LOOKING FOR MAYA

In which we realize IT'S A SHAME

2011-11-30T08:07:00.000Z

It's really a shame when last few posts on the blog begin with ''Its been long I have posted ,but promise I will do more often here on''.From almost-conversations with my bunch of loyal blog readers to peeping into the blog just to see for the heck of looking at it, the journey has been painful. I was looking for a sign for a while, I was pondering about what to write about for a while and I was going through blaahhhh,I have nothing interesting to write phase for a while too. But,all these months of direction less being have taught me a thing or two.

I am at my happiest best when I do things I love. Read that as blogging,travelling,recording and connecting with people in my life. I realized that I hadn't spoken to few close friends in months. There is a reason for that. that will make for another post ,another day. But let me just say that sometimes, tragedies have a way with you. They shift the epicenter of your life,without any warning and in my case , my low point left me totally numb.I just realized while typing this ,that I am not ready to talk about it yet. So to bring back my self, I called certain people ,good friends, my best friends/cousins , they were upset that I cut them off ,not because they felt neglected ,but because I chose suffering alone. Hasani, a dear friend asked me if this is how I would abandon if she would be in trouble ever. We both knew the answer to that. I would lay my life as shield for my loved ones. There , the moment I said it, I knew what was wrong with me. I created a void ,kept staring at it , did not allow any one to fill it with love and kept rotting in it. Yes, that pretty much sums up what I have been doing for almost 10 months.

Not anymore, I told myself. This feeling ,it feels like a fresh whiff of cool breeze that hits you when you open the windows.and yes its bought in so much of energy , that I guess I should be doing as many things I can ,that I missed out during this yr.

For now, I am living in Mumbai , the city that never sleeps they say. I haven't done much in the city , but soon I will be moving to Hyderabad . So I hope I can catch up on loads of things-to-do before I say ''I used to live in Mumbai'' . Also,hopefully , I sustain this energy and hope and share my journey with you. Adios till I see you next . Much love

Cupid has to strike again !!

2011-10-15T15:33:00.007+01:00

It was such an important meeting.She thought it was unusual that the venue was Coffee Day.Nevertheless , braving the traffic and heat of Hyderabad , she reached the place, almost on time.The cold air pricked her face the moment she entered the cafe.She joined the editor,also a friend's friend, who was meeting her today to discuss the possibility of publishing her book.Coffee and muffins were ordered and real numbers formed the major part of their conversation now.As ideas and words were rolling,the editor seemed to be in awe of this young girl.He was almost mesmerized by the depth of her kohl rimmed eyes,the ethnic look and the happy smile.It was not rare that he met interesting and interesting looking people, but there was something unusual about the way she was. Also looking at her in the same light was a young man seated two tables next from her and the editor. Only , she could sense his heartbeat and not the editor's.As the young man was staring at her beautiful face , she could not ignore him either. There was nothing spectacular about him.A simple looking guy , moderately dressed , he was until then crunching numbers on his laptop.The breeze that the girl brought in when she entered left him breathless and he stopped everything he was doing.There was something very endearing about her for him and she was fighting glimpses of all the faces she had ever seen all her life to recollect who he was , as he seemed utterly familiar. The lust filled editor gave her enough information and the purpose of the meeting was served. The young man thought she was with the editor and started building a story around them in his mind , sipping his coffee. The girl was glad the meeting was almost done as she had made up her mind to walk up to the young man to talk to him.But thats when the young man was joined by his colleague ,a girl who sat next to him and began talking only after planting a not-just-friendly peck.She instantly coined them a couple just as the young man thought that she and the editor were a couple too.They just exchanged hopeful glances , stared at each other for a moment and went on with their respective meetings and lives.

Cupid , who was dressed as a waiter that afternoon at Cafe Coffee Day thought ''I cannot believe I have to make their paths cross again !!!!''

This was on WriteUpCafe almost a year ago.

Where we get mentioned in a newspaper

2011-06-20T17:41:00.000+01:00

Loads of things happened in the last 6 months ( I have mentioned that before ,haven't I ) .I promised myself I will not let my blog get orphaned. I have been micro-blogging though , however in my own view that does not count.So heres what happened when I started literally tweeting things I thought. I got in touch with some really good people , connected on various things. One of them was Health and fitness . One thing led to another and I ended up writing an article for www.bigloserindia.com . It was thrilling because loads of people related to what I had to say and the general feedback was ENCOURAGING. The url for my write up is http://bigloserindia.com/2011/05/blotw-beemuzed/ .Check it now .

So this then tiny cause/effort gathered momentum when lot of twiteratti followed the website and eventually Mumbai Mirror , sat up and noticed us. That got us noticed and got us in a Sunday edition. Do check this article NOW ...
http://www.mumbaimirror.com/article/82/2011061220110612102628734fdc61aa2/Penny-wise-pound-slimmer.html

Yes , that is my 15 minutes of fame for that weekend.My family and friends are absolutely thrilled.

Alrighty , will come back tomorrow and share more. For now , you show me that you care hence will share this.

Check list for a Chick lit

2011-06-11T06:54:00.000+01:00

The central character is all of the following and more :

A damsel confused , mostly in distress.

Pining for a cheating ex.

Works for a magazine or a PR company.Whaattt, how else will she meet people who she would bitch about with her BFFs??!!!!!

Usually has 2 or 3 BFFs and always has them on speed dial.The BFFs are the central support system for the girl. They usually have a pyjama party+movie nights or hang out at one particular bar regularly.One of them is always insecure or a man eater and to portray either , she smokes !!

Has some kind of OCD ( eg. cleaning,nagging , perfectly shaped nails).

Penchant for a particular accessory ( mostly shoes or bags).

Can rattle the names of all the designers at NYFW with the same ease as Chaucer's poems.

Has a crush either on Tom Cruise or Leonardo DiCaprio or Guru Dutt to show off the intelligent cinema enthusiast part !!

Has her ex-flame's name saved on mobile as stray dog or butt-face or lying cheating bastard.

Suddenly encounters a handsome,rugged and arrogant man. The perfect Darcy for the fictious Ms.Bennet.Darcy , by the way is usually accompanied by a gorgeous long legged mysterious girl.

Always has a nagging mother or aunt(mostly maasi) who is either a social worker or a religious person and who mostly appears at perfect time intervals to share some brain numbing gyaan.

