Tuesday 19 November 2013

Akhiyon se goli maare!

1,2,3,4 Get your garba on and get onto the dance floor~

After watching Sanjay Leela Bhansali's 2013 magnum-opus, Ram Leela on Saturday evening, I still find myself unconsciously tapping my feet and shaking my shoulders to the infectious garba that dominated the movie's soundtrack. The movie ought to have been released pre-Navratri so everyone could have had a truly disco dandiyaa party. 

Set in the heart of kitschy Kutch village (I cannot believe that such a village truly exists!); the Shakespeare-inspired tale of star-crossed lovers is a heady, hearty mix of colour, fashion and music. Deepika Padukone is mesmerising and tantalising as the lovely Leela. Leela is definitely not your average demure, "gaon ki chore" - quite the contrary in fact and she plays the part faultlessly. Her eyes twinkle with mischief when she is happy, and look hopeless and despairing when she is sad. Her reel-to-real life romance with Ranveer Singh playing Ram, is palpable. The both of them share amazing screen chemistry and given that the script has a number of sizzling scenes, this is great for the audience to watch.






Ranveer is sincere for the most part, although I found him hamming it a little too hard in some scenes. Maybe I am a bit old fashioned, but I was not left oohing and aahing at the site of his plastick-y, ultra fit body. Perhaps this physique makes him a lean-mean-woman-machine, but I found his sinewy look a bit too amphibian-esque look to handle. Clearly, Deepika doesn't mind, seeing as it is that Leela makes the first move onto Ram and goes for him, all the way. 


As soon as the movie begins, you should know that it is essential to park your logical mind aside and allow your visual senses to take control as the movie continuously moves from the absurd to the fantastical. In true SLB style, all the elements of the movie are extremely rich and opulent. Leela's family home is an ornate palace. Her baloconied room, comes with its private plunge pool, gorgeous foliage and a family of active peacocks. Her fabulous wardrobe is  designed by Anju Modi, and it won't be a surprise if this talented designer will become the next Big Thing in the fashion world. Soon, we might see a lot more mirror work blouses combined with colourful leheriyas, replacing the current fad of gotta patti, zardozi and net.
Since I am on the subject, Ram's wardrobe or the lack there of is worth a quick mention. The trendy village stud is dressed in mostly topless and wearing highly-distressed jeans with snazzy sneakers. When he is is wearing  his stylised gujju garb of jabla tops with colourful pagdis - he looks pretty alright.

The biggest style statement was made by Supriya Pathak who played the role of a Mother of all mothers - Ba.
Ba who is interestingly draped in rich textiles, combined with heavy ethnic jewelry and voodoo eye makeup. is the crafty controller of the family business and all of their lives. Her shrewd ways are not to be mitigated by her worldly wisdom and maternal pyaar, particularly for the apple of her eye - Leela. All the scenes with Ba in it are highly entertaining especially since her dialogues and timing are so clever.
The rest of the cast, hold their own and both the sisters-in-law played by Richa Chaddha and Barkha Bisht (a popular tv actor, I believe) deliver compelling performances as women who have been wronged.

The first half of the movie is definitely better developed than the second half which drags in and out of different tempos, wavering my attention towards the end. Priyanka Chopra's item song could have entirely been avoided as there were plenty of amazing dance sequences by Deepika.

If you are in the mood for an emotional and visual treat - the movie is a must watch!


Tuesday 12 November 2013

InstaLife







As if our lives weren't fast enough, now they have to be slick enough. Because now, we need to take a photo of our every move.


It is said, that every picture tells a thousand tales, but if you are living life in 3G times, you can even count the number of stories your picture tells, by counting the likes and comments it reacts!
Over the past year or so,I have been living life through instagram-tinted filters...It seems that every moment in our lives has the potential of being captured and filtered, hash tagged and made "oh-so-cool". Even the most mundane activity, like brushing your teeth, has become an #instamoment. Cool photo-effects, frames and other clever stuff, can make any daily activity/chore/process, appear "interesting". Add a clever caption or two and combine it with some creative "hashtags" to finish up and post the picture successfully. 

