Book Review: Kuch Wo Pal

Kuch Wo Pal is a collection of Hindi poems by the debut author Subrat Saurabh. The author is an Engineer and works with an MNC in Bangalore. I can very much relate to him being an Engineer working in Bangalore. He is very popular on twitter and facebook.

Thanks to Blogadda for sending across a review copy of this book.

This is a 75 page book which can be finished in one go. However, reading a collection of poems is unlike reading fiction. When you read fiction, once you finish it, you have no fixation to read it again. This book, demands reading it over and over to understand the essence of it. Every time you browse through the pages of this book, you get to dive deep into the ecstatic world of words woven so beautifully. It is like a web from which you would deny to escape.

The poems are mostly about the author's experiences of staying away from home and working in a distant city and some exhibiting a broken heart's pain. All of these are penned in contemporary style of writing. One good part is that none of these seem to be inspired by any other poet's work, they are all afresh. The poems are all composed in different writing styles. I especially liked the ones that are based on nostalgia, the ones that depict the pain of being away from home and family, the remembrance of childhood and the fragrance of memories of one's native place.

One thing that I expected from this book is something more than a lover's pain and sadness. The poems could have been set in vivid moods. Although, every poet has a genre, a way of writing and thinking. However, I am anticipating all this in the subsequent books from the author.

I underlined a few lines from many poems, which I liked very much and read again and again. I was willing to add them to this post but that would have been a spoiler :) Hence, I refrained from doing that! The shayari at the end is like cherry on the cake, quite mesmerizing.

I myself am fond of reading and writing poems, and hence, can sense the immense efforts put on to write what is apparently a thin book. In the world where you have easy access to poems and prose online, it is a endearing experience to hold one such book. These days, when you can easily type in your thoughts on the web, it is hard to find one such collection as a book. You cannot replace the feel of holding a book over any other digital media.

Overall its a quick read, recommended for those who understand and admire poetry rather than SMS and Whatsapp jokes. Those who are into writing poems can also get a lot of inspiration from this collection. I rate this book 3.5 on 5.

(PS: the reviews expressed here are based on my personal reading experience, and do not intend to defame, derate or 

degrade the sale or vice-versa for the book. I am not paid for writing this review.)

If you are an author and want your book to be reviewed, drop an email at bookreviews@mansiladha.com.

This review is a part of the biggest Book Review Program for Indian Bloggers. Participate now to get free books!

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Book Review: And Then There Were None

And Then There Were None, a murder mystery by Agatha Christie. I had been going through reader's block since long and the review I am writing is breaking my writer's block.

First things first. Agatha Christie who is dead long back, as Wikipedia says. I have started admiring her writing skills after reading this book. The kind of reader I am, I generally despise all that is archaic, written long back and has pale pages. But this one has changed my perspective to some extent. I am going to get another Agatha Christie book now.

About the book, its a murder mystery. Ten people are invited by the murderer on an abandoned island for a house party and are murdered one after another. The only clue for every consecutive murder is a childhood prose. As and as the plot unfolds, reader's curiosity to know the murderer grows. The end is unexpected. The mystery unfolds itself unpredictably. The end will amaze you.

If I write any further, it would be a spoiler!

I rate this book 4 on 5 and recommend it to those who want a shift of genre from fiction to mystery. This is my first mystery novel but not the last one for sure.

(PS: the reviews expressed here are based on my personal reading experience, and do not intend to defame, derate or 

degrade the sale or vice-versa for the book. I am not paid for writing this review.)

If you are an author and want your book to be reviewed, drop an email at bookreviews@mansiladha.com.

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"If you can solve your problem, then what is the need of worrying?
If you cannot solve it, then what is the use of worrying?"
-Anonymous

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“If you understand others you are smart. If you understand yourself you are illuminated. If you overcome others you are powerful. If you overcome yourself you have strength. If you know how to be satisfied you are rich. If you can act with vigor, you have a will. If you don't lose your objectives you can be long-lasting. If you die without loss, you are eternal.”

- Lao Tzu

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The Perfect is the Enemy of the Good

"If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as a Michaelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, 'Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well."
-Martin Luther King Jr.

Sometime back last year, PV Sindhu and Sakshi Malik adorned the name of India with medals in Rio Olympics. Apparently, the streets of Indian cities lay galore with flex banners painted in passport size pictures of politicians welcoming and congratulating the proud winners. That makes me wonder, what about those 118 other athletes who represented India but were less fortunate than Sindhu and Sakshi.

Undoubtedly the conclusion is- "No one ever talks about you if you don't win! Either be the first or the forgotten".

Success is boolean- Similarly, either you succeed or you don't. If you are doing good, you are doing injustice to the better. Although there has to be a tradeoff between what you are, what you think you are, what you should be and what you think want to be. At that point satisfaction comes into picture.

As Voltaire quoted- Le mieux est l'ennemi du bien. (The perfect is the enemy of the good.)

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Book Review: Arranged Marriage

I picked up this book as my third one from the author Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni. I was fantasized by the feeling of reading all her books since the time I finished these exemplary ones- The Mistress of Spices and The Palace of Illusions (which I have reviewed here). But this one broke my heart and shattered my dream of sinking in another supposed great work of hers.

This book is a collection of short stories on arranged marriages. But let me first tell you, it is not solely about  "arranged" marriages, but marriages, and not even marriages, sometimes complicated relationships. It highlights the vices like live-in, infidelity, affairs,suffering, pain, injustice to women, distress  etc. I was expecting it to be a collection of sweet and sour stories of arranged marriages in India, of which some might be successful and some unfortunate. But this is entirely different, not even a single story created aura of positivity- all ridden of happiness. Moreover, most of them are not narratives of India but mostly of the US- Indians, mostly Bengalis in the US.

However, if asked to choose some stories which I liked a bit are- The Maid Servant and Meeting Mrinal, which are little lengthy but captivating. After every installment of reading the book, I felt dull and gloomy, and upset for no reason! It gives off a negative vibe. Strangely, people have given so good reviews to this on the web that I was hopeful that at least the subsequent story would be different, but disappointed later.

The way marriages are portrayed here let you feel as if arranged marriages are the worst that can happen to women in India, with a demanding spouse, atrocious in-laws and the patriarchal mindset of Indian culture. It almost did not focus on the other side of it, which is progressive and fairer to women.

I give it 2 on 5 stars and do not recommend this book to anyone.

(PS: the reviews expressed here are based on my personal reading experience, and do not intend to defame, derate or 

degrade the sale or vice-versa for the book. I am not paid for writing this review.)

If you are an author and want your book to be reviewed, drop an email at bookreviews@mansiladha.com.

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हीरा

नाज़-ओ-हिफाज़त में थे अपने शहर की गलियों में,

तिजोरी में तो सोना भी पीतल हो जाता है,

रखे कदम जो चौखट के बाहर तो समझा,

तराशे जाने पर तो कोयला भी हीरा बन जाता है।

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They say "life is difficult", I ask "compared to what?"
-Source unknown

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Book Review: A Thousand Splendid Suns

A Thousand Splendid Suns- another marvel from THE Khaled Hosseini. He has inked the inhumane realities of Afghanistan in such a heart warming manner.

Before this I have read and reviewed The Kite Runner from the same author, which was so compelling that I bought this one too. And now, I am treasuring his third book, And The Mountains Ecoed as well.

The story is a narrative of the struggle of two female protagonists, Mariam and Laila going through the situations where even basic human rights are forbidden. This is the story of the time when Soviet were ruling Afghanistan and later arrived Taliban. The periodic political shift affected the lives and "deaths" of the citizens of the country.

