Tit - Bits !

Ahha March now and I am loving it  . With the start of March, the limelight from February has finally been taken off. Otherwise every day I would have been receiving mails or forwards for celebration of the day as hate/slap/rose/hugs/kiss / valentine/ friendship and what not days! But still I think that this month (March) has some scary quotient associated with it. Earlier during my childhood it used to be final exam time and now while working it’s time for appraisal and hikes results!

Finally, my patience for the release of “The girl with the dragon tattoo” wore off. In wait for the movie I read its novel, watched the Swedish version of movie and when it still declined to get released in India, I finally downloaded it : P. Thanks to Piracy!

That reminds me that I have stopped reading from a while and the reason is that I am studying nowadays ;). Yes I needed some competency building as well as a job change: P!

The rate at which all my near and dear ones from the office are leaving is making me scared. The office is suddenly becoming one empty space of only new faces to be seen. I think if I am going to stay for a while I would be the oldest one in my cubicle!

After a tiff with God for a while I am back at Almighty’s door. I don’t know what plans has he got in mind for me but still I want to keep faith in him. He is like this small light in a dark tunnel, which you know may not exactly help you in finding a path but surly going to boost yourself that some hope is there.

And , after not doing any kind of physical activity from last two months , I think I am going to join the gym from tomorrow. I don’t know for how long I am going to continue but I as usual I have given the money for this month so I think will be going there for a while at least ;).

Things still are a bit hard on my side and I don’t know for how long it’s going to continue. I have decided to belief and trust that God would be on my side this time. Wish blessing from all of you as well. Pray for me please. Amen!

Idiot Box Latest

I realized that I am getting a way too infrequent here :( . It’s something which I never want. Writing here gives me inner peace ( Master Chifooooo’s secret :P). The last few weeks have been turbulent , both personally and professionally. I felt like losing on both the front and that was one of the major reasons behind my absence. Sometime I feel that I should blog as anonymous and pour my heart out over there.Share my grief and take suggestions from all you beautiful people :) . As for the present, I got a diversion and that is my television.

I love watching TV (One thing that I have inherited from my mother: P) and it really proved very fruitful at coming up in terms with the life. I have picked few soaps and following them. I love “Bade Achhe lagte hain” on Sony and while watching that I saw the promo of “ Kuch to log kahenge” . I didn’t like the promo much but loved the title song and it is just so awesome. I researched for it onlineand found that it is a remake of famous Pakistani serial “ Dhoop Kinare” . Now , that’s really a news for me. It bought back immediate nostalgia.

Flashback, sometime in early 1990s. It’s sometime before the cable TV . The favorite pastime for children used to be playing outside(quite different to today’s children) and for the housewives it would be watching Pakistani serial cassettes on VCR. Do you remember this device? This device will only appear in the scene either when we will have our vacations or when we have to watch somebody’s marriage cassettes :P . We used to live in a rented accommodation at that time. So, whenever a movie used to be played in VCR, the entire neighborhood would gather and watch it . When the men would leave for office and we children for school, ladies would gather and watch “Dhoop Kinare”. Till date it’s my mother’s favorite serial. This year, when she visited me , she asked me if I can get her some old Pakistani serial CDs. I opened youtube and found it there. She completed the entire series of 51 episodes in just 2 Days!
So , when I realized that “Kuch to log kahenge” is a remake of “ Dhoop Kinare” , I immediately called my mother and told her this . And this was her reply “I knew it from the time I watched first few episodes”:P . Sorry Ma, I forgot that I have inherited tele watching from you: P .

Here is the title song , Enjoy !!

Tit Bit

This post is totally random :P , there were so many things going on my mind that it became difficult for me to pen it down separately , so here it goes:

I realized that I have become super lazy. I am in bench from past two months and I think it has added to my laziness. So much so that I find it extremely difficult to get up on time and catch my company shuttle. So, last month I paid double the amount for transportation. One for company shuttle and one for missing it, paying 130 bucks to the stupid autowallah created a big hole in my pocket. Thereby today I finally cancelled my bus pass and decided to take public transportation for work. Sigh! I feel relieved now :)

My year resolution of losing weight is still left and I am nowhere near to it. At the start of every month, the guilt of gaining weight reach to all time high, so much so, that I would run to the gym and pay my monthly fees. That day i would work out like Sylvester Stallone and sweat like pig, only to return after a month to pay the fees again.

