A Story Called Life.

Have the cake & eat it too!

2018-09-26T18:12:00.003+05:30

Who said you can’t have the cake and eat it too? Well, that person certainly dint care enough to have the things their way. What I believe is you can select your cake flavor and the toppings, cut it as you want, serve to all your friends and then enjoy the rest as well. It is just a matter of perception. If you care for something enough, you can make it happen. If you don’t fight for your dreams, no one else will. And the first step is to decide on what you want, which in my opinion is the most difficult thing. So make sure to dream something worth fighting for. For your battles are only yours to watch but your success is for everyone to share. And then of course, don’t forget to eat the cake after cutting it for your celebration.

One life, make it large.

Picture courtesy- southernliving.com

Magical wand

2017-10-30T02:46:00.001+05:30

Our hearts are stories waiting to be told,

Hoping for one or all to eventually mould.

Looking for someone to hold our hand,

And solve problems like a magical wand.

Living with the scars

2017-05-01T19:43:00.001+05:30

Everyone’s life is so messed up. We do not admit it although. Not even once, not even to ourselves. We are scared of the society, the gossips, the rumours and the melodrama too. We do enjoy the drama but only when it is not about ourselves. Remember the ten year old version of you, combing your hair in the mirror and thinking to yourself that you would make everyone proud when you grow up. Where did that innocence go? The change from that to this was real. The truth is everyone is broken from inside, it is just some of us that have guts to admit that. And then the rest of us try to pull that some down so that it becomes few, and from few to none. Everyone likes to live in their own bubble where everyone is just doing fine. But then we are humans, what is the point if our souls are not cracked? Humans are social beings, we live on connections. What is the point if you cannot try to fill out someone’s crack? The funniest part is that our cracks fill only if you help others fill out theirs. Probably in this idealistic society having a scarred skin is better than a flawless one, if your scars have something to learn from.

http://www.spiegel.de

Letter to my ten year old self

2016-11-15T19:36:00.001+05:30

Dear ten year old self,

I know you are fine, so let’s not waste time on that. Okay that bruise on your knee doesn’t kill you and what doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger! If that was harsh, it is because life is harder! I know in the eyes of ten year old, you must be finding everything very confusing, but that is why I am here to help you.

Firstly, stop worrying about everything. You are going to grow up to be a beautiful princess, someone is going to love you and although that charming prince on a white horse is a vague dream, dating handsome hunk who can keep you happy is not. All the school girls who enjoy being mean with you, are temporary. It is okay to not have a comparable amount of friends, branded watches and expensive vacations like your counterparts.

Secondly, life is not what you expect. In fact, don’t even start to expect. You would be done with not even 40% of what you imagined your life to be when you grow up. And that’s just okay. Your friends would be busy spending their parent’s money and you would be working on your goals day and night. You would face times when you would wish to give up, but don’t. Because when you would be done, your friends won’t even be close to what you would have achieved.

And lastly, just enjoy being alive, being healthy and being loved. The treasures of life are in small happy moments. Wear your heart on your sleeve and don't be afraid to get hurt. Laugh out loud, love hard, stay joyous, cry without regrets and then wipe your own tears; most importantly just express your emotions without anyone’s consent. You are stronger than you think you are.

Much, much love,

Your twenty year old self.

PS This is a letter I wish someone had given me ten years ago! Since that dint happen, here I am writing this letter to my ten year old self! Feel free to relate and share, especially to the young adults who need it more than the kids!

Letter to Life

2016-11-10T19:15:00.001+05:30

Dear Zindagi,

I think we need to talk since it’s been a while. You, my dear life, are just getting mischievous day by day. I thought as we grew up, together, you would learn few things, understand your responsibilities and behave yourself. But no, you just forced me to have this discussion. If you have decided to be so stubborn, I have decided to be wiser this time.

Last time we were having this talk when I had almost given up on you. But you gave me some hope that you would be better in the coming years and that is why you were spared from being murdered. You gave me the cheesy teenage hormones as an excuse for your behaviours, which I had humbly accepted. But now you are twenty one years old! At this age you gotta be working hard and making a good fortune but all you want is indulge in some heart breaks and emotional trauma and keep crying for that damn person for whom you don’t even exist!

Let’s just accept some things. First, you don’t need that one person and second, she is not coming back. In other words, you are not going to make any more efforts in an attempt to save the sunken boat. No more arguments on this. You get it? Third, you are going to be more mature and focus on other important people by nurturing the by far ignored relationships till date. I hope you know who I am pointing to, the one who is busy instilling some sense in you. Okay, it’s me.

Before I go from being a yelling person to a sweet darling, let me retrace you back to the last line of the first paragraph of the letter. I have decided to be wiser. I wanted to tell you this long ago, but, there was no proper time. And as you always say, everything happens when it is destined to happen.

You were so busy trying to please people that you had almost forgotten me. I have been waiting for you since like forever. People come and go, and your stories are just the same with different nouns. I had even started getting a feeling of being friend zoned from you. I had started to distance myself from you to avoid distracting and troubling you. I thought you were happy with whom you were with, but it was with your behaviour, that I understood you were not.

So, without delaying it further, let me just come to the point. I am in love with you, dear life, truly madly and deeply. I have seen all your efforts to keep me happy however bad I behaved with you. Trust me; all those efforts haven’t gone unnoticed. Yes, I LOVE YOU. And I have a big intuition that you do too. Please don’t complicate this any further by making nasty friends. Whoever doesn’t see the love you shower just doesn’t deserve you. I see and feel that love. I notice that care. I promise to keep you happy and understand you. I see us both living happily in the future. I need you Zindagi, more than anything else. Will you get in a committed relationship with me?

Yours lovingly.

Dear Zindagi, I Love You

P.S The answer was.... ‘YES’.

“I am writing a letter to life for the #DearZindagi activity at BlogAdda“.