This fiction is a nice portrayal of the grim conditions in Afghanistan which were not known to most of us otherwise. The main characters Mariam and Laila had to struggle through their lives bearing the sin of being born and that too, as women in that society.

To me, this book gives one message, and that is, we often tend to mourn over what we haven't got but forget about what we have. We must appreciate and thank god for giving us this wonderful life, giving us birth at the place where we are, and above all FREEDOM which is the foremost requisite of human existence and unfortunately not available to many.

I rate this book with 4.5 stars on 5, and recommend to all fiction lovers with a disclaimer that this book will give you a gloomy feeling throughout, and is not a happy-go-lucky account! You may sleep with a sad mood at times. It may leave you thinking for long. I personally got attached to Mariam and Laila so much that I used to repent on what was happening in their lives, as if they were some live people around me. Such is the magical spell of Khaled Hosseini's un-put-down-able writing.

(PS: the reviews expressed here are based on my personal reading experience, and do not intend to defame, derate or 

degrade the sale or vice-versa for the book. I am not paid for writing this review.)

If you are an author and want your book to be reviewed, drop an email at bookreviews@mansiladha.com.

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खोया हुआ खिलौना और टूटी हुई पेंसिल

छत पर बिछी जब दरी होती थी,

चाँद के पार एक परी होती थी,

ग़मो की गठरी का बस इतना था बोझ,

एक खोया हुआ खिलौना और टूटी हुई पेंसिल होती थी,

कट्टी और सॉरी का सिलसिला होता हर रोज़,

रिश्तों के सौदे कि गुफ़्तगू इतनी सस्ती होती थी,

प्रतिस्पर्धा यूँ शुरू और ख़त्म होती थी,

जब कागज़ की नाव से रेस दोस्तों संग होती थी,

खाली थे हाथ फिर भी ऊँची उड़ान होती थी,

जेब में भरी एक रंगीन तितली होती थी,

कितनी सरल वो ज़िंदगी होती थी,

टूटी गुल्लक से पायी जब चंद सिक्कों कि अमीरी होती थी,

गर्मी कि छुट्टियों में होता शाम का इंतज़ार,

बर्फ़ के लड्डू कि मिठास ऐसी मोहक होती थी,

क्लास में पूछती जब टीचर क्या बनना है,

पायलट और हीरो कहते हुए चहरे पर चमक होती थी,

ऊंची लगती जब मंदिर की घंटी थी,

बड़े होने की बड़ी जल्दी होती थी,

कैसे लौट आयें वो लड़कपन के दिन,

जब सुबह के बाद रात नहीं शामें भी होती थी |

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क्या तोहफ़ा दूँ तुम्हें माँ

वो ख़फा़ हो फिर भी दुलार देती है,

माँ जुदा हो फिर भी प्यार देती है,

हमारी हर भूल को भूला देती है,

वो माँ ही है जो हमें रोज़ दुआ देती है |

माँ वो है जिसने हमें जीवन दिया है और जिसने अपना जीवन हमें दे दिया है | बहुत विचार किया परन्तु इसके समक्ष कोई भी उपहार तुच्छ प्रतीत हुआ | इसलिए कुछ शब्द ही पिरो दिए इस कविता के रूप में |

क्या उपहार दूँ तुम्हें मैं,

तुमने जीवन दान दिया हैं माँ।

मुस्कान होठों पर सदा सजाये,

तुमने हर बलिदान दिया है माँ।

तुलना कैसे करूँ तुम्हारी,

तुमसा कहाँ है कोई माँ।

चाहे तुम हो रूठी हमसे,

चिंता फिर भी करती माँ।

कहा जगत ने जपो हरि भजन,

मैंने केवल कह दिया "माँ"। 

क्या उपहार दूँ समझ ना आये,

शत-शत नमन है तुमको माँ।

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स्याही

मुद्दतों में उठायी क़लम हाथों में, देख कागज़-ए-ख़ाली हम खो गए,

लफ़्ज़ों के आईने में देख ख़ुदा को, ख़ुद ही की मौसीक़ी में मशगूल हो गए |

मन में तराशा बिखरे अल्फाज़ो को, कांटे भी फूल हो गए,

एक बूंद स्याही गिरी दवात से, छिपे सारे राज़ गुफ़्तगू हो गए |

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मैंने खुशियां ख़रीद ली

शहर की जगमग छोड़ कर मैंने उगते सूरज की रोशनी ख़रीद ली,

सिनेमा का विकर्षण छोड़ कर मैने किताब के पन्नो की खुशबू ख़रीद ली |

अपेक्षा का आसमान छोड़ कर मैंने प्रतीक्षा की ज़मीं ख़रीद ली,

बचपन का दामन छोड़ कर मैंने बचपने की अदाएं समेट ली।

रुई का गद्दा त्याग कर मैंने मां की गोद सहज ली,

दिन की दौड़ धूप त्याग कर मैंने सांझ की छांव सहज ली |

कोलाहल की ध्वनि नकार कर मैंने एक ग़ज़ल ख़रीद ली,

मोबाइल पर दौड़ती अंगुलियों को विराम कर मैंने वक़्त की घड़ियां ख़रीद ली।

सुविधाओं की अनंतता का बोध कर मैंने सुकून की दो रोटियां ख़रीद ली।

ख्वाहिशों को थोड़ा कम किया मैंने और खुशियां ख़रीद ली।

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Book Review: Mrs. Funnybones

This book is written by renowned actress Twinkle Khanna. After digging her luck in diverse fields, she began writing. I am a fan of her newspaper column that comes every Sunday in Times of India, and also her scintillating tweets.

I would always admire her for her unconventional sense of humor, presence of mind and stark comments. Also, having traveled many roads of life including acting, interior design and, of course, writing, she carries a distinct identity and charm of her own.

This book is about her day-to-day life experiences in a funny manner.

Although, I was expecting a lot more from her debut novel. It seems more like a collection of her newspaper articles. When you spend some money to buy a book, you do not expect it to contain the stuff that a corner of a 5 bucks newspaper has! You are investing time as well as money not to know her autobiography, and that to, not actual autobiography but certain regular events from here and there from which one derives no conclusion.

With 235 pages including a lot of blank pages, text size 12 and 1.5 size line spacing, broad margins, even the slowest reader on the planet can finish this book in no time.

Not everyone wants to be enlightened by how she struggles as a mother, her baby wants to use her hello kitty potty seat in FLIGHT, or that she gets captured by paparazzi often, or that her son has got a girlfriend at eleven or the MIL jokes with her female friends or how much the family travels abroad in FLIGHTS.

Nevertheless, coming to some good points, the book is humorous, you smile and laugh from time to time and feel light when reading it. This is a quick read and hence, it may help you to overcome reader's block, if any. The sarcasm and composition of sentences is quirky.

My rating for this book is 2.5 on 5 and I recommend it to those who are are willing to pass their time on a train journey or a flight.

(PS: the reviews expressed here are based on my personal reading experience, and do not intend to defame, derate or 

degrade the sale or vice-versa for the book. I am not paid for writing this review.)

If you are an author and want your book to be reviewed, drop an email at bookreviews@mansiladha.com.

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Book Review: Band, Baaja, Boys

This a book by author Rachna Singh is a light hearted comedy.

The plot is set in Allahabad. And hence, the humour. Rachna singh has brought up the core and basic aspects of the residents as her characters and translated that into humour. The characters are relatable and very usual.

