Life - or something like it

I know, I am going overboard with Movie reviews on this blog. But how could I not write about Sridevi's comeback Movie? And boy, what a comeback. There is no one like her. Acting simply runs in her blood and she proved it with this fabulous, not to miss Movie, English-Vinglish. Folks, book your tickets pronto and be prepared to get totally engrossed in Shashi's life. Sridevi plays the role of 'Shashi Godbole', a middle class housewife living in Pune. She lives with her husband who is a typical Indian husband, a  teen aged  daughter, a small son and a gentle mother-in-law. Shashi is independent and earns her own money by making delicious 'Boondi Ladoos' at home, on order. Her life revolves around her family and she puts their priorities before her needs and happiness.  Her family keeps laughing at her bad English and humiliates her everytime she speaks bad English. Her husband underestimates her and does not have any respect for her talents. Her daughter

For want of something to do on a Friday night, hubs and I ended up watching the Movie 'Heroine'. The director who gave us gut wrenching Movies like Chandni Bar, and Fashion that gave a National award to Priyanka Chopra, is not able to create the same spark with 'Heroine'. This Movie could not keep the high I had, after watching a beautiful movie like 'Barfi'. Image Courtesy: Wikepedia This  Movie  is in the typical Madhur Bhandarkar format, where he portrays the rise and fall of the the main character 'Mahi Arora' played by the beautiful Kareena Kapoor. The  Movie is  very  predictable, just like the rising gold prices .The canvas is so similar to Bhandarkar's other  Movies  that you can actually guess what is going to happen in the next shot. The Movie starts at a good pace but starts losing its grip very soon. Firstly, the Movie is peppered with too many characters that are one dimensional and then you have the requisite Gay fashion design

Ratnagiri is nestled between the Sahyadri mountain range and the Arabian Sea in the South west part of Maharshtra called as 'Konkan' or 'Kokan' as we call it in Marathi. Hubs and I decided to visit this beautiful place, to unwind and relax. This was a long awaited break and we were looking forward to it. Ratnagiri did not let us down. We travelled by our car to Kolhapur to meet family and stopped over at Ratnagiri for 2 days on our way back . The Western coast of Maharashtra is dotted with pristine beaches and you can just go in to a trance looking at the Sea. There are many untouched places and you can have the whole beach to yourself, especially in the off season. Here are some photos of our trip.                                What is a beach holiday without a Pina Colada, eh?  We stayed in 'Ratnasagar Beach Resort' which is bang on Bhatye Beach. It is a lovely place which has cottages right next to the beach and one can hear the roar of the ocea

Ever since I have been married, my home has been a magnet for guests. Not a month goes by, when I don't have someone or the other from relatives and friends coming over for a stay. Hubs and I do love entertaining and we have a constant stream of people coming for Lunches and Dinners. I have entertained a lot of people over the years and have faced people who were perfect guests and the ones who managed to raise my hackles with their antics. It is fun to mingle with friends and family over good food and lively conversations. Though sometimes these engagements can become a thorn in your side, when guests do not follow proper etiquette. They forget the basic manners needed to be a good guest.  For all those uninitiated, who don't know how to be a good guest, here are a few tips to help you be a good guest and not a pest . Walk in with a gift : I have observed that my mother never goes empty handed whenever she is invited to someone's house. She always takes a gift to

The much awaited Monsoon finally arrived in my part of India, last month, albeit a bit delayed. Raindrops keep falling on my head every time I step out of my house, but it is still lacking that enthusiasm to become  a heavy downpour. The arrival of Monsoon in India means lush greenery blankets everything. The smell of the damp earth rises and seeps into your entire being and stirs a longing. The parched earth is soaked and everywhere you see the earth is welcoming this precious nectar. I have always had mixed feelings about the Monsoon. Most people consider Monsoon to be a romantic season.  There are things I don't like when it rains too much. The muddy roads: It is such a pain to go walking, you always end up with muddy shoes, muddy feet, dirty clothes..I guess you got my drift The clothes don't dry for days and they even smell if not aired properly.  You can never wear white clothes for the fear of getting splashed with rainwater. Everything that is crisp and cru

This post was winner of Blogadda Mothers Day Contest. 'Maa' used to be a constant fixture in Hindi movies in the 80's and 90's. A stoic and sacrificing figure, wearing a white sari and always a picture of love and devotion. A mother who was always bent over a sewing machine or working at a construction site. A mother who never forgot to make 'gajar ka halwa' and 'kheer' for her son. When talking of celluloid mothers how can we forget Nirupa Roy in the movie 'Deewar'. Hindi Cinema established once and for all...if you have 'Maa' then you don't need Gadi, Bangla or Paisa.  Here is tribute to 'MAA' on this mothers day. And thus the story continues.... P.S: If you observe, all the 'Maa''s in Hindi movies doted on their sons...the celluloid daughters always got this.. Happy Mothers day !!!

                     It is my Happy Birthday tomorrow This will echo in my head throughout the day I will wait patiently for my cake I will make my wishes   At the end of the day

Has it ever happened to you? You badly need to go, you rush into a public toilet, do your deed and find out there is no toilet paper or water? What will you do in this situation? Interesting ideas are popping in my mind. Slow Down, 'gross idea' alert. People with a queasy stomach proceed with caution. 1) Call for help. 2) Cry your eyes out. 3) Clean yourself with the single handkerchief/tissue you carry i.e. if you carry one. 4) Just pull up your pants, walk out and run home to take a hot shower. Dump the clothes in the waste bin. 5) Just pull up your pants and walk out. Spend the entire day in the same clothes and wonder why people are running away from you like crazy loons. 6) Wait a sufficient amount of time for the mess to have dried out, shake your backside vigorously, wait till everything just crumbles and falls off. Pull up your pants and walk off. (I hope, you haven't chucked up your food, I warned ya....) What is it about public toilets? The twins, nauseous and cau

You are in the shower, happily scrubbing away the grime and cleaning your pores. You are covered in soap and at that moment, the phone rings (Why does it always ring when you are in the loo or shower?). You scramble to grab a towel, come out of the bathroom dripping wet and shivering with cold. You take these efforts, so that you do not miss a call from a friend or family. You rush and pick up the phone to hear a debt management agency on the call. You feel like reaching inside the phone and socking the guy on his face. Not that, I do not acknowledge the fact that the telemarketers are just doing their job. But unsolicited calls can actually cheese you off. Most are selling stuff you will never buy. The enthusiastic way in which they try to sell you things which you don't need, can really grate on your nerves. Plus, the wasted time attending such calls can exhaust anyone. A few days back I had a really weird chat with a telemarketer, that too an Indian with a fake British accent. T

For some, sleeping is a way to restore body and mind. For others it is a means to escape from the reality called life. When I was younger, it was a much loved pastime. My mother had a hard time waking me up in the morning. 'Just 10 minutes more, mom' used to be my slogan. I tested her patience each morning. I bet, she used be just short of yanking my covers and throwing a glass of cold water in my face to wake me up. As a child, I had a habit of rolling in my sleep. I was ace at jumping hurdles in the form of sleeping humans and do a crash landing on the floor. Be it at home or in a fast moving train (you know, I am permanently brain damaged because of those jumps). In an attempt to stop further damage, my mom used to build a fort of pillows around my mattress every night. Even that was not a deterrent for me. Life after marriage is totally unimagined. After marriage, the entire concept of sleep, changes. I bet, you are holding your breath now and waiting for me to out some ju

In a recently conducted survey by 'The sanity of women' Foundation, it has been concluded that 'House Lizards' have again topped the list beating 'Cockroaches' as the top ranking pests to scare the living daylights of women, worldwide. The survey was carried out by an independent consultant associated with 'Lazy Pineapple'. The survey was conducted when it was found that a phenomenal number of women and some men turned temporarily insane at the sight of a Lizard, crawling on the wall of their homes. Though, the number of men was significantly low, they comprised of nearly 20% of the sample population. I had always been intrigued by the creature called 'House lizard'.This unpredictable reptile has been my middle sister's nemesis from when she was a moppet. I remember her practically jumping out of her skin at the sight of 'lizzy' on a far off wall. She still has a the same hate relationship with the creature. It used to amuse me to se

When you are a kid, a lot of things remain unexplained and you are just left with lots of questions in your mind. You try to make sense of them on your own. Some mysteries get solved, when a older sibling obliges you with their vast intelligence (at that age, you think everyone is a genius). Other mysteries get solved as you grow older and some linger on till you forget about them. As a kid, TV became the biggest source of unexplained things. Ads and movies sometimes were not what they seemed. Let me explain it to you at length. 1) Condom Ads: I came to know of, what a condom is, much later in life compared to today's generation of kids. Hey! now forget the picture of 'Condom' in your head and now picture a scene where a family is sitting down to watch 'Hum Log' , baccha company an all and suddenly a 'Nirodh' ad comes on TV, the reactions of all members should be noted carefully. My family excepting me, suddenly used to become busy with what-nots. My fathe

It started as a usual lazy Sunday morning. Getting up late and having breakfast at a leisurely pace. I was trawling the Internet looking for entertainment and found that 'Wake up Sid' the new Bollywood movie was running at a cinema in a nearby town. Anytime we want to watch a Hindi movie, we have to drive to another town which has more of a Hindi speaking population. This time it turned out to be a town called 'Blackburn', around 35 miles from where we live. We made it to the movie and found that there were only two other people besides us to see the movie. After the movie, we decided to head to another town called 'Bolton' another 12 miles from 'Blackburn'. My boss owns an amazing restaurant called 'Sizzling Palate' in Bolton. After having skipped lunch, I was looking forward to a well deserved Sizzler. Working for the boss does have some privileges. Hubs and I were bombarded with special treatment and yummy food. Never have I tasted such delici