Happy friendship day.

2016-08-06T22:58:00.004+05:30

Hey there,
Probably this is the only way I could reach you. So be it. First of all, happy friendship day. Not that you deserve to be my friend anymore but to the times when you apparently were. The worst times in my life.

Anyway, moving on, since that what's you like to do the best. Just so that you know, nothing has stopped in my life. The uncounted tears from my eyes also have suprisingly stopped flowing.

Just by chance, I happened to recollect the days when you needed me to keep motivating you to not get affected by family quarrels. But you don't need that anymore. It could have been better if you would have specified it right from the start, I wouldn't have invested myself over you.

But mistakes are made from humans with heart, so in your case I can understand. Call me worse and judge me by all means that you can for writing this out, because that is what you can only do. Someday in life, when you stop chasing materialism, and fall in need of love, you may realise some grave mistakes. But apparently one of us might be in the grave literally. So, enjoy your friendship day with your friends, and please keep them even after your work has finished. You shall thank me later. Stop selling shell-fish, pun intended.

Could have written, with much love;
But nevermind.

Launch of VodafoneU

2016-05-11T12:05:00.001+05:30

Vodafone has always managed to bring innovative offers for their customers. Loyalty is never an issue for their customers. So when I was invited to the launch of yet another Vodafone product, all I could wonder was about what new will this product offer? Whatever they could do, had already been done. Flexible data packs, lower call rates, customisable packs, they had it all. But I was pleasantly mistaken; VodafoneU is amalgamation of all of the above with added fun!

VodafoneU Launch

VodafoneU was all about youth. The youth being most active on their cell phones, their need for staying connected cannot be ignored. The youth also comprises the major source of revenue for telecom industries. So for the first time any company has thought about, why not give something back to the youth? This is thought behind VodafoneU, for the youth.

Decor at Hard Rock Cafe

Since it is for youth, it has to be presented also youthfully. So, the venue for the launch was Hard Rock cafe (the Mecca of fun). What’s more, three popular Youth icon and YouTube celebrities collaborated for the first time and the result is high-impact and amazing! Watch it below!

Entire team on stage

So what exactly is in this for-the-youth pack? It is an All-in-One offer, giving the youth all that they need. Five prime benefits they can avail of from this proposition are:

Data allowance – Data packs which allow you to surf all day and all night. Separate data packs for night so that they can use it intelligently.

3 buddy lifelines- Special call rates of 20p/min so that you can share every detail of your day to your three best friends!

Data loans- Whenever you are out of data pack, you can avail a loan of 60 MB of 3g/4g data loan for 2 days straight!

Music downloads – Free music downloads from Vodafone for entire 2 months.

This will be offered in two packs, for the first time users and as recharge variants, in small and large size, to cater different needs. Overall, it allows you to use large amount of data, special call rates for your specials and unlimited music downloads, all without burning hole in your pocket. Check the offers here.

Sandeep Kataria launches VodafoneU

Only after Sandeep Kataria, (Director-Commercial Vodafone India), talked about all these features after the launch that I realised how Vodafone managed to satisfy the insatiable need of connectivity and always wanting ‘Something More’. This shows the thought process that went into making of this proposition and how much company cares for its customers!

Have a glimpse of the launch party and the fun we had!

Reliving the fun

A party has to have tasty food

#FunWithU

That was all about the #FunWithU we had! Vodafone, has been one of the top choices for youth and with such delighting offers, it sure stays in the race for a long long time!

Check out VodafoneU pages :-

YT : https://www.youtube.com/c/FunOnWithU
FB: https://www.facebook.com/FunOnWithU
Twitter: https://twitter.com/FunOnWithU
Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/funonwithu/

Influencer.in- A blissful experience

2016-04-30T12:13:00.000+05:30

We live in a world where the product you develop is very important to reach to the right audience. As we all know, the right kind of marketing is the prime goal. The revenue percentage also depends majorly on the responses received back based on the publicity you do. Like a famous quote, “There is not a thing like lot of publicity”.

The world comprises of people who need products, people who develop products and people who can publicise it. There is a gap which needs to be filled by a platform for all the above people to communicate with each other. And this noble task of filling in the void is done by influencer.in.

Influencer is a baby product of Social Beat, a digital marketing firm. Influencer provides a method to communicate between companies and other influencers (mostly bloggers). In this way, the companies can target the right kind of people and also influencers get appropriate incentives for their work.

The website of influencer.in is user-friendly and the navigation is also pretty simple. They have two different sign-ups for influencer and companies. The companies can then launch their campaign and invite the type of influencers they are looking out for. On the other hand, the bloggers get to apply the campaigns which interest them, and if selected, the requisites are then communicated. After successful completion, the bloggers also get the incentives promised for them earlier.

On a personal note, I have been a fan of Influencer.in as it makes my task of finding firms which require content a lot easier. Just log-in, search from the campaigns and apply. Their prompt replies and to the point requisites make it easier to work. The campaigns include a brief introductory message, the last date to apply and the eligibility which makes it easier to make the right choice. They also have come with a brilliant Android app which lets you browse campaigns on the go.

Also the most desirable thing for every freelancer is timely payments. Having worked with Social Beat in the past, the utmost lovely thing was the notification I received about payment processed just after campaign was processed. This not only makes the influencer happy to work but also builds a strong relation between the platform, firm and the blogger.

Influencer.in is the kind of platform we require in today’s world for efficient communication and productive delivery. I would highly recommend everyone to visit their website and do register if you like their methodology. As they rightly say, “With us together, nothing can beat us” – Social Beat.

Stupidsid - An Ambitious Pursuit.

2016-04-15T20:17:00.003+05:30

We are that point of the semester where submissions are neck-deep, vivas just around the corner and exams, just a jump far. Even mentioning about exams make us sweat, forget about actually facing them. This reminds me of a funny quote aptly describing us, ‘Nothing can make an Engineer more productive, than the ‘Last Minute’’. Majority of us pass due to the Nobel decision of some wise man to introduce study leave before the finals. But now, we have a website to guide us through this huge mess. Stupidsid.

Their Story :-

Four engineers, from a reputed college, once experienced déjà vu when they were enquired about the engineering college’s admission procedures. These wise men, then decided to aggregate all the information from different colleges to help all the students stuck in this tempest. Slowly, as Stupidsid started gaining followers, they introduced study materials like paper solutions (paid) which were written by subject experts and moderated by qualified teachers.

Founded in the year 2010, it has grown by leaps and bounds in terms of transactions. They now offer various resources like course syllabus, previous year question papers, viva questions, college reviews, cut-off wise college finder, colleges and entire procedure for GATE and MS in foreign countries, placement profiles, B-school reviews and student profiles for MBA aspirants. College reviews and paper solutions are their most famous service so far.

Today, Stupidsid stands as one of the most trusted source for answering any queries in the entire engineering process right from the admissions to the last year placements. It has expanded its venture to other universities in other cities too. They also have an internship program- Campus Sid for students to gain experience in terms of practical marketing, analysis and exposure to the world.

This isn’t a paid article but an outcome of sheer admiration from working so closely with this Start-up. The work environment they have created is commendable. The founders and the seniors are so helpful that the boundary of professionalism turns to friends very soon, keeping the productivity constant. This gives me a chance to brag about an adventurous trek that we had been to. Their story is inspiring. It teaches you that nothing in impossible. Just go ahead and work hard with your dreams and you shall emerge successful. I being an engineer myself, this suffices my much needed daily dose of motivation and hence I decided to share it with you.

Check out this ambitious pursuit here- www.stupidsid.com

P.s- Paper solutions are now available and you can comment below or email me if you want it at some great discounts. Perks of working here, you see!

Wish you all a very happy and successful preparatory leave. May we all emerge victorious on the other side of the semester!

A beautiful aura!

2016-04-08T12:01:00.000+05:30

She was a flowing river in the parched deserts,

Through the cactus yet remained unhurt.

She was the warmth in the freezing colds,

Like a fireplace in the old household.

She was like a butterfly in the garden,

Like an apology without asking for pardon.

An adorable smile on a baby’s face,

Like an alluring dancer’s mystifying grace

A feeling which no one could manipulate,

Spreading good vibes with magic in thy state.

She had a hidden aberrant energy inside,

A beautiful aura engulfed in lusty pride.

'Savoir Faire' Book Review

2016-04-05T20:17:00.002+05:30

“Do the WRITE thing”

Savoir Faire is a collection of poems by Ashwini Dodani, a PGDM Marketing and B.E Mechanical guy. Ashwini is a lover of creative writing and the same can be seen from the book. He has been into writing since last 6 years and also has been one of the nominations among the Top 16 Poetry Blogs in India by Baggout.com.

Poems can convey those things which a story spanning hundreds of pages cant. Savoir Faire has total of 40 distinct poems, each one being unique in its own way. The titles of the poems are mostly nouns, verbs or adjectives which don’t let out much information but reading the entire poem makes you visualize from the author’s point.

This is Ashwini’s first book and he has made an honest attempt to recreate the fiction in such a way that it ceases to be simple poetry. The poems are mature, expressive and emotional. Ashwini being an expert in poems, has written these with ease, and the same can be felt while reading it.

I would like to thank the author, Ashwini Dodani and team Blogchatter for finding enough potential in me to give me a chance to review a great book like this and would like to publicly apologise for the late review. Keep writing for readers like me are waiting eagerly for your next book.

You can order Savoir Faire: Do the WRITE Thing from Amazon.

More Details:

Author: Ashwini N Dodani

ISBN: 978-81-931940-2-7

Publisher: Inkhorn Publishing India

Pages: 74

Rating: 4/5

An Open Letter To My Ex- Best Friend

2016-03-24T12:34:00.004+05:30

Never had I thought I would write this for you.

Dear Stranger,

Hope you still remember me. It’s not been too long so I genuinely do. Anyways, I am the same person with whom you used to spend hours talking about practically nothing and still not get bored of. Let’s just be brutally honest with each other. I miss you. I miss texting you about every small event happening in my life. I miss Snapchatting weird, hillarious faces with you. I miss your stupid face. I am at loss of words when people ask me about your whereabouts. I miss being known as packaged deal, where one goes, other follows. I miss you uploading heinous pictures just because you looked better than me in it. I miss abusing each other for nothing. I miss spending entire day from college to the outings at cafe to texting late night with you. I miss using your name, (because my family used to trust you more than me) as an excuse for going out or when caught texting someone. I miss messing around carelessly because I knew you would be there to clean my shit at the end of the day. I knew you would be there to wipe away my tears. I knew you would be there to control me in my drunken state. I knew you would be there for me no matter what. But I was wrong. I miss my other half, my best friend.

I hate that our conversations now has reduced to awkward silences and formality. I hate being moved from your favourite contacts to merely your phonebook. I hate what brought us so close is the same thing which is taking us apart. I miss calling you weird animals and making fun of you. I am curious to know the answers and at the same time afraid to find out. You were selfless, gratifying and a lovely human. You have become completely opposite of those now. You are not the same person whom I fell in love with. I still wonder were you the same person who cried an entire day just because something had happened and we ignored each other for two days in the last semester. I laugh at these silly memories. You are a different, disguised personality with the same face.

I am mad at us for letting this happen to us. I am mad for accepting what came without putting up a brave fight when we knew ours was not like a normal friendship. I remember the days when we were so close that people used to tease us for being lesbians. When our family had literally adopted each other. When we were there to defend each other for silliest of an argument. It kills me when I see other people hugging each other or building up a friendship which even has 1% probability of being better than us. I find us in those people.

How do you fix a thing when you don’t know what broke it? I am mad at you for not talking things straight on my face and rather confiding it in some other people. I just wish we could come back together just as easily as we got separated. At this point of time, I am scared to understand it anymore. I fear that this is the ultimate closure. I fear it can’t be fixed just like a broken pot can’t be. I fear we weren’t ‘forever’. I fear you won’t be there to click photographs with this time next year when we shall graduate. I fear you won’t be there to celebrate my new job, just like you are not today. It kills me to know that you won’t be the bridesmaid in my wedding. All those ‘friendship-goals’ and Instagram posts that we tagged each other with shall remain incomplete. I am scared to move on as those memories come rushing back the moment I decide to.

It kills me to know that we aren’t going to be tagged as ‘bff’ like earlier days. It kills me to see other people hugging their friends because it reminds me of us. It kills me that I won’t be there to solve your problems, because you think of me as one itself. But the scariest thing is that you don’t care at all. Probably you haven’t even noticed my absence from your life and even if you have, it doesn’t matter to you at all. It kills me to see your photos with other people with that smile on your face as if nothing has ever happened; I am scared you never were as fond of our friendship as I was. I am scared it doesn’t matter that our futures won’t be with each other. I am scared you don’t miss me as much as I do.

Even if this is true, I’ll pray that you never ever get hurt like I have been now. I’ll pray that the smile on your face remains intact, even if the reason behind it has changed. I’ll pray that someday you will realise what you meant to me. Please don’t take your new friends for granted like you took me, they may not care as much as I did. I will never stop caring although I’ll try my best to not show. I’ll silently wish well for you and your life although I know that you won’t be there. Your place in my heart can never be replaced although you might have replaced me. I’ll always look at you and our memories in the loving way I always did.

I don’t know what destiny has written for us but definitely I’ll never find the friend I found you. I am scared to let anyone close to me from now. I won’t ever fill the void you have left in me. Thank you for everything. I miss you more than you can even think of.

With best wishes,

Your ex-best friend,

P.s- I still wait for one loving hug that we always used to give.

#OneLastTime

Dreams that come true!

2016-03-16T23:22:00.002+05:30

Never stop dreaming boy,
Cause you never know,
What might happen and why!

Destiny has different ways to show
And you shall never get to know,
When your luck might start to flow!

Dream big and dream high,
Life is certainly uncertain,
Some day even you shall fly!

Not everyone's dreams are successful,
People who cared to work hard are very few,
And only their's are DREAMS THAT COME TRUE!

Colgate 360 Gold Mornings

2016-02-04T22:50:00.000+05:30

There are many such times when we wake up with incomplete sleep and the day also follows to be dull and boring. When mornings are grumpy, afternoons are frustrated and the evenings also follow the same suit. This maybe because the start of the day was dull.

Mornings are considered the most vital part of a day, which decides how the course of the rest of the day shall follow ahead. Most of the times we do wish ‘good-mornings’ because it’s a part of our manners and tradition, but hardly do mean it. We get up half asleep, burst at everyone for waking us up and pick up the brush angrily. This is exactly where we go wrong.

I have read somewhere, the way you spend your first 30 minutes of the day decides how your day is going to get framed. And mind you, I experience it every single day of my life. I, nowadays think of it as a power to make the day go as I want, just by being cheerful for the initial 30 minutes.

Anyone who wants to live a healthy life should give lots of importance to having not only good but also gold mornings. Waking up fresh, having proper breakfast, practising Yoga or exercise are few ways to make your mornings energetic. Make making your mornings golden, a habit.

Mornings also consider of proper brushing and bathing. I am a lazy person, and always have a habit of grabbing a brush, rubbing them against my thirty-two for a minute or two, and then rinsing the shit off. But when I got to use the Colgate 360 Charcoal Gold Toothbrush, I was amazed. The bristles are so soft and with added goodness of charcoal, my mornings become really fresh. The effects in whitening teeth are also visible instantly.

So these are my tips for turning your good mornings to #Colgate360GoldMornings! Do comment below some of your tips. Colgate has been making mornings good since generations and will surely be the number 1 trusted brand in the coming years too.

The new Colgate 360

Flipkart trends with Indimeet

2015-12-23T22:58:00.001+05:30

Indiblogger has been my favourite blogging community so far, and it is showing no chances to change any soon. The contests, happy-hours which helped me buy my own DSLR (yayyyyieee), the extravagant blogger meets and the real interaction and genuine feedbacks on your blogs from their page is pretty amazing. In other words, it’s a perfect paradise for a blogger. And the cherry to top on the cake is that everything is COMPLETELY free.

So one of the many events that IB hosted was this meet on 19^thDecember, 2015 at Blue Frog in association with Flipkart. Flipkart is starting its new line on kids which shall have everything a kid need right from toys, clothes, educational materials to talking dolls. The main idea behind this was to gather all stuffs a kid needs under a single virtual roof. Pretty good thought!!

The venue was really adorable. The staff at Blue Frog was kind to greet us with cocktails and starters after which a tempting buffet for lunch was presented. After filling our tummies, the main event started. Kalpana behara, the person behind justkalpana.com was invited to enlighten the readers on her thoughts about writing and how to overcome writer’s block. She also focussed on how her comics came into existence and how her son plays an important role in her blogging career of 15+ years.

After this, Flipkart panel discussed the trends and pros cons of ecommerce. Thereafter, Blunder in the code performed and Ad-Mad and then the event concluded with photo session. The major trends discussed were of great importance and interest, of which will discuss few here.

One of the most important trends was availability of items under one roof. It focussed on how Flipkart encourages international as well as local sellers to list their items and thus enabling worldwide virtual sale structure.

Other important one was how if the size doesn’t fit perfectly, an item can be returned and then the corresponding seller has to adjust the re-delivery cost in his profit section, which teaches him to be more perfect next time. The Barbie being the most liked toy, Mickey mouse and Chota Bheem followed. Talking doll is now getting more likes from Indian crowds.

