Step into My Shoes, Someday!

Tired Eyes. Brain hitting a road block. Thinking process comes to a standstill. “Write” seems like an abuse. Signs of a writer’s block? Yes, it is!

As I sit typing this, I can literally feel my eyes popping out and hitting the keyboard. Being a writer though an exciting job, can be a bit taxing too. The amount of words that the poor brain has to create! Every single day! With mugs and mugs of coffee to keep awake, and the walks to ignite thoughts does help. Going back to the desk, stretching fingers, and attacking the keyboard with renewed vigor (of course being plugged in at the moment), you finally manage to belt out some good content, the satisfaction showing in your smile.

Oh that and the OCD streak of getting your message in place, sans mistakes. Checking, rechecking, for God knows how many times. Firing off the content and yet thinking if there’s something that might have been left out. Going back to the published draft and checking for the umpteenth time, if there’s a mistake. And guess what! You actually find one, sticking out like a sore thumb, leaving you thinking how on earth could you have missed this one out. Whoever said a writer’s job was that of a glorified steno should give a hand at writing, serious-to-God writing, and not just some copy-paste. Easy to be judgmental but not easy being a writer!

And then there’s the other side of life, where you spend time poring over pages of some many novels. Living life literally out of the pages is fun. Reading some other’s writer’s work, imagining stepping into his shoes of what he might have thought before penning this down is a joy in itself. Self-contained! Experienced only when experiencing! Two different worlds, gelled into one!

People always say that the grass is greener on the other side. But No Sir! I love my lawn the way it is! I have found my calling, and I intend to stick to it, no matter how many episodes of OCD I suffer or whoever says anything. I’m glad that I’m over the phase, thanks to music and the support of some dear buddies (who I know are reading this piece). Well hopefully now I can start a slow stream of musings, as and when I feel like. (Psst, I went through this draft five times before I posted it).

Life of a writer, a roller coaster ride!

Conquered the Writer’s Block

It’s a month since I have posted anything on my blog.  Buried nose-deep in work, I managed to come up and breathe. Once home, I used to hit the bed. So I never actually posted anything. Call it lethargy, laziness, procrastination, somnambulism (well, it might not be applicable here but chalo thoda heavy words hi sahi) or whatever I just couldn’t get myself to type even a single word…

Confused about my condition, I almost spent a week scratching my head (thank God I didn’t turn bald) trying to decipher. And ta… dah… I had a bad phase of Writer’s Block. Writing this, I can actually feel a halo above my head (wink wink).  Such enlightenment, I tell you! If you see this post, you can be assured that I’m back with a Bang (not the Bang Bang effect, though. I think I wasn’t in my right senses when I went to watch that movie. I guess it’s the wrath of my stars that I suffered from Writer’s Block.)

Ok now, enough of Blah Blah… Well jokes apart! Now that I have overcome the barrier, I will keep entertaining you with my posts. And it would be great if you guys let me know what you’d like to read. We can create magic together.

P.S. As always, your comments/suggestions/inputs are always welcome. So invaluable, I tell you!

The One...

In the crowd why is it that the heart searches for that special One? In times of sorrow and distress, why is it that you go to The One? All your wishes and prayers circle that One… Day in and day out, round-the-clock, it is that One who occupies your thoughts... Why is that you care less for yourself but a single sneeze or a cough from the One sends your heart racing? You find your entire world only in that One… The One who means the universe to you… Why is it that every happy occasion or news has to be shared with that special One?

No matter what the matter is, how deep the hurt is, why do you find solace in that One's arms? Wishing for the One to be in front of your eyes always… It's as if the world is dark without the One's presence… Hearing the One's voice seems to melt away all your worries, wipes tears, and brings happiness that the world seems small in front of it…

Why the One?

A simple yet complicated answer…

Finding Fanny ~ A Review

Since there was loads of work to finish I didn’t find time to blog. Hence, the late review.

