Yes- it will be a joyful ride

A car is actually your companion especially if you are spending long hours on the roads. As most of the passionate drivers call it- it’s their first love. Whether you are going to office, for a weekend date or for a getaway, your companion is always with you. As we plan for our anniversary celebrations, I and my husband were thinking of a long, relaxing drive. Away from the hustle bustle of the metro city, he suggested to drive over to the small sleepy town of Kasauli. A drive to the mountains could actually help you unwind and clear your mind. Unsure about the path and the terrain we have decided to rely on the beloved #Datsun redi Go. We would really want to test it for its comfort, sturdiness and youthfulness.  

 

Datsun #rediGo is far away from being conventional. It aptly represents today's generation. A generation that is energetic, vibrant and adventurous. It is a great combination of impressive room with a sporty attitude. Its wide and robust stance gives you the confidence to take your car along unexplored paths. Exploring the unexplored is what life is all about. Go out and have fun. Feel that you are alive.
 

While travelling, you need to ensure comfort and sturdiness at the same time. Datsun redi Go is compact, sleek yet aggressive. It will not disappoint you when it comes to highway drive or city drive. It has an overall spacious interior that will let you travel merrily with your family without worries. Its sporty fabric provides energetic vibes with premium comfort. It has good enough space that will let you enjoy the journey comfortably. How about your favourite songs playing in the background in full swing? I guess, I am already swaying away to the beautiful destination. 

We love to travel however, road trips shouldn’t hit too hard on your pockets. Last minute plans with uncertainty could add to all the more adventure. The 799cc engine of Datsun redi Go provides an impressive fuel economy of 25.17 km/L. It’s actually built for staying out more and to be able to enjoy the road longer. Now you can get rid of the worry of spending too much on your next trip.

It offers a unique combination of fun, freedom and confidence. Isn’t this for what the youth today stands for? This is what everyone believes in and wants to get associated with. Datsun redi Go offers the best of a compact crossover and the urban hatchback. I have been dreaming of driving it to work and enjoying to be able to thoroughly enjoy the drive. Cruising through the traffic, unwinding after a long day’s work. Its superior air conditioning, a necessity in the peak summers, small turning radius, and adaptive electric power steering would definitely make the drive comfortable. How about rerouting to a new destination rather than going back home. Sounds crazy? 

Fun. Freedom. Confidence. The ultimate Urban Cross - Datsun redi-GO - the capability of a crossover with the convenience of a hatchback.

Let It Go

Someone ones mentioned, that all battles are not worth your time and energy. One needs to be extremely cautious in terms of where  you need to invest your mind. If you start treating your time and mind as your money, trust me you will be more aware where you are spending it. If you start treating everything that everyone around speaks of about you as personal, you are actually letting him/ her enter your territory or personal space. Why give that right to every Tom, Dick and Harry to let them hurt you.

Why should they be hitting on your sensitive areas? Now and then they do this because you are telling them to do so. Who entitles them to do so? Who entitles them to do so? The answer is simple and direct: You. If you ensure no matter what, whatever someone says, it is not going to affect your inner peace there is no power in this world that can actually affect it.

Be yourself...These are not luxuries but your basic rights...

Let's Put a Smile on That Face: Our Face

Both of us have a very busy schedule. Working long hours, being in the corporate world, in different shift timings, there are weeks wherein we don't get to see each other as well at times. I travel a lot and henceforth, in our 2 years of marriage there would be barely 10 times that I would have cooked for him.

Am I guilty? Not sure. I would be somewhat lying if I say no. I guess however, that we have accepted each other the way we are. I don't enjoy being in the kitchen and neither does he. We share the responsibilities and try to spend as much time as we can "together".

 That say was however different. We were coming back after a not so successful day at work. One of those days wherein you feel you are just another employee. You feel your career is going nowhere. Your life is going nowhere. Because of this you end up fighting on pity  issues with no base. I kept on wondering why, what is the need to do so. http://www.mccainindia.com/

 That day was unusual. Both of us were silent. There was nothing to talk about. I had fought with my boss. He had faced his own share of disappointments.

We decided to just order food that night- something simple and quick. I opened the refrigerator and noticed a bright packet shining in a corner, hidden like a ray of hope. I pulled it out and noticed that it was a wonderful pack of McCain's snacks. Would this bring smile on that face that mattered the most? http://www.mccainindia.com/

 Within no time the smileys from McCain were ready. I put them on a bright plate and put them on our humble dining table. He came still with a sad look on his face. But the moment he saw the #McCainsnacks exclusively prepared for him- a bright smile lit his face. I can't forget the look on his face till day. Since then McCain has become a beautiful partner in our journey. A perfect partner in our crimes and all the naughtiness of this young couple.