Also the impact of sales was widely evident. And maintaining quality of product during the sale is one thing Flipkart has always focussed on. One of the blogger enquired why Flipkart couldn’t provide a facility for bulk retailers to which the panel promptly replied it doesn’t encourage business from bulk buying however there is a facility for corporate buyers to buy in bulk for a certain occasion or so.

All these trends helped bloggers understand the working of ecommerce behind the curtain and what goes in making of such a huge shopping hub virtually. At a personal level, I have always been a Flipkart customer and this session helped me understand how things function at their side of the end.

Flipkart with its variety, sales and product quality; like always has been a winner in ecommerce section and it definitely looks like it won’t stop doing so in the near future.

The Bestseller she wrote book review

2015-12-19T12:26:00.001+05:30

THE BESTSELLER SHE WROTE. - Ravi Subramanium

He was a bestseller...

She wanted him to make her one.

What happens when an author becomes a fan?

Master storyteller Ravi Subramanium delves into the glitzy world of bestsellers and uncovers a risky dalliance between a superstar novelist and his alluring protégé.

The bestseller she wrote is a combustible cocktail of love, betrayal and redemption.

About the book:

· Paperback: 392 pages

· Publisher: Westland (19 October 2015)

· Language: English

· ISBN-10: 9385152386

· ISBN-13: 978-9385152382

· Product Dimensions: 19.4 x 12.6 x 3.2 cm

· Language: English

· Genre: Fiction/Contemporary

· Author(s): Ravi Subramanium

· Binding: Paperback

· Edition: First

Ravi Subramanian has always been a banking-related author. He is famous for his previous thrillers related to banking and all the drama involved. Being a global banker himself, his successful transition in his forte can be applauded.

Blogadda when announced this book up for review on 3^rd of December, I very well remember I had applied even without bothering to research on the type of book it is. I have been an ardent reader and programmes like these are like cherry on the cake. I would like to thank blogadda for selecting me and giving me this chance.

So what does ‘The Girisham of India’ bring to his readers and fans in eighth book?

The title of the book actually makes it clear about the story it contains. The bestseller she wrote (TBSW) is a romantic thriller revolving around Aditya, Shreya, Maya and Sanjay.

Aditya is shown in the ideal lifestyle with a baking career at its peak and also the bestselling author of his time. Shreya joins his company as a management trainee and what follows ahead is pretty predictable. Aditya although unwillingly falls in love with her and after a while his wife, Maya comes to know of this.

It can be safe to say that the actual plot starts after this revelation. The pace after this picks up speed and I am sure no one can keep the book down after he reaches this point.

Points I liked:

1.The writing style which held suspense for quite a good time.

2. Proper blending of storyline (The part where Maya gets Ebola has been explained in a good way).

3. The unravelling of the twists and turns at proper point. (Sanjay and his storyline have been hidden nicely).

4. The relatibility of the characters and storyline.

Points to have worked on:

1. The protagonist’s side could have been well explained by herself. It would have interested the readers more rather than listening it from her friend.

2. Slow pace at the start of the book.

3. A bit more on each characters and their relationship.

Overall:

TBSW definitely is a thumbs up from me. It is pretty light and easy read and keeps you hooked to the climax too. In other words it is a corporate saga of love, betrayal, friendship, vengeance and family.

It definitely makes the reader a better person by the end and that is what matters.

It is to be made into a movie soon, and it will surely top the charts as it suits the bollwood mind aptly.

Ravi subramanium is safe to stay in this genre.

Ratings:

* Book cover-4/5

* Story- 4/5

* Narration-3/5

Overall rating- 3.6/5

I am reviewing ‘The Bestseller She Wrote’ by Ravi Subramanian as a part of the biggest Book Review Program for Indian Bloggers. Participate now to get free books!

Chocolate Cake-Sugar Free version

2015-12-05T23:41:00.002+05:30

Life and food at least for me go hand in hand. I am that type of person who spends like 80% of my total money on trying out new cafe’s and outlets. And if it’s out of budget, I care enough to save for few months and later spend all of it whole-heartedly on a single dish that I had always wanted to. And with equally hungry friends, I always get a good company.

Food is now synonymous to an emotion to me. I savour the look, smell and taste of it. I am tempted to lick off plates too if the dish has been irresistible (which I definitely do if I am at my house). Being a single child, you always get perks of being the official taster and demander (if such a thing exists) of the house. I get to taste the recipes first-handily and my feedback is treated as the word of God. And you can always try your luck demanding new dishes too (my mom being a working woman the possibility of your demand being accepted varies on the days of the week), if possible they are definitely made, that too especially for me.

I have always been a fan of various cuisines and trying out different lip-smacking recipes is more like hobby. And people who know me well are acquainted with my culinary and baking skills too. I simply love to bake. Confectionaries, deserts and cakes are my all time favourites. I have always been trying Kaju-Katri, different laddus (Rava, Besan, and Methi) and cakes. My affection for cakes is indescribable. I had eaten approximately 2Kg of my birthday cake all in a day. It’s safe to say all my 32 are sweet teeth! Baking kind of relieves your stress. The aroma that fills the kitchen while you wait for your hard-worked batter to rise up and get in the right flavour and colour is an amazing experience in itself. And when you make your own baked cake and savour the flavour, ahaaa!!

http://sugarfree-india.com/

The value of sugar is incomprehensible. However since my dad is diabetic, I always was worried about the right amount of sugar to use for his health. That’s when I discovered Natura’s Sugar free. This product replaces the calorie content of sugar but keeping the taste level intact. Understanding the needs of diabetic and weight conscious people, this was certainly a boon to them.

So here is my Chocolate Cake-Sugar Free version

This cake takes up to 5 minutes for mixing and an hour to bake.

