Myriad Hues

Inspiration on Pinterest

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 06:28:00 +0000

Inspiration comes from anywhere - someone who was probably very creative, smart and a genius

For usual souls like me, it comes from Pinterest. It is not a new martini drink ; nor a dating site. No, it is not a dart board game.

It is a virtual pin board, of all things you want to share, store and keep for future use. Someone has already explained all about it; so hop here to read about it. I have a very average arranged set up there and working to make it better ; but yes, I do have a space and I am kind of happy (proud) of it. If you want to be a part of Pinterest, and need an invite - drop a line and I will mail it across to you. I want to share pictures on this blog ; and not mine. So, off to some favourite, inspiring, funny pictures from Pinterest. Happy viewing ! And if you are there, follow me.

Who can not love C&H ?

Source: twistermc.com via Archana on Pinterest

Yes! I felt like saying hi-five when I read this first!

Source: strengthissexy.tumblr.com via Archana on Pinterest

Would it even matter, what is served on this plate ?

Source: google.com via Archana on Pinterest

I promise, to never leave the porch

Source: sunsurfer.tumblr.com via Archana on Pinterest

25 and counting..

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 10:00:00 +0000

As you grow and traverse through various paths in years, you expect to grow in many ways, to see people and learn or unlearn, to make some mistakes ( or many) and either learn from it or ignore it

As I turn 25, I am plainly surprised at the like minded characters I have met so far. By no means, I am trying to put them into buckets as each are one unique gem in its own worth. But, the similarity is striking and fascinating. So many tunes and shades – yet they are all being the same.

In this world I live in today, every single thing works on a business possibility.People have a value life and once their value is over, they are no longer used.They are not exactly thrown away too. They become friends on Facebook, thekinds you do not bother to "like" even if they own a Booker Prize.

I can count with one hand the number of sensible, generous and smart ( I tell you, this is a very rare combination ) I have met baring the usualsuspects of family. And to that, I add the ones with personality, spunk and attitude – it is not even a legible number to write down. The illusions we get on people and emotions as children are plainly illegible to survive in this big bad world.

Love - Oh, love is the most highly traded commodity. It merely moves from one place to another with eye glances, unspoken words and crappy internet romantic lines. It means convenience, comfort, a cushy wallet, a stable job and some basic looks. There is hardly any courage in acceptance, dignity in behaviour in most relationships. Add to it, the moral policing nazis - who take it as their birth right to comment on every single relationship change you go through. It is not exactly happy, or even appealing to one's own heart.

It is only a matter of how well you can make things happen with each other. If you succeed in making life simple, then it works. Else, it does not.

Friendship – The F word in my own dictionary. I mean, it is SO hugely abused and I will plainly walk straight with love for this story. If love says highly traded, this is the combination that gives the most pennies. A profit in getting a cup of coffee, to a free ride for a few years in others lives. And after Facebook made its way, the word merely means “anyone you see for 120 seconds or sees you for 180 seconds”. Italso means, you allow that person to access your life – past, present and future and all that you will mostly get back is a tag. Or may be, may be a like.

If you disagree with it and are lucky enough to still continue and exist in 2012 with a handful of friends, you are lucky.Lottery winning types. Even Casino types.

Parents/Relatives – Merely a visiting card to grow on. I am sick of the number of "kids" who used an uncle or a dad to get a internship, a job and a admission. It is probably remorse that I do not have high profile relatives to itch me a favor but in all honesty, people like me are glad we do not have them. It is one thing to have contacts and get information and act smartly. It is an entirely different thing to get guidance and fall back as a pillow.

I should write an entire post on the parents bit. It has irked at people like me for such a long time, and I hardly see any noise made about it. I am no judge to pass my statements and make an entire world go by it. At the same time, I am no soul to simply ride on opportunities and live with my own world in my head we well. I refuse to be that way. For, still there lies a world where such things matter. It still does.

This post by no means was written in a bad mood, or a wrong day. It is a mere culmination of how things are around every one of us. I just decided to call a spade as one.

South Asian Reading Challenge 2012 and Good Reads

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 14:34:00 +0000

This blog does no justice to any of those wonderful people out there hosting events, conducting challenges in blog sphere. This, if I complete successfully will be go down as the first ever challenge or even a bet that I have won over myself.

Of all the comforts at Singapore, the one I have abused the most is the library system. Coming from a place I am so used to lines, waiting, nightmares in libraries - the system to get a card is a breeze. And, and whole choice we have here is mind boggling to say the least. I realized the idea of walking into a library without knowing what book to take, or at least what genre is pulling me back to boring business likes or really well known slight chick-lits. Honestly, I was getting too bored of my laziness.

I chanced on GoodReads and life got slightly better. With an updated set of shelves, I know what to pick up when I walk into the library next. The last three month saw some real amount of 'good reads' cracking at at least one book a week. The trend in my choices was either picking up books on India or by Indian authors, even to the extent of reading Lonely Planet guides.

2012 has to be a year of better reading habits, so my random browsing for more Indian authors led me to S. Krishna's page. She has been hosting a lovely event for South Asian authors and has a ready to pick up list on her page.

I challenge to read 20 books for this challenge by the year 2012. If you think I am crazy, please go and check my GoodReads shelf. Yes, that is exactly how I came up with the trend :)

Now, before I get all started - a few pointers on it.

I do not plan to review any book except if it is absolutely remarkable in my mind. Truly, I should not get into the reviewing business of books at all . My language flow goes for a toss and I end up using too many superlatives.
Most, if not all of my books will be from NLB. So, I do have a restrain if I do not manage to get enough books here.
For the interest of it, I plan to include some cooking and travel memoirs into it

I am also taking up the Good Reads challenge for 2012 ( please pretend that you have noticed the shiny new widget )

To a much well read 2012, here I come :)

Brownies Anyone ? - The Brownie Factory, Raffles Place

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:41:00 +0000

I love Brownies.

I love anything that is nutty.

I am tempted to add a smiley to the title.

Image Courtesy here
The Brownie Factory is small in size but very generous in choices. They offer over 20 types of brownies to choose from and it is not easy to pick one at all. Conveniently, they have placards on the best sellers ( from 1 to 5) and offer the new ones with a note too.

