Here's wishing

my darling sister a very Happy 15th Birthday! :D

My nomadic mind

You know sometimes when you're sitting in a corner with a book to read and something to drink, your mind wanders somewhere else or rather to something else. Mine has done a lot of introspection and retrospection over these 20 years. Recently while reading, I was thinking of a bad patch that I was going through (still going) and I stopped for a moment thinking of a 'what if' situation that happened in between that seemed to provide some relief. What if I had taken on that situation. Life surely would've been different- independence, new people, new city and a new life. Maybe I would've liked it. But that's not how it turned out to be, life indeed takes a different turn at varied junctures. Right now it's at a standstill. And my train of thoughts halted, just like that. I returned to my book, waiting for my mind to wander yet again.

Not your average guy :)

This post is dedicated to my friend, Arun Srinivasan. Not only did he make me feel really special, but also gave me hope that there is true love still left :) Seriously, this guy is a million bucks. Talk to him about true love, he'll come up with the most romantic definition and yet the most workable. Talking to him on a normal day is good, but talk to him when you're down and out, that's when you'll be damn thankful you talked to him! A very talented musician, he's pretty shy around compliments. He's a total romantic all over and is not afraid to show his emotions! I mean which other guy is like that? Sample this. "Each girl deserves to be treated like a queen, no matter what. I think you girls more than define us. Seriously."  I have not heard words like this before from any other guy. As I went on about guys having inflatable egos that grow by the second, all he told me was this, "Wont deny that I don't have an ego. but there's nothing that can melt it than a sweet girl." His girl is indeed special :)

Thanks for all the hopeful, encouraging words, you truly are a great friend :D

So I'm going to aptly sum up in his words:

"Just wait for that love part of your life to happen. Things'will change. Don't rush into it. Don't calculate, don't predict. Just go with it :)"

Spiritual Quickie

Nine people, nine stories. That’s what William Dalrymple’s ‘Nine Lives’ is all about. While on the surface it might seem like a ‘short stories for children’ kind of a book, but it actually has something more. Being a travel writer is certainly not easy but Dalrymple handles it with ease, making every story as interesting as the previous one.

The book opens with the story of Prasannamataji, a Jain nun from a monastery that is unkempt and grotesque in Sravanabelagola. Her story unfolds with an introduction to Jainism which underlines moksha as the highest form of liberation one can attain. It ends with the nun fasting to death. The second story from Kerala is about a Dalit prison warden who for two months of the year, is transformed into a theyyam dancer and is worshipped as a deity from December to February. Following these two starters, the next story is about Rani Bai, the Devadasi who at the outset resisted her own initiation into sex work, but later pushes her own daughters into the trade.
Sufism comes alive as Dalrymple explains to the readers how the religion brings together people and for once does not separate them. Sufism differs from orthodox Islam as it absorbs Hindu ideas and practices. The chilling tale of a monk who took up arms to oppose the Chinese invasion of Tibet and later spends the rest of his life trying to atone for the violence by hand printing the best prayer flags in India is one of the beautiful stories in the book.

This book explores the lives of nine different people Dalrymple comes across while traveling through the length and the breadth of religious, spiritual yet mysterious country that is India. His style is simple but erudite, compelling the reader to get lost in the book. A beautiful read, Dalrymple goes into the depths of spiritual and ancient India to get in touch with the modern one.

Pepsi's new ad for Football World Cup

Don't miss Messi at the end! He's adorable :)

Just wondering

How long do I have to use Dove shampoo before I can get beautiful hair like the 'Real Women' models in the ads?

Bliss

is drinking lemon flavoured green tea on a windy evening in my terrace
:)