The father does not always appear in the book. He has either remarried or died when the protagonist was a little girl.Thus portraying that she is a strong girl with deep insecurities on the inside.

And to give some kind of clarity about making a final decision in the climax, there is an absolute mundane , uninteresting, mamas boy kind of guy who she is set up with on a date by the nagging mother or aunt.

After a brief meeting with the mama's boy , she runs back to Darcy's arms ,the climax ,where all the misunderstanding about the long-legged dame melt with that one KISS !!

Voila , the skeleton for a perfect chick lit is ready !!!

Now are you going to give me more points or what ???

Image Courtesy : Cartoonstock.com

The DIALOGUE !!!!!

2011-05-19T22:19:00.003+01:00

Do you hate me

Hey where did that come from , of course I don't..

So do you love me

Why do you ask

When I asked if you hate me ,you were so sure you don't , why aren't you sure about love then

I..

You don't have to answer that now, but I will need one for this life , not love , the answer at least

Look , I guess we are going totally off the track here, the tiff was about ur parents and one thing led to another and now we are fighting , where does that bring in love or anything else.

It does boil down to love honey , I am a man ,its my instinct to fix things..

But I am nt something to be fixed.

So you agree some fixing is needed

Don't try playing with words , that is my area of expertise

I know ,that's why you were clever enough to say , I was trying to ..

Well , here we go off track again .. What do you want

Well I want to know what you want.

I DONT KNOW !!!!!

You cannot always not know .. Is it you don't know , or you cant tell me..

Okay , now that we are talking at 2 in the midnight , lets as well , sort this out ..

Sure , but what have I done..

There, I am not saying you have done something , or I haven't done anything,its just that we need to get through this.

Like get through what , me , you ? this marriage ??

Precisely , its been over 3 yrs , but I still wake up and sleep with the feeling that we shouldn't have got married !!!

What the hell !! BBBIIITTTTTTTCCCCCC

Wait, I can use cuss words better, but think about it , we knew each other for 6 yrs before we got married , had drifted apart several times , I found out about your other affairs , you said your mother doesn't like me and all that blah blah , but end of it, did we not just presume we are what are left for each other as choices and rushed into this marriage ??!!

hmmm..

I can bet my life and my entire family's life on this - We could have been best friends for life , had we put behind the rough patches of our relationship and stayed friends, as in without getting married.

Are u thinking of something very dire ??

May be , may be not ..I don't know

Don't say that again ..

Okay , you agree we made a mistake ??

Kind of , yea

You agree we could have been best friends ??

We still are !!!

No , we are not , we are like this 2 co-workers in an IT company during recession , who are trying to outdo each other to survive , pulling each other down ..this is not helping..

hmmmm

Don't hmmm now , its partly my mistake too , I agree , I always thought I wanted to get married .. but over these last few yrs , I know I am not meant for this , specially not into a family like yours !!!!

So you make this my family's fault..

Do you not see I am taking responsibility partly ..

okay go on , sorry

I bet , had we remained friends , we would have been each others rock solid support ..

I know , but why cant we do that now , we still live together !!???

That is exactly my point , a marriage is more than that , trust,passion,extreme understanding , blind faith ..and and much more ..I am not sure if you are all that to me !!

You realized that now ?? after 8 yrs of knowing me ??

At least I realized now !! You seem to be in a trance kind of denial ..

No I am not , am a practical man ..

You are, are you a realist too ??

Don't use your vocabulary on a cornered man ...

I am not , I am just asking you a simple question which could set us free , and you want to pretend everything is fine about it !!

OK , I agree , we could have been better friends , than man and wife ...

Silence

Silence

What do we do now ?????

Its always good to be back !!!

2011-05-17T10:39:00.001+01:00

I cant believe how nervous I am , typing this post , goddamn, this is my own blog and I cant be anxious like this !! I have been away for more than half a year !! And it seems a lot more to me,from ''Let me post this tomorrow to naah next week is when am free, let me draft then to ooh its been a month and I havent written a word to omigod I guess am forgotten to , now , How could I have stayed away from my blog for this looongg '' has been a real roller coaster ride in my life.

I have changed countries/continents in these 6 months

I have seen 2 deaths in the family.

I have lost something which can never be replaced.

I have found people who love me irrespective of what I do , where I am or how I am.

or Should I rephrase the above instead that I have realised who loves me irrespective of whatsoever.

I have missed meeting my best friend/almost an ex-lover by a whisker and probably can never meet for few more years.

I have kept a really low profile.

I know better about medical practices in India and UK.

I dread the ICU.

I hate the recession and its aftermath.

And with a lot more to come , I wish I had written a lot more all this along and connected with a few readers of mine a LOT MORE !!!!

a headless and a tail-less but colorful posttt

2010-09-16T01:04:00.004+01:00

Sometimes , in my head my blog is a cafe. A popular cafe where all of you , my readers are sitting around on not -so-fancy tables , tables with red and white checkered table cloth and a long stemmed plastic rose decorated on it ,in a thin vase.And all the rare odd times I log in , I find you lovely people smile and wave at me and I join conversations with you , conversations that are sometimes mundane , sometimes absolutely out of the world.I also like dissolving into my posts as if I have been part of some really interesting conversation.The reason for this could be my very little socializing skills and sometimes surfacing shy side of me. People who know me might actually pop their brain out at this statement and say''Bags , you and shy ???'' , but for all ye people , remember the first time you ever spoke to me , you did all the talking and I did a complete devoted listening.Its a different story that you have been listening to me ever since.

I have been so away on a sabbatical on and off last 2 months. I might want to list a) I was busy b) I was working and hence exhausted c) My laptop broke down *touches wood immediately* or d)I was plain lazy .. but my dears , the secret option is e)I have been ill , very often and hence the low tide in my verbal blurts.I am glad my sleep is off this night, cos the boy is sleeping maaast under the influence of ethanol which means I dont get cold and angry stares and on the spot lectures about how this will aggravate my migraine ... wickedddd

Thats me and Sasii

But , I am ok and better now and hence these rants.