The story is about Binny Bajpai - 20 year old daughter of hosiery shop owner Brajesh Bajpai and homemaker Kumud Bajpai. Binny is busy making boyfriends and spending her father's money as the only child. Meanwhile, Kumud and Brajesh are keen on getting the best groom for her from the available options. They are juggling between readily available Mr. Chaubey's son and sparsely available Mr. Dubey's son. Raja is the one sided lover of the heartthrob Binny. Rahul is Binny's lover and a politician's spoiled son. This hullabaloo gives you chuckles and giggles throughout, keeps you gripped to what happens next. (I want to control myself from being a spoiler by providing the details).

Rachna brings alive her characters who are easily identifiable and close to real life, no exaggeration. Use of Hinglish is quite funny.

If you are looking for a deep story and a witty plot, this one is not for you. It is predictable at times but a cute filmy tale. But if you are looking for a stress buster and a lot of laughter this is your cup of tea.

I applaud the observation and comic interpretation of fellow Indians (esp. from Allahabad) by the author especially when she herself was swinging between life and death (cancer treatment). It's easy to make people cry, but difficult to make them laugh, and that's what Rachna has excelled at.

I rate the book 3 on 5 and recommend it to those who want to go over a quick and light read combined with doses of fun.

(PS: the reviews expressed here are based on my personal reading experience, and do not intend to defame, derate or 

degrade the sale or vice-versa for the book. I am not paid for writing this review.)

If you are an author and want your book to be reviewed, drop an email at bookreviews@mansiladha.com.

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Book Review: The Kite Runner

The Kite Runner, an international Bestseller, came to me as a birthday gift, and it is like none other. It is authored by Khaled Hosseni and is his debut novel. I read the 10th anniversary edition, little late indeed!

Khaled Hosseni is an Afghanistan born author, settled in the United States.

Still running my hands on the embossed letters of the book cover, which read "The Kite Runner", my mind riding back on the intelligent portrayal of the grim realities of the contemporary Afghanistan. I am assuming that this story is largely inspired from reality and has something to do with author's real life incidences. If not, I would call it exemplary and intense imagination.

The plot is set in Afghanistan, Pakistan and some in America. It is about two children -Amir and Hassan who are grow up together. Then it turns towards the brutalities of French and Taliban. Amir comes back to Pakistan and then Afghanistan only to find extremities in the country. There are a lot of twists and turns, a lot of thrill and suspense on what shall happen forth. You can hardly predict a subsequent incidence. You keep getting surprised throughout. You will feel as if you are soaked in the agony and pain of the characters. You can feel yourself to be present there and witnessing the incidences. The story telling is excellent. Minute details are covered well. Characters come in and go and come back in when you are anticipating them the least.

It's difficult to put the book down even when you are half asleep. Exactly when you feel that you can predict what is happening next, a twist pops in.

I wonder how I could take so much time to finish this book and still never get bored of it. It kept me hooked to itself, at the end of every chapter I had been tempted to read another one.

Some interesting lines from the book-
"For you, a thousand times over."

"Children aren't coloring books. You don't get to fill them with your favorite colors."

"...attention shifted to him like sunflowers turning to the sun."

"Every woman needed a husband, even if he did silence the song in her."
This book is for those who are fond of beautifully tragic fiction . However, it's not just about that. But yes, there is nothing HAPPY in this. You may feel gloomy at times. It might feel lengthy since a lot of details are covered, which could have been omitted.

I rate it 4 on 5 and recommend for all the fiction lovers who like surprises at all the stages and ready to read a not so happy-go-lucky plot.

(PS: the reviews expressed here are based on my personal reading experience, and do not intend to defame, derate or 

degrade the sale or vice-versa for the book. I am not paid for writing this review.)

If you are an author and want your book to be reviewed, drop an email at bookreviews@mansiladha.com.

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Pyarelal aur Premwati ki Navratri a.k.a Valentine Week

So we are in the middle of the Valentine's festival. The first one to intimate about this was the bombardment of Valentine's jokes and memes on Whatsapp. Of these the best was- wo kya kisi ko rose denge,  zindagi jinki roz le rahi hai.

Although it's for "couples" (in double quotes), but this is an occasion where feminism dominates. It's an attack on the pocket of THE men, especially, teenagers! Sincere homages to Mr. Pyarelal who is vulnerable to the year's second big financial crisis apart from Premwati's birthday! Because every sweetu, jaanu, shona, babu has to repay their debt of being called so.

Pondering on how and when did it all begin? Long back, there was no lovey dovey genre of Valentine's day, but now it is. And not only this, it brought along with it a whole week comprising of Rose day, Chocolate day, Teddy day, Hug day and a few more. Of them, the most cost effective one for the cupid-struck Pyarelal is Rose day (barring the mention of uncensored K*** day and Jaadu-ki-jhappi day for obvious reasons).

Imagine if they start having a converse series of days for the loote-hue-aashiqs (the abandoned lovers) like romeo day, thappad day, daaru day, friend-zoned day, girlfriend-bani-bhabhi day etc. You never know!

Are the ladies out there giving me the look of the sajish-karti-hui TV serial MIL!? Sorry, but no sorry. For the guys, teddies, chocolates and roses are not the sole expressions of love to the fair gender, may be catalysts.

If you come across a gift shop, the whole interior these days is in red, the so-called colour of love. If you are in school, you have to be doubly sure your family remains uninformed of how you used the pocket money this month! Or you are gone.

Yesterday the devotee in me felt like stepping into a flower shop outside a temple to get flowers for offering to god . To my surprise, even they were running short of flowers. Dear god, it's off season for you, please wait!

Thanks to Bollywood movies for making this phony, cheesy, highly romanticised and commercial expression of feelings, compressed into a single day's celebration. By the way, Kaun kehta hai pyaar ek baar hota hai tumhe jitni baar dekho utni baar hota hai. True?

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Bengaluru's Road Riddle

Helmets helmets everywhere, nobody is going anywhere...

According to a statistics published by a leading daily, Bengaluru has over 60 lakh registered vehicles. That is, one vehicle for every two people. Adding to this are transport vehicles, office cabs, office buses, 6600+ city buses (best to my knowledge). 

There is a common factor that binds all the Bengalurians, and that is traffic, and complaints about traffic. I am one of them (expressed the experience on From Baby to Bhabhi here)

Complaining is easy! Blaming the authorities and government is easier! Cooperating with the inevitable is the easiest! I believe in Dale Carnegie's quote from How to Stop Worrying And Start Living - "It is so, it can't be otherwise." Therefore, keeping frustration aside, I am presenting my humorous perspective on the bumper-to-bumper traffic of the city. And yes, this post occurred to my mind while I was struggling to cross an ever-red traffic signal one fine day.

1) In Bengaluru, distance, unlike other parts of India, is not measured in minutes but real kilometers v/s the number of vehicles on the road. In other parts of India, you say "Bhai 10 min ka raasta hai. Abhi aata hun." On the contrary, here you say, "Bhai 2 kilometer ka distance hai, kabhi na kabhi to pahuch hi jaaunga." Moreover, you will always miss the Vicco Turmeric advertisement at the start of a movie.

2) You can never be the first person on a traffic signal. Apparently, you are always so far from the signal that you can't make out whether it is red or green. You miss the count of how many times it changed the colour.

3) If you drive a two-wheeler, you can vroom vroom only on the zones that four wheeler or heavy vehicles leave for you. No lane is dedicated to you and hence, you are as free as a bird. If a car driver keeps safe distance, two wheelers slip in between, thinking the driver gave them way!

4) "Helmet aapki suraksha ke liye hai"- people here understand well. If not, the traffic police will suck even the last penny from your pocket as fine. FYI, no credit cards or paytm is accepted!

5) Slow and steady wins the race. Remember the childhood tale of rabbit and tortoise. Here the pedestrian is the tortoise who reaches earlier than any of your luxury bike or car. While the rabbit is still perspiring to see the signal turn green, the pedestrian has effortlessly went across. 

