India, Don't put me down!

Anything in the below post is my opinion and solely my opinion.

I am a 22 year old working professional but I am also a Grand Daughter, a Daughter, a Sister, a Niece, a Cousin, an Aunt, a Friend and most importantly a GIRL! A girl who is scared to take a step without the fear of being a victim to the atrocities we have seen over the past one month because she knows she is on her own and that if she can not fight for her own life, NO ONE WILL.

The month of December had a lot of people speaking up for themselves. Some of them standing up for themselves and fighting for justice and some of them speaking up utter crap!

December 16th could easily be the day that I felt India awoke from it's hibernation - The day which brought utter shame to India when a 23 year old girl was Gang Raped! The day which shook me out of my wits. The day which made me afraid of India - The country I was born and brought up in.

After 13 long days of struggling to live, The 23-year-old physiotherapy student died succumbing to her injuries after being brutally beaten up and raped by six drunken men in a private bus which was driven around south Delhi localities on the night of December 16th 2012. Today, being the tragic end of that 23 year old girl's life who awakened India.

What can we infer from this? That girls are not allowed to roam around the streets of their own country without the fear of being raped, running in their minds the entire time? What were the safe keepers of our country doing? If their job isn't to keep the country's citizens safe then what is their job? 100 hours after the gang rape, there was a laud for them when they caught just 5 of the 6 Rapists.Yes, they did a good job but only after the girl was brutally raped. Here are a few News clippings which show us how lightly the case was being taken. Hardly days after that gruesome rape, there was another rape in Gujrat! What is the signal we are trying to give people here? Get another country to live in, cause you may just get Gang Raped in India.

What gets even more annoying is the fact that Cops have been extremely biased to Rape victims. They have slapped around sexist remarks questioning the character of the victims! And to top it, Cops from the state of Gujrat are willing to offer a compensatory amount to the rape victim's family! Why? What are they trying to do? Are they trying to cover up something? Will the girl ever be able to lead a normal life without listening to all the snide remarks passed about her even though her family is given a compensation? The Girl would never be able to lead a normal life! But, Men can resume their life just where they stopped it before the rape. The reason it boils down to is the simple fact that we live in a Patriarchal society. How come only women's character's are questioned, how come no one ever question's a man's character? Why are we as little girls always told to dress up properly, not to walk around alone in unknown places? Why can't anyone teach men to respect women and behave themselves? If only Boys were taught at a young age! 

If the same were to happen to anyone from a Politician's family or a well known personality' family, would it have been taken with the same gusto or even more? Why the bias? We are after all Indian citizens and we all have the same rights.

The Women who were raped - They were/ are Victims. The definition of a victim just in, case you'll forgot is a person who suffers from a destructive or an injurious action/ a person who is deceived or cheated. It doesn't stop with the cops, the Politicians drunken with power have made outrageously sexist remarks too. Right from WB minister Anisur Rahman's remarks to the President's son - Abhijit Mukherjee with his dented and painted comment to the TMC Leader Kakoli Ghosh's with her remark about the Park Street Rape victim. Who are they to make such comments? When did India become so unreliable? Why must we take in insults made by our fellow country men - by the people we look up to? It is one thing to go to other countries and listen to a few nasty racist remarks but to listen to a few in one's own country from Leaders degrades the country as a whole.

What the Police have to do, Charge the accused! Will it do justice for the victim by just slapping murder charges against the accused? Will that make it safer for me to walk in my city with my head held up high? Of course NOT! The Rapists have to be charged under the IPC - That was foreseen, they have to be. But what I would demand is that the Rapists must be hanged to death in front of the people of India! And the Minor must be given the same punishment! Because everyone can differentiate what is Right and what is Wrong at a very young age! And for him to plead for justice because he is a minor is unacceptable. Why can we just not have Capital Punishment for Rape? Are India's laws too old that it can't be bent? Isn't India bothered about the welfare of it's women citizens? If those men could not value a girl's life, why must we value their lives? I was always taught to "Live and Let Live", if people can't follow that simple principle, who gives them the right to live?  