Cuisine: Fusion Desert Complexivity: Medium Servings: 4

Ingredients:

1. Maida/Refined flour- 1 cup

2. Chocolate- Half cup

3. Natura Sugarfree- 12 spoons approximately

4. Vanilla essence- 1/2 tsp

5. Baking powder- 3/4 tsp

6. Butter- ¼ cup

7. Buttermilk- ½ cup or as required.

8. Walnuts- For garnishing

9. Chocolate sauce/icing- optional

Method:

1. Melt chocolate (double boiler method) and butter and mix in a bowl.

2. Put the remaining ingredients in the same bowl and mix till smooth. Adjust consistency as required with the buttermilk.

3. Preheat oven to 180C. Grease the cake tin.

4. Place the mixture in the tin and allow it to settle.

5. Bake the tin in an oven for 20-30 mins at 180C.

6. Remove from the oven, allow it to cool and remove it in a serving plate.

7. Top with your favourite icing or chocolate sauce and your chocolate cake is ready to eat!

Just out of the oven

Ready to serve

P.s Do check in between when you keep your cake for baking as a over burnt cake is last thing you would want after the hardwork.

Mumbai- An Ecstasy

2015-12-01T22:46:00.000+05:30

Indiblogger the most happening social network for bloggers has been opening up the most amazing contests and happy-hours ever. You earn, learn and enjoy being there. It makes you live and love blogging. Sharing it with like minded people just adds up the fun. You connect to amazing people and discover a plethora in the blogosphere. Recently, indiblogger has come up with a new contest named ZonalWars by Tata Motors You basically have to select a city and blog about it, and the zone with most number of entries win. So, get writing to make your zones win!

Mumbai-Gateway Of India

As far as my post goes, my favourite city is Mumbai and shall always be. The reasons? Well, you don’t ask a Mumbaikar the reason why he loves Mumbai. Anyways, let me explain it to you in three broad aspects.

I. Design

Mumbai is a mix of Gothic, Victorian, Art-Deco, Indo-Saracen and contemporary architectural styles. It is second largest city having Art-Deco buildings. Regal and Eros cinema are good examples of them. The Mumbai architecture comes from the British roots in 18^th and early 19^th century.

The Gateway of India, one of the most important monuments is 85 ft high and is primarily based on Islamic architecture. It is made from yellow basalt and is majestic in its appearance.

CST Railway Station

The CST railway station and Elephanta caves are declared as world Heritage sites. Mumbai also boasts of forts like Panhala, Vasai Fort and caves like Elephanta and Kanheri, all amidst the hustling 24*7 busy city.

II. Drive

Mumbai has expanded, rather developed far and wide today. It has vehicles on road, ferries and boats in water, trains in railways, Metro and magnificent planes as a part of connectivity.

Mumbai locals

Mumbai’s new projects include a 5600m long sea link which connects Bandra to Worli and is costing to whopping 16 billion INR. It reduces time from 60-9- minutes to 6-8 minutes sharp. It is also India’s first 8 lane freeway. It is said that the cables used are approximately the circumference of the entire Earth!

Bandra-Worli Sealink

III. Connect

Mumbai is well connected by Railways and Highways. Also new projects like Mumbai Metro, Mumbai Monorail, eastern freeway, Santacruz-Chembur Link road, and Sahara elevated access road will change the face of connectivity in Mumbai. Given its 11.98 million population, these are not only the need but the urgent requirement for smooth to and fro in the city.

Highways

The Mumbai locals are the heart of mumbaikars and they experience 2.2 billion passengers every year. Certainly amazing

The magnificent Marine Drive

Mumbai is the financial capital of the country and also where the Bollywood comes from. ‘A city of dreams’ to ‘the city which never sleeps’, there have been various quotes about Mumbai which was earlier known as Bombay. Some people also say Bombay is an emotion and Mumbai is a city.

This is a city which can make you a star in the now 100cr movies if you have talent irrespective of where you come from. It can give you luxurious 2BHK from a street side hut. Mumbai named after Mumba-Aai, is more like its name, like a mother who gives shelter and food to one and all. Here every corner has a story. It definitely believes in work hard and party harder. You have the famous Vada-Paav to the romantic Marine drive.

Mumbai-A city that never sleeps

And most importantly, the people who make it the city it is, proud MUMBAIKAR.

Courtesies-

Picture 1

Picture 4

All mentioned facts and content are referred from Wikipedia and Google search results.

Tips to keep a baby's skin safe- II

2015-11-30T19:20:00.002+05:30

A baby is the charm of the house. No one can keep his eyes or hand off the baby. It lightens up the atmosphere in a house. Everyone adores, admires, cares and loves this bundle of joy. But with this love, there comes special care to be taken to keep the skin safe and soft the way it is. You can’t and shouldn’t just use adult skin care tips and tricks on a baby, even as an experiment.

A baby skin comes with its own unwritten manual. A bit of plus minus and the baby would have to pay its debt. And no one, literally no one would want this to happen at any cost. So we have to take extra special care for a baby. I have written an article on this earlier, check it out here. But today, I found few more interesting tips.

So here are my tips to keep the skin of a baby clean and gorgeous, just like how it should be

Avoid a diaper rash

A diaper is indispensable at least in the initial months. But using one can cause a lot of harm if not taken care. A diaper rash is almost the main reason for irritating a baby. The first reason a baby cries is 70% of times due to this irritation. So ensure to keep this area open in air and dry for some period of time regularly.

Give massages.

A massage will bond you with your baby and also will help in growth of the baby. Also if given after bath, it can be very effective as skin is just hydrated.

Do not apply soap directly

Soap contains various chemicals which may turn harmful for the baby. So dip a washcloth in soapy water and use it gently to clean a baby rather than applying a soap (remember a baby soap is also dangerous) directly to the skin. For the face, moisten a cotton ball and dab it very gently.

