Caferati Read-Meet (23rd May 09) at Belapur

There were no Samosas this time, but still I enjoyed the read-meet like I always do, but then, who says that we go to eat Samosas?…it is read-meet, right? So, you are supposed to meet and read.. get it? Also, when somebody is reading in this group, then, you are supposed to listen carefully, and not allow your mind to wander away, looking around, admiring the paintings on the walls, or clicking pictures because, at the end of each read, you are expected to give a feedback. (think! think! did you like it? what did you like? what doesn't work for you?) everybody is expected to participate(Imagine, if ever body gave the feedback then who would be the just listener? not allowed huh?) Now, giving feedback is such a pain...Grrrhh! (array baba, giving feedback is also an art na, that has to be developed,) you need a loud voice and confidence to speak your mind and, and, of course, you need to have editorial qualities to comment on some body’s else’s work without getting punched back on your face….. (I am afraid if they say, "you think you know better than me? huh? How dare you strip my work!") Okay. Okay, I will need to work on giving feedback too….But I just need time….Actually, I am not used to making personal comments unless I am asked to (I think people are noticing that I hardly ever comment at the read-meet and that, I am told is ‘not fair’, to get a feedback, we must learn to give it first....point noted... :) Anyways, this month, the read meet was organized at Menka’s beautiful garden behind her house, in the interiors of Belapur, way far from city of Mumbai. We sat under bougainvillea trees, to the back ground music of water fall, so close to nature, surrounded by the sweet fragrance of flowers. While we waited for the members to arrive, we had a small informal chat. We were discussing about the demography of the people of Mumbai verses people of Delhi and their behavior pattern, their habit of staring too much, their ability to cheat and lie and finally, we arrived at a conclusion that 'Delhi sucks'…… (sorry) Next, a formal read meet started with a small round of introduction, disclosing our ID and our nature of writings. And then the readings of fiction and poetry began. There were a long discussions after each reading, on points that were important for good writing, such as, making the fiction work more expressive, to show and not to tell, to chop off all the unnecessary details that are not important to te story, and to create a drama in order to get the attention of the reader/listener. There was much discussion on the usage of words such as editorial/reportage While editorial can be bias and can be just an opinion, reportage are pure facts and are written in formal accounts with correct details. For example: A RICH Man wanted to tell a certain lie, but the lie was of such monstrous size that it stuck in his throat; so he employed an Editor to write it out and publish it in his paper as an editorial. Policeman, on the other hand, will give the proper details to a reporter. Since the group was small, (only twelve people attended this month’s read meet). It ended early. Then came the best part…chow chow..peet puja…(I was hungry too) .there were (vegetarian and non vegetarian,) puff pastries, wafers and cake. The meeting lasted for over two hours and the group dispersed by 6:30pm. I was lucky, I got a lift back home, thanks to Menka, who had meeting to attend at Hotel Marriot and she would drive through my route (passing through Bandra)… I feel blessed, travelling in style…back home.

Tangy Taste

My friend, Aanchal Adukia, send me a SMS inviting me for demonstration of dips, dressing and salads. Naturally I was interested and decided to go and it was really worth it. My niece and I travelled for nearly an hour to reach her Malad residence. Her table was laden with all kinds of sauces and chopped veggies. On our arrival she served us a chilled drink made from ice tea, which had chopped apples, strawberries and squashed mint leaves. This was very refreshing. We sat on the dinning table and watched as she started demonstrating each dish. One tip she gave was that for mixing of salad, dips or dressing, it should be done in glass containers and it should be chilled before serving. She made three types of dips namely mango creamer, garlic and dill delite and parsley and parmesan dips These dips can be had with wafers, or vegetables like cucumber, carrots, radish, etc. Interesting way of serving these dishes are to keep the veggies strips in stripes along the long plate and insert a small cups of dips in between. Sounds interesting? hmmn! Then she went on to make three different types of dressings like Italian extravaganza, Miami blues and Island Myst. Of the three I enjoyed Italian extravaganza the most and loved the mustard flavor in it. In any dressing the common things that are used are olive oil, vinegar, salt, sugar and pepper. We can make the dressing or dips and store it in glass containers for more than one week…so that is good news for a lazy person like me, hahahaha, (pss.. actually I am not lazy at all) The salads were the most important part of this demonstration, and it just involves chopping and mixing. What is most important is the correct combination to get its rich taste. Some had walnuts in it and some had chestnuts, some had apples and some pomegranate…..the trick is the combination……. The next best part arrived when we sat down to taste…well I didn’t just taste, I ate and ate, till I was sure that I would not require any more helping….. And of course I skipped dinner……

Pure friendship have no name......

 It is important to hold on to those who genuinely care, because in times like these, they are very rare…..If we loosen our grip or snap our connection, there might not be another chance for redemption.

If we look around us, everybody is getting more and more selfish, and true love has ceased to exist. A do-gooder is always questioned for her intentions/design of why it is done. There has to be some motive behind an act, there can never be a deed without a purpose. Relationships are going sour. There is no genuine love in this world anymore.

What with those crazy labels that are attached to every relationship?

 If you love someone of opposite sex, you will be labeled as flirtatious, show the concern and love to same sex, and you will be labeled as gay/lesbian. Sex plays the important part in everybody’s life; there cannot be pure love anymore, especially not for a person who is single.

 A single person has to be pitied at all cost.

Why didn’t they find a mate? Is something wrong with them? What do single people do in their free time? Do they watch a porno to curb their libido? Or perhaps they use some dildos? Are they sex starved? It’s funny how far their imaginations can run.

 Sometimes I feel like addressing things. And what gets me tired is how often we can see the need to address things before we get tired of doing just that! I mean, why do we have to give explanations of our every deed and every act?

 One advantage a single person enjoys is that they don’t have to deal with insecurities of others. They are their own boss. If they decide to indulge in certain activities, it is purely for their pleasure. If they decide to reach out to people who care, it need not necessarily mean that they seek out sexual contentment.

 But the present scenario of gay/lesbian concept has eclipsed all relationships.

 Ouch! Even an innocent act of just holding hands, or a peck on a cheek, is watched suspiciously. Communication is important ... "how" we communicate is of the utmost importance. In the friendships, there may be pure intimate relationship and there is tendency to read "exactly” what is said without needing or wanting more because the outcome of a conversation may not have as much meaning as it is expected.

We're emotional beings ... right?

No apology necessary there... how we process these emotions and think things through can make all the world of difference.

 Friendship can be experienced and identified individually only by person involved in that relation. Until very recently, much of what has been documented about women's sexuality has been written by men, in the context of male understanding, and relevant to women's associations to men—as their wives, daughters, or mothers,

 During the 17th through 19th centuries, a woman expressing passionate love for another woman was fashionable, accepted, and encouraged. Whether the relationship included any genital component was not a matter for public discourse, but women could form strong and exclusive bonds with each other and still be considered virtuous, innocent, and chaste; a similar relationship with a man would have destroyed a woman's reputation. In fact, these relationships were promoted as alternatives to and practice for a woman's marriage to a man.

Around the turn of the 20th century the development of higher education provided opportunities for women. In all-female surroundings, a culture of romantic pursuit was fostered in women's colleges.

Older students mentored younger ones, called on them socially, took them to all-women dances, sent flowers, cards, and poems that declared their undying love for each other.

The invisibility of lesbians has gradually eroded since the early 1980s.

Psychiatrists and feminist philosophers noted that the rise in women acknowledging same sex relationships is due to growing social acceptance, but also conceded that "only a certain kind of lesbian—slim and elegant or butch in just the right androgynous way—is acceptable to mainstream culture. 

Yet, the term “Lesbians/Gay” is so liberally used in present scenario!

How ignorant can one get? It is outrageous! It has curbed our desire to express our love to people whom we truly care. FB has many applications to express our friendship, but we are afraid to post it to our virtual friends, always afraid of forming a wrong notion. Should we send a bear hug across? a gift perhaps or a comment on superwall? How intimate can one get over the internet?

 Should we really care?

Hottie Companions

I have tried many different types of chilies during my globe trotting although I cannot remember their names… The hottest variety of chilies that I have ever had is orange habanero which has a heat unit of 210,000, its heat much, much higher as compared to other variety such as: tabasco: 120,000 jalapeno M: 25,000 Long Slim cayenne: 23,000 pasilla: 5,500 serrano: 4,000 bell: 0 Chilies are quite useful especially as thug-repelling pepper spray and there is also an ointment that contains the active ingredient in chili peppers is used to soothe sore muscles. Another good use: Chili powder is fed to captive flamingoes to keep their feathers pink. But the most popular reason that I love them is for their flavor and my food is never complete without chilies. While in Suriname, we would get orange habanero (which were yellowish in color and had peculiar taste) so hot, that it would burn the fingers that held it, my mom would use gloves to cut it but I used to eat it raw, till I started developing painful infection in my ears. (may be, its’ fumes were developing the fungus in my ears) My favorite meal was Surinamese style ‘Chicken Roti’, which was white flour roti, stuffed with chicken, string beans and lots of red chutney made from these hot peppers…hmmn…I m still drooling….. But when I migrated to Canary Island, I was surprised with the bland food…the hottest sauce that one can get in Tenerife is Tabasco….I found food so tasteless that I would carry a small bottle of home-made chilly paste in my hang-bag all the time…. I also enjoy the food in Bangkok, which is not only hot and spicy but very, very delicious. Now that I am back home in Mumbai, I enjoy the wicket chilies, which are mild and yet so tasty to eat. I am so popular for my inventive chillie cutney recipes that many times, I may meet an acquaintance on the road and she will immediately ask me the recipe of the chutney that she had tasted in my house. Cannot write more about chilies on empty stomach, You.know what I mean?

Invisible soulmates on facebook

Face is potholed by too many pokes Of friends and families of every nook Vampires’ fights, somersaulting quizzes Dearest friends’ shadows, hugs and looks I enjoy playing Lexulous, and visiting links, Love reading their notes from their profile winks Many summers ago, on a lazy day like this Like a couch potato I would just gape at a book

Approaching Frowns

"A kind heart is a fountain of gladness, making everything in its vicinity freshen into smiles."-- Washington Irving In India, I have noticed that people, especially writers will never smile unless they want to interview you. They are compatible only in books, where they will take you through strange cities, make you experience the most exotic places, stir you with their romantic adventures and amuse you with their rib tickling tales but meet them face-to-face, and you will be lucky if you even get a smile. On social networks you will get smiles, hugs, gifts and even kisses from the friends whom you have never ever met, but offline? Meet them randomly and see them squirm. Smile is reserved only for those who are close friends. In a group of good writers, if you are shy then you will be a lone ranger. Unless, of course, if you are a successful writer or one with great looks! But, is smile an expensive commodity only in India? During my recent visit to China, my smile froze on Chinese plastered face, nobody was smiling, neither anyone at the customs nor at the immigration office - same reason- I was a stranger who had neither great looks nor any achievements to boast about, although, like Indians, Chinese too, smile for more reasons than Americans. A smile can mean the person is embarrassed, trying to be helpful, curious, happy or friendly. In the middle of an argument, it may mean that it is nothing personal. When all else fails, their smile shows you have no ill feelings and can work wonders in getting better service. The smile is the near universal gesture of friendliness, and in America, its meaning is usually clear. While in America, everywhere I went, be it supermarket, mall or public library, I found every American smiling and wishing me the hour of the day. But, there too, Asian reserved this smiling gesture for informal occasions, and smiling while being formally introduced was considered disrespectful. In Spain, where I lived for several years, smiling faces surrounded me everywhere. It comes natural to them, they don’t stare, but smile instead. They are so friendly, that many times they will come across the street to greet you with a peck on your cheek. In Spain, I learnt to smile at every stranger, whenever there was an eye contact. But now, I am back in Mumbai. When I see cold eyes, tight closed lips, I am confused. I am learning that I can only return a smile for a smile, in an elitist society, it will be misunderstood.

Reading - passion transformed.

If I had been able to store all my books that I have bought during many years (and not having lost any, during my migrations and uprooting, that has happened about five times in my life), I would have had a very huge library.. Before the internet occupied my comfort zone, I could never go to sleep without reading a book…and during the daytime too,(to avoid conversation with a stranger) reading was my savior, any and every reading material was important to me, be it a magazine, or a thick novel, a children’s story book or granny’ spiritual book, and sometimes even a wrapper of my bhelpuri or a peanut packet. (I would transfer the peanuts into my palm, open the conical packet, straighten it and read the contents while I munched on the peanuts) Even during traveling in a bus, whenever I shifted my gaze from my book, and peeped out of window, it would be to read the signs on the road, scripts on hoardings and even the shop names. If my co-passenger was reading and I would find myself peeping into their book (curious to know what they are reading) or pick up a sentence to mull about. But now…..Alas! My reading habits have found a new home and my computer is my library. Moreover, I need glasses to read and this has limited my reading habit. (Especially traveling a short distance, it is cumbersome, to remove the specs from my purse to read a book, and then remember to put it away carefully before you alight the transport.) Nowadays, I buy only one book at a time, and it follows a particular sequence, I buy a book, read it and pass it on. (I think I have reached Nirvana because I have no more attachment to anything, not even to my books.) I just have few collection of books left which I have managed to store them at different spots in the house (actually I don’t have enough space). And everybody is welcomed to pick up any book from my shelf and keep it. I don’t care if they forget to return it…..I can survive. I enjoy books that have a story stretching over several years; also I like to read biographies, success stories, humor, suspense, thriller, adventure and romance. I don’t like reading books such as ‘Self Help Books’ ‘Self development’, ‘How to…’ or ‘Self Improvement’ books because I want to learn from my own experience. If someone recommends me to read a particular book, and if I trust her choice, then I always read it…. I am always curious to know my friend’s selection of books.…….and luv to know what they are reading.....

Go Away! I am Busy!!!!!!

Darn! This doorbell…why must this ring? I hate answering doorbells, especially if it is vegetable seller, fruit seller, sweeper, Phone Company or some stupid courier service. I think I prefer snail mails (although they are extinct now-a-days), What I liked about sanil mail was that they would just drop the letters in my letterbox and I would pick it up whenever I feel like it, but with these couriers that are frequent, I have to get up forcibly, wean myself from this huge screen and attend to this courier fellow, take the post, sign a form and take my unimportant mail that is announcing some silly sale, somewhere in the town. (I must remember not to give my address to these boutiques henceforth) why do I need new clothes? I hardly ever go out. Most of my friends are there on the FB. And they don’t care what I wear, I could be wearing just underclothes for that matter…..…who cares!...arrgh… I get very angry when I am on computer playing word twirl or lexulous, trying so hard to think up of a seven letter word and this stupid door bell rings. Or sometimes I am chatting with my friend on Face book, the conversation that I have on face book (with the person whom I have never met) seems to be more important than the phone call that I receive from a family member. I so badly want to end the conversation on the phone to continue talking with my fingers with a friend on other other end of this cable contact. And today, when I was chatting with one of my FB friend, the doorbell rang again…now I am having very interesting conversation, my friend finds me very friendly and jovial and here the door bell is wacking my brain, and I run to my door to answer before her next chat continues, there is this fisherwoman at the door. She sells the best fish in my building and saves me the trip of going to that stinking fish market, but I am afraid that my FB friend will go offline if I take too long in answering her, so even though I so badly need the fish, I tell her bluntly that I don’t eat fish anymore…and run back to my computer. That conversation with the fisherwoman must have taken me only two minutes (just nodding and repeating “no, no, I really don’t want” just five times) but my friend is already offline! I go back to my door to see if I can buy the fish intead, and she has gone too….darn! I will have to go to fish market or skip the fish meal… This internet illness is really eating off my brains. My pots and pans are getting blacker by day, because I remember to keep tea/veggies on the gas for cooking but forget to take it off when it ready and am reminded only when I can feel the disaster through my nose (my maid suggests that I use pressure cooker, now how do I make tea in pressure cooker?) Everyday I promise myself that I will chop off my habit on the net, but hardly an hour goes by with that promise and I am itching to see the red blinker on FB, and like a zombie I am back on this compu chair, Suddenly this red dot (on the FB) has started haunting me, (some times even in my dreams) I so badly want to see those compliments on my FB walls which I secretly hope that my 200+ friends are also reading and forming a good impression about me… i have lately started feeling very proud of myself, posting notes, tagging people and sending virtual gifts with tight squeaky hugs. I m getting to be popular, but I think I am cut off from my real world. I have not seen nor met my neighbor for more that 15 days, I am thinking of inviting my next door neighbor to the face book, that way I will be able to communicate with her, specially when I m short of one onion or potato and I need to borrow in emergency. my virtual friends will not help me there… See what I mean?????

Slumdog..the last laugh....

After the success of slumdog millionair I had ranted on my blog at at my earlier post However… Although too mediocre a film, it has made a difference to our Mumbai’s slum world and it will be remembered for a long time…. All heads turn towards our city. Children have earned all at such a tender age after the success of the film, homes, stipends, benefits for their families and a trip to the U.S. Children also got chance of making a trip to Disney world and posing with Mickey Mouse. The tinsel town cannot stop raving about Freida Pinto in magazines such as ‘Vogue’ and ‘Cosmopolitan and on many more mags as the cover girl. Freida portrays a different style and look with elegant attire and the Hollywood movie offers have started piling, we will even see her as new James Bond girl. Anil Kapoor ascended at Paramount Studios in Hollywood for the ‘Montblanc Signature for Good’ event. It was a high profile gala hosted by Montblanc in support of UNICEF’s education and literacy programs Rehman got the well deserved recognition. Beggars at street signal are not ignored any more, their amputee limb brings tears to one’s eye when we recall the torture behind that tragedy. PS:* My friend tell me that shit pit (shown in the film) was not actually a shit, but the melted chocolate.* So what are we cribbing about??

Holi Times!

Little cute terrorists came down in the building compound with their water guns that looked like colorful machine guns, splashing water with great gusto on each others faces. I approached the children in my compound, focusing on their moods through my lens and their playfulness is clearly visible. Holi is the festival of colors and it has not lost its charm in India, not as yet. I am not sure if Indian kids spend too much time on the net, but here, the children in my compound, come every evening, to spend the time with their friends. And they are seen to spend some wonderful time with their friends, inventing games and enjoying each other’s company like we used to (when we were young) and they still enjoy all the festivals of India. Holi is one festival that is enjoyed by all age groups But is Holi a naughty festival? Do guys get seduced watching girls in clinging wet clothes? In my building compound they had a weird way (well that’s what I might say now, with tinge of jealousy, although I am not sure whether it is weird) to celebrate Holi. The drummers were called and all the youngsters danced at the beat of the drums. A big water tanker was hired for the day and the youngster splashed gallons and gallons of water on each other from the thick hose and then jumped in a big tank of colored water, splashing the water at each other and laughing for no reason at all. The dark color on their faces refuse to fade but their clothes sank deeper and deeper into their body curves. My friend tells me that he gets chance to touch his crush. Well I am sure nobody minds touching. Like they say “Burra mat mano, Holi hai” During Holi, must they play with water balloons? They bring buckets of water balloons and hide themselves behind the walls. Like hand bomb granates, they fling the water balloons on unsuspecting lady passerby, aiming the water balloon on her breast, happy to see her chest soak with water, and droplets dripping down her clothes, bringing pleasure to these mischief makers. Many girls are afraid of being the target of this embarrassment and prefer to stay home for fifteen days prior to this festival, Holi is the festival of colors but do they really use only color powders? The substitutes (red powder is what they are suppose to use) are terrible. Eggs, tomatoes, shoe polish, oil paints, mud, jam, jelly juice. The more innovative people get the more disgusting (or entertaining) it gets. Sometimes the paints are so stubborn, that the stains refused to fade and it creates rash on the face. Its fun, no it’s so gooey, no its fun, I can’t really decide. They head on to swim at the beach and remove the excess of stains. It is the time to have more fun, snacking and swimming, for the rest of the day. Phew!! Some festival!!!

Random thoughts-A Struggler

However big we grow, we never cease to be a struggler. Life is the continuous stage of progress and we are learning new things everyday. A good student is one who realizes that he is ignorant and is willing to learn. The day, he thinks that he knows everything; that will be the last day of his creative mind. A good student is one who is able to use his intellect to discriminate the right from wrong. He is able to use his intellect to let go of things that are not important to him, he should be able to decide when to make contact between senses and intelligence and nurses a desire for liberation. If we are living in any urban state, we are likely to have many visitors. But what is our attitude towards our visitors? We are very hospitable. We go out of our way to be kind to them; we take them out for shopping, movies and try to accommodate them, sometimes beyond our limits. Do we really have to go to that extreme and inconvenience our self? Do we need to shelf our own duties for our guests? Or, on the other hand, sometimes we think they are invading our private space. We are afraid that if we are nice to them, they might stay for ever. We start being rude to them and spoil the relationship. This is situation when we need to discriminate where we can draw the line. We have intellect to make proper discrimination and make proper choice. It is no use going for instant pleasure. We must have courage to give up what is not important. We have to focus on waste disposal of unimportant things. We have intellect to discriminate right from wrong. If we clutter our life with too many unwanted things then we get restless. It is believed that Eisten had only four identical suits in his ward robe. He did not want to waste even one moment in deciding what to wear. But what do we do? We have so much greed that we want to buy everything that we see our friends buying. We have no room to store and we keep cluttering our house with unwanted things. How many shoes can we wear on our two feet? Do we really need hundred pairs of shoes? And for what? There are some, who will borrow jewelry from their friends to wear it for an occasion. Why? Do we really need to impress people? If we don’t have, it okay not to have, why can’t we be content with whatever we have? We sacrifice our own happiness by living the ways of the world. The true happiness lies in being contend with whatever we have. Aping others is sure to make us miserable. We have to learn the art of self control and mind control. We should be able to control our emotions, our desires, anger, and jealousy. These emotions are killers of our happiness. We have to seek the higher goal of liberation and we should be able to differentiate the freedom from bondage of unimportant desires.

