The Love Story of a Parantha and Idli
“Yeh shaadi nahi ho sakti…” how many times have you heard this ghissa-pita dialogue in movies and also in real life? Well Indians love drama and Chetan Bhagat has put up a dish north-meets-south masala mar ke in the cook book of love and family drama called “2 States” for his readers. The jarring red outer cover with a classless silhouette-graphic might’ve scared a few but the colour red is perfect for the book since it suggests both attributes i.e. love and that marriage is a bloody-affair.
Chetan Bhagat has shown the complexity of a love story very simply on his back cover:
The storyline of the book is predictable from the feel-good titling itself. Two protagonists – Krish Malhotra (a punjabi) and Ananya Swaminathan (a tamilian) are classmates at IIM Ahmedabad. A rendezvous at the college canteen bonds them together, and in a matter of weeks (or rather days) the duo are sleeping together in hostel rooms. Love blossoms, and by the time they pass out of college, they’ve decided to get married to each other. The hurdles seem insurmountable in the beginning since there were jarring differences between their parents, their cultures and even their languages. Krish gets himself posted in Citibank Chennai, where Ananya is working with HLL, and sets the ball rolling. Their carefully-crafted plans suffer occasional hindrances and at one point in time, the entire affair goes topsy turvy but things magically (I repeat, magically) get sorted out with the typical, happily ever after climax.
The pace of the book is perfect and there is not one boring moment in the book. Once you start reading you can only put the book down when you are done with it. One can enjoy the book since it is very easy to read. He is an author liked by a common man because of his ability to weave his stories through his diction and subtle observations. Bhagat has done a splendid job in capturing the characteristics of Chennai’s conservatism, obsession with Carnatic music and The Hindu, Tam Brahma household, and how they live life by the ‘rules’. Their priorities in life i.e. foreign degree, US-based groom, IIT-IIM if studying in India - in that order- is well portrayed. He does an equally great work in depicting the Punjabi household, their ostentatious lives, the high-drama that rules the weddings and how much importance is given to paneer and DJ.
Chetan on his website says, “Writing 3 mistakes became too heavy for me. A story about riots, manipulative politics and the impact on the younger generation made me quite disturbed after writing the novel. Also, my strength is humour and many of my readers felt the books becoming more serious. So, I am back doing something light and fun – but still has a message.” Hence, in the book “2 states”, he has played with colloquial humour taking constant digs on Punjabi and Tamilian communities which “are not to be taken seriously” as instructed by him in the acknowledgements of the book.
Few snippets from the book:
If there’s nothing as attractive as a pretty girl, there’s nothing as repulsive as a cocky chick.
The oiled hair, geeky face and spectacles made him look like an IITian embryo.
The only nakshatram we (Punjabis) think of is the division of petrol pumps when we have to see the girl.
All the ladies in the room had a mini orgasm (on listening to Harish’s academic achievements).
Marble flooring is to a Punjabi what a foreign degree is to a Tamilian.
It is amazing how much closeness two men with a laptop in a closed room can achieve in five days.
The book “2 states” is the most endearing work published by Chetan Bhagat. He has actually tried out an entirely different layout for the book, quite different from the usual crop.
The book is written like the script for a drama or even a teleplay, for that matter. The chapters are divided into Acts I, II, III, IV and V! The book is light and breezy and the language is simple and can be read like a modern fairy tale. I as a reader and critic, would strongly recommend this book. It would be a proud addition to your library, and for Rs 95/-, it’s very much affordable and worth every pie. I loved it for the chemistry between the protagonists, the endearing moments, the tongue-in-cheek humour, the simple-yet-poignant ‘Bhagat-logic’, and of course, the central theme – Love!
(Book (reviewed by Khushnum Mistry)
Monday, October 25, 2010
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Reality TV shows
Are reality games shows the future of Indian Television? (530 words)
In the recent times, Indian television has taken a commendable leap to attract audiences of all genres. Reality game shows are actually a mirror image of the society’s progressing views or one can also look at it as a stage given to common people and struggling serial artists. “It’s an easy golden ticket to fame through the game”, says a contestant of Indian Idol. Reality TV has always struck a chord with the audience in Indian television even when traced back to Tabassum’s chat show in the early 80s, the evergreen Antakshari during 90s to the acing TRP reality game show in the year 2000, Kaun Banega Crorepati hosted by Big B.
To capture audiences of all genres, these reality game shows have their own target audience. The audience wants drama and the TV channels have succumbed to yet another demand of theirs. For instance, game/quiz shows are quite famous amongst the families as it gives them the opportunity to guess answers and interact with the show on a primary level. The dance and singing reality shows like Sa Re Ga Ma Pa, Boogie Woogie, Lil Masters, Indian Idol and so many more have given a platform to the talent of India to perform on a show and reach out to the audience. The public has its own favourites and immediately connect to the show. The dramatization has clearly increased to get either sympathy or attention from its audience. It’s not only about singing or dancing but striking a chord with the family sitting on the sofa after a long day looking out to distract themselves from their daily chores.
Last but not the least the most famous genre of reality shows are the ones with the celebrities or more like wannabe TV stars. Just like TV news channels they have all the beats, the angry man who keeps lashing at every small thing and throws things around to give a dramatic effect for instance Raja Chaudhari of Big Boss 2, at least one couple to create a love story and the sexy and bold girl like Rakhi Sawant or Kashmira Shah to give the show the oomph factor. Even shows like Emotional Aatyachar, Dare to Date almost run on these same factors but concentrating more on the problems faced by the youth. Today’s generation just wants a lot of masala on TV like in their Maggi Noodles. Certain aspects shown on TV like a girl abusing or smoking, a guy making tea or gossiping more than the women connect to the youth of today since it’s the reality. Hence, reality shows are trend makers and mirror society without censoring or being gender biased.
If one looks at it from a psychological angle it’s a way to escape one’s problems and enter the world of reality through TV and live their experiences for a while. The producers play with the mind of their audiences trying to show a reflection of their life and problems and most often trying to give them a solution. Reality drama has caught the attention of the audiences and is most definitely the future of Indian television.
In the recent times, Indian television has taken a commendable leap to attract audiences of all genres. Reality game shows are actually a mirror image of the society’s progressing views or one can also look at it as a stage given to common people and struggling serial artists. “It’s an easy golden ticket to fame through the game”, says a contestant of Indian Idol. Reality TV has always struck a chord with the audience in Indian television even when traced back to Tabassum’s chat show in the early 80s, the evergreen Antakshari during 90s to the acing TRP reality game show in the year 2000, Kaun Banega Crorepati hosted by Big B.
To capture audiences of all genres, these reality game shows have their own target audience. The audience wants drama and the TV channels have succumbed to yet another demand of theirs. For instance, game/quiz shows are quite famous amongst the families as it gives them the opportunity to guess answers and interact with the show on a primary level. The dance and singing reality shows like Sa Re Ga Ma Pa, Boogie Woogie, Lil Masters, Indian Idol and so many more have given a platform to the talent of India to perform on a show and reach out to the audience. The public has its own favourites and immediately connect to the show. The dramatization has clearly increased to get either sympathy or attention from its audience. It’s not only about singing or dancing but striking a chord with the family sitting on the sofa after a long day looking out to distract themselves from their daily chores.
Last but not the least the most famous genre of reality shows are the ones with the celebrities or more like wannabe TV stars. Just like TV news channels they have all the beats, the angry man who keeps lashing at every small thing and throws things around to give a dramatic effect for instance Raja Chaudhari of Big Boss 2, at least one couple to create a love story and the sexy and bold girl like Rakhi Sawant or Kashmira Shah to give the show the oomph factor. Even shows like Emotional Aatyachar, Dare to Date almost run on these same factors but concentrating more on the problems faced by the youth. Today’s generation just wants a lot of masala on TV like in their Maggi Noodles. Certain aspects shown on TV like a girl abusing or smoking, a guy making tea or gossiping more than the women connect to the youth of today since it’s the reality. Hence, reality shows are trend makers and mirror society without censoring or being gender biased.
If one looks at it from a psychological angle it’s a way to escape one’s problems and enter the world of reality through TV and live their experiences for a while. The producers play with the mind of their audiences trying to show a reflection of their life and problems and most often trying to give them a solution. Reality drama has caught the attention of the audiences and is most definitely the future of Indian television.
Saturday, September 18, 2010
The review of Inception !!
The Review of Inception (909 words)
Transported to Dreamland
Inception is an American science fiction action film written, produced, and directed by Christopher Nolan. The word Inception means a ‘beginning’ and Nolan has sown the seeds of the possibility of hypnotism in dreams. The plot is complex and intrinsic but beautifully woven to build a “dream” story. Dominic Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) is the main protagonist, who explores this world of dreams by working as an extractor. Extractors and their victims sleep in close proximity to one another, connected by a device that administers a sedative and share a dream world built on their mental projections. As an extractor Dominic’s job is to architect dreams and create plots that make the target reveal his innermost secrets. In the dream world, pain is psychologically experienced as real but death results in awakening.
The plot of the movie could require any reviewer to write several pages. Hence, in this review we shall discover the world Nolan transports his audience. The film layers dreams on top of dreams to the point where a unique keepsake called a “totem” is required in order to inform a character as to whether or not he or she is still dreaming. To wake the team from each dream, timed "kicks” are organized at each level. Then you have people in particular roles like “The Architect” Ariadne (Ellen Page), “The Forger” Eames (Tom Hardy), and “The Chemist” Yusuf (Dileep Rao) in order to pull off the job. Furthermore, dreams have rules: dying in a dream forces the dreamer to wake up, delving too deeply into a mind can cause an eternal slumber called “Limbo”, using memories to construct dreams is dangerous because it can blur the line between dreams and reality. In addition, intruding in the dreams of another will cause the dreamer’s “projections” (human representations created by the dreamer) to attack the intruders like white blood cells going after an infection. And these explanations only represent a fraction of the terminology, rules, exceptions, or details that are necessary for creating the world of Inception.
Cristopher has layered the story where one part shows the methods of stealing people’s dream and the other works around the personal life of Cobb. While architecting dreams for Ariadne is Cobb’s deceased wife Mal (Marion Cotillard) who continually haunts him, sabotaging his missions. Cobb reveals to Ariadne that he and Mal shared dreams, spending many years in a limbo dream world forging their lives. After waking, Mal remained convinced that they were still dreaming and committed suicide, attempting to force Cobb to join her by incriminating him in her death. Cobb refused and was forced to flee the U.S. and leave his children to avoid murder charges.
Nolan also explores a possibility of what might go wrong if the dream goes astray. The end of the movie is when the lot tries to tackle the problems that they go through during this dreaming sequence. At a certain point, they realize that the strong dose of sedators will not result in awakening if a person dies but will send him into Limbo. Hence, the problem arises when Fischer is killed by Mal, causing him to go to Limbo. While Eames and a dying Saito stay behind to fend off Fischer's hostile projections, Ariadne and Cobb follow Fischer to a fourth level in an attempt to salvage the mission and confront Mal. The fourth level is Cobb's dystopia and there he and Ariadne confront Mal. Mal attempts to convince Cobb to stay in Limbo by making him question reality. Cobb reveals that he originally planted the idea in Mal's mind to wake up from their dream lives -- the act that proved inception was possible in the first place -- but that the belief persisted even after she woke, making him indirectly responsible for her suicide.
The much debatable end is that Cobb awakens on the plane to find everyone on the plane, including Saito, up and well. Saito honors their arrangement and Cobb enters the United States, reunited with his children at home. Cobb spins the totem to test reality, but is then distracted by his children. The top spins without fault for a long period of time, but begins to wobble just as the screen smash cuts to black, leaving the audience to determine whether Cobb is still in a dream or in reality. But for the “non-distracted” who had the patience to wait till the end of the credits Nolan answers their question by making us hear the fall of the totem which suggests that Cobb was back to reality.
Director Cristopher Nolan asks his viewers to just take “a leap of faith” and enjoy the movie. There are a lot of summer movies that ask you turn off your brain and enjoy the persistent-vegetative-state ride. Inception is not one of those movies. There’s a lot to take in, but the imaginative and thoughtful delivery of exposition keeps the viewer captivated despite the amount of information required in order to understand the premise, setting, and plot. The film deserves, demands, and rewards repeat viewings, but from your first viewing you can grasp the events on screen and how they interact with each other as long as you force yourself to be an active viewer. But with set pieces so intricate, so jaw-dropping, and so breathtaking, you’ll find that there’s no exertion needed to stay focused. You’ll already be swept up in the whirlwind.
Transported to Dreamland
Inception is an American science fiction action film written, produced, and directed by Christopher Nolan. The word Inception means a ‘beginning’ and Nolan has sown the seeds of the possibility of hypnotism in dreams. The plot is complex and intrinsic but beautifully woven to build a “dream” story. Dominic Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) is the main protagonist, who explores this world of dreams by working as an extractor. Extractors and their victims sleep in close proximity to one another, connected by a device that administers a sedative and share a dream world built on their mental projections. As an extractor Dominic’s job is to architect dreams and create plots that make the target reveal his innermost secrets. In the dream world, pain is psychologically experienced as real but death results in awakening.
The plot of the movie could require any reviewer to write several pages. Hence, in this review we shall discover the world Nolan transports his audience. The film layers dreams on top of dreams to the point where a unique keepsake called a “totem” is required in order to inform a character as to whether or not he or she is still dreaming. To wake the team from each dream, timed "kicks” are organized at each level. Then you have people in particular roles like “The Architect” Ariadne (Ellen Page), “The Forger” Eames (Tom Hardy), and “The Chemist” Yusuf (Dileep Rao) in order to pull off the job. Furthermore, dreams have rules: dying in a dream forces the dreamer to wake up, delving too deeply into a mind can cause an eternal slumber called “Limbo”, using memories to construct dreams is dangerous because it can blur the line between dreams and reality. In addition, intruding in the dreams of another will cause the dreamer’s “projections” (human representations created by the dreamer) to attack the intruders like white blood cells going after an infection. And these explanations only represent a fraction of the terminology, rules, exceptions, or details that are necessary for creating the world of Inception.