 

 

Buddy Parenting In Action

Now that I look at a lot of my friends, some married, some busy with their professional life, I get nostalgic. Reminds me of how we were as kids. So raw! Everyone is successful but the upbringing has played and plays the most important life in shaping an individual. I read somewhere, in an essay I guess, that we as kids are like clay. Just like a potter molds and gives shape to this shapeless clay, our parents put in their day and night to make the person that we are. Our likes, dislikes, in I strongly believe that our beliefs are also driven a lot by our upbringing.

While writing this post, I travelled about 20 years back, reliving #Khushi ke pal with my parents. My little sister was not born then. My parents were also learning to tame this ball of energy: read ME. While for me almost everything was new, for them being as parents this experience was new and fresh. With freshness I brought a bag full of challenges for them. I remember instances proving how tough I would have been as a child. My energy was no less than sun's nuclear reactions. My mom put me into new activities every week in the hope that somewhere I will settle down. Eventually they learnt that I won't stop and so they became my true partners in crime. https://www.facebook.com/mychocos. My fellow passengers during my early childhood days till date. We learnt together, discussed together and resolved problems together. The whole process became a fun and a learning process for us. My friends could never relate to this philosophy. For some of them talking to parents was like entering into the room of headmistress. Before you speak out anything the authority card would be played. Who wins is we all know....

When I was trying to learn a bicycle, my dad taught me but ensured that I was not afraid to fall. He let me explore even the darkest corners of our society. Till date that sense of being free and independent has been with me. I say with pride that I can take my decisions sensibly on my own.

We went for grocery shopping and I was the one who used to carry back 10 kg bags with him on foot. He actually taught me how to buy red tomatoes and juicier lemons. He taught me to be rough. We share, share our experiences, our success and more importantly our failures. He want me to be successful, he wants me to be happy but I want the same for him. That's how we all grow, learn and have fun. Kids are scared of their parents, they hide things, and they hide their failures. Why? They feel parents will scold them, close them in a dark room. How will you as a parent react if your kid walks up to you and says Ma I am scared of you. Eventually, either of you will say "you won't understand" and end the conversation by tagging it a "generation gap". It was just communication gap. It was fun teaching dad how to do a video chat. His smile when he saw me is still fresh in my memories. We had decided to have breakfast virtually, but together. That’s one of the instances when I found my "khushi ke pal" and truly experienced #"Kellogg’s Chocos ke saath ‘Khuljaye Bachpan’. https://www.facebook.com/mychocos 

Honey-My Best Friend

What is the best way to be healthy? have we replaced being healthy to dieting? I guess Diet, crash diet, words like these often claim to give you a dream figure. I think more than a need to be fit, it has become a fashion statement nowadays. People are not giving enough importance to the need of following a healthy diet plan. In addition to leading a healthy lifestyle it is extremely important to give due importance to what we are eating on a regular basis. We should always aim for a healthy and a balanced diet. All of us have seen people actually going on a full crash diet. This not only affects the physical wellness of individuals but even affects the mental health. We lose the energy and the zeal. A healthy, balanced diet is the key to healthy living. http://www.daburhoney.com/

Honey could be considered as one magic ingredient. Incorporating it in our diet would is not only healthy but its various advantages make it a wonderful dietary component. You must have heard lot of people taking a spoon full of honey with warm water in the morning. It has traditionally been known to be useful in weight management. Honey is also a good source of energy. It is a natural sugar and can be easily absorbed by our body. My mother in law had some digestion issues. We thought of including honey in her diet. Wholla, I don’t know the science behind it but it worked for her. Thankfully, she was relieved from her miseries. Honey- my magical ingredient. http://www.daburhoney.com/

My husband usually suffers from seasonal cough and cold. After lot of medicines, we switched to the traditional honey ginger combination. This worked well too. The dryness in his throat went away. The biggest advantage being it has no side effects like a lot of medicines. He responds really well to it.

Coming to our beauty regime. Honey forms a good moisturizing and nourishing agent in a lot of face packs. It really helps the skin to rejuvenate and glow. So all the ladies out there this small bottle of sweetness has lots of benefits that you could have never even realized. Ensure you include it not only in your diet but also in your beauty packs. It would keep the glow going.

Honey being such a common ingredient comes with a lot of benefits. If we can include it in our diet, and make honey our friend, definitely we can benefit from it. The simplest way could also be to replace sugar by honey. Honey is very easy to be included in sweets and other delicacies as well. #Honey Diet.

No doubt including honey in our diet is a #sweeter alternative. It helps to sweetly resolve a lot of our day to day problems without any side effects.

