Chilling Times in Pune City

Pune is the city that is just 3 hours away from Mumbai by road, it’s the city where majority of my family lives, it’s the city where I have spend most of my free time doing nothing but sitting and lazing around, or going for movies, endless lunches and dinners and getting fatter with food, laughter, chit chat, teasing, ragging and love.

Pune used to be the city where nature smiled at all hours of the day, the weather was cool and birds cooed beautiful rhymes. We would wake up early hours to enjoy the cool breeze, in the evenings we would go for long walks on the main street, pick up sandwiches from ‘Mazzorin’ Sometimes we would go for long drives (long drives meant just two hours, driving through the lonely lanes, sometimes right up to the Pashan lake or to Khadakwasla dam, and sometimes a longer rides driving through the winding road up to Mahabhuleshwar, eating usal pav or egg omelets at way-side stalls, drink chai in an Irani restaurant.

There was no TV nor BlackBerry nor Iphones to distract our conversations. We played board games or simply joked all day. Simple things amused us, there was so much to talk about. Chatting would continue late nights and sometimes we would sneak out of house in the middle of night, go the Pune station to eat egg burchi from the road-side hawkers. We never worried about hygiene, never washed hands, never used sanitizers but surprisingly never really felt ill or had any stomach upset.

I can’t recall the conversation we had during those days but at the end of my usual one-month-stay, I always cried when I had to return home to routine life in Mumbai.

Not much has changed on the home front but a lot has changed outside my family home, out on the streets of Pune.

The greenery is slowly eroding and is replaced by huge, shiny malls, selling branded goods.

Traffic is disorderly, a big wigwam of cycles, auto-rickshaw, buses, cars, scooters, pedestrians all sharing the same space. Temper tantrums flying high in all directions, the weather that once Punites boasted is now humid. Redevelopment and constructions is the order of the day.

That quaint little city is now a bigger cousin of Mumbai, resembling in noise, breath and weather. The essence of place is lost forever.

Now the only reason I go to Pune is to visit my family and friends

Everybody Needs Two Extra Hours A day....

There is just not enough time to concentrate on more important issues

Inspired by BiggBoss season 5, the graphic on my blog expresses my deep concern for  peace and harmony in my world and if there were two extra hours, I would love to work on maintaining peace and harmony into this world by pointing out the uselessness of unimportant issues and concentrating on more important things in life.

Entry under  Surf Excel Matic, Get Smart Contest

"Surf Excel Matic #GetSmart Contest" 

Anger –A Short Madness

It is not cool to use a foul language but somehow people are always seeking attention by being loud and bold.

Some people just get angry all of a sudden and you are left staring whether we can help them or not.

Lately I have been watching the BiggBoss season5 (although this is my first time, never watched this program before) and am actually following it diligently. My friends are astonished at my sudden taste in such a program where there is really nothing to gain. No intelligence, no information and no entertainment, unless arguing unnecessary is the idea of entertainment.

Anger and bitchy-ness are the core emotions in this program. Some or the other member is always provoking an argument (My friend tells me that it is the USP of this program)

Why do people get angry?

Most of the people get angry when their ego is hurt, or people are not appreciating them, or when the people are critical of their behavior. They start to shout to defend their ideas, nobody is listening, all play the blame game and the situation gets worse and the result is the bad vibration that causes ill-feelings and revenge……

And then there is silence, no-talking-to-each-other-for-months.

The language that is spoken during such outburst is unforgivable and it pricks for days, especially if there is tinge of truth in it. It gnaws at our mind and interferes with our peace and tranquility.

Anger is directly proportional to attachment, the more attached you are to the person; the greater are the expectations and disappointments from loved ones.

My friend is always angry with me if I am checking a message on blackberry. Many times he will snatch away the phone from me. I fail to understand what is his problem? In what way am I inconveniencing him while just responding to few messages? But then that is his nature. There are moments when I snap back, while grabbing my phone back from him but then I am surprised at my own outburst.

But these anger pangs are mild ones; they don’t mean anything and melt out in few moments.

During my teen years and early twenties, anger was something I could not control and there is price I have paid for it. Redemption is difficult. Over the years I have worked on controlling my temper. Now I am more in control and don’t get easily affected by people’s opinion or their limitations. Learning to live with myself has taught me many things. I have learnt to remain detached from other people’s problems and expect nothing from anybody. Anger now makes me creep into my shell and I remain there till my anger subsides.

” We are in times where nothing is easy and nothing is tough. That thought keeps us glued to the polarity consciousness. Stop labeling experiences. Let them simply remain experiences, each with a beautiful gift nestled inside!”~ Ishayas

It’s when there is social injustice but I cannot do anything about it, then the anger is profound, I am angry at myself for my inability to do anything to change the situation. What can one do, if people take you for granted? When people find you weak and you can do nothing to show your strength?

Getting angry should be resolved by finding the passion to change the situation or else what is the use of blowing just hot air?

My friend tells me that Pranayam has helped her a lot and I believe her, cause over the time, I have seen a marked change in her since she started spending more time on meditation although she still needs to work more on that. Why I say that is because recently she lost her control (once again) during the traffic jam when one person on a bike accidently scratched her car. Road accidents happen, sometimes by mistake, or sometimes if the person is pre-occupied with his own problems and has been careless, our reaction with anger does not undo the scratch.

Imagine how noisy the world would be if everybody who are caught up in traffic jam shouted and screamed out their frustrations. Cribbing has not helped anyone and nobody really cares, the traffic will move at its own pace, all we can do is to relax and let it be.

If we cannot change the situation, let it be. Whatever will be, will be………

It would be wise to shut the box of disappointment and relax, watch, allow and breathe….deeply..in..out..in..out..till the anger dilutes and walks out from our system.

Still Life

Hair Flair

 “Love your hair and it loves you back!” 

Finally the day arrived.

My ‘Facebook’ friend of four years made a trip to my home town and was eager to meet me. Our feelings were mutual, we had exchanged virtual notes, loves and hugs many times. Although I knew her quite well, I knew that I would not be able to recognize her if I saw her on the road. All her photographs on FB showed only her face, she was always dressed in black from head to toe, exposing only smooth skin, heavy eye-make-up and a beautiful smile. When we met at the coffee shop of Hotel Marriott, we couldn’t stop talking, we had so much to share.

“Let’s go out for lunch and then we go shopping” I said

We went upstairs to her room to freshen up. I was stunned when she removed her Hijab and un-rolled her thick round bun, her jet black hair shone as it uncurled, and reached her hips covering her back like a thick satin curtain.

“Wow!” I whistled softly, and walked closer to her to strum my fingers through her thick mane, they were silky and slid smoothly through my fingers “Such beautiful hair you have, why do you cover it so? Let me click a picture of you, come stand here?”

“No, please don’t. I cannot remove my picture without my Hijab. My husband will be angry if he learns about this. My beauty is reserved for my hubby only. I cannot flaunt it in public.” She said.

Such beautiful hair and only one person could enjoy it? Utter waste of beauty! Didn't her happiness matter? Rolling up her beautiful hair like that and keeping it hidden behind the Hijab? Didn’t she feel like playing with her hair under the bright sunlight? Didn’t she wish to feel soft breeze blowing her hair or sometimes let it wet in the heavy rain?

I would have loved to keep the picture of her thick voluptuous hair that would inspire me to take care for my own hair but she wouldn’t allow me to click the picture. I wanted to know all the details of how she takes care of her hair, I begged her to share her secret...but she said there was no secret at all...just take care....no fuss…..

But I too have taken so much care….and that too with so much fuss..pampering it all the time.....

I too have loved my own silky hair
Straight and brown but with scanty flair
Tortured it yes, guilty, had curled it many times
Hair-extensions I added to make it look divine.
No! Never did they grow long or beautiful like this

Never had thick plait that went bumpty bump on my back

They never grew long like that of princess Rapunzel
Nor lost the long veil through love and tears
chop, chop, chopped until it looked like this

Maybe I should wear a Hijab or a long scarf too
To hide my shiny scalp that can hold no more clips
Tried different shampoos, oh yes! oils and beauty tips
But genes and DNA just helplessly glare
No remedies have helped
In family history runs scanty hair
I am afraid of the future
My granny scalp was also so bare
I hope that in my old age they don’t look like this

I desperately look for hair-specialist,
That will teach me to care
With healthy hair I will try out
Many hair styles that could be rare
With flowers, beads and lace
I could walk with grace
Making a fashion statement that will look
like this

Just twenty-five feathers left, and now I am scared
With finger-tips I regularly comb my hair
Careful forever, never to break them into bits
Oil them, steam them, and tenderly massage those flicks
Hoping they will blossom one day
Into lovely-dovey tresses
I will be walking on the moon
If they start to look like this

Participated in  “Love your hair and it loves you back!” blogger contest.