Cristopher has layered the story where one part shows the methods of stealing people’s dream and the other works around the personal life of Cobb. While architecting dreams for Ariadne is Cobb’s deceased wife Mal (Marion Cotillard) who continually haunts him, sabotaging his missions. Cobb reveals to Ariadne that he and Mal shared dreams, spending many years in a limbo dream world forging their lives. After waking, Mal remained convinced that they were still dreaming and committed suicide, attempting to force Cobb to join her by incriminating him in her death. Cobb refused and was forced to flee the U.S. and leave his children to avoid murder charges.
Nolan also explores a possibility of what might go wrong if the dream goes astray. The end of the movie is when the lot tries to tackle the problems that they go through during this dreaming sequence. At a certain point, they realize that the strong dose of sedators will not result in awakening if a person dies but will send him into Limbo. Hence, the problem arises when Fischer is killed by Mal, causing him to go to Limbo. While Eames and a dying Saito stay behind to fend off Fischer's hostile projections, Ariadne and Cobb follow Fischer to a fourth level in an attempt to salvage the mission and confront Mal. The fourth level is Cobb's dystopia and there he and Ariadne confront Mal. Mal attempts to convince Cobb to stay in Limbo by making him question reality. Cobb reveals that he originally planted the idea in Mal's mind to wake up from their dream lives -- the act that proved inception was possible in the first place -- but that the belief persisted even after she woke, making him indirectly responsible for her suicide.
The much debatable end is that Cobb awakens on the plane to find everyone on the plane, including Saito, up and well. Saito honors their arrangement and Cobb enters the United States, reunited with his children at home. Cobb spins the totem to test reality, but is then distracted by his children. The top spins without fault for a long period of time, but begins to wobble just as the screen smash cuts to black, leaving the audience to determine whether Cobb is still in a dream or in reality. But for the “non-distracted” who had the patience to wait till the end of the credits Nolan answers their question by making us hear the fall of the totem which suggests that Cobb was back to reality.
Director Cristopher Nolan asks his viewers to just take “a leap of faith” and enjoy the movie. There are a lot of summer movies that ask you turn off your brain and enjoy the persistent-vegetative-state ride. Inception is not one of those movies. There’s a lot to take in, but the imaginative and thoughtful delivery of exposition keeps the viewer captivated despite the amount of information required in order to understand the premise, setting, and plot. The film deserves, demands, and rewards repeat viewings, but from your first viewing you can grasp the events on screen and how they interact with each other as long as you force yourself to be an active viewer. But with set pieces so intricate, so jaw-dropping, and so breathtaking, you’ll find that there’s no exertion needed to stay focused. You’ll already be swept up in the whirlwind.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Shankh Yoga -- the pioneer introduced !!
“There is none as closest to God, as you. For, God resides in you” says Mr. Irani, CEO of a Healing Institute called Prisim at Sleater Road. The birth of Shankh (conch) Yoga took place in Prisim Healing Institute. The founder, Mr. Firdos Irani was inspired and motivated by Mrs. Priti Shroff (owner of the Institute) to explore his full potential not only as a Yoga Therapist but also as a Self-Realized Soul. He says, “The Shankh was always on my mind, but it is she who gave me the confidence to experiment and venture on this path, now called Shankh Yoga.” Now he blows the conch and transports the listener to discover the beautiful vibrant world of Shankh Yoga, the first of its kind.
When one enters the mediation room one automatically feels serene and peaceful. There is a small tree planted in a corner with birds flying freely chirping in the background giving the student an essence of a natural environment. Mr. Irani explains, “…to practice Shankh Yoga one has to be systematic, sit in the right posture (preferably cross-legged in an upright position with palms placed on the knees or lie down) with their eyes closed.” The session starts by reciting the universal mantra OM (representing O Mazda in Zoroastrianism) three times. The Shankh is blown in the beginning, end and sometimes throughout the session, i.e. around 15 to 20 times, depending on the objective of the session.
It is proven by Hypnotherapy, that the human brain receives information in message units. It is when the human brain is bombarded with lots of instructions or messages that the person reaches a trance or suggestive state. With the blowing of the conch, there is a phenomenal increase in the message units received by the human brain. This form of yoga cures almost 90% of the problems, physical and mental which are created by a non-stable mind. With Shankh Yoga, the person goes faster and deeper in a trance which calms and soothes the person. The same leads to a meditative state of mind where the person feels completely relaxed. The energy created sends message units to the brain which also helps building a sense of self-confidence and independence. He adds further, “The student feels strong vibrations throughout the body, gets the feeling of levitation and upsurge of inner strength or visualization of spectrum of lights at times.”