My reading habit has gone haywire and the credit goes to my iPhone. From the time I have got it, I am totally occupied by the big apple. Games, apps, movies, Face book and so many other think. I think the fad will soon evaporate and I will get back to my favorite hobby.

I haven’t posted/scraped/walled about Janlokpal bill at all (plz consider this as an exception). It seems all my friends on Face book were as much excited about it as their wedding. Everybody was giving their opinion about it when even half of them wouldn’t even know completely about it. I totally respect Anna and think he is did a great job. But wouldn’t it be better to show the solidarity towards him or the bill by participating in the movement real time rather than being opinionated in the virtual world?

I have pets at my place and they are cute little fish. When i got the fish bowl i bought two goldfish but they died soon after. Later after lot of googling i found out that you shouldn’t keep them in fishbowl. My manager, who is from Kerala and has a huge aquarium at his place, got me few fish. Last week while changing the water the bowl slipped from my hand, however we were able to save all the fish miraculously. But after this incident i have decided that i am never going to have fish as a pet again. I am better with dog ;)

And finally, I am hooked to KBC. I watch it just for Big B. I love his immaculate Hindi and the way he connects with the participant. I think it was the major thing lacking in SRK‘s KBC. And now, since i am watching it , i am replying to all the questions for audiences religiously. I know it’s a bit teenagish but then it’s worth a try. Wish me luck!

Eat outs @ Bangalore-1

Globetrotter has been to Chennai this weekend and is all gaga about the city as usual. He had been working there for almost 2 years before coming here to Bangalore or rather I say Belandur (as he has been living in the same place from past 2 years).By now he has been to all the restaurants in Belandur and surprisingly loves all of them equally :P so, when after this weekend trip he told us about the awesome food @ Murugan Idly, we didn’t take him seriously! Bang come Mr. Globetrotter the next day with “Eating out in India 101 favorite restaurants” book and there it was Murugan Idly in one of the must eat places of Chennai!(as by Marryam Reshii)

I however, directly went to the must eat places of Bangalore and here is the snapshot of the same ;)

Disclaimer: The list is taken from“Eating out in India 101 favorite restaurants” by Marryam Reshii . It’s just a small part of the book. Refer the book for the complete list of eat outs throughout India.

1. Blue Ginger:

Cuisine: Vietnamese

Location: Taj West End, Racecourse Road, Bangalore

Recommended for: The whole experience of dining in the semi open with Vietnamese cuisine and the buzz of the place, especially at night

USP: Prawns with sweet tamarind sauce, tenderloin curry with baguette

Meal for two: Rs. 4000

2. Caperberry:

Cuisine: Contemporary Spanish

Location: The Estate, Dickson road, Bangalore

Recommended for: When you want to educate your palate

USP: Starters

Meal for two: Rs. 2500

3. Harima:

Cuisine: Japanese

Location: Devatha Plaza, Residency road, Bangalore

Recommended for: An authentic Japanese meal in smart, no uss surrounding

USP: Sushi. Their Sushiya is from Okaya

Meal for two: Rs. 4000

4. Kamat Lokaruchi :

Cuisine: South Indian

Location: Janapada Loka, Archakrahalli , Mysore Road, Bangalore

Recommended for: A vegetarian experience in rustic setting

USP: Raggi mudde and Dink laddos

Meal for two: Rs. 400

5. Kanua:

Cuisine: South Indian

Location: Near Wipro corporate office , Kaikondrahalli, Sarjapur Road, Bangalore

Recommended for: A really stylish, true to type coastal Karnataka restaurant .

USP: Chicken ghee roast , masala prawns

Meal for two: Rs. 1200

6. Koshy’s Parade Café:

Cuisine: Indian(Keralite) , Western, Snacks

Location: St. Marks road, Bangalore

Recommended for: Getting an eyeful of arts crowd in the city .