An Expert of Everything

Maa…Mummy…Mom…cannot be defined in words. Her smile, selfless love, care and the warmth of her touch could leave a tired soul happy and rejuvenated.

My mom undoubtedly is #myfirstexpert and I am sure everyone's mom is as well. She has been my first expert under the guidance of whom I have learnt a lot of things. There are innumerable things that I have done for the first time with her. I remember, when I was in standard one, I was told to make a poster on cartoon characters as a class project but I didn’t know anything about a poster. In fact I didn’t even know what a poster is. Then the person who was first to give me an expert advice on my problem was my mother. Well, kids and their problems. Our moms never let us feel how ignorant we are. In fact they are always ready to walk on the same path again and again to teach us. So, we started off. She told me everything about the poster, and also helped me throughout the process of creating the poster. The beauty of this whole exercise was that though she was there to guide me, it was me was creating it. I learnt to be create something new from scratch. I learnt to work independently.

The poster turned out to be so beautiful and stupendous that I was given the highest marks in the project by my teacher for making the best poster in the class. I was also applauded by everyone. I was on cloud nine as if I had won the world. After reaching home, I hugged my mother and thanked her for being my first expert and making me realize my first success in the competitive world. http://godrejexpert.com/single_used_pack.php

I also remember how disastrous my writing used to be when I started writing with a pen. My teachers even declined to check my exam papers, can you imagine? It was my mother who became my first handwriting expert. She used to sit with me around the clock with her fingers holding mine and then we used to practice writing tons and tons of pages. In two months my mother trained me to write neatly and beautifully. I still get appreciated for the beautiful handwriting I have now. http://godrejexpert.com/single_used_pack.php

My mother has always been there in my good and bad times, a well-wisher during my hardships, helping me to overcome any challenges that block my way with her expert methods that can never fail and therefore making me realize my dreams. My mother is my mentor and my first expert and I really hope that this bond of mother and daughter strengthens with every passing minute. Love you mom!!! http://godrejexpert.com/single_used_pack.php

Murderer of Soul

I don't have words today to express what I feel,
It's just that something inside me is dying everyday.
You promised this and you promised that,
All the promises went for a toss.

I have to say that everything is ruined,
Our monument of love is completely devastated.
Your words, your anger, your whole demeanor,
Is killing me slowly with little to bother.

Life will take such a turn, tough to believe,
On our anniversary I had to leave.
My body is there to make you feel you haven't done anything wrong,
It's just that my soul is dead by your hatred song.

My soul was soft and so fragile,
You transformed it into a hard tile.
My innocence, my love, you murdered it,
You are a murderer, who knew of it.

Time to redefine your smartphone experience: #ASUS Zenfone 2 is here

Looking for a new smartphone? How many options do you see nowadays? There are so many of them, each having a different USP. The other day we went to a store to look at some of these new handheld gizmos. The more we explored the more we got confused. We were looking for one option that would be complete in its own. All the features that you would want, delivered to you in one package. All the big shot technology companies are really trying hard to become market leaders and to be the favorite among all age groups.
Finally, there is one gadget that would really blow your minds away. #ASUS ZenFone 2 - the real beast. As I walk you through some of its really attractive and useful features, you would realize this is no less than the best smartphone that could redefine your overall smartphone experience.

To begin with, our beast gadget comes with a 4 GB RAM. Whola!!! Have you heard of that before? #ASUS ZenFone 2  is the only smartphone with this kind of advanced configuration. So get ready to explore new applications, new games without actually compromising on the overall performance. How many of us have suffered with a crawling, super slow smartphone? The reason, we unknowingly installed a new application that seemed useful but alas we ended up with a much slower device.

I hate it when I never get through my husband’s phone. Most of the times his so called smartphone’s battery is low. His smartphone becomes an ancient gadget. He has no time to charge it. #ASUS Zenfone 2 comes with an ASUS-exclusive technology that charges devices much faster than traditional speeds. 39 minutes and your battery could be juiced up to 60%. Wow!!! I am really looking forward to this feature. You wouldn’t imagine how many fights has the low battery smartphone triggered across the globe…*wink *wink.

Most of the smartphones appear as if you are carrying a super big PDA. They are bulky, and average looking. We all want to carry a product that defines our style. It has to be classy with a unique style statement. #ASUS Zenfone 2 is a beautifully crafted device. It comes with incredibly thin 3.9mm edges. #ASUS Zenfone 2 is a perfect example of smart, stylish designing.