Do not use talc

A baby can swallow talc or even lick its face in an attempt to eat it. Don’t use talc instead use moisturising creams made especially for a baby.

Give lots of water in dry days

This will not only keep the skin hydrated but also prevent from going dry.

From the bath.

A baby is the most precious element in the world. Care for it in a special way. And also sharing is caring, drop in your comments about tips, will be delighted to read.

Pampers brings you the softest ever Pampers Premium Care Pants. Its cotton-like softness is #SoftestForBabySkin and allows it to breathe, thus keeping baby’s skin soft and healthy, and your baby happy.

Tips for keeping baby's skin safe- I

2015-11-30T18:50:00.001+05:30

The most beautiful creation in the world is probably a newborn baby. A soul which is so innocent, so pure and happy. A baby instantly lights up the atmosphere of the house. May it be its little squeaks, it’s endless crying or just the smell it emits from the cute baby lotions and powder applied upon him. Everyone adores a baby and in fact I would be surprised if I find someone who literally hates this innocent-little-soft-ball-of-joy.

But this innocent-little-soft-ball-of-joy in our polluted and hazardous world is a deadly combination. Nowadays there is plethora of options available for cleansing, moisturizing, scrubbing and protecting human adult’s skin. We are so specific about which products to use, the time, the quantity, the method. Now if a human is so sceptical about which products to use or rather, which products to not use, then a baby is definitely an exception. Our normal creams and lotions won’t be applicable on its skin, and if forcefully applied it may well be dangerous.

So here are my five tips to keep the skin of a baby soft and clean, the way it is made to be.

1. Use a gentle detergent:

Most people know this, but I’ll like to add up that use gentle detergent for any and everything that touches your baby’s skin. May it be bed sheets, blankets, towels, clothing’s, napkins or any other thing? This will cut down the chances of infection.

2. Don’t let them out in sun

For 6 months after baby is out, it must not be in direct sunlight. And if it is, cover maximum portion of the body.

3. Shop for wiser skin care products

In today’s time you get variety of options of brands to choose a baby product day for example soap. But in spite of the great level marketing tactics these companies do, make sure you don’t fall for them and use only items with parabens, dyes and added fragrances.

4. Bathe the right way

Do not heat the water for more than 3 minutes and do not let your baby sit for long time in soapy liquids. Also moisturize the baby right after it has dried from the bath.

5. Do not keep baby wet

Be it urinal water or after bath moisture, do not even a bit of water stand on the skin of baby. Dry it with a soft towel immediately.

These are my tips; comment below if you want to add up!

#MadeOfGreat

2015-11-12T23:38:00.001+05:30

We meet many people in the journey of our life. Some we forget while some cast a lasting impression on us. It is somewhat amazing that within a short span of time these people cast such magic that leaves you mesmerizing for the times to unfold. It isn’t just their behaviour but their overall personality. It is all about the good vibes they give out, to everyone.

Let me introduce you to the person of whom the above traits are, ‘Kalpesh Phodkar’. To start with he was the Chief Event Coordinator of Techithon- the technical festival of Atharva college, he has been leading publicity since last two years, national level cricket & chess player and to add upon the list, he has been selected as the Vice General Secretary for this year! But apart from this entire extravaganza, one admirable quality is that he has been my friend even before this started.

So before this begins to feel like praise-showering post for him, that’s not true. I have seen him as a person, seen him grow to the admirable personality he is today. Being the CEC, you are responsible for an entire technical festival from the scratch. His appreciation speech to the encouragement he gives is commendable. By this time the entire college is in awe of his leadership qualities. Today, let’s talk about other side.

Kalpesh has mastered the art of keeping work and friendship at par. No amount of post, power and pressure has let the friend in him affect ever. He has been there to shout on me if I don’t work during the festival (which I really didn't) and also talk any amount of crap while we hangout. One quality everyone should learn from him. And the way he encourages his team, oh my god, being a spectator you simply feel proud to be his friend.

No matter what, the way he smiles his way out of difficulties, radiating good vibes. He is a responsible son, great leader, a team player and most importantly a sweet friend. I have met many people but with his vibes, irrespective of his responsibilities, you suddenly get attracted to a happier life.

I thank Tata Motors and their #MadeOfGreat activity which gave me a chance to think upon the people in my life and appreciate the deserving. A toast to good vibes and life!

Life is a balance between work, play and maintaining relationships with the people in your life. And you can learn all of it from my dear friend. Truly #MadeOfGreat

Cheers to you, Kalpesh!

Also to my lovely readers out there, answer this question in comment section to win amazing vouchers, 'What do you think about Tata Motor's association with Lionel Messi?'. Drop by your email address for me to intimate in case you win!

Diwali- Spreading Smiles

2015-11-10T00:04:00.001+05:30

So even before I start writing this post let me wish you all lovely people, ‘A VERY HAPPY AND SAFE DIWALI’. I am pretty sure that preparations must be in full swing if not almost complete. There must have been extravagant splurging on new clothes for each day, fire-crackers irrespective of the fact that they burn up in a span of maximum of two minutes, gifts for our family and extended family and their families and of course our beloved friends and the auspicious gold too. It seems as if every family has this motto –‘This Diwali, make it large than your neighbours and relatives.’ Ah, well, never mind! Some things in India will never change and yes, we proud of it too. Who doesn’t have exorbitant cravings and desires? (This includes me! :P)

Diwali- The festival of lights and happiness.