USP: Ham sandwiches , mushroom on toast , chicken cutlets

Meal for two: Rs. 800

7. MTR:

Cuisine: Indian(Karnataka tiffins and meals)

Location: 14 Lalbagh road, Bangalore

Recommended for: A heritage eatery whose menu hasn’t changed for decades

USP: Coffee, bisi bele bath , holige, pongal, karabath

Meal for two: Rs. 400

8. Olive Beach:

Cuisine: Mediterrenean

Location: 16 Wood Street , Ashok Nagar , Bangalore

Recommended for: An effortless chic great food, superior cocktails, live performance, art shows and the cool crowd

USP: Sea food, Sunday brunch

Meal for two: Rs. 2000

9. Sea Spice by 7 Star:

Cuisine: Indian (Karnataka), Coastal

Location: 9^th main , Kaverinagar, Banashankari 2^nd stage , Bangalore

Recommended for: Blow out Karnataka coastal seafood meal without making a huge hole in your pocket

USP: Chicken ghee roast , kane fish fry

Meal for two: Rs. 1500

10. Sunny’s:

Cuisine: European

Location: Embassy Diamante,34 Vitall Mallya road , Bangalore

Recommended for: It has been a city favorite right since its inception , in an older more funky avatar . The magic continues

USP: Glazed ham , Paris brest

Meal for two: Rs. 2500

I have named this post as Bangalore-1 because the foodie in me wants to post it's own list one day ... Till then Bon Appetit!!!

Welcome 2011 !

Wish you all a very happy new year!

I was thinking of writing this post from past 10 days and somehow the laziness again crept on me. But no, not again as I have resolved to be more regular at this space this year (Oops! I hope it does not die as my other new resolutions already have ;)).

New Year festivity ends with the same fervor that it had started with. Like you dance and get sloshed on 31st just to get up with a bad hangover on the very first day of the year only to resolve that this year you will try to be more sober.Many other such resolutions are broken as soon as you have started implementing it.

Talking of facts and stats:

1. 8000 + people gathered and celebrated New Year at the famous M.G road of Bangalore and Bangalore got up on the New year finding 6500 + alcohol bottles and thousands of cigarette stubs there , which took 6.5 hrs to clean the stretch !

2. Most of the resolutions die their natural / psychological death within 7 days!

3. The most common top three resolutions are:

Quitting smoking


Reducing weight


Spending more time with family & friends


As for my resolutions I have already broken one and I should better not mention the rest as by the time you all will read it few of them would have already been broken ;)



Let this New Year be free of all the resolution we cannot keep ;) and full of luck, laughter, love and happiness!!! Wish you a very Happy 2011 once again!

Of Santa & Secret Santa

It’s Christmas time again and I can sense it with all of the Christmas decoration around me. Even my team’s cubicle in office is decorated with a nice Christmas tree, balloons and other decorative stuff. And the excitement is evident not just because everybody is celebrating Christmas but because it’s the time for homemade wine and cake from my big boss and also , since this time our team (which has inflated to a good 100 + from last year’s 30s) is celebrating “ Secret Santa” and people are more excited about getting gifts from their respective secret Santa then gifting one to their “ secret child” ( no, no it’s not what you are thinking , it’s supposed to be the person whom you are secret Santa to ;) ). And I was secret Santa to a guy whom I didn’t know. So while rest of the people were playing guessing game by giving different clues to their secret child I was just sitting clueless about what to do and what to give. Finally i bought a coffee mug for the guy along with some mints. BTW this entire exercise was fun for at least some of the people as they get some or the other gift almost every day along with some puzzles to find out who their secret Santa was (except for me :(). So today when everybody reached office they either found some gifts in their desk or some puzzles to solve to get the gifts from their respective Santa and again I got none. I checked my desk, drawer and my mailbox from time to time with no success. And then when I lost hope and about to go home, I finally got my gift :) . It was a cute bunny and I loved it:) . Though I still don’t know who my secret Santa but then that’s the beauty of it!!

P.S: Saw two people (from different teams) dressed up as Santa (with their beard on too) smoking at smoking zone! Be careful Santa ;) .