The smartphone that I currently use is pretty good yet I struggle to figure out where the volume adjustment keys are hidden. My sister struggles using is as she is a left- handed girl and the smartphone is designed in a way that goes well with right-handed users. #ASUS Zenfone 2’s ergonomic designing would make it equally comfortable for both right- and left-handed users. The device is designed for you to hold comfortably and yet use all its functions with ease. So, you want to click photographs, or adjust volume, the highly-intuitive control layout would make it all an enjoyable experience. The smartphone is for comfort and not to leave you in a maze to figure out the unknown.

Last but my favorite feature. I love clicking pictures on the go. Really don’t like carrying my DSLR everywhere. When buying a smartphone this is always one of the key features that I look for. #ASUS Zenfone 2 comes with a 13 MP rear-facing camera and the 5MP front-facing. This is an incredible feature. The overall picture quality is amazing with the images being much sharper. With the PixelMaster's Low Light mode you can capture clear photos or videos throughout the night. This is really icing on the cake.

What are you waiting for, get your hands on this superhero of smartphones, #ASUS Zenfone 2 is really going to redefine your smartphone experience.

My Dream, My Vision: #DigitalIndia

With an estimate of about Rs 18,000 crores some mention that #DigitalIndia is one of Government’s most ambitious programs. Over the years we have seen that government is excellent in formulation of quarterly, yearly, 5 year and 2020 plans but when it comes to execution of these plans, the country seems getting disappointed. Do we know why these strategies and plans do not work in our country, India? I think, we all know the answer. And here comes the famous word from all of us – corruption. Now, how do we deal with this corruption – a million dollar (rupees) question? There could be lot of answers to it, but this time we have decided to select the answer as #DigitalIndia. Let’s see how.

 

Whether it is India’s manufacturing sector, agricultural or industrial sector, today #DigitalIndia is the key to keep their heads up. As we all know that government policies, initiatives, benefits, subsidies play an important role in all these sectors but due to the corruption and lack of e-governance, their affect and benefits get diluted.  #DigitalIndia helps in strengthening e-governance and therefore helps in connecting the government initiatives with the people of India more strongly. Let’s discuss this with some examples.

 

One of the aspects of #DigitalIndia is that it promotes cashless transactions. Let me take the example of gas subsidy by government of India. Earlier it used to be either through cash payments or was being eaten up by many termites of system at every level. These termites have the capability to eat away everything. Cashless transactions, possible through #DigitalIndia, eventually helped us in reducing involvement of these termites, promoting e-governance and therefore reducing corruption. Such kind of transparency in Government operations strengthens the trust and faith in our government. All in all good relationship between government,  nationals, and common people that has been lacking for a while now. 

Similar models of #DigitalIndia need to be implemented in other areas as well like that of agriculture, that's facing a disconnect and lack of trust between farmers and wholesalers.

Area of investors facing disconnect between foreign investors and government. Area of industries facing disconnect between industrialists and government. Area of services facing disconnect and mistrust between common man and government offices. Make in India campaign waiting for a significant start. Aadhar card initiative waiting for its success and benefits. Do we find any connect between #DigitalIndia and these initiatives? Surely, yes. I believe, every Indian can be connected to it. It means huge data for analysis by experts and new business approvals.

 

#DigitalIndia, as we see is a solution to numerous issues and could be made practical by strong information technology supported by related hardware and software. I strongly believe that Intel has the ability to deliver all these from their pool of in-house skills and capabilities. In other words, Intel through the platform of #DigitalIndia can really be instrumental in filling the gap between the Government and the mango people. Intel could be instrumental in developing a platform that can bring government, investors, manufacturers, businessmen, farmers, common men and everybody from huge airbus aircrafts to even the micron sized chips together.

 

I dream of living in a nation that’s well connected technologically. I dream of living in a nation that is developed. I dream of my India becoming a role model for other nations where Government has partnered with technology providers to implement #DigitalIndia in realty. I am sure with technological advancements by market leaders like Intel and initiatives like e-Governance, #DigitalIndia would bring us closer to achieving APJ Abdul Kalam’s Vision 2020. Hope we still remember it!!!

 

image copyright: sonal garg

 

Poori, kachori hua purana, Guptaji ke nashte ka aaya zamaana!

I recently moved from Bangalore to Delhi. The wide variety of dishes and amazing breakfast had played an important role in making me feel comfortable when I had moved there years back. Now I was moving back to Delhi. After so many years, my fear was that my taste buds may be too reluctant to adapt to different flavors now. My parents had shifted to Dehradun to spend their retired life peacefully. I was all by myself.

I landed in a popular, posh Delhi locality with my baggage. Most of my furniture and kitchen utensils were being transported by a packer. It was going to take at least a week. So, here I was in my own city but somehow felt completely out of place, no familiar faces. With increasing number of tall buildings, we had lesser spaces both in our homes and also on the roads. The first day I managed to survive on couple of bread slices and peanut butter. Bread….boring. How much did I crave for something that was more mouthwatering, something that was different. I wanted something that was healthy but also tasty. I was missing the perfect day’s start.