I have personally tried their Fudgy Gooey Chocolate Brownie, The Triple Chocolate Brownie, The Vegan Nutty Brownie, The Salted Caramel Brownie and the The Caramel Pecan Brownie ( most favourite!)They also have convenient packages for you to gift or for a birthday.

The prices range from 3 dollars to close to 5 dollars. If I am not too wrong, the most expensive one was a cheesecake brownie at some 4 dollars odd. They are a perfect fix for a sweet carving, or for a not so awesome day at work. They also offer some icecream choices, which I haven't tried.

Triple Chocolate Brownie is one of their best sellers and it can be safe bet for anyone who wants to try for a first time. It has a crumby texture unlike a brownie and is with apt sweetness. Made a mental note to try their peppermint brownie sometime too. It has this pretty green with chocolate stripes. They have seasonal specials - for CNY they have mandarin orange brownie and some blondies as well.

Visit them at 1 Raffles Place, OUB Centre ( open till 8PM). This place is right next to a Swiss Bake and is opposite to a BodyShop store. They should consider renaming 1 Raffles Place to 1 Evil Place !

All pictures clicked and edited with Instagram. Pardon the poor lighting.

P.S : I hope you got the clue about gift boxes. I travel via Raffles Place twice a day.
P.P.S : The Salted Caramel Brownie is actually nice. I was just grumpy when I wrote this post.

Stories to share!

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 11:10:00 +0000

The first post need not be this for a new year. But like how it goes, this is on my mind. Rather, they are on my mind. It was a totally different game before family came over. One whole year went strong and would have gone all too if only I had not known how it feels to have them here.

For a multitude of reasons, me and my mom are great buddies. So much that I am yet to met anyone who hits on that chord or laughs at a wink for an unspoken joke. She has certainly got strong influences on me, both genetically and behaviourally. Good or not, I don't know but it is not easy to miss someone at all.

I have missed people and cribbed, written poems(!) on it too but this one is way too heavy. The trains, buses and walkways are filled with them. Argh, had i known it would be this bad, I would have flown down instead.

We had a whale of time,unquestionably one of the best vacations ever. In many ways, this was the best way to end 2011. The year saw certain milestones for us. From a huge question mark on when I am going to study again to a successful convocation, from my lonely worried sleepless nights of job hunting to one helluva job I do, from a decade old unused passport to making Amma 's first ever foreign trip happen- I really should not be complaining. Yea, that way I am insatiable. I need the cake, the pie and even the cute plate it is on.

Suddenly, Singapore looks all ugly. I was all awing at the safety and beauty but as loneliness gets bad, it simply looks monotonous. May be I should switch to a better mood or just imagine driving through saidapet in my Scotty. I will instantly love this place.

Grumpy mood led me to The Brownie factory. Does no help to an oily face,but a teeny part of me still hopes chocolate makes everything better. I spent a good seven minutes going through the fourteen choices( I swear! If you are from SG, you must make it as a resolution to buy one even week) and I chose the salted caramel brownie. Such a pain my pea sized brain is to choose the only salty option when I carved some sweetness. It probably is not bad, but I kinda thought it was horrible. What a grump my mood is in!

Before the devil cribs again, I will leave this post to rest

By the way, this post is entirely typed and posted from the new iPhone ( show off, me!)

Wish you a blessed 2012!

Five reasons why travelling should be my To – Do in 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 01:30:00 +0000

This part of the post is the TO – DO in 2011. December is going to be pretty awesome,packed and fun. For the first time, my family is visiting me here and I havecharted a TEN day Singapore (with a two day KL - Genting) trip for them. Before you pounce and comment on the lack ofstuff to do here for eight days, let me assure you – my schedule for them is pretty packed.

It is the first out-of-home long vacation for both, so I am really going to stop my nutcase antics, be responsible and act grown up with amma. But not to the absolute extent that she thinks I am ready for…you know what…

I have a strange and raising love for hearing stories and wish to travel across countries, meeting people and listening to stories. And someday, I want to learn photography so well that I can capture all my stories into pictures.

For now, I am not yet really there. One thing, I can certainly do is to blog about it. That is for 2011.

The plan for 2012 includes mostly SE Asia – Langkawi, Nikoi Islands, Sabah (or some partof western Malaysia), Cameron Highlands, Nepal and Kerala (mostly Cochin, or Wayanad). I would love to add Bali or Phuket, but really not too sure!

Apart from a multitude of reasons, this is why I MUST do all this in 2012 :

· It is the last year. Sincerely hope, you all know the world is ending in 2012.

· It is not exactly costing me a lot. It does cost, but thankfully affordable.

· These places are great culture/food spots. Read my low profile stories on Thirucherai and Kumbakonam.I am sure; Langkawi will be a better story. Trust me, on this!

· It is my futile hope that someone somewhere will see me moving around with a book,pen and crazy clothes and offer me a job in TLC Asia. Okay, just kidding. KPMG rocks.

· I want to be photographed in short hair. That lame, I am. I have got my first after-ten-years old short hair do now. Also, want to track the hair length in pictures :)

· Because 2011, is ending on a great note. I am at Siem Reap, Cambodia as this post goes up live.

I wrote six. Okay, I am now lazy to change the title. Sorry!

Note to the world : I do not believe in buying you back a souvenir, but yea – leave a comment if you need me to own something. And yes, if you know of a great thing I MUST do in any of these places, let me know!

Note to self: Come back and read this post, every month in 2012.

Foodie..er..whats the name!

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 07:47:00 +0000

Source: thejunkhouse.blogspot.com via Brie on Pinterest

This post has been picked up for BlogAdda's Spicy Saturday Picks. Whatte surprise!

At one point of time in my life, I was declared to be on dangerously low weight. Though it was not for long, I have had serious eating problems as a child. Always raised a demur against food, I was not exactly amma’s favourite activity.

The early years were not very exciting too, as for more than ten years – my family never ordered anything specifically for me. Thus was my tryst with food, ordering and eating out. The last four years have been a pleasant reversal, though. A lot of my friends know I love food – both to cook and to eat. It surprises so many when I say, that I cook! Interestingly, no one really expects a single 24 year old to be able to cook different things, and hate instant noodles.