Mr. Firdos Irani is proud to be a Zoroastrian who wants to extend a helping hand in the service of humanity. He proudly says, “Blow the Shankh with all your heart and soul and spread positive vibrations all over the world, bringing joy, peace and tranquility to all around.”
Mr. Irani also gave us a few simple tips on staying fit and doing yoga the right way:
1. One must take soft, gentle, long deep breaths to get into the meditative state.
2. Eyes must be closed at all times.
3. The loud chanting of OM helps to increase the power of the lungs and the vibrations helps one to stay positive through the journey we call life.
4. Above all, yogic activities should be practiced slowly and one must have the patience.
5. While doing the ‘Asanas’ one must concentrate on the body part being used.
The few ‘Asanas’ that can be practiced regularly for good health are Ardha Halasna, Ardha Purna Halasna, Bhujangasana, Makarasana, Kativakrasana, Shavasasana, Anulom Vilom.
Prisim also focuses on alternate therapies such as Hydrocolonics, Shankh Yoga, Accupuncture, Aura Cleansing, Counseling, Numerology and many more. For further information one can visit their website www.prisimmb.com or meet the Shankh guru personally at Prisim health care centre: Hormuzd Building, Ground Floor, Sleater Road, Near Grant Road station (W), Mumbai 400 007. Tel: 2380 2370/ 2381 2370
Friday, March 26, 2010
Malad to Bombay Central in the chuk chuk gaadi !!!
"When the first train on the Indian soil made its maiden journey from Boribunder to Thana on the 16th of April 1853, very few might have imagined how strong the bond between the city of Bombay and the railways is going to be.
Today the two are inseparable, and therefore, the railways, and more specifically, the Bombay Suburban Railways are rightly called the lifelines of the metropolis" said Shirsh Paranjape (on Indian Railways,2001).
I by all means agree on every word spoken by Mr Paranjape and personally speaking it has become my lifeline to go for work in Malad every working day in 40 mins. After the brain-damaging early morning 7 o'clock shift i was on my way home in a fast train. Well people have described trains as stinky and crowded but i like to look over these negative aspects. Local trains carry people from of all class, creed and religion and believe me you get to learn so much if u observe. There are muslim girls who enter in burkhas and by the time they get out of the train are in jeans with the brightest lipstick and the tightest tops. There are some women who try to finish their household work which includes knitting or cleaning vegetables.
There are teachers correcting school papers and mother's trying to entertain their toddlers so that they dont make a scene by screaming and yelling their lungs out. The lattest fad is following Swami Ramdev's steps ...some of them rubbing their nails, the others exhaling and inhaling (its really gross sometimes that they dont have even a lil problem taking in all the aroma of the sweat around them and exhaling smelly wada pav breath) and some of them doing crunches while sitting kicking the ones standing which slowly but surely instigates a fight of swear words and challenges to come to the akhada (fighting ring) !!!
Ok so to come back to the topic what i started with ..... After the brain-damaging early morning 7 o'clock shift i was on my way home in a fast train. Along with me an old man boarded the train from Malad into the ladies compartment wearing a tattered shirt and pant and started begging. He said "khaali ek rupiyaa" (only one ruppee), he said that everytime he went to a passenger, he made that sad face and stressed on ek rupiyaa..."khaali ek rupiyaa". Believe you me half of the passengers took a ruppee out to give it to him in his almost black katora he was carrying. He earned atleast Rs 50 in just one walk i.e one end to the compartment till the next. Now the point that got me so amused was the Marketing technique here, he asked for a ruppee which a Mumbai-ite would not think twice before giving. Like he said only one buck, i mean how many of us would think about spending a ruppee.
The moral that i learnt from a pennyless man earning atleast a good sau rupaiyaa from Malad to Bombay Central was that one should ask for little in life and to end up with a bagfull of goodies !!! :)
Today the two are inseparable, and therefore, the railways, and more specifically, the Bombay Suburban Railways are rightly called the lifelines of the metropolis" said Shirsh Paranjape (on Indian Railways,2001).
I by all means agree on every word spoken by Mr Paranjape and personally speaking it has become my lifeline to go for work in Malad every working day in 40 mins. After the brain-damaging early morning 7 o'clock shift i was on my way home in a fast train. Well people have described trains as stinky and crowded but i like to look over these negative aspects. Local trains carry people from of all class, creed and religion and believe me you get to learn so much if u observe. There are muslim girls who enter in burkhas and by the time they get out of the train are in jeans with the brightest lipstick and the tightest tops. There are some women who try to finish their household work which includes knitting or cleaning vegetables.