I'm definitely not going to rant about my weekend trip though. I took a quick trip to Wales that I was waiting for , mentioned here(Skanda Vale, Cardiff and Wales Green bridge). I wished I never had to return to civilisation again. The place is thaaatttttt beautiful.I could so own a Bed&breakfast in a country side , write a book and live there happily ever after,provided God promises me high speed internet connection and a Starbucks in the neighborhood..Thats my latest fantasy about living life differently. Check the pictures and I bet you might want to do the same...

Servern Bridge

thats the boy doin BABA mudra, people who dont know that,lookup Rajnikanths BABA

Wales Green Bridge(Lime coast)

Riverside B&B

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You become the city ...

2010-09-06T19:32:00.004+01:00

Watching the drizzle , sipping a cuppa peppermint tea and loving the fact that this Monday was off is a super duper feeling.I hate Mondays and I know that if the week were to begin on Tuesday I would hate it all the more ..I was talking to a friend this morning and he reminded me of my days at Mumbai. This friend , Avi, is a guitarist/invetsment banker/travel freak all bundled in one.ooh also he has the most interesting tattoos.So ,amidst our how are you and wassup dude, he was asking me about this place called Kudal as he has plans to go there for the weekend. I quickly told him stuff I knew and he shared his travel plans ,a really short talk later we said byes , and then I remembered Avi lives in Mumbai now and gets to travel almost every other weekend venturing out and clicking like a trillion pics. I bet , I can never complete commenting the guys Facebook pics. Also I remembered that his language is all Mumbaiyya now. That struck me ..

Whatever city we live in , especially places like Mumbai ,London and Bangalore, which have a certain culture of their own , grow on people. They do. I know there are thousand other places , but I have lived at these places other than Hyderabad and I can pakka vouch for them .I remember that pyaaz becomes kaanda in Mumbai , speed breaker becomes hump in Bangalore and any distance becomes baaju mein ichcch in Hyderabad. Also one thing common between London and Mumbai is ''My train leaves exactly at 7.47 , I better walk faster , its already 7.38'' I would have laughed out aloud , had someone said this in Hyderabad.And in UK , its never Hi or Hey , its '' You okay ??!!'' which I hated and ridiculed.And now people around me tell me I have begun starting conversations like that now .Me no likes it .

So my dear , you okay ???

Ooh by the way , my training(the technical part) is all done for the Radio DJing .. My show would be called SHOWSTOPPER , I was given the option of choosing the name.And the theme of my show will be Fashion-Lifestyle-Health tips thats why the name is SHOWSTOPPER , geddit geddit ?? no ?? Fashion - radio SHOW -SHOWSTOPPER, of course the show will revolve around Bollywood songs and any other genre of English music.I want to go with Rock , whats you suggestion?? Also ..sshhhh .no one ever tells people that I suck at giving health tips , wouldn't I have cured my insomnia ..duh !!! I am gonna try and sound all diva like , so listen up and pls pls pls give me feedback. I will very soon share the time and details of the website.Damn , I am too excited !!! I guess I will be live next week this time ... yayyy ..

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Isnt it a beautiful day and conversations like that .....

2010-09-01T18:05:00.001+01:00

Is something wrong with Google chrome right now ?? Cos Firefox is not letting my signature stay and this post will not have my name in the end.Nevertheless , about things that matter and have been happening and that I remember right now !!!

I completed 3 yrs of being hitched . 3 goddamn years. Do you know how many light years that accounts to , for someone like me , a commitment phobic ??

The boy's cousin ,Sasi , who previously made appearance in UK and my blog here , is back from India ..yayy ..also yayy to the pickles,my chunk jewellery and couple of kurtas that mom sent across.

I have a televison. finally. Its been really long I owned one in UK.The boy kind of made sure it got delivered on the anniversary.So now its time for all these -- TV check , License- check and Cable connection-Check. I hate developed countries for this.Back in India , the cable would have been dangling in the living room harmlessly and one telephone call to the local cable operator and I would have had my favourite show up and running right now !!

I have been trying to upload pics taken during ISKCON Rath Yatra.Because I dont have a camera , I had clicked using my baby , LG Viewty Phone.The bad news is , for some reason the PC connecting cable is acting funny and because I am a zilch at technology I dont know what to do. Any suggestions ?? Dont ask me to buy another chord.Time constraints people !!!

One of my best friends has moved to Switzerland and wants us to visit.Its like baaju mein ichch , in Hyderabadi !!!

I watched Lord of the rings and Magadheera in the new TV, which by the way is Samsung LCD 32 inches , 4 series.I even love the goblins. Though LOTR is a little too much violence and too much detail for my taste and patience. I want to watch a good movie , romantic comedy , visually stunning .. any suggestions ??? ( again !! )

I have plans of going to Skanda Vale this month, which is a good 4 hr drive from where I live.The longest I would travel in UK I guess btw. Its a little spiritual treat I promised myself few months ago.

Ooh , by the way this is Shravan , the month where women/girls have loads of pujas and vrat to do every Friday and Tuesday. I have one to attend at one of my friend's place.I miss the buzz about Shravan back from home.

Hows things with you !!!????

P.S : Note to self : Don't flaunt gadgets ever again on the blog

cast away ...

2010-08-27T00:22:00.001+01:00

Not really stuck on an island with Wilson , not actually away from civilization , just not well ..:-( bouts of migraine strikes back and strikes back hard ..of course beside work and all that blah ..Thanks to Bik,Mals and Ramesh for enquiring if am alive or dead , ok sorry , they were nicer ..They actually askd if I was ok , being away so long from the blog. I know, I can never shut up ,and its a relief to know people are used to me blabbering.See thats how I get feedback that I am a cool Radio DJ as well !! As you can see I am scribbling at a really odd hour , I just couldn't stay away ,although I was totally tweeting with my blinded vision through phone..he he ... Well , I am back tomorrow , with loads to tell you , loads of picture updates as well..

You tell me , how has this week treated you , and wassup for weekend.

P.S : I hear its raining real bad in India (atleast in Hyd and Bangalore )
P.P.S : Autumn is unofficially on in UK and for some reason I am happy , though the cold winds here give me deadly migraine !! yea my woes never end. Do drop by tomorrow.

until tommorow , ciao , missed you guyss .. I do .. my fingers not crossed right now !!!

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Featured elsewhere ....

2010-08-19T21:48:00.003+01:00

I have been wanting to share this for more than a week now. So before am carried away with all the rants to come ( remember fridays my off and I get loads of time to scoop brains out !! ) here is the link ..also I found this. Not hilarious , just a perspective , but thank God it says this is how India sees the world and not vice-versa ...

