Festivities galore

Of late we have been celebrating all festivals with a lot of enthusiasm. We had a great time on Ganesh Chaturthhi, Anant Chaturdashi and also on Dussera (Happy Dussera, by the way!). We make it a point to get together and celebrate with all rituals. The point is what are we going to teach our next generation and in any case, these festivals mean a lot to all of us, have always meant to be great family time.

Last 3 days have been absolute fun. On Saturday, we went to a couple of places to see Durga Puja Pandal. But I must say, it is absolutely nothing to the way it is celebrated in East. Durga Puja reminds me of school days. We would have new clothes and everyday, starting from Saptami, we would be out with friends, gorging on Paani Puris and Chaats. Well, on Saturday, we were also able to catch this cute dance by a few kids in one of the pandals. Later, we had a nice Italian dinner at Soho’s (can’t remember the restaurant’s name though, starts with “T”). The only dish which turned out good was the one that I ordered- Mushrooms tossed in Olive oil with cheese Garlic bread.

Yesterday was good too, we went to watch “Wanted”. No, that was not at all my idea. The guys wanted to see this movie (I don’t know what kind of pleasure guys get in watching gory movies). I would say, “Wanted” was a good comedy, worth watching once. The true Tollywood style action, dance and dialogues, really kept us in splits all the time, and add to that Salman Khan dancing like Prabhu Deva!!! You can’t even imagine what it truly means, unless you watch it yourself. While coming back, we went to eat Momos in Vimannagar.

That was not all, we had to get Marigolds for Dassera. The phoolwalas were quoting such ostentatious price (one garland for 50 bucks!!!), so we just got the flowers and made garlands ourselves. Actually in Maharashtra, the tradition is to deck up your house and vehicles with Marigolds. We have never done this back home, but there’s no harm in it, so we also did all of it. All of us made nice colorful rangolis at our floor and actually got carried away a little bit. At the end of it, our entire floor was covered with rangolis J

So, this weekend was definitely smashing, now waiting for the next one. Though I have a working Saturday, but it isn’t so bad!

Wake Up Sid "Iktara"

Recently I caught this very hummable song from 'Wake Up Sid' on TV: O re mann tu to bawra hai, tu hi jane tu kya sochta hai..........(better known as "iktara"). It is a beautiful rendition by Kavita Seth.

Here's the lyrics:

O re manwa tu to bawra hai
Tu hi jaane tu kya sochta hai
Tu hi jaane tu kya sochta hai
Baware

Kyun dikhaye sapne tu sote jaagte
Jo barsein sapne boond boond
Nainon ko moond moond
Nainon ko moond moond
Jo barsein sapne boond boond
Nainon ko moond moond

Kaise main chaloon
Dekh na sakoon
Anjaane raaste

Goonja sa hai koi ektara iktara
Goonja sa hai koi ektara
Goonja sa hai koi ektara iktara
Goonja sa hai koi ektara
Goonja sa hai koi ektara iktara
Goonja sa hai koi ektara
Goonja sa hai koi ektara iktara
Goonja sa hai koi ektara


Sun rahi hoon sudhbudh kho ke
Koi main kahani
Puri kahani hai kya kisi hai pata
Main to kisiki ho ke yeh bhi na jaani
Ruth hai yeh do pal ki ya rahegi sada
Kise hai pata
kise hai pata

Jo barsein sapne boond boond
Nainon ko moond moond
Nainon ko moond moond
Jo barsein sapne boond boond
Nainon ko moond moond

Kaise main chaloon
Dekh na sakoon
Anjaane raaste

Goonja sa hai koi ektara iktara
Goonja sa hai koi ektara
Goonja sa hai koi ektara iktara
Goonja sa hai koi ektara
Goonja sa hai koi ektara iktara
Goonja sa hai koi ektara
Goonja sa hai koi ektara iktara
Goonja sa hai koi ektara

(Source: lyricsmasti.com)

On the Road

The other day when I was riding my scooty, there were quite a few things which left me infuriated. This post is actually an inspiration from that day.