What is particularly funny is how the exact same people have already determined I should be married by now. If I have no ability to fetch myself a decent, healthy meal, how exactly should I do/handle a marriage? Yea, I do know many women get married without an idea of cooking and that cooking is not exactly organic chemistry. But, the determination baffles me. Totally.

As always, I digress. This post is not on my take on cooking/marriage but on how this change over has made life different today. I have certainly become a much responsible eater. I was never really into making my own cup of tea before 2008, but yea – I was barely 22 then. What started as a learning curve, has become a way of exploring, experimenting and enjoying food. As a bonus, I have qualified to be called as a foodie!

Now, I have serious issues with this word. For one, it conjures the image of someone who hogs meals and searches for expensive options. For another, it is directly seen in relation with my waistline. I detest my own line there, but it is true. Promise.

The word foodie hardly represents what fellow people like me think about food. We are not eaters. It is very hard to find a so called foodie who will eat anything on the plate. As a matter, most people are good cooks. A few things, I have to say on being a foodie -

· A foodie or whatever the person is called, has a passionate interest on food and participates enthusiastically in the preparation and consumption of good food. The act is not merely a means of survival ( as some chronic diet freaks do ) nor is an act of necessity ( as some really really busy people call it).

· We do eat out, at least I do – but love our food. It is savoured, tasted well and time/efforts are invested to find the best place, pay the best value and be mindful.

· There is this charm about eating for pleasure. Biting into a pannacotta when the world is trying to stick to guts with roti- chawal, or wiping up a rasam-curry meal after a long day at 11pm when you may crash with maggi noodles.

· Then, there is this thing about exploring. We normally love to walk around food markets, click pictures, taste stuff, peep and see new cuisines being cooked, read memoirs, talk to people etc. And yes, IKEA is a great time pass place.

And yes, after we are done with our meal, we do go ahead with other things in life – like a full time job, or an intolerable kid or an almost there deadline (!). Like me. Like now. I have earlier written on food, places, philosophy with food ( I know ! ) etc. Click here to read/see/ogle at them!

Anonymity and things as such...

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 05:21:00 +0000

There is no real reason why anonymity is not glamorous. This post is not to quote how many people have roamed under the magical invisible cloak but on how so low standards our integrity has gone.

There are many reasons why this blog does not see regular posts and one of it is certainly the fear of being identified with the personal posts that go up here. I have had random ( really, random) people come and ask me about things I wrote. Now, I am not even a famous or a good one. Yet, this happens! And trust me, being a single girl in a lonely city comes with its own set of rules and issues. And one of it, is the trouble with how easily people use anonymity.

From crazy mails, to stupid comments and now - recently, a msg on FB, all has occured here. It is seriously sick, to see a message from a fake profile chiding a post I wrote more than a year back. The message went on to say, that my new haircut does not suit me. :(

And then there are anon people who seem to have an air over them. I do not understand what exactly is there to be proud about being unable to show an identity, esp on comments. It is an entirely different case with anonymous/partial anonymous bloggers. It is kind of sensible, esp if you are going to use a blog to vent out all kinds of emotions. I am not denying it is not exciting. A secret : I did try anonymity, and realized I was only pouring crazy mood swings down there. Then, I suspended the blog. Even now, I feel I should write down anonymously somewhere and store it for my own eyes.

It does cause me to worry, only a bit. Should just push it off, along with a million other things in my head now.

The Mosaic Tag

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Sat, 26 Nov 2011 03:45:00 +0000

When you are terribly stuck at work with no mood to finish anything, and all the priorities madeare totally screwed up, I try and pick up some tag and do justice to this blog.

The last week has been crazy. Juggling between deadlines, that never seem to meet. Friday comes, and I have happily scheduled my next week as I type this out.

The Mosaic Tag is very famous in flickr. And though I dont click, nor have a flickr account, I do gawk at photos. Infact, I have a brave thing for gawking at anything/anyone. Not any more on that.

The rules are pretty simple:

Type your answer on Flickr search
Pick an image, from the first page
Form a mosaic with the images.

I have slightly tweaked the questions, here it goes

What is your alter name? Archie
What is your favourite food? Brinjal curries and Curd Rice
What high school did you go to ? Adarsh Vidyalaya
What is your favourite colour ? Blue. But, Black in Clothes.
Who is your celebrity crush? Certainly Prithviraj.
What is your favourite drink? Masala Tea
What is your dream vacation? Santorini, Greece
What is the most beautiful place you have lived? Nanyang Valley Apartments @ NTU.
What do you love most in life? Books
Favorite Dessert? Chocolate Trifles
What do you want to be when you grow up? A writer in any form
One word to describe you ? Cranky

and here is the picture :)

This post took so much time to go up because I kept changing the pictures. I chose the pig for Archie because the rest were all images of people, and prithviraj is so cute as a caricature. A little dorky, but I dont care!

It is surprising that my answer for what I love most, came as books on my mind. I have always loved reading, but never owned too many books after school. And now, NLB is there and I still do not own too much. I should start buying good ones, but yea...sometime.

Photo Credits from Flickr

1. Archie, 2. Brinjal vegetable, 3. Maharashtra Cadet Corps, 4. Blue, 5. Prithviraj , 6. Masala Tea @ Delhi Railway Station, 7. Santorini, 8. nanyang_valley_3, 9. Read Across America Day, 10. chocolate trifle, 11. Writer's Weapon, 12. PuzzLe !!!

Singapore Veg Healthy Frankie: The Flyin' Bread!

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 05:57:00 +0000

If you are from Chennai, or actually from Bombay - you will know Tibbs Frankie. It is this awesome bite meal with a tangy, spicy, evil taste that lingers for a while. For long, a trip to besant nagar beach was NEVER complete without a paneer frankie. It is clearly not a healthy meal, with a maida ( plain flour ) based paratha, rolled and served hot with a oily gravy ( not tandoor cooked) filling. Yet, like all unhealthy stuff, it was pretty awesome.

And it was only 35 rupees. Or may be 40. Does not matter.

Come to Singapore,and I forget the frankie. This one is the closest resemblant one can find here. The rolls we get in sandwich stores here are mundane, boring and very sloppy in taste. And yea, i do like subway stuff, but anyone who has had a frankie will find it blasphemous to compare. A random late evening post walk work inside Plaza Singapura got me to The Flyin' Bread.

