Why people say ‘call me if you need help’ and then never help you when you actually ask for it.
Why people never reply to any messages even when you ask them how they are.
Why people say ‘hey I’ll call you’ and never call back.
Why people who have known pain themselves can hurt somebody else so badly.
Why people say ‘I cannot hurt somebody deliberately’ and go on to do just that.
Why seemingly good friends grow silent and distant the moment they know your salary is same or more than theirs.
Why people keep calling you to find out whether you got a job or not and get unhappy when you finally do.
Why people’s first reaction to any news is how it’s going to affect them.
Why people look at you strangely if you decide to be nice to the boss who’s a bitch in office but a nice person outside.
Why people think that doing something without a reason is ‘being adventurous.’
Why people stop talking to you all of a sudden and then expect you to understand even if they are not friends.
Saturday, August 4, 2007
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Snob Value:
A few days back, I went to Westside. Since I was waiting for a friend to arrive, I decided to check a few lipsticks. I usually stick to Maybelline or Revlon. Spending over 500 bucks on lipsticks I think is a criminal waste of money. Yaya, I know Chambor has better colours and texture but I still think I can manage well with lesser varieties. You might ask me, then why not Lakme? It’s just that I’m simply bored of it. Since college days we have used Tips N Toes, Lakme or a lovely colour range by Persona. So these are something new.
Anyway, so I went to the Revlon counter and there was a guy behind it. I hate guys on lipsticks and lingerie counters. They don’t know anything and then make the women uncomfortable. They will only show you a few colours and expect you to decide in that! No fun at all!!
So I kept prodding this guy to show me ‘More’. Eventually he showed me a bright purplish colour and when I screwed up my nose, he pointed to the Katrina Kaif poster and said “Madam, main aapko Katrina Kaif wala colour dikha raha hoon. Yeh colour loge toh, sabko pata chalega ki aap kaun sa colour use kar rahe ho.” I gaped at him for a few seconds….couldn’t he figure out the Contrasting difference between any ‘model-type’ and me. I ignored his comment.
Then he showed me another colour of a higher price range and insisted that I take it. “Iska cover (packaging) dekho…itna stylish ki jab bhi likaloge sab sirf dekhenge!” As in make a huge style statement!
I was aghast! What a sales spiel! He gave to a completely wrong target audience but I’m sure this is what he gives to others too because that’s what they want to hear. Just how much this snob-culture has percolated to every level is simply amazing.
So, Delhi actually is living UP to its reputation. And in full style.
Anyway, so I went to the Revlon counter and there was a guy behind it. I hate guys on lipsticks and lingerie counters. They don’t know anything and then make the women uncomfortable. They will only show you a few colours and expect you to decide in that! No fun at all!!
So I kept prodding this guy to show me ‘More’. Eventually he showed me a bright purplish colour and when I screwed up my nose, he pointed to the Katrina Kaif poster and said “Madam, main aapko Katrina Kaif wala colour dikha raha hoon. Yeh colour loge toh, sabko pata chalega ki aap kaun sa colour use kar rahe ho.” I gaped at him for a few seconds….couldn’t he figure out the Contrasting difference between any ‘model-type’ and me. I ignored his comment.
Then he showed me another colour of a higher price range and insisted that I take it. “Iska cover (packaging) dekho…itna stylish ki jab bhi likaloge sab sirf dekhenge!” As in make a huge style statement!
I was aghast! What a sales spiel! He gave to a completely wrong target audience but I’m sure this is what he gives to others too because that’s what they want to hear. Just how much this snob-culture has percolated to every level is simply amazing.
So, Delhi actually is living UP to its reputation. And in full style.
Monday, July 16, 2007
Life on a Metro:
After struggling and facing all sorts of crap for years, I now hate any form of public transport including the Metro. I don’t take it until and unless I am too tired to drive or the distance is way too much. Now that the newness of the Metro is gone, it has become The preferred mode of transportation. Imagine taking the train at 9 in the morning on a Sunday and not getting a seat!
It was supposed to ease our life a little, but nothing seems to have changed. The buses go chock-a-block, the train is always jam-packed and the traffic on the roads seems to increase everyday…..just where are all these people coming from??
Whenever I take the Metro, I usually go and stand at the other door and look out at the hazy horizon….unending houses laid in haphazard manner, some strangely named Hospital or hotel sign visible from a distance….places and building one never knew existed suddenly stand out. Once in a while pigeons fly along seemingly racing the train.
And sometimes when you do look around and notice the people in the train, one can see characteristics that have come to define the Metro-goers.
The riff-raffs or the single men (as in traveling alone) tend to gather at the exit doors, not even budging when other people get in.
The couples, dating or the newly married varieties will head straight for the other side of the door and get cozy at the corner whispering to each other.
The ‘family’ with all its battalion of kids will come and occupy the centre of the compartment where the kids can play around the pole and disturb maximum of the travelers.
The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law duo will usually sit and talk about what is happening in another family they know or what they will cook for the weekend gathering.
Single girls are almost always talking on the phone. While a group of girls will keep talking to each other about serials, movie stars, shopping, nail polish etc. Some do strange stuff like take off their shoes and stand…maybe they are still to get used to the idea of something being so clean.
Most women dress up in salwar-kurtas which is copied straight from the K-serials…bright colours and glittering stone work with matching bangles and ear-rings. Obviously the material is the cheap quality chiffon variety. And none uses deodorants and they will come and stand with their underarms right under your nose completely oblivious to their own stink. And this happens even in the morning….I fear to even think what happens after the whole days work! Somebody should educate them!
