Life, a Bitter and Sweet Symphony

To my dearest son, my simba, my connect-to-the-disassociated world, To my fatigue, my smile and my jargon, To my jinga-boli, aabad-daabad , shoochi-poochi, To my cold food and messy-hair-in-a-bun, To my pee-ed and poop-ed pajamas, To my 4:00am conversations and dark circles, To my cerelac, daliya, khichdi-smelling kitchen, To my long-fancy-nails cut short, To my hair flicks pinned with a clip, To my panic, my rest, To my complaints and prayers, And most importantly, to my indelible happy soul, I love you to the moon and back, And all other planets in the Universe.

It was a sad day at Internet yesterday when a viral photo of a terribly ill Vinod Khanna did the rounds. Fans were saddened to see the plight of the actor they once adored on Indian celluloid. But is it just about our fascination with the actor that makes our heart fall into our feet? Or something deeper stirs us inside?  The picture speaks a lot about the mocking irony of life. It is mostly when we are not ready that life hits us hard in our face. When we look at Vinod Khanna, the charismatic man of Bollywood, the ‘Waada kar le Saajna’ actor who steals our heart with his dance moves and acting skills, and suddenly see a petite man with a lot of experience in his sagging eyes, we realize that if one thing that is constant in life, it is change. It is not the illness of Vinod Khanna that truly bothers us, but the fear lurking inside all of us. It’s the vulnerability of life that makes our heart melt and we sigh a long breathe. It’s the unpredictability of human body ...

As insane as it may sound, but women are ALWAYS in a love-hate relationship with their bras. They would be very choosy about the size, make and color. Every morning, they would meticulously choose which one to wear that complements their dress; but this dear feeling would soon vanish as the day advances. Through this post, I’m trying to list down the reasons why women love to hate their bras that they happily cling on to on a daily basis.    .         Just Letting Them Breathe For it is the basic and fundamental right of any being. Yes, boobs are beings and women feel the urge to unwind and let them breathe, for breathe they must. So when the days are heavy and you can’t take the cruelties of the world anymore, remember to unhook   2.    To Avoid that Stabbing Feeling Men would never understand the feeling of something constantly stabbing their chest and shoulders. Women would agree that however comfortable bra ...

Movie buffs in India are eagerly waiting for the release of ‘Baahubali – The Conclusion’ but guess it’s the Queen Elizabeth II of UK who would watch it first. Reports have it that Rajamouli’s ‘Baahubali – The Conclusion’ will be screened in UK a day prior to its worldwide release.  The British Film Institute will showcase Indian films as a part of Indian Film program from April till December and Baahubali has made the cut to be screened to mark 70 years of India’s independence. If sources are to be believed, not just Queen Elizabeth II but PM Modi would also be among the first ones to know “ Katappa ne Bahubali ko kyu maara ”. He is likely to attend the screening on 27 th April, i.e., one day before its worldwide release – but no official statement has been declared. With a budget of Rs. 150 crores, Baahubali is the most expensive movie in the history of Indian cinema.  It is a sweeping epic that glues the audience for straight 2 hours and 40 minutes, with our mout...

The world is full of people and people have opinions. While many of us are all praise for UP’s new Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, many of us are critical of his strong decision making. Last week came another powerful decision by the government of setting an "Anti-Romeo squad" (a team of about 30 police officers) in the interest of safeguarding women. But guess things didn’t turn out well when the squad shaved the head of a guy in the presence of policemen who had caught him with a female friend in a public park in Shahjahanpur. What’s worse is that this incident occurred in the presence of police officers. Prima facie say that the three constables namely Suhail Ahmed, Laiek Ahmed and Sonu Pal were being mute spectators and did nothing to stop the officers of the squad to stop shaving the head of the victim.   This does not end here – some men were even made to sqat in public and some were questioned why they are roaming in public with a female friend. Now ...

Just as twilight covers a sleeping bridge, with its overwhelming lustre, bit-by-bit; insomnia hits me hard, grows on me, inch-by-inch. and I pass hours, days, months & years, each single night. It creeps from under my two heavy pillows, and from beneath the aches of my tired torso, and from throbbing, drumbeating temples, to ask one crushing question- “Who will leave now? Who will leave?” Covered in a fervent loop, sleep acts like a blurred labyrinth, difficult to look at. so I fill the silence with some random thoughts- like, his love for cauliflower, her rendezvous with coffee, and few other sundries, which are as unimportant as this night! So I picture- there’s that misty smell, some freshly cut grass, some music- Scubert’s piano perhaps. I sense all this and pat myself to sleep, just when, the Question with ten legs again stings my breast- “Who will leave now?" He asks, "Who will leave?” Perhaps this very thought, seizes my forty winks...

She stood stiff, with her neck buried into her piano, just the way a cow grazes the grass. She believed this way, she can bring her mind closer to the task and concentrate fully. Her fingers moved like undersized waves that ebb and flow recklessly into a sea. The black and white keys, the notes and half-notes blow some syncopated music that she could dance to. She so wanted to! But she concentrated to get the Malkaush Raag right. Some music begins to flow into the room like maple leaves fall in Ontario- soft, and bronze red. “Guru ji says this music releases some sort of nourishing energy”- she chuckled without looking up at him. “Nourishing energy? Umm… like some soul stirring?”- he enquired. “Soul-stirring. Yes. This raag is believed to have been created by Goddess Parvati to sooth Shiva when He was outraged and would not calm down...after Tandav...and…” She resumed her attention on the Arohana notes. She just slipped her hand from Komal Ga to Shuddh Pa. "Pa is complet...