Navratri : Festival of lights, Colors and Music!

Navratri : Festival of lights, Colors and Music!

To Begin with, Navratri my personal Favourite Festival of all time is around.. I wait for the whole year for this festival..When I was in school, we always had ‘My Favourite Festival’ as an essay topic. Invariably, majority of my class would resort to writing ‘Diwali’ or ‘Holi’. Easy to describe, easy to write – in English, Hindi, Marathi. But I made it a point to write on ‘Navratri’. Because it was/is still my favourite festival. Not Diwali or Holi.  Navratri means 9 nights. Nav = nine and ratri = nights. Navratri is a festival of goddess Durga. It is filled with lots of lights,colorful outfits and music!!

There’s something about dancing for 9 nights. Diwali is for 3-4 days, Holi for 2 days. Diwali grants a vacation, it is an excuse to extort money in the name of “Diwali Bonus” – something the postman, maids indulge in. Holi is another excuse to get drunk on bhaang and also to molest.

We Gujarati's celebrate it like nothing less.. The whole 9 days are like party for us!

 Earlier, the dancing used to go on till 1 am, at times till 3 am. But sadly now, it’s just till ten, on weekends till midnight. Navratri is characterised by "dandiya, garba, ghaati dance, Bollywood dance – inclusive of thumkas and jhatkas." My fave among the lot has to be garba - the clapping with a beat, twirling, concentration to get the steps right. But in the midst of all of this, due to uncoordinated efforts someone always gets hurt. My feet have been stamped upon and I have stamped upon others feet too. Though at times i have been stamped upon and hav badly hurt my foot, but this has never stopped me from playing garba.. there is something in those music that the whole of tiredness vanishes as soon as the music starts..

So garba has a few steps, often accessorised with claps, jumps. People from age 5yrs to 70yrs come and play garba..

 There’s ‘popat’. It looks like its really tough but it isn’t. Took me a while to perform it with confidence and without biting my lower lip in concentration. But the funniest has to be something called ‘sanedo’.

Sanedo requires one to sit on hunches, beat the sticks on the ground and then jump up all of a sudden and start dancing!!! I almost died laughing when I did it for the first time. And you dance on a song which goes like “Sanedo sanedo lal lal sanedo"

And then there’s dandiya. A stick is all you need. The step is pretty senseless but it’s a refreshing change when garba becomes monotonous. Dandiya is sometimes used to beat up people. Invariably people get -

Hit on the finger

Hit on the knuckle

Or get poked in eye

I have used it once, while dancing to intentionally hit someone on the knuckles hard for my own reasons. It also used for mock sword fighting.

But this is dance. There’s more to Navratri. Prasad (offerings to God). I just realised Navratri for me is less about praying and more about having fun with my friends. It acts like a reunion of sorts. All those whom you have not met the whole year will meet you like long lost siblings in navratri..

Falguni Pathak is like the Trademark of navratri she sings the best! The crowd who come to play when she is singing is like a crowd came in to watch SRK or Amitabh Bachchan.The rates of the passes where she is performing goes up like the petrol prices..

There is a funny Quote on it : Aa Gaya woh mahina jab tu khaas hai, agar tere pass Falguni ka pass hai.. :D

With Navratri, the jazziest outfits come out of the closet. Chaniya Cholis, (heavily embroidered blouse with a skirt and a stole – for women) Kediyas (A blouse with a flare, dhoti, stole and a turban for men) , Churidhar Kurta (for women and men alike), Salwar Kameez (Kameez is the same as a kurta, salwar is similar to a harem pant, worn by women). Oxidised jewelery, sparkly dupattas – you name it!

And then there’s boy-girl dynamics. A lot of eye-candy, staring, eyes locked for brief periods of time. Who’s checking out who, who’s cute. Navratri’s all about that jazz. But it lasts for 9 days only. Very few have managed to sustain the staring, flirting and checking out. Because Navratri eye candy is different from regular eye candy.

Another activity that’s a lot of fun with friends is to search for manic dancing, bad dancers and horrible outfits. Manic dancing tops the list in providing the best entertainment. There’s a lot of uncoordinated, goofy moves which doesn’t go unnoticed by us, in spite of the enormity of the said moves. This is the most celebrated festival all over India..

How to Love a Woman..?

How To Love a Woman..?

Read a beautiful post on a blog… Don’t ask me how I reached that page… I truly don’t know.. I guess I was searching for something, saw something else….got reminded of something, then searched for something else..blah blah blah…and there I was at that page… OK, cutting the crap down..here’s the post -

“As a relationship develops, many activities develop into protocols. You go shopping, dine, and make calls automatically without much thoughts. Before your love becomes stale and goal-less, consider what it means to truly love a woman.

The next chance you get to spend time with a woman you love, be it only 5 minutes, look into her eyes. If you have been together for many years, she probably would not notice it at first. Look long enough and she would notice your gaze. She would ask why. But you do not have to answer. Put away your work, complains, interests, and just put unwavering attention on her. Capture her every wink, hair lines, and every contours on her face. Observe how she moves and talks. Listen to how she sound. Look until her images enter your consciousness. You can feel her in your skin, your flesh, and your pulse. You become at peace with her. Time stops, and the world becomes less important. At that instance, both you and she becomes one, and becomes one with the world. When this happen, it does not matter if there are things both of you can do, or things you can talk about. These are unimportant. Every touch, every step, and every moment becomes sufficient by itself. Even if on a phone, both of your remain silent, that is alright. Because you know you truly love this woman.”

Well… so why did I write it here…because as soon as I read it..it rang some bell somewhere… reminded me of a very very similar article I had written long back (ok not so long back)… I don’t remember it though  but I know it was as similar to this post as it could get… I wish I still had it with me… Huh..I was such a fool not to keep my articles safely..In fact, I don’t have the most of them with me   

Though i remember a song similar to this article..one of my favourite song by Bryan Adams. 

"Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman"

To really love a woman, to understand herYou gotta know her deep insideHear every thought, see every dreamAn' give her wings when she wants to flyThen when you find yourself lyin' helpless in her armsYou know you really love a woman
When you love a womanYou tell her, that she's really wantedWhen you love a woman you tell her that she's the one'Cuz she needs somebodyTo tell her that it's gonna last foreverSo tell me have you ever reallyReally, really ever loved a woman?Yeah
To really love a woman, let her hold youTil' you know how she needs to be touchedYou've gotta breathe her, really taste herTil' you can feel her in your bloodAn' when you can see your unborn children in her eyesYou know you really love a woman
When you love a womanYou tell her that she's really wantedWhen you love a woman you tell her that she's the one'Cuz she needs somebodyTo tell her that you'll always be togetherSo tell me have you ever reallyReally, really ever loved a woman?
OhYou've got to give her some faith, hold her tightA little tenderness, you gotta treat her rightShe will be there for you, takin' good care of youYou really gotta love your woman, ya
And when you find yourself lyin' helpless in her armsYou know you really love a woman
When you love a womanYou tell her that she's really wantedWhen you love a woman you tell her that she's the one'Cuz she needs somebodyTo tell her that it's gonna last foreverSo tell me have you ever reallyReally, really ever loved a woman?Yeah
Just tell me have you ever reallyReally, really, ever loved a woman?OhJust tell me have you ever reallyReally, really, ever loved a woman?

My Top 5 Addictions!!

My Top 5 Addictions!!

 huh….tough! Actually I am the kind of person who would get over even the strongest of likings with time…but I shall give it a shot for sure.

1. Internet, especially the social networking sites coz I am in touch with most of my friends through that only! And yes, I am also addicted to googling just about anything on the planet!

2. Clothes, footwears and bags – Ok, yes I admit I am also one of those, like any other woman 

3. Pampering – Yes I’m addicted to being pampered  And you can blame my father for that!

4. Few songs that I keep humming again and again and again…

5. Thinking – Oh boy, I think a bit too much!

Hah! Done. Finally. It was indeed tough :0 :D

I, Me, Myself!!

I, Me, Myself!!

Some random facts about me… for people who, by any chance, might want to know me better 

- I hate waking up alone. It scares me, for some odd reason! And my day never goes well…i always have my sis besides me.. 

- I get over even my strongest likings (for material things) also. For instance, at some point I might have loved pasta/sandwich but no more  I don’t know if that happens to everybody or is it just me!