Not a day passed by without me praying for that girl's speedy recovery and justice to her and the many oppressed and of course, the fact that India would open up and do something about it. Rather than let it pass with the blink of an eye. This as a matter of fact opened my eyes to so many things India has so beautifully hidden. But I wish I didn't have to have my eyes opened when a girl was so brutally raped. How come it took us this one Girl's life to bring out the evils in Society, She wouldn't have been a victim if only the evil had been cut at the nib. She did bring out the anger to fight in each and every girl, every woman. My heart goes out to her parents as they are left with nothing but memories. Your daughter's will to fight is an inspiration to many. 

The Leaders and The Police of our country have proved their mettle. Isn't it high time we follow what we learnt when we were small under the subject "Civics"? The fact that India is a Democratic country - For the People, By the People and Of the People!

I hope reforms are made For the People (Safeguarding of every citizen), By the People (in Power) and Of the People.

Mute Spectators!!

"Words were not given to man in order to conceal his thoughts"

All opinions expressed in this post are solely mine. They are not to disregard any person, religion or country. It is solely a post which serves as an outlet to a 20+ working professional.

At a time like this, every single girl out there is scared to express their views. The last time I checked India was a free country and every Indian citizen was given the Freedom of Expression. But after what happened to those 2 girls in Mumbai. Are we really assured of the same?

Just in case your unsure about what i'm talking about, Click here!

It got me wondering whether we really lived in a free country. What shocked me was the audacity with which the safe keepers of our country actually treated those girls. And what shocks me even more is that certain people really supported the actions of the people who safeguards our country. After reading the comments on that particular news post, I lost every ounce of hope I had in my generation. But yet again there are exceptions to every rule! At times I wonder why we remain the Mute spectators we are, but I guess old habits die hard. Mute spectators we were and forever will remain. Every cell in my body just keeps yelling out - "Stop, There is nothing more to write!" I personally have lost my interest after reading a few comments and have decide to resume my life.

And before continuing on, I would love to share this little piece from Calvin and Hobbes-

Calvin: Isn’t it strange that evolution would give us a sense of humour? When you think about it, it’s weird that we have a physiological response to absurdity. We laugh at nonsense. We like it. We think it’s funny. Don’t you think it’s odd that we appreciate absurdity? Why would we develop that way? How does it benefit us?

Hobbes: I suppose if we couldn’t laugh at things that don’t make sense, we couldn’t react to a lot of life.

Calvin: (after a long pause) I can’t tell if that’s funny or really scary.

The above was something similar to the way I felt after I read the comments on that news post. Simply stated, I as a girl would be scared to get back home from work every night if this is the case. If the people who are meant to protect us don't, then who does. Everyone has lived by the policy to each his own and I guess that implies to every sphere of life - Right from safeguarding ourselves to standing up for ourselves.

And this comes back to the basic philosophy - "When all else fails, Family prevails!"

Peace in the midst of "Traffic"

Traffic everywhere is a nuisance. It's hectic, tiresome and boring. Only till recently, for me! It was a Saturday, a day I sit with my Mother and go to see my Grandmother. I have always been on the Non - Violent, Peaceful side while not driving or riding, which implies I am the exact opposite when I'm driving or even riding for that matter. I think my entire family has that streak only when they are riding or driving. hile we're not we are more peaceful than Saints. The glow just shows in our faces. (Yes, I am a very sarcastic person at times!)

While I'm with my mother we talk about almost everything. I do most of the talking, I could easily shut a person for a day. But this one day, I was silent in my own world when I saw some wonderful sights. In the midst of all the traffic, the hurrying and scurrying, the sights I saw were something which fascinated me. Something which could easily take the boredom of driving or even riding. If only we had the time to stop and stare.

Amid-st the chaos - I saw this very old couple, singing joyfully, so content with themselves. The joy I have seen when my Grandfather was still alive in my Grandmother's eyes. Old people have this effect on me, which other's don't. An effect of tenderness and heart melting warmth, love and care.

I saw a newly wedded couple looking into each other's eyes and smiling. I saw a Baby Girl laugh out loud in between her parents. The peace was not only with us "Homo Sapiens", it very much existed with the Animal Kingdom (Including the birds) - I saw a dog sleep peacefully on one corner of the road below the shade of a tree and on that tree I heard a bird sing.

I reached my Grandmother's house after all the sights I saw and I started to speaking to my Grandmother. When all of a sudden she stops me and says that bird's calling out to you and asking you, "Hello! How are you?" It took sometime for me to realize there was a bird sitting on a tree coo-ing away to glory. It did take time for my ears to shut out the noise of the traffic and hear the little bird.