Tuesday (Sept. 16, 2014), I went for Finding Fanny, alone. Ever since I left Pune, this is the first movie I watched in Bangalore. The experience of watching a movie alone after all these months, in a literally empty theater was quite a different feeling.  However, the experience was ruined totally by the movie. Here is my review:

Star Cast:

• Naseeruddin Shan - Ferdie the postman
• Dimple Kapadia - Rosie (Angie's mother-in-law)
• Deepika Padukone - Angela/Angie
• Arjun Kapoor - Savio (Angie's childhood sweetheart)
• Pankaj Kapoor - Don Pedro the painter who lechers after voluptuous women
• Ranveer Singh (cameo) - Gabbo/Angie's husband, who has an unfortunate accident on his wedding day

Was it a movie worth watching and recommending to others to view? Was the movie created just for the heck of it or for any specific message? Was it a movie that would leave an impression on people? The answers shall vary. Was the movie good? Well, that is the only question I can answer perhaps. 

To start with, the movie opens in a quaint little fictitious village in Goa, where everybody minds everybody else's business. 

The story revolves around a road trip undertaken by five mismatched Goans  (no offence to the Goans, since I love Goa and the people there) from a sleepy Goan village after local postman Ferdie finds a letter mysteriously returned to him that he sent decades ago to his beloved Fanny. Assuming that her lack of a reply to his marriage proposal meant that she had found someone else, he’s been pining for her ever since.

Getting wind of the situation young Angie, a widow (since her husband dies on the wedding day after choking on a figurine on the cake), decides to organize a road trip in an attempt to find and reunite Ferdie with his lost love (read Fanny aka Stefanie Fernandes). The road trip also has other travellers - the imperious Rosie (with a massively padded posterior, supposedly to give the comic effect), lecherous artist Don Pedro, Savio, Angie’s childhood sweetheart who’s still bitterly resents her for having chosen his friend Gabbo to marry, and a cat named Nareus, who is un-catlike in his behavior. Fanny is shown as a pretty girl who ends up as a fat, bloated woman. Ferdie's hope that Fanny will be the same, pretty girl after all these years, seems unrealistic. Despite some instances (hoping to tickle the funny bone) like the cat not landing on its legs and being flung out of the running car, Finding Fanny quickly loses its way.

The initial plot and backdrop of the movie, where the postmaster receives a 46-year old, undelivered letter, reminds one of R. K. Narayan’s stories. The chain of events  that leads the team going on a hunt feels like a rubber band stretched to the extreme. The perpetual quest for love fails to deliver the intended poeticism.

I watched the English version, since the time I went only this version was being shown. Maybe the dialogues in Hindi would have been funny. But it can’t change the story.

The movie was as dysfunctional as its characters.  Of course, there were a few instances where you could guffaw, smirk and maybe LOL, but the storyline is quite weak. True, this is a stream away from the commercial, masala genre, yet it was quite lame a film.  But the ride to find Fanny was quite a bumpy one, hoping it would end soon. Had the ending been different, then maybe it would have been a likeable movie. 

My rating: 2/5

P.S. This is my personal view of the movie. It doesn’t intend to dissuade anyone from watching or enjoying it. Individual opinions differ.

Sharks and Music

Ok, so today is Monday. And I’m sitting on my desk, literally jobless (it’s going to be EOD soon). Well, this is what I love about Mondays. Being the first day of the week and NO WORK (literally) is a true relief. No Khoon Chusu Monday!

Then I suddenly I remember, It’s Hammerhead time! Why not!!!

Before you think I was planning on breaking the hammer with my head, let me put your doubts to rest. (Hammerhead is a type of shark and since the website I'm talking about has "shark", hence the name). Just like any other day, I login to my account on Grooveshark and then, it’s music all the way. The best part is that my office has no (Touch wood for that. I don’t want to jinx it, EVER) restrictions, no firewalls whatsoever, for online music. I can just go on listening to online music streaming, without anyone haggling me for any reason. Be it work or no work, I literally turn a deaf ear to my surroundings. Sometimes though, I’m caught singing, (not that loud, but it is fairly audible) along with the song, oblivious to the fact that I’m in office, by my colleagues. Well, the end result is I’m at the receiving end of their jokes, for the rest of the day and whenever they remember my tongue-biting (that’s me biting) blunder.