- I am obsessed with the stats of my blog. I go check them again and again

- I can’t wait to read reviews for all the new movies that release

- I can’t drink milk. In fact, I can’t even stand the smell of hot milk… every morning I have to stop breathing for few seconds when I prepare milk for anyone. 

- I am a Big Music freak...i can listen to songs anywhere anytime and sing along with them. 

- Many times I keep thinking till I can’t think anymore…yes I am a hardcore ‘thinker’

- Till sometime back I didn’t know the real meaning of the word ‘crib’ (Ok, this one most of you know!)

- I don’t like people with incorrect grammar

- I simple love surprises…big or small….doesn’t matter 

- I can’t forgive and forget…things get stuck in my head and it takes me time to get them out. I don’t particularly like this about myself

- I love to learn

- As for the fact.. i love myself!!

Anyone who thinks he/she knows me may want to add some points in the comments!

Barfi! : as sweet as its name!

Barfi! : as sweet as its name!

I don't really write reviews about any movies on my blog, but this movie is different,it made me write about it..  This movie actually made every one a critic..

The Trailer itself made a stirr among people.. Barfi! had entered my consciousness with its adorable trailer...However, there was an apprehension,  “What if I don’t like the film? What if the film falls flat on its face just the way KITES did?”

In an industry which has a trove of romance sagas, it is very difficult to dole out a film on love that can successfully stand apart, and bear no similarity with anything produced ever. Having watched it at its release, I have searched my words for several hours and would say that the film does not end when one comes out of the cinema hall. This one stays with you well beyond. This movie has it all. Love,Tragedy,Comedy,suspense, lovely songs,scenic views,great actors, everything for it to make a good movie..Barfi has Love at its most innocent self..simply adorable.makes u laugh,weep,but most of all, it makes u wana fall in love wid "Love"..

Let’s start with the beginning – how often have we felt bored of watching the initial frames of the film – with statutory warnings and names of media partners rolling. But ‘BARFI!’ makes it interesting with a song that catches you almost off guard. “Picture Shuru” it is very interesting and will catch your attention at the very moment!

Barfi! is the story of Murphy/Barfi (Ranbir Kapoor) set in 1970's Darjeeling and Calcutta. Barfi is a mischievous and clever deaf-mute youth who falls in love with Shruti (Ileana D'Cruz). While Shruti feels affection for Barfi, she prefers to marry a man approved by her parents. When several years later, Shruti and Barfi meet again, he lives with Jhilmil (Priyanka Chopra), his autistic childhood friend who suddenly goes missing. As Shruti helps Barfi find the girl he now loves, she understands that she has never stopped loving him. Love and the pursuit of happiness are delicately portrayed by all three actors.

i'd like to start with Ileana D'cruz..one of Telugu cinema's leading actresses, is a fine match for Ranbir Kapoor. She looks the part and smoothly takes the plot to emotional places that are difficult to attain for an actor, particularly because she is mostly silent herself when she is with her costar.she looked lovely and beautifully portrayed the character of shruti..Her expressions through the song “Phir le aaya dil” speak volumes of Shruti’s sadness for deserting Barfi, and the longing that still looms in her heart. A good debut indeed!!

 Now i'd like to talk about my personal Favourite actress Priyanka chopra..‘BARFI!’ will rank among Priyanka’s finest performances. i m still to find a role she can't do..she has done great work in all her movies til date.. but this one will remain my personal favourite 4ever!As the autistic Jhilmil who is distracted by a lot of stuffs but has her heart going out for Barfi, she is outstanding. It is difficult to maintain the thin line of distinction between abnormal and retard – and she has done it brilliantly..The way she looks with curiosity at everything that catches her fancy, the way she wipes her nose at everything that surprises her, the way she shrugs off anyone who touches her and the way she loves Barfi – everything about Priyanka’s Jhilmil is beautiful. In an industry where ‘looking good’ is a must for the heroine, Priyanka deglamourises herself to an extent that might almost be like jeopardising her career. My favourite moment is when she tries to emulate Shruti, wraps a sari around her skirt and top, and lifts the top to see if her waist can look as beautiful as Shruti’s. She is the puppy dog you cannot but fall in love with. I loved the way she screamed “Barpheee”.the other fav moment of her in the movie is when Jhilmil sees Shruti along with Barfi in the pre-climax, she guards Barfi – indicating “No Entry” for Shruti in their lives. This is one scene that completely melts your heart..

