Me: "Thanks for the advise!"

AssB: "Did you see Rajitha? She went to nature cure and she became half after that. They give a planned diet there it seems."

Me: "Did you see her 6months after becoming half?"

AssB: "Nope. Why?"

Me: "You should see her . Her shape is similar to yours and this time she said, she will start coming to gym."

AssB : ………..

So, some times we are surrounded by constant cribbers and grouches. At times when it goes beyond limits behaving with them just like they behave with us leaves them speechless. I also ranted just yesterday but when ever I come across the A-one cribbers the only good outcome is my rants subside and they ultimately die!

This is my 7th post for letter "G" - "A to Z blogging Challenge 2014" .

Few "Fine" F posts :) - Give them a read

Ghata says how forgetting and forgiving is tough.

Karan Shah's False Impressions- Perfect Illusions.

Arpita takes you down the memory lane with her St.Thomas School Chronicles.

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"H" howls "Horror"

April 8, 2014, 11:30 am

≫ Next: "I" for "Id(ea)-iotic poem "

≪ Previous: "G" for "Gangs of Cribb-a-Nagar"

Do you piss in your pants when you watch a horror movie ? Are you scared to death when you hear some one narrate a real spooky experience? Does the thought of a ghost make you jittery? Do you believe in paranormal or supernatural stuff? If you ask me my answer is YES to all of these.

I feel if positive and negative things happen, good and bad happen, peace and war happen, life and death happen, may be God and Satan or good and evil also happen. I also shit in my pants while watching horror movies but I thoroughly enjoy them may be due to the thrill and the spooky aura they create around me. There are times when I was sleep deprived for 2-3nights in a row after watching a horror movie! This recently happened after watching the Conjuring. Yes, some people found the movie funny but I have bitten my nails and I have dug my nails in to my husband's arms too. Added to that was a power cut in my area through out the night which was like an unwanted special effect after watching the movie :( . The mere fact that it is a true experience made me an insomniac for few days. In the movie (which happened in realit) a couple who are real life demonologists save a family from the wrath of demons. The whole concept creates a dull gloomy atmosphere around you. You won't be able to watch atleast 2-3 scenes without closing your eyes. Sound effects do multiply the spook quotient. All in all the movie gave me chills and the doll Annabelle haunted me in my dreams for few days. I was scared even during the day time when my husband left to office and I had to be alone at home.

Annabelle from The Conjuring

This was not the first time I was scared but this was definitely the most memorable horror movie experience in the recent past.and when I hear "real" life experiences the "reel" life imaginations just add to my fear.

Last year I had a conversation with a friend(an elderly man) who bought a flat in a posh area (where usually cine stars live) in the city. I am not disclosing the area or the apartment name as I was requested not to. I am changing the names too as I don't feel like revealing the actual names. So, he bought that beautiful flat and started living alone. Sometimes his kids do visit him.

That apartment is sparsely populated. Most of them have bought the flats and have flown abroad. So more than 50% of the flats are unoccupied. An old couple lives in the flat below to his and some other family lives in the same wing. This guy usually comes back late in the night as he is a party animal. On one fine night when he was sleeping he heard noises in the hall. Noises as in not some sounds you hear in the calm of the night. They are crystal clear voices as if a group is sitting and talking. "It was tough to decode the speech but I definitely could hear something," he told me.

That definitely made me thoughtful. I said what anyone who hears it says,"You would have imagined them. ""It is just your fear doing tricks.""It is all illusion." So on so forth. Strangely that guy was not as scared as I was . He said he lived in Havelis (forts) and experienced much worse. He gave many other details which if I write this post will become huge!

