Well-Wellness

Men at work - de-silting the well, taking out the sludge, servicing our source of water

It's not a pleasant job. I didn't realise someone was inside the well, to fill the bucket with the sludge. Unsung heroes

Green (Un)Cover

When I moved in to my current house 10 years ago, the adjoining campus - the backyard of the veterinary university off Mount Road - looked green. It had a rich fauna and flora. I woke up to the sound of deer clashing in friendly matches, kingfisher declaring its presence, woodpecker pecking away, treepie shouting 'cooollldrinks', snakes slithering around and parakeets protesting against its presence.

Today, it is barren as the trees have been cut to make way for the metro office. Though a PIL put a limit to how many trees can be cut, who is keeping track? Yesterday, a peepal tree was cut. The deer were relocated to another venue a couple of years ago. Birds come, but are less in number. God knows where the snake vanished to.

What price development, I wonder.

I know the land I live in also must have been a forest once upon a time. In the immediate past, though, a slum occupied this space.

It pains to think of the havoc man is creating in this world. Delhi apparently is covered by a thick smog, so much that people have been advised to stay indoors. Is Chennai going to go the same way?

What can we as individuals do to reduce the destruction of our environment? Invest in land less? Worry about the future less? Reduce our consumption of material things?

Time to think is past. It is time to act now.

Joy in Small Things

All one needs is a friend, a few stones and a chalk to feel while away time

And if a granddaughter makes a board game, we are not too old to learn a new g

ame

The Modern Goat

It was a narrow road. Shops on one side, houses on the other, and just enough space for two cars to cross each other from opposite sides.

An auto was parked next to the shop, by the side.

There came a car, a sedan, driven by a chauffer, with a lady inside.

He parked outside the shop, next to the auto, on the road. He went in, leaving the car with the lady inside.

He bought a few things, but forgot a few others. He came out and asked the lady what else she needed. She told him her grocery list. He went back in to do her bidding. So what if the road was narrow and one side of the road completely blocked?

"There is an auto parked by the shop, that's why my driver had to park on the road," she reasoned.

"Oho, poor thing! Do you realise you can park ahead, on a side?" asked one bystander.

"Mind your business," said the lady.

The driver, coming out, his hands full of things, glared. "There is enough road on the side for your bike to pass," he pointed out.

And the charioteer drove his queen away, unmindful of the disturbance he caused. This reminded me of the Panchatantra tale of two goats crossing a bridge and dying because they wouldn't give the other way.

The Can(n)on Shot

Tipu Sultan's soldiers fired the cannons from this slot when enemies attacked.
It is still useful for firing Canon shots to get an aerial view of the Bengaluru outskirts from Nandi Hills.

A Forgotten Skill

I walked into my friend's house as usual on a Thursday evening to take class. I was stunned to see her mother-in-law surrounded by leaves from the coconut tree. Though I guessed the purpose, I couldn't help asking, "What is this for?" "For making a broom," she replied without any self-consciousness. I was overawed. A skill that most household had back then - of use and reuse. I wondered why we lost that along the way. The evening light falling on her at an angle reminded me of my own grandmother's house and my visits there when we would roll out papads after the morning chores were over.

Moving Forward

"I look fat!" I complained when my husband showed me this photo. He started cropping it to oblige me but I was already in a dilemma. I had let myself go and it showed. Why hide the fact? After all, people who saw me perform saw me this way!

Just then, my daughter jumped up to see which photo we were discussing. She said, "Amma, it is not how you look but how you danced!"

Stunned at this piece of wisdom, I asked her what she meant. "Grandfather said you were dancing like a teenager, doing the thoppukaranam (sit ups done before Lord Ganesha) with ease."

This pose was at the fag end of the varnam, by when I had already danced for 30 minutes non-stop on stage. I was tired but not out. I went on to do two more items without fatigue overpowering me. I had felt one with myself throughout the show, feeling the emotions flow freely and my feet and hand move agilely. Why then should I apologise for how I looked?

I posted this photo as it is. But I promised myself, next time, I would not give myself any reason to feel embarrassed.

The Human Touch

Thousands cover the green trees. Pelican, egrets, painted storks, plain storks, black beaked ibis... They come here for the warmth, the wa...

In the Clouds

Fly as high as you can dare
But on ground you have to land
Dream as only you can
Feet on earth firmly you plant

Reality on the ground
To anchor us through ups and downs
Floating is a pleasure but brief
Time will steal it away, the thief

Like day and night they come and go
Sorrow and joy, two sides of a coin
Head in air, feet on land
To live in joy, and remain strong.

Exclusive Amusement

The cyclone whipped up a wind, and the stink from the nearby dump swept over us strongly. But even that couldn't deter us from watching the swallows and the crows from enjoying the wind.

The tiny swallows would fly up, be caught in the wind, and be swept back. They would spread their wings, stop their flight, and then allow the winds to carry them behind.

Suddenly, the crows joined in the fun. Even their larger bodies enjoyed the effortless reverse flight that the winds afforded them...

Their own private amusement park?

The Fruit of 25 Years

I graduated from comics to books very late. I probably hadn't started reading Enid Blytons till I was in the fifth. And then I had two classmates who would discuss books non-stop, which made me interested in going beyond EB.

Then came the TV serial Trishna. Tarun Dhanrajgir and the lady who played Eliza Bennett's part had me hooked, and again, I was curious to read the original. I have read it several times since then, one of the few books I can read again and again. In 9th, I remember I even wrote an Indian version of the story with three sisters. But I couldn't get the hero to say "I love you" to the heroine. Laughably, he proposes on his brother's behalf in the end. But there was a parallel story that grew of its own volition, and I have tried to recreate that effect unsuccessfully.

Then sometime in the mid 1990s, I wrote (btw, I literally mean wrote, not typed) a novel. When I had trouble at work and had enough time to indulge in, I typed it in my computer, and discovered that the story turned out to be completely different from the original. I thank Ruchi Rao, my colleague then, for reading through it. It encouraged me to believe I could write, but I was too lazy to approach publishers.

Subsequently, I did, and it was rejected. I mailed it to a few friends, who seemed to enjoy it. And then, I heard from a very unlikely source. One of my friends had plans to start a publishing house and she liked the book. But her venture took another year to take off. Ironically, that book of mine remains unpublished and wallowing on my desktop as it does not fit her genre. Meanwhile I had written a few others, enthused by the thought that someone wants to publish me. But fates willed it otherwise and those too remain awaiting readers.

Then this story line appeared, just right for the romance genre. And here I am, in seventh heaven, announcing my own first work of fiction to be published. Though there are other books to my name, they are are based on inputs from others. This - is my own work of art. It is like a child to me. And for once, I would like to be blessed that I have many more of them.

Written in the stars

Picking up the pieces of her life after a tragic accident kills her parents, Neena Patil requires funding to save the family’s flower business.The mysterious Sahil Shah seems just the right person to help her out. But Sahil himself seems to be recovering from a series of tragedies in his own life.Caught in a plot of her own making, Neena gets further entangled as unexpectedly, she falls in love with Sahil. But does he love her in return?What will happen when Sahil discovers her mercenary motives?

Anubavangal: தன்னம்பிக்கையே சுய தொழில் செய்வதற்கும் அதில் வெற்ற...

Anