
Somebody, recently, asked me – ‘You buy everything online, kya?’ |

Somebody, recently, asked me – ‘You buy everything online, kya?’ |
‘ND, you are not normal. Trust me when I say this. You are not normal, period,’ my friend said with such intensity that I had to look at her with my mouth gaped wide open. Nobody had ever said this to me, so, it was something thrown at me out of the blue. |
Knock! Knock! Knock! The door knocked for the tenth time. My sister was outside, impatiently calling me out. It was a March morning. The weather was pleasant, with the winters finally over and spring just around the corner. Spring! Spring brought so much along with it. Colours, vibrancy, and loads of enthusiasm after all those frigid gray winters months. The trees start sprouting the greens again, and the blooms of those flowers ( especially, in my mother’s garden )...ah, they changed the entire look of the planet. Oh.. How I loved splendid spring, yet, dreaded it so too ~ only for one reason. |
I’m a home-body and it’s no secret. The amount of writing that I do will give a clear indication of how much time I spend at home. And it’s been always like that, for as long as I can remember. When I was in my native town, in school-days, I’d just perch up in a cozy corner of my home and let my imagination run riot with new ideas and whatever I fancied, which, I’d then carefully pen down in pages and pages of white sheet. It was my world and I loved it. Those scribblings would become my most precious possessions in the form of stories and poems, which till date I’ve preserved with out-most care. The whole atmosphere in our house was such that I’d just not want to go out and waste my time frivolously. I loved those creative pursuits instead. Of course, I was into sports and stuff, but after that done, I’d run back to the comfort of my home. Good thing about native home was, my parents were around and all things were taken care of – be it kitchen, house-hold stuff or even getting the home re-done every few years, and life was too good. |
Motherhood is such an amazing and divine experience in someone’s life, that not just the one who actually give birth are affected by it ( of course in a good way ), but those nearby - witnessing the whole event, are also not left untouched by it all especially if the birth takes place in one’s own household or to someone very close. I witnessed the birth of 3 delightful angels and those have been the most precious moments in my entire life, even though it wasn’t really my own kid. When my sister gave birth to her first-born and I saw the tiny little bundle lying in deep sleep, looking like a cute mouse, I felt as though I had given birth to him myself. Every single day of watching him growing up, was perhaps the most awe-striking days of my life. Holding him in my arms was so precious that when I think back, I still remember the soft baby powder smell that he was always dabbed in or the oily smell of him just before his bath. My mother taught my sister the process of oiling the baby, and would often say how important it is for a child’s growth – a good ( baby ) oil massage two-three times a day. Talking about oil ( a bit different kinda ) ~ a woman goes through a lot during her pregnancy. Her abdomen gets stretched and she also puts on a considerable amount of weight, which in turn leaves marks in her body especially after the delivery when the skin is left flabby. This can leave a not so pleasing look as my friend, who recently delivered twins, had to face. I asked her about the whole process ( pregnancy, delivery and post delivery ) and she shared her opinion below. So, over to Mrs.Sikha Dutta --- “Well, I am new in this so forgive me if I make any mistake. Being pregnant was a long awaited cherished or yearning ( call it whatever ) dream of mine. Almost 6 years of marriage had passed and I was getting worried. We tried and tried, but were unable to have any baby. We went to many gynecologists who did several fertility tests, but were unable to pin-point the exact problem. We were rapidly losing hope, but then suddenly, one day I felt I was pregnant. Yes felt! It was as if I almost knew - intuition perhaps. I had missed my period by few months and when we went to check this time, the results were positive. Both me and my husband were thrilled to the core. It was as though our prayers were finally heard. But the doctors gave me another surprising news too – it was not one baby but two inside me. Don’t they say – “bhagwan jab dete hai to chappad phad ke dete hai.” |
