A Time To Reflect

charukesi April 28th, 2008

Not tonight, dear, I have a head-ache…

[spotted on a wall in a Bombay chawl]

Clearly, being a god doesn’t come with any guarantees either.

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charukesi April 10th, 2008

…neither of them mine. hah! gotcha.

If you have heard great things about those Thai massages and are dreaming of pretty young things softly caressing your skin with fragrant oils, here is something to make you pause and reflect. Sure you can choose to walk into a dimly lit massage parlour and live out that fantasy but chances are you will end up with some such rough-kick-boxing-meets-sadistic-massage routine and then where are you?

I tried a “relaxing” shoulder and neck massage (right, that is how optimistic I was, given the sorry state that my neck and upper back have been for years now) - I sat for maybe one and a half minutes before the ouch! OUCH! OUCH! OUCH! finally got through to the masseuse (I think I had fainted in pain by then) and she stopped, giving me just enough time to make a run for it. And this was after several minutes of detailed instructions and requests for a “soft massage” - absolutely no pressure please, see the surgery scar here? and so on.

After all this, I still went ahead and took a foot massage when mall-hopping got too tiring. And I am happy to report total bliss, everything I had hoped for (pretty young things excluded, of course). An hour of feet pampering and I was ready to hit the shopping scene again.

And on the road, this. I have no idea what this means though. And all within twenty minutes!

Match made in the heavens?

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charukesi February 15th, 2008

Browsing through TV channels this evening after a long time, I saw an ad for secondshaadi.com (alright, so it has been ages since I watched television, not counting peripheral vision soaps when I find myself in Chennai). Old woman, old man, young girl, small kid, each of them talks to someone off-screen, listen to me… Indian “culture” being what it is and all that, this website sounds like an interesting idea. For one, it starts off with expectations being practical and realistic - no fair, convent-educated, homely… And both partners know (hopefully) what they are looking for and why they are on that site.

I immediately hopped over to the site, and what do you know - they have pages devoted to tips to make the second marriage successful. Surely, the apprehension and uncertainty is much more. This article says that secondshaadi.com had 20000 registered users within four months of launch. The brain behind this, Vivek Pahwa says here, While 30 per cent of our registered users are woman, 58 per cent are from top seven Indian cities, 30 per cent from smaller cities and 12 per cent from overseas, showing all parts of the society are welcoming the idea. Especially women in smaller towns - for whom the “stigma” is possibly stronger. The article also mentions other niche websites - positiveshaadi.com for HIV positive people, and idontwantdowry.com.- which incidentally, has women who have registered - so a site for those who do not want to give or take dowry. Now to go check these sites out.

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charukesi October 27th, 2007

Shoefi writes on the trauma of moving homes and asks - what would you save in a fire? Physical possessions, maybe… but what about all those special little things that have no meaning outside your memory and heart… somewhat like how you can return the samaan - the luggage - but what about the geeli mehendi ki khushboo, jhoot moot ke shikwe - the… baggage?

Catching up on news, I came across this on Washington Post - What Fire Couldn’t Destroy

But then the definition of home emerges. It isn’t just a house. It’s not the contents, or the walls, but the true feeling of that home — and all that it represents. Our homes are our foundations, retaining in their walls our memories and all the experiences that happen within them.

And also - What to Save From a Fire - Until they’re (material things) gone, it’s easy to tell yourself those things don’t matter. Then material things become a proxy for all the nonmaterial things you lost too. Peace of mind, say, or a sense of where you came from. Or an identity as someone who gives handouts and doesn’t take them.

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charukesi October 25th, 2007

Here are two great new blogs I came across recently - Ideas for development - an international group blog meant to stimulate debate on development issues. [through LSE’s media blog] and a blog devoted to creativity and innovation - get FreshMinds blog - ideas so fresh they could be slapped - heh! [through the Innovation Weblog].

Do check them out…

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charukesi October 17th, 2007

I got this extremely interesting text message today from one of Reliance’s numerous marketing services - I quote - It’s Breaking News watch this HINDI film that dares to reveal the secrets of a string operation released on 5th Oct. (bold mine, caps theirs). And I also read about another film to be released soon - called ‘The breaking news’ or ‘Breaking the news’ - as opposed to ‘It’s Breaking News’ - and so the movie-going public get strung along…

***
Today’s Heartline in HT Cafe carries this message -

Hi broadminded gal : I saw your reply. I want to know you more - name, city and hope to meet you someday. If you see this, please reply me through this column. Your handsome guy.

Handsome guy meets broadminded gal - surely the love story of the decade. I wonder what her ‘reply’ was. And yes, I know Dilip usually does this sort of thing (find and blog such gems, not write to broadminded gals in Heartline asking for their name) - but I am standing in temp for him while he is busy applying for various interesting courses in Britain.

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charukesi September 26th, 2007

Like everyone else, I watched Shah Rukh Khan cheer for the Indian team at SA (later, I also read that he was praying - like everyone else was, said he). And just after that, I read Neha’s post Fair, lovely, handsome and blah!. Reminded me of something I read a long long time ago - Michael Jackson has come full circle, from poor black male to rich white female. That was Michael Jackson, I am not saying anything here about Shah Rukh Khan. Go see any of the pictures floating around of SRK with son at the stadium.