Isn’t it strange when some lyrics from a particular song tugs a string so deep that you cannot help but listen to it, time and again!? This happens to me all the time. I bless the day when I first came across Grooveshark and created my account. As my profile declares, “Music runs thru my veins. Here's an eclectic mix to suit every mood...”, you will find songs of every genre (at least almost every genre since my playlists keep growing every day, as and when I come across a good song). 

You can take a look of it, yourself - My Playlists on Grooveshark.

This is one of my prized possessions, which I would love to share with you. Feel free to browse through. Who knows! Yours and my taste in music may be similar.

I hope you enjoy listening to the songs as much as I do, everyday! 

Another Leaflet...

This is another poem that I wrote during my tenure as a content writer, in the first company. Though there's no particular significance to the poem, I just penned down thoughts as they came. I hope you enjoy reading this, just as you liked the previous one.

Life Without You...
It's hard to explain in words, how I feel without you...

Walking on the street, reminiscing the past,
Even in a crowd I feel so alone,
Feels like yesterday,
But it's been awhile since you are gone,
Your absence has left a gaping wound in my heart,
Seems like my world has been ripped apart,
In the darkness of the night,
When the whole world is lost in slumber tight,
I sit by the window, allowing tears to stream,
Listening to my heart in pain and sorrow, scream
Pondering over what went wrong and where,
Thinking of the things you never wanted to share.

Faking smiles, so that the world won't know,
The hurt, the pain I try not to show,
No matter wherever I am, whatever I do, 
Everyday is a battle, I struggle to go through,
I find myself always thinking of you,
Looking back at the times we were together,
Basking in immaculate love and care,
Brings a smile and a wish you were still there,
How do I explain, what do I tell,
To make you understand that I'm going through hell,
I wish you could know how it hurts me,
To think of a life without you...

From the Past

My first job was that of a content writer. Writing about different subjects under the sun, I knew this was what I wanted to do. No matter my job was out of the league (not an engineer, neither a doc, nor an MBA), I found my niche. This job gave me the flexibility to explore my creative side too. The poem below is one that i wrote almost two years ago and I did receive some good reviews. Thought I'd share with you too.

Were You Genuine?
Sometimes, things are not the same as they are portrayed...

Never had I known, would our paths cross again,
Meeting you, I realized you are still the same,
I thought I'd be walking the path alone,
But with you by my side, I always feel at home,
I want you in my life,
Just like a desert needs the rain,
Like an answer to my prayer,
I knew, I could turn to you,
You told me you'll always be there.

Whatever I felt, whatever I wanted to share,
I found myself secure in your unfeigned care,
I had so much to tell, so much to ask,
But then I found we were slowly drifting apart,
A feeling that rent my heart,
I thought we would be like this forever,
But you made me realize this was just a dream,
You left, leaving my questions unanswered,
Now all I can ask is - 'Were You Genuine?'

Whoa!!! Sabudana Vadas in Bangalore

I REALLY need to get my eyes checked, ASAP. How on Earth could I have missed out such a big sign? And to think of it I just noticed it this morning, when it has been around for since God knows when.

Well, I won’t confuse you anymore. I think you would have figured out .what I exactly mean, from the title. Walking to work from the bus stop, this morning I just happened to look around. And guess what! My eyes fall on the menu pasted on Mast Kalandar’s window. Mast Kalandar is my savior whenever I crave for authentic North Indian dishes. There’s no added “Southie” masala in the chole bhature or any other recipe, here. It’s pure and titillates your taste buds, every single time.

Coming back to where I left, ever since I left Pune (Maharashtra to be precise) I have been craving for sabudana vadas and anything Maharashtrian that can satisfy my yearning for some awesome food. This morning, seeing the sign so loudly beckoning me, I felt as if a slice of heaven has fallen into my lap. And you can be sure that I made it a point to step into the restaurant during my break to have a bite. My happiness literally touched the sky, when I saw that their menu also boasted of Vada Pav, Kanda (Onion) Bhaji, and something else that I can’t recall right now. But it was a Maharashtrian dish.