From the outside, the store looks like any other kiosk.

Image Source here

I noticed a live grill pan and loads of chicken around, and quietly asked if there are any veg options. The man at the counter probably understood I was a lost vegetarian roaming around, and immediately suggested a paneer flyer. I chose a medium one for two reasons - I did not exactly want to hog at 7pm, and later spend the night thinking if I should have dinner or not. Two - I was not prepared for a spit away tofu roll with laden mayo.

Big mistake. The roll was stupendously good. You either make good, soft, delectable paneer or you serve leather shoes. This one was fantastic. It seemed correctly spiced and was rolled well with lots of lettuce ( salad, whatever) and had mint chutney, a dash of something like imli chutney and wrapped in a roomali roti. Yes, not a prata. A roomali.

Image Sources - mailed by Vikram ( the one who owns this place). First pic - Potato Flyer. Second pic - Grilled panneer :)

They also serve set meals with avacado milkshake ( once again, same BIG mistake!) with chocolate on it. The best part is the BBQ idea and indianizing it beautifully with chutneys and flavours. The menu had a lot of offers, I did not bother to look beyond anything when he said paneer. A look on their website also shows this interesting video on how the chef makes the roomali. I did not see the act, but it sure looks nice. That is also why the rolls are called flyers.

Going with the final say,

Excellent branding. I have always loved, loved when small things are told well. Esp, in the food business. A good mix of taste, some neat package deals, convinient location and a great name. Who could have christened it better!

The medium roll costs $6.90. It is not exactly cheap, but it is not expensive either. Would not call it a whole meal as it is a mere binge.

The portions are generous, which makes up for the money in my opinion.

They should consider giving a fork/spoon along with the meal. It is not easy to really bite into the meal, especially for clumsy, multi tasking eaters, like yours truly.

The paper cover got very soggy and dripped along, and hence I had to throw away some sauce. Though it is nice to give in paper, some skill is needed in eating this :)

They have two stalls - one at Plaza Singapura, and another at Somerset. For the complete menu, offers, check here.

P.S :Apparently, their beef and chicken flyer is really nice as well. Do try!

Special thanks to Vikram for being absolutely sweet and mailing the pics, along with the permission to use material from his site.

Hello, Newly Married Friend...

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 08:32:00 +0000

No major offence to anyone who is married. But I cant fathom the sciences behind your obsession to being aunty. And talking to me about marriage. Go away, all of you. The whole full stop you put when you are married pisses me off. Yes, it is that annoying. So what if marriage is the single most defining point in your life? It is not in mine. It will never be in mine, even if I get to marry the cho chweet sweetheart of my life. Live with your munchkin happily, but for sake of my swear words, do not bother naive (!) singles like me.

What is even worse is that you go around telling stories to people on why no one above the age of 24 should be single. Did you just forget that the day before your wedding, you came and stood like a fool about tying that saree? Damn, no one learns to master wearing the saree even for eons after marriage. I am yet to learn manage a duapatta. But at least, I do not sit like a doll when I dress up.

Have i told you how much fun it is to have own reading time? Or own walking time? Just because a truck load of girls have decided to hand over the remote control of their lives to their munchkins, it does not mean womanhood has lost powers of self existence.

Though, I have a bunch of best friends who are married and yet cool. Or, to be married and even cool about it. That is the way to live. This business of two bodies one heart is filmy. Get over it. It is filmy even for me.

Marriage is important, its fun and probably everyone (including me) will enjoy it.But to go one step ahead and act like it is the coolest thing to do at 24 is no joke. It is annoying to everyone, even to your families.

Grumpy post, bear with me. My vent blog :P

What to eat when in North India!

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 04:04:00 +0000

I think the headline is pretty lame. I mean, the entire world knows about Chicken Tikka and Naan. What am I going to write about here? I now think this whole series is a pretty weird idea because it is all about stuff I have no idea on. I really wish I get a job in the India version of TLC and get a chance to go on a culinary journey. Me and my job aspirations, always!

The series started here, and is not here. I hope it does end soon :)

Anyways, here it goes - Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh,Chandigarh, Harayana,Punjab and Uttar Pradesh!

Kashmir - Dum Aloo is one of the few things that has been heavily roaming in abridged versions. I am sure the authentic version has more rich stuff - cream, nuts and such waistline damaging evilness. The versions that I have had are only the ones from Amma's kitchen or from some NI restaurant, where it is mostly a plomp of tomato-onion gravy and potatoes. The rest, I have not even heard about. Searches reveal Gustaba is a lamb balls in gravy dish, Hak ka saag is a spinach dish.

Chandigarh - has the most yummiest stuff. I have eaten the veg versions of all of those:) Yea, we love cloning!

Himachal Pradesh - As a kid, I was so fascinated by the name of this place. No clue why, though. I have not been anywhere close or eaten the mid-day brahmin meals there.

Haryana - Yumville again. Check, check :)

Punjab - Isnt channa batura the NI version of Masala Dosa? Not quite literally, but in royalty and popularity - yes!

Uttar Pradesh - Kebabs. That is enough to love this place.

This exercise is no means going to make my already famished brain work better to get this day over at work. This post is not at all complete, or descriptive because most of the food here is deemed so all over Indian already!

Being here..

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 03:17:00 +0000

Being a serious blogger is out of my reach.

1. I cannot commit myself to writing regularly. Laziness precedes me everywhere.

2.I do not know to be bothered about SEO, pagerank, buttons, pink colour, girl talk though hits and comments make my day nice.

3. I am too random. The Day Series does not work with me, because I do not like answering personal questions. Asking me on what are the five things that will make me happy, will require a dynamic post. It keeps changing every hour.

4. I do not know what my favourite colour is. That is why I chose Myriad Hues as the name for this blog. It is important to know this, trust me.

Cha, what a waste of a post!

Wanted

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 13:29:00 +0000

A friend like Phoebe Buffay. I love her. The way she handles things, and her absolute wit. I would straight go on my knees and ask her to be my friend, my buddy and my roomie. I can even make breakfast everyday. The wishlist goes like this..