Amit tagged me recently and I thought this as a good way to put up something on my blog after ages. Here it is A.Attached or Single? Attached and very Happily B. Best Friend? Very many good friends... C: Cake or pie? Cake it is D. Drink of choice? Water or Orange Juice. E. Essential item you use every day? Laptop and mobile. F. Favorite color? Red G. Gummy bears or worms? Neither.:) H. Hometown? Nagpur- The orange city I. Favorite indulgence? Reading and watching movies J. January or July? January when in India. July since I am in UK. K. Kids & their names? None so far. L. Life isn ’t complete without? Family and friends, good food, good books and travelling to new places. M. Marriage date? Dec'99 N.Number of Siblings? 2 older sisters O. Oranges or Apples? Oranges and more oranges. P. Phobias? Dirty Restrooms. Q. Quotes? 'Whatever Happens, Happens for the best' R. Reasons to smile? a good joke. S. Season? The winters in India and the summer in UK. T. Tag people: Anyone

Its no fun sitting in front of the idiot box after coming to UK. In India, I used to switch channels whenever any ads featured between programmes. But now I miss them so much. Here the same boring ads for debt cancellation, Injury claim and some travel companies run over and over again in the same dry tone. I find Indian ads so much more entertaining and lively. There is colour and music and a sentiment added to selling of the product. Who can forget the old ads that became so famous. Here are a few of my favourite old ads. 1) The twirling girl of Nirma Washing Powder 2) Lalitaji and the ' Dhoondhte Reh jaooge ' campaign surf campaign. 3) Jab main chota Baccha tha - Bajaj Bulbs 4) ' Buland bharat ki buland tasveer ' - Humara Bajaj 5) 'I Love u Rasna ' 6) Vicks ki goli lo Khich khich door karo 7) Lime and lemony Limca 8) Kuch khaas hai hum sabhi mein ... Kuch swad hai .... kya swad hai zindagi mein - Cadburys dairy milk 9) Jalebi ad

I have the privilege of being an aunt to 1 niece and 2 nephews. One of them has already surpassed me in the height department ages ago and is on the brink of arming himself with a razor to mow the barely sprouted undergrowth under his nose. He is the only son of my eldest sister. The other two chipmunks are twin kids of my middle sister. Both A (Girl) & B (Boy) have just been potty trained and are on the category of ' I can express my feelings in words now' age. Though I met them when they were tiny bundles, I do get regular updates from my sister about their latest antics. After a recent update from her I got to know 'What all parents do to fool a child into eating his/her food'. Here is how it went... 'A' was refusing to eat her food so her dad 'D' said D: If you taste this new dish mom made, you can speak to 'Princess Snow white'. Skeptical though she was 'A' relented and finished her food. So my sis and Bro-In-law decided to call

Since childhood my parents were very particular that all of us (Me and my two elder sisters) had a wide spectrum of choices in the arts and crafts field. They let us follow our creative pursuits and explore our natural talent. As far as I can remember I have attended 'Kathak Classes' (Indian Classical dance), Singing lessons, drawing and painting, Judo and Karate, Guitar Classes. The dance classes fizzled out after the excitement of one summer. There was a hobby class near our house and mom diligently took us to all the lessons. She also bought us a pair of 'Ghungroos'(Musical anklets...I really don't know the English version). The fun part was to tie them to our legs and make as much noise we can rather than actually practicing the steps. My music lessons died a horrible death. I was in grade 6Th and my mom took us to a renowned singer who stayed close by. My good friend 'M' also joined the class with us. There were many other girls with us including one wh

Things have been really rocking in our corner of the universe. There has been a switch in 'Job Profiles' of the (oh! so typical) dutiful wife and the bread winning Husband. I know, I know, things are changing in India too. I have met Hubby's who cook and help their wives with chores in the house and take pride in the fact that, they are very different from their fathers. Frankly, no matter how much modern or free thinking Indian men are, very few can actually let go of that typical mentality of bossing over their wives and generally having their own way. This is not a 'Male bashing Session' but just a general observation on my part and thoughts shared by countless number of women friends. Where was I? ..umm...yeah the job profile switch... Getting back to it.... Yesterday, we had invited over friends for dinner. They are 'S' the Hubby('A' s classmate), 'M' (his wife) and two kids. They are Indians and live just next door to us. With the rec

Please check out the video below...I got this as a forward from a friend. I died laughing... A few thoughts came to mind... 1) Why does he look like a bad version of Elvis? 2) What does 'H' stand for? 3) Where are his Red Undies?? 4) He does need to go on a diet real fast....stop eating Rice and hogging on Idlis. 5) I simply loved his dance routine. 6) How come Jayaprada could keep a straight face while dancing with that Joker? Any more thoughts folks....I am so eager to hear your reactions.

I know the title is much too dramatic but yes that's what comes to mind when I think about the day 'A' (Hubs Darling) met daddy dearest. For all those people who don't know my father, here is a bit of a glimpse. He is a sweet man who believes in simplicity in life. He is very straightforward when it comes to things which concern his family. Very astute about money and has worked really hard to give us a good life. He is an extremely quiet man and has no clue how to do idle chitchat. My Mother is quite opposite in terms of talking and they suit each other perfectly. She can talk nineteen to dozen and just needs a faithful audience. 'A' and I decided to get married and we informed our respective parents. My father wanted to meet 'A' (typical filmy ishtyle) and so I called 'A' over for tea. Even though I had given him an idea of how things will proceed, 'A' was tremendously nervous since he was meeting my father for the first time. The meeti