This festival lights up our houses and also brings cheer to the faces in the family. It is that time when families irrespective of their otherwise busy schedule make time for others. It is when surprises and shiny gift wrapped papers rise up the excitement spreading happiness. It is when the sweets and other delicacies make everyone go wowwww. Everyone looks forward to this festive season enthusiastically.

http://mocomi.com/happy-diwali-wallpaper/

But apart from our sweets-fat filled tummies, over-priced clothes and extortionate gifts, just let’s look somewhere else. Someplace where Diwali isn’t that cheerful because the blood ties are almost negligible; where they don’t know whether they shall be having tomorrow’s lunch, forget about the festive treats and where they only have two pairs of clothing to use for an entire year. I am talking of an orphanage home called ‘Desire Society’, which takes care of HIV affected (who has the HIV virus in their body) and HIV infected(who are relatives of HIV affected) children.

HIV is mostly spread due to ignorance and lack of awareness which isn’t the mistake of the child who faces society shame and humiliation. These children, mostly due to scared, sick and poor parents are simply left on the roads to be fed on their own. This is where ‘Desire Society’ steps in and adopts the thrown away children with the love of a mother. It not only takes care of their education but also treats and cures them from the diseases they suffering from. The kids here are sent to private schools and made sure their well being is proper. Truly, a blessing in disguise for the poor kids.

But one of the major issues here is that this organisation runs solely on individual donors and the

government too doesn’t give out any help. It falls short of school fees, basic amenities like soaps, decent clothes and also monetary funds for the medical needs. (The children require special medicines and nutrients along with their daily intake to keep their immunity power high as they are more susceptible to diseases).

Call me lucky, I got the chance to visit these kids twice and let me tell you, besides all of the above the love they shower on you is irreplaceable. It is love that they fall short of importantly. We visited the Goregaon branch of Desire Society and this very kind hearted man, Bharat Tamang who’s the caretaker of the house, explained us in detail about everything. We met the kids later after which we were spell bounded.

Their requirements included clothing, blankets, pulses and obviously monetary funds. The funds could be one of their packages or any specific amount you wish to donate. The packages start from as low as ₹150 which gives egg supply for entire month to ₹7000 which includes snacks, lunch, evening snacks and dinner for the entire day for all 30 kids. Please note this includes additional medical expenses which may occur later. To the days when we spend almost ₹500 on a simple lunch, donating a part of it won’t cause us any harm. Also since I have personally visited this place, the money won’t go in any kind of fraud and the smiles on kids faces make up for it.

This Diwali ensure you light up a smile in few more faces. I promise, it shall be worth it.

Address-

47/396, CHSL No.2,

Unnat Nagar, Near Venus Garden,

Off. S.V. Road, Goregaon West,

Mumbai, Maharashtra 400062

Contact- 022 6500 7771

P.s- You can also donate old toys, clothes and sweets with prior permission of the caretaker.

P.p.s- This isn’t a forced article and I have written this completely out of my wish to spread the word about the society and the good work they do. Please do not take this in any wrong way.

Eloped

2015-11-03T22:46:00.000+05:30

Fragmented and shattered, she lay in bed,

Drop of tear and even blood, she dread.

Questioning her decisions in the head

Why did she choose him to wed?

Disputes at home ending in denials

And then followed by sickening trials

He or none, was her resolution

But their religion gave them only one solution.

And before the next dawn, she was gone

Nervous and excited what destiny had drawn

Eventually her family came to know that she fled

And then fragmented and shattered, she lay in bed.

Real Togetherness

2015-10-21T16:56:00.002+05:30

http://www.kissanpur.com/

God: Creator or Creation of Man

2015-09-27T22:31:00.000+05:30

If we trace the the origin of this great universe that we live in, we come to one easy answer, ‘The God created it.’ Unless of course if you are cent percent science fanatic and you follow all science theories and fact which most of us aren’t, you could have come up with a complex three word answer: THE BIG BANG THOERY. But just like the guy in Bournvita commercial if we question them more about the source of the theory, some may go in details and bore us; while others may end it with an interesting answer encountered beforehand, God made it.

On some more head scratching, I found this analogy. If we research on the source and initial existence of our beloved God, our grandparents proudly say that their grandparents taught them that God existed. On many such investigations, I say that at a certain time in the past, this certain human pestered by his child, made up a character, the most powerful of all and named it as God.

So God made human and human made the God. Quite a chicken and egg story eh?

‘One day God and human met, both exclaimed, “MY CREATOR!”’.

Wait there is more pun added to it. Consider a parallel world where humans and god have switched roles. The God is worshipping human there. Humans come there for 10 days festivals, sit on big iron thrones (for game of throne fans), are offered sweets and fruits and then are immersed in water. Humans reside in frames on the walls of God’s abodes. They also have big temples and mosques where seasonally each one of us gets to sit and admire all the drama going on.

If all of the 33 crore lords of each area and hilltops, and another billion from other caste and creed come to us for all their solutions offering us plenty of eatables when we sit there like a statue pondering on what is to be done, definitely that would be a scene to laugh on. And not to forget when the gods enjoy a grand slam holiday on each of our birthday’s.

Quite a happy birthday would that be.

Coming back to the reality and the auspicious occasion of Ganpati visarjan, (when few tons of Plaster of Paris and another ton of garlands are dumped in sea water) which marks the end of 10 crazy days of one of the festivity only to get closer to another 9 nights of dancing for the goddess (Navratri). If we analyse the total collections all the famous organisations having donation boxes make, and also ensure even distribution to all in the world am pretty sure we shall eliminate heart wrenching epidemics like famines, poverty and natural disasters.

On a bigger note, analysing the bigger pictures the creation of God was made to instil a sense of fear to warn humans from all the wrongdoings. The creation of humans was to create a society which coexists in harmony. There are some humans blessed with all of the resources while some with extent. I believe, to some extent God was created to bridge this gap between us. Now many of would say how can this happen but then that is the beauty of this Earth probably. God exists only if we believe it does. It exists only if we want it to. The aim of that existence however is static i.e. to help all coexist.

Because, after all no one really answer did chicken come first of the egg!

P.s The matter written above is my personal thoughts, not intended to hurt any one’s personal belief and sentiments. Peace expected.