- Preferably be within 25 years of age, and definitely unmarried.
- A BF is absolutely fine. However, BF's with clingy tendencies, or ones with the absolute need to be on the phone all night are frowned upon.
- Must have the ability to whack my back when I am down.
- Must have unmanageable hair.
- Must have had at least one scary experience in life.No, losing a phone and being stranded for 15 minutes is not counted as scary.
- Should know to live on street food, drink orange juice instead of water, cross roads on a rainy day without an umbrella, walk barefooted in beaches.
- Strict no for girls who act like daddy's princesses. (or mommy's girls)
- Should be nocturnal. I roast corn at 4am. Can be shared, though.
- Wit or Sarcasm should be her middle name. Esp, in dealing with people I hate. That is a lot of people.
- Must be able to dress up and leave home in 15 minutes.

I can go on and on. There are some friends to talk, some to hang out with and a bunch of absolute awesome girls I have. I was watching 'The One with Baby Shower' where Monica apologises to Sandra Green ( Rachel's mom) many times for not inviting her and she acts like she has not noticed at all. If you have ever been where Monica is, you will know the need for a Phoebe. The way she puts a stop to things. I louueee it!

On how Facebook is a Pain- Thursday Thirteen #4

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 06:40:00 +0000

13 ways how Facebook has made life tougher - Thursday Thirteen #4

1.It keeps changing. This is a big rant, especially for someone who is technically challenged. There is a new way the photos show. The next day, there is timeline. It is way too clumsy.

2.You are forced to see ‘report cards’, ‘friendship tree’ and such random places tagging you. I was hanging in the highest branch of a tree near a banana.

3.The pictures we see on a mother protecting her baby in Japan Earthquake, a dying child buried alive in Uganda – all in 920P. I fail to understand how I can help by clicking a ‘Like’ or Sharing it!

4.The coverage of micro details in status messages truly pisses me off. I do not have to know which NH you took to reach the lake you are holidaying now in your new icy-blue capris with your munchkin husband. Argh is an understatement.

5.There is ZERO originality in status messages, if it does not fall in the above category. It is ripped off from just about anywhere, and that is only fine if one person on your feed has it. I cannot bring it to see twenty stories on one quote talking about how happiness resides in some unknown place, etc. Or, like this one - “Woman reaches love through friendship; man reaches friendship through love"

6.The applications – did I already speak about it? Ah, worth it again , the ones with ‘Get your finger print’, ‘write your names in letters’ (!) , or the X-Men characters, whatever!

7.All aunts, uncles are there. I do not have too many issues with my elders and love some of their wit on Facebook, but most of the time, they use it for matrimony and its allied purposes. OMG! (runs away)

8.There are some people who were friends, and are not now. And then there are some who are friends but not really close. You really do not know who should be in which group. The task of putting 526 people in groups is tougher than going off Facebook ( if I could)

9.There are weightloss ads on the sidebar. I get depressed when I see them.

10.I watched Disney Series when I was 9. When I saw a page for Minnie Mouse, I liked it. Now, I see posts daily on the new construction material Mickey has bought to upgrade its (or his) house.

11.We can have 31 mutual friends. Still, I wont accept you on my list if I do not know you. It is a stalker’s haven. Yuck!

12.The torture of the DSLR maniacs flooding my pages with pictures of trees, cars and shoes. Painful.

13.It is making people turn narcissist. I am particularly scared of this one.I am not kidding at all. Do watch this video to know more about it.

I know of at least 5 reasons on my mind on why one cannot quit facebook. One is certainly on how photo sharing has been made so much easier! Google+ is better, though :). I am too bitchy, love the idea of people ( even if i dont talk to any of them) to quit it. That's it! Pardon me for the lack of better ideas for T13. Promise to make it more lively in the next. Mean while, if by random chance any of you decide to quit Facebook, lemme know. Will send you some ballons!

P.S : Post updated to add video link.

Lost and Found

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 08:55:00 +0000

Singapore is the best place to lose things. No place is nice to lose my mind, so let us put that out of this piece for now. This place is too honest that I am unable to comprehend how they work. In the one year, one month, eleven days here I have heard stories of how people left passports in public transport, left phones in public restrooms ( yea, of all places), dropped debit cards on walkways ( thts me), forgot to remove keys from cars parked in main areas and still managed to get it all back.

It is amazing the way everything seems to just work here. I know, I will soon grow bored of it. The chaos that we are used to back home seems to find such neatness astray. Yet, I can’t stop getting awed at how things work here. I dropped my card on the walkway from a lift to my home on a Sunday night. Thankfully, I realized it in less than two hours and blocked the card. On the next weekday, I walked to the nearest branch at Shenton Way to collect a token number and wait. In fifteen minutes, the lady prints my name on a new card and hands it over to me. Just Wow! Okay, if you have lived in a country which does this all your life then go and get a coffee. I come from a country where if I call to report a lost card, they will ask me to recite my card number and the CVV code.

The following Friday, as I pull myself to work across the same walkway I noticed my card. Tucked behind a pipe, with a post-it on it saying - 'Take Care'. I was clearly awed at this. I knew I would not lose any money but to get it back this way is amazing. I hate to blame back home, but I can’t think of a similar thing back there. In all my happiness, I sent the good soul four candies from my heart and a million dreams of whoever he wants and wrote a 'Thank You' post it back. I did not break the card and throw it away, though. Tucked it in one more of the holders in my wallet.

~~This week, I had to withdraw cash for lunch. As you probably know it by now, I used the old card and it simply got stuck. Okay, this is too much of self-inflicted damage. Delete this line.~~

Ah, the wallet. I did not lose it. I left it. Last evening, at my office desk and walked away without a memory. I did not remember it until I reached my destination, where I was tempted to buy a waffle.. I patiently dug my bag, fished out 10 and 20 cents coins up to $1.50 and munched on the waffle. I never really bothered because I knew I positively left it on my desk. I can trust it so much, that it would be here. And it was :)

Double Joy. Because I have lost apples in my office back home. And pens. And used lip balms. Yuck!

