CHEERS

A picture from my photoblog,and the most common thing served in Bangalore restaurants!!!

If you are amongst the lucky few for whom a glass full of spirits can elevate spirits and induce happiness,then why not,go ahead and capture the elusive happiness,in your glass.Except,when the glasses are empty,you should know where to go,and where your car was parked.Yes….but it is what you are the ‘morning after’ ,which is the test of a real man……(err woman)It's not whether you are able to stand your drinks , but ,whether you can still stand after you had your drinks…..whether you are 'man' enough to decide that you are not fit to drive back home…And can still remember the name of that pretty girl/cute guy, you met in the party last night, depends entirely on ‘how spirited you are’ in the true sense….”

Don't drink like there's no tomorrow,because there always is a tomorrow, and a hangover,especially when you have to go to work the next day(and if you don't remember anything,there's always your wife to narrate the gory details......)

and if you are gifted like me,who can get drunk and feel on top of the world with just a glass of water,stay that way because who needs a glass full of spirits….when we're already high on life......


cheers..burp...hic

happy 2008

P AND ME

Unarguably,this picture is one of my favourites,(Although I have managed to look a little more presentable in a lot of others).At six in the morning,with a rumbling tummy,threatening to rumble loud enough for everyone to hear,being held back and not allowed to go into the sea,(even though i convinced my friends that i could swim) ,the mangalore humidity giving your sweat glands a spin,a ton of sand in my hair and a huge tear running down my 3/4's,I certainly look anything but presentable!!!!!!!

the reason being ,it manges to capture me when I'm just me,no other designations like a mother or a wife,and that happens when you are with the friends(a friend) you love.It isn't easy to find many instances where you can be yourself(much as we argue) and there aren't too many pictures which can capture you,when you smile,into the camera, because you are happy.

But,what it also captures is the chemistry between MATHS AND ENGLISH.

well,words and numbers always didn't share this chemistry and history and Vidya Valley school has been a witness to sparks that flew,when words clashed with numbers.

Five years back,here i was thrown into the middle of the (sharks)school session,into a class full of kids who were sour at their previous teacher having left them mid way,and to top it all, the friendly colleague,Padma(the lady in question),was anything but friendly,trying desperately to COVER the syllabus,and fighting tooth and nail with the P.ED teacher,who had done the heinous crime of taking her class for games,when the exams were literally hanging over the entire school.Although,she spoke Marathi ,hindi and english with equal ease,she chose to torture me by (mis)communicating in marathi and in spite of reminding her several times,that MARATHI YEIT NAHIN(I can't speak marathi),she couninued to do so,till the time she turned around to tell me blatantly,' go and learn the language'.

I was mighty impressed with her dedication and her stamina to fight though,fight for the fact that Marie biscuits are lunch,Richard Gere is the most handsome man alive,how to stay silent and still fight and be stubborn,teachers are not boring,especially maths and biology teachers,and fight and lose and still be a winner in life,when life gangs up against you.

the rest they say is history,and although people say it isn't a coincidence that i chose to come to Bangalore,when padma was in mangalore,i choose to call it destiny.There aren't too many times,and too many people,being with whom, you don't have to be told 'Say cheese',to capture your smile and happiness.

REACHING ACROSS

If anyone in Bangalore gives you directions in terms of distance i.e kms, then either they are new or possess a sadist streak in them (as they don’t want you to reach your destination).

In Bangalore, distances in kms have lost their value and time taken has become a more valid tool for measurement. In fact travel directions acquire theatrical dimensions (timings).Between 8-10, you would reach in 2 hrs (anything below 2 hrs is not considered TRAVEL in Bangalore) 12-2(1 hr...and this is fast diminishing, because the myth of traffic easing out in the afternoons is now a thing of the past, coz the only ones who nap in the afternoons are the friendly cowboy policeman and the traffic lights themselves)and between 6-8 ,you should believe in an old Chinese saying…"It's not the finishing point, but the act of travelling which is important" (there’s no one who can predict when you will reach during this time).

The diminishing gardens are sad reminders of the city which was once known as a garden city, and is now as infamous for its traffic snarls as it is for its’ humongous IT giants. Travelling still petrifies me, thanks to the maze of one ways that pop up weekly at one place and miraculously disappear the other. At such times the humble auto comes to your rescue and it’s a relief to be driven, than drive. It’s easy to remain fit if you are a regular traveler, as the emission from the vehicles serves as an appetite suppressant, chocking you at every red light and leaving you with a queasy feeling at the end of it.

And under such conditions, you learn to forgive (but not forget) your friends, who you know are reeling under the pressure and the grind, and when you meet…. ice cream before dinner and movies just become an excuse, rather a means to reach across. In Bangalore, if you can find the time to catch your friends and catch up with them, its nothing short of a miracle.