Have we grown so busy that we don't notice this at all? Do we have that many anxieties? It's weird at times that the people you least expect to hear it from tell you something which blows your mind away. This reminded me of a poem I once recited in school by William Henry Davies. It goes along the following lines-

What is this life if, full of care,

We have no time to stand and stare.

No time to stand beneath the boughs

And stare as long as sheep or cows.

No time to see, when woods we pass,

Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.

No time to see, in broad daylight,

Streams full of stars, like skies at night.

No time to turn at Beauty's glance,

And watch her feet, how they can dance.

No time to wait till her mouth can

Enrich that smile her eyes began.

A poor life this if, full of care,

We have no time to stand and stare.

And that's what we do!

"Never lie, steal, cheat, or drink. But if you must lie, lie in the arms of the one you love. If you must steal, steal away from bad company. If you must cheat, cheat death. And if you must drink, drink in the moments that take your breath away."

This is a dialogue from the movie Hitch. 

My blog is about People! People I know, People Iv just seen, People I don't know and Me! 

This post is dedicated to my friends, something I have never done before but that's what I live for - Doing something different. Monotony kills me! 

Sonia D and Tina E! What can I say? 4 years of a mix of emotions and at the end it seemed all worth it. How did we ever manage finding each other? Becoming friends? Was it the "Same Height" factor? Cause 3 of us are so very different. And I wouldn't regret a moment we spent together. Be it fighting and not talking for days even though we sat on the same bench day after day. Or be it gossiping, crying, just being happy or pulling each others leg or even just being ourselves. The plans we've made - Endless! The plans executed - A Few! But the joy through it all.. Amazing! I wouldn't have survived Engineering without you'll both constantly making it harder and easier for me! The constant bickering, the constant hatred towards a few, the crushes, the Pairing up. The long walks we've had and the fact that we never got tired. The times our mouths would never shut. They were all so much fun! It's hard to pin point events in our lives because there are so many! And if they were pinpointed it would  be a "Comparison". And that would weaken the importance of each moment.

That quote from Hitch caught my attention - 
But if you must lie, lie in the arms of the one you love. - Something we've always done when we were sad and gloomy and even sleepy! 
If you must steal, steal away from bad company. - Something we've done unknowingly, but when we look back we realized everything shaped out for the good.
If you must cheat, cheat death.- The stunts we've done and the times through which God has just taken us through. 
And if you must drink, drink in the moments that take your breath away. - And this we've always done! Though I think I promised myself never to take you'll both ever again within 100 meters of a Pub. 

3 Small Girls - We grew up just fine. Promising to support each other through good times and bad once we were done with engineering. The emotions we brought out from each other. College's done! We've grown up, haven't we? We've become more bolder, naughtier than ever before and of course Better, Humane Human Beings! 

That One Step!

Why does everything have to be so complicated in life? Maybe Life was always complicated but I never thought in such a complicated manner! It was a striking statement at work today which made a huge difference to my evening - "TRUST NO ONE!". Seriously? Why not?
Competition existed ever since we were in Preparatory. How come we just blindly trusted people and became friends? When did life complicate itself so much to thrown that statement at me. I do take time to make friends but when I do, It's sticking with them through good times and bad.
Going for a "Team building" outing from work, made each one of us realize the importance of trust! Being blind folded and made to walk a rope which was 4 feet off the ground with just 2 of your team mates holding you is quite a feat without blindly trusting your team mates to take you through. Competition existed till I passed out of Engineering. Some came first while others didn't. The bottom line was - We didn't work hard enough!
When did Trust become such a big issue? It is a big one! But not trusting anyone?! That's just too big an issue to be answered by me. Imagine a world where no one trusted anyone, it would be sadistic! It would be chaotic! It just wouldn't be nice!
How wonderful it would be if we all just took that one step, laid down all our fears and just became friends minus the back biting and the Office gossip, we are so used to!
All it takes is one tiny step! That tiny step a baby takes. Minus the fear and distrust because they are all  inbuilt.

Life in all it's Simplicity after the storm!

Some of the little joys we enjoyed as kids were just thinking that being together depended solely on 2 people! Just the "You" and the "Me". Little did we even know about that cruel thing or even not so cruel thing called Fate. And then we grow a little older and we realize that things just do not go our way! And that's when we decided to name that particular event in our life as Fate!