In case you thought the post is it, naah - here's the icing. Today I forgot that I forgot my wallet ( fancy sentence!) and left home without my EZ-link card - the travel preloaded card which had less than four dollars in it. I walked to the station, and had to realise it there. It was 8.30 and I normally am at work by 9.00. Walked back patiently, rose up 12 floors, climbed one - picked the card, checked kajal, stamped on a long lost earring ( wore it), drank minute maid and russsheeedd out at 8.50. Could not take the taxi with my coin pouch, so reached office by MRT at 9.30. Bloody hell!

Grown up life :(

Problems of This Day - Thursday Thirteen #3

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 07:39:00 +0000

13 problems of this day, this age( in no order)

I am on an amazing day off and been watching season after season of FRIENDS. The kind of problems we have today is an idea that stayed on my head. I intend to make it partly funny - lemme try. Humour has never been me.

1. I will show love for my community by purchasing an over-priced shampoo that apparently has community trade olives from Siberia.

2.I have three hearing devices. One headphones for my laptop. One handsfree. One more while I travel to work. And some songs are nice only in one of them. What a headache!

3.Putting pictures on Facebook means I cant wear the same kurta twice for a trip.

4. I am in search of a hairdresser who understands when I say 'do something with it, you must know, right?'.

5. I have over 50 different outfits but have no clue what to wear because its too cold for a kurta and too warm to carry a jacket.

6.I wanted a McDonalds Oreo Milkshake. The machine is broken. I just tweeted about it.

7. There is way too much low-cal feta cheese in my salad.

8. My pillows are too soft, that I wake up with a neck ache.

9. I have too much ketchup packets left after the million takeaways.

10. My neighbour's eight year old son called me and asked how 3G works.

11. I am too worried if the picture of my to-be groom is true or photoshopped.

12. I want to buy a DSLR. But hate to be one more of those who torture us, or be a feed for sarcastic bloggers.

13. I have been planning to go running. The gear, headphones, meter, shorts are all too expensive. Every month.

Whattay fun post to write! Loads of inspiration on this topic in web - looks like everyone seems to have problems with this world, anyways. Might as well get back to watching FRIENDS.

'I' does not necessarily mean yours truly :)Yea, I do love the community trade olive shampoo of mine.

Namma Chennai Rocks - Thursday Thirteen # 2

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 23:30:00 +0000

13 reasons why Madras aka Chennai rocks!

Having lived all my life ( barring the pre-KG years ) in Chennai, it is no surprise I am in love with it. I have travelled and lived for short durations in other main metros, but somehow the quintessential charm of the city fails to be replicated.

I rarely hate cities. I loved the bustling Hyderabad, the antique vintage charms of Calcutta and the smart chic Delhi I met. Trichy, Coimbotre are simply the most heart warming places for me to visit. The former because of my childhood love, and the later because of Isha, friends and simplicity. Ah, and the food in both places :)

Now on Chennai - the autos, the maniac driving and sticky sweat included(absolutely in my own perspective, I will try not to repeat food often)

1. The People and Jobs. We are a very cultural,educated lot. I say that, with a certain sense of pride. From the auto annae, the keerai kaari and the cobbler - everyone has an opinion on politics. People may not be the best to you, but we love our place. I have hardly heard of people from chennai migrating for jobs, except for a promotion or if they work with Google :) There are so many jobs available. Especially, on an entry level.

2. Beaches. I am a sucker at beaches. I love the winds, the sand and the messiness. Irrespective of whatever happens ( rains, sun or tsunami ), I love the beach. Had I been raised in Trichy or even Singapore, I would have missed this. No, Singapore does not have chennai or even remotely close beaches. Marina is now photogenic after the makeover. Elliots has long been my favourite kadalai beach for knowing the hep and cool chennai. We have one more beach, the Thiruvanmiyur one for amateur '8' design car rounds. Beat that, 3 beaches!

3. Food. Name it, we have it. I am not elaborating more on this. Tried the woodfired pizzas at Blur, or the Paneer Kheema dosais ? Yumville! Like every other Indian city, the street food in Chennai is brilliant. Thanks to migratory folks, we have bajjis, sundal and chaat sitting on the same counter. The under-rated son-papris and the over-rated milagai bajjis, we have it all.

4. Tanglish The most elite convent educated girls speak it here. We love our tamil. We love english. So we kalakify it and serve it with a smile. It works like a charm if you want to do shopping in chennai.

5. Pondy Bazar. A reason for anyone to visit my city atleast once. It should be a part of the tourism programmes there. The sheer colours and variety will bowl you over. To me, reminds of college time kurta walks and earring bargains.

6. Sowcarpet. If you have been raised in chennai and never gone shopping ( alone!) to Sowcarpet, you have missed it. The murukku sandwiches, the golas, designer sarees and awesome jewellery. Its our own mini version of Paris for fashion and Italy for food. And its an inspiring place for any juvenile entrepreneur (like me!)

7. Hop-On - Hop-Off buses. I am not sure if any other Indian city has this service. But chennai's AC Hop-On Hop-Off bus services are by far the best ways to go on ECR, if you do not have a car. Great views, and an excellent suspension on these buses.

8.Music Season . I am internally weeping at missing this. The smells, sights, colours and the sheer love for art my city has. The silk cotton crowds, beaded jewellery and south indain chic. The steaming coffees, kasi halwas and vazhaipoo vadais - A feast to all six senses. A place for celebrity spotting - do not be surprised if you find an yesteryear heroine (or a still-young Shobana) sitting next to you :)

9. Satyam Cinemas. Name me a place that offers an equivalent movie experience, steaming dosas on a bar stool and an unparalleled, creamy cold coffee. Simply the best place to watch movies. Even better than IMAX, trust me.

10. The Scene Colleges Stella, Ethi and MOP. Yeah, we are that awesome that we ought to be on this list. The tip of tongue tamil, the kurta-jean costume and the scooty whizzing around Nungambakkam. A treat. MOP is the best, though :P

11. Mount Road. We have one major road that connects you from one end to another - quite literally. Like the PIE here. And if you miss a right,you dont have to go all the way to another corner to get back, like in Banglore.