Things which leave me cursing on the road:

• Where there are no dividers, people who drive on the other lane even when there are enough vehicles coming from the opposite sides.
• The sharp, sudden holes surfacing in the middle of the roads (no wonder I have fallen twice, back to back)
• People driving with high beam on.
• Poor street lighting – what are we paying taxes for!
• Some chauvinists, who try to show off that they can drive faster
• The slow pace at which the roads are made, and the fast pace in which it gets deteriorated
• The way autorickshawalas never give proper signal while taking a turn, it would always be sudden, abrupt.

I will surely keep adding my woes (because all the ideas crop up when I am on the road)

Paranoia

It is all so surreal. As if I will wake up one day and all this will go away like a nightmare. Just yesterday I was telling my colleague, I never thought I would see this day in office (90% of the people are in masks by the way). Even a month back if somebody would have said that we would be working at office in masks, I would not have believed it. It brings back stories of ages ago, when villages used to wash out or eaten up by a disease. Our technology has progressed and our diseases have become more complex and even more fatal.

I think the government totally missed out on declaring curfew this weekend. I have seen people moving out of the city on vacations, and it is definitely going to be dangerous. It is good that people from all classes are aware enough to wear masks while venturing into public. But every thing said and done, people are meeting other people, commuting in public transports and there is only so much precaution can you take while going out of home. In fact, there is even greater danger for people at home when some of the members go out daily. We needed a total cut-off, for this weekend atleast.

I had a great day today, for I did not wear a mask in last 24 hours! We did have a small party with a couple of friends, which I was immensely skeptical about, but then I finally let it go! Perhaps media is making me paranoid. Perhaps a little caution and precaution is enough to keep you safe.

Hope this gets over soon!

The Fear Factor

Friendship Day was good and Rakshabandhan was scintillating but Swine Flu has taken daylights out of all of us. Not so long ago, chickenguinea, Bird Flu, SARS….looked like something which happened to other people in other countries. But the ascent of Swine Flu is so palpable. I think 90% of the people on roads are wearing some or the other kind of Masks.

It started with a couple of cases in schools in Pune, then we heard how couple of schools were shut for a few days. Slowly, the disease became rampant, with every school and college closing for 7-10 days. We were still enjoying ourselves. In last 2 days, we are so gripped by the thought of Swine Flu during every waking hour that there is really no respite.

I am giving my driving classes a break for a couple of days. We even started wearing masks at office. These masks are really not the ones which are recommended (N95) but anything is better than nothing. This mask is actually out of stock in all medical shops and people are ordering these from outside. I don’t know when will I be able to lay my hands on those, till then we are all wearing the regular disposable masks. Read more on the right mask here.

The so-called good news is that the vaccine will be out by December in India. If ‘that’ is good news, then what is bad! And hey, right early in the morning, I read this news in Paper and my spirit ebbed like never before. Something needs to be done, and real fast!

Humko Ishq Ne Mara

Today while coming back from office, I found myself singing – ‘Kab se bekraar the sunane ko….’. This song is from a movie called “Humko Ishq ne Mara”.

I remember I was in school then, and we were all crazy about songs of this movie. Right from the popular “Jaadu Hai Ye Naya Naya, Dil hai Deewana…” to the title track "Humko Ishq Ne Mara”, all songs were our favourites for Antakshari.

I vaguely remember it was a college flick about these 3 girls and 3 guys. The name of the cutest guy in the picture (sitting at the centre) was Kiran (in the movie), he is mistaken as a girl and allotted a room with 2 other girls (can you believe that!). Back then it did not feel weird at all! Ah! Teenage………! You can catch all the details about the movie here.