Personally, I have always enjoyed taking photographs and I suppose I have my mother to thank (?) for this habit. Her passion for capturing an important moment, a celebration, a vacation, a birthday….from the time me and all my siblings were born, have made each of us fairly immune to the camera.  I used to greatly resent being made to pose for pictures , especially when it would be amidst other kids my age, who would look at me rather curiously whilst I would be correcting my posture or body language for my enthusiastic and loving mom, trying to get a perfect frame. We have cupboards filled with photo albums (the real kind!) of black and white and color photographs dating back to the very beginning of all our lives. Nothing hits the spot better than spending a random Sunday, going through these heavy albums with all the wonderful memories.

When I got my very first camera, my friends would cringe as I would make them do what my mother did to me – get a perfectly art-directed photograph, even if it meant moving people and things around to achieve the right composition! It is no surprise however, how much they would then enjoy seeing their pictures later after they got developed! When we moved from roll to digital, it got a lot easier to take a semi-decent photograph. In the worst case, a bad picture could be deleted and re-shot….

Now, as we have moved from a digital camera to a smart phone, or shall I say, the iPhone (era); every one of us is a photographer. And a superb photographer at that. It is truly as easy as aim-and-shoot, baby! The phone does all the work for you - just make sure to have your #instapose on.

I am guilty of being a dedicated instagrammer. It is a brilliant application and I think it is a lovely way of expressing oneself and sharing one’s life with others. The trouble is, I seem to have moved from dedication to obsession for I can spend time solo, provided I have my phone with me because it feels as good as being with rest of the world!

Not so good for my inter-personal skills however...........

But hey, isn't there that application, called Facebook to take care of that problem?

(So there you have it, humans shall become robots..............this is the #instatruth)




Tuesday 9 July 2013

Cloudy Notions

Is it just me, or do the big billowing water-laden, monsoon clouds make everyone so very pensive?
I live right on the sea, my building stands tall at the edge of a small bay, filled with fishing boats that stay out of commission here this time of the year.

Whenever I get done with work on time, I try to make it back home in time for dusk to take a run  along my building track that is literally on the water. I find it very invigorating to exercise in an open space, with clean air and a brilliant view of my city! This is a space that many people enjoy; especially lovers, stealing a moment for private romance and harmless banter. But it is also a haven for other "pensers" like me, who seem to be lost in their thoughts, taking stock of their situations in life.




The Mumbai Monsoons are really quite something - the city does get hit very hard by the often relentless Rain Gods that seem to be trying to convey a divine message with the strong downpour. I think of it as them trying to clean up the dusty, dirty, over-populated city that its citizens take so much for granted - bathing the few trees and green patches that continue to exist, washing off all the grime the leaves are surving under. Trying to wash some of the city's sins away.


Up till my late teens, I used to play with my set gang of building friends every single evening. We loved the mushy terrain that the monsoon season provided. Quite creatively, we would make our own set of the then popular TV show, "The Crystal Maze". An adventure-centric show, hosted by the iconic  Richard O'Brien, set in 5 distinct zones (Aztec, Medieval, Futuristic, Industrial and Ocean), the show featured a group of 6 rough n tough adults, who would have to challenge themselves physically and mentally to finally make it to the Crystal Maze! We did our very own version of the above, using waterbodies, swings, slides, rocks, puddles, ropes....your very own Indiana Jones in the making...

This adventorous streak continues to burn in me. And I hope it never dies. Even though, I am pretty sure that I am not cut out to be your local Xenia Warrior Princess...And recent activities prove the same.

Last Sunday, I wanted to do "something different".

My family cringes every time I use this phrase, (and I use it rather often) because there is no saying what it could be that I want to do. And it is a given, that it is definitely not something any of them want to do! Hence, I will need to "recruit" people who want to join me! In any case, last Sunday, I wanted to do "something different" so I joined my truly super-trooper friend E and her gang, on a day trek to Karnala, on the outskirts of Mumbai. I was told it was going to be an easy, relaxed, misty trek up to the fort. Enjoy the view, eat some healthy snacks, and make our way down. Simple enough right? Told my parents this plan and they looked at each other and rolled their eyes. They knew I had "decided" that I was going to trek whether they would say anything to the contrary or not.