Young guys take the corner seat and talk about how they are doing MBA because that’s what their father wants them to do.
And the answer one gives maximum number of times when the cell phone rings – “Metro mein hoon, abhi ghar/office aa raho hoon.”
Each Metro line is a microcosm in itself – completely defined in their ways and manners, oblivious to their glaring similarities and yet strangely satisfied to share the same space and life.
It was supposed to ease our life a little, but nothing seems to have changed. The buses go chock-a-block, the train is always jam-packed and the traffic on the roads seems to increase everyday…..just where are all these people coming from??
Whenever I take the Metro, I usually go and stand at the other door and look out at the hazy horizon….unending houses laid in haphazard manner, some strangely named Hospital or hotel sign visible from a distance….places and building one never knew existed suddenly stand out. Once in a while pigeons fly along seemingly racing the train.
And sometimes when you do look around and notice the people in the train, one can see characteristics that have come to define the Metro-goers.
The riff-raffs or the single men (as in traveling alone) tend to gather at the exit doors, not even budging when other people get in.
The couples, dating or the newly married varieties will head straight for the other side of the door and get cozy at the corner whispering to each other.
The ‘family’ with all its battalion of kids will come and occupy the centre of the compartment where the kids can play around the pole and disturb maximum of the travelers.
The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law duo will usually sit and talk about what is happening in another family they know or what they will cook for the weekend gathering.
Single girls are almost always talking on the phone. While a group of girls will keep talking to each other about serials, movie stars, shopping, nail polish etc. Some do strange stuff like take off their shoes and stand…maybe they are still to get used to the idea of something being so clean.
Most women dress up in salwar-kurtas which is copied straight from the K-serials…bright colours and glittering stone work with matching bangles and ear-rings. Obviously the material is the cheap quality chiffon variety. And none uses deodorants and they will come and stand with their underarms right under your nose completely oblivious to their own stink. And this happens even in the morning….I fear to even think what happens after the whole days work! Somebody should educate them!
Young guys take the corner seat and talk about how they are doing MBA because that’s what their father wants them to do.
And the answer one gives maximum number of times when the cell phone rings – “Metro mein hoon, abhi ghar/office aa raho hoon.”
Each Metro line is a microcosm in itself – completely defined in their ways and manners, oblivious to their glaring similarities and yet strangely satisfied to share the same space and life.
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Couplings:
Well, it’s true that women tend to notice other women more. Especially those who come with their boyfriends. Of course the guy gets a look too but the girl gets the Attention. Or the lookover.
“Hmmm….Stilettos! Purple bag, nice haircut, she has put make up…even her eyes are done up but the pink lipstick just doesn’t go with that outfit!”
It takes just a few seconds…even before you can finish saying “Bloodymary”. It’s just a kind of subconscious comparing…..is she better than me, what-are-my-chances-types. Not that any girl will really go out and grab the guy (with most guys being jerks nobody really wants to take that chance). But it always helps to know where you stand.
The girls when dating tends to be carefree, fun and sassy…trying to make sure that she Has the attention. After all the game is open and both players are free to leave anytime.
I however love to watch the married ones. Especially the newly weds. I have noticed two types in this category. One is the shy, first-time-touched-now-not-a-virgin variety. They look at their husbands shyly from underneath their eyelashes and let them know that they are besotted while the husband acts all macho making the woman flutter with extreme feminine delight.
The other type is the smug-I-have-finally-got-one variety. They have this I-have-made-it looks in their eyes and stance. They are bolder than their counterpart; they will walk ahead of the husband, wear a-little-bit-more revealing dress than usual and talk more animatedly. Getting married gives them the freedom to spread their wings and freedom from anxiety of not losing the guy (atleast initially!)
Sometimes I wonder if it’s in our genes to be voyeuristic and think alike or is it just herd-mentality, actions conditioned by society and our need of safety through similarity.
“Hmmm….Stilettos! Purple bag, nice haircut, she has put make up…even her eyes are done up but the pink lipstick just doesn’t go with that outfit!”
It takes just a few seconds…even before you can finish saying “Bloodymary”. It’s just a kind of subconscious comparing…..is she better than me, what-are-my-chances-types. Not that any girl will really go out and grab the guy (with most guys being jerks nobody really wants to take that chance). But it always helps to know where you stand.
The girls when dating tends to be carefree, fun and sassy…trying to make sure that she Has the attention. After all the game is open and both players are free to leave anytime.
I however love to watch the married ones. Especially the newly weds. I have noticed two types in this category. One is the shy, first-time-touched-now-not-a-virgin variety. They look at their husbands shyly from underneath their eyelashes and let them know that they are besotted while the husband acts all macho making the woman flutter with extreme feminine delight.
The other type is the smug-I-have-finally-got-one variety. They have this I-have-made-it looks in their eyes and stance. They are bolder than their counterpart; they will walk ahead of the husband, wear a-little-bit-more revealing dress than usual and talk more animatedly. Getting married gives them the freedom to spread their wings and freedom from anxiety of not losing the guy (atleast initially!)
Sometimes I wonder if it’s in our genes to be voyeuristic and think alike or is it just herd-mentality, actions conditioned by society and our need of safety through similarity.
Monday, July 2, 2007
What’s the Point?:
Friend: You girls cry for no reason.
Me: Not true. There are those sentimental lots but most of us, when we cry, we cry for more reason than one.