When a girl gets married, many things change. Her family gets extended and she is expected to look after not just her husband, but that extended family too. Well, it is hard work but she gets through somehow. But, when she steps into motherhood, her entire world goes topsy-turvy, because of another individual’s entry into her life. An individual, her own flesh and blood, that demands her constant attention! It demands, demands and demands; giving only wails, gurgles or giggles ( at times ) back. This individual can really stress one out as it grows each day, because, the list of its demands too grows and how. And, as a mother is the one closest to this individual, the onus to fulfill those demands mostly fall on her. A mother lives and breathes every moment for her kids. After giving birth, a mother's life is no longer theirs, its controlled by the whims and fancies of the tiny individual – her baby. I am one such individual who has perhaps demanded the most from my mother since my childhood ( or birth perhaps ). And she has patiently tried to fulfill all of those; and at times, even the most weirdest and outrageous of demands too. My mother never experienced her own mother, as my grandmother had left for her heavenly abode when she ( i.e my mother ) was barely 7-8 yrs old. She had herself never knew what was motherly-love in a large family of 10 siblings, so when she herself became a mother, her sole endeavour has been to be the best mother possible ( via trial and error & hands-on method ) to both me and my sister. And I must say she has succeeded! For someone who never had her own mother all through her growing years, she has not left a single stone unturned, to make us well looked after, giving good values and being always there. As a child, she had many unfulfilled dreams that she tried to fulfill through us. She loved music, dance and art, so as she could never pursue those herself, she enrolled both me and my sister early on in these extracurricular artistic activities and took great interest in our progress. My mother has been a working-mom throughout her life. Every morning, she’d hurriedly wake up, clean the house, prepare breakfast/tiffins for us all, send us off to school, then get ready herself and go to her office. Those days we had no maid, so my mother slogged day-in and day-out. In the evenings too, she’d prepare dinner for the entire family, do the day’s laundry, water her plants, go to the bazaar to buy vegetables/ groceries etc. There was hardly a moment when she got time for herself to relax. On top of it all, our house was situated in a steep hillock, so, as if doing house-hold chores wasn’t enough, she had to climb up and down the hill everyday three-four times whether while going to office or the market or doing some other errands. No rickshaws/ autos would agree to drive up the steep hill, so it was very tiring, that led her to having blood-pressure and heart problems, later on. As I’m recollecting those days, I must admit here, we had taken her hard-work for granted. As kids, we didn’t realize what she was going though. We barely helped, cos’ we used to think our mother was a super-woman. But that’s far from reality, we realize that now as we are more matured. I’d like her to spend the rest of her life totally stress-free. But a mum is a mum, is a mum after all. Even after us kids, having moved to other cities ( with my sister married as well ) with work/career etc, my mother still worries about our well being. Till today, she calls me up every other day only to ask if I’m having my food & sleep regularly or not. I’d really like her to live for herself now. Relax…pursue her own hobbies ( the ones she sacrificed for us ), worry less, go on vacations, pamper herself. Talking about pampering, a luxurious & soothing massage by Parachute Advsansed Aromatherapy Oil will do wonders for her I feel, and make her a truly #StressFreeMom :-) |
My Dearest Baby… Today, I felt a little pain in my abdomen and was drowsy throughout. But you know what, I was still feeling so happy and was completely at peace. Because, it’s you who’s been doing all those tiny mischief inside me, my adorable little un-born! How can I be annoyed when you are trying to say something to me, your mom; thus, making me feel those tiny kicks in my tummy every now and then. Worry not sweetheart, that day is coming very near, the day when we will finally meet. The day, when I’ll hold you in my arms! The anxiety and pain I’m going through now, is all so worth it. It’s indeed a blessing to become a mother, I’ve now realized. To give birth is such a divine power, that God has bestowed upon us, women. Since, the last few months that you’ve been inside me, I’ve been only dreaming day and night, for that ultimate moment. I’ve been wondering how you’ll become as you grow; how your personality will develop. Even though I am excited, my sense of responsibilities has grown manifolds too. I want to bring you into this world all prepared, my child. This world is not an easy place to live. Circumstances are such, one can get corrupted easily - and that leads to all the crimes & unhappiness that we see. But with right values instilled, from a very young age, you can still make it a better place. Yes you, my dear. Thus, my conversations start with you when you are still inside me and shall forever carry on. I know you