So at 6 am that Sunday morning, I groggily tried to get off the bed and into my trek gear and set off for an enchanted-walk-in-the-clouds kinda day....

Should've known!!!!!!

The Motley crew commenced the ascent at 8.30 am through a thick forest-like terrain. The rain was coming down, making the earth soft and squishy (keechad!!!), there was not a bird in sight (Karnala is a bird sanctuary.........apparently) and we had opted for the steeper, tougher route up, since we are such seasoned trekkers (not!).
2 hours later, we had made it to the top and I felt like I had done a 1000 lunges. The way down had already become a major concern in my mind!
Here are pictures from the venture:
All mist and clouds

Yep, we did this...

View with a view

Wardrobe Malfunction - Notice, the rubberband holding together the sole of his left shoe! What a brave soldier...!


Virtuous Vines

After spending an hour at the old fort and enjoying a bird's eye view over the entire Deccan plateau, we started our way back down. Slowly but surely. By this point, a lot of fellow nature enthusiasts had come too, causing a a fair amount of mountain traffic. I cant say I wasn't surprised seeing these people making their way up, inappropriately clad in flimsy rubber slippers and many even barefoot! I watched an entire family there, with their 3 year old girl dressed up in a shiny bejweled salwar-kameez...and I just couldn't understand how they would manage the trek. Here I was, in my sturdy sports shoes, wearing the "right" clothes and still finding it so challenging. Were they not worried about getting hurt, slipping or falling....There was no paramedic in sight, not even a good ol' first aid box available at the bottom...so the potential damage was great. I definitely felt quite ashamed at my lack of strength and need for material comforts.

Last year, same time, I had visited Aamby Valley and had done a 2 hour "nature walk". Now this was amazing!!! There was a lake, a boat ride on the lake, little bridges, amazing flaura and fauna, waterfalls, underwater caves et all..................only later was I told that this was indeed man-made!

So there you have it, I am a pseudo outdoor fan..........but it is is true, monsoons can be more than just mucky. It is a lovely time to get close to yourself, enjoy a nice cup of chai, watch the clouds coming in, move to the beat of the dramatic thunder and lightening and think of the rainbow on the other side.

Rainbow Picture taken by me over the Bombay Gym tennis court - 2012

Monday 24 June 2013

Life of a Lemur

There comes a moment in all of our lives, when something hitherto unknown happens and we are changed from that point on.

The past 5 years have been incredibly trying for me. I cant be sure why since technically all has been well. But my mind and body have been in a state of permanent stress and anxiety. Plagued with a myriad of thoughts and a perennial stream of worry, I have not allowed myself really look around me and realize that all is not so bad...

But then something happened. And I feel the heavy fog that has drowned my spirits and my beliefs for so very long, is slowly lifting.

I just got back from an incredible trip to attend my friend’s wedding in her hometown -  the great big island of Madagascar. And as usual, whilst planning this trip, the stress bugs set in and offered all sorts of bizarre “what if’s” and “perhaps” to confuse and destroy my decision to attend it. My biggest fear was going alone, and not knowing “enough” of people there. This time however, I fought off all these thoughts, and reckoned that I would embrace all aspects of this trip for better or for worse. And as soon as i decided this, small and simple things clicked and things started to fall into place...
Antananarivo

I will never be able to thank my friend Naima and her (now) husband Shahim, for the wonderful hospitality and graciousness they offered to all 30+ of us, who came from various parts of the world to attend their wedding. They really went all out taking care of us for the entire period  and promising that we had the time of our lives. Which indeed we did.