Friend: Elucidate.
Me: For example – you forget to wish your sister on her birthday. She’s obviously hurt. She will cry not only because you forgot, but for all the times you’ve hurt her like that, for all the times somebody important have missed out on her birthday or anything important.
Friend: I don’t get it.
Me: I can’t explain. You have to be a woman to understand this.
Friend: Try me again.
Me: OK. Suppose you leave this city and go elsewhere. I will miss you. But when I cry, it will not be just the fact that you will be gone. It will also be the fact that you will miss me too, the fact that coffee sessions will never be the same again, that there will be one less good person in this city, it will remind me of all the good friends that I have left behind, how miserable I was when my best friend in school left me when her dad got transferred, how lonely I’ll feel…….you get the drift?
Friend: One good person less in the city I understand, but why do you have to think of the past?
Me: Its not the past…..it’s about all those emotions in the past…which you don’t forget.
Friend: That’s exactly my point. These reasons are absolutely no reasons to cry….and that’s what I said….you girls cry for no reason.
Me: SIGH!!
Me: Not true. There are those sentimental lots but most of us, when we cry, we cry for more reason than one.
Friend: Elucidate.
Me: For example – you forget to wish your sister on her birthday. She’s obviously hurt. She will cry not only because you forgot, but for all the times you’ve hurt her like that, for all the times somebody important have missed out on her birthday or anything important.
Friend: I don’t get it.
Me: I can’t explain. You have to be a woman to understand this.
Friend: Try me again.
Me: OK. Suppose you leave this city and go elsewhere. I will miss you. But when I cry, it will not be just the fact that you will be gone. It will also be the fact that you will miss me too, the fact that coffee sessions will never be the same again, that there will be one less good person in this city, it will remind me of all the good friends that I have left behind, how miserable I was when my best friend in school left me when her dad got transferred, how lonely I’ll feel…….you get the drift?
Friend: One good person less in the city I understand, but why do you have to think of the past?
Me: Its not the past…..it’s about all those emotions in the past…which you don’t forget.
Friend: That’s exactly my point. These reasons are absolutely no reasons to cry….and that’s what I said….you girls cry for no reason.
Me: SIGH!!
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Telly talkies:
A couple of days ago, while switching channels I came across this ‘breaking news’ on India TV. Somewhere in Bangalore, a man proclaimed that he had a stone which answers questions. If the answers is yes, the stone becomes light for him to lift easily and if the answer is no, then the stone will become so heavy that he wont be able to lift.
It’s obvious that he is a fraud. But there were enough gullible people even in the city for him to amass large amount of wealth. It took a ‘Sting Operation’ and several request from the India TV people to (hopefully) make people see sense.
But isn’t it strange that the more modern and technologically enhanced our society gets, the more superstitious the people get? The more fragmented life gets, the lesser faith you have in yourself. So even a ridiculous suggestion like the above can create such a desperate need to connect to something.
Sigh.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Does the sponsorship voiceover in Star World really pronounce HCL as HechCL?
I think the guy who says Korea Sparkle in the Korea Tourism ad is really really cute. I didn’t know Koreans could be so good looking. Hmm…I think I’ll add Korea in my list of foreign travel destinations!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sample this scene from ‘Seinfeld’ on Star World.
Jerry, the comedian is dating a ‘non’ laugher!!
George is dating a model who, he thinks is bulimic coz she keeps going to the bathroom after every meal. One day he follows her to the loo and hears ‘throwing up’ type noises.
George: So its true…
Jerry: What do you mean?
George: The ‘yuucck’ noise from the bathroom.
Jerry: So you meeaan….
Elaine: Do u care?
George: Of course I Care. I don’t want my monies flushed down the toilet, go down the drain every time I pay for the meal! I want my monies to be work for some time, u know digested properly!
Hilarious!! New York lifestyle at its best! George is so straight-forwardly devious and so straight-forwardly superficial. I just love him!
It’s obvious that he is a fraud. But there were enough gullible people even in the city for him to amass large amount of wealth. It took a ‘Sting Operation’ and several request from the India TV people to (hopefully) make people see sense.
But isn’t it strange that the more modern and technologically enhanced our society gets, the more superstitious the people get? The more fragmented life gets, the lesser faith you have in yourself. So even a ridiculous suggestion like the above can create such a desperate need to connect to something.
Sigh.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Does the sponsorship voiceover in Star World really pronounce HCL as HechCL?
I think the guy who says Korea Sparkle in the Korea Tourism ad is really really cute. I didn’t know Koreans could be so good looking. Hmm…I think I’ll add Korea in my list of foreign travel destinations!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sample this scene from ‘Seinfeld’ on Star World.
Jerry, the comedian is dating a ‘non’ laugher!!
George is dating a model who, he thinks is bulimic coz she keeps going to the bathroom after every meal. One day he follows her to the loo and hears ‘throwing up’ type noises.
George: So its true…
Jerry: What do you mean?
George: The ‘yuucck’ noise from the bathroom.
Jerry: So you meeaan….
Elaine: Do u care?
George: Of course I Care. I don’t want my monies flushed down the toilet, go down the drain every time I pay for the meal! I want my monies to be work for some time, u know digested properly!
Hilarious!! New York lifestyle at its best! George is so straight-forwardly devious and so straight-forwardly superficial. I just love him!