So coming back to the story he said in the chatting conversation we had that he is ignoring those voices. He was invisible for 15 days. After that when I pinged he said the house is filled with negativity and that something is wrong as there was too much of personal strife and fights with in the family. I asked him will he be able to vacate. He said he is just trying to push his limits and see if things may change. After that for 20 days or so, again a no show. He finally showed up and this time he seemed really pissed. He said some one saw a hooded figure just near his door and his car in the early morning and he has not seen anything so far. He also said that one fine day when he was outside, his maid was working at home. He usually gives keys to her as he trusts her. She finishes work and leaves. While she was working she heard some one knocking the door in this guy's tone calling out her name. She answered the door but no one was there. This happened twice or thrice and she could hear loud laughter and giggles. She left everything and fled to her home. He told me that he is thinking of selling the flat. I requested him to do it asap. Needless to say I was sleepless that night. I bugged my hubby with questions- Do ghosts exists ? Are there demons around us whom we can't see?

After 10 days he was again online. He said he spoke to the owner and the dealer and he will be selling the flat. I asked him, if some thing happened after that ? He said, "You will be scared if I say everything."

I like an idiot insisted, " Please say what happened?"

He: "One evening my son came to visit me. I suddenly started coughing. Bouts of cough. I couldn't resist and went to the nearest wash basin and I spluttered blood. It was not stopping. My son got scared. Packed his stuff. He shouted while leaving, "Please come out of the house pa. I will be in basement. Please come out." and he left.

I gasped and was reading it raptly. Honestly I was scared to even talk to him that second :( .

He went to doc but all the reports were clear and there was no abnormality but when he came back home, the coughing started again and it was uncontrollable. After a day or two he totally vacated the place and sold it at loss. He is now in another place with no spooky experiences as of now. I haven't spoken much after that but the thought doesn't wade off. He would not have lied. Even if I think he would have imagined the voices, what about the blood ? I don't want to analyze the facts and fiction here but all I can say is I sometimes feel there for sure is some unseen aura around us.

Even after hearing many such real life stories, I did not stop my self from watching horror movies. Making a horror movie and actually scaring people is really challenging. Some unforgettable scary movies I watched are- "Paranormal activity" (All parts), "The Orphanage", "The Others,""The Grudge","The Exorcist" and many other Indian movies (Telugu and Hindi- Raat , Avunu, Pizza are few among them).

There are few more in my to watch list. Two movies from that list are ---- "Insidious,"& "Blair witch project,". I also want to read the novel- "The shining"by Stephen King and watch the movie too.

Empty rooms , stair cases, huge villas and bungalows, empty corridors or roads and illusions caused due to light or fog scare me some times.What about you ?

Image source : here

Do you believe in Supernatural stuff?
Have you ever experienced or heard any thing? Please do share your experiences :)

Recently the below story felt so real that I was watching behind me while reading it. It is due to the fact that it will strike a chord due to the technology (whatsapp) linkage :)
http://www.storiesforyourscreen.com/annie96-is-typing/

This is my 8th post for letter "H" - "A to Z blogging Challenge 2014" .

Many "G" posts are "Good" but few which you may want to read are :

Prathima's Grandparents' post helped me revive memories.

Cynthia highlights an important topic- Garbage speaks

A beautiful tribute to Gulzar- By Janaki Nagaraj

Another series of college chronicles by RajaRupaGupta- G gobbles Grand Feast

Lastly don't think much about this post. Stay positive and happy which will shoo away the negative vibes :)

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"I" for "Id(ea)-iotic poem "

April 9, 2014, 11:30 am

≫ Next: "J" for 'J.K.Rowling"

≪ Previous: "H" howls "Horror"

I am sitting at my office desk and waiting for some inspiration to kick in.

I feel like throwing the numerous documents which need to be reviewed in the dust bin.

Doing time pass during the working hours is an unforgivable sin.

A person doing some thing similar near by feels like a kin!

The A to Z challenge is making me restless and sleepless.

The boss and the work are being careless and relentless.

If I put forward my concerns of a blogging challenge will I sound reckless?

If I keep on blogging with joy will the colleagues around me get jealous?

Still no luck , no light and no brightening idea in my head.

Looks like I need to quit being creative and work only to earn bread.

The man in the adjacent cubicle who is eyeing me from an hour is my dread.

Thank God it is 5 P.M. in the evening and he has already fled!