Now coming to the Man of the show himself Ranbir Kapoor.. to tell u the truth i m not a huge RK fan but yes i m confessing i loved him in the movie..there is no adjective that can do justice to what he has done in this film.  I am sure the Kapoor clan must be prouder of producing their finest actor in him. He carries the film on his shoulders effortlessly..The Dumb mute character played by RK is remarkable..truely amazing! i loved the way Barfi and Jhilmil showed their love to each other by touching thier forehead with each other..a very unique way to show your love.

Music by pritam is outstanding.. the finest album of Pritam in a very long time..all the tracks will make a place in your heart for sure! I must say Anurag Basu has done a wonderful job by making such an interesting and out and out full entertaining movie which will keep you glued to the movie.. Anurag basu take a bow you have changed the outlook of Indian cinema by your barfi!

A bow down to everyone of you for making such a masterpiece.. kudos to all the actors great job done by all of u..!! :)

What do women really want?!!

The baby has been ignored way too much. I have been a very bad girl. And no excuses this time. There is so much happening in life that I can write a book, let alone a blog post. But then, when there is way too much happening in life, something’s do take a beating. And in my case it was my once cherished blog. So no more saying I will be regular, it’s rather I be regular and say later.

so, my next topic is :

What do women really want?!!

Many a philosophers have spent a lifetime trying to figure this one out. Many a sages went through time to get the answers. But does anyone really know?? Here is my attempt to answer the question as I see it. For the one woman really close to me is Me.

What women want is control over her destiny, a control over her life.

We want freedom of choice, of opinion, of living the way we want.

We want to be secured and yet be fancy free!

We want a man who loves us, respects us and cares for us. We want a man who keeps us on a pedestal up there and adore us. We want a man who really wants us.

We want children when we want them and not when the world thinks we should have them.

We want a home. A warm welcoming place to come back to.

We want friends who are as mad as us and yet understand us.

We want a career and we want the choice to quit when we wish.

We want money. We want the perfect wardrobe. We want a lot of shoes. We want holidays and vacations.

We want a healthy body. We want to love our curves, our color, our skin and our hair. And we do. Please let us be.

We want to walk at any hour without carrying the pepper-spray.

We want to be respected. We are proud of who we are, please do not force us to think otherwise.

We want to be individuals first and then be seen as “women”.

Is this asking for a lot??

Happy Independence Day!!

Happy Independence day!!

Hello every1..!! 1st of all wish u all a very happy 66th independence day!! :)

  This day 15th August of every year is a golden day engraved in the history of the world. We got freedom on this date and it is a day worth a celebration. When we celebrate it by hoisting the flag, playing our National Anthem with fervour, distributing sweets, we need to sail back into the past to remember and pay homage to the builders of our nation.  

My dear friends, We were the privileged lot to have been born in free India. We were able to breathe the fresh free air since our birth. If at all we want to know the pangs of agony of being slaves under a foreign rule, we must ask our elders born before 1947. It was indeed a Himalayan task for every Indian those days to fight against those powerful giants – the British rulers. We must not allow those hard times and struggles fade away from our memories. Hence it is befitting for us to celebrate such National festivals and recall those heroic deeds of our National heroes. We remember them today.  

 aye mere vatan ke logon
zara aankh mein bhar lo paani
jo shaheed hue hain unki
zara yaad karo qurbaani

koi sikh koi jaat maraatha
koi gurakha koi madaraasi
sarahad pe maranevaala
har veer tha bhaaratavaasi
jo khoon gira parvat par
vo khoon tha hindustaani
jo shaheed hue hai unki zara yaad karo qurbaani...

thi khoon se lath-path kaaya
phir bhi bandook uthaake
das-das ko ek ne maara
phir gir gaye hosh ganva ke
jab ant-samay aaya to
kah gaye ke ab marate hain
khush rahana desh ke pyaaron
ab hum to safar karate hain
kya log the vo deewane
kya log the vo abhimaani
jo shaheed hue hai unki zara yaad karo qurbaani.