Donate With Dignity

I looked at my college sweatshirt and again that nostalgia occurred which occurs almost every time I take it out of the box. Memories, I tell you, don’t let you leave so many things and the result is my box full of clothes, which I haven’t worn since ages and probably won’t ever wear again. There was my college sari which I didn’t let my mom give it to our maid. A grey scarf, which I used to wear in school. A jacket for which I and my sister fought almost every day, since my uncle just got one as a gift and mom asked us to share it among our self ;) . My favorite kurta which I got from my first salary and cannot wear anymore as it doesn’t fit me. My mom’s handmade sweater with a doll holding an umbrella, which I had worn since I was in class 12th and now cannot wear because it’s never so cold here in Bangalore. I would have almost closed the box once again but this time I decided not to. How long can you clutch them and not let go. Probably this is the time to part. I ironed them and put it in a bag and wrote “ Goon j “ on the top.

Every year just before Diwali, my office administration sends a mail to all the employees asking them to donate generously to “Goonj” not in cash but clothes. The mail is always titled as “Donate with Dignity” meaning donate only those clothes which can be used by somebody, not the one which are torn and almost unusable. Goonj had been founded by Anshu Gupta. The NGO collects clothes through various channels, sort them, mend / repair them and then dispatch them based on geographical and cultural need. Torn clothes are used for making various things like school bags, mats, baby sheets, undergarments and even sanitary napkins.

You can find more information on their website http://www.goonj.org

When I was young, I and my sister used to wait for my aunt (my dad’s elder sister) to visit us. She had three daughters (all elder to us) and used to bring their clothes (since they used to outgrow them almost every year). We used to get almost new and stylish clothes (as my cousins were in their teens and used to be our role models right from dressing to almost everything else ;)) and would be very happy. So, this time when I opened my box I decide to keep the memories and distribute the happiness. I decided to “ Donate” , “ Donate with Dignity” .

So what if you don't have a man?

Read it in today's TOI and really really liked this article. So ,i decided to put it in my blog .

Disclaimer : This works is a production of " The Times of India" . This article is work of the writer of column for TOI.

Are you SAS( Single, Attractive, successful)?Or a woman of a certain age (i.e. Middle) on the verge of a nervous breakdown? Because whoever you are and whatever state you'r in , surly you occasionally feel that other woman have it easier. Married women look at single friends and think " Lucky cow. All that room in the bed and no arguments about remote control". singletons gets frustrated by turning up to the parties alone and wondering who'll look after them when they are ill . Mothers feel torn to pieces, pulled every which way by their kids , work and partner- if they have one. The childless hit their late 30s and get a yen for teeny socks and plastic toys.The truth is no one's life is perfect. No woman has it completely easy Not even Kelly Brook , and she's well , Kelly Brook. As radiant as young Liz Taylor and , as of now, free and single. But even Kelly must have moments of self doubt . She gets slated enoughto bring on: for being able to hold on to a man(she's only 30) and for taking her clothes off for playboy. Kelly, though seems to be doing all right. She's canny enough to concentrate on her carrer when it looks like it going place . Then there are women like Jennifer Anitson , Kylie Minouge, Cameron Diaz . The se women are doing fantastically well. They are beautiful, successful, happy and have preety good love-lives. They are not all in relationships , but so what? They have been, with some gorgeous men , and will be again.

But it seems every famous woman, no matter what how fantastic , is still defined by certain things . How she looks . And if she is settled down and spawned. But can't a woman be herself, whether or not she's ticked certain conversational boxes?Famous women are , by definition, successful:they would't be famous otherwise. So horray for them . They shoud crow about theit luck , not be glum over their sad lives. Bexause that's allit is , really , Luck. Some people are lucky enough to meet a life partner, some have children ; some are born beautiful;some make right carrer choices.

Why aren't women allowed to concentrate on the good things in life , rather than where we've supposdly fallen short? You are not a failure if you don't have it all . You are human , that's much more intresting. Relish the joy in our lives and stop picking over the rest.


Courtesy : The Times of India, Bangalore Times,13-Nov-2010.

Confession of a confused soul :(

So i am back again and this time it's a good two months . It's never like i didn't want to write or that i am too busy with things. It's just that i felt a bit lost somewhere . Lets call it an introspection phase. Where you know that you are thinking about something but you are clueless about it. Confused?? Yes me too . So what i did in this introspection phase ? Well, i did think about where i have been,where i am and where i would be? Then read it somewhere that past is something which is long lost and future in unpredictable so just live in the present.So,my introspection zeroed down to my present and it's surly not like" everyday is a gift and that's why you call it present :P".