As I sit and ponder as to what I should write with the letter "I",

many words hit me randomly and my brain is heated up to be a fry.

To avoid the confusion I go to the Ato Zers and shout for help and cry.

They instantly gave a bunch of words and "ideas" asking me to try!

From "I" to ice-cream to inspiration to India to idea to Imran,

I was told,”You just need to think, anything and everything can be written."

I thought of writing about my husband Imran but it felt silly.

I thought of ice-cream, went to food court to have one and just dilly dally!

I lost all my hopes and felt like just forgetting the letter I.

Then suddenly an idea made me smile and there was a sparkle in my eye.

I thought of writing my plight, my insight and the desire to not lose the fight.

Hence wrote this id(ea)otic poem which may actually sound idiotic and not right! :)

After writing this I was just googling and found the below poem ;)

Image source : here

Thanks to the supportive group A to Zers. In their absence I would have quit this challenge :)

Some happening "H" Posts

Lizzie's interesting Heart to Heart convo

Dee coded's Happiness

Sfurti Sinha's interesting Haikus- Yesterday it was on "Heart"

This is my 9th post for "A to Z blogging Challenge 2014"

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"J" for 'J.K.Rowling"

April 10, 2014, 5:30 pm

≫ Next: "K" for "KFC" - Kentucky Fried Chicken

≪ Previous: "I" for "Id(ea)-iotic poem "

J.K.Rowling- If you haven't heard her name you sure must be a Rip van winkle and just woke up from your slumber after some 20-30 years. For me she is a magician who changed my life! I love JKR so much that some times I feel "R" comes after J and K in English alphabets. Now we all know that J.K.Rowling whose actual name is "Joanne Rowling" is the author of Harry Potter fantasy series. People who never read the books some times ask me," How can one possibly change a life by writing childrens' books ? " What they don't understand is, the Harry potter series are not just children's books. They fascinate kids , adults and oldies equally if you "actually" open and read them. It amuses me how people compare the books with LOTR and say that she anyway has plagiarized and some even conclude that people who like Harry potter are kiddish and immature. It is OK to not read the books and not like them but people who ridicule the book lovers- I seriously pity them as they are missing "magic" in their life.

Image source: here

Below are few reasons why I love her persona and her books:

YES the books are magical. They take you to a world from where you don't feel like coming back. The world is unreal, yet feels so real!!!

Even if every thing is magical and charismatic, in every book it is highlighted that nothing is more important than love , friendship , wits and hard-work. Even "MAGIC" needs to be earned.

The unforgettable characters: How can one forget Harry's round spectacles which are repaired by Hermione who uses the charm "reparo" during their first ride to Hogwarts? How can any one forget the burly image of Hagrid? the malicious look of Malfoy ? the puppy face of Ron? the strange creatures which almost feel real - Buck Beak the Hippogriff, Fluffy the three headed dog and the serene yet penetrating look our DumbleDore has. It will easily take 100 posts if I have to discuss each character separately. May be we can even do a challenge next year - 26 unforgettable Harrypotter characters, starting from A to Z.

The trio and their strong bond of friendship: You desperately want to be one of them or at-least a part of their group. It is not an exaggeration if I say that these books helped me solve many ego issues and I learnt how to deal with broken friendships/ relationships.

The unconditional love: My most favorite character is Snape and his love for Lilly Potter always makes me fall for him!

The adventures encountered by the trio and the sheer fact that the story revolves around the school.
Uniqueness of each character: Every character has a zing attached to it. If Ron is an expert chess player, Harry is good with Patronus. Hermione is an ingenious witch. Neville shows excellence in herbology. Sirius black's valor is infectious (Oh! How much I LOVE HIM) . Voldemort's Nagini and powers are threatening. No character is unimportant. No page is unreadable and every book is worth a read on the day 1 it gets released.

Actually I can go on and on and on , on this but I shall stop here.All in all I love the books so much that I can never part with them.

HP fans camping at Trafalgar square for the Premiere

"Some" facts to show my perennial love on J.K.Rowling and the books:

I longed and I am still waiting eagerly to get a letter from Hogwarts.