There are teachers correcting school papers and mother's trying to entertain their toddlers so that they dont make a scene by screaming and yelling their lungs out. The lattest fad is following Swami Ramdev's steps ...some of them rubbing their nails, the others exhaling and inhaling (its really gross sometimes that they dont have even a lil problem taking in all the aroma of the sweat around them and exhaling smelly wada pav breath) and some of them doing crunches while sitting kicking the ones standing which slowly but surely instigates a fight of swear words and challenges to come to the akhada (fighting ring) !!!
Ok so to come back to the topic what i started with ..... After the brain-damaging early morning 7 o'clock shift i was on my way home in a fast train. Along with me an old man boarded the train from Malad into the ladies compartment wearing a tattered shirt and pant and started begging. He said "khaali ek rupiyaa" (only one ruppee), he said that everytime he went to a passenger, he made that sad face and stressed on ek rupiyaa..."khaali ek rupiyaa". Believe you me half of the passengers took a ruppee out to give it to him in his almost black katora he was carrying. He earned atleast Rs 50 in just one walk i.e one end to the compartment till the next. Now the point that got me so amused was the Marketing technique here, he asked for a ruppee which a Mumbai-ite would not think twice before giving. Like he said only one buck, i mean how many of us would think about spending a ruppee.
The moral that i learnt from a pennyless man earning atleast a good sau rupaiyaa from Malad to Bombay Central was that one should ask for little in life and to end up with a bagfull of goodies !!! :)
Saturday, February 20, 2010
FIVE MINUTES .........
A five minutes break…hmmm...five min breaks?? Ok...five min breaks!! Emmm sounds harmless, right?? Not when in an 8 hr working day you are only allowed to take two FIVE MIN BREAKS...so now Lets go back and say it again FIVE MIN BREAKS!
I entered my office on a Monday morning and all I could hear was a buzz out of which I could only hear three words that were being stressed upon “five minutes break”. I wondered what was going on; I settled in my chair as I was already late. I logged into my system to check my roster (schedule) for the day and the coming month. A wave of shock ran through my spine and finally I understood the five minute break. Our company had a note on the roster in BOLD and CAPITAL just to give the extra effect of authority. It read:
“YOU ARE ONLY ALLOWED TO TAKE A BREAK AT THE DESIGNATED TIME. YOUR LUNCH BREAK HAS BEEN REDUCED TO 30MINS AND YOU ONLY HAVE TWO COMFORT BREAKS, EACH FOR JUST FIVE MINUTES. YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO OTHERWISE KEEP YOURSELF UNAVAILABLE.” We also were told that the same was proposed for faster and better customer service.
My eyes popped out reading the new terms and conditions and I was tensed. I was tensed because I had forgotten to relieve myself before I logged in for work. My bladder suddenly became nervous but it was only 09.30 and my break was at 10.35. My passengers rambled on the phone and I didn’t understand anything they had to say because all I heard was the clock ticking on my very full bladder. My hearing senses were almost giving up, I could hear ‘pee’ instead of ‘leave’ and ‘loo’ instead of ‘sue’. The irony of one of the calls I got was that the passenger wanted to sue the company for something I was going through. He complained that the airhostess did not allow him to go to the toilet minutes before the plane was going to land. I empathized with him more than I had to; I guess I had already started improving our customer service as I understood his plight more than anyone could have at this moment.
Time passed by slowly, it was just 10.17 and there were just 18 minutes to go. My bladder ticked with every second, the gush getting stronger and I couldn’t take it any longer. The next call punched in and I could hear a woman laugh. I introduced my company name, my name, how may I help (though I needed more help at this moment than who was calling). She laughed again as if she knew what I was going through, I heard her say sorry wrong number and she hung up.
It was 10.30 and I was slurping, I never knew I could sit and dance. Just one minute and I could visit the place I was longing to go, the loo. At 10.35 I went for my much needed comfort break. I entered and saw a queue. No one spoke to anyone. Finally I entered and sat in peace doing something I wanted to do for a long time. Just then I heard a knock at the door, someone screamed “Its six minutes, now get out “.
--- edited by sunshine
I entered my office on a Monday morning and all I could hear was a buzz out of which I could only hear three words that were being stressed upon “five minutes break”. I wondered what was going on; I settled in my chair as I was already late. I logged into my system to check my roster (schedule) for the day and the coming month. A wave of shock ran through my spine and finally I understood the five minute break. Our company had a note on the roster in BOLD and CAPITAL just to give the extra effect of authority. It read:
“YOU ARE ONLY ALLOWED TO TAKE A BREAK AT THE DESIGNATED TIME. YOUR LUNCH BREAK HAS BEEN REDUCED TO 30MINS AND YOU ONLY HAVE TWO COMFORT BREAKS, EACH FOR JUST FIVE MINUTES. YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO OTHERWISE KEEP YOURSELF UNAVAILABLE.” We also were told that the same was proposed for faster and better customer service.