My present starts with an early morning ,where i always think about getting up @5 AM sharp to go to gym.But getting up realising that i am just not only too late for gym but also for catching office cab.Almost running to catch the bus and making all neighbours realise how good a sprinter i am( or for some " how can she be so late always) i catch the cab with " you are always late " glance from co-passengers.Then spending a fifth of a day travel to work and eating my heart out at breakfast(Eating always is a great stress buster). Reaching my desk and thinking about the last day argument(oops discussion) with boss,career path discussion with HR , a little serious discussion about " how i would like to put my energy on some other project which intrests me" discussion with big boss,his big no and my hopeless walk to my desk, where i am sitting just now. Then start doing something which i probably won't like but can't resist too and if i still want to do share all this grief online then wait.. blogger has been banned and so does the rest of " SOS" social sites.A few cribbing here and there @ lunch, tea and way back home.Shop my heart out on mood enhancing but self esteem reducing foods.Hogging on them while answering my roomies questions on being a "little chubby". Answriing my mom's calls too asking for an introspection again for current phase of life. Diverting mind off to idiot box or shall i say ekta kapoor box and realising that it's just adding more pain to my wounds.Switching off to facebook , further sneekingg into other's life and thinking if it could be mine ( when the truth is that they would be thinking the same).Desparate to pour out my emotion vsomewhere and here i am penning it down @1.30 in night . knowing for sure that i would be getting up late tomorrow again , missing gym and henceforth.

Confused .. so am i! Wish to be more regular at this space i hope i could.

After A While

It’s been a long time since I have written over here (almost two months!). I almost missed to write about so many things, my blog’s first birthday (Yes, it’s almost a year since I have started writing yippee!) and also my birthday (and I realized that I am growing old), movie which I wanted to see so much (Eclipse), my shift to a flat (after spending almost 2 yrs in a PG) and my first trip to States. Phewww… the one thing which has really taken a lot of time was house hunting (and I think it deserve a separate post, which I will write soon) and then making house a home. But now I decided to be regular here and I am all set for that, just wishing Mr. Balaji to fix my broadband connection soon so that I can start scribing again ;)

Confession of a Tea-a-holic II : Adieu

From today I am not receiving my favorite tea at my desk because my company decided to cancel the contract for handmade tea and coffee and replace it with much popular (and criticized) machine tea and coffee. Yesterday was the last day of “Mallesh bhaiyya (the person who serves tea on our floor)” and he gave the last handmade tea to us by telling that tomorrow he is leaving for Kerala (his native) .It was a very nostalgic moment as he was the one serving tea to us from past so many years. He will serve tea to us at 9.30 in the morning (as if telling us to leave early morning laziness and start working) and at 3 in the evening (awakening us from the after lunch syndrome). Requests for an extra cup of tea or special tea (without sugar or coffee with less milk) were seldom entertained.A few health conscious people would give their green tea bags and honey to him and he will provide special tea at your desk. He knew the preferences of everybody in the floor , whether it’s tea for me, coffee for Mr. Narasimhan , badam milk for Anil or boost for Vishnu . If you are suffering from common cold, he will give you a cup of piping hot milk so that you can add turmeric to it and drink. Yesterday was his last day (and so was the last day of my fav brew) and we gave him farewell by gifting him a shirt and a watch. His place has been taken by a glitzy coffee machine, which serves you a variety of coffee like cappuccino, espresso and latte (which most of the time tastes the same) but serves you a tea which is too frothy and too western. I so much missed my ginger tea and coffee drinkers missed their typical south Indian filter coffee.

Today morning I too joined the queue (which was never there earlier) in the pantry for getting tea and saw everybody giving same disappointed looks to the coffee machine. Everybody was missing the smiling face of Mallesh Bhaiyaa, his warm “Good Mornings “and also their favorite brew. Today, I realized that technology comes with certain disadvantages too and some things can never be replaced by machine. You can replace the entity but you can’t replace emotions.

Indian Male and Teamwork: A Psychoanalysis

Damn, it still sounds like many of the presentations which I make everyday. I thought about a lot of names for this post (which includes “Psychoanalysis of Indian male and its association with team work” . Ha, that sounds like some typical, complicated and out of the world stuff) and zeroed on this and I promise, that it is not that complicated to understand as it sounds ;) . Please, bear with me.