I actually started looking doubtfully at owls, cats, toads and even snakes. Who knows from where they came?

I read and re-read all the parts and I have attended HP quizzes and even framed the questions for the same.

I created an album on FB with some 150 odd pics collected from all movies during the release of HP 7-2. Needless to say the fans were overwhelmed.

These books kept me sane during my not so happening college days. They were my best friends. A Harry potter book always used to be under my desk, on my bed, under the pillow or on my study chair. I don't regret the grades which were a bit low or the fact that I am not a topper.

The quotes and dialogues which are hard to forget - Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
- Quote by Albus Dumbledore

If someone takes the books and forgets to give them back to me, I revise all my charms and curses and in my mind, I use them.

I read the Deathly hallows during my first job days. It was my first month in office (in 2007) and fans around me did the same. I didn't sleep for 2-3 nights to finish the book. HP is my honest companion during all those days when I feel low or sleepless (even now).

If someone is a Harry Potter fan, he/she instantly becomes my friend :)

I cried when the movies ended. YES I DID. Only a HP fan will understand this. Even now in the months of July and November I keep looking at I MAX imagining the usual Harry potter poster which used to adorn the magnificent theater

These are just few facts. My love for HP has no boundaries actually. Thanks to J.K.Rowling who gifted me a great childhood and happening hostel days and who makes me always feel young. Harry potter to me is just not a book, it is an emotion, it is an expression, it is an integral part of my body, mind and soul!

Thanks to her as I developed interest towards writing/ blogging. If any day I write a book the first and foremost source of inspiration behind it will be J.K.R. This fact always fascinates me that - in 1990, while she was on a four-hour-delayed train trip from Manchester to London, the idea for a story of a young boy attending a school of wizardry "came fully formed" into her mind (source: wiki). Thanks to the delay as it gave birth to this golden idea. She faced many hardships and now her rags to riches story inspires many who want to be like her :)

Do check out her inspiring speech at 'The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination' .
Please check out the video here - TED TALK
I have bought Casual Vacancy and Cuckoo's calling (The NON HP books) . I am yet to read them.

Many rumors are being spread by fans that she is writing an 8th book. I just wish it happens for real. I read some where that ,"The 48-year-old author has agreed to a big-screen adaptation of her 2001 fictitious textbook Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them used by students at the exclusive Hogwarts School Of Witchcraft and Wizardry." - Hoping that it is not a fake news!

The emotional and nostalgic moment during the last premiere of Harrypotter :'(

HP Maniacs like me, please do share your thoughts and any other "real" news you came across about future movies!

This is my 9 3/4 err the 10th post for "A to Z blogging Challenge 2014" ;-)

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"K" for "KFC" - Kentucky Fried Chicken

April 11, 2014, 5:30 pm

≫ Next: "L" for "Luck-now- The Nawabi City"

≪ Previous: "J" for 'J.K.Rowling"

KFC or Kentucky Fried Chicken is a fast food restaurant chain which every one would be knowing. You can go to wiki and read - How it was started by Harland Sanders initially at Corbin, Kentucky. It is an interesting story like any success story. Mr. Sanders had to taste defeat before he could enjoy the finger licking good taste of the success :). KFC now has branches all over the world. The first KFC franchise was opened in Utah and later was started in India, China, Australia , Newzealand, Japan, UK, USA and many other countries. In 1964 Sanders sold it to John Y. Brown, Jr. and Jack C. Massey. From then it is passed between many hands and as of now it is owned by Tricon Global Restaurants, which later changed its name to Yum! Brands.

Image source : here

KFC's specialty is pressure fried chicken pieces, seasoned with Sanders' recipe of 11 herbs and spices. Constituents of the recipe is a trade secret. Along with this they have side dishes like salads, french fries, burgers, softdrinks , mojitos and many more food items which are modified and localized. In India you will get indianised KFC with Indian spices and tinge added to them.So this is just a historical overview of KFC.