Friday, June 15, 2007
Pres – tea - gious:
I went to a Mall last week. I don’t know which one because all look the same to me. And my only reason for venturing there was that it was too hot to do anything outside and the ACied surrounding was a welcome relief for a change. But that’s not the story here.
I like tea. Better than coffee. Coffee I can have only once in the morning and once in the evening. Tea is anytime anyplace. Over a Cuppa – means over a cup of ‘Tea’. From Masala Chai to Earl Greys, (to Long island ‘Tea’ ;-) anything will do. But anyway, that again is not the point here.
At this Mall, there was a Café Coffee Day. The guy over the counter taking orders was rude. He had this ‘you little filthy pigs’ attitude. He was arguing with the person before me on why he didn’t he come with some change. Maybe he was having a bad day. When my turn came, I placed an order for a Darjeeling tea and an iceberg for a friend. He immediately looked down his nose at me (actually everybody looks down on me coz I am very short) and proclaimed – “(I hope u know that) Darjeeling is a very light tea.” I couldn’t help myself; I made a face at him and said – “ I KnoW!!”
So what is the deal here? Is Darjeeling served to only the immaculately dressed, lipstick and mascara in place kind of people and not to jhallas like me? Or suddenly Darjeeling has become a fad and people order it without knowing the taste and he was only doing his duty of informing me? It’s after all an acquired taste.
Another guy came and served us our order. When I told him to take the milk away, he looked at me as if I was from a village in Bihar. Well it’s a preference; I don’t like milk with my Darjeeling!
Definitely all the jokers there had an attitude and also according to them only classy, elegant people should drink Darjeeling!
Hmmm….when Barista had newly opened, the staff used to inform us that Espresso was black coffee unlike the Expresso’s that we used to have outside. They were never so rude or hoity-toity ….Ohh god, I am again digressing.
I like tea. Better than coffee. Coffee I can have only once in the morning and once in the evening. Tea is anytime anyplace. Over a Cuppa – means over a cup of ‘Tea’. From Masala Chai to Earl Greys, (to Long island ‘Tea’ ;-) anything will do. But anyway, that again is not the point here.
At this Mall, there was a Café Coffee Day. The guy over the counter taking orders was rude. He had this ‘you little filthy pigs’ attitude. He was arguing with the person before me on why he didn’t he come with some change. Maybe he was having a bad day. When my turn came, I placed an order for a Darjeeling tea and an iceberg for a friend. He immediately looked down his nose at me (actually everybody looks down on me coz I am very short) and proclaimed – “(I hope u know that) Darjeeling is a very light tea.” I couldn’t help myself; I made a face at him and said – “ I KnoW!!”
So what is the deal here? Is Darjeeling served to only the immaculately dressed, lipstick and mascara in place kind of people and not to jhallas like me? Or suddenly Darjeeling has become a fad and people order it without knowing the taste and he was only doing his duty of informing me? It’s after all an acquired taste.
Another guy came and served us our order. When I told him to take the milk away, he looked at me as if I was from a village in Bihar. Well it’s a preference; I don’t like milk with my Darjeeling!
Definitely all the jokers there had an attitude and also according to them only classy, elegant people should drink Darjeeling!
Hmmm….when Barista had newly opened, the staff used to inform us that Espresso was black coffee unlike the Expresso’s that we used to have outside. They were never so rude or hoity-toity ….Ohh god, I am again digressing.
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
Generation Strange:
I love to bait and then bash the new generations….the present day teens and kids. I believe that they are a highly pampered, irresponsible and a precocious bunch who will never have any true understanding of life and nature. I have always held my generation and those previous in very high regards….and why not….we have gone thru a phase where we did not have anything to a phase where we have almost everything. Hence who would know life better than us?
And then I saw a 3-4 years old girl wearing a halter-ish gown with a slit upto the thigh. The dress was pretty and the girl looked cute….but why force fashion and sexuality on a such little girl…isn’t the world already a bad bad place without inviting the big bad wolves lurking everywhere?
My ex-boss’s eight-year-old son goes to an elite school in Delhi. She said that she never pampers her son. And in the same breath told us that she bought him a Nokia handset costing Rs13000. It is a necessity for a child to have a mobile…coz the working mother needs to keep a tab. All agreed given the situation….but why a Rs. 13k phone?
A friend who works in an advertising agency told me a rather sad tale the other day. A proud father had approached her with his son’s portfolio. He had done many ads in the past. The father soon became aggressive and called her up day and night telling her that his son had worked with all the agencies except hers. He met her, cajoled her and messaged her till the time an opportunity came up. On the shoot day which was almost towards the evening, they landed up. The boy looked tired and could not perform. The mother informed her that he’s been shooting since morning. Instead of being sympathetic, the mom shouted at the kid that if he didn’t get the shot right, he’ll get a slap. Whatever happened to the concept of childhood or is it always about the money and parents’ ambition?
Suddenly I realized that all these kids and teens have parents who are my age group or perhaps a decade older. So I cannot really blame them but rather blame the very generation I thought was intelligent and grounded enough to know and understand life. These parents, in an effort to get the best out of everything, have messed up not only their lives but many generations to come.
And since the downfall has already started, I can only look at these 30-somethings, sigh and wonder….what went wrong.
And then I saw a 3-4 years old girl wearing a halter-ish gown with a slit upto the thigh. The dress was pretty and the girl looked cute….but why force fashion and sexuality on a such little girl…isn’t the world already a bad bad place without inviting the big bad wolves lurking everywhere?