It was a cute, teenage flick. The only lady missing from this poster of the movie is Rakhi Vijan aka Sweety from Hum Paanch. I think this movie came before that serial. You would also notice Amrita Saluja, a common face on the ad scene. She is the “Mummy” in Whirlpool’s ‘Mummy ka Magic Chalega Kya’ campaign. I have not noticed the third actress, Charmy much, though apparently she has done couple of movies in South.

Amongst the guys, only Ashish Chaudhary can be identified more readily. The name of the guy on the right handsie at the back is Huroum Mirza. I think I have seen him somewhere but cannot recall which serial or which movie! The third guy (who is at the centre) has been seen is as latest as the movie ‘Mumbai Salsa’.

A little research showed that the movie was directed by Arjun Sablok of ‘Na Tum Jano Na Hum’ and ‘Neal n Nikky’ fame.

It is strange how a movie or a song opens a box full of fond memories!

Air Brushing

I have been on the Product shoot for the last two days. It is absolutely no fun. I have been bored too death. We were shooting this product in which we needed to enhance the sleekness of the product, we felt that the product was looking fat, and were discussing whether we can ‘enhance’ that sleekness through Photoshop or something.

It suddenly dawned on me, how similar thing would be happening while shooting models or film actor / actresses. In fact, people who are in Media or Communication would know how each and every commercial picture is enhanced and ‘modified’ – that flawless skin, such perfect hair (even a strand of hair gone astray can be corrected)! But sometimes, I think people cross the limit. I remember, I had seen Rani Mukherjee on the Cover Page of a popular women’s magazine. It was clearly visible that the picture was ‘airbrushed’. Rani’s head and body were looking mismatched and she was looking far too thin. Read the article on 'Airbrushing the Photographs.'

It is really unfair for all the innocent people around who don’t know that the perfect picture that they see in glossies is really not the true picture. Many women buy what these magazines try to sell, an unreal picture of perfect beauty!

So, gym can really wait till tomorrow, or may be the day after J

Image Courtesy: Telegraph.co.uk

Pet woes!

With all due respects to all the people who have pets, I am really against the idea. Please people, don’t be judgmental. I have nothing against those poor animals (if I may say so!), they are fine…but only in other people’s homes who are strangers and in homes I do not need to go. I have atleast 2 friends who have Pet dogs. They can be forever assured that I would never give them any surprise visit. I would always call up before landing on their place, that too very discreetly. I tip-toe to their main door, press the bell and hide inside the lift, until I’m completely assured of my safety (the pets locked up safely inside one of the rooms). I do feel sorry for them. In fact, I have even offered that I be locked in a room and let them roam around, but in any case, some distance is essential for my health.

Everyone keeps pestering me and telling me that their darling pet would not do anything. They don’t understand. It does not have to ‘do’ anything to scare me. I am just paranoid about them.

Besides, there is a practical reason why I do not like pets. I cannot stand their hair (I’m talking about dogs and cats) everywhere and on everything around the house. I too feel all lovey-dovey from a distance, but I’m not too keen on playing with them, they jumping all over me.

It is almost like a habit for me now. My friends just have to live with it. Poor guys!

The Weekend that Was!

I don’t know whether this weekend was a good one for me or a real bad one. It is all perceptual you see. So what happened?