Those are the dreaded times we wish Pandora had never opened that dreaded box which we know so popularly as "Pandoras Box". That box which brought out pain, suffering and all the evils life had! It's easier to believe in mythology at times and blame it on that one person. Not once thinking whether we were right!



And sometimes Life just goes on! Even if you are broken into a 100 different pieces it just goes on!
For Calvin, it's so much more easier to confide in his toy tiger Hobbes because Hobbes would never hurt Calvin! And sometimes it's all the more easier to stay away and avoid getting hurt. And then we think again!
It's always so easy watching out for what's ahead of us that we fail to enjoy the moment.

We try to avoid the fact that we were really offended and really hurt. Who are we fooling?




Words are the only thing which have the power to slice and seer the heart, sometimes even worse than an arrow.


And when the hurt of the rudeness somehow manages to find it's way back to the giver. The receiver of the rudeness has that smug which says, "Ha! He actually isn't that stone hearted!" but then we refuse to let go of the event because we believe that some people deserve "A Swift kick in the butt"


And then we wonder





And then we realize we couldn't ask for anything better. Because deep inside each of our hearts, we know whether we like it or not, "We have to, are going to be and forever will be there for each other!"



Because they are those people we've known forever, who know us in a way that other people don't, because they have seen you change and most importantly let you change!

What's the big deal about it?

“Life, weddings, relationships, road trips, gardening, making out, haircuts: few of the fun things in life which always go as expected.” 

The few things which interest us are so few but yet they have the magnanimity to make up for everything which do not interest us. One of the very few things which has always interested me was weddings and they will continue to intrigue me.

I, like every other girl have my perception of my dream wedding. Every girl wants their wedding to be just perfect. It is so easy to say it out loud to the world but when it comes to implementing it, like anything else in the world it is sometimes a tedious task. I have two wonderful sisters and they have had their perceptions on the perfect wedding. I was too small to help them out in the tiny details but I’m pretty sure I could avoid on all the errors they made after life's too short to learn from your own mistakes only!

This blog is dedicated to those little things which make us happy and glow on that special day. I belong to a Syrian Christian family and Marriages here is a very important event! it is not the event where 2 people have decided to live with each other the rest of their lives it is also the marriage of 2 families. Every girl has her dream wedding. So do I! I want a White wedding with only 125 guests invited. (The number will change for all it’s worth!) But it’s a girl’s dream and who is anyone to snatch it away from her? After all, the Bride is the showstopper of the day! The princess whose getting married. And the parents of the Bride would have it no other way!

A White Wedding is hard to explain but a picture can always speak a thousand words.

OR something like the one I have posted before...

It is obviously going to be an arduous task to find takers for my idea but not if I actually worked on it?

Why would I want someone to plan my wedding when everything, every minutest detail is in my head?

So here I am taking it as a task to find the different themes I could enjoy, starting with the White wedding theme!

Appacha!

It's been over a decade and I still miss you terribly. A lot of things would have been different if only you were here with me. But you've taught me so much in such a little time. It's hard to keep your legacy alive but I keep trying every single day. You were my first best friend, my first story teller, my first mentor and guide, my first protector. You formed a lot of my first's. You were my Super Hero!
I know you look from above and I can feel you pushing me on when things go wrong and I just do not want to carry on. I know you still beam proudly when I have accomplished something. You keep reminding me of all the simple things in life - Giving a smile to someone when the whole world is crumbling around you, cause you never know what that smile could do. Giving the little you have to the one who needs it more than you. To Forgive and Forget all the wrong done to you, however hard it may sound at first. The one way talks I have with you and your reply being a miracle. I know at times I sound kiddish but these are the little things which push me on in life.
After all, I have the rights to act kiddish cause I was your favorite and you were always and will always be my favorite. I love you Appacha!

A Walk with Her!