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soo .. kind of moving on and awayy ..

2010-08-19T20:52:00.004+01:00

Its raining ... and I just polished off a plate of spicy avakai(Andhra Mango pickle ) mixed with rice ..pure bliss to get to enjoy flavors of home in this phoren land.How have you guys been. I will not bug you with my mundane life and quickly move onto what I probably should have elaborately scribbled in my last post.There seems to have been wee bit of misunderstanding there.When I say I am pissed , I am not sitting on a pile of firang currency and dreading being in India again. I love my home , wart and all. What I was mightily upset , I still am has to do with things like THIS.

And on the same topic ,people who lash out when someone points out to the state of affairs, how many people actually walk upto the polling booth and vote ,without fail ?? I have,voted that is. As citizens , the poor Aam janta ,thats the least that can be done.Also , if someone has actually watched the video I uploaded , it talks about all the greats of and from India. My simple (??) question is how long are we going to brag about things achieved.It is supremely important that we give due credit to the legends like Sushruta and Aryabhatta, agreed .But has anyone ever wondered why dont we have any of these anymore in today's India.There could be only few exceptions like Vinod Dham , who by the way never achieved the breakthrough in Pentium Chip being in India. Someone who applies for a government job and writes the UPSC exam waits for 2-4 yrs to actually grease palms and get recruited , inspite of being perfectly qualified, by the way. And there is no curb on who contests for elections.There is practically no bar on age or qualification.Sure thats a thing to be happy about. And now the shameless MP's want a salary hike.yea rite !!!

And what was the last nail in the coffin of my outburst ( or is it a bunch of nails ??) were the news about the CWG scam , MP's demanding hike and another addition yesterday was Raju getting a bail in the Satyam scam. A clean , corrupt free country seems more like an urban legend now.And to add something more , when a 6 yr old thinks that a basic amenity is not possible in this country , pay attention to what the budding generation is assuming or presuming about our own self . We do not need the world to notice that we had Common Wealth Games in India , and that too the most expensive ever.Chk this We need facilities , education, safety and security , better living conditions first.I will not dare shy away from the fact that events like this change the face of the country.But really , would you need a Gucci over 3 square meals?? In my view , all this hooplah is nothing more. Depriving the commons of meager meals(remember grains rotting in Punjab) and trying to bring in something as expensive as this , and that too not done the righteous way. Kalmadi , heard of him anyone ?? Khair , thats just the tip of this deep-shit-rooted iceberg .All in the name of development and advanced India. And a comment from anon who claims is my friend and is loathing that I am out of India and am talking all this ,honey , if you are my friend you know exactly how long I have been here and what my plans are !!!

Image Courtesy : http://www.hinduonnet.com/mp/

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Happy Independence Day ( really ??!!)

2010-08-14T23:33:00.001+01:00

My cousin , a little girl all of 9 yrs , once told me ''Akka , I wish India never got freedom .Atleast our village (my hometown ,a taluka in Karnataka ) would have had decent roads if British still ruled us''.My entire family laughed it away in a lighter vein. But the question still haunts me. We create this fantastic ,oh-our-culture-is-so-rich seeming glossy emotional commercials and promotions.The Oscar winners compose music , an award winning ad maker gives us goosebumps in a 30-60 second and we feel oh-so patriotic. All this seems so much more fake over the yrs.The mere thought of celebrations make me sad. What the fuck are we celebrating.I know I sound frustrated as one of my blog dosts rightly said , but being away from India leaves a total different taste in the mouth .Definitely not a pleasant one.

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Trespassers should be prosecuted .. but how

2010-08-13T20:02:00.002+01:00

I missed you guys and my blog more than you can imagine or probably more than you missed me .. but to make my weekend you might as well say ''aawwwwww I missed youuuu tooo'' .. say that with me AAAWWWWWW....

Alright , I have been MIA , plainly because work and other important blah blahs have kept me really exhausted , mind you not busy ,but exhausted.The heat was making me further cranky.Thank heavens that it rained and its all cozy and wonderful today.Okay , if you are from UK can you please tell me why the fuck arent there any ceiling fans..... am going all arrrghhhhhhhhhhh.

And now that I have also quickly calmed down , lets talk something that makes sense unlike my almost-vengeance-sounding-like blabber.Really, I have couple of things to ask. Has your email id ever been hacked ?? Last week I got a notification the moment I logged into my gmail , saying someone has accessed my account in USA (it was marked in red , just in case I dont look at it .. very apt btw !! ) and because that is an unusual activity on the account which has been around for 4 yrs I get the notification.I freaked out and quickly changed my passwords too. But it did make me feel vulnerable for a moment. I mean I store good data on my personal email.I think most of us do ..dont you ???

And guys , Booksneeze ships you books anywhere in the world. So thats cool aint it ..

Another thing I want to know is , aren't you missing the school days during The Independence Day.I do.I always do.The flag-hoisting, the songs,speeches and the sweets distribution and the great feeling of patriotism that would make you high and thinking until the quarter-term exams come and bite your ass and ruin the tempo.I ,as of now , am getting all nostalgic about August 15th , the visuals from Red Fort and the parades live on TV.But I have been so super pissed about so many things happening on Mere Desh ki dharti that the anger might overshadow the nostalgia and fondness. And the picture here isn't helping either.But I guess its better to look at the truth than live in pretensions.Phir bhi .. Bharat humko jaan se pyara haiinnnnn ... for people who dont know that .. chk this VIDEO..I have been hooked to this for more than 15 yrs and I still get goosebumps !!!! I am so totally talking about the music part.I will get into dissecting the movie some other time.

Image Courtesy : http://www.planetenjoy.com

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You guys raaakkkkk

2010-08-04T19:54:00.002+01:00

How much I loved that you guys gave such kool ( is not the right word I know )dimension of thought for the previous post is beyond your imagination ... Because the girl in question has been reading the comments over the last 2 days and wants to thank you all ...each one of you guys.Also , I am so glad that even I agree with the fact that commitment is important. The BF did have his chance and he did not stand by her. Moving on is the mantra baby. And if someone says I am not able to move on , I would quickly add, they actually dont want to .. Although I believe that closure is very very important for the MOVING ON part ..phew ...never have I talked about something like this on my blog other than my confusions on my wedding day .But this is definitely so worth all the appreciation. Much respect and love ..