Right from Mahatma Gandhi to the local patriotic leaders Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Chandrashekhar Azad, Sukhdev.. we owe our gratitude. When we regard those martyrs who laid their precious lives for our sake, we must not ignore the common people who sacrificed their lot for the good cause. There were farmers, land lords, businessmen, teachers, writers, poets and students who helped the land achieve the long cherished freedom. T oday we have come a long way in the path of free India. We have proved ourselves worthy of freedom. We are considered as the largest democracy in the world. 

                                                                                                

How proud we were when Vijay Kumar, Sushil Kumar, Gagang Narang, Saina Nehwal, Mary Kom, Yogeshwar Dutta made our National Flag flutter and‘Jana Gana Mana’ played at the background in London? We are proud of it and feel very happy about all these positive aspects. But are we blind to the black clouds surrounding us? Are we very successful in using our freedom in the right manner? If so, why should there be so many bomb blasts, killings, attacks on government offices, cases against so many politicians and so many unstable governments? Well my dear friends, what can we do at this juncture? Should we go and catch the terrorists? Should we fight against the corrupted politicians? Or should we take over the country into our hands by waging another war for freedom? No, we are not expected to do all these things. We must keep observing things around us. We will have our own day. Before that, let us do our duty of preparing ourselves to be well-educated citizens of tomorrow. We must make India well educated..we must stop corruption. Before Complaining abt it.. ! we must take the 1st step and try and make the change by ourselves.. Lets make India the best!

(bhaarat hamko jaan se pyaara hai
sabse nyaara gulistaan hamaara hai) - (2)
sadiyo se bharat bhumi duniya ki shaan hai
bharat ma ki raksha me jivan kurbaan hai
bharat humko jaan se pyaara hai
sabse nyaara gulistaan hamaara hai

ujade nahi apana chaman, tute nahi apana vatan
mandir yahaan, masjid yahaan
hindu yahaan, muslim yahaan
milke rahe ham pyaar se, jaago

hindustani naam hamaara hai
sabse pyara desh hamaara hai
janmbhumi hai humaari shaan se kahenge hum
sab hi toh bhai bhai pyaar se rahenge hum
hindustani naam hamaara hai
sabse pyaara desh hamaara hai

aasaam se gujarat tak, bengal se maharashtra tak
jaatee ka ye hum ek hain, bahasha ka ye sur ek hai
kashmir se madras tak, keh do sabhi hum ek hain
aawaj do hum ek hain jaago...

JAI HIND!! 

Facts and Life of a Mumbaikar!

Life of a Mumbaikar!!

Well i have been willing to write about this since a long time.finally i m about to write about Mumbai..well to start with i m a true mumbaikar..i m born nd brought up in mumbai..so beware, this might be a lengthy blog..as i can write on and on about mumbai..let me clear out when I mean Mumbaikar, I mean WE , the north Indians, South Indians, Gujaratis and Marathis and others who have stayed in this city for long enough to be domiciled as Maharashtrians (There is a difference between a Maharashtrian and a Marathi). Not the Raj Thackeray types but the true Mumbaikars who make the city of Mumbai.

Mumbaikars are always busy.No matter what time of the day, what day of the year we are just always busy.We are always in a hurry to either catch some train or do something. Ask a Mumbaikar , 'Whats the time?' and 8 out of 10 times he will get irritated that you have wasted his few minutes asking the question.

To identify a mumbaikar these are some common traits :

VADA PAV : Someone who does not like it , is not truly a Mumbaikar. And mind you all, we do not take anything negative on wada-pav lightly.We will fight back and abuse you like no one else has ever done before.

Prefer trains over Car : Again since time is money for us and we are a bunch of modest people , a person with an annual income of a million would also be travelling by trains to avoid the traffic and to reach his destination faster. We hardly believe in showing off.

 Think of Parking when we buy a car : In a city that is crowded and cramped the biggest trouble in the life of a Mumbaikar buying a car is to find a parking place.

Least MTI in English :  We will not have a thick accent nor will we pronounce English words in our mother tongue.

Impure Hindi : A Mumbaikar's Hindi would be comic and the worst in comparison. The term uses is Bombaiyya Hindi for the Hindi we speak. It is a mix of many languages and terms.

Some Facts of a Mumbaikar! 

1. we say "town " and expect everyone to know that*this means south of Churchgate.

2 we speak in a dialect of Hindi called 'Bambaiya Hindi', which only Bombayites can understand.*

3. Our door has more than three locks.

4. Rs 500 worth of groceries fit in one paper bag.

5. Train timings (9.27, 10.49 etc) are really important events of life.

6. we spend more time each month traveling than we spend at home.

7. we have the following sets of friend: school friends, college friends, neighborhood friends, office friends and yes, train friends, a species unique only in Bombay.

8. Cabbies and bus conductors think you are from Mars if you call the roads by their Indian name, they are more familiar with Warden Road, Peddar  Road, Altamount Road .

9. Stock market quotes are the only other thing*besides cricket which we follow passionately.

10. The first thing that you read in the Times of India is the " Bombay Times" supplement.

11. You take fashion seriously. You're suspicious of strangers who are actually nice to you.

12. You compare Bombay to New York 's Manhattan instead of any other cities of India.

12. The most frequently used part of your car is the horn.

13. You insist on calling CST as VT, and Sahar and Santacruz airports instead of Chatrapati Shivaji International Airport.

14. You consider eye contact an act of overt aggression.

15. Being truly alone makes you nervous.

16. You love walking through knee deep mucky water in the monsoons, and actually call it ''romantic'.

17. Only in Bombay , you would get Chinese Dosa and Jain Chicken.

18. our local trains are fully packed.. if u want an out n out experience get in a local trains..u'll hav the best experience of ur life!

19. juhu chowpatty is our Kolwa beach of Goa..

20. Nariman point, Worli Sea Face and Bandstand are our favourite holiday destination!

Happy Friendship Day!!

Friendship Day

“Friends are God’s way of taking care of us’’.

As u all know Friendship day is around the corner..and as always most of us are excited to celebrate this day wid our good friends!! :) yes i kno..bcoz i m one of you! :) :)

A friend is our sharing partner, fun-mate, wisdom zone, mentor, guide and a lot more than just a person who accompanies or talks to us. Every day and every moment spent with a friend is a bundle of joyful laughter and unlimited fun. Nobody can ever replace that special place which friends occupy in our life. Therefore, to mark the importance of friends and honour the bond of friendship the first Sunday of every August is celebrated as “Friendship Day” all across the globe. This year Friendship Day falls on 5^th August 2012.

Friendship Day is especially very popular among our young generation and is celebrated with great zeal.  we all plan out and try to spend the whole day wid our friends..friends exchange bands ..some even prepare hand knit friendship bands. Some grab white T-shirts Pick some fabric colours, print their hand-impression with a lovely message at the back of the T-shirt and gift it to their friend. some decorate each others hands with marker pens with their initials or some special messages..some exchange gifts and many more things...there are too many things to be gifted and done for your friends on this special day! you must all be thinking how i kno so much abt it..well its because i hv experienced all this things..

In my school days there was a time  when me and my frnds after classes and school used to get down and exchange friendship bands..and then used to decorate each others hands & face with different messages..some were nasty funny messages some were lovely poems..those days were soo funny and soo good.. I soo miss those days.. Now-a-days we don't really get to spend the whole day wid friends..though we still manage to spend the whole evening together.. :) we get together in the evening finish wid our usual ritual of tieing bands on each others wrists nd writing messages on each others hands n later hav a lovely dinner together.. :) For me friendship day has always been a dig deal..as i love my friends a lot..

Friendship Day is a time to pay a small tribute to our friends and let them know how special they are. so,cherish your bond by being always available for each other and never let communication gap affect your relationship.And enjoy the day with your lovely friends.. :) 

HAPPY FRIENDSHIP DAY!!

We are Friends
I got your back
You got mine,
I'll help you out
Anytime!
To see you hurt
To see you cry
Makes me weep
And wanna die
And if you agree
To never fight
It wouldn't matter
Who’s wrong or right
If a broken heart
Needs a mend
I'll be right there
Till the end
If your cheeks are wet
From drops of tears
Don't worry
Let go of your fears
Hand in hand
Love is sent,
We'll be friends
Till the end!!!!