My dad figured out that one of his friend’s distant relative stayed in the same society. You know how it is in India right? Everyone is everyone’s uncle or aunt. So here I was on a Saturday morning sharp at 8:00 a.m. as instructed standing outside Gupta uncle’s apartment. I felt awkward but I would be lying if I said I was not looking forward to it. Before I take you on the delicious journey there has to be this strange incident that I should tell you about. My neighbor aunty has always been curious about my life- how was I surviving all alone in the big city? Did I have a boyfriend? Did he visit me and so on and so forth? I told her as I locked my apartment, that I was going to visit #guptajikifamily. She almost screamed with excitement vo #KelloggsWaleGuptaji ? At first I could not even make out who was she referring to. Her looks drastically changed from being excited to a sense of envy. She made it evident that she wanted to accompany me as well. I ran to escape her claws. https://www.facebook.com/anaajkanashta.

Hellooooo….helloooo…as I stood there watching a flashback, a sweet, amiable voice greeted me. Mrs. Gupta- she introduced. I was taken in with all the love and affection. There I saw the most inviting breakfast ever at a distant. I was introduced to everyone. Everyone seemed a part of my long lost family. As we all moved towards the yummy breakfast- I could see myself a part of a typical Bollywood, multistarrer drama. There was a wide spread on the table. The dishes looked so tempting. Some had exotic fruits- some had cream. There was no typical, traditional stuff. As I moved closer and became aware of all I was being offered my brain figured it out. There was a good amount of my favorite, healthy, crunchy, delicious #Kellogg’s. How much did I miss you my Kellogg’s. But wait, innovative recipes, different preparations had made my Kellogg’s look much tempting. Eureka- how much could be done with this magical breakfast component. Gupta uncle had already started given me weird looks. I quickly filled my plate with everything that could fit in. I was amazed at Mrs. Gupta’s creativity. With so much yummy variations who would ever get bored of breakfast.

I couldn’t resist my laughter, as I imagined Mrs. Vakeel’s (my neighbor) face. I was the one who had the privilege of eating the yummiest breakfast ever. The heavenly spread had all my attention.

What next??? Was I supposed to go back to my boring, monotonous bread slice story or can I spice it up with some new flavors? As I bid goodbye I waited for the magic words from Mrs. Gupta. I said bye and there she was “beta- come again”. Whoppie this was what I was waiting for. I self-invited myself for Wednesday when I planned to work from home. There was much more in life to look forward to now. https://www.facebook.com/anaajkanashta.

I #ChooseToStart

And here it goes again! My cell phone- Mind it, that mine was a very basic mobile phone nowhere closer to today’s smartphones. My poor phone died an innocent death. Poor chap had been with me for ages now. It fell off the second floor and straight down…it had eventually left me... sob sob….

I rushed home, opened the door without the familiar beep accompanying me today. But life needs to move on. I started my hunt for the latest, economical smartphone options. I am not a gadget freak so it was definitely a challenge for me. I kept on looking. I tried looking online (as is the buzzword), visited a couple of stores too. Things were too confusing than exciting.

I had almost given up. I was tired both mentally and physically from this endless search. But the truth was I definitely needed a phone. Who in today’s world even gets out of bed without holding onto their smartphones: no one “except me”?

After another unsuccessful weekend, as I parked my car, stepped down to get off, my fiancé stood there smiling at me. I was already pissed off and could not understand the reason of his smile. Well, hiding my irritation I greeted him.  There was something he had in his hands that he was trying to hide. An attractive box waited for me. I grabbed it and without a blink opened the box. What waited inside was priceless. Really, was it for me? I asked him twice. It was my all new Moto E. It looked exquisite. Beautifully crafted, bright and shining.

I gave him a tight hug and shouted aloud with excitement. He quickly asked what did I #ChooseToStart my smartphone journey with the all new Moto E. I thought for a couple of minutes and had the answer immediately. The moto E smartphone opened myriad of opportunities for me. I had always dreamt to write and share my thoughts. I could pen down my ideas quickly and share it with the whole world using my new Moto E. Moto E was the perfect gadget for me. I immediately added all my friends and family members. I wanted to tell the world the power that I had now in my hands. I clicked a selfie with my new love (read Moto E smartphone) and immediately shared it with my loved ones on the messenger. I was surprised to see how fast it was. Moto E had brought me at par to my peers. Most importantly it has given me the ability to stay in touch.