• My Weekend started with the rashes on my wrist looking filthier (Yuck!) which did wonders for my spirit.
• I fell from scooty, when I was lost in my day dreams and suddenly got accosted with a big, unexpected pot hole. Good thing is I got minor bruises on my hand and knee, and I also got pampering and TLC from my hubby…so it was not that bad actually. Thankfully, I always wear helmet. I was so mad while coming back at the condition of the road that I hurled a lot of abuses to the Corporation.
• We had great fun watching ‘Hostel’ together with friends on TV. Although a gruesome movie, thankfully, all such scenes were cut.
• Dinner was lavish, for we and our next door friends decided to have it together, so it turned out to be bonanza……hmmmm….. Sumptuous!
• Finally on Sunday morning we went to the Gym. I’m going to be steer clear of weights, because I know I will not be able to be regular. So I just want to stick to cardio. We also planned how we will go cycling once the roads are all done. Dreams!
• We finally saw “Ice Age 3” and I slept somewhere in the middle. It was OK and since I have not seen any of the earlier ones, may be that could be the reason of my boredom.
• I had lofty plans of joining Driving school, but all went into the drain as I hurt my plan and my spirit plummeted to a new low!
• Next 2 days are going to be hectic, as I have to attend Product Shoots and also complete all the follow ups with all the vendors, give some approvals, negotiate some rates…….woooh!
• Pune is really a laid back city in all sense, even the professionalism is a little laid back. When I was in Mumbai, we were trained to be on our toes for whatever Client asked for; in Pune, despite being on the Client side, I have to be on toes with my Vendors (read agencies). People really have some high notions here. The kind of work agencies pass on to Clients would have been unimaginable for us in our ad agency in Mumbai. And after that, they have guts to cross-question us!

I remember, how we had been told that you have to be smarter than the Client. You must know all that is to know about their brand in order to inspire confidence in Client. Ah! Mumbai is definitely in different league when it comes to professionalism!

· Today I tried some fast cooking with my brand new Microwave. It is really quick. You just microwave your veggies for couple of minutes and then sauté. It really saves a lot of time.

· This week is going to be special…..won’t tell right now. Work is going to be as usual. I am looking forward to Rakhi and till now, not sure what to gift the bestest brother in the whole world J

Tag Here!

I really have no clue about this 'tags' business, nevertheless, since Smita has tagged me, here I go!

A – Available/Single? Happily Married :)

B – Best friend? No single Best Friend, couple of very good Friends

C – Cake or Pie? Cake!!!

D – Drink of choice?Tea! Tea! Tea!

E – Essential item you use every day?Vaseline

F – Favorite colour? Fuchsia, Yellow, Red, Black, Blue..............so many of them

G – Gummy Bears Or Worms? Eeeeeks! Neither

H – Hometown?Jamshedpur

I – Indulgence?Books. Hands down!

J – January or February? January :) Hubby's Birth month

K – Kids & their names?What Kids? None

L – Life is incomplete without? Love

M – Marriage date? 3rd December

N – Number of siblings? 1 Big Brother

O – Oranges or Apples? I have equal dislike for both

P – Phobias/Fears? All kinds of insects, all kinds of birds and animals...ya, that includes human beings too

Q – Quote for today? My Quote for everyday: ‘I Know but one Freedom, that is Freedom of the Mind.’

R – Reason to smile? Love, Family, Friends….Life!

S – Season? Panchvan mausam pyaar ka………………..

T – Tag 3 People? Well, let’s see

U – Unknown fact about me? That I'm a cleanliness freak, everything has to be in place, picture-perfect all-the time!

V – Vegetable you don't like? Karela, Lauki

W – Worst habit? That I'm a cleanliness freak, everything has to be in place, picture-perfect all-the time!

X – X-rays you've had? I don't have any X-ray

Y – Your favorite food? Indian home-cooked food

Z – Zodiac sign? Taurus: the Bull

And here's the Award for successfully completing this Tag:

So now, you too have a chance to be a Proud Member of the 'International Bloggers Community'. Here are the Rules:

1. Link the person who tagged you.
2. Copy the image above, the rules and the questionnaire in this post.
3. Post this in one or all of your blogs.
4. Answer the four questions following these Rules.
5. Recruit at least seven (7) friends on your Blog Roll by sharing this with them.
6. Come back to BLoGGiSTa iNFo CoRNeR (PLEASE DO NOT CHANGE THIS LINK) at http://bloggistame.blogspot.com and leave the URL of your Post in order for you/your Blog to be added to the Master List.
7. Have Fun!