Education is must…for complete progress

Today my maid comes to work with a perforated black plaster on her ankle and I am curious. When I ask her, she says that the black plaster will ease pain from her knees and her back. She is constantly in pain but she does not take any leave of absence. I feel very guilty of making her work for me, especially when she is so much in pain. I have never cut her salary if she skips a day of absence but still she is always very regular. I am sure that if she was to work only for me, then she would take holiday when she is unwell. But unfortunately, she works for three more families, doing the same work day after day, everyday. People in India are very lazy and they get agitated when their maid does not turn up for work. Whenever she is absent, she is loaded with extra work on her return. Such is the life of people who are uneducated and poor. She realizes this and hopes that her children will be educated so that they don’t suffer like her. But the environment that they live is not conducive for education. There are many distractions, where she lives and the children who live in the slums, spent most of their time playing on the streets or, trying to earn a living for their parents by begging on streets or working in some industry. So, where is the time to study? There are many NGOs who try to provide food, clothing and clean environment, some of them conduct free classes for them but the initiative should come from children themselves and from their parents. If they show no interest in studying, what can any NGO do? For that matter, what can anybody do?

Random thoughts on heart and mind

There a direct link between the state of heart and state of mind. Whenever we are disturbed and agitated, we cannot concentrate and we lose interest in everything. Our mind is all the time preoccupied with worry and we cannot find solutions. We have no interest in food, play or any sensual activities. What do we do? Will talking to people help? I think nobody can help us. People might be sympathetic to us, try to give us solutions and might even try to pacify us but they cannot help us overcome our agitation. Only we can help ourselves. First and foremost, it is important that we don’t expect help and learn to deal with it. There are many things that we cannot change, so it is better to accept it. We can try our bit to change it but that is all we can do. We cannot expect others to do what we think is right. For example, there is so much corruption around us. Everybody is out to cheat. They expect bribery and will make things difficult for us if we do not oblige. So what do we do? If bribery and corruption is against our principle, we stick to it and not encourage it and face the discomfort. We can do our bit by standing firm by our principles and face the consequences. But can we stop our friends to stand by our principles? No. We cannot. They have to make their choice. Every body has their own intellect and it depends how they train their intellect. If they make wrong choices, it is because their intellect is weak or it is sleeping. They have to awaken their intellect so that their mind decides what is right. We all have to do our own obligatory duties; we cannot expect fruits for every action that we make, but what needs to be done, should be done. If our concentration is shifted from our duty to do what is necessary, to expecting fruit for our action, the quality of our work will suffer. For maintaining a healthy balance between our mind and heart, it is important to do what is right and not agitate our intellect by compressing it against our senseless desires.

Should I rejoice at ‘Slumdogs Millionaire’ Success?