I was really happy with my first ever smartphone. It had opened the whole world for me. It made me fall in love with technology and the web. I love you so much my smart Moto E.

 

My happiness is you

It is strange how simple things could make your day. All the twists and turns that we take throughout the course of our lives, we just aim for #happiness and love. Our lives revolve around our loved ones. As I sat on my porch one beautiful evening this thought kept on crossing my mind. I sat there watching the birds fly back. Everyone together in complete sync. The sky kept changing its colors. It turned from blue to really, to a beautiful orange. I kept o staring at the changing hues. The cloud changed their forms. It was as if I was trying to look for a face. It appeared as if I was meditating. Multiple planes passed by as I looked at the sky. Where were these people coming from? The chirping of birds, the rattling of leaves- everything was music to my ears.

The doorbell rang…trrrriiing! I ran downstairs bare foot. Who was sit? I already knew the answer...smiles. It was someone that I had been waiting for long. My husband came back from work. As he entered I felt alive again. I felt happy. It was a daily routine but today was different. In spite of being married for a fairly, long time now, the way he looked at me, his smile still made me blush. It was the #happiness that he had filled in my aimless life. The vacant space was now filled with his love.

I made his favorite tea and led him to the verandah. We sat there without speaking a word. Just looked at each other. My soul danced to the music of his breath. We exchanged some of our day’s events, drank tea and relaxed. He continued with his newspaper and I with my newly bought book.

 

Suddenly we decided to go for a drive. We had no idea of where we were headed to. We packed some basic stuff quickly, put on our shoes and started off on a journey. We drove and drove. We drove away from the madness and the crazy city madness. Since I had met him, he had surprised me n  number of times but it was his spontaneity and unplanned moves that had made me fall in love with him every single day. With loud music, him by my side, laughter and giggles I felt as if time had stopped. He was the one who had made me happy all these years. He was the one who had brought all the joys back in my life. I wanted to say so much. I wanted to tell him what he was for me. However, I was too overwhelmed to speak. I saw a tear slowly sneak out of my eye. I wiped it briskly. This tear was the symbol of happiness that he always brings along like my secret Santa. My happiness is you “dear hubby”.

Magical Night

How do we define the word “together”? Out of all the definitions I thought of creating one of my own. I call it “to- get- there” phenomenon. We may not be looking for something material. Nah!!! That is really boring. Isn’t a day at work, literally grilling yourself working for others not enough?

Well, all of us are looking to get to a destination that has peace, happiness, and love of our dear ones #together.

Just think about it…
 

One fine evening, me and my husband returned from a typical social event, tired of wearing the fake smiles. My back pained of the 45 hours super hectic work week. As we walked in, the aroma that every house carries somehow brought a twinkle in our eyes. We exchanged a glance. The lights were turned off as everyone had already gone to bed. We slowly made our way upstairs without trying to make a sound. I almost tripped and surprisingly started to giggle…shhhh….

For some reason I just couldn’t stop laughing. Probably it was just the feeling of being home. I didn’t have to pretend or act or look happy or had to appreciate someone’s fake stones (popularly known as “diamonds”).

It’s 1:00 a.m. and we didn’t feel like sleeping. We moved to our verandah and started talking. The cool breeze was perfect to create the perfect ambience. We talked about how we met, our courtship, our travel adventures, our love, and most important of it all, the fact that we were #together. He poured me a drink and I kept looking at him. He talked and I listened. I felt as if all the volcanoes inside me had calmed down. The hot lava seemed to have been transformed into a free flowing river. My heart had new flowers that bloomed as we held each other’s hands. We drank, and talked and just looked at each other. It was a different two of us. We were the teenagers madly, truly in love. #together we gazed at the stars. It was our perfect date. There were no expectations, no expensive gifts, no flowers. Each other's warmth and company without any  noise was what we had been looking for long.

As I narrate you this innocent story, I feel empowered, filled with strength. Life comes with its own share of joys and sorrows, but sweet moments like these remind us of the optimistic outlook we should carry along. All the beautiful people out there don’t forget to wear that special, unique smile as you get ready for work it will make your expensive watch or the new matching lip color look even better. I am sure it will fill your lives with a magical sparkle that you thought was missing. This is what really makes me happy...