This post is neither a tribute to KFC nor to Mr.Sanders( not that he doesn't deserve it) but I remembered KFC today as my husband lovvvvvvvvvvves KFC. He is mad about the place and he is the reason I started eating lot of junk and gained weight post wedding :-( ! Of course now I slightly watch what I eat :P. I some how don't like KFC cuisines. I see people rushing in queues to get hold of their fried chicken served in the unique KFC cardboard bucket. People actually lick their fingers , hence the caption - Finger lickin good just fits. How ever I never fancied the huge buckets of KFC with chicken wings or any other items. Then one fine day in Gurgaon after watching a movie we went to KFC as my husband saw one outlet in the same mall. I ordered chicken pop corn and they just melted in my mouth . They were crispy , crunchy and soft at the same time. The dips and sauces were delicious too and that particular day I too licked my fingers. I also love the mojitos they make but they are too pricy. Once we made a Virgin mojito at home which didn't even cost 1/4th of it. Nevertheless I love the mojitos and KFC Krushers. For Indians they have special meal combos which have spicy rice too and in both veg and non veg :P . I must admit , I loved their marketing technique. Just like they Indianize the food here I guess in every country their menu is tweaked!

I like their ads. They are creative , have emotional connect and also will make you hungry and unlike McDonalds and some other outlets the food showed in the ads is not different from the actual food you buy. In case of KFC the ad food and original food more or less look good and the same.

I like the way they treat the customers. I love the combos and their french fries.

I love to watch Imran when he eats them with extreme kiddish enthusiasm :)

The USP of KFC and the secret recipe is intriguing. People try and make similar versions but can never make the real KFC chicken. Many outlets have sprung up with similar names like ABC, AFC (yes I saw them in Hyderabad :P ) but failed in creating the same impact on eaters!

The success story is phenomenal and the way the branches multiplied is worth a loud applause. It is the second largest food chain in the world. Next to Mc Donalds I guess. In many streets of major cities and on highways you can find KFC.

KFC helps people during tours and travels. If there is nothing around which is edible , this comes to rescue.

Of-course being an Indian I like the way food is tweaked to suit people's palatability here.

My only problem is it is "Fried" chicken and even if it tastes goood it is toooo bad for health. So people please don't make it a habit to eat @ KFC.

Sparkling vanilla blue - A new krusher in KFC

KFC Rice bowl

Below is an inspiring quote by Mr.Sanders and one of their creative ads which I like! Eat good but stay fit and stay health people :)

Source : here

Love is forever ad- Shows how old KFC is and emotionally connects audience

This is my 11th post for "A to Z blogging Challenge 2014"

Happy Weekend everyone :)

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"L" for "Luck-now- The Nawabi City"

April 13, 2014, 5:30 pm

≫ Next: "M" for "Mehndi & Marriages"

≪ Previous: "K" for "KFC" - Kentucky Fried Chicken

I went to Lucknow in the year 2011 and was mesmerized. I finally got a chance to take one week leave from office and went to attend my brother's IIM convocation. The moment I stepped in to the city I realized the nawabi(royal) grandeur of the place. Every lane and every minar exuded poetic reminiscence. Needless to say I fell in love with the city.Other than the university campus of IIM the rest of the city felt like it belonged to past and we traveled in time machine to the era of nawabs and the time when Britishers ruled India. Today I just am posting few pics from my Lucknow trip and describe a bit about the places in the pics. The day we reached Lucknow every one was celebrating Holi and it was one heck of a sight but all the shops and hotels were closed, so most of the day got wasted. We only roamed around a bit exploring the empty roads of the city. People were very pleasant and hospitable & offered the Holi special gujjia and Lassi to us where ever we went.