He seemed like the perfect guy minus the adjectives which she had for him plus the few flaws. She thought to herself, If giving him a chance would make her happy then why not do something which would make herself happy? Irrespective of the fact that she would be hurt in the long run! No one wants to get hurt not when they already know what it feels like and she was no exception to the rule. Maybe as her friends said she was just grieving over the possible outcomes in the future and just not giving her present a chance! After all, he did make her happy! Wasn't that all that mattered? Why did he seem to matter? Why did she feel the need to share everything with him? Why did she feel the need to be with him. She had a beautiful present, a wonderful future or so she thinks. He just came and threw everything out of perspective for her. She wanted to think with her heart but thought it best to think with her mind. She wishes that everything was not that tough. She wishes everything was a bed of roses minus the thorns. If only wishes were like airplanes in the night sky! 

A Walk with Her!

Have you ever fallen in love the "Head over Heels" manner with someone? It's difficult to explain the feeling until we really do experience it. For each one of us it's different. For her it was too. She found her's to be extremely weird. She always knew the heel of Achiles was her heart. But this time her mind was seriously not functioning properly. All she knew was that little things would always continue to make her happy, be it listening to someone share what they did and did not do during the entire course of the day even though it was only 9 in the morning. Smiling at herself realising the person did expect her to listen and reciprocate. And grinning realising someone was not giving her space to talk and that she did not mind it one bit. "How weird?" was all that could cross her mind. She wondered whether it was just another easy fling for him or just another conquest he could add to his hat a few years down the lane or maybe he was interested in her girlfriends or maybe just maybe he was interested in just her. The But's and the Maybe's and the If's and the Um's filled up her mind. She knew she was nearing the end of the cliff. And she also realised if she fell off the cliff which she most probably would, she would never know if he would be there to catch her at the bottom.
Life's so unpredictable. But it seems fun till the Hurt-a-thon begins.  

Weirdness!

I've been an introvert most of my life. It's more of a trying to be wary type of introvert. And to get some of the nicest people and to befriend them in just 17 days is not a feat. It's the fact that we became close to the point that it hurt to know that we may never see the likes of each other ever again. Whoever thought 17 days of being together would culminate in this. The names we formed for each other, the way we pulled each other's legs. The new form's of communication we developed- the incomplete sentences and the completion of the incomplete sentences. The way we understood each other, the bond we formed. Nothing seems to even come close to the fact that all these things actually happen in the corporate world. Or maybe, just maybe all of us as people were really nice at heart. It's become something we can't live without yet something we must learn to live without. If 17 days were so much fun, I wonder if each of us had not switched into our respective processes whether we would have become more close minus the fight for the fittest or we would have grown farther apart plus the fight for the fittest. And just as if to prove that we were all meant to be together, all the processes now run under one Tech Park. It's funnily weird, how random things in Life can make a big difference to the small things which run our lives each day.

A Walk with Her!

Has it ever just taken a second to turn something around. Probably a cover up for a lie, something which would brighten up someone's day? It was the same with her. It took her more than a few seconds to trust this person and it takes every alternate second to doubt the person. If only she could form a stable opinion. Could she ever? Would she ever? Her mind always thought in the sanest possible way but her heart. It was always her "Heel of Achiles" and forever would be.
She hated this person from the very core of her heart. But something strummed on her heart and it echoed out saying, "Let go and You will never know!" She didn't know when she did let go but her mind had already started losing the battle. And she really doesn't know! She wonders whether she can hold on. It is evident somethings make her happy and she can't stop talking about it. But it scares her no end to know that she would be proved totally wrong. Would she be proved wrong all over again?
The flutter is obvious, the skip of a heart beat is even more obvious, the glow is the most obvious! She's used to getting hurt by now but does she want to get hurt again. Would she be able to take it all over again? Does she want to give it a try all over again? Oh Boy, aren't we in for a hell lot of fun?

GUMPTION!!

Looking at Susan Boyle on Britain's Got Talent. I never followed that season. And when I saw a video of her on the show with a wonderful video title. I in a very cynical mind frame, clicked on the video to check what it was all about. I saw her walk across the stage to face the judges. The judges at their pessimistic best. The usual question of what she wanted to be at this age. Susan Boyle without a stammer says a professional singer. Well, her voice wasn't very professional singer type and I wondered what she was thinking. And when she began singing I realised she was thinking her dream. She was mindblowing. We all have dreams of becoming somebody great. And at time's we wonder what we were thinking about. Because usually the second step after the dream is an Iron Gate with a No Entry sign which no one can even try opening. I've had dreams of becoming someone great, but if I can't go past the second step. How can I even be astounded with the outcome? It's scary. It is! But until we take that step forward, we reach no where. There will be so many you jeer and pass snide remarks. If Susan Boyle had taken all that to heart. She would never have stood across the judges on the stage of Britain's Got Talent. Why should only some have the cake? If only our dreams lasted as long as the passion and the urge to take the starting step was there. It's a herd mentality. You always wonder why it would be the least fascinating to get out of the comfort zone we all enjoy and reach for something which was meant to be just a dream cause at time's things seem to Idealistic in life.