Read this in “India Unbound “by Gurcharan Das and found very interesting. It’s about poor teamwork prevalent in Indian society that time (Somewhere around mid 50s).One of the probable reason explained by one of the psychologist was:


It begins with the Indian bride, who is not fully accepted in her husband’s home until she produces a male child. She is so grateful when a son is born that she indulges him to excess. As the boy grows up, he remains close to the mother and distant from the father. The end result is that boy grows up narcissistic and has a weak ego. He is less comfortable on his own. He needs appreciative, older, hierarchical figures, even late in his professional life. His relationship tends to be vertical and ‘control oriented’, and he is not good at forming horizontal, cooperative relationships with his peers. This translates into poor teamwork.
But since, Indian society is changing. More woman are working , and there is less time to overindulge the male child ; so perhaps there is hope that the Indian male will grow up with a healthier ego and be a better team player.

How was that? Interesting analysis right? I think that can be one reason (obviously apart from their hard work) of finding women at top in the corporate ladder nowadays and their being a good team player. ;). An era of suppression and discrimination had actually made us a good team player ;)

Happy Weekend

It’s going to be a long weekend. Friends are out to attend colleague’s wedding, out of the town to meet friends or simply working on the weekend. My sister, who always complains about not spending enough time (which includes our different office timings and different holidays in week) with her, informed me that she is also working on the weekend. Poor me then decided to turn up to my best friend for life, which has always given me a shoulder to lean upon in solitude.

Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors, and the most patient of teachers. ~Charles W. Eliot

Books truly are our best friends and I have a huge backlog to cover. This includes:






















I stopped reading typical romantic novels (which includes mills & Boon) a long time back, perhaps, simply realizing that it has more of a fairytale (apart from Sex) and knights in shining armor, which perhaps gives you a lot of excitement to think about your prince charming while growing up and then, you grow up only to realize that there is nothing as knight or fairytales. You then reach to wrong sides of twenty and your interest shifts to the books which appeal you more. Like “Bridget jone’s diary “ , “ You are here” or “ Almost single” . My interest shifted so drastically to them that I bought all three of them at the same time.” Message in a bottle” was my first proper romantic novel after “Twilight series”(I prefer to categorize it as romantic rather than fantasy) which, my cousin (aged 14) taunted is to be read only by teens  . But I think there should be no restriction on the kind of book you read. I have started with Harry potter when I was in graduation and I know of many grown up people still reading “Tintin”. Nowadays I love reading books which includes biographies and auto biographies. I am getting old I think ;). I haven’t got a good book to read from quite some time. As they say “To choose a good book, look in an inquisitor’s prohibited list.” So, I asked my colleague to help me with selecting books for my weekend and here is what I got:





















That place that does contain
My books, the best companions, is to me
A glorious court, where hourly I converse
With the old sages and philosophers;
And sometimes, for variety, I confer
With kings and emperors, and weigh their counsels;
Calling their victories, if unjustly got,
Unto a strict account, and, in my fancy,
Deface their ill-placed statues.
~Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher

Happy Reading ;)

Confession of a Tea-a-holic

Has it ever occurred to you that your mornings just don’t start without a hot cup of tea? Or you just wait for clock to stuck 3 so that you can have your favorite brew after lunch? or you feel that something is missing if you don’t get your favorite cuppa in the evening. So, if you suffer from any of the above syndromes then surly you are a tea-a-holic .

My tryst with tea started when I was doing my post graduation. A hectic 9-8 schedule, sleepy lectures and time outs with friends made me addictive to it. This really surprised my mom, since, living in a place which has coldest winters never made me fall for it. A lot of contribution goes to my friends who just laughed off the very first time I told them “I don’t drink tea” and that was the last time I said it. So much so, that me and my roomie E used to go to small Tapri (popularly known as Dilip Bhau ki tapri) outside our college to get the best cutting for just Rs. 3.Being in Bangalore has deprived me of my favorite brew. Firstly, the tea doesn’t taste tea over here and secondly it’s damn too expensive. I even tried switching to filter coffee but still it couldn’t replace my dearest tea.
Though, it doesn’t enjoy the kind of attention its half sister coffee enjoys with lots of dedicated coffee chains and numbers of television shows on its name but still, there would surely be some of these “tea moments” in everybody’s life:
-Nonstop tea and nonstop chats in canteen
-During exams, when tea along with sugar and milk powder will be stocked to help you
stay awake for late hours.
-Having tea and looking at the rain outside your window
-Having Batata/Kaanda Bhaji with hot cuppa tea in a cold evening


