slice of life

A 'peaches n cream' complexion is what makes a person worth it. This is what I kept on hearing through out my growing up years. Born in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh and in a family which carried 'peaches n cream' genes and often complemented for just the right complexion, growing up did give me a tinted vision that white is lovely and beautiful and brown is not so nice. What is fed into mind in your formative years does sit very rigidly in the corners of your mind. But then apart from schooling and absorbing learnings from the environment, Life itself is the biggest teacher. Soon I was meeting people who were not so white yet very nice! Very sadly, in this age and time also, we pay huge attention to the skin color. Beauty is skin deep and so is the heart and brain. What IQ a person holds, what talent he or she harbours and how congenial or warm the person is, has nothing to do with the color of the outer covering we have..a very simple fact yet so convenien...

Just a week back, our very revered Defense Minister Nirmala Sitharaman takes a 45 minute Sukhoi sortie from Jodhpur airbase and now on this 69th Republic day parade, the all women contingent from BSF completely slole the show with their daredevil act. Nothing absolutely nothing could stop me from  applauding these true brave and spirited women doing wonderful formations on the bikes, which used to be a complete male domain till now. There was 'peacock' , 'Bull fighting' , yoga and ASEAN flag holding by these incredible women soldiers. Applauded widely and wildly by the spectators, these women made this Republic day parade really special. There is no stopping now and the cheers for women showing more grit and a brave spirit is just bound to grow. Hurray!

The enigmatic bollywood impacts and it is the other way round too. The grandeur and charisma of our Indian cinema touches all of us counciously or subcounciously. Trends and fads generate from here in a big way. The big screen experience which is visually alluring and a feast for eyes with myriad of emotions makes an enchanting pot-pourri. Not long ago a hit from bollywood factory essentially had the leading actors grooving in the exotic foreign locales. Europe with its classic brick paved roads and old world style buildings would prove to be a perfect backdrop for our 'masala' dance numbers. How can the swiss alps be forgotten where the leading lady can be seen gyrating to romantic numbers in skimpiest of clothes leaving the audience gaping wide mouthed with her beauty and also making a bold statement that yes she is ready to titillate her hero and also the audience by braving this sub-zero temperature! Not any more...our very own Indian cinema has gone local and truly Ind...

'Wo kehte hain na dosti mein no sorry no thank you'..very filmi line and probably mouthed a billion times between friends and between those who want to be more than friends! However, as grown ups how often and how meaningfully we say 'Sorry'? We do say it  as part of a formal conversation just like excuse me but most of us don't mean it. If you ponder a little, you will realise that it is very difficult to say a real sorry, actually accepting our mistake and then communicating our remorse for it. Most of us won't do that... kids and very young kids who learn a 'sorry' and 'thank you' the earliest and easiest say it at the drop of a hat. Mind you they do understand it's real meaning too. But then would say it. My 3 year old daughter knows when to say sorry like when she has accidently brushed past me, if she drops something, upon a burp etc etc. Very interestingly will even say a sorry on our behalf when it's actually the parent's tu...

From a complete non-coffee person to the one who is craving coffee every morning, Life does throw surprises. You never know what you have never tried or done before, may just be something making you a conformist. I still get those anxiety pangs after having that brew cuppa but still nothing in this world is stopping me relish the world's favorite breakfast beverage! Life is too short not to cherish the good things that it throws. Catch and voila experience the bliss. It all started with hanging out at the plush coffee bars which our modern India finds in abundance at every nook and corner. Choosing a corner with a warm read in your hands and melodious tracks in air does boost productivity (creativity in my case as the writing starts flowing out and yes I don't mind!). Still not the one to comprehend the actual difference between a Latte and a Mocha, I try many different coffee flavours. Yes, Affogato which is pure black coffee with ice-cream on side and conpanna and very old ...

Those rather cold yet very delectable off- white idlis in her tiffin was the reason for my fondness for this tall and dark but very attractive south Indian girl or her intelligence and top academic position in the class is something I can't be sure of. She was my best friend till class IV. Apart from being inseparable throughout the day, lunch break used to be very special and worth a wait for both of us...her tiffin alternating between white button like idlis and soft brown dosai, the taste and aroma of either of which I have not forgotten till now, used to land in my hands whereas my peas pulao or aloo ka paratha used to be her favorite.  Surprisingly my favourite non staple still remains idli and dosa and end up eating these two invariably when going out for a quick bite. Wherever I have taken a bite of these two legendary food items, my taste buds instantly go into a throwback mode and start reminiscing that aroma and taste found in my first best friend's tiffin. H...