6) Blowing horn does imply only one thing - "Hands Up! I am overtaking you" In rest of the India, you blow horn to request the preceding vehicle for side. But here the poor guy has no side to give side.  

7) There is no rush hour and empty roads are a myth. Oh, you think you are clever to skip the peak rush hour. Sorry but no sorry, the peak hours start early morning and end at night.

8)  Coal tar for your car. They construct roads only with coal tar, no cement at all. Bengaluru's rains and infinite number of road users do not allow the roads to live long. But yes, the repair work is appreciable. They repair the roads overnight.

9) Mini heart attacks come in the form of cabs and buses. When they pass from nearby keeping hairline distance, you feel like buying a helicopter on EMI, or getting a life insurance.

10) You don't always need to accelerate your bike. Using your foot to make it a bullock cart is recommended. Avoid stepping on others' feet while you do that. Pro tip- Get branded shoes.

Best luck for your next tide, oops! ride.

(Disclaimer: This post does not intend to harm, defame, or hurt the sentiments of any person, gender, religion, political party, news channel, religious belief, god or to whomsoever it may concern. I sincerely apologize in advance if it is so.)

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नज़र

नज़र नज़र में नज़रिया बदल जाता है,

एक नज़र में जीने का जरिया बदल जाता है |

- Random Thought by me

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Our Shanta Bai is Not a Thief

Wednesday. 8:40 AM. Ding Dong. Look who's at the door- our very own Shanta Bai. That's the name I have given to our maid because, with my scarce knowledge of Kannada and her zero knowledge of Hindi, I can't ask her name!

A few seconds later. The kitchen is purging with the customary sound of her washing the utensils and the fragrance of ready to be savoured ginger tea. We courteously asked the old lady if she needs warm water to wash utensils, saying "bisi neeru bekaaaa?" (Kannada). She cracked some joke in her language and giggled at our intentions, leaving us puzzled. Apologetically, we barely could afford a smile.

8:50 AM. Ding dong. I and hubby questioned  each other with our eyes-doing-the-talking -"who is it?", as we do not expect any other visits on a usual day. 

I was brushing my teeth. Hubby opened the door only to find our Khooni Padosan waiting. eeeehh... I mean our next door neighbour. Oh, you are wondering why I call her Khooni Padosan? Mrs. Khooni Padosan , a lady in her early 40s, according to me is suffering from hyper-negativity-towards-the-planet-and-its-creatures (if they have discovered one such disease yet). She can retort at anything and everything, like the landlord, her husband, her sister-in-law, the road, weather, keys of the apartment entrance, municipal corporation and even mosquitoes.

She was explicit enough to blame our Shanta Bai for having picked up her Sennheiser earphones from the staircase. Worst thing, she did not suspect, she declared the verdict- "your maid has picked up my earphones from the stairs". Strangely, she was sure about it without any proof. 

Meanwhile, I am still brushing my teeth and the hubbub of utensils being harassed prevails. Our innocent bai who was unaware of our Hindi conversation continued with what she is employed for.

Hubby came in. Checked his bag. The earphones he had picked up from the stairs on the weekend, suspecting them to have fallen from his bag, originally belonged to the Khooni Padosan. The same earphones which she had declared as stolen by the maid. He and I own two pairs of earphones of the same brand. So our twin earphones had another sibling on the building floor!

To live happily-ever-after and save Shanta Bai from her curse, we hopped to her flat and returned her property, narrating our version of the case of accidental lifting of the abandoned item. Also, added that Shanta bai has already undergone our series of anti-theft tests and that she never bothers for anything except salary hike, daily tea and a pack of Parle-G every fortnight. Not only this, she makes sure that we close our door while she leaves, for which she has to shout at our recklessness, at times. She is motherly.

Moral of the story- Dear moron, investigate and inquire before you blame our Shanta bai or any poor person of theft.

(Disclaimer: This post does not intend to harm, defame, or hurt the sentiments of any person, gender, religion, political party, news channel, religious belief, god or to whomsoever it may concern. I sincerely apologize in advance if it is so.)

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Nothing But Hunger!

Peeping out of the window of the fourth floor of my office sipping from my mug of green tea this winter afternoon, I was simply observing the traffic and mortals on the road. I noticed something. Something which is very usual for most of us.

A street vendor stood across the road with his cart, beneath a luxurious showroom. The cart carried corns (roasted corns is what he supposedly had been vending). Let's name him Bhuttaswamy.

Bhuttaswamy was a middle aged, wearing white shirt and gray pants, waiting for his customers. Amongst the hundreds of vehicles and pedestrians that passed by, on that forever busy signal of Bangalore, none seemed to be hungry enough. I wandered is this how this man is going to stand there throughout the day, in HOPE. We mint thousands or even lakhs of bucks a month, and these people have to stand there with a handful of corns, 20 bucks per piece (this is the generic rate throughout Bangalore)! Diversity, they call it. Ahhh! look this fellow on a luxury bike just stopped and spoke to Bhuttaswamy for what may be a duration of 40 seconds. And, without buying, he drove away. Probably, he found the corn expensive!

On my side of the road sat another middle aged lady, let's call her BEGAni. Her hands carried an infant, malnutritioned indeed. My sight reflected her to be a beggar, possibly! The busy road and the travelers didn't pay heed to her either. One in 50 shelled out a coin or two for her, only when the signal was red.

The next day, I was coming back from an ATM with my colleagues and was walking by the road side, rather the part which the vehicles had left for pedestrians. This young girl, nearly 12 years of age was selling pens, 2 for 20 rupees, each of which was 1 feet in length. Let's name her PENwari. On seeing us coming, she gestured her hands in the direction of her mouth expressing she is hungry. The pens were cheap, but her hunger wasn't! I bought a pen from her. Penwari's merchandise later lied lazily somewhere at my desk. Nevertheless, it might have mattered to Penwari apparently.

A few metres walk on the same road, and there appeared another girl of similar age. Let's call her MAANGshri. She, literally was chasing folks on the road to transfer some money from their wallets to her palms so that she can be devoid of hunger. Those folks were shooing her away, trying every possible motion to get rid of her. Painful was the scene. Not because they didn't give her any money, but because Maangshri was begging. She seemed to be a healthy and normal human, no deformities at all. What is it that made her to beg! This planet has a lot of blue collar jobs, and she is employable. 

Unlike Begani and Maangshri who were looking for shortcuts to earn, Bhuttaswamy and Penwari are the ones who are doing something to earn their living. People will keep begging until we give away alms to them.

I have a habit of carrying a few packets of Parle-G in my bag. Whenever I see someone begging on the traffic signal, I hand them a packet rather than giving money. They do not have bank acccounts to stash money, but a hungry tummy. I cannot feed them forever, but am rest assured that the child on the signal doesn't have to stay hungry at least this time.

(Disclaimer: This post does not intend to harm, defame, or hurt the sentiments of any person, gender, religion, political party, news channel, religious belief, god or to whomsoever it may concern. I sincerely apologize in advance if it is so.)

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A Poetic Endeavor : Seasons of Heart

Fading sunshine and waning moon,

Subtle is the warmth of winter bloom,

O night! Thee fade slowly.

Heart shells the pain out,

Tear drops like rain seldom ever end,

Wait, for the bliss is calling!

Spring comes calling dear Darling,

Happiness blooms along and the fragrance clinging,

For love we share unending,

A melancholy drop of water,

In arms of thunder is born anew,

Dreaming to green the greener.

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ये नोट कल हो ना हो !