can hear and feel every word and emotion of mine. So, what’s better than to give you life’s lessons from this very onset? Some lessons, that I learnt from my own mother, your grandmother. Lessons so vital, lessons so precious. I remember my mother bringing us up ( me and your aunt ), all alone. She worked pretty hard from quite a young age herself ( managing both home and work ) and I’ve always admired the tremendous courage she had, to face all the challenges life threw her way. Oh..there were too many of those. It wasn’t an easy feat for a small-town woman to bring up two growing children on her own, inspite of having a husband who rarely contributed. I learnt so many valuable lessons from her, just by observing her. The strong sense of compassion, faith, sincerity, will-power, perseverance, never give-up attitude and most importantly 'honesty' in all her actions and words. It has made me follow those virtues too, because I wanted to be exactly like my mother – the picture of perfectness; someone who is my idol. And if I ever failed, I’d end up being very guilty, until I cleared the air with my mother first by confessing of my wrong-doings. I’d write small chits of letters to her, confessing whatever wrong I did and she’d instantly forgive me with a benign smile. Honesty is so important my dear. If you are honest, you are never burdened in your life. You know you are on the right path. You remain unfazed by petty worries or insecurities, if you are honest. So, honesty will be the first lesson I’d like to inculcate in you, my dear child... #YoursHonestly Mummy. |
Ever since I've seen the television ( black and white being the first ), advertisements have been an integral part of the medium and our lives. Even Radio hasn't escaped the commercials onslaught. But today, we'll only discuss the visual medium. In the beginning, I didn't use to understand why these annoying things popped up at regular intervals, disturbing the sequence of my favourite show. Yes, I used to consider them really annoying. They were like 'buy this, ting-tong' 'buy that, ting-tong', that would leave me fuming. Later of course I realized, that due to advertisements we get to know what products are there in the market, new launches etc. That, so much information packed in those 30 odd secs, is really the work of some really creative and genius minds who creates those, and not some nearby market or bhaji-walas. ( Yes, for a long time ignorant me used to think our neighbourhood grocery-store owners must have collaborated together and made those ads, just to push their products down our throats ). And the annoying factor was still there too. Because in those days, advts were poorly made. Mostly stereotypical, there was no innovation in them, though, a couple of jingles have stayed on in our minds till this day. After all, who can forget those Nirma ladies in white and the advt song; who can forget Kapil Dev saying that Boost was the secret of his energy; who can forget that 'Jab mei chota bacha tha, badi shararat karta tha, meri chori pakdi jaati ~ tab roshni tha Bajaj' and of course, the Hamara Bajaj scooter advt and many more such. Two songs I still humm often are the earliest Lifebuoy and Liril jingles. I must say, remembering them, I think there was a certain kind of cute innocence in those advs after all. Of course, as world zoomed towards new technology and advancements, the quality of advts changed too big-time ~ and for the better. As India opened its markets to the world, there has been a splurge of advts catering to stuff we had never seen prior, but now have gotten accustomed to so much - all thanks to those advts. Advertisements changed and how. Some were really hilarious, some interesting, some thought provoking, while some outright disgusting and few racists too. I must admit, I didn't get as much annoyed as I used to earlier anymore seeing them, because most of these advts were truly enjoyable or gave food-for-thought. Then, there was this era when every single advt had either Big.B or Sachin Tendulkar in them. Though they are world famous people, to see them in practically every advts were really the WTF moments for me. But gladly, other celebrities gave them a tough fight ( competition wise and not physical, duh! ) and started appearing in various ads too. The leveling game I say. It was quite interesting to see various brands starting to thematize their ads as per various important occasions, festivals or big matches like ICC World Cup or IPL, making the content more relevant and thus connecting people more. One such being Mauka Mauka and the ever famous Kuch Khaas hai by Cadbury! In recent times, brands have gotten more and more customer oriented. Since, the internet came into our lives in such a massive way brands have been trying newer strategies to get the customers involved too. From contests to events, brands these days try engaging with customers via the social media. Like we see Pepsi now