Also,if you are bored off meeting your friends over a cup of coffee at some suburban coffee outlet then try “Cuppa”. It is an outlet dedicated specifically for tea lovers. It boasts of 32 varieties of tea ranging from exquisite Assam and Sri Lankan tea to our very own cutting and masala tea. Don’t forget that tea has its health benefits too. So, a cuppa or two won’t do any harm. Cheers to all tea lovers!!

A little voice against domestic violence

I asked my friends to read this poem before I put it on my blog. After reading a few lines they stopped. Some stopped when I told them it’s about domestic violence. Some said it’s too sad, some said it’s too negative. But have we ever thought about them who go through this nightmare almost every day.
I was just going through various blogs when I reached this blog http://indianhomemaker.wordpress.com/2009/10/26/is-a-known-devil-really-better/ and read that article, thereby deciding that I would write about it. But more than writing, this sensitive topic need a lot of support from all of us. Join hands with “bell bajao “campaign to show that you care.

It started,
After that “live happily ever after”
Assaulting my soul, robbing my laughter.
I remember your first slap and the day I got hit,
I thought it’s just an anger bout and you didn’t mean it,
But it shattered my dreams of a happily married life.
That was the first time when I died.

Then started what they call domestic violence and abuse,
My bruises and scars say everything which my tongue refused.
I walked to my parents and begged for refuge,
Just think of our reputation and your siblings was their excuse.
They told me by time my suffering will subside,
That was the second time when I died.

I waited and hoped that it will get over,
May be a baby will make him a bit sober.
I realized I was wrong when he hit me again,
But I couldn’t cry this time as my baby will see my pain.
I have to bear this for his sake,
He needs a father my life is already a wreck.
Tears blurred my eyes and I silently cried,
That was the third time when I died.

Here I lay in a big white room,
Waiting for what everybody call doom.
They came and sympathized that I will die,
But it seems so better then my SOS cries.
They don’t know that I have died so many a times,
This physical death will lead me to divine.
Where I would have no obligations no sacrifice,
I can live what they call life.

Pic courtesy:http://bellbajao.org/resources/

His Name Is Khan And He Is Not A Terrorist

Watched “My name is khan” this weekend. I hated it’s comparison with Forrest Gump and Shahrukh’s comparison with tom Hanks in the reviews which I read before watching this movie. I am not saying that it is nowhere close to the movie, of course it is (which half of the Bollywood movie are) but if you will watch this movie keeping Forrest Gump in your mind , you will never be able to enjoy it. That’s what I did and regretted. BTW I didn’t intend to write a review here so I better be silent in this regard.
This is about Shahrukh and his controversy with "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named". We live in a democracy and have got freedom of speech which entitles everyone with the right to say whatever he/she believes, unless, it defames someone. If Shahrukh commented something about the inclusion of Pakistani players in IPL, it’s totally his point of view. It doesn’t make him insensitive towards his country or moreover a traitor. As for "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named”, you have also been given the right to protest but in a manner which shouldn’t harm anybody. It doesn’t mean that you keep on threatening people, government and multiplex owners if they wouldn’t succumb to your demands. Coming to twittering now. Shahrukh, you need not twitter it every time that you are an Indian, a Mumbaikar and a patriot. Like all of us you belong to this country and everybody knows that. By emphasizing this again and again you are just giving “He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named” another chance to question your integrity. Just stand by your opinion and make them realize that your name is khan and you are not a terrorist.

Mile Sur Mera Tumhara

It’s been a long time since I last watched this song and then I watched it yesterday in an entirely new format. This is one song that would be remembered by almost everybody from our generation. The generation who grew up by viewing Doordarshan (if not fully but at least initially, before the advent of cable). Who can forget”Baje Sargam”, “ Ek chidiya” or audio track of “Malgudi days”, “Jungle book” , “Karmanye (Mahabharata)”? These songs still remains in the heart of millions of people especially “ Mile Sur mera tumhara”.I knew the song by heart that time, even though it was in different languages and so does my PG friends . I can easily sense it because as soon as the new version of the song was aired for the first time in Zoom yesterday, all of us were glued to the idiot box and started singing it (though in bits and pieces).