एटीएम की लंबी कतार में लग कर जब खुद ही का कमाया हुआ 2 हज़ार का एक नोट मिलता है तो इतना हर्ष होता है मानों कोई जंग जीत कर आये हो। फिर जब उसी 2 हज़ार के नोट का छुट्टा करवाने के तरीक़े ढूंढने की जुगाड़ में निकलते हैं और अचानक कोई दूकानदार ईश्वर का अवतार बन के इस नोट के बदले सौ के नोट देता है तो ऐसा लगता है मानो सर्वस्व को पा लिया हो। जब हम हमारे पास इकट्ठे चन्द 1000 और 500 के नोट को बैंक में जमा कर आते हैं तो ऐसा सुकून मिलता है मानो लाश को ठिकाने लगा आये हो।

फिर जब टेलीविज़न पर गांधी परिवार के राजकुमार को दिल्ली से मुम्बई जा कर एटीएम की कतार में लगे देखते हैं तो रूह कांप उठती है।

जब मफलर वाले साहब को उनकी योग्यता के प्रतिकूल ट्वीट करते हुए पाते हैं तो समझ नहीं आता की एक तरफ़ा वाद विवाद भी कितना मनोरंजक होता है।

और विदेश यात्रा से लौटे नेताजी को भाषण के दौरान आंसू बहाते देख मन किसी टेलीविज़न सीरियल की बहू की याद दिला देता है।

इसी बीच हर न्यूज़ चैनल पर 8 पासपोर्ट साइज़ के चहरे और एक थोड़ा बड़ा साइज के न्यूज़ रीडर का आपस में संवाद और अपनी मति का प्रदर्शन करते देख हम हास्य और रहस्य की मजधार में खुद को झूलता हुआ पाते हैं।

ईश्वर की अनुकंपा से व्हात्सप्प और फेसबुक पर हो रहे सुचना एवं प्रसार की अतिशयोक्ति में हम निरंतर मुस्तैद रहते हैं।

किसी गरीब को अस्पताल में नोटों के अभाव में तरसते देखा और एक दुल्हन के पिता को बारात को चाय पिला कर लौटाते देखा, तो मन आहात हुआ यह सोच कर की आखिर इसका ज़िम्मेदार कौन है और शिकार कौन।

खैर ये सब छोड़ें साहब, हम तो चले एटीएम। क्या पता ये नोट कल हो ना हो !

(Disclaimer: This post does not intend to harm, defame, or hurt the sentiments of any person, gender, religion, political party, news channel, religious belief, god or to whomsoever it may concern. I sincerely apologize in advance if it is so. I wrote this to present the whole picture from my perspective and to encourage constructive thought process for a better and progressive nation. The views are based on my limited knowledge of the ongoing situations and are only for fun)

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Book Review: The Calling

This is a book authored by Priya Kumar, an internationally acclaimed author and a motivational speaker. I am thankful to Priya Kumar's team for sending me a review copy.

This book is about Arjun who has a wrecked personal and professional life. While he is on the verge of getting divorced, Arjun took a trip to the Himalayas to reach Hemkund Sahib pilgrimage on insistence of a sadhu. That is when he had a fantasized journey leading him to find his true calling, and hence, a respite from the ruined relationship.

The book reminds me of The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari by Robin Sharma, which was also based on the theme of self-actualization during a trip to Himalayas. With distinct way of story telling and conveying the message in an unusual style, Priya Kumar uses her imagination in an amazing manner to pen down the plot.

It consists of light hearted spirituality, a whole lot of contemporary world's life lessons and a pinch of comedy. Its an unconventional style of sharing the message of finding one's calling. Flawlessly narrated, never before heard kind of plot, carved out of marvelous imagination is what the author does with this 160 pager book!

However, a couple of things could have been different. One of them is, at places, certain points are elongated which could have otherwise been crisp and short. Secondly, the happy ending only comprises of the change that Arjun's personal life undergoes, but nothing on the professional front.

My rating for this book is 3.5 on 5.

(PS: the reviews expressed here are based on my personal reading experience, and do not intend to defame, derate or 

degrade the sale or vice-versa for the book. I am not paid for writing this review.)

If you are an author and want your book to be reviewed, drop an email at bookreviews@mansiladha.com.

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तो फिर तू क्यूँ उदास है

तू सशक्त है समर्थ है, तो फिर तू क्यूँ उदास है,

तू गिर ज़रा संभल ज़रा, क्यूँ हो रहा हताश है,

तू रक्त है विरक्त है, तुझी से वक़्त की आस है,

तू जलज है समुद्र तू, बुझा दे जो भी प्यास है,

जो समझे ना तेरी कदर, छेड़ दे तू इक ग़दर,

ये विश्व तेरा सर्वस्व है, अकेला तू फिरे किधर,

पाषाण जो हो राह में, ना पथ पृथक तू करना ,

आँधियों की गति से डर के, ना तू चाह छोड़ना,

हो दूर ग़र अरुण किरण, उसकी राह तू ताकना,

जो तन से तू थके अग़र, ना मन से कभी तू हारना ।

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Book Review: Dare to Be- 14 Fearless Women Who Gave Wings to Their Dreams

"Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing." This is what I concluded from this book. I spotted this book as a recommendation on Amazon. The title of the book was powerful enough to make me read the description. And I pre-ordered a copy, subsequently.

This is a book on success stories of 14 women who decided to embark on the journey of living their passion by calling it quits to their stable corporate career. All this was to live their dreams, irrespective of hurdles and naysayers in their way.

The debut authors Puja Singhal and Rinki Paul have compiled the interviews they conducted of 14 women who quit their high paying corporate jobs to pursue the road seldom taken- standup comedian, authors, models, singers, dancers etc. Undoubtedly, this book is a great source of inspiration for those who want to transform their passion into profession, but are held back by naysayers and by the fear of taking a chance against their stable corporate careers.

Each chapter is an account on the success journey of one of these 14 woman. Diligently penned, women-only stories, this book gives a sense of confidence to aspiring women entrepreneurs. However, it does not focus on empowering womanhood, but on tapping the power of actuating one's dreams, which is applicable to both the genders. This is a plus of the book.

With good vocabulary, brevity of the content and ability to cover the whole in a concise manner, the authors have delivered a book which is one of its kind!
While reading you may find yourself encounter multiple emotions every now and then- smiling, eager, angry, sad, relieved, stunned and lot more!

I have compiled a few of my favorite quotes from the women featured in the chronicle-

1) "It's better to live with 'Oh, Shit!' rather than 'What if?' - Neeti Palta, Standup comedian
2) "Close your eyes and imagine what you would do for the rest of your life if no one paid you to do it. That's what your job should be, and that will get you paid."- Miss Malini, Blogger
3) "Women are no equal to men, they are better. "If you do not feel the pain, you will never know joy."- Sonam Kalra, Singer, Musician, Writer
4) "All you touch and all you see, is all your life ever will be."- Monica Bhide, writer
5) "You can dance anywhere, even if only in your heart."- Sucheta Pal, India's first Zumba trainer
6) "...rejection means nothing more than someone being unable to see what you see."- Abha Maryada Banerjee, Motivational speaker, author
7) "Nothing works unless you do." "Add life to moments, instead of moments to life."- Neeru Sharma, Co-founder- Infibeam.com
8) "The only naysayer in my life is me."- Dr. Rangana Rupavi Choudhari, International speaker
9) "Money is important to survive, attachment with it is not."- Pooja Warier, Social Entrepreneur
10) "Jump towards the side where the heart lies and rest will be magical!"- Yukti Kapoor Mehandiratta, Entrepreneur, model and anchor
11) "As long as you are sure of a roof on your head and food on your table, you cannot go too wrong."- Anisha Singh, Co-founder & CEO- coupon provider, Mydala

My rating for this book is 4 on 5. Awaiting the next one by the authors, hopefully on a similar theme.