My ex-boss’s eight-year-old son goes to an elite school in Delhi. She said that she never pampers her son. And in the same breath told us that she bought him a Nokia handset costing Rs13000. It is a necessity for a child to have a mobile…coz the working mother needs to keep a tab. All agreed given the situation….but why a Rs. 13k phone?
A friend who works in an advertising agency told me a rather sad tale the other day. A proud father had approached her with his son’s portfolio. He had done many ads in the past. The father soon became aggressive and called her up day and night telling her that his son had worked with all the agencies except hers. He met her, cajoled her and messaged her till the time an opportunity came up. On the shoot day which was almost towards the evening, they landed up. The boy looked tired and could not perform. The mother informed her that he’s been shooting since morning. Instead of being sympathetic, the mom shouted at the kid that if he didn’t get the shot right, he’ll get a slap. Whatever happened to the concept of childhood or is it always about the money and parents’ ambition?
Suddenly I realized that all these kids and teens have parents who are my age group or perhaps a decade older. So I cannot really blame them but rather blame the very generation I thought was intelligent and grounded enough to know and understand life. These parents, in an effort to get the best out of everything, have messed up not only their lives but many generations to come.
And since the downfall has already started, I can only look at these 30-somethings, sigh and wonder….what went wrong.
Saturday, May 12, 2007
Something’s cooking!
I am not a good cook….I can barely manage to dish out edible khana. All my life I have been dead sure that if I strictly follow the instructions in the cookbooks, I’ll be able to get the formula correct.
So for many years, I tried this trick or the other – biryani, paneer, cakes….nothing came out good. Mind you, they were just okay but not finger licking good. Then a few months ago, I met this person who came very close to taking my heart. He was a foodie like me and we discussed all kinds of dishes and cuisine. So I started cooking again, this time keeping him in mind. I didn’t follow the cookbook but just what mom told me. Some I tried on my own. And surprise of all surprises – all my dishes came out delicious. My mom was amazed and so was I.
This continued for some months until one day I realized that he’s not my man after all. That very week I cooked a normal subzi with the right masala and everything. It took me an hour to finish cooking it and not only the taste was all wrong but the vegetables were still hard.
That’s when I remembered what my mom and other seniors had often told me - that one should cook with her heart. Only then the food turns out delicious. All this while, I had ignored it completely as an old hag’s tale. Now I know – maybe when I meet ‘the’ man of my life, I will become a great cook once again.
So for many years, I tried this trick or the other – biryani, paneer, cakes….nothing came out good. Mind you, they were just okay but not finger licking good. Then a few months ago, I met this person who came very close to taking my heart. He was a foodie like me and we discussed all kinds of dishes and cuisine. So I started cooking again, this time keeping him in mind. I didn’t follow the cookbook but just what mom told me. Some I tried on my own. And surprise of all surprises – all my dishes came out delicious. My mom was amazed and so was I.
This continued for some months until one day I realized that he’s not my man after all. That very week I cooked a normal subzi with the right masala and everything. It took me an hour to finish cooking it and not only the taste was all wrong but the vegetables were still hard.
That’s when I remembered what my mom and other seniors had often told me - that one should cook with her heart. Only then the food turns out delicious. All this while, I had ignored it completely as an old hag’s tale. Now I know – maybe when I meet ‘the’ man of my life, I will become a great cook once again.
Friday, May 4, 2007
Do I really need Your advice?
I have been off work for a few months now – something which could have been avoided but I didn’t want to.
I refused a good job at a decent place coz it reminded me so much of my earlier office – something which I should have taken but I didn’t want to.
A few days back I went to my ex-office to collect my final dues. I met the guard there who asked me where I had joined. When I told him no, he commented that time is money.
A colleague (ex) sat and chatted up with me. He showed great concern about why I wasn’t working. He insisted that I should immediately go back to work and that I shouldn’t have refused the other offer. His point was I was harming my career in the process.
Some of my acquaintances call me up from time to time to check whether I’ve got a job or not. They show extreme concern over my financial situation and how I am wasting my days doing absolutely nothing.
To all of them, I make some uninteresting noises and laugh it off. But I hate it when they show concern about my situation when they do not know even 1% of who I am. I know all of them mean well….but who are they to judge my choices in life.
And why is everything weighed with money? Whatever happened to personal choices, decisions and living life my way and being happy?
I refused a good job at a decent place coz it reminded me so much of my earlier office – something which I should have taken but I didn’t want to.
A few days back I went to my ex-office to collect my final dues. I met the guard there who asked me where I had joined. When I told him no, he commented that time is money.
A colleague (ex) sat and chatted up with me. He showed great concern about why I wasn’t working. He insisted that I should immediately go back to work and that I shouldn’t have refused the other offer. His point was I was harming my career in the process.
Some of my acquaintances call me up from time to time to check whether I’ve got a job or not. They show extreme concern over my financial situation and how I am wasting my days doing absolutely nothing.
To all of them, I make some uninteresting noises and laugh it off. But I hate it when they show concern about my situation when they do not know even 1% of who I am. I know all of them mean well….but who are they to judge my choices in life.
And why is everything weighed with money? Whatever happened to personal choices, decisions and living life my way and being happy?
Sunday, April 8, 2007
Times…they have a’changed!
If one wants to check out the latest fashion trends of the city, one just has to go to the Priya Complex. There is usually something or the other happening and one can find the hippest crowd hanging around. Even some 10 years ago. I remember a time when khadi kutris and big bindis and oxidized ear-rings were in vogue. A rare bold few wore mini skirts in day time but only to be seen at the Priya Complex.