Update - September 27th : and what do I see this morning in Bombay Times? ‘Who’s da king?’ - The undisputed King of Pop and the most successful entertainer of all time according to the Guinness Book of World Records, Michael Jackson, and King Khan Shah Rukh of Bollywood, have more than just the superlative King in common other than being two of the most famous humans walking planet Earth. And if you think we’re talking about Michael’s alabaster skin or his signature moonwalk in rhinestone studded trousers, then just ‘beat it’! It’s the Kings’ hair and aviator styles that’s making for haute conversations despite Team India’s marvellous performance at the T20 World Cup. With photographs of SRK and MJ looking oh so cute, like two sis, brothers… Please go find the link on TOI’s epaper if you have the energy - but let me tell you this - Bombay Time actually had to include this caption below the photographs - WHO’S LOOKING LIKE WHOM? Michael Jackson and (right) Shah Rukh Khan - just in case it wasn’t clear, you see.

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charukesi August 1st, 2007

I am feeling very happy today. I finally started music lessons - after years of learning Carnatic music as a kid (as any good Tambram girl of my generation) and then years of never ever singing, followed by years (yeah, I know, that makes me sound so old) of agonizing over resuming music lessons, I finally went ahead and did it today. Sure, I started with Sa Re Ga Ma Pa and will have to keep at it for a few months but it just gives me a happy feeling all over to sing.

When I was in class, little Aditya walked in, all of seven years, hiding behind mother’s pallu. No, he has not learnt music but he sings very well, proud mother said to teacher. Uh, oh! I knew what was coming. Teacher did not.

Oh really? Can you sing Sa Re Ga Ma for me?

No, no, he can sings songs, not Sa Re Ga Ma.

Teacher does a double take and says, ok? what song do you want to sing?

Aditya twists and turns and hides even deeper into mom’s pallu. Go on, beta, sing your favorite song…

Humko maloom hai, ishq masoom hai, dil seeeeee… the tune runs away, boys makes no attempt to catch it and taal, what be it please? but what the heck, he is only seven - but the mom is not - I look at teacher’s face - you just have to imagine this now - there is no way I can describe the look on her face. And the mom says, he sings so well, no? I have not taught him anything - he has learnt everything on his own, only from TV. Good for him.

***
I know kids will be kids and all that but do parents need to be pushy parents? here is Dance baby, dance from long ago… a similar story.

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charukesi July 24th, 2007

I was in an auto-rickshaw in Vashi last evening going towards the main bus-stand. I asked the auto driver, I need to go near the gurudwara, do you know where it is? Driver man thinks for a moment and says, I don’t know the gurudwara, but there is a Jain temple just down the main road, I can take you there. Chalega? (Will that do?). I guess, at an existential level, chalega - basically since I was interested in neither…

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charukesi July 20th, 2007

This has been going on for the last three weeks - it started well before that - before I took off to London for two weeks.

Mid June…

V, let’s watch Jhoom Barabar Jhoom… it looks interesting.

Hmmmm…? Yeah, you come back from London… we’ll see (not watch, note. see)

Two weeks later…

…V, let’s watch Jhoom Barabar Jhoom… I have heard it is a good movie…

Huh? Everyone says it is terrible. No way am I watching that.

Uma says she liked it. (slightly apologetic tone, bracing self for what I knew was to come)

Uma? Didn’t Uma like Zindagi Rocks? ^sotto voce^ Uma will watch anything. (Sorry, Uma but you will never live that down, not in our household)

Uma did not like that movie. So there.

Yeah, but she watched it. (No refuting that charge).

The next day…

V, let’s watch Jhoom Barabar Jhoom. Annie Zaidi loved it. She watched it twice.

Annie? Isn’t she the one who took you to eat dosas in Delhi?

Yeah, so? What does that have to do with this?

Hmmm… Just shows.

Shows what?

….

I don’t want to watch Jhoom Barabar Jhoom… (Annie, you have never met V - he is normally not so abstruse - it was the thought of paying good money to go watch Bobby Deol that did it to him. I think)

Later that evening…

V…

No!

No, what?

No, we are not going for Jhoom Barbar Jhoom.

Oh, ok…

I just thought I would tell you that Baradwaj Rangan recommends it.

…(seeing that flicker of hesitation, swoops in for the catch)

He says if you liked Jaan-e-mann, you will like this. (Going for the jugular)

…….

I liked Jaan-e-mann…

Yipppeeee! There is only a morning show at IMAX (closest to where we live - in far far away Vashi - JBJ came and went from the Adlabs here long ago). Do you want to go? (I may as well push my luck while I am at it)

… (reeling under the attack of the rolling eyes)… this weekend then?

Hmm hmm…

… And today’s paper tells me JBJ is no longer running anywhere close to where we live. A trip to Goregaon or Malad perhaps?

Or can anyone send me links to great blog reviews of Sivaji? And also tell me if it is running anywhere in Mumbai still…

Update - as of Friday evening : JBJ may have gone out of my life forever unseen, but I did catch an evening show of Cheeni Kum with a couple of friends at a theatre in Sion; tiny room with thirty or so seats, what seemed like a DVD (strange messages in between and so on - Should I stop or go on? What do you say?… press F5 to continue types) spewing forth the movie, all in all a very cozy experience. V and I also caught Bheja Fry last Saturday on DVD at the same friends’ home. So my to-watch movie list is looking slightly less healthy than it did a month ago. And oh, also add Don, Ekalavya and Honeymoon Travels - I watched these on my flights to and from London. Now all I need is Dhoom 2 and I am all set for the future. Oh, the travails of being married to a movie-hating misanthrope.

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