Life - or something like it

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

Nah, Nah, you got it all wrong. I am not writing a Romantic post here. Psst...let me tell you a secret, though I  am a sucker for Romance, I hide it quite well with my brash attitude. There, now it is out in the open.  Sweet Nothings is a part of the ' Cooking Disasters ' series, and my dish was actually on the verge of becoming, a Sweet NOTHING. Come festival season and the women in Indian households go into a cooking overdrive. My FB wall is plastered with orgasmic pictures of delicious dishes, posted by many a budding 'Nigella Lawsons' (I think she is too hot). Many of my old readers know that I am repelled to cooking and I really have nervous jitters, when there is a party at my place (I pretend to pass off restaurant bought food as my own..just kidding). I feel that the 'cooking gene' was really watered down by the time it was passed over, from my Mom to my two older sisters and finally me.  To come back to Sweet Nothings, this ' Ganesh Chaturthi&

Wine is bottled poetry - Robert Louis Stevenson A few days back, I had a chance to see the Four Seasons Winery of the UB group at Baramati near Pune, Maharashtra. Being related to the chief winemaker, Abhay Kewadkar, has its perks. Hubs and I travelled to Baramati one fine morning and reached the Winery in around two hours. The minute you get close to the Vineyards, you can see a majestic  building surrounded by vineyards. The building is styled as a French château and looks really pretty. The Winery has fourteen suites where people can come and live. The suites are luxuriously decorated and very comfortable. The suites overlook the vineyard and each one has a balcony where you can sit and enjoy the beautiful view of the rolling hills and the vineyard.            Beautifully landscaped interiors inside the Château The lovely stained glass windows Another beautiful piece          A swimming pool, Jacuzzi and a large party deck that overlooks the

I could see the bright light through my closed eyes, I knew it was there, I was sure that it was not a dream. I tried to speak, but my mouth felt as if it was taped shut. I could hear them speaking, there were words, low murmurs, sound of metal striking metal. I felt a pressure on my abdomen and heard water gushing some where. Photo Courtesy:  Free Digital Photos My heart was fluttering and I was unable to swallow. I wanted to move my hands and scream, 'I am awake', 'I can feel and hear you'. I tried to open my mouth to scream but no words came out. My hands felt as if they were made of lead. I used all my strength to move them, to lift a finger, to show them I was awake. No one could hear the scream inside my head. I was a trapped inside a nightmare, from which there no escape. My confused mind started playing tricks and I thought I was in a bad dream. A nightmare, that was so vivid that it seemed unreal. I thought, that I will wake up soon and feel silly abou

So you have decided to take in some Sun, Sand and Surf and are set to have a fun day on the beach. Pardon me, Mumbaikers, this post ain't for you. We all know the state of the beaches in Mumbai. For you to have fun on a beach, it should first resemble a beach and that is the most important part of the whole fun part. And remember how much ever we love to ape the West, never ever visit the beach in Summer when in India, like they do. All you will get, is some charred skin and your will totally end up looking like a peeling carrot. Don't you think we are brown enough already? Try to visit a beach in the winter, that is when you will have the most fun. There are some cheesy things you have to do on the beach. It is compulsory to do them else your body will be fed piece by piece to Zombies. Don't worry, I totally made that up. That is my hangover talking, after watching too much of the fabulous 'The Walking Dead' . So back to the Beach, here is how to to have f

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