Second Chance

Life is strange and keeps on surprising you with its uncertainty. I call it the typical “roller-coaster” ride: *wink *wink. Who do you hold onto during this amazing journey? Family and friends, no matter how far they may be they could always bring that one smile on your face that may have been missing for a while. It was a snowy night, as I tried to sleep through, miles away from home. I had everything, a successful job, a house, friends, what else could I wish here. Someone would say, wow what a life amongst the skyscrapers. But deep down I knew there was a blank space in my life. My friends were miles away and so was my family. As I stared at the spotless white ceiling of my bedroom in the convertible apartment on the 43^rd floor, my phone buzzed. At wee hours of night my cell phone was my best friend. #startanewlife

When I still think of that night, I feel that God truly heard me. It was telepathy. A long lost friend (well was he really a friend), reappeared from past. We started with a formal “hi” on the social networking site. We chatted for straight 3 hours. Looked like ages since I had laughed. My jaws hurt from laughing and giggling. Was I ready to accept his friendship? Who was he? Why was I sharing my deep, dark secrets with this guy? It was his honesty and the genuine concern that made me feel I was ready to leave the past behind and move ahead to a prosperous future. As we continued to chat, international calls/video calls became a part of our daily routine. He was looking for a friend, and I was probably looking for a solace. #startanewlife

 

Finally, the day arrived. He put forward the most important question of our lives. Was I ready to take our blooming relationship to the next level? Was he the one? That one yes changes my priorities, my reasons for happiness, my life. I decided to leave the states and come back to India. We met a couple of more times and I was sure. His conviction and the love he had in his eyes for me genuinely swept me off my feet. Was I doing right or wrong? I still don’t know. He brought the fresh air of optimism and hope that even I deserved. Did I deserve a better life that had more love than money, more fun than just office tasks, the feeling of belongingness, the feeling of being loved? More importantly, he gave me the reason to smile.

Every morning when I wake up and I see him next to me, I smile. Somewhere silently I say my prayer thanking life for giving me a second chance. All of us deserve that chance. We just need to identify the right opportunity and take that jump. You really won’t know what’s waiting for you at the other end. #startanewlife. /https://housing.com/.

My encounter with hope

What a day!!! what a day!!! It was one of those days when somehow everything manages to go wrong. Amongst the long list of disasters the following topped. My roommates kept on fighting. My fiancé wouldn’t hear to my career aspirations. At work, there was a heated argument with my supervisor over a real pity issue as we tried to firefight. My subordinates managed to miss all the deadlines together. It was disappointing and frustrating at the same time.

My client who is usually extremely pleasing and supportive seemed to be completely off track. We had to struggle for almost three hours straight to explain her the relevance of the requests that we were making. She just wouldn't understand. She just wouldn’t hear. The meetings went on and on.

In short it was a day that was full of unexpected, tough conversations. If this was not enough, to top it all our project manager wanted to keep the amazing touch point on the same day. What did this mean to us? This meant that discussions from follow ups to delays to our inefficiencies would add on to the frustration that kept on building.

After all the drama I literally had to turn off my laptop. My brain was fried completely. At 6:00 p.m. as everyone already started to head home I sat there thinking what should I #lookup to? My head kept spinning, going round and round. Was this the end?  Had I failed to deliver?

I managed to gather my strength, started loading my stuff and began the journey back home. I felt extremely weak. I had tears. Tears of anger, frustration, disappointment. https://housing.com/lookup.

Usually when I head back home, my brain is still working. I start planning for next day. Today was different. I drove into what seemed like a black hole. Where was I going?

 Right before the highway exit that I usually take, I saw a sign. There was something glowing outside a school. In bold letters the sign said "HOPE". Somehow that grabbed my attention, I pulled over to the side and kept staring at it like a kid. Was this written for me? I was a fighter. A bad day at work didn’t mean I was finished. A weak moment and I thought of quitting everything. I smiled at the glowing signboard. I felt as if it smiled back at me. “everything will be alright” echoed in the silence. My heart filled with strength and zeal. A zeal to keep moving forward. A will to keep going on.

 Everyday when I still cross that sign, I ensure to slow down, take a deep breath and think that the hope is still alive. The hope to succeed, the hope to be happy, the hope that things will fall in place one day.

Second Chance

Life is strange and keeps on surprising you with its uncertainty. I call it the typical “roller-coaster” ride: *wink *wink. Who do you hold onto during this amazing journey? Family and friends, no matter how far they may be they could always bring that one smile on your face that may have been missing for a while. It was a snowy night, as I tried to sleep through, miles away from home. I had everything, a successful job, a house, friends, what else could I wish here. Someone would say, wow what a life amongst the skyscrapers. But deep down I knew there was a blank space in my life. My friends were miles away and so was my family. As I stared at the spotless white ceiling of my bedroom in the convertible apartment on the 43^rd floor, my phone buzzed. At wee hours of night my cell phone was my best friend. #startanewlife