Questions & Your Answers:
1. The person who tagged you: Smita
2. His/her site's title and url: Books, Life and More; URL: http://books-life-n-more.blogspot.com
3. Date when you were tagged: 24th July '09
4. Persons you tagged:

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Finally, done.... (some formatting has gone for a Toss though)

Sach Ka Samna

OK how many of you have seen “Sach Ka Samna”. Well, although I’ve given up watching anything on TV except say reruns of FRIENDS and movies; when I read that Rajiv is going to ask Kambli as to whether he always knew the names of all the women he has slept with…..I knew I am gonna watch it. ‘Sach Ka Samna’ is Reality TV at its best, another Indian cousin of American original – ‘Sach Ka Samna’ caters to that part of us wherein we always look for a scandal or some spicy news. It is entertainment with shock value. Who knows, whether all those answers are really correct. These days I do not trust Television at all. Everything can be made up, and so many people are game to let themselves be part such controversies.

I think Rajiv is doing a decent job, better than he ever did in his claim to fame “Kahin to Hoga”.

I have been reading that next Urvashi Dholakia of ‘Kasauti Zindagi Ki’ fame is going to brave Rajiv’s questions. Now I hear it has created quite a furore in Rajya Sabha as well, apparently the content is not fit for unrestricted viewing. Read Here.

Image Courtesy: Sify

Mera Kuchh Samaan Tumhare Paas Pada Hai

Yesterday I was again late from office (8 pm in Pune is late by the way). So, after some timepass on net, some in couple of magazines, and the rest in chatting on phone; I finally got on to making dinner at 9.15. The good thing is that I smartly get the veggies cooked in the morning by my maid, so I just make chapattis, which is not a big thing actually.

Well, anyways, my hubby was back from his Table Tennis / Pool game, and was about to put some of his mindless, meaningless, Punjabi foot-tapping kind of music in full blast. I was quick to demand that I want to listen to some soulful music (read slow, luxurious, lazy, ghazal kind of songs). I asked for Ijaazat’s ‘Mera Kuchh Saaman’. In such cases, I either go for Arth, Ijaazat, Saath-Saath or Ghar – my all time favourites.

I have always been a fan of Gulzar’s poetry –ethereal, earthy and poignant. Particularly, in this song, he makes the pain of the lover come alive with his words, as a listener you cannot help but empathize with her. This song has a very nostalgic quality to it; it just transfers you into that 70s era. It is just the kind of song that you would want to listen to in a mushy, rainy day; while sipping tea and thinking about all the things you have lost.

Here are the lyrics to one of the most beautiful renditions of Asha Bhosle, of all times. I can listen to it again and again for n number of times.

Mera kuch saamaan tumhare paas pada hai -2

saavan ke kuch bheege bheege din rakhe hain

aur mere ik khat main lipti raat padi hai

vo raat bhulaa do, mera vo saamaan lauta do - 2

mera kuch saamaan tumhaare paas pada hai - 2

patjhad hai kuch ... hai na ?

o ! patjhar main kuch patton ke girne kee aahat

kaanon main ek baar pahan ke laut aai thee

patajhad kee vo saakh abhi tak kaanp rahi hai

vo saakh gira do, mera vo saamaan lauta do - 2

ek akeli chhataree main jab aadhe aadhe bheeg rahe the - 2

aadhe sookhe aadhe geele, sukha to main le aaye thee

geela man shayad bistar ke paas pada hovo bhijwa do,

mera vo saamaan lauta do

ek so sola chaand ki ratein, ek tumhare kaandhe ka til - 2

geeli mehendi ki khushbu, jhoot mooth ke shikwe kuch

jhooth mooth ke wade sab yaad karaa do

sab bhijwa do, mera vo saamaan lauta do - 2

ek ijaazat de do bas, jab isako dafanaaungee

main bhi vaheen so jaungee

main bhi vaheen so jaungee

When I listen to this song, I think of a crazy, effervescent and young Anuradha Patel, hill station, rains, Rekha’s romantic voice, hot tea, 1970s, waiting room of a station, warmth, cozy evenings, Asha Bhosle’s voice, the depth in the lyrics, pain which is sweet…….and everything romantic and beautiful!