13 isn't that odd

On a cold foggy winter morning ,13 years back,I played the biggest gamble of my life.At 20 1/2,I had no stakes to choose..... nothing to lose,no high profile job and gorgeous salary to lure me,no burning ambition of hitting the best educational institutions,no pushy parents to taunt and torture me(sometimes though they did) about studying hard and harder.Actually,I wasn't thinking straight,but was wondering,why this handsome man who sat beside me, had asked me to marry him,when we were as different and apart in personalities as probably,one and zero. Skeptics on both sides of the family gave it 'not more than six months' and they probably gave up speculating after that .....

So ,you think (like everyone else),that it's love that makes you want to write your whole life off ,change your name,leave your family,friends,city,roots and get set to live a life which demands a change of place every few months(i have moved a total of 12 places,in 13 years)
Well,if you are still single and happy,then you would attribute it to the phenomenon called LOVE,but those who have been through the ire and fire,will agree,that love is too light a word ,when one thinks of what keeps people going and keeps them happy in a marriage.A lot of fuss is made about anniversaries, especially,thanks to the numerous ads that crop up,fortunately anniversaries are(NOT) about being perched atop a luxury liner,with a candle lit dinner and a huge diamond......(they should censor such ads,for they cause severe domestic violence and irreparable damage to a woman's heart and mind) ,instead they are about celebrating love and togetherness,something which perhaps we tend to replace by gifting a diamond.Love changes and evolves as we grow old and I realized its a beautiful evolution.

love is, celebrating birthdays,with a candle perched on a pastry,because the salary never arrived that month,and one was too proud to ask for help!!!!


love is, when you tell him,it's O.K..we have no job...and will have no job and salary for the next eight months and though the bills will keep coming, we still have each other.

love is forgetting your wife's birthday,and being forgiven for that.


love is to think with your heart and tell your head,for love is irrational and illogical and cruel and angry,especially when you are having an argument.


whoever said love is, never having to say sorry,probably was a divorce lawyer.......because it's about saying sorry,to the people who matter, its better to be sorry than feel sorry later!!!


The (bitter) truth is something I said 15 yrs ago,to my husband( sitting on the steps of Nirulas,in Chanakya Puri),love is being in a room with someone and feeling that love is in the air,marriage is being in the same room,and watching love fly out from the window(he was probably impressed at the wisdom I possessed at 18!!!)and asked me to marry him..... but sadly that was the last time I displayed any sign of wisdom!!!!),love doesn't fly out,I realized, it just acquires a new meaning,with time.Love is blind and foolish,but even after 13 years ,it still makes my world go round.

serve,shot.....I'm smashed!!!!

When you go to play,leave your bag of excuses at home.......

"I've never played,in school or college...."

"I've never been a sporty kind of person,I prefer the gym...."

"I have just started learning....."

with every excuse my opponents smashed me harder than ever...

It was probably all those afternoons of playing(being pampered) with a friend,which gave me the over confidence to lend myself to a group of ladies who play badminton,every morning......how good can they be??or I'm not that bad!!!!!I thought vainly to myself !!

If I ever believed that over confidence kills......I could see myself being slaughtered.Blood was all over the court especially, burning hot like shame and embarrassment on my face....I rummaged through my bag of excuses,but was tongue tied......luckily my opponents were much softer than their serves and their shots....."you'll pick up"...don't worry,they consoled me.I felt like a patient with an incurable disease ,don't worry you'll live....

If that wasn't enough,my family took pity and started extending training sessions over the weekends....If i dreaded the weekday mornings,in anticipation of shame and humiliation,the weekend was time for my confidence to shatter(once again)....for my belief that"husbands are the worst instructors " was proved just right(again)

as he smashed my ego and confidence across the court,the others playing adjacent left in a hurry sensing a rise in the mercury(literally)....I had a feeling he was taking revenge for all the minor and major domestic squabbles,we must have ever had(man's only chance to get even!!!)

I realised that apart from the (excuses) mentioned above,a major part of the problem lay in the fact that the rules of the game went against my very fabric and thought process ....

1.play the game at two levels...one in your mind and the other on the court(are you kidding I can't even cook and chop at the same time....

2.pounce on your opponents weak points,thrash her when and where she least expects it(and i can begin when I'm through getting thrashed.....can barely take my eyes off the shuttle)

3.Be unpredictable,don't let your opponent know about your next move or serve(well,it's hard for me to change..i love being predictable and easy!!!!)

3.Play to win....and only win(any team I'm in....loses.....and it is not a coincidence !!!)

end result

my knees cry for mercy,

my ego is fractured,

I dream(at night) of being at the badminton court and winning two out of three games,

I have started watching sports channels(in the hope of catching tips on the sport)

I'm smashed.....but not certainly not defeated!!!!!

SHALLOW WITHIN

I saw 'Shallow hal' yesterday.
I saw 'Shallow Hal' yesterday AGAIN !!!!