Coming back to my breezy self ..do you know about this website called Booksneeze , I will tell you if you dont.You can join this website and opt to write reviews for books from their catalog.My word , its pretty limited choice of books. However you can publish your review , your own review verbatim on their website. The key here is once you join them , they are going to send you a book , as in actually ship a book to you free of cost. I always end up reviewing movies and books here , as well as on FB. But I wanted to do something new , as in some book not from the popular genre worldwide. So I just received a copy today.Guess I will have to squeeze in sometime for this as well besides work and radio.I am liking the idea so far.

And by the way .. how is this week treating youuu ..

P.S : Thank you Butterfly for letting me know abt my dancing page ..

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koochie koochie hota hain ..

2010-08-02T00:33:00.001+01:00

She is a pretty girl ..actually more than pretty ... vivacious , energetic , bubbly , smart ,intelligent and a good human ..and as it always happens she fell for a bike riding bad boy. The bad boy is now a formerly-casanova-but-a-changed-guy .Which means he is utterly devoted to her too .The now-good-boy is however not able to take the commitment to a marriage dimension.And thats how the girl is married off to someone else(an average Indian scenario ; my firangi bhai behans in your case , she found someone else ) .Sometime later , when she is still not in love with the good husband , she crosses path with the ex-flame and feels a tingle down her spine , is that betrayal , is that straying..

I know what I think of this , I want to know what you have to say about it ???

Yeh dil maange more

2010-07-30T12:42:00.001+01:00

India ''celebrated'' Kargil Vijay Divas .A girl is molested by cops in Delhi( yet again ) read here
Sachin whams a double century . Saina Nehwal gets Khel Ratna. Indian Women's Hockey Coach says he has resigned.Yea , that makes a good punishment.
Who is afraid of CBI says Narendra Modi. Charles Sobhraj convicted in a murder case (finally !! ) that dates back to 1975.
Rahul Mahajan's 4 month old ''new'' wife accuses him of domestic violence. I bet Indian TV channels now want a reality show called Shaadi Ke BAD .
India unveils a Rs1500 ( appr $30) Tablet PC . Apple iPad faces charges of overheating again.
British PM refuses return of Kohinoor.World first robot with conscience ..Heres the scoop.

This is pretty depressing.And to think of it , we are tuned in to at least 10 different news channels pouring in crap 24/7 and filling our minds with nothing but negativity. Is maamle mein Yeh Dil maange NO more !!!

Information Courtesy : www.ndtv.com , www.ibnlive.in.com and loads of time on hand.

Happy in budget ..no no not McD's Happy meal !!!!

2010-07-26T20:16:00.012+01:00

I think ...no wait make that I demand Christopher Nolan or the team of Inception should pay me monies for last weeks promotion about their movie.I did influence few friends who were not that much into Inception kinda movies until they read my post to catch the movie this weekend. I converted half of them into the secret society of crazy movie fan fraternity.so ..thats a yayyy moment.I have no idea why I am pleased with myself when things like this happen.When I suggested/promoted/shouted from the rooftop of my FB status about Inception , my friend Jo says whats the big deal ??I wish I could virtual smack him right now.Are you reading this Jo,yes I do....muuuaahhhhaahhhaa......So have you watched the movie yet ??Mr.Nolan , pl make a note of this subtle publicity

I was talking to a friend from my college here and the poor thing is in that transition period of project work to part time unemployment and she was mightily pissed off about living on a budget for this long.For people who have been visiting this blog for just a while , let me tell you that I moved to UK to study and then work.Now that I am working , I have a luxury of doing things when I want to. read shopping and indulging in books. Gratitude to Almighty here. So baaton baaton mein , I was suggesting some live lavishly in budget tips to my friend and I thought I could totally write something about this.This also means I am addicted to blog now.So here we go , happiness in an unhappy pocket .Ahemm..I should advice the menfolk to stop right here as the next few lines is all about shopping for girls.You might still have a read , cheap gifts to girlfriends are definitely not passe (as long as they are not aware of the prices).

Always always have a pair of blue jeans and white shirt.(either tees or crispy cotton )
Keep an eye on sales.Festive sales are the best.You might remember I grabbed best deals during Boxing days sales.You get great coats,dresses priced usually at £20-£25 at as low as £5.Now dont ask me to convert that to Rupees.Do your math.I suck at that anyway.
Invest in a Little black dress.(ok this could be a little expensive than the rest, why do you think I said Invest )
Stoles , nothing like cheap ,bright stoles.You can team them up with skirts ,jeans ,harem pants ..literally anything and look a lot trendier than the rich chick-flaunting-daddy's plastic all the time.Price Rs.50-75.
A pair of Osho and Kolhapuri chappals. If you are from Hyderabad , run right now to Secunderabad ,near Manju theater and look for loads of stuff in the nearby Kolhapuri chappal stalls.The shopwallah bhaiyyas will quote a couple of hundreds.This is what you do: 1.Do not call them bhaiyya. 2.Start your say ,bargaining from Rs.50.You will end up paying not more than 75 bucks for a sexy pair of Kolhapuris. if you are from Banaglore , Jayanagar or Shivaji Nagar have ample number of shops.And if you are from Mumbai , head to Linking Road.Great stuff !!! Common mantra for all these places : BARGAIN and more BARGAIN..
Have loads of ear rings.Not only the ones from Lifestyle, which by the way are boring now , but chunky earrings.You will not believe how much does this tiny accessory change your entire look.Try me.Prices range anywhere between Rs.5-Rs 100.take your pick
Kurtas.Imagine wearing a kurta teamed with your blue jeans and great chunky ear-rings.Get the picture?? Again, besides Linking Road(Mumbai),Jayanagar(bangalore) and General Bazar and Kothi(Hyderabad) , you might run into any roadside shops/stalls with Kurtas priced at Rs.100-120.Go for them.But , always feel the cloth and decide.Never go for any sparkly mica printed stuff.They will not only be running down in the first wash, chances are they will ruin everything that you wash along with them , not to forget everything you wear underneath .. yes .. true story ...
Also , adding to the point above , never buy anything in copper-sulphate blue color from roadside stalls.They always fade. And if that is your favorite color , heres a tip.Soak the dress in water to which a spoonful of vinegar has been added.Let that soak for an hour.Gently wring and dry the cloth and hopefully you are good to go.
Always team what you wear with bangles or bracelets.Again dangling bracelets or single kadas/bangles are the sexiest.Price range : Rs 10 - Rs 40
Do not wear scrunchies for Gods sake.They belong to 10000 B.C
Prefer pearly nail colors.You might like reds,hot pinks or maroons , but if you are not a high maintainence chick , forget them and stick to pearly colors.At least they will not ditch you showing off the faded cracked nail tips at your sudden surprise coffee evening with the hot boy you have been ogling at work or college.Go for Elle if you think of this as a non-investment.
Wear anklets.But only on the left feet.This way you could share a pair with your sister or best friend.Tip:Do not show up together wearing the same pair.Pl co-ordinate.Price range Rs 20 - Rs 80.You can get thin silver anklets ranging Rs.150 - Rs.250
A kohl or Kajal pencil and a lip-gloss dramatically change how you look.I say , pick up the Nivea strawberry flavored lip balm stick It is so good and so much better than all so called baap or maa of brands in make up.Its sparkly , softening and does not seem like a cheap deal of Rs.30.And for kohl , Lakme kajal pencil is damn good and will serve for months together.
And now the container where all these fit in. Get a couple of jholas.They are super cool , very roomy and dead inexpensive.I bought couple of jholas from Shilparamam last year at less than Rs.60 each.I told ya ...