(PS: the reviews expressed here are based on my personal reading experience, and do not intend to defame, derate or 

degrade the sale or vice-versa for the book. I am not paid for writing this review.)

If you are an author and want your book to be reviewed, drop an email at bookreviews@mansiladha.com.

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A Blank Notebook

Amidst eerie calm of the midnight, she was tossing and turning on the bed. All that was audible was the clock ticking near the door. On that full moon night, a glint of moonlight was peeping past the curtains, adding dim light to her room. The king size bed was too wide for her to lie there alone. Like every year, December weather in Bengaluru was not that cool. Anamika was all alone at home, her husband had been out for three days to attend an official meeting at Chennai.

Lying back in her cozy pajamas and loose tees, thoughts came in and passed as she was having a sleepless night. She had been missing her husband, who was a source of inspiration for her every time she was low. While Anamika was looking towards the window, from the little space left uncovered by the curtains, a thick lock of hair falling on her forehead was bothering her. She moved it slowly behind her ear. Her eyes fell upon the clock, the time was 1:10 AM. Nevertheless, she ain’t going to sleep tonight.

Something was keeping her awake. Anamika’s husband, Rishi had his client presentation the next morning. So she did not want to call and disturb his slumber sleep. If she called him at this time in the night, he would get worried for no reason.

Thoughts climbed up her mind as and as the night passed.

-----------

It all started a year and half ago. She got married and moved to Bengaluru. Life was a joyful ride since then. Having someone to share your joys and sorrows with, to be cuddled and cared for, to be accompanied in all endeavors and choices, is one of the best feelings. It was then Anamika had started penning down her book, her OWN book. It’s been a dream since years. Her husband kept her encouraging to give it a start. Rishi often said, “If you think you can, you can. If you think you can’t, you are right.”

“Eureka! I did it. I wrote my first book.” After multiple drafts, series of writing, re-writing, feedback, editing and burning the midnight oil, Anamika had completed her book. Now the time had come to share the script with the publisher. He was already impressed by her manuscript. Anamika had been on cloud nine since then, her husband equally happy. They had submitted the script to the publisher. For a week, Anamika and Rishi had waited for the publisher’s phone call. Every morning they woke up with vigor, anticipating his call. But success was not supposed to knock so soon on Anamika’s door. The script was rejected. She was shattered. The book was her baby. Thereafter, she spent days and nights in despair. Rishi tried his best to condole her, to convince her that it was the first but not the last time. He insisted her to try writing again. Anamika was too discouraged to write again. She said, “It is not my cup of tea. How could I even dream to see my book in people’s bookshelves? I was much better writing poems and short stories.” She engrossed herself in everything else and stopped writing.

---------

This time, in Rishi’s absence, Anamika was revisiting the past events for the umpteenth time. She recalled that while leaving for the airport, Rishi had asked her to open the first drawer of her “writing desk” for once. In excitement, she jumped out of the bed and moved towards her “writing desk” in the other room. The door knob was closed, which she opened quickly. The desk was marvelously decorated and on the walls behind were pasted various posters, print outs of her poems, articles and stories, inspirational quotes- all very lucrative for a writer. In the drawer was a folded paper which was hand-written by Rishi for her. The letter just mentioned-

“Sometimes our power resides not in what we do, but in what we don’t do. There is only one difference between dream and aim. Dream requires effortless sleep and aim requires sleepless efforts. Sleep for dream and wake up for aim. Get up and write :)”

Beneath the letter was lying a notebook, a blank notebook. The scent of fresh pages and the sight of an un-scribbled notebook was so soothing. Anamika pulled out a pen from the holder. She opened the blank notebook. And in no time, started writing her destiny - her book, once again!

This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda.

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Endoscopic View of Real Beauty by Twitterati

Meanwhile they were participating in a beauty contest on twitter. I mean, a contest wherein the organizer was giving away vouchers to the winners based on answers to a series of beauty related questions.

The contest's question #1 was about what real beauty is.

It was exasperating to see prompt answers by the participants, flooding with sugar coated definitions of real beauty, all in the race to win the contest!

Quoting a few of those tweets below-

"For me Real Beauty is about taking stand for yourself."
"Real beauty means the lovely soul.."
"Real beauty is not what the eyes can be hold, but what the heart can be hold"
"Real Beauty is being Strong. It's about putting your opinions and not afraid of what 'Chaar log kya Kahenge' "
"True beauty is reflected in one's soul—being truthful, honest, helpful, and trustworthy. "
"Real beauty is not synonymous with outer look.. it is deep within."
"Real beauty is something that is born inside and gradually grows to the outside"

After reading the last couple of responses, I was wondering how do you dig "inside" and certify the "inner beauty" of someone. May be the lungs of the person are beautiful, or is it the food pipe, or is it about the 7 meter long beautiful acid-filled-intestine! Wait... that requires endoscopy... 

It was jaw dropping but amusing to scroll infinitely and see the extent of generosity of people on the contest board! Seeking the FREE shopping voucher from the fashion brand was all they striven for, I believe.

So, I was curious to explore the literal meaning of "real beauty". Merriam Webster dictionary says beauty is-
The quality of being physically attractive; the qualities in a person or a thing that give pleasure to the senses or the mind

The dictionary doesn't feature the word "real" alongside "beauty". But they don't give "fake" meanings either.

Pun aside, simply stating, I am unsure how many of the participants would ever recall and for that matter, go with their homemade definitions of the real beauty. Because in real sense, it's all about physical beauty in this real world! Have you ever seen a matrimonial ad stating- "looking for ugly girl, must be beautiful inside."?  And I don't need to type in the rest :). Think yourself...

(Disclaimer: This post does not intend to harm, defame, or hurt the sentiments of any person, gender, religion, political party, news channel, religious belief, god or to whomsoever it may concern. I sincerely apologize in advance if it is so.)

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Always and never are two words you should always remember never to use. ~Wendell Johnson

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'Close your eyes and imagine what you would do for the rest of your life if no one paid you to do it'
-Miss Malini

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कल तुम भी वृध्द होंगे

शर्मा जी क्षेत्र के पार्षद थे। जन साधारण की सदैव मदद करने हेतु वे विख्यात थे। शहर के अनेक लोग उनके पास अपनी समस्या का समाधान लेने आते थे।

दिसम्बर का शीतल सोमवार, प्रातः 9 बजे। शर्माजी कार्यालय जाते समय अपने वृद्ध पिता को मन्दिर ले कर आए हुए थे। सीढिया चढ़ते हुए उनके समीप एक व्यक्ति जो लगभग 40 वर्ष का और उसके साथ लगभग 70 वर्षीय वृद्ध आये। शर्माजी ने दोनों को नमन करते हुए पूछा की वे उनकी क्या सेवा कर सकते हैं। मंदिर में आरती प्रारम्भ हो चुकी थी सो शर्माजी के पिता आरती में सम्मिलित होने की मंशा व्यक्त कर के आरती स्थल की ओर जाने लगे। शर्मा जी ने तुरंत अपने ड्राइवर को साथ भेजा। यह देख कर मदद को आये उस व्यक्ति के भाव परिवर्तित हो गए।

उन्होंने पुनः उस व्यक्ति से पूछा की वे उनकी क्या मदद कर सकते हैं। उसने बताया कि साथ में जो वृद्ध हैं वे उसे सड़क के उस पार अकेले खड़े मिले और आग्रह किया कि शर्माजी उनकी यदोचित सहायता करें। प्रतीत होता  है  इनका कोई नहीं है।