I found it a fascinating and unusual “Indian” wedding experience. Here are 2 people who come from a very specific and small community in Mada - Naima is a 5th generation Malagasy-Indian, whose forefathers once hailed from Gujarat and left India so many decades ago to fight off abject poverty and improve their circumstance in life. Finding themselves far, far away from India, now in Madagascar, Africa, this community works exceedingly hard to retain and even improve their idea of India and being Indian. Its strange because they physically look Indian, but they speak to one another in French, interspersed with Gujarati. They are extremely well-heeled, and are global citizens, but most of them have never visited India and so it holds as the most exotic and wondrous destination in their minds. At the mehendi, whilst I was dancing the garba (yes, I said garba! Not to forget, another evening of Dandiya!!), I felt all the eyes of the ladies on me. These ladies who had carefully and painstakingly come all dressed up in their desi best - wearing the latest styles that they had seen in the movies and off the internet. For them, it was just unbelievable that i was the only “real” Indian there who had come alllllllll the way from true Indian soil to Madagascar. By default, this made me the leader of the chorus line, and I would often find myself having to “perform” for the curious audience!

Naima and her effortlessly elegant mother spent an entire month in Mumbai, meticulously planning every single teeny-tiny, minute detail of the wedding. Taking into account every aspect of the celebration - from the the invitation cards, outfits, jewelry, to the decor elements and not to mention, gifts for so many people, single-handedly the 2 Meralli-Ballou ladies took the city by storm. By the end of the second week, they knew every gulli-guchi and side alley of Mumbai inside out. This was a real feat - considering they were foreigners preparing for a mammoth of a wedding in such a distant land, from bustling Bombay, with no hindi-speaking skills. Really, chapeau les filles!!

I happened to be traveling myself on the same night as them, so we met one last time at the airport for a quick hug. Naima’s mum told me that they had over 5000 KG of goodies with them, that they had to courier. A few weeks after they had left, I got a giant parcel at home - it was addressed to me, but it had come from some dodgy-sounding person in Hyderabad, who I obviously didn’t know. My overactive imagination got the better of me, and I tried to guess the (toxic + harmful) contents of that box. As I pondered over whether to call the courier company or the police or to simply ditch the box outside my house, I got a call from Naima telling me to watch out for a parcel that was for her and on its way to my home. It is a good thing that she called me just in time, before I had done something really silly with that package whose true contents were 2000 personalized charms bearing a special prayer on it, that her mum wanted to share with all the guests at the mosque, present for the nikkah ceremony.
Beautiful People: The Bride and her Family

Amidst the twinkling lights, bursts of colour, the cacophony of the guests and the general din of a wedding, I looked around and appreciated  the culmination of all their effort and sincerity, that had come together to make it such a beautiful and tasteful wedding. The table napkins, the centerpieces, the take-away gifts from the functions, the saris all of Naima’s friends wore, they all looked familiar! I had seen them as samples!
The Bridesmaids and the Bride's mom


Colour No Bar
Ladies dinner at the mosque
Kabool! Meet Mr. and Mrs. Madagascar
The Ghagra was a bit too heavy.....

There is a saying, the people make the place and this holds forth since the best part of the trip for me was the people I met. And of course, the fun that we had!

Hotel Tamboho, our humble hotel in Antananrivo (Tana, from this point on), was an efficiently-run property built on a patch of shimmering green grass, and began to feel like home by the end of the trip. For all the other non-wedding guests staying there, it must have resembled a frat-house, given that the small space was spilling over with the lot of us, at all times of the day and night...It was here that everyone would gather around and hang out, drink and smoke too much, pump up the music volume and laugh very,very loudly. Day times were reserved for the pool side and come sun-down, the party would move to the lobby area. For any observer looking at this motley crew, we must have seemed like an advert for the United Colours of Benetton.
Shahim studied in London and in those years found himself a band of brothers from various parts of the world, and their bond was thicker than blood. These boys were all there to support their main man during this life-altering moment in his life, and were sure to make every moment count! It was due to their antics and let’s say, joie de vivre, that the rest of us were integrated into the plan. There was something in the air, that got us all to relax and merge with one another. For those 10 days, we danced, we laughed, we shared.....and some more.
Chileez
Gangsta Trippin'
The Bose Boy
Kukure! Dancing Afrikana style




















We managed to take a break from Tana and visit nearby lake town, Mantasoa for a 2 night “camping” getaway, which also proved to be an epic experience! Not to say too much on the internet, but for most of us present that fateful night, I’m sure the highlight was the 2 am skinny-dipping episode, when the dude decided it was his duty to strip and plunge into the icy lake. Not sure why and how that happened, but it made for spectacular entertainment, complimenting the bonfire and starry night so thank you, GG.