coming up with the Crash The PEPSI IPL Campaign, inviting people to make ads themselves, and the winner will be declared as the official ad of Pepsi, this IPL. What an amazing brand-customer engaging concept it is! No wonder, it has caught on all our imaginations. I tried watching few of the ads ( damn, they are good! ), but what happened to me recently was no different than a good-meaty advt material itself. As already mentioned, brands nowadays seeks to engage more with the common people. They continuously seek bloggers, as they are the closest and trusted medium to people, with them being the customers too. So, like any other day, one late evening, I browsed through lots of event invite mails that I receive from various brand PRs. I skip most of them, but this one simply caught my eye. Read the conversation that happened. ![]() SCENE -1 ![]() Mumbai India Match Tickets that too premium, are you effing kidding me? Well, read the convo again. It was unbelievable. But you can see, towards the end - I was only left yelling "Hello Hello". Not the one to give up easily, I stalked his profile and found out his number. Naturally, I dialled. What were you thinking, duh! Roshan picks phone and says : "Who's this?" ME : Hey, Roshan! We had just talked over facebook chat, about the meet. Roshan : Err..err.. Can't hear you. Will talk later. Slam. Me : Ring Ring....again Operator : The number you are dialing is currently busy. Please dial after some time. TIME?? Well...I didn't have time. It was the match day the next day and the damn guy was standing me up, after nearly finalizing the deal. How could he... like dangle a carrot in front and then do the vanishing act. I guessed, the event must have been called off or there was some issue, so he was hesitant to give a proper explanation. In any case, the IPL bug had bitten me big-time by then, and I knew I wouldn't get the cure of it, till I watched through the game, with or without the ticket. I thought, maybe if I reached the stadium, I could call him again or ask anyone if the blogger's meet was happening in the premises. Someone atleast would surely know - the guards maybe, right? So, seeing a tiny silver-horizon, in the gloominess of it all, I made a dash for Wankhede Stadium. ![]() It was already crowded, and it was not the match-day yet. Imagine then, what would happen on the D-Day. I began asking anyone and everyone, if there was a blogger's meet. Nobody seemed to know. NOBODY!!! Not the guards, not the men in the ticket counter, not the chaps wearing staff official-badges. I decided to wait a while, as the meet time was still a few minutes away ( as per the convo we had ). Heights of OPTIMISM, eh! Maybe, it'll happen, I kept thinking, trying to boost my confidence; reassuring my enthusiasm. DAMN, I SO WANTED THOSE TICKETS! A whole hour passed, and then another, nothing happened. I decided to ring the guy again. After all, at best he'd slam the phone down. Pepsi IPL Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega :D Me : Ring Ring.... Operator : The number you are dialing is currently busy. Me : Ring Ring....again Operator : The number you are dialing is currently switched off. ME : Sigh! ![]() And so with my dwindling confidence, I kept waiting and waiting, but there was no sign of Roshan or the Blogger Meet. Damn! I lost my chance to a free match-ticket, I thought hopelessly. In the end, I went to the counter...but the counter had closed ( except for some VVIPS ). WHAAAT!! This can't be happening. And I also realized, I hadn't brought enough money with me for tickets. I was expecting a Free One for-gods-sake! DUH! It seemed the whole universe was conspiring against me, that day. Now, they'll surely throw me out for loitering outside the stadium so long. I tried to recce the premises. Could I just sneak in? Could I jump over the iron wall or side gate, when no one's watching? I only noticed security guards everywhere and plain clothed officials too, who gave me some really narrow and disapproving looks, that said - SHOO!! ![]() ![]() ![]() WooHoo...Can you see me? Look Up. Yeah, I bet you can now ;-) And that's how I crashed the Pepsi IPL for real \:D/ in my own Style.... ain't the above post, the perfect ad for Pepsi IPL now, in blogosphere of course ;-) |