Sitting with a friend at Priya’s one weekday, I watched the school kids thronging the place…and with their exams just getting over, they were at their carefree best. What was a rarity then has become the norm today. Casual minis and noodle strap tops as revealing as they can get….(didn’t see too much of coloured hair though!). The best part however was that everybody seemed comfortable, the girls as well as the guys. Unlike yesteryears, nobody turned around to stare – except I think for me!
At that age, we had also experienced a fashion revolution of kinds. Baggy Jeans and baggy colorful sweaters with shoulders drooping till the elbow had taken our world by storm. We also used to fold the jeans till our ankles but the looks never came anywhere close to the fashionable Capri looks of today. And dancing at a friends place to the tune of Hawa-hawa and Like a Virgin, we also had our share of fun. We all used to fantasize about wearing minis and revealing tops and be free. But with so many chances now, most at our age will feel rather uncomfortable and much undressed.
An ex-colleague had said, we should have been born either 10 years ago or 10 years later. We are caught at a transition phase…holding on to what was so real and being pushed to a life which is fast becoming sur-real.
But I will not give up my current status in life for anything. I think ours is the last generation who had a chance to live real quality life….no other generation will ever know what they really missed.
Sitting with a friend at Priya’s one weekday, I watched the school kids thronging the place…and with their exams just getting over, they were at their carefree best. What was a rarity then has become the norm today. Casual minis and noodle strap tops as revealing as they can get….(didn’t see too much of coloured hair though!). The best part however was that everybody seemed comfortable, the girls as well as the guys. Unlike yesteryears, nobody turned around to stare – except I think for me!
At that age, we had also experienced a fashion revolution of kinds. Baggy Jeans and baggy colorful sweaters with shoulders drooping till the elbow had taken our world by storm. We also used to fold the jeans till our ankles but the looks never came anywhere close to the fashionable Capri looks of today. And dancing at a friends place to the tune of Hawa-hawa and Like a Virgin, we also had our share of fun. We all used to fantasize about wearing minis and revealing tops and be free. But with so many chances now, most at our age will feel rather uncomfortable and much undressed.
An ex-colleague had said, we should have been born either 10 years ago or 10 years later. We are caught at a transition phase…holding on to what was so real and being pushed to a life which is fast becoming sur-real.
But I will not give up my current status in life for anything. I think ours is the last generation who had a chance to live real quality life….no other generation will ever know what they really missed.
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Delhi DNA:
A few days ago, My ex-Delhite and a current Mumbaite friend and I went to our favourite watering hole – TC. He’s now taken to calling Delhi ‘your city’ after spending more than 2 decades here, much to my chagrin. But anyway…..that’s not the story here.
It was a non-media / party day and we arrived at a time when mostly non-working or oldies like us visit a pub. Not surprisingly, there were only 3 groups of people sitting close by and the music was relatively low. Good music and a little tipple in the belly had loosened inhibitions - enough for all the people in the various groups to talk a tad loudly for me to overhear snippets of conversations.
Group1: 2 guys in their mid 20s, from a very middle class background and wearing regular striped shirts and loose trousers, talked only in Hindi. They seemed to have reached a fairly decent income level – enough for them to get ready for marriage. Bits of talks suggested that one had ‘seen’ one girl for shaadi and were discussing her and ‘characters’ of girls in office in general.
Guy1: Calling the waiter – Arre kapda maar de!
Waiter: We don’t do like that here.
Guy1: Jo bhi, table saaf kar de.
Waiter: Cleans
Guy1: Tandoori nahin hain?
Waiter: No.
Guy1: Kya yaar, humlog yahan aaye the sochkar ke tandoori milega. (It always has to be Tandoori!)
Guy2: Thik hain, phir chilli chicken de de! (And why only Chilli chicken as a substitute?)
Group2: 2 guys in their late 30s or early 40s, moneyed and confident and expensively dressed.
Guy1: MC, BC, Ch*^&^……(and strings of abuses)…..and then Shiela Dixit, ?? Fernandes and (some body apparently big) had come to inaugurate my show…(and so the name dropping game start!)
Group3: 3 girls in their early 20s probably in their first job, had come down to check the pub scenario. They were sitting closely and sipping mocktails and very naturally talking and giggling about office, the guys in the office and who said what. They reminded me of my giggly new work life days! But 20-somethings in a pub meant for 25 years and above and Only girls??!! Delhi sure is changing.
It was a non-media / party day and we arrived at a time when mostly non-working or oldies like us visit a pub. Not surprisingly, there were only 3 groups of people sitting close by and the music was relatively low. Good music and a little tipple in the belly had loosened inhibitions - enough for all the people in the various groups to talk a tad loudly for me to overhear snippets of conversations.
Group1: 2 guys in their mid 20s, from a very middle class background and wearing regular striped shirts and loose trousers, talked only in Hindi. They seemed to have reached a fairly decent income level – enough for them to get ready for marriage. Bits of talks suggested that one had ‘seen’ one girl for shaadi and were discussing her and ‘characters’ of girls in office in general.
Guy1: Calling the waiter – Arre kapda maar de!
Waiter: We don’t do like that here.
Guy1: Jo bhi, table saaf kar de.
Waiter: Cleans
Guy1: Tandoori nahin hain?
Waiter: No.
Guy1: Kya yaar, humlog yahan aaye the sochkar ke tandoori milega. (It always has to be Tandoori!)