My eyes popped out reading the new terms and conditions and I was tensed. I was tensed because I had forgotten to relieve myself before I logged in for work. My bladder suddenly became nervous but it was only 09.30 and my break was at 10.35. My passengers rambled on the phone and I didn’t understand anything they had to say because all I heard was the clock ticking on my very full bladder. My hearing senses were almost giving up, I could hear ‘pee’ instead of ‘leave’ and ‘loo’ instead of ‘sue’. The irony of one of the calls I got was that the passenger wanted to sue the company for something I was going through. He complained that the airhostess did not allow him to go to the toilet minutes before the plane was going to land. I empathized with him more than I had to; I guess I had already started improving our customer service as I understood his plight more than anyone could have at this moment.
Time passed by slowly, it was just 10.17 and there were just 18 minutes to go. My bladder ticked with every second, the gush getting stronger and I couldn’t take it any longer. The next call punched in and I could hear a woman laugh. I introduced my company name, my name, how may I help (though I needed more help at this moment than who was calling). She laughed again as if she knew what I was going through, I heard her say sorry wrong number and she hung up.
It was 10.30 and I was slurping, I never knew I could sit and dance. Just one minute and I could visit the place I was longing to go, the loo. At 10.35 I went for my much needed comfort break. I entered and saw a queue. No one spoke to anyone. Finally I entered and sat in peace doing something I wanted to do for a long time. Just then I heard a knock at the door, someone screamed “Its six minutes, now get out “.
--- edited by sunshine
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Valentine's day ... the heart wants drama !!!
...It was the 14th of February that I was sitting on the couch wearing a red dress, waiting for my date impatiently. The door bell rang, there he stood with the most beautiful smile, he looked deep inside my eyes and asked me for my hand to escort me to the Merc that was parked right outside my door. The interiors of the car at once made me feel cozy and comfortable. The conversation was flowing as beautifully as the champagne that I didnt even realise that we had reached the venue of my much-awaited surprise date. I got out of the car and saw the most beautiful wooden boat decorated with red heart baloons and roses. I was out of words that i could not even form coherent sentences to thank him. I kissed him on his cheek as a gesture of how much i appreciated his surprise and he said that "its only the beginning.. " to which I responded "I hope it never ends".
We were aboard and far away from the shore. It was the perfect night, cluster of stars in the sky, the deep blue ocean and the magnificient full moon gleaming in the sky. The moonlight was so bright that we had every other light in the boat switched off. I was sitting on a candle light table, with chinese food (my favorite) and wine. Our eyes were twinkling just like the stars in the sky and the romantic music in the background left us little to say. The silent smiles and eye contact were the words we used to describe our feelings. We finished our chocolate mousse and he asked me for a dance. We were in each others arms dancing and I looked up in his eyes. He was so perfect and I loved him. Our lips were magnetically moving towards each other when i heard something.......
" Wake up !! 1 2 3 4 cook-a-doodle doo, Wake up wake up look at the sunshine..1 2 3 4 cock-a-doodle doooooo " holy hell, my alarm of all the things....AAArrrgggghh .. Did my alarm always have to ring just when... hmmmm .. None-the-less I woke up with a smile on my face, it was Valentines day and I was Single or Independent like my sunshine girl says !!
Being single in Mumbai on a Valentine's day is depressing at times, I mean you see couples like everywhere, on bus stops, bikes, in a shop buying teddys, at flower shops and even the pani-puri stalls.. love is just like everywhere... !!! On top of that you have yasho chopra movies marathons and classic english movies like message in a bottle, a walk to remember.. so the single heart that I am right now I decided to stay home.
My house was empty so I was walking around like a 'bhangi' in my payjamas at 12 in the afternoon, I switched on the idiot box a.k.a love box on the V day and started watching P.S.I Love You. I was gorging on my favourite choco-chip ice-cream from Naturals (a one-kg pack) and by the time the movie ended the ice-cream tub was over. I ended up sobbing for Hillary Swank and more because I had gained more than a 1000 calories. Sitting like a coach potatoe I thought of seeing something less emotional and ended up watching F.R.I.E.N.D.S ( my favvvvvvv english series) and felt really nice thinking about all those mad times I have spent with my friends.
I am really not going to sound all 80s or ekta kapoor types but all my college valentine days flashed before my eyes. In H.S.C we all i.e around 13 of us (girls only) went to 5Spice and ended up paying only Rs.99/- each. Bon had made this yummy blackforest cake which we relished. In F.Y.BA again I was out with my sunshine girl and we had ended up gorging on chinese food yet again and then went shopping for ourselves. In S.Y.BA sunshine and me both were kinda sulking because we were in "Love" and just getting over our heart-aches. Weird as it sounds every V day I was either single or mending my broken heart.