First and foremost place I visited in Lucknow on the 2nd day of our trip is "Bara Imambara" . Bara means big and Imambara means shrine. It was built by Asaf-ud-Daula, Nawab of Lucknow, in 1784. It is a shrine built by Shia Muslims for the purpose of Azadari (source: Wiki). Azadari means mourning during muharram. The architecture is grand and mindblowing. The complex has a mosque , the bhulbhulayah (the labyrinth), and bowli, a step well with running water. I also went to Chota Imambara which is built by Muhammad Ali Shah, the third Nawab of Awadh in 1838. The building is beautiful with chandeliers which have unique designs. It looks gorgeous when lit up during the night. This place acts as Nawab's and his mother's mausoleum. It also acted as a congregation hall for the shia Muslims.

Bada Imambara from the top

Bada Imambara entrance

Chota Imambara

The above pics are clicked by me. I didn't get a chance to click chota imambara in the night. The below one is downloaded from wiki

Image source: here

Rumi Darwaza is one more beautiful structure near the Imambara. It is just a gate and is a fine architectural style of Awadh. We went to do some shopping and bought some beautiful Lucknow chikan work dresses and sarees. If you ever visit Lucknow don't come back with out buying the chikan work dresses. They are gorgeous, original and are sold at reasonable prices.

Lucknow chikan work. Image source: here

The Hussainabad Clock Tower (Ghanta Ghar) is an elegant sight in the Lucknow's historical area. The tower is well maintained and it is the tallest clock tower in India. The clock is still operational. It is one of the finest examples of British Architecture in India built in 1887. Click on the link to know more.

Clock tower pics clicked by me

British Residency in Lucknow is in the heart of the city. It served as the residence for the British Resident General who was a representative in the court of the Nawab Saadat Ali Khan II. You can only see the ruins now but each brick speaks volumes of history. The building also acted as a hiding place during wars and unexpected attacks. It was a refuge for British soldiers during the revolt of 1857. We roamed with out the help of a guide but still could read and understand about each building with the help of sign boards. Few buildings still have the bullet holes. The museum in the complex is also well maintained. Below is a glimpse of the residency.

British Residency

We also visited another pristine white museum near to Imambara (the name of which I forgot now). It had all the nawabi memorials , their attires, jewels , photographs and much more. I love museums as I my mind's imagination runs at the speed of Cheetah. I get lost in that era and imagine those people when ever I visit a museum.

The pic of a handsome nawab clicked by me in the museum secretly. No photographs were allowed inside the museum. I just loved his sharp features and in the second pic it is my mom outside the museum

The moment of pride during the Lucknow visit is when my brother received his MBA degree. The convocation was a happening event with a lavish dinner and my mom dad's smiles were worth watching.

IIM Lucknow campus on the convocation day -2011

Last but not the least thing you must and should do if you visit Lucknow is tasting the royal Galawati kebab. It is a traditional Awadhi recipe. ‘Galawati’ means ‘ melt in mouth’. History says that galawati kabab was specially made for Asaf-ud-daulah, who was aging and had week teeth but was a meat lover. This recipe is made up of minced pasted meat and hence does not require chewing. On the present day and time this is the most famous recipe through out India but none can get it right. One must taste it only in Lucknow.

Our half empty plate of Galawati Kebab or Tundey ke Kebab in a restaurant named Royal in Lucknow :)

There are many other places which can be well described but for now I am ending here. As and when I can recollect some more things we did in Lucknow will write another post. By the way if you ever visit the city do not forget visiting Hazrat Gunj - the famous shopping complex. From Lucknow we went to Agra, Jaipur and Ajmer but saving them all for rainy days on blog and for other days of the challenge ;)

Shared below is a song from a movie DedhIshqia which was shot in U.P. and the whole movie flows like a poem. This movie reflects the nuances of U.P. and Lucknow very aptly. This song is a poetic rendition by Naseeruddin Shah

This Lucknow travelogue is my 12th post for "A to Z blogging Challenge 2014"

Some K posts worth giving a read from our group are

Niyati Parikh's Kache Aam- A tempting mango chutney recipe

Prudhivi Latha's K for Kitchen - A sweet description of how much she loves Kitchen :)

Dyanne's Kindergarten

Jaibala introduces you to a new song every day. Today it is my most favorite song- Kisi ke muskuraahaton pe ho nisar