शर्माजी ने तुरंन्त एक वृद्धाश्रम में फ़ोन लगाया और उनसे आग्रह कर उस वृद्ध का वहाँ दाख़िला करवाया। साथ आये व्यक्ति ने आभार व्यक्त करते हुए शर्मा जी से कहा कि कार्यालय जाते हुए वह उस वृद्ध को आश्रम छोड़ देंगे। शर्मा जी यह जान कर प्रसन्न हुए की मानवता आज भी जीवित है।

आरती एवं दर्शन समाप्त होने पर शर्माजी अपने पिता को ससम्मान घर छोड़ कर अपने कार्यस्थल की ओर गए।

दो माह पश्चात शर्मा जी के पिता कुछ दिनों तक अस्पताल में भर्ती रहे | पूर्ण रूप से स्वस्थ होने के उपरांत वे उनकी अस्पताल से छुट्टी करवा रहे थे| अचानक उन्हें एक कक्ष से वह् व्यक्ति आता हुआ दिखा जो कि उस वृद्ध को उनके पास लाया था | उसी के नज़दीक वृद्धाश्रम का अधिकारी शर्मा जी को पह्चान गया | उसने बताया,  "उन बुजुर्ग व्यक्ति का स्वास्थ्य ठीक नहीं है | डॉक्टर ने कहा है अब उनके जीवन के कुछ ही पल शेष है | हमने उनसे पूछा कि किसी नाते रिश्तेदार या मित्र से मिलने कि इच्छा हो तो बता दें | तब उन्होंने इस व्यक्ति का फ़ोन नम्बर दिया|"

शर्मा जी समझने लगे थे कि दाल में कुछ काला है | कुछ क्षण पश्चात वह् व्यक्ति पुनः उस कक्ष के भीतर गया | वापिस आया तो थोड़ा उदास दिखा | डॉक्टर से पूछने पर ज्ञात हुआ कि वे वृद्ध पुरुष अब नहीं रहे |

सांत्वना देने हेतु शर्मा जी उस व्यक्ति के पास गए | उसने वृद्धाश्रम के अधिकारी से पूछा कि क्या उन्हें उन वृद्ध ने कोई फाइल दी थी| उत्सुक्तवश शर्मा जी ने पूछा कि वह् उस वृद्ध के बारे में इतना कैसे जानता है अथवा उसका उनसे क्या नाता है| सिर झुका कर, हिचकिचाते हुए उसने बताया कि वह् उनका पुत्र है | पिता की चिकित्सा के लिए धन ना दे पाने, उनकी सेवा के भार से बचने और अपने पुत्र के पालन में व्यस्त होने के कारण उसे उन्हें वृद्धाश्रम भेजने का विचार आया। वृद्धाश्रम की फीस ना भरने की मंशा से उसने शर्मा जी की सहायता ली। और उन्होंने बिना कुछ जाने उसकी सहायता कर दी।

शर्मा जी अत्यन्त लज्जित हुए। फाइल खोल कर देखी तो पाया कि उस वृद्ध ने अपनी सारी संपत्ति अपने पुत्र के नाम कर दी है। शर्मा जी को यह जान कर दुःख हुआ के जिस पुत्र ने उन्हें जीवन के अंतिम समय में वृद्धाश्रम छोड़ दिया उस वृद्धाश्रम के लिए कुछ देने की जगह उन्होंने उसी पुत्र को सम्पत्ती दे दी। साथ ही उन्हें ग्लानि हुई जो ऐसे कुपुत्र पर उन्होंने अंधा विश्वास किया |

मन ही मन स्वयम्‌ को वचन दिया कि अब किसी कि सहायता करने से पूर्व वे पूर्ण जाँच करेंगे |

इतने में शर्मा जी के किसी संबंधी ने उन्हें आवाज़ दे कर सूचित किया कि उनके पिताजी को घर ले जाया जा सकता है | बिना विलम्भ के वे वहां से उठ खड़े हुए |

जाते हुए उन्होंने बस इतना कहा- "यह मत भूलना, कल तुम भी वृद्ध होंगे।"

ऊँगली पकड़ कर सिखाया चलना जिसने,
हाथ पकड़ कर उसी को छोड़ आए वर्द्धाश्रम,
नींद अपनी खो कर तुमको सुलाया जिसने,
सदा के लिए सो जाए वह ऐसा करते हो श्रम,
दिल से हम करे सम्मान बुज़ुर्गों का,
है किस्मत वालों को मिलता आशीर्वाद बुज़ुर्गों का।

(Disclaimer: This post does not intend to harm, defame, or hurt the sentiments of any person, gender, religion, political party, news channel, religious belief, god or to whomsoever it may concern. I sincerely apologize in advance if it is so.) 

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कर्म तेरे अच्छे तो किस्मत तेरी दासी,
दिल तेरा सच्चा तो घर में मथुरा काशी ।

#truckQuotes

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From Baby to Bhabhi

Hello Peeps. I am back, this time from Namma Bengaluru!

Where was I? 

After a sabbatical of 6 months, I am here to ink my thoughts on your screen! During the past 6 months my life has taken a major drift, from my roka and wedding and subsequently moving to Bangalore. In short, transforming from "Baby to Bhabhi".

Why this post?

Well, this single post shall not be enough to describe the entire story of my being Happily Ever After!

You may call it a warm-up note to break the ice between me and my blogger account. You may also assume that I am puking my undigested thoughts after a break. Please bear with me this time :)

Where am I?

Bengaluru- the Silicon City as they say, is quite different from MY Indore. This place taught me a lot, may it be buying vegetables, surviving the bumper-to-bumper traffic, the entrancing Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Oriya, Malyalam, aka the vivacious South Indian culture; their cryptic languages (with due respect); the palatable food and what not. I am lovin it!

Guess what? Bengaluru does not have cows (got to see only 3 cows on roads in the past 3+ months), stray dogs here only prefer non-vegetarian meals.

Moreover, I could barely see any old person here! Seriously, everyone here is young, none with salt-and-pepper-beard, only young folks everywhere. Ghosshhh! Don't people turn old here? The vast IT brigade has occupied the town.

About me-

I turned into a responsible young lady (sort of!) from a chirpy perky girly! Amusingly, I spend hours finding best deals on Dettol, Harpic, Vim bar, mop, non-stick cookware, moong dal, sugar, multi-grain aata, pillow covers, Patanjali Ghee, lemon and cauliflower on Amazon and Big Basket. This is a big twist in my life that came from marriage. And you must spare me a much deserved pat on my back for handling my maid who is Kannada from heart, soul and TONGUE!

What next?

In the last half year my life took a 360 degree turn by transforming me into the proud individual that I am now. Watch this space to know more of my myriad experiences.

(Disclaimer: This post does not intend to harm, defame, or hurt the sentiments of any person, gender, religion, political party, news channel, religious belief, god or to whomsoever it may concern. I sincerely apologize in advance if it is so.)

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You can probably do anything in life, but not everything! 
-web

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Its My Right Too

Since past few days, every time I turn the TV on and fiddle with the news channels, I can easily spot at least one channel showing 6-8 thumbnail sized faces and one bigger thumbnail of the news reader / moderator of the debate. The debate regarding entry of women to the popular Shani Shingnapur temple's sacred sanctum.

First, the news channels are seeking pleasure in giving air to the fire of the thought provoking debate which at the end of the day has no conclusion. Do we have anyone authorized to present a verdict on this, and hence a never ending debate it is!

Second, if our country keeps fighting on the name of religion it would be difficult for us to excel. This is what US President Obama said once. Let alone cross-religion fights, this one is amidst people of the same religion. So you may call it same-religion-cross-gender dispute-with-no-respite.