Well,I guess it can be counted as a criminal offence in the court of the time gods,as watching a rerun when you have two almirahs to fix,two unfinished books(to read),uncooked vegetables begging to be cooked(slaughtered),loads of blogs to be read and a houseful of chores ....is criminal enough.But I guess,one can pamper oneself sometimes.the best thing about watching a rerun is,you begin to analyse movies to an extent which would shock the poor director.You begin to see it a new light,as if one is going to be paid handsomely to judge and comment on it.But,then its a free world,and blogging gives me an opportunity to express it.

The movie in question -Shallow hal is a story about altered perceptions, a hilarious romantic comedy ,about how a shallow Jack(hal) black,who is always on the lookout for the Perfect 10 kind of hottie woman and,is dehypnotized by a self help guru,to see the inner beauty of women, rather than their superficial outer appearances…and thus it helps him find his match in a 250 pound Paltrow.(u have to see the movie to enjoy it completely)





It left me thinking about how all of us are a little shallow Hal within and have programmed our minds to approve or reject people purely on their physical appearances….a facet that is strangely god given(and a little credit can go to the beauty and grooming industry too…I guess)

“Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder” we have been taught to follow…but I often wonder how many of us have been gifted with those’ EYES”….which can perceive and accept the true beauty of a person …the one that lies deep within us and requires no paint and polish…

but, the truth is that appearances do matter… …..as more and more people……crave to fit in…..fit into tighter jeans…..a smaller size… painstakingly calculate and fit and pray for our bmi’s to fit into the normal category…. And try for the nth time to get into that college jean that has been retained for the day “I fit…….”
No wonder the beauty industry makes whopping profits, helping people realize their BIG dream of being SMALL……
Somewhere in this race of smaller is better, we forget to see our real inner self in the mirror.
We forget to fit into a more humane world……forget to lend a helping hand when we aren’t asked…..smiling when others aren’t…..saying sorry wen we should….giving an elderly person our place in the line at the supermarket….holding the door for someone……saying good morning before others can ……..


It also left me thinking if like the character of Hal in the movie…..who sees the waifish Paltrow…instead of her weighty real self…if the world could be transformed just for one day into a place…where everyone who was a beautiful person ‘within’ could be transformed into a stunning beauty……..thus exposing the façade of .......
“the beauty fool” .

On one such day,Where do you think, would you find the most beautiful people in the world…

any guesses!!!!!

celebrating children

It's really easy to make children happy....believe me....it is !!!!

just do something that will surprise them,something, that they just don't expect you to do.As a teacher,i have often surprised my students,on several children's day functions,by putting up awkward and amateurish shows as a choreographer,dancer,singer,fashion model and actor.At all times, the sight of their teacher in another role,just freaked them out.I interrogated a lot of kids in my apartment complex,on the 14th, about how their children's' day went by,sadly none of them,sounded content !!!I missed being at school,and seeing their bright faces.

In two days time Santosh had my scooter purring like a content cat.At fourteen, he knew more about two wheelers,than a forty year old experienced mechanic.Santosh,worked at 80 rs a day and he wasn't complaining.He had never been to school,his only learning being in the garage ,working almost 8-10 hrs a day and was proud of the fact that he supported his family.

When i asked him,if he knew ,that today 14th was children's day,he said, that was for kids in school and that he wasn't a child anymore.At that time,it was hard to believe that he was just fourteen.I guess he was right,because he wasn't doing anything that a child of his age should have been doing.As i was about to take his picture,he stopped me with his question,'why are you taking my photo,aunty?'I, who am always ready with my bag full of answers,had to think for a while,and told him,that i was writing a story, and that he was the hero of my story.
i think i told him the truth....not a story,the kind that we usually tell,to avoid and ignore questions that children put up to us.

Mayank,age twelve years celebrated his birthday,the same evening,and the celebrations were certainly the talk of Brigade millennium.With a party happening at two levels,with two different themes and two different D.j's,two different sets of menu's, and loads of games.It was every kids dream come true.I don't really blame his parents,like all modern over enthusiastic parents, they were simply using the depth of their pockets,to display their love to their kid (and the rest of the world).

what is it that separates these two children,almost the same age,and puts them in stark opposite lives.Money one would say......i think,it's a bigger word called, DESTINY....

I wonder if Santosh knows about, how children like Mayank celebrate their birthday....I hope he never finds out......

i wonder if Mayank knows,how Santosh spends his day......I hope his parents show him someday.

IT WAS RAINING 'BOWS'

One is lucky,when....

After a heavy storm....

there appears a rainbow...for nature proves time and again that, none of her services come as a guaranteed package deal.....

and that 'ek ke saath ke free',exists in nature too...

in true diwali (commercial)spirit and style ......

(a rare occurrence of two rainbows....the second one to the left of the brighter one)

There are very few things left in this world that money can't buy,

for everything else,there's MASTER CARD

BUT sometimes you DO need a MASTER CARD ,to buy a camera to click such a brilliant moment !!!!!

the memory of those two rainbows,both at the same time...

PRICELESS....

thank you MASTER CARD !!!!