Guy2: Thik hain, phir chilli chicken de de! (And why only Chilli chicken as a substitute?)
Group2: 2 guys in their late 30s or early 40s, moneyed and confident and expensively dressed.
Guy1: MC, BC, Ch*^&^……(and strings of abuses)…..and then Shiela Dixit, ?? Fernandes and (some body apparently big) had come to inaugurate my show…(and so the name dropping game start!)
Group3: 3 girls in their early 20s probably in their first job, had come down to check the pub scenario. They were sitting closely and sipping mocktails and very naturally talking and giggling about office, the guys in the office and who said what. They reminded me of my giggly new work life days! But 20-somethings in a pub meant for 25 years and above and Only girls??!! Delhi sure is changing.
As the night grew, people also started streaming in and the music got better and louder. We looked around; not an oldie in sight. A cool hangout place for the 30-somethings with great rock music had suddenly converted into a haven for the post-teens. When another drove of barely mustached boys walked in, we decided it was time to leave. Certain mindsets like tandoori chicken and name dropping will never change in Delhi. But we could not bear to hear the good old Rock change to a Pussycat dolls number in our favourite joint. So we left and let the young Delhites to redefine the city and its watering holes.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Loo-natics!
Thank god for the many McDonalds that are scattered all over the city….we don’t have to go hunting for restaurants and ask discreetly about ‘washrooms’ without availing any of the other services there.
Very recently I dragged my friend up to a McD’s loo and stood waiting outside patiently.
Seconds turned to minutes and then many more minutes but still the door meant for the ladies didn’t open. Yes, women do take longer, but this was strange. After waiting for some 10-15 minutes, lo and behold, the door opened and out trooped 3 boys, 1 girl and one aunty in tow!!! All the 4 kids were in the age group of 9 to 10 years which meant that nobody needed guidance or instructions….so what was this really??
Do these kids, (who now-a-days are developing early and are aware of their sexuality) really need this kind of ‘help’ from their guardians? Did that aunty really think that it’s okay to make it a community act? Or maybe the aunty and others of her kind love to watch the young ones and then make them watch her?
The Nithari case might be in the extremes but with these kinds of strange adults around, I think every house has a little Nithari in the making.
Very recently I dragged my friend up to a McD’s loo and stood waiting outside patiently.
Seconds turned to minutes and then many more minutes but still the door meant for the ladies didn’t open. Yes, women do take longer, but this was strange. After waiting for some 10-15 minutes, lo and behold, the door opened and out trooped 3 boys, 1 girl and one aunty in tow!!! All the 4 kids were in the age group of 9 to 10 years which meant that nobody needed guidance or instructions….so what was this really??
Do these kids, (who now-a-days are developing early and are aware of their sexuality) really need this kind of ‘help’ from their guardians? Did that aunty really think that it’s okay to make it a community act? Or maybe the aunty and others of her kind love to watch the young ones and then make them watch her?
The Nithari case might be in the extremes but with these kinds of strange adults around, I think every house has a little Nithari in the making.
Saturday, March 10, 2007
Defining 'abnormal'.
I would like to start with an intro or a preamble…but there is no point in beating about the bush….so I’ll come directly to the point. I hate kids. Okay, so I don’t Hate them…I just don’t care about them, I cant stand them! All I can manage when I meet my friends’ kids is a weak hello and that’s about it. Consider this…
I had gone to a friend’s place in Dehradun. Her son is 3-4 years old, loves milk and just sits around watching Cartoon Network the whole day (my friend is of the opinion that sitting in front of the TV is much better than him running amok in the house). One day it started to drizzle and being the bad Masi, I told him to go and play in the rain. He stood there trying to get wet but when that didn’t happen; he peed on this hand and put it on his head. Not only that he then spit into his hand repeating the process. I stood watching horribly fascinated at his antics but after that day, refused to hold his hand!
There are 2 kids living next to my flat. I am in perpetual terror when I step outside on the verandah to breathe some air. Whenever they see me, they will jump and smile and call me ‘bua’. If they are alone, then I quickly slink away but when their dadi is there, I have to pretend to entertain them and wave and make funny faces! Ohh…am a prisoner in my own house!!
Some of my friends tell me benevolently….”ohhh you’ll develop your maternal instincts and everything will change then.” Maternal Instincts?? I don’t think that if a woman who is fast going to the wrong side of The Thirties does not have any maternal instincts, then she will never have any. And, so I heartily accept…I am a Freak!!
And you know how God has punished me for this…..all kids love me!! I don’t know why, but even my Mom laughs about it!!
I had gone to a friend’s place in Dehradun. Her son is 3-4 years old, loves milk and just sits around watching Cartoon Network the whole day (my friend is of the opinion that sitting in front of the TV is much better than him running amok in the house). One day it started to drizzle and being the bad Masi, I told him to go and play in the rain. He stood there trying to get wet but when that didn’t happen; he peed on this hand and put it on his head. Not only that he then spit into his hand repeating the process. I stood watching horribly fascinated at his antics but after that day, refused to hold his hand!
There are 2 kids living next to my flat. I am in perpetual terror when I step outside on the verandah to breathe some air. Whenever they see me, they will jump and smile and call me ‘bua’. If they are alone, then I quickly slink away but when their dadi is there, I have to pretend to entertain them and wave and make funny faces! Ohh…am a prisoner in my own house!!
