It's not just on paper

A hometown wedding. This is a magical statement which raises the adrenaline levels in most Indians by a hundred folds or so. For me, it surely was exciting to prepare for and attend a relative’s wedding- shopping, dressing, socializing, making merry and the like. But the excitement to visit my hometown Surat wasn’t as much as it should have been. Reasons could be as under- 1. Surat is geographically so close to Mumbai that I consider it less of a hometown and more of a backyard 2. Despite this clear advantage, I have visited Surat less than 5 times for durations less than 10 days (very unlike a typical Indian hometown vacation)  3. Being a Mumbaikar, I carried the false perception that if you’re a Mumbai loyalist, you cannot like or appreciate any other city. So now, when I did backpack and set out for this “hometown” wedding, I didn’t quite anticipate just how much was in store.  Gujarat in a train All aboard the Gujju Mail ...

Photo Credit: Flickr Think of the word exercise for a moment. What other words would you associate with it? Sweat, gym, workout, burnout, and what not. Do you notice how, by and large, we associate a negative sentiment to it? Why don’t we most of us associate more positive words such as flexibility, strength, rejuvenation, me-time, etc. to exercising? Culturally, we have had very limited exposure and encouragement to exercise and even play sports. These are considered as “extra-curricular” and therefore, by consequence, less important and optional activities. Earlier, I too had a negative and dispassionate approach towards exercising. It was my health-conscious sister, who initiated me to the gym, then to yoga and other forms of exercises. Prior to this, my mom had initiated both her daughters to swimming, which is a great full-body workout, apart from being a fun-filled leisure activity. These were my early experiences with exercising, and frankly, they weren’t even ...

Umpteen unsaid words aside Battles of feelings and logic beside Many abuses arise and subside But why still do I feel hollow inside? Sights, sounds and senses around To work, play and parties I'm bound Am I really the square peg in a hole that's round? Why do I feel in emotional hollowness I'm drowned? Something mystic is concealed deep within I can't put a finger to it, it's hiding in a ditch If these are demons put to rest Why doesn't the world let them be? Isn't that the best? My hollowness can be filled with nothing but love True love that's pure just like a white dove A minor slip up or friction of ideas so simply turns a friend to stranger To reveal your emptiness to every other, isn't it a real danger? For he who knows, doesn't question And he who questions, doesn't know That time heals wounds and time builds people And slowly but surely the hollowness of your soul becomes nothing more thaṅ an apparition!

It was a rather unusually breezy morning in the summer of 2024 when I got the most enchanting ‘out of world’ experience as the communications manager of ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation). Yes, ISRO shifted to a manmade island in the Arabian Sea, off the shores of Mumbai, to facilitate a space launch; NASA, we are catching up! As I took the last sip of coffee (and flung the disposable plastic cup in an almost full trash can) at my work pad after a tiring night shift before logging out of my employee online muster, when a weirdest piece of communication flashed my Mac. Lo and behold! an invitation to visit Mars! Was it a joke? Was I dreaming? In the meantime, a zorb descended from the sky and landed near the coast. Another email quickly followed. The message read “Get into the zorb earthling ;)”. I was puzzled. “Should report this to my boss?” I thought out loud. But not wanting to look like a fool, I quickly rushed out of the office and got into the zorb. The zorb shot...

Fear, in psychology, is nothing more than learned behaviour. It is a result of Classical Conditioning. Simply put, the mind develops a fear of certain things when it is cautioned against an object or event or is a result of a previous unpleasant personal experience. A little girl named Suzy has recently started attending school. She is escorted daily to her designated Bus Stop by her father John. Suzy knows a mom n pop store nearby and insists that John buys her a Lolly. John complies once or twice but soon realizes that Suzy is making a habit of the Lollies. He observes a watchdog at the entrance of the store. To discourage Suzy's incessant requests for the Lollies, John relates a fictitious story to her about the watchdog who likes Lollies so much that he bites every little child who walks out of the store with one. Suzy makes feeble attempts to convince John to take her to the store. But each time she insists, the story of the watchdog is repeated. And voila! Suzy s...