It was like water to a parched throat. Like finding an oasis in a desert.  The euphoria when one falls in love the first time. No matter, what adjectives I may try to cook up, there’s nothing  that can describe my happiness.

The waiter there told me that they had introduced these items almost three months back. How blind could I have been, for so long?!? Well, finding my favorite savory so near is a true blessing. Now I can satisfy my craving for sabudana vadas whenever. Better late than NEVER, ain’t it?

God Bless Mast Kalandar!!!

Monday Scribbles

Friday was such a busy day that sadly I couldn’t post anything.  All I wanted was to get out of office and run back to my bed. However, it seems the forces were against me, that evening. I wasn’t getting a direct bus to my home, in spite of standing at the stop for 30 minutes. Finally a bus arrives in all grandeur, which will halt at my bus stop. I board and I manage to get a seat (a rarity on Friday evenings), thanking my stars.

I guess I was getting happy too soon.  The engine smoking up, starts wheezing and coughing like an old man, when finally it dies out.  The driver and conductor, announcing that the bus won't budge (literally) an inch further and we may have to look for alternative transport, snapped a wire in my head. Cursing, I get down and realize the bus broke down half a kilometer away from the bus stop. Wondering if I will ever be able to reach home before 9 to watch MasterChef Australia (it’s a re-run of Series 6. Though I have watched the series when it was relayed, I love watching re-runs too.), I walk towards the bus stop. Luckily, a bus comes soon enough and am on my way home, putting an end to my so-called adventure. Come Saturday, it was quite uneventful, just lazing around, lunching, and reading.

Sunday was supposed to be Ananth Chaturdashi  (Immersion of Lord Ganesh, to be precise) in Bangalore and it was like any other Sunday. No drumbeats, no sound of music, no firecrackers, nothing at all. But then, this is Bangalore, a city which doesn’t celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi. (I wonder what the people celebrate). They do have mandals decorated with idols. However it lacks the gusto, like back in Pune. The entire Pune transforms during Ganesh Chaturthi, wearing a celebratory look. The mandals at every major corner of the city, the aartis, songs blaring out of loudspeakers, everything portray the happy mood of the people. I truly miss the electrifying atmosphere that prevails during the 9 days of Ganesh Chaturthi.  Hmmmm, it’s my bad for comparing Pune and Bangalore. But then since I have chosen to live in Bangalore, I can’t complain, can I?

Sunday night passed, with me trying to recall where and how the weekend went. Well if you are wondering about my late post, let me remind you it’s Monday at work. Most of the morning goes in greeting each other and asking how the weekend was. Mostly the replies are “It was tooooo… short. Didn’t realize when it began and ended”.  Then you go to grab your cup of coffee at the pantry. On the way to and back from the pantry, you meet someone you know, striking small conversations. These activities take up half of the morning. And when you finally do manage to get to your desk and work, you are hit by MMB (Monday Morning Blues). Another half morning is spent in fighting with MMB and putting up your best fight to wrestle out of this mood (The great boxer Ali, would have been so proud of you). All said and done, you are successful in your attempt.  Talking of attempt, I remember that I have a mountain of work to be done. I better start now, lest I end up getting late to go home.

I hope you guys had a wonderful weekend. i promise I will try posting some interesting stuff during the course of this week. Adios, till my next post.

Here’s wishing you a wonderful week ahead. And hoping the weekend comes soon…

A Passing Cloud

Before you guys jump to any conclusion, let me tell you that the poem is just a passing cloud and NOTHING ELSE. Well, you can say I'm trying my hand at poetry, for a change.

It’s just to say that life has its zeniths and nadirs, and it spares none.

TRUE LIES…

Lonely in my head,

I feel so low,

Hiding the hurt and pain,

No one will ever know.

My eyes feel so tired,

Staying awake, spending sleepless nights,

Your face still haunts my dreams,

You are all I see when I turn out the light.

My world shattered so suddenly,

It happened so fast,

I knew all at once,

That none of this would last.

Was I just a game?

Was this all just for fun?

Did my feelings even matter,

To you who were ‘The One’?

I hold my head high,

As I walk by your side,

Though silent tears well up,

And I am slowly dying inside.