Randomness!!

College ended on a tearful note, like every separation would end on. Iv been through hell and heaven but when I look back it seems nothing. I got really nice friends at the end of it. After all the back biting, but there are exceptions to every rule and it's always hard to teach an obstinate, old dog new tricks. The lessons taken away was amazing. Im guessing my Fineness test worked out great. Fineness test is an experiment carried out in our 2nd year of Engineering to get the finest of materials. I thought I would continue using my same old cheat codes to get nice friends but sadly some people cheated my old cheat codes. They came almost too fine. I wonder whether these are the boons of a Profession or maybe you never make friends in your workplace as everyone says. It's hard to be wary when I know it isn't going to be like that. But isn't safety always better than curing yourself later. Iv stepped in the feet of a Professional and it doesn't seem like it. We're all a set of children still, each as unique as the other. Not one similar to the other. A set of children with a wonderful mommy as our trainer. A set of children with our company's ID card. It's been less then a month and everything seems so hazy. Everything seems to be running in perfect order. Can this actually be happening? It's so hard to shut the pessimist in me. Some experiences may never change the way you look at life and as I said it's very hard to teach an old dog new tricks. But if things are actually the way it is, I could sum up our training session as Epic!

When Perfect turns Im-perfect!

She wonders to herself what she wanted! She just didn't want anything without a soul! The Internet is something without a soul! Despite that Blogger has this uncanny capability of hearing her ranting's of almost anything and everything! How could she even call it heartless! She grins at the fact and Mr Imperfect's "You know I don't follow crap!" statement crops up! She seems annoyingly amused! But then again Mr Perfect vs Mr Imperfect! Mr Perfect does have a heart and a soul! Not that Mr Imperfect doesn't have it! But she's scared of getting her heart broken! Didn't she already get it broken badly? What was she looking for this time? But that again is something the heart decides on! I remember the number of teddies I had when I was small, I would keep them carefully not wanting to spoil them but within no time I had overgrown them, they still lie in my bedroom! Will she ever overgrow the feeling she has for Mr Imperfect? She thought she did, until he said "Sup?"! Mysteries of Life!

Literally Literal!

Ever heard the cliched phrase "I'll miss you, Im serious!"? Why would you even bother to say something unless you mean it? Speak about being literally literal! I was coming one day back home and my mother and I were having our usual conversation over almost everything and anything under the sun! When I started cribbing on how I had put on weight! She came up with a solution of telling me to play a sport! Well, A sports person by heart and not by mind! I thought - Basketball - Naaa, it's been too long! And then I just told my mother I would start running - an athelete when I was small, brought up the decision and also since the new trend in me was that the moment I get scared of something, I run away from it! Speak about being literally literal again! The types! The English language does have a funny way around things doesn't it? Reason's I simply love the English language!

Social Net - work - ing!

Social Networks are and I quote, "A boon to my social life and a bane to my personal life". Facebook was the most happening thing among college goers, still is! Twitter and Google + not any less! I ain't against them in any form, cause I keep in touch with my relatives and friends who stay abroad through them! But shouldn't there be a LIMIT? I mean your with people most of the time and when you need to connect with yourself, your again socialising? Don't people ever feel they need some "ME" Time? I first thought I couldn't stay without being connected but later I realised I didn't know what I was becoming, I needed to connect with me! Networking has become a form of work! It's an ardous task! I love blogging, so anything which catches my attention is up! But Social Networking, I learnt to limit myself a year ago because I felt I needed to reconnect with myself more than anybody on the phase of this earth! When you can visit, why not? Why live in a Virtual world and shut yourself away from reality?

June!