World sings ‘Jai ho’ around this globe While the poor man sits outside a gate Wearing garb of poverty His tattered crown bringing fame and show From rags to riches, the world rejoice While we tread through those narrow lanes Seeing hollow eyes, bloated tummy Can we be proud of our helpless folks? I am not sure if I am proud of eight Oscar awards. But here, this is the truth that we try to hide under the carpet and pretend that it doesn’t exist. There are always resigned attitude of many Indians saying ‘What can we do?’ This movie “Slumdog…” hits us hard, real hard. Many of my friends (abroad) have pointed out this to me many times in the past saying that they are very much troubled by the poverty of India, especially when they are in their relaxed state in the luxury of their car, munching on a bar of chocolate and then see a dirty, stained face, peeping into their car window with helpless look, begging piteously. Former Bond girl Michelle Yeoh quotes, “The film was a fairy tale and shouldn't be confused with what life is actually like for India's poor and that Boyle had to make "Slumdog Millionaire" upbeat because the true story of what it is like to live in a slum wouldn't have appealed to audiences.” And this is the truth, the reality that only Indian who lives in close proximity to those shanty slums finds it hard to ignore. It made me squirm, cringe, reject and reluctantly accept. It was so honest that I was benumbed by its content. There were times that I wished that he had not stripped my City of Mumbai like this. But the story worked! One year ago, when it was released, no distributor was willing to buy it and now, world rejoices at its success. Eight Oscar awards! It suddenly acknowledges India’s existence and indirectly, Bollywood importance in world cinema. Hopefully, world’s attention will clear the debris. I only hope that those child stars, Azharuddin and Rubina, who walked the red carpet at Oscars will not return back to their shanty lives. I hope their life will change forever……

Delli che...kem che.....

I came out from the theatre after watching Delhi 6 and met a friend just outside the theatre. She asked me whether I had enjoyed the film. I told her that the film bumped and went over my head. I am not sure if I understood the film. Till interval I was trying to figure out where the story (if any) was leading. The crowded and narrow streets of Delhi, the cow giving birth in the middle of the road, the temple with hundred bells, the blind faith of people in the city, all this was very confusing to me. Moreover the acoustics of the theatre were bad too and many of the Abhishek’s dialogues were just mumbling sounds (I think I am going deaf) In the film, there was news report of ‘Black Monkey’ causing havoc in the city and I keep wondering what is it trying to portray? Is black monkey the blind faith of the people, is it superstitions or is it the imagination of one person that is aped by others in agreement? And then this Sonam, who has conservative father, manages to dress in the weirdest costumes with belly button et al, ..pines to be Indian idol….is her father just unaware of his daughter’s activities or is he too dumb? Can’t decide. There must be reason for Mehra to show Ramleela throughout the movie, maybe there is the connection somewhere, I fail to understand. I think I don’t seem to understand movies any more!

Day out at 'Kala Ghoda Festival'

After lunch, my friends and I headed towards south Mumbai to experience ‘Kala Ghoda Festival’. Being last day of the 10-day-Festival, it was too crowded and we kept getting lost into the crowd. It was like every thirty minutes we would call on our mobile to find each other. We all had different interests and while I spend most of my time shooting the pictures, my friends were more interested in shopping knick knacks or eating. Somewhat, not only do the art in any form attracts me but even the artist at work. This man worked skillfully on sculpture of a man, I moved closer to see this artist shape a strip of plywood There were also some children learning Warli painting for Rs100, they had made cute greeting cards. There was a big crowd near the stage where there were different performers at different times, there was music playing all the time and everyone could be seen shaking their heads and tapping their feet. We stopped there to have a cup of coffee. And there was bigger crowd at food stalls, Imagine a Pani Puri for Rs35. I get better Pani Puri in my lane for just Rs12! How they loot public at the fairs! There were kiosks where they abused political trouble makers And others that abused their own government for bad sanitation in the country Children enjoyed the story telling session at BHNS auditorium And towards the evening, I enjoyed the performance poetry at Sassoon Library, which was the nodal point for literature and poetry. It was a very tiring day though fun, fun, fun!

Just thinking...........