The other day, after a long time, I was travelling by a public bus. Taking out the money, I held out my hand casually to the bus-conductor to get my ticket. To my surprise, he didn't have the bunch of colourful tickets bus-conductors usually carried where from they'd out pull one and punch a hole in it, manually. Infact, he didn't carry tickets at all. Instead, he had an electronic box, where he punched something, and from the paper-roll installed inside it, came out my ticket. It was a digital ticket. I took it with my mouth somewhat gaped-open. Once I reached home, I saw the courier guy arrive carrying a parcel, that I had ordered from my favourite e-commerce site. He didn't push any paper under my nose for me to sign, as I expected. Instead, he took out a box and asked me to sign 'digitally' on it. I was amazed to say the least. I've been observing things going rapidly 'digital' of late, and it had reached our bus-tickets and courier-signatures too ( not just important stuff like land-records/taxes/bills ( phone/electric ) or services like railways/airlines/banks/hospitals/shopping etc ). While in urban places, it has become our way-of-life, with almost everything 'digital', further away from the city ~ is however a different story altogether. But one, that promises to change fast ~ courtesy, our PM's very ambitious Digital India Vision, which Intel India has partnered with. |
For the laymen, in simple terms : e-governance would mean ~ Government ruling the masses electronically, with the optimum use of Information Technology; which further means any services that a government provides to citizen ( i.e customer ), to employees, govt to government or to businesses - all these on a Pan-India level is a mammoth and very complex task, that'll require the best of equipment, infrastructure, process re-engineering and change management. Here comes Intel®, that'll power up those processors ( mainly computers ), hardware & software, data storages, network etc, to provide super-efficiency, fast and convenience in the services rendered. This task is so giant, considering the size of India both in terms of land-mass as well as the size of population, most of which are still so disconnected ( over 70% living in remote places ), even in this global age, and to make things affordable & easily accessible to all. Intel had recently launched its ambitious project "Digital Skills for India", with the Govt ( costing a whopping Rs.1 lakh crores ), to make over 1000 Panchayats digitally literate, after which the impact will be much higher empowering millions across the country, with an ultimate robust aim to connect all villages by 2018-19. The 'Digital Skills Training Application', available free on Android Play store, is part of the project that includes various modules such as Digital Literacy, Healthcare/Cleanliness and Financial Inclusion in 5 different Indian languages ( with its offline version in 7 languages ). Intel has already been engaging in various programmes successfully for last few decades. Meanwhile, a conversation somewhere in rural India... ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() For both small ( individual level ) and big ( govt or business enterprise level ), Intel® offers various computing solutions like ~ Big Data Analytics, Cloud Computing, Data Center Optimization, Enterprise Mobility, and Better way to work ensuring more Productivity with a complete Wireless Innovation Technology. It provides best of Processors ( Xeon® Processor D, Core™ vPro™, Real Sense™ Technology ), Servers, Work-Stations, Storage besides other essential computer related products like Motherboards, Chipsets, Server Products, Ethernet, Wireless, Consumer Electronics, Solid-State Drives etc - all contributing in building up a massive and stable technology infrastructure required, to deliver the Dream Vision of #DigitalIndia into a reality. |
Why I like the Digital India Vision Concept? |
With citizen centricity, service orientation and transparency being the core components of e-Governance, the Government has already undertaken large amount of initiatives by both Central, State, Local District and some at integrated-service level too. All these are with sustained efforts implemented, at multiple levels, in order to simplify the process of accessing them as well as improving the delivery of public services. And in order to speed up the process and reach even the most remotest of localities, a greater strategy and vision is required between Government, Citizens and importantly Corporate entities like Intel, that acts as the connector and guide of sorts. Its performance is most vital, in running of the show called Digital India efficiently, without any hiccups; safeguarding it too ( security being a crucial part of it ). e-Governance had started way back in 2006 itself, but need of the hour is to increase its momentum, which the current Government promises to fulfill - with a vision to see whole of India connected by 2018-19. So, lets all warmly welcome the Intel Powered New Digital India! A new-age India :-) |