Days, weeks, and months have passed,

Keeping secrets, telling lies,

I don't have the strength,

To look either of them in the eye.

My heart has been broken,

Not once, but twice,

Once by my best friend,

And once by his true lies.

I Can Be Your Hero...

3 September, 2014 – this day thirteen years ago (to be precise Sept. 3, 2001), one of the best love songs (well, if you ask me, it’s THE BESTEST EVER LOVE SONG) released.

Hmmmm!!! I’m sure you must be racking your brains coming to the many songs that might have released on this particular day. Well I won’t put you test any further, my dear readers.

Enrique Iglesias’ HERO, first released, on this day and it’s thirteen years old today. So it’s Haaaaapppppppppyyyyyyyyyy Birthday Hero! The lyrics, the music, the singer (ESPECIALLY the SINGER) are just perfect. (Well, I haven’t counted the number of times I have listened to it today. But surely has gone beyond 50 times)

For those of you who don’t know me that well, here’s a sneak peek. I’m a huge, huge, huge fan (u can say I’m gaga, nuts, crazy - add whatever adjective you like - over him) of Enrique Iglesias. And I love every song that he sings. Honestly, there’s nothing that I don’t like about him (wink, wink). But Hero has stolen my heart. And steals my heart every time I listen to it. Jitna kaho utna kam hi hoga iss gaane ke baare mein…

These are my favorite lines that I keep playing in my head all the time:

I can be your hero, baby.
I can kiss away the pain.
I will stand by you forever.
You can take my breath away.

The best thing ever, was when I heard the song, live, at Pune's Amanora Park Town on Oct. 17, 2012. That was the moment when I was literally out of breath. Listening to Enrique, singing live was  the bestest thing I could have ever asked for. It truly was a dream come true. I can just keep gushing about how awesome the song is, but then I’m short of blog space and there’s time constraint, as I need to rush home.

Those of you who have listened to the song, I’m sure you will agree that it’s a love song in the truest sense. And those who haven’t yet (I hardly doubt if there’s anyone who hasn’t) listened to it, give it a try. I’m sure you will love it.

OH, What a song! Every time I listen to it, I get goose bumps the size of dinosaurs, all over. And the best part is the image that conjures up in my head (Psst, Enrique serenading me with the song).

The Sound of Music

A gloomy or a bright day…

Music helps you sail through, all the way!!!

I’m sure many of you would agree!

Been introduced to music at a tender age, it has grown to be my passion. I don’t follow any particular genre, as there’s so many fish in the sea. And “a bit of everything, really” applies true in my case. Why restrict one to a particular zone, when there is an eclectic mix waiting to be tried out, right?

Music has become a kind of drug for me. It’s my anti-depressant when I’m low and my dope when I’m high. I have to listen to music every day no matter what, without which my day seems incomplete. So be it at home, in the bus, or at work, I have my Siamese twin (read music player) wherever I am. It’s more than a need, music has become a necessity, an answer to my life. And thank God for online music streaming, I’m plugged in even during work hours.

I have had a few people telling me that I have a good taste in music and even “you’ve got one helluva playlist”, which I’m glad I do. Cuz I choose my songs, as a jeweler examines and selects a gem. And hey! I have a SMART PHONE (in the literal sense, as well) as it chooses by default the songs depending on my mood. Well at times, it does seem creepy, as if my phone reads my mind. But then, my twin knows me better.

Blame it on my obsession; there have been many times when I have resisted singing along with the song playing. However, once in a while the resistance breaks and I end up singing, oblivious to the fact that I’m in the bus, and much to the amusement of my fellow commuters. Well, what I have resisted is getting up and doing a jig to some peppy song playing.

I can very well say “Music is my life” and not a single day passes on without me being plugged in. It’s as if we have vowed to be together, till death do us apart.

P.S.
Well blogging is all about what influences you, your passions, and what you adore, isn’t it? This is my first attempt and I hope my blogs would be up to the prefixed standards. Being an amateur blogger, I await your suggestions/comments/inputs, good or bad to help me in my quest of blogging. Cheers!