Bonfire Time

The craziness would continue in the mini vans that we traveled in and would come with us to all the various places we visited. I suppose the bestest and most x rated times were had by Yanish (The groom's younger brother) and his cronies, in Yanish's gangsta mobile. (I jumped in for a ride just one time, and shuddered to think what nefarious activities must have transpired otherwise!) It was great that no one had an attitude or were judgmental...it was refreshing to just be and act naturally, without thinking about its implications.

Messy!
Pure Evil

So the days literally flew by in this happy bubble and it wasn’t until my second last night that that the “je-ne-sais-quoi” feeling creeped in. Still in Mantasoa, under a dazzlingly-clear sky, I was catching shooting stars with KK and Naima's dapper cousin brother, Karim. It was nice and nippy outside, and I felt fresh and alive! Temperatures were rising back inside the restaurant, as the rest of the troops moved on from dinner to drinks. Chammak Challo was banging and people were stomping.

Magic.
The last night was an elegant sit-down dinner and reception, I was hit by a wave of unexpected melancholy at realizing that in a few hours, I would be home-bound and back to my “real life”. This youthful, carefree time had come to en end, like all good things. I left with a heavy heart, but a happy heart, knowing that good times were around the corner. The winds were going to blow in my favour...What will be, shall be!


Dashing!
Under the Lights - Reception
God is in the details
Tonkeeeeeees

Until we meet again.......

Fly High!












































Saturday 9 March 2013

The Horizontal Times

Meet my boys - Hank, Harvey and Brody. These 3 boys have been monopolizing all my time in the past few weeks. Each one of them is amazing in his own way - dashing, good looking, accomplished, successful, hard working...what more can a girl ask for in a man? And the best part is that I enjoy myself so much with each one of them - they make me laugh, they teach me about the ways of the world. It gets better - they don't even know about each other! How often does a girl find herself in this deliciously sticky predicament?

The answer my friends is...

Never!

And that’s just it: my romance with these 3 chaps is virtual. I have to get over the fact that they are just mere characters, that will never ever exist in the real world!

Hank Rearden - Brooding Industrialist, Steel Magnate and visionary - a la The Fountainhead. Harvey Spector - Hot-shot lawyer, ace heart-breaker and the great-hair-guy - from the sitcom Suits; 
and lastly, Sergeant Brody - Afghan War Hero and possible Jihaad leader, red-haired and freckled -  from the sitcom Homelands





And there you have it. I am plain lame! Knock yourselves out...I am troubled by a fictitious love rectangle, all in my head! 

Normally, I am not such a couch potato, who enjoys uninterrupted hours of telly or plans movie-marathons, with great gusto. So for me to be spending so much time watching back-to-back tv shows and reading a heavy book; implies something is not quite right. And alas, this is the case since I hurt my back doing god-knows-what three weeks ago and have been firmly instructed to lay flat as much as possible. I am going absolutely crazy trying to keep straight and restful, as has been prescribed to me. Sure, it has been fun, being able to legitimately be a vegetable and have breakfast-lunch and dinner in bed. But enough already! I am missing my sneakers, I am missing the sweat and I am missing the happy endorphins that come from physical activity.

I feel about a hundred years old whilst popping a cocktail of pills or when wearing a ridiculous waist brace, and generally, clutching onto my back every time I feel a sensation of throbbing pain. Physio is the new Pilates class, the it thing to be doing...If you are truly cool, then you have at some point or the other in the last 3 years suffered some sort of a back issue. It is incredible how many of my friends have unfortunately been riddled with a back problem of late. I look at my parents and their friends, who lead extremely busy lifestyles and despite being in their 60’s, continue to have very productive lives. They work, they run homes, they travel and they exercise. I don’t find them groaning and moaning over their hips or their knees or their backs (touch wood!). 

All these “modern” lifestyle-related health issues are worrying, as they trouble so many of us. What is it about our mental state of minds, that we cant seem to effectively keep stress at bay? We definitely have less responsible and more comfortable lives with the good fortune of being endowed with a lot more than our parents had whilst growing up. 