One important thing that is always true is do not go by what fashion magazines predict about colors or trends for the season.Stick to what you are comfortable in.Also , the above mentioned long list may seem expensive , but its not .Believe me I shop a lot and I know the best deals.At least in the cities mentioned !!

Also , wherever you are , make sure you reach Hyderabad in the month of December . The annual Arts and fair festival happens at a place called Shilparamam.You get the best from across the country in hundreds of stalls there.I missed it this yr :-( ..Also the Exhibition(at Nampally) which happens every yr starting Jan 1st - Mid February is worth a couple of visits. Dhinchak deals can happen only by bargaining though... ok I wanna shop now...and because I am a footwear freak , I am posting couple of pictures here.

Kolhapuri Chappals,I guess these are for dudes,but this is just for an idea for people who dont know what they actually look like ..

These are Osho chappals..really comfy and cool .

Image Courtesy : http://www.kolhapurtourism.org/images/kolhapur-chappals.jpg and http://www.trekearth.com/gallery/Asia/India/West/Maharashtra/Pune/photo198947.htm

P.S : Oh by the way , additions to the list is always welcome .. go on , have your say ..

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Inception Hangover - Part II

2010-07-23T20:24:00.002+01:00

A not-so-review

An amazing story of world of dreams and reality , and the thin line between sanity and schizophrenic like insanity.The narration,visuals and editing are the true stars of this movie.A scene here and there would disappoint you as they slow the tempo of the movie , nevertheless the movie leaves you spell bound. Have you ever waited for something so much that if you could , you would want to jump out of your seat and run towards the ending, like when you are writing your exam,the last half hour is the most difficult time to get through.You know you have done your best on the answer sheets, you know you cant excel or add more and you know the sooner you get out of there , the better for your lungs as you are hyperventilating and the time seems stuck. That happened to me in the last half hr of the movie.I pretty much knew where the climax was heading, and my eyes were glued to the screen.It has been really long a movie held my attention like that.Not that I am the grandmaster of a critic , but I usually end up picking goofs from most of the movies.And I hate it cos I cant enjoy the watching part anymore.And the climax usually makes me laugh and not always for the right reasons.

But I guess that's what happens to movies when you watch them with the logic switch turned on.The critic in you wakes up and you start looking for mistakes or on a positive note , the mistakes/loopholes just show up in your face and thats where the magic ends.It did happen at couple of places here as well , but Inception is an exception.The movie is based on a mind hacking/stealing/planting kind of idea.. yea yea ..long story ... Leonardo DiCaprio -Dom Cobb( Dominic, that is, before you think its weird , like I did ) is a skilled thief.Not the usual con , but he can break into peoples mind when they are in sleep/dream state and can extract secrets / information out of their sub-conscious mind, as thats when the mind is as its vulnerable best.And he supposedly is the best at this.He has the biggest of all challenges when a powerful and shrewd businessman,Saito asks him if a reverse can be done,that is ,if he can peek into Fischer's mind (played by Cillian Murphy),the business rival and plant an idea instead of stealing,And thats where the bumpy roller coaster ride begins.Cobb starts gathering team members for the job from all over , his trusted accomplice , Joseph Gordon-Levitt ( the boy is all grown up) ,an architect who can create maze like structures for the dream- Ellen Page (adorable ),a forger -Tom Hardy(clever/hottie) and an almost alchemist like Dileep Rao(he creates the drug to put people to sleep).Now the catch is Cobb(Leo) accepts this assignment cos the powerful businessman Saito(Ken Watanabe) has offered him his redemption , he can go back home to his children .This is where we get to know about Mal(Marion Cotillard)Cobb's dead wife and the fact that he is also wanted for his wife's death and hence is absonding from home , USA .She keeps showing up in his dreams ,his interpretation ,ending up ruining his work.He is living with a guilt pang in his heart , being partly responsible for her suicide.

A break-in within a dream , a dream within a dream and 4 layers of dream henceforth , defying logic and gravity, with splendid performances by the cast ,undoubtedly the best from Leonardo Dicaprio , Inception is a treat to eyes and leaves you blank and thinking at the same time ,while you walk out of the cinema.

Damn great moments : The City of Paris folding in like a book , Joseph Gordon-Levitt in mid-air in the hotel lobby bashing up the baddies ,Leo explaining the reason for change in atmosphere in the second level of dream, the concept of limbo and time frames within dreams - 10 hrs = 1 week = 6 months =10 yrs .. soooperrr....I recommend it to everyone.If you like it yayyy , if you dont ..super yayyy , you are beyond average intellect.

Bloopers: How the hell does an equipment which is in an aluminium like box take you into someone else's dream,just because you are wired, is beyond explanation Also how can everyone who is wired with this equipment be part of the aforementioned dreams ?? answers ?? anyone ?? someone ????