June is a month I have always loved, Maybe cause it's my birth month! It's always been this bright month which is just shown in different bright hues! It always brought new hope with it and brought a new perspective to life! This is the only time of the year that I look forward to because the perspectives it brings on life are simply amazing! It shows me the people who've always been there for me and stood by me in my toughest times! It brings about all those special people nearer through a call or a post on my wall or a text in my Inbox or even a visit! As I grow older, I feel I'll still remain that same kid I always was! The short one! But this year, It calls for a lot more - It calls for a mature, young girl stepping into the shoes of a professional! I wonder if I have grown to be a mature young lady as I step into the unknown, to don the role of a professional! But yet again, The month of JUNE - will always be my favourite as it's "Make Sneha Happy" Month!

When Perfect turns Im- Perfect!

It's a wonder she can't get sleep, after all it's pretty late to be up! Is it cause she's turning a year older? Is it cause life seems to be braking at full speed and only the screeches can be heard? Gee Life did seem fun when she wasn't alone! Like a lone star, she sits atop a rock, She gazes into the unforeseen, the wind gently blowing trying to see if it could take all her worries with it! Her heart seems heavy? Why was this happening? She doesn't know whether to cry or smile! Just as if to answer her doubt, tears gush down her cheek! Was this her way of unburdening her heart? Maybe! Would things have been different, if she had made choices which she probably was too scared to make? Was it worth trying? Cause she has learnt if it's worth keeping, it's worth trying! She looks up at the sky, smiles and winks! She's told her secrets to the one she's always ran to when she's happy and when she's sad! It's strange! At times, things which don't exist make you happy for reasons you've wished for!

The Class which sets every Indian Woman apart!

The evergreen attire which makes every Indian woman look as the most graceful woman on the planet. It's so hard to drape (atleast for me- IT IS!) and it's so hard to tell which material makes you look fat! It's so hard to get that right consistency of everything in a bowl - When draping a saree is your task! It's so hard to decide on the accompaniments with it! It could be a daunting task at times, but then it's all worth it at the end! I remember cribbing to a friend of what a disaster I was going to look like in a saree! And his reply was so simply wonderful! He said, "The saree is the most sexiest attire on the planet and you know you can't deny it!" I really couldn't, Iv had an overdose of draping sarees over the past one month that I can say that if I - A clumsy plain Jane looked wonderfully different, something not every attire makes me look! Then the Award for the most convincingly, wonderfully designed attire had to go to the Saree! It makes you feel like a Woman of Substance after all!

Promises!

Sitting at the airport, waiting for my flight out of Bangalore to attend my favouritest Achacha's wedding. It's hard not to think about what a marriage is all about! I think about that promise the bride and the groom make, the "... patient in sickness, comforting in sorrow... to love you faithfully through good times and bad, regardless of the obstacles faced..." The little poem I penned down was such a refreshing change from that, It went along the lines of, "I can't promise you perfection cause that is not who I am! I can't promise you forever cause I don't hold fate within my hands! I can't promise you the sunshine cause I know there will be rain! I can't promise you complete happiness cause with true love comes pain! I can't promise to always smile cause Life always has a way to make me cry! I can't promise to stand strong cause it's never too easy to want to give life another try!" If you can't promise I wonder what a marriage is made up of, something I'll know in years to come!

When you just can't live without asking for some more!

Holidays for a weekend or a week or a fortnight or for a month always makes you want to ask for that little more! When you bid your family good bye, you wish you could stay for just a little more! When you sit with a friend at the airport waiting for the flight, you wish you could stay for just that little more! When you go to KFC, you just want that one more packet of pop corn! When you bid farewell when you graduate you wish you could stay just once more and relive those days! If ever Life didn't make you want for that one more chance and just gave it to you, we would never have realised the worth of that one extra chance! We would have never learnt to let go! But that's what Life is about - No extra chances!

Congratulations!

Celebrations are a part of life and one such event is a Marriage, everyone turns up for it! What can I say, I miss the night before the wedding! I catch a flight on the wedding day! I forgot to take the speech/ toast I wrote for my favouritest cousin (Note the emphasis)! This was the make shift speech I penned down in the airport which I never read out on the wedding day! Our family is very glad you have made your way into Anoop's life, Rinu because it is clear you two are made for each other. Achacha is the kind of brother everyone should have. He is adventurous always and we like that about him! His humour can get you up from the dumps in no time! I have learnt a lot from Achacha so I can say this confidently, Chechi - He's a keeper and I know Achacha is lucky to have found someone like you. Achacha and Chechi, your friends and family are here today because your happiness means a lot to us and I hope you see many years of Happiness together. Thank you!