We have all read various news stories and articles on this subject so I wont jump into a motherly sermon. All I can hope for now is to get back into business and into my usual routine. 

Hmph. I should get busy again, shouldn't I? After all, I got to keep the boys in check!

Monday 4 March 2013

Helter Skelter Aru


I genuinely don’t know how the past few months have simply flown by. I have been here, there and everywhere - and yet, no where! does that make any sense?
Strange, but i have grown even more listless than usual! My mind is constantly distracted by a myriad of conflicting thoughts.

I sit here gingerly trying to make friends with the keyboard once again and reclaim a hobby, i enjoyed so much - writing on this blog. This little space of mine in the crazyclustered virtual world, has previously given me much happiness and contentment. And I am sure this and the next few blog entries might appear a bit shaky, but i resolve to steer it back on course!!


                                                                           ****

So, I just got back from Doha....a city which is still more dust than development. A city of the future lets say, and a truly dazzling future at that! This trip makes it my third visit in the past year and a half, and I have in inkling that there will be several more to come.

I find the G.C.C a truly interesting zone; as it holds much allure to me. Similar to my feelings towards the former U.S.S.R - Ukraine (I went to Kiev last winter) and Russia (Can’t wait to visit the land of Faberge and Putin).
The local Emirati has a life completely and utterly unknown to anyone who is a non-Arab. it it a world shrouded in mystery and moolah! Whenever I am in a mall, I am riveted at the sight of all the “floating people” - elegant ladies in their beautifully fashioned abayaas with stunning kohl-lined eyes and strongly defined eyebrows, with a shimmering clothing perching strategically off their coiffed hair. And the rugged men in their whiter-than-white, crisp dish-dashes and head gear, with the neatest shaves, their eyes wildly dancing about at everything around them. In these long robed outfits, they glide through the malls, fulfilling their daily cardio requirements, leaving the insignificant others standing, in a cloud of their heavy attar trail....




I find them all beautiful creatures - almost mystical. I wonder what goes on behind the private confines of their homes and hearts. They are not like us, that is for sure. But how different can they be, is what i am interested in.

The mood in Doha is moderate; set at an ideological mid-point between decadent Dubai and severe Saudi. The tiny population of 250,000 people enjoy the safety of their country, from the plush confines of their souped-up Bentleys, Maybachs and Rolls-Royces. Business seems to have moved from pearl-fishing to real-estate. Sitting on top of a huge oil resource, the rich locals have a lazy life dedicated to travel and prayer. Presently, the  city boasts little in terms of entertainment avenues. There is a cute little souk area in the old town, a noteworthy museum of Islamic art, the high-end Pearl project and so on....And as for all the thirsty expats that have now made Doha their home, all roads lead to the W Hotel or to La Cigalle, to quench that thirst. The lobby of the W hotel was crawling through out the 3 days that I was there. Wahm! and Crystal were thronging with gyrating people, enjoying the house-beats till the wee hours of the morning.
I went for a peak-a-boo with darling Clement, who was there on work as well. we enjoyed a few silly moments like the one below:


Doha has a mammoth jewelry exhibition every year, which is now in its 10th edition. It is mammoth not in terms of the size of the exhibition; but with the sheer inventory up for sale.
With the oldest and finest jewelers and watch-makers present there, to try and sell their most rare and coveted baubles. It is said that just the immediate Royal Family (Al Thani family), allocates a $20 million budget towards this exhibition alone.

WOW or WHAT?!

As I went on a 2-day mystery shopping adventure, I had great fun being entertained by most of the booth owners, who thought me to be in the market for some thing big, beautiful and expensive. Although generally, all their attention was focussed on the more realistic business opportunities provided by the Sheikhas!

This time, i got to see some truly incredible things - particularly at JAHAAN, Cartier and at the Christies Private Sales salon. I saw the most incredible collection of emerald beads - so beautiful - that one could be fooled that they were glass marbles! I also saw the modern-day version of the Maharaja of Patiala bib - undoubtedly one of the greatest jewels every created!

I leave you with this beautiful image and a long, long sighhhhhhhhh.................