Image Courtesy : http://thezaz.nationallampoon.com/files/2010/05/inception-poster.jpeg

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Inception Hangover - Part I

2010-07-23T20:03:00.002+01:00

Helloooozzzz .... and today we will talk about how much I will munch your grey cells with oohs and aahs about Inception.. yes yes yes ... almost orgasmic yes here when I say I finally watched Inception.Gosh , I do feel sad about myself that I think its beyond thrill that I watched the movie in the first week of its release. I am , really. And that's because whenever I wait for any movie or any particular book for too long ,with heart full of anticipation BAAAAMMMMM .. I usually end up missing the movie and never buying the book.It happened with Dark Knight,Shutter Island,Paranormal Activity etc when they were released, it also happened with Paulo Coelho's The Winner Stands Alone and The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga-subtext here-I am extra happy that Mr.Adiga is a Kannadiga(i.e., from Karnataka),5 extra points for that..and my dear reader , not only do I miss movies/books that I eagerly await , I also miss several opportunities later too to read and enjoy them.Ok , I am drifting away again.

Inception ..Christopher Nolan is the next God of Cinema, for how long I cant say , but he is. There are as many loopholes in the movie as splits in my hair right now.But , but , the magic of the idea of the movie is so superb that I am willing to forgive ( haaa ?? ) him, for now. It certainly reminds you of movies that involve dreams and reality swapping like Donnie Darko , Eternal Sunshine for the spotless mind and Matrix at some level. An almost review is in the next post.But here I will go ga ga about few things.The movie is visually so brilliant that I think it will take a while for another movie to meet my expectations.But again , I am a movie buff , I will still end up watching loads of them both to like and to dislike.The actors are simply good. Joseph Gordon-Levitt surprises the audience and Michael Caine is good in his almost cameo role. Leo gets the best share of the cast and is simply ..no zimply zuperbbbb..

And because I spoke of missing books , I am giving you a peek into my book shelf from Hyderabad.Another thing I badly miss from back home.

thats my feet and thats my suitcase all packed ,I was travelling to UK the next morning

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Unfinished posttt

2010-07-21T00:14:00.004+01:00

So , the last post wasnt complete in the sense that I still had things to rant about , but I did not, because it was beginning of the weekend and I have this SUPER superstition that if one begins anything on a bad note , the entire thing will be ruined , also one of the reasons I dont complain/nag/fight/cry in the mornings. I had LOADS to sulk about dudesss...well its not all about rants, just things I have to fill this post with......

As much as I was looking forward to , I could not watch Inception..am dying to though
I find peoples reaction about Inception very similar to that of Matrix,(the first one).They usually range between ''You dont understand Matrix , you just experience it'' to ''Oh,you didnt get Matrix ?? ( accompanied with I am the intellectual and you are the jackass look)... yea rite ...
I wanted a haircut , and the dumb hair dresser chops a lot more than I asked for , now my hair looks like a cross between a fluffy cat and Donald ducks tail ,Not a pretty sight !!!
I over did my yoga this morning. RESULT : a twist in the neck.
That also means my bones are aging !! calcium anyone
I am feeling sleepy at work.This has to do with two reasons. I dont sleep well during the nights and I haven't done this kind of work in a very very long time.My last job(??) was RJing(Radio DJing).So you can imagine my glee ,I am in the studio , blasting music with volume at its maximum , talking to callers and playing their requests and browsing the net for more information abouttttt , bingo MUSIC ....I talk to people even now ,but , it definitely has nothing to do with music or their love life or movies , obviously I am sleepy , phew , I was all worried that I am weird .. now that I have blurted everything , feels so much better ..
The temperatures all soaring this week and hot weather brings out a crazy lady in me. Don't believe me ?? ask the boy !!!
Oh this one scared me , the other night I started coughing , as in cooouugghiiinnggg so hard that the soft inside of my throat was burning and I spurt out red liquid on table. I was shocked to death .. My mind went so numb imagining disasters like cancer, throat cancer in particular,death,dying without making babies ,dying so young... gosh , you should have seen me , tear filled eyes and hot cheeks , I looked for a tissue and thats when I realized I was drinking tomato juice !! Drama queen strikes again ... you cannot imagine my relief. My imagination stopped only at my funeral before I realized how funny it might have seemed if someone was around and thats when I burst into a loud laughter , amidst coughs that is.

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A phone call , me and my weekend ..

2010-07-17T08:28:00.001+01:00

Time : 0722
Place:Somewhere in England
State of mind: PMSing , irritated that the phone rang and woke me up, way too early for a Saturday
Plan for weekend: A dinner with friends, movies and a wee bit of shopping ..besides vacuuming, washing and cleaning
Last meal: A hot piping pizza
Last beverage:Water
Beverage looking forward to : A cuppa Kaappiii, homemade filter coffee,but I cant , so I am sticking to the new age instant coffee for now, for today.
Happy about:The idea of weekend and I just spoke to my baby , my niece Aditi and my mom , so am alll yayyyyy
Sad about:nothing
Waiting for ..ok I will have to start an actual post for that ............

Alrite , that let the steam off a little ..I am just done with my first week of work.I will only bore you with my first day of work.It was A-okay ...The place of work is comfortable , for some reason , I always have been particular about amenities at a workplace.Some one who cannot provide comfort to their employees can never be good employers.Period.So good chairs , clean cubicles , fresh smelling premises , good cafeteria and clean rest-rooms.I should probably get into selling real-estate.My boss Peter is great(in a nice way) , my colleagues , haven had a chance to meet evryone as I am in the noon to night shift , but Karen , Lee , Cherry , Crystal and Tony are my neighbors , around my desk fyi.. and thankfully they are not that much into the dark-cold-Brit humor , that works for me as well .... sooo, moving on, the job profile is good.I am not sure of how much I will add value in terms of above 100% , but that much I guess is good , until I start what I have been planning for a while.As I say the girl needs to pay her bills and shop a little ( I promise , just a little ...).

One helluva week in terms of news being thrown at me from all over kind of sense .I will start with good news to not-so-good-news. I join job , a good friend of mine is expecting a baby , my best friends daughter , Naima turned two , another friend is still not over his ex, the boy and I have a decent-no-quarrel week , my aunt who just had a surgery for breast cancer is going for chemotherapy and the though of it is killing me.Times like this , I really wish I could be back in Hyderabad.I am a total family bird. Its always nice to be a rock support to family when they need us and in those ways I am a toughie.Its only when I am down and on my own that I tend to get all needy and clingy ( ssshhhhh ... forget I said that ok ..)So here's wishing my aunt a real speedy recovery and praying for all the strength to deal with the pain.I have heard that Chemo is real pain.