It was already evening I prepared myself some yummy Maggie cheese noodles and watched Kuch Kuch Hota Hai for the 50th time(I guess). My phone started ringing and I heard Sunshine girl screaming on top of her voice " Wat the bloody hell does CC ( her ex-ex-bf who still irritated her, CC stands for Chipku Chipkali) think of himself ?" I asked her to chill and narrate to me the convo she had with CC. Apparently, her drunk boyfriend was calling her and asking her whose was bigger, his or the other guy she went around with. Hearing this I started laughing out so loud, I mean how come is it that my friends catch such _ _ _ _ !! He he he he
V day rocked for my rockstar as she had a good time with her Boyfriend and Cookie enjoyed her 5th anniversary so .."all waz well for them" and i was thrilled to hear that.
Finally, V day got over and I was not sitting out on my couch wearing a red dress waiting for my date but instead I was on my balcony looking at the stars high above praying to God for my true love to come soon in my life. I think I am now ready for him to enter my life and I know that I already love him so much …….
We were aboard and far away from the shore. It was the perfect night, cluster of stars in the sky, the deep blue ocean and the magnificient full moon gleaming in the sky. The moonlight was so bright that we had every other light in the boat switched off. I was sitting on a candle light table, with chinese food (my favorite) and wine. Our eyes were twinkling just like the stars in the sky and the romantic music in the background left us little to say. The silent smiles and eye contact were the words we used to describe our feelings. We finished our chocolate mousse and he asked me for a dance. We were in each others arms dancing and I looked up in his eyes. He was so perfect and I loved him. Our lips were magnetically moving towards each other when i heard something.......
" Wake up !! 1 2 3 4 cook-a-doodle doo, Wake up wake up look at the sunshine..1 2 3 4 cock-a-doodle doooooo " holy hell, my alarm of all the things....AAArrrgggghh .. Did my alarm always have to ring just when... hmmmm .. None-the-less I woke up with a smile on my face, it was Valentines day and I was Single or Independent like my sunshine girl says !!
Being single in Mumbai on a Valentine's day is depressing at times, I mean you see couples like everywhere, on bus stops, bikes, in a shop buying teddys, at flower shops and even the pani-puri stalls.. love is just like everywhere... !!! On top of that you have yasho chopra movies marathons and classic english movies like message in a bottle, a walk to remember.. so the single heart that I am right now I decided to stay home.
My house was empty so I was walking around like a 'bhangi' in my payjamas at 12 in the afternoon, I switched on the idiot box a.k.a love box on the V day and started watching P.S.I Love You. I was gorging on my favourite choco-chip ice-cream from Naturals (a one-kg pack) and by the time the movie ended the ice-cream tub was over. I ended up sobbing for Hillary Swank and more because I had gained more than a 1000 calories. Sitting like a coach potatoe I thought of seeing something less emotional and ended up watching F.R.I.E.N.D.S ( my favvvvvvv english series) and felt really nice thinking about all those mad times I have spent with my friends.
I am really not going to sound all 80s or ekta kapoor types but all my college valentine days flashed before my eyes. In H.S.C we all i.e around 13 of us (girls only) went to 5Spice and ended up paying only Rs.99/- each. Bon had made this yummy blackforest cake which we relished. In F.Y.BA again I was out with my sunshine girl and we had ended up gorging on chinese food yet again and then went shopping for ourselves. In S.Y.BA sunshine and me both were kinda sulking because we were in "Love" and just getting over our heart-aches. Weird as it sounds every V day I was either single or mending my broken heart.
It was already evening I prepared myself some yummy Maggie cheese noodles and watched Kuch Kuch Hota Hai for the 50th time(I guess). My phone started ringing and I heard Sunshine girl screaming on top of her voice " Wat the bloody hell does CC ( her ex-ex-bf who still irritated her, CC stands for Chipku Chipkali) think of himself ?" I asked her to chill and narrate to me the convo she had with CC. Apparently, her drunk boyfriend was calling her and asking her whose was bigger, his or the other guy she went around with. Hearing this I started laughing out so loud, I mean how come is it that my friends catch such _ _ _ _ !! He he he he
V day rocked for my rockstar as she had a good time with her Boyfriend and Cookie enjoyed her 5th anniversary so .."all waz well for them" and i was thrilled to hear that.
Finally, V day got over and I was not sitting out on my couch wearing a red dress waiting for my date but instead I was on my balcony looking at the stars high above praying to God for my true love to come soon in my life. I think I am now ready for him to enter my life and I know that I already love him so much …….
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