I may sound bit narcissist, but I absolutely love 'I, Me, Myself, My life' and everything that has got anything to do with me. For me, I'm the only most important person in this whole world. So, naturally in all matters I look out at what would be my advantage or benefit first. I don't live my life fulfilling other's whims and fancies. I don't take other's orders. I do what I want, when I want, how I want and only if I want. It’s all about me, me and only ME! I'm not bothered what anyone expects of me, I don't need to prove anything to the world. I'm just concerned with myself; happy and content in my own space. So, why am I telling you all these? Well, when I'm all about me ~ I'm D-stressed naturally. Imagine the fun I have with my life. No nagging Boss to obey or deadlines to meet. No nosy relatives around to annoy me, no parents nearby to scold me. I live my life, as I like it. Under no one's diktats. This has been my ultimate stress-buster ~ my lifestyle or way of life. The way I chose to live my life, on my own terms; answerable to none. \m/ Trust me, when you live life for yourself, you are stress-less ;-) But was it always like this? No! It’s been one helluva struggle to reach where I am today. I’ve been through a roller-coaster ride of painstaking disappointments, unending-obstacles, heartbreaks and crushed dreams – all that gave me the most stressful period of my life. Just out of college, with big dreams in my eyes, I was totally homeless in Bombay in the struggling phase of my life. In between different jobs, still nurturing to do something big in creative field, I was a total mess. Many times I nearly gave up. Yet now, my life is the complete opposite. So, how did I De-stress myself from the nervous wreck I had become, due to unfulfilled ambitions, stressful life with no clue what the future held. Well, read on & look out for something exciting for you in the end! * QUIZ & WIN : So, how do you De-stress yourself? Do you have any Special or Secret Tips to relieve stress? Do share cos' you might just WIN some cool vouchers ;-) |
The 3 things that you have been putting off for the future and would do right now if given a chance... When I was young and didn't know about life or death, I was quite sure in my mind that human beings lived forever - after all, they were the superior species compared to others. In school, we had history as a subject and also I had read tonnes of comic books depicting lives of those same kings and queens ( that we read in history books ) – but the fact that they all had died, still didn’t register in my mind that ~ death was a stark fact. In school, when one day we got the news of our classmate’s accidental death, it was the first time I got to know 'death' close – as I used to sit on the same bench with her. The vacant seat near mine, which she used to occupy, haunted me for quite a while with the fact that life was temporary. And when one uncle of mine passed away, I knew death was just around the corner waiting to pounce at us, at any moment. It was the time I realized, this life is not permanent at all – and certainly not for humans. There's no escape from death; it may take a while - but comes, it does! Infact, humans are at a greater risk now because of many man-made disasters they become victim of – most common being accidents on any mode of transport, unhealthy lifestyles that triggers so many diseases which results in untimely deaths and so on, besides the natural causes. With the realization of the 'reality of death', another realization instantly dawns upon us, that there’s no #SecondChance. If I want to go back to my childhood and re-live those days, can I do it? Certainly not! I’ve no time-machine to take me there, except my memories. And why just childhood, lost opportunities too hardly come by again. And with the fact that there’s only this life we’ve got, that ‘only chance’ we get becomes so much more precious. Because, we might never get it again. Kal ho na ho…. However, do I fear death? No! Do I want to stop living my life fully, just because death is around the corner? No! Instead, knowing that we have so little time in our hands I want to live and breathe every moment, cherish it and do all things possible, that I’ve been postponing uptil now. Oh! There are so many things I’ve just procrastinated – but I guess, I need to pull up my socks now and get them done because there’s really no #SecondChance. The first 3 things that comes to my mind are... Getting an Insurance Cover ~ While I was writing the 3 things I'd love to do right now, if given a chance, I couldn't help but remember the uncle of mine who’s death I wrote about earlier. Well, it pained to see the awful times their family went through, for the lack of insurance cover. My uncle died in his early-thirties in an accident, leaving behind his two young sons and widowed wife. The wife didn’t have a job at the time. On his death, they were literally on the streets. It’s a terrible thing to watch – the sufferings of ones left behind with untimely death and without proper planning for future. I love and care for my family, and I wouldn’t want them to face so much hardships, so early in life ~ incase, something similar happens to me. You never know, cos' kal ho na ho... I’d want to make their lives safe and secure as much as I can. So, taking a life insurance cover from a trusted insurance company is something that I'll definitely do, as this is the only sure way to protect my loved ones ~ as there’s simply no #SecondChance! |