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"M" for "Mehndi & Marriages"

April 14, 2014, 11:30 am

≫ Next: "N" for "Nature" / "Nandi Hills"

≪ Previous: "L" for "Luck-now- The Nawabi City"

Image source : here

Almost all Indians love Mehndi. To know more go to this wiki link . Mehndi is usually applied on any special occasion , weddings, festivals and some times just like that. In India any wedding is incomplete with out a Mehndi. Getting Mehndied is the most important aspect of a wedding. Usually in most of the weddings we have a ceremony called - "Making of the bride." The traditions differ but few things are common among people of all religions and regions like applying haldi (turmeric paste), Chandan (Sandal wood paste) to a bride and then applying beautiful mehndi on her hands. In short people want the bride to look her best on her D-day. Some people over do it. Some just do it in right amounts , I mean the getting ready part. Since my childhood days I love getting mehndied so much so that I used to try and destroy my hands with weird designs which look like modern art when I was in school. Slowly with time I learnt how to do Mehndi, some times looking at the design book and some times on the fly. Eventually I improved. I can't say I excelled. Below is one of the decent Mehndi designs I made on my own hands for the Ramzan festival

Mehndi ki raat or the Mehndi night is one of the important prewedding rituals in India which is celebrated a day before the wedding ceremony and is often combined with ‘sangeet’ ceremony and in many weddings it has lot of live music and dance just like in the video above:) . It is fun and celebrated with close knit friends and relatives. This song is definitely played in most of the Mehndi nights.

It is an age old tradition in a big fat Indian wedding where Mehndi is applied elaborately on bride's hands and a token of application (a henna mark) is done on groom's hands as it is thought to be a good omen. The intricate design patterns will just leave you puzzled. I always observe the Mehndi-wallahs (those who apply Mehndi) very keenly and every damn time I am flabbergasted as I don't understand how they make so beautiful designs so quickly. Practice makes man perfect and mehndi perfect too :) Mostly men do the mehndi designs on bride's hands and legs during weddings and do it with such an expertise that you can't take your eyes off from their work and the designs! Mehndi ceremony is popular even in Bangladesh , Pakistan and other Arab countries.

We also have varieties in Mehndi like Arabic design , Rajasthani (Indian), Pakistani and African. To know more check here. Mehndi designs are also modernized with ornaments , crystals and sparkles! Hyderabad is one such city where you get many talented Mehndi wallahs.

"Some popular cultural beliefs of Mehndi"

The darker the mehndi stronger is the bonding and love between the couple :P (but I have seen happy couples where bride's mehndi is not that dark or where bride doesn't get mehndied at all :P :D )

Same concept above is applied to the bonding between mother in law and the bride. ( I want to chase the person who invented this theorem :P )

Mehndi has medicinal properties. It has a cooling effect and soothes from stress, head aches and fevers. (how ever few people are allergic to the mehndi smell)

In bride's mehndi design groom's name / initials are hidden which groom has to find. This is a fun ice breaking ceremony between bride and the groom!

"Mehndi bloopers" :P

If you apply Mehndi and go to office, strangers also may ask you - "What is the occasion ?" Once a bunch of folks almost believed that I got married seeing my mehndi applied on a festival day :-o!

We have a biometric swipe in to enter in to the office where the swipe machine recognises my finger print. One fine day my swipe was not working at all. When I complained I was told it might be due to mehndi and that I should try it once it fades off.

I safeguard my mehndi hands so that they don't spoil the things around but the more I safeguard them, the more they destroy a cushion cover , a curtain , a new stole etc etc :(

That's all for now folks. Below is the pic of my mehndied hands and legs on the day before my wedding :)

Have a beautiful day! Mehndi is one of the most beautiful art forms. If you never got it done, today is the day to try and if any one asks "what is the occasion and what are you celebrating?" Just say A to Z in life ;-) These are few amazing mehndi designs on Pinterest if you want to try.

This is my 13th post for "A to Z blogging Challenge 2014"

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