Source: http://someguyindc.blogspot.in/ So how does one define maturity? Is maturity the state of realising that life isn't a bed of roses? Or is it about growing old enough to acknowledge that life is as much about seeking little pleasures as it is about chasing our lofty dreams? I believe maturity is nothing more than a mere mirage construed by humanity to appease egos. A man's abilities are applauded for his successes whereas his lack of maturity is blamed for his failures. We run after maturity as if it is 'that' pot of gold which sits at the end of the rainbow. How pitiful it is then, that we ignore the beauty of the rainbow and expedite our journey across it, only to reach its Finish Line and possess the Pot of Gold. If we look at it metaphorically, the rainbow signifies life which we fail to enjoy while it lasts and the pot of gold- which is maturity- is attained only when life or living truly ends! While we are our own culprits, we are also respon...

It's such a task to be a woman in the 21st Century! >.< Women always have woes.. not just the melodramatic ones, but the very genuine ones too. She's gotta: Grow her hair and wax her hair, Cook for four then clean the floor, Carry bags and social tags, Raise a child then rest a while. She's singular in plural roles, In your pocket not burning holes, Runs the house, traps the mouse, She does it all.. her job's not small. And only if it ended there! Women, on top of everything, need to maintain a pretty face and a captivating body at any and every point of time. So what if she recently delivered a baby? She has to start watching her diet in order to watch her weight. The pressure to meet a certain standard of plastic beauty is subtle yet continuous and often stifling! Photo credit: www.aliexpress.com Luckily, unconventional beauty- as it is paradoxically termed- is gaining momentum in the entertainment industry. Bespectacled and/or plump f...

When the denizens of Mumbai venture out of their homes to claim their streets, the Carnival Begins!! :) Sacrificing their Sunday morning sleep, city lovers and sports enthusiasts participate in Times of India’s recent initiative called Equal Streets. The premise of this undertaking is simple- people have as much right to the roads as do vehicles! Last Sunday morning, I participated in the campaign by walking the long stretch between Santcruz (West) to Bandra (West) and back. Accompanied by two uncles, an aunt and my father, I finally joined the bandwagon, I so eagerly wanted to be a part of. The traffic on one side of this ever-so-busy stretch was reserved for people to do literally whatever they liked… Iskcon’s Hare Ramas chanted and artists painted. Yoga co-existed with zumba and folk music with indie-pop; bollywood music was not left far too behind. People were seen walking, jogging, bicycling, tricycling, skating and skateboarding. Infants were escorted in...

It's Ok to be Creative so long as the lines between Creative and Real are not Blurred! But when do you realize how much is too much? One night, while traveling in Mumbai's city bus, I was looking out of the window, absorbing the sights under the moonlit sky.  Even though it was close to midnight, the road was well lit- partly by the street lights and partly by the lights emanating from residential buildings and commercial set ups lining the road. I soon noticed a high rise, sitting on top of which, was the spelling 'Arkade'. This got me thinking about the kind of spellings the next generation will grow up with. Now are the times when cool isn't kool enough and abbreviations like ttyl and brb are the norm. the spill over from Twitter's 140 character limit is felt in real life as well. Every word and every sentence needs to be reduced to its lowest denominator.   Creativity is now seeming to blur the lines between what's considered correct and inc...

India is well known for many of its its popular beaches like Goa’s Calangute or Kerala’s Kovalam beaches. But, just like any Asli Mumbai-chi Mulgi , my favourite beach is Juhu Chowpatty. Juhu Beach is an ultimate weekend attraction for families, couples, friends, tourists, all the same. The Arabian Sea overlooks an assembly of plush hotels on one end and make-shift, crowded food stalls on the other end. This beach meets with a wide variety of visitors every day, starting with morning walkers, joggers, runners and yoga practitioners at dawn, to groups of friends, stuntmen and privacy-seeking couples in the afternoon, to families with children and tourists in the evening. Source: http://i1.trekearth.com/photos/9161/juhu-beach1.jpg   Apart from all the ‘legal’ stores at the rear end of the beach, there are many stray vendors selling local delicacies like Chana Chaat, Bhel and Kulfi . What’s more, one gets greeted by many ‘photographers’ and ‘mehandi designers’ in a s...