A whirlwind of a holiday in Delhi

Another holiday comes to an end, there is that urge to stay for just a little more. But all good times must come to an end.

Delhi has been awesome! I loved every moment of my holiday- right from getting out of the T3 terminal into a misty Capital city which just turned 100 to meeting my Dad. From getting annoyed with that guy from church on Christmas eve only to have a laugh at it later, to spending a Christmas away from my family and to have cookies and gift's given to me by my extended family.
Attending a Syrian Christian wedding - Delhi style was just an awesome experience to meeting cousin's I've never met before only to realise we all hit it off pretty well (Touchwood) to travelling from one end of Delhi to the other end to cover some of the major sight seeing spots and shopping spots in less than 20 hours to the going up and down flyovers to being stuck in Traffic to hearing Kolaveri Di being played all over which nearly led me to ask myself- "Why this Kolaveri DI?".
To spending time playing games and chatting with a number of people on Facebook to just lazing around to getting up late each day.

Jumping on and off a Metro in crowded Delhi to going shopping only to realise people think Delhi is cheap and reasonable when Bangalore is a hundred times better for it's price and selection.
The misty mornings and evenings to the feeling that the days were actually eaten up by the night. Delhi you have proven the well known fact that time flies by when you are enjoying yourself, though it also flies past in an exam hall. (And I really don't enjoy myself in an exam hall)
To going to church on New Year morning to give that guy dirty looks, only to realise that the new year changed me! (Though I would still love to give that guy a piece of my mind)
The wonderful feeling of walking through the Inner and Outer circle in CP! The feeling of not being in India only to realise that I was in the Capital City of India when someone spits in front of me. The Crusing around the area's of the embassy's to feel that we were jumping countries in no time!
The indulgence of the Dilli cuisine- which was made a must by my Dad- from the Channa Batura to the Lassi to the Kulfi's to the Biriyani to the Pulao and the special Fried Chicken. The taste of South India in Saravana Bhavan only to miss the South and my family.
The walk's in the INA market when I was craving for something homemade- The lovely Appam and Beef roast I had there. To realise that I was not the only one feeling home sick. Delhi has never felt like a new place cause I was always surrounded by people I know or by people from God's Own Country which makes life all the more easier for any Mallu. No wonder they say even if you go to the Arctics you'll find a Mallu selling Chai. Im so glad their all over.
Holidays- It really did go by soon! I'll miss you, Delhi, Im coming back SOON! Be good to my Dad till then!

Till then here is a recipe someone invented, It's called "Recipe for Delhi". Maybe I should try this out in Bangalore.

Why this Kolaveri Di?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YR12Z8f1Dh8
When my friend first made me listen to this song I didn't understand a single word! None- Absolutely None! And the next day it had 8 million hits! Whoa!
No longer does sensibility make sense. I guess that's what the living are now trying to focus on. Things we don't completely understand cause it is easier to fool us that way!
Well the song, It has got over 32 million hits. Awesome! Sung by Dhanush, Rajnikant's son in law, it was a hit! A combination of 2 people who have influenced people the most in the Entertainment industry.
Rajnikant with his Robot hit, I did go see it in theatre, dragging my entire family along! Even though we understand only a bit of Tamil. The reason I went was to see what the big deal was about. Big Deal it was and after that for over a year we got forwards in our inbox saying that Impossible was literally nothing for Rajnikant!
And now Kolaveri Di... I find myself pretty good at singing the song. Thanks for all the people who play the song all over.
This was released during my semesters and Oh Boy! The lyrics was immediately changed into a version for all of us writing our exams! It was a Big Hit! We found ourselves trying to sing the lyrics with the tune of the main song. We also got a forward saying if it was such a big hit with only Dhanush singing the song, If Rajnikant had it would have become our National Anthem.
A holiday to the Capital city of India made me realise that this song was a super hit! In order to indulge in the taste of the villages around, I found myself going to their markets, and there it was - the song being played everywhere! I go for a Syrian Christian Malayali wedding - Delhi style and there again it was playing. I travel by car from place to place and on the radio that's what we have. You switch frequencies for a break from the song- Nope! You have it being sung in the Ghazal version and what not!
Truly, it's time for us to get senseless and get creative!