When I still think of that night, I feel that God truly heard me. It was telepathy. A long lost friend (well was he really a friend), reappeared from past. We started with a formal “hi” on the social networking site. We chatted for straight 3 hours. Looked like ages since I had laughed. My jaws hurt from laughing and giggling. Was I ready to accept his friendship? Who was he? Why was I sharing my deep, dark secrets with this guy? It was his honesty and the genuine concern that made me feel I was ready to leave the past behind and move ahead to a prosperous future. As we continued to chat, international calls/video calls became a part of our daily routine. He was looking for a friend, and I was probably looking for a solace. #startanewlife

 

Finally, the day arrived. He put forward the most important question of our lives. Was I ready to take our blooming relationship to the next level? Was he the one? That one yes changes my priorities, my reasons for happiness, my life. I decided to leave the states and come back to India. We met a couple of more times and I was sure. His conviction and the love he had in his eyes for me genuinely swept me off my feet. Was I doing right or wrong? I still don’t know. He brought the fresh air of optimism and hope that even I deserved. Did I deserve a better life that had more love than money, more fun than just office tasks, the feeling of belongingness, the feeling of being loved? More importantly, he gave me the reason to smile.

Every morning when I wake up and I see him next to me, I smile. Somewhere silently I say my prayer thanking life for giving me a second chance. All of us deserve that chance. We just need to identify the right opportunity and take that jump. You really won’t know what’s waiting for you at the other end. #startanewlife. /https://housing.com/.

बदलते रिश्ते

बार बार खुद से वादा करके देख लिया,

बार बार खुद को समझकर देख लिया।

न आओगे अब वापिस लौटकर तुम,

इस एहसास क साथ जीकर भी देख लिया।।

गम क सैलाब, कम होता ही नहीं,

तुम्हारा एहसास दूर होता ही नहीं।

हर पल की याद, जो बिताया था साथ,

आँखों से ओझल होता ही नहीं।। 

कुछ पल तो साथ चले  थे,

सुख  दु:ख भी साथ बांटे थे।

आज रास्ते जुदा हो गए,

सारे नाते उम्र भर के लिए बदल गए।।

ये कहकर की कुछ संभव न था,

ये मानकर की यही होना था।

एक अनजान समुद्र में तुमने धकेल दिया,

जहां डूबने का दर नहीं है, लेकिन जीने की अभिलाषा भी नहीं है।।

जीवन के इस नए पड़ाव में,

बढ़ते जाना आगे तुम।

मुड़के देखना न कभी पीछे,

कि खाली दिल अपना ही पाओगे तुम।।    

पीड़ा 

आज से पहले ये एहसास हुआ नही कभी
इस दिल के कारण जो कुछ सहा, दर्द हुआ नहीं कभी।
इतना रुलाया तुमने, मुझको तडपाया तुमने,
की बाकी अब जीने को कुछ बचा नही।

कुसूर येही था कि चाहा  तुमको
कुसूर येही था की इस दिल ने अपनाया तुमको।
तुम्हारी तरह आँखें बंद करके,
अपने दिल को बहलाना न आया हमको.

करना था जो तुम वो कर चुके,
जीवन का ऐसा गम मुझे  दे चुके.
एहसास लेकिन कभी होगा नहीं तुम्हे
कहीं न कहीं एक गुनेहगार तुन बन चुके।

भ्रम येही था की समझा सदएव् रहोगे साथ तुम,
हर कठिनाई में साथ चलोगए  तुम।
किन्तु मुझको ही बदनाम करके,
नया जीवन बसाने चले जाओगे तुम.
ऐसा कभी तुमको सोचा न था, सोचा न था।

खुद फूनकके जहां इस दुनिए से चले हम,
रास्ते सारे मिटाके चले हम।
रुसवाई का सामान बहुत भारी हो चला है,
हर किसी को अलविदा कह चले हम।

हम

क्या करे वो इंसान,जो खोया हो खुद में ही?
दुनिया की रीतों का एह्सास ही जिसे नहीं।
मानो मेरी बात जब होता है ये एहसास,
चूर चूर हो जातें हैं ख्वाब, और मिलती नहीं है जीने की आस।

पल पल चाहा जिसको, पल पल देखा जिसको,
एक पल में बढ़ जाता है आगे ठुकराके तुमको।
ना तुम बदले ना वो बदला,
हालातों ने बस दोनों से मुँह है मोड़ा।

कह दिया एक बार में, के साथ जीना होगा मुश्किल,
इस राह पे अब आगे बढ़ना होगा नामुमकिन।
सफ़र में अकेला रह जाता है वो राही,
और पकड़ने के लिए एक भी मिलती नहीं पाती।

हर पल जगती रहती है सोयी आस यही,
काश ना जाओ तुम, रुक जाओ यहीं।
मेरे लिए नहीं, अपने लिए नहीं,
रुको हम दोनों क लिए ही।