I did not want to mention anything about my aunt or her condition here, but Ramesh , someone I met in this blog world is the reason I am talking about it here. I know we all have good number of friends in real world. But saying what you want to , to the universe of internet is like speaking to a good friend , not worrying about being judged.You know someone is going to read it ,and once you have said what you want to , at least some weight is off your shoulders.I have turned to my blog earlier too, whenever I did not want to speak about things and surprisingly I am quite okay , after a post and good amount of key board slap.Ramesh, thank you once again.

And while the post was in draft and saved state , I just spoke to my friend ,Raj from Hyd. A not-so-long chat of 26 mins where we talk about movies , his dates , and how boring life is without best friend like me !!!

Again , thank you once again for all the wishes and mails.They were just fantastic.

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P.S : If all goes well , I will be RJing very soon on weekends , and you can listen to me on the internet. Will share the link . Fingers-crossed again !!

funny ..

2010-07-13T10:20:00.001+01:00

An interpretation of Hi !!!!!

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Moments of madness

2010-07-13T09:00:00.004+01:00

This post is part of Blogadda contest

Where does one start when one is asked to pick only 5 instances of mad,crazy moments out of ones not so long life. But these has to be the whackiest of what I can scribble down right now. So here we go

The year 1999 ,1st of May, it was my friend Amar's birthday and a bunch of us planned to take a small road trip + birthday party at dhaba + a visit to the nearest getaway from the city to a place called Ananthagiri Hills near Hyd. So we head out in a Safari , 7 of us , with thumping music , couple of us with booze and fun unlimted .Once we reach the aforementioned place , we lose track of the entrance and enter the water reservoir from a different path, nevertheless the fun continues after an hour of argument about who gave the wrong directions.All is great fun , with playing in the water , an almost-attempt to beach volleyball like game , frolicking and swimming and finally heading out to the nearest dhaba after an hour. While driving out we realised that , we were passing through the actual entrance which we had missed earlier.We turn back to click the view , just to file memories and then we see this sign ''Beware of Crocodiles.Entering the water is dangerous'' ...phewwww.... minds were fucked up for an hour !!!!!!
I am a little higher on the crazy scale and thankfully I had a couple of friends who complimented me on this. A couple of years back , when I was working at Hyderabad , in an extended evening shift , I finished work at 4-ish in the morning and was heading out of a cup of chai at the bandi , our Mecca for sanity btw , to avoid dozing off on my way back. Over the chai and Osmani biscuits,while making plans for the weekend, a mad idea hit me and my friends and we decided to travel to Goa. It was already 6 am by the time we made up our minds and we were waiting for couple of others to join us.So by 8 am we had the plan in place ,by 9 the boys of the team were at Nampally station for the train tickets.So we take the train the same evening ( Rayalaseema Express to be precise ) at 5.40 pm , reach a place called Londa in Karnataka the next day at 11 in the morning , take a trax ( a 4 wheeler ) from Londa and reach Goa at 6 in the evening.So that was a 24 hr journey , with food , fun ,booze and gossiping on wheels.That was a mad and memorable trip for more than obvious reasons !!
Recently , and I am talking about less than 2 months ago, the boy , Sasi and I were bored ..as in BORED on a Saturday and we thought we should watch a Telugu movie in a cinema. It is easier to watch Hindi movies here because most of the multiplexes and single screens have them , but Telugu movies are released for just one day and this time , a movie called Vedam was at a cinema in London and we live about 110 miles away. We had the car , but no tomtom( The navigation kit in a car ).And as that was not a big deal ( yea rite !!! ) , after 3 hrs of drive we reach London , miss the first 40 mins of the movie and end up watching one of the best movies made in Telugu film industry . The best part is yet to come. The show gets done at 1 in the midnight , and we , with no directions , drive for 5+ hrs( the actual travel time is 2 hrs ..yea it was that hopeless) and reach home at 6.30 in the morning.Sasi and I were pretty happy , but the boy has doubts about making plans with me ever again ..starving ,driving 8 hrs back and forth to cover a distance of just 100 miles to watch a movie is not his idea of fun ..
This is less crazy actually compared to other stuff mentioned here. When Chitra , my friend of 8 yrs asked to meet her boss for a job at a magazine in Hyderabad(he had loads of contacts !!) , I was so caught up doing nothing that I kept canceling and scheduling the appointment thrice. And when her boss still was ready to meet , I thought how lame and jobless is he !!?? yea I was THAT arrogant !! and again was ???? So finally when I went to meet him , after an hour long chat ,he wanted me to do a show with Chitra the same night, FYI she is a Radio DJ, and I was like yea what the heck , I will .. So within 2 hrs , I go back to the studio and had the best time on air , co-hosting the show Chitra and Nayeem usually do every Wednesday. The best part is I totally moved on and was hoping to hear from the boss about my actual job with the magazine.But a fortnight later , he wanted me back , for an audition and this time I ended up finding my calling in the Radio.I had the best time during my stint at Hyderabad Rainbow FM.I hope someday when I am back home , I get back to my shows !!
This could confuse few people in my life , as in people who know me in real life . I asked the boy if its ok to mention this here and he seems to have no qualms. So its like this , the day I was getting married, the evening precisely , I was a complete bundle of nerves and not in a mushy-excited way.I wasn't very sure of getting married , I wasn't sure of what I wanted either .So I kept asking my cousin/best friend-since-childhood , if I can just run way from the wedding venue and come back like a month later and she says one thing , ok I knew you would say this , but I am sure to be thrashed if you leave , so can I join too ??

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yayyy to me.. things getting interesting ...

2010-07-10T15:58:00.002+01:00

Chk me out .. all fancy schmancy listed at Blogadda .. My blog , MY BLOG , M-Y B-L-O-G ..( ok I will stop ) was picked as one of the Spicy Saturday blogs ..and I am gonna flaunt it here ..yayyyy

So here is the link and and this is the post which got selected.Being angry makes sense sometimes !!!

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