Next, our country has bigger problems to deal with. If every community comes with one such problem, its enough to land us in the middle of nowhere and other countries enjoying our cat fight! Recently, THE GREAT actor (you-know-who), and most importantly the husband of celebrity, actor and member of Parliament (you-know-who), has come up with a BRAND NEW (atleast it seems to be brand new) fight for the rights of a CASTE from Kashmir. And alas! he has received the most coveted Padma award, even before the issue is resolved. It seems that he is evoking the rage of the countrymen for the sake of popularity and awards. How come he suddenly arose after all those 26 years of injustice to the community?

Coming back to the original topic, the right to worship. While an interesting debate was being telecasted, a WOMAN, yes a woman priest (acclaimed saadhvi) was protesting AGAINST women's right to worship because they menstruate. A bunch of men who were on the extempore with her were favoring women's right to worship. Aweful contradiction. Meanwhile, the moderator representing the new channel was worth appreciating. Let me paraphrase what he said- "I don't go to such temple where my daughters are not allowed. I don't believe in such a god whom my daughters can't worship." And he ended the debate by reading a sentence from a piece of paper, which was probably passed on to him from his channel's representative. It said- "जिसके गर्भ में नौ महीने रहे उसी को गर्भग्रह में नहीं जाने देते..."

Next, for the women who protested. Do they have any political intent? Are they paid to cause the havoc? Is there something we are unable to see here? Do the news channels themselves pay them to help creating such masala news? Are they really devoted to visit the temple? Is this the only temple left on the planet? Don't  you fear that Shani Bhagwan will be angry at you for causing this mess? Forget about Shani Bhagwan, don't you fear that the epitome of Hinduism, those self-acclaimed modern Dharm Gurus will spell curse on you? Don't you think the time, energy and money you are wasting to convince those who can never change, can be used for some noble cause which in turn will automatically impress the honorable deity? Are you real or mechanical? A real incidence that happened with me a few months back, while I was visiting a famous Hanuman temple in my vicinity during evening aarti. They were forcing all the woman to stay behind the barricades placed a few feet far from the diety. I, unknowingly tried to go past that region to worship the diety, and a man shouted- "ladies, stay away". I was speechless, could have protested, but didn't. I didn't visit the temple again.

Next, for the saints who are favoring the restriction. Can you tell who has made such weird rules against the fair gender? Was it The God himself, or The Society? If it was God who did this, I wonder why would he get impure by the touch of those whom he has created? Is there any scripture stating this? If God has made women and the fact that they menstruate is also bestowed by God, how could he himself be impure because of their entry to his so-called home. As per sanatan dharm, god is present in every particle (including every human). In that case, we are causing impurity to our own existence. Let us eradicate women in that case. If it was human who made the rule, then let me tell you, to err is human! समाज हम से है, हम समाज से नहीं | Moreover, some of you are trying to confuse people by saying that Shani dev is not a God and he is a Grah (planet).

Next, to the news channels. There are a lot more places of worship in the country who have similar restrictions, either on the attire to be worn, or the entry of a specific gender or specific race or religion. Why are you creating havoc and mocking the religion for ONE temple? What is your motto: to cause more protests, to solve the issue, to create a new rule, or to earn TRP? You must aim, not towards destruction of humanity, but towards encouraging constructive thoughts. What is it that you are diverting the public from, any news which may have been more relevant, but not masala?

Next, for the men who have come in support of the women. Well, thanks for showing that you value women and their rights. Never mind, but you are just a handful of people and your efforts are already going in vain.

Next, when everyone is coming up with their opinion, why not me. I say- पुरानी परम्पराये जाएँगी तभी तो नयी आएँगी।

Thanks to these inconclusive agendas, that after progressing two steps ahead, we pull ourselves one step back. In that case, we as a nation remain standing where we had started.

(Disclaimer: This post does not intend to harm, defame, or hurt the sentiments of any person, gender, religion, political party, news channel, religious belief, god or to whomsoever it may concern. I sincerely apologize in advance if it is so. I wrote this to present the whole picture from my perspective and to encourage constructive thought process for a better and progressive nation)

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Book Review: The Fault In Our Stars

I spotted this book on the Goodreads Choice Awards page. It has a whooping 1,814,600 ratings and 129,752 reviews as of date, which compelled me to buy and read it! This book is penned by John Green, who resides at Indianapolis and is one of the bestselling authors.

While reading, one gets totally soaked in to the raw, humorous, simple, medical fiction. This is the story of a 16 year old cancer patient Hazel who happens to meet Augustus Waters at a Cancer Kids Support Group. After this her life turns into a wonderful tale. Augustus is himself a 17 year old cancer survivor. Eventually they become good friends and then lovers. The plot is simple, down to earth and practical.

Hearing first of a cancer patient's story one may feel that it must be either too gloomy or full of doses of motivation of those who combat their terminal illness, trying to change the world, etcetera. But it is far simpler and still interesting. Generally, no one even imagines of a situation unless it occurs to them. For instance, I do not have cancer and no one in my close or distant family does. So, it is obvious that I would never ever think of what a cancer patient and his family go through. After reading this book, I got an insight into what they go through.

This book portrays it in a balanced and realistic manner, nothing filmy. The narration is from a teenager Hazel's perspective. Hence, we get to know her interpretations, at times, humorous. The grief of her unfortunate parents who are about to loose their daughter, and the only child at the hands of cancer is very touching. Hazel, Augustus and his friend Isaac are facing some or the other deformities that cancer has imposed upon them. But they compliment each other very well. Also, if one reads between the lines, they would realize the worth of life and good health, and that despite of any other form of agony, they are still bestowed with a gift to cherish- LIFE.

I have listed out a few of my favorite lines from the book below-

1) "Grief does not change you Hazel. It reveals you." - Peter Van Houten (Page #286)
2) "A desert blessing, an ocean curse." (with reference to water)- Augustus Water's letter to Peter Van Houten  (Page #313) 
3) "There is no try. There is only do."- Hazel (Page #218)
4) "...some infinities are bigger than other infinities."- Cassius' note in Shakespeare's composition (Page #111)
5) "I tried to tell myself that it could be worse, that the world was not a wish-granting factory, that I was living with cancer not dying of it, that I mustn't let it kill me before it kills me..."- Hazel (Page #121)
6) "You don't get to choose if you get hurt in this world, old man, but you do have a say in who hurts you."- Augustus Waters' letter to Hazel via Peter Van Houten (Page #313)
7) "The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves."- Page #111 (Cassius' note in Shakespeare's composition)

I read the second part with slow pace because I didn't want it to end so soon. Moreover, the end seems to be a promising beginning of a sequel. John Green, are you listening to me? You ain't gona behave like Van Houten! Are you?

My rating for this book has to be undoubtedly 4.5 on 5. It is near perfect and a touching tale, a mesmerizing saga of boundless love of two dying teenagers, cushioned by parental affection, laughter, tears, fury, twists, heartache and goosebumps.

(PS: the reviews expressed here are based on my personal reading experience, and do not intend to defame, derate or 

degrade the sale or vice-versa for the book. I am not paid for writing the review.)

If you are an author and want your book to be reviewed, drop an email at bookreviews@mansiladha.com.

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कागज़ अपनी क़िस्मत से उड़ता है लेकिन पतंग अपनी काबिलियत से। इसलिए क़िस्मत साथ दे ना दे काबिलियत ज़रूर साथ देती है।
Source-Internet

Happy Makar Sankranti :)

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'Why should I feel lonely? Is not our planet in the Milky Way?'
-Ruskin Bond (originally from Thoreau)

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