Looking the Part

Yesterday had an argument with my dearest mother. On what? Well, my mother thinks I have really not learnt anything from her. Why this judgement? Simply because despite being married, I do not wear either Mangal sutra or Bindi or Bangles or toe-rings, whatever! Even the sindoor I wear is just not enough. It is hardly visible. My mother is a firm believer of ‘looking’ the part. In fact, I don’t even know why I started putting onSindoor. I like red actually, it brightens up anything. So, I started putting sindoor because it added colour to my face.

She thinks I’m trying to act oh-so modern. But I don’t really believe in ‘wearing’ marriage on my sleeve. To me, marriage is not so superficial.

Mum tries to reason with me saying that wearing all these is an expression on celebration of marriage. But I am definitely not buying it!

Marriage to me is extremely liberating. It means that you acknowledge the presence of someone special in your life and you want to spend the rest of your life with him. It does not mean you are somebody’s property now, it means when you go ahead and realize your dreams, there is someone who would be there behind you to support you, to share your joys and show you the right path.

With due respect to all the people from mum’s generation, I think they are too stuck up on these inconsequential details and lose the real essence. Marriage is really not the devil that it is made out to be, you just need to meet the right person ;)

The Return of Bridget Jones

The buzz is that Bridget Jones – III is in the pipeline. I absolutely loved the first part – both book and the movie. But, the second part was a little drag. In this one, Bridget is supposed to be trying to have a baby. I am sure it will turn out to be something on the lines of Ben Elton’s The Inconceivable. 'The Inconceivable' is a hilarious book on how a couple is desperately trying to have a baby, and in the attempt the situations get funny, even ludicrous. Do check out this book if you like humour.

Coming back to Bridget, I am sure all women connected with her insecurities, despair and self-pity because we have all gone through this sometime or the other. Since ‘weight’ is such an all-pervading and sensitive issue with every single woman in this world; no matter which part of the world you are in, if you are a woman, you surely empathized with Bridget.

I don’t know how this third part would be but the trend has been that sequels generally do not live upto their originals. The basic reason is that the first part is a fresh idea, while the sequels are all something which you are trying (even forcibly) to cash on to your one bright idea! Well, let’s see. I am surely looking forward to it.

Image courtesy: BBC News

Road-ies

While going to office today, I was perplexed by the condition of the roads. It is a 25 minutes ride to my office, and thanks to the Corporation, it is really a challenge to be able to reach office safely. Of course, the daily to and fro trips are slowly taking its toll on my back (with all the jerks) but it is inevitable.

I truly believe if you have driven on Indian roads, you can drive anywhere in the world. It is not only the condition of roads that is to be blamed; actually everything works in perfect harmony.

• The road will be perpetually under construction
• If it has rained for sometime, driving can become adventure sports for you would not know which hole is how much deep and you would have enough exercise dodging the holes, garbage that has over flown on the roads and a lot of actual mud slinging.
• There will be vehicle coming from all sides. As my brother says, in India, when you are crossing road you should not only look in the direction of Traffic, look at the opposite side and the front too. You never know from which side a vehicle would be speeding to your side.
• There will be animals walking leisurely on the road like dogs, cats, cows, buffaloes, etc, etc.
• Right when you would find a vacant stretch of road and you would slightly increase your speed with confidence, from somewhere a kid will cross the road running, causing you a momentary heart-attack and unbalancing you for next couple of seconds.
• State Transport Corporation buses would move on the roads as if they own it, and incompliance to this unwritten diktat can cause anything between major discomforts to accidents.
• People behind you would keep honking horns at you, even if there would not be any space to move ahead.
• If you don’t let people behind you get ahead of you, you will be subjected to all kinds of verbal abuses.
• Most of the secluded, under-construction roads will not have street lights

By the way, our Union Road Transport & Highways Minister Kamal Nath says that next decade will be of Infrastructure. I am all for it!