Everybody was excited and was recalling old times. Though the new version has the same lyrics but still it has a new feel and obviously new faces. My P.G. is a mini India by itself, with girls from all parts of country. So, whenever the lyrics from a particular region will come, girls from that state will start singing that part. But the best part was me singing the Marathi part though not being a Marathi or my roommate from Karnataka singing the Bengali part. I think, that is the magic of this song, a perfect example of national integrity and unity in diversity. I still love the older version but felt it was a nice initiative on the sponsor’s part to have recreated the magic again. I don’t know if schools nowadays still have “ Saare jahan se accha “ in the morning assembly , or if our younger generation still remember our national anthem by heart. At least, by this way we cherished this particular song one more time.

Lemon Fresh: With Mom

Scene: Me reading Linda Goodman's Sun sign,Mom drinking tea.

I said cheerfully "Ma , my sun sign says i can cook better then French chef".
Mom said "Cook daal first then learn French Cuisine"

Weighty Issues

Ok, so I was trying on my dress which I had bought for my birthday this year (oops last year I should say)and found that it doesn’t fit me anymore( I think the correct sentence would be that I didn’t fit into it). No, my reaction was not of shock, I was actually expecting it :( .
So how did I add these extra pounds? Thanks to:

1. Work (and it’s not workout) = Weight
This hypothesis does not require any scientific or theoretical research. It’s proved. My workplace is very much conducive to my overeating, how? Thanks to my extended hours at my workplace, like other cubicle dwellers I had my breakfast at lunch, lunch at snacks time, snacks at dinner and dinner on my bed. Then add gallons of tea/coffee to this and it’s done. You just added some hundreds calories more.

2. Sweets at my desk
So, if you don’t know it, this is the common mail sent for celebrations like “engagement, anniversary, just back after a vacation” and then there is highly occurring and most sought after “chocolates at my desk” not for any celebrations but since you have just returned from abroad. And why to say no to these yummy sweets? So add some more 100s of calories for that.

3. Lets meet up over a cup of coffee
So you are meeting your friends. And what’s the commonest meeting zone? None other than coffee shops. Indulge in gossips with a cup of sinful coffee adding just a few extra ounces to your weight. And by the way did you say “with extra chocolate syrup, scoop of ice-cream and hint of whipped cream”. Here it goes from ounces to pounds.

4. You love Chicken
You love chicken but you have to wait till weekend to have it (condition applies: Only if you are like me, surviving on dabba for dinner and veggie menu for lunch) so what will you do? You will HOG like a pig. And I need not tell calorie count for this ;)

5. Chocolate helps chocolate heals:
Chocolate is a great stress buster and mood lifter. So, are you having a foul mood or has tons of work to finish? Angry on your friends or does your boss reprimanded you? Just grab a chocolate and entire wrath will melt like chocolate in your mouth. Uummmmm BTW did they say that it’s dark chocolate which helps? Doesn’t matter it’s one and the same thing (including calories).

Welcome 2010

It's my first post for year 2010 Yipee..... Happy New Year to all my blog buddies!!!So, a flashback to year 2009 for me- It was pretty uneventful year except for few moments like I completed a year on my job and started my blog. There were some sweet and some sour moments and then there were some regrets. Sweet, will be cherished forever and sour won’t be remembered forever. As for regrets, “ it wouldn't be New Years if I didn't have regrets.” ~William Thomas. As for resolution I believe “Never tell your resolution beforehand, or it's twice as onerous a duty.” ~John Selden. Especially, when they are meant to be broken ;).

But with the advent of new year I make it a point to read my horoscope ( I Know it’s too superstitions but who don’t want to know what will happen in the coming years ;) Though, at the end of it you find that 80% of things didn’t happen or matched as per your horoscope prediction). The second thing which I look forward to is the quota of holidays for the year, which, sadly is only 6 holidays this year:(.

Bye Bye 2009 and Welcome 2010.To make an end is to make a beginning.