12. Traditional'a Moderna ? Have a vazhai elai sapadu and shop for ESPRIT clothes. Smoke on a hookah and head off to AF for a play. Nibble on a frankie and shop at Sundari Silks. Chennai is somewhere in between. It does not have the ultra cool post 11PM places to hang out and has a sense of laid back attitude in almost everything, but it suits fine for us. It is safe, spread out well, relatively organised (area wise) and has a blend of tanjavur to mexican food :)

13. We do know Hindi Chennai has got mostly a settled down crowd. The natives do not know hindi. We never had a need to know, because our marwari seths speak tamil. When someone says, abbey yaar, autowalahs do not speak hindi, I am fumed. Why would they expect a native nagapatinam born, educated chennai living autoguy to speak hindi? Walk into Tidel or Ascendas. I bet, 1/5 are from the aloo land.

This post has re-kindled so many happy memories. There is one more point, a very personal one that did not make it to the list. Chennai is the closest city to reach from Singapore. Takes me only 3.5 hours :) and we have budget flights that take for less than 100 dollars. Beat that!

Okay, I am in glee. This post was published on the most amazing fan page "I love Chennai "on Facebook. It is right here and no wonder, I am jumping up and down because of it :)

That's the way it is

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 03:57:00 +0000

Things have a way of working out. Friends turning into non-friends and tasty morsels turning into porridge.

People are not like preserves. They almost always come with an expiry date. Or at least a 'best before' date. The sick thing is that you get so used to them, that the taste still lingers. One familiar place, a taste, a song almost instantly turns time back and leaves it static for me to jolt out of it. To top it all, you now also know that the so called people never considered you important. It pains because you also know how you treat the people you do not consider important. Oh, the pains of knowing, realizing hard stuff.

If all this was too complicated to wonder, I turn to simpler(!) stuff. Like having a good hair style - and hell, it does not work out. My hair is the most untameable element I have ever seen. Too short may not really suit me, or so I think. Long is terrible, especially with crazy fungi and sweat residing. BodyShop, FaceShop and Garnier - I would like to divorce all of you. Even the shihakai podi that worked back home makes hair feel like hay here. Its the climate, the lack of proper rest, food and all that jazz. All I need is a smart, manageable hair. And yea, I suck at maintenance and upkeep. I do not like combing, taming and spend hours bothering about it. Neither do I think it looks nice always.

As I told, I need balance. In everything - from my head to my heels. Oh, the story of my chapped heals. That's the way it is.

What to eat when in Central India!

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 02:00:00 +0000

Central India ? I don't even know if it is a term to be used. Nevertheless, resuming my new found zest for being regular here, I am once again revisiting this part. Please dont disown me, if I discontinue now. I meant, I wont. Or I decided to build some defence in my case. Whatever..

The series started here, and is not here. I hope it does end soon :)

P.S - As always, click on the image to view larger.

Orissa, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Chattisgarh - are you okay with being called Central India? I think it is pretty okay. The only catch is Orissa - but I would have a lot of places in East.

Of these, I have not been to Maharashtra. Yup, 24 years in India and not been to Mumbai once. Not even on transit.

Orissa - Fish Orly, Khirmohan, Rasabali, Chhenapodapitha. So tough to spell these stuff. Khirmohan is similar to Rasgulla. I may have had it in a 'bengali sweetbox'. Not sure at all. Fish Orly - :P, Rasabali, yup. I have done this one with khoa. Rasabali is the Rasmalai version of a Gulabjamun - well, sort off. I made this as a part of a sweets class, sometime when I was in college. Chhenapodapitha is the 'cheesecake' from Orissa. Wow, never knew about this. Must check out, and try sometime.

Trivia : Visited Puri when I was 10 years old. I remember eating Poori at Puri :) and talking about it in school.

Maharashtra - Shrikand, Thalipeeth, Vada Pao, Modak. All tasted. Have tried to make only vada pao from this, but I dont know if mine was authentic. I should go to Bombay and try it sometime. Thalipeeth is the NI version of Adai made with different flours. The version I had contained even ragi. Not a fan, but was nice.

Madhya Pradhesh - Lapsi, Bafla, Bhutte ki Khees, Bhopali Kebabs. Lapsi is a sweet dish made with godumai ravai. Amma makes it often. She even calls the upma from it s Lapsi Upma :)Bafla Bati and Bhopali Kebabs - Nope. Bhutte Ka Kees seems very interesting, a mix of upma and dhokla. Sometime.

Gujarat - Thepla, Dhokla and Khandvi - Love. Handvo - May be second love. Panki - A elai adai version of NI, probably. Never heard before.

Rajasthan - Dal Baati Churma, Ker Sangri, Lal Maas Gatte, Pyaaz ki Kachori. Dal Baati, I have had, but did not like it too much. May be I have not had the best versions. Lal Mass and Ker Sangri is saved :) Kachoris, only from local chaat shops.

Chattisgarh - Bafauri, Kusli and Red ant chutney. Geez, whats this ant chutney supossed to be? Ahem!

East and Rest Later :)

16 year old Talks - Thursday Thirteen #1

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 01:13:00 +0000

I am sick of my lethargy in posting here. If I hate anything about myself at the moment, this is it - the inability to write regularly. So, I spent half of a monday :P morning browsing through ideas to keep my blog going. One of my favourite is tags. In case you still do not know what tags are, just go away to this post by Nags.

So yeah,be all ready to find me tagging myself. I am that shameless to keep this blog going :)

Another major idea ( yea, thts how I call anything I think of ) was to do regular lists like some kind of a series. I know it is not exactly saving the world, but it gives some kind of a pattern to posts (whatever!). One of it is Thursday Thirteen.

So what I will do is to post a list of 13 things every Thursday. And on what I will post will depend on my silly head. This week, I planned to post the top 13 foods I have cooked. But I wanted to add photos. And I wanted to link it to the recipe, if online. And I wanted to do this, that. So it is not happening for this week. It would be a nice separate post, than this list.