Is it right to criticize someone in their absence? I think we have no right to criticize anybody if we do not have guts to say the same thing on their face. By criticizing we are only conditioning the opinion of other person to look at the person from our angle. We are not giving people chance to make their own opinion. And what are we trying to prove? Are we trying to say that we are superior to them and that person is too week or selfish to meet our standard of expectations? And how does it help us? We are just wasting time in spreading negative vibrations and getting entangled in this web too. And what is the use? If we must criticize, then we must have the courage to do it on their face so that he can improve. There are people who can never change. We have to learn to accept them as they are. For example if the person is having hatred for everybody for no particular reason, then it is not possible for us to help her. How can we help her if she does not know that the problem exists? So, our criticizing her is not going to help her at all, on the contrary, it could make the matter worse. We can only help those who are ready to help themselves. The person has to first admit that the problem exists, she has to be aware that she is hating everybody for no reason at all. Once she recognizes that the problem exists then she can make an effort to change herself. We cannot help anybody who is not ready to accept that the problem exists. In that case, either we accept them as they are, or steer away from her horizon so that it does not bother us. But we are most concerned about people who we love. So what is love? Love is feeling in harmony with the other person, of being on the same wave length and accepting the person as they are, so that there is no conflict at all. Love is feeling oneness with the other person so that you begin to think like them. But many times we don’t understand the meaning of love and we start to suffocate the other person by getting too attached to them. By attaching our self to other, we are only causing pain to our self. We have to learn to live in this world in a detached manner. What is detachment? Detachment is unconditional love. It is unselfish love. A love without any expectation is detachment. To maintain a relationship with attachment is impossible. Too much attachment makes us encroach on their private space and then there is conflict. …….

Randomness

The recent and most popular post that I see on the FB is this randomness where you write 25 facts about you, and tag your 25 friends to share your post. It is quite interesting to read different posts by different friends..and I have read the posts of all my friends who post it, whether they tag me or not..... Rules: Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you. (To do this, go to "notes" under tabs on your profile page on the FB, paste these instructions in the body of the note, type your 25 random things, tag 25 people (in the right hand corner of the app) then click publish.) So Now about me: 25 random things about me... 1. I love children, their smiles, their movements, their innocent talks and I love watching them play 2. I enjoy the company of people who have good sense of humor 3. My motto for cooking is to enjoy my food the first time but don’t ask for repeats.. I can’t reproduce the same taste…. 4. I don’t like dogs but they love me, can’t understand why? Whatever happened to those mutual feelings? 5. I love listening to music on radio and also all that bakwas 6. I prefer watching films in the comfortable and nice theatre. 7. I used to love watching TV once upon a time but after internet, it is now, an excess furniture. 8. I love eating in fancy restaurants and attending wacky parties on OPM (Other People’s Money) 9. I compliment ‘Me’ in the mirror everyday and remind myself that I am the best. 10. I don’t like chocolates, cakes, sweets, fruits, ice creams and pastries, spicy food is tasty 11. I don’t crave for anything that is beyond my reach and I am most contented with whatever I have 12. Three questions I ask myself whenever I go for shopping, Do I need it? Is there enough storage available for new purchase? Is it worth it? I will buy only what I really, really need. 13. I am impatient with people who are untidy, disorganized, irritable and nags 14. I love to travel comfortably and like exploring new places. 15. I love my freedom and my life that I like to live on my own terms 16. I am offended when people mistreat or abuse their spouse in public and I am angry at people, who can’t stand up for their rights. 17. I don’t like to draw any attention to myself and prefer to do everything quietly. 18. I don’t care if some one else takes the credit for the work that I have done and feels happy wearing my crown. 19. I have great faith in my God and I believe that His Grace always protects me and makes everything easy for me. 20. I am very honest to myself and I don’t feel the need to lie because I am afraid of nobody 21. I had a very unhappy childhood. For first ten years of my life, I lived away from my family and was abused by my teachers because I was stupid. When my family came to live with me, my life changed for the better. 22. I am afraid of poor attendance at my funeral 23. I love playing cards and lexulous, online and offline. 24. I neither drink nor smoke but still I am always intoxicated by different moods. 25. Writing 25 things about me was a very difficult exercise for me but tagging 25 people is quite easy

How do I walk on these streets?

I walk down the street, I need to walk to keep myself fit, but Mumbai roads bother me…how do I walk in these broken streets of Bandra? This is the road that I pass everyday, This is the lane outside the National college, there is heavy traffic down this lane and I am pushed back towards the kerb of the street, the foot path is broken. .I am afraid of falling, even a small stone on the road can make me lose my balance. I am advised to carry a walking stick but it is quite cumbersome to carry it especially if I have one more bag to carry in my other hand. I wish BMC of Bandra would come to visit this lane and see the pitiful state of the road. They should see these open gutters where I am likely to fall if I am not looking The encroachment of street dwellers The exposed dangerous loose wires The broken foot paths Who says Bandra is happening place? I am surprised that this dirt does not bother even the young college students who pass these streets everyday !!!

My Warli painting

I sketched this on photoshop