Some of my friends tell me benevolently….”ohhh you’ll develop your maternal instincts and everything will change then.” Maternal Instincts?? I don’t think that if a woman who is fast going to the wrong side of The Thirties does not have any maternal instincts, then she will never have any. And, so I heartily accept…I am a Freak!!
And you know how God has punished me for this…..all kids love me!! I don’t know why, but even my Mom laughs about it!!
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
I have been having this particular conversation with my mom at regular intervals for the past 5 years now! It Always begins and ends in the same way…..
Mom: So your friend (/neighbour/colleague/family friend) is marrying (/married) such and such guy….a good choice!
Me: Grunt.
Mom: So what was wrong with that guy’s profile send by Mrs. S(uperangel)..he also has similar attributes…
Me: (I can feel my bp moving towards the danger level)...It’s not the profile…it’s the process that I hate!!
Mom: Ok…so just say that you don’t want to get married and we will end it there.
Me: (My desperately controlled decibel level increasing a tad bit) Why does it have to be no marriage or arranged marriage? Why can’t I let it be….if I find someone….
Mom: (Cuts in) So why cant you find someone??
(I take this opportunity to try and explain the concept of love…an all consuming, forever kind of love…yaaa sadly even at this age I am a hopeless romantic)
Me: It’s not that easy….at this age it’s very difficult to find a guy (Delhi anyway I think is saturated!) who can tolerate me and I will like him so much that I decide to spend the rest of my life with him.
Mom: You know that’s why I say put your profile on shaadi.com…atleast you’ll get to meet somebody who you may like!!
(For all my genuine trying, my passionate outburst not only falls way beyond the target but lands in some forlorn desert!)
By this time…I am hopping mad, sputtering like an idiot and ready to bite off somebody’s head. And it’s getting ever difficult for me to explain.
Out here like many of my rebel generation, I am still waiting for a non existent prince charming…and out there the younger generation is getting married at the age of 23-34 and that too to those chosen by their parents!! Sacrilege!!
Now then seriously I cannot blame my Mom for being confused and hyper, can I? But I don’t want this conversation no more!! I can’t change my mom; can somebody change the younger generation please!!!
Mom: So your friend (/neighbour/colleague/family friend) is marrying (/married) such and such guy….a good choice!
Me: Grunt.
Mom: So what was wrong with that guy’s profile send by Mrs. S(uperangel)..he also has similar attributes…
Me: (I can feel my bp moving towards the danger level)...It’s not the profile…it’s the process that I hate!!
Mom: Ok…so just say that you don’t want to get married and we will end it there.
Me: (My desperately controlled decibel level increasing a tad bit) Why does it have to be no marriage or arranged marriage? Why can’t I let it be….if I find someone….
Mom: (Cuts in) So why cant you find someone??
(I take this opportunity to try and explain the concept of love…an all consuming, forever kind of love…yaaa sadly even at this age I am a hopeless romantic)
Me: It’s not that easy….at this age it’s very difficult to find a guy (Delhi anyway I think is saturated!) who can tolerate me and I will like him so much that I decide to spend the rest of my life with him.
Mom: You know that’s why I say put your profile on shaadi.com…atleast you’ll get to meet somebody who you may like!!
(For all my genuine trying, my passionate outburst not only falls way beyond the target but lands in some forlorn desert!)
By this time…I am hopping mad, sputtering like an idiot and ready to bite off somebody’s head. And it’s getting ever difficult for me to explain.
Out here like many of my rebel generation, I am still waiting for a non existent prince charming…and out there the younger generation is getting married at the age of 23-34 and that too to those chosen by their parents!! Sacrilege!!
Now then seriously I cannot blame my Mom for being confused and hyper, can I? But I don’t want this conversation no more!! I can’t change my mom; can somebody change the younger generation please!!!
My world; strange world!
It’s a crazy, strange and a weird world out there….but I guess everybody knows that! Snow in Dubai, freezing temperature in California, grass in Greenland.
Some say disaster will strike in 10 years, others say 50 years
A few years ago they said alcohol, tea, coffee are bad, now they say everything is good (thank god they haven’t said yet that cigarette is good…or have they??!!)
Suddenly a carb diet is necessary for slimming, sometimes only protein…
….and adding to this confusion and chaos are the people around you. What I find the strangest is that not a single person is a real person including me. I behave like a daughter at home, I share my fears and secrets with only a couple of friends, my drinks and dope friends are different and in various organizations that I have been to I have played various roles from being a prude to a bitch!!
So who the hell am I?? Am I one of them, all of them or none of them?? Same with people….because you don’t know who is hiding what. And hence this blog…where I can rave and rant about nothing and everything without any thoughts or guilt….to put forward some other facets of mine and also get to know some of yours!!
Some say disaster will strike in 10 years, others say 50 years
A few years ago they said alcohol, tea, coffee are bad, now they say everything is good (thank god they haven’t said yet that cigarette is good…or have they??!!)
Suddenly a carb diet is necessary for slimming, sometimes only protein…
….and adding to this confusion and chaos are the people around you. What I find the strangest is that not a single person is a real person including me. I behave like a daughter at home, I share my fears and secrets with only a couple of friends, my drinks and dope friends are different and in various organizations that I have been to I have played various roles from being a prude to a bitch!!
So who the hell am I?? Am I one of them, all of them or none of them?? Same with people….because you don’t know who is hiding what. And hence this blog…where I can rave and rant about nothing and everything without any thoughts or guilt….to put forward some other facets of mine and also get to know some of yours!!
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