So here it is, all grand music and wild entry - My Thursday Thirteen #1

13 things I should tell to the 16 year old me : (or to any 16 year old)

1. Be proud of your choice to take commerce. You did the right thing.

2. Do not stop that meditation you do now. You will learn about Isha and get involved in it, later.

3. Get used to wearing sleeveless.

4. Learn about what 'taking backup' is. Do not lose any photos.

5. Start liking 2 minute maggi noodles. Its now or never. The 24 year old me still does not.

6. Join a dance class. You will regret you did not do it, later.

7. Continue with the diary. Do it in pencil, so that you can erase stuff.

8. Her hate for you is plain jealousy. It will come back as FB request years later.

9. Start washing your tiffin boxes. It is seriously sick to start doing it at 24.

10. The annual holidays you get now, is practically unheard of for the rest of your life. Sleep well. Please.

11. Learn to manage a dupatta, properly. The girl way.

12. Stop answering back amma for everything. Years later, you will sit miles away missing her.

13. DO NOT bother about your 10th marks. The world does not care anyway.

Updates

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 05:11:00 +0000

And yes, as Anu puts it, KPMG stole it away. The 30 day challenge ( do I even call it now, that way) stopped because I managed to get a job, in 9 days of starting this challenge.

Truth be spoken, the 30 day challenge was born out a lonely desperate afternoon. I was internally feeling rotten, and badly wanted to stop the bitch in me from taking control. In miraculous ways, it helped. I started getting ideas on writing about the place I lived, the kind of food I ate or hoped to eat and unearthing drafts. Kind of upset the plan was left off, ironically because I am now in a job.

Earning in dollars :) Someone I dearly know in Chennai told me to be a disciplined spender. Never had the word 'discipline' made more sense than my absolute lack of control at the recent BodyShop sale. I had to remove at least four different bottles, simply to teach myself some discipline.

Absolute lack of enthusiasm :) For the first two weeks, I moved like a kid. I loved the trains, the job, the food - everything about it. I still do, but my enthusiasm levels are sunk. Most times, it is the moment around that influences (read DECIDES) my mood. As one of Sadhguru's quotes go ( unable to recollect fully )- we pick pieces from people, and make us. It is so true. And I warn you, when you pick it from the wrong person, it lingers for a really long time.

Yet, Yet - I leave the post with this note. And look forward to be here really soon.

Source: traceysthoughts.tumblr.com via Vicki on Pinterest

The things to talk on..

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 06:08:00 +0000

The 30 day challenge is getting royally screwed up with such changes in life. I started the thirty day story on a frustrated, 'i-am-feeling-lonely' afternoon after a messed up lunch. Whoever would have thought that in 15 days, things would radically change and I would be typing across sitting in my swing :) Oh, I love this swing - will take a picture of it.

There are very few things I do not love about my home. Everything else,from my small room to the guava tree with a 100 fruits, I love it all. We live in an apartment where I have birds to wake me up to. No big royal kerala palace house, or even a city place I live in. But a real simple place to sleep and eat. As a matter, that is the only thing I do here.

In a matter of two weeks, things moved so fast - an interview, an offer, papers, tests and last minute tickets. Absolute no time for shopping, and certainly none for treatment. Sitting with a cold in India is like traveling all the way to Disneyland and then getting a leg sprain! After a bout of antibiotics, the cold refuses to leave. The fever is just bidding a bye.

Honestly, with such pampering and hour-to-hour meals, except if one had return tickets, none would leave. I will have to, coming weekend :(

Day Eight - Rajni Mania and some India :)

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 17:21:00 +0000

Last minute tickets to India - Expensive. Frenzy shopping with a fever - Chaos. Morning rides to airport - Tiresome. A Rajni Fan as a Driver - Awesomeness :)

It is one part of the news that I am in India, it is another that I had a Rajni fan driving me. And here is the tail piece, our man is a Malay born, Philippines raised young man. The conversation started with him asking why Mumbai is often attacked and on why Indian women like fair skin. And then our convo shifted to movies - it went something like this.

TG - " I like one man in India.His name is Rajni. He is a philanthropist"

SM - Hmmm (mindvoice - is that all he is? Aha)

TG - He is from South India.

SM - Me too, I am from Chennai

TG - (turns back, looks at me with wide eyes) Ah...so you see Rajni'ah?

SM - ( now wakeful me) - Yeah, I do see. He lives in Chennai, not close to my place but I know where he is.

TG - Oh, very good. He..very nice man..i likes his movies, the dance (!), the style..All very good. If you see Rajni, then I see you , tht is like I am seeing Rajni'ah! He is very dark, but Indians like that man.

SM - (actually smiling wide) yea, we love him. you saw his recent movie ROBO?

TG - 3 times la. He, better than Aishwarya!

SM - (WOW)

Never did I think a ride would get this peppy. I quietly slipped out my headphones, played Kilimanjaro and spent the rest of the ride thanking stars :) It is no big news he spoke on million other things, dropped me off at Changi, charged me 20 cents less and helped to offload luggage and wished me luck!

TG - Taxi Guy. SM - Sleepy Me (@6.30 am)

Day Six - What to eat when in South India :)

noreply@blogger.com (Archana Chari) — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 08:02:00 +0000

P.S: Click on image to view larger!

I found this image when I was doing some random browsing, over a year ago. After various futile attempts on trying to taste all the vegetarian dishes on the list, here comes my 'tasted' list from it. We will go by the states, for easier navigation!

South India - The Food Connoisseur's heaven

Tamilnadu - Obviously, done. Aapam, Dosa, Idli, Sambar and Rasam. Live a day in chennai and you will have all of that, except may be aapam!

Kerala - I have had the best sadya meals for onam with friends. Ente Keralam also serves an amazing Sadya meal. Dont miss it, if you like mallu land food. Avial is a part of sadya.Parotas- the malabar thattukada ones are to die for. The most authentic place in chennai is kumarkom, to my knowledge. Payasam, their vella-paripu ones, though not my favourite is also tasted.

Karnataka - Bisibele Bhaat, Kesari Bhaat, Mysore Pak and Chirotis - Done! Infact, I have made my own chirotis. They are a very unique tasting, semi-sweet dish, not really my favourite. Dharwad Peda, i have no clue on what it is!

Pondicherry - Vendakkai Patchaddy is not really from Pondy! So yea, I have done it.

Andhra Pradesh - The Biriyani, an authentic dum version from a wedding kitchen was once ransacked by me. I almost sat in the kitchen and licked it up, yum! I did not know Mirchi ka Salan is Andhra special, but yea tasted it somewhere. Gongurra pickle, licked it as well!

I am skipping Goa, bcos it has got nothing for the herbivore in me. Goa is not exactly SI too:)

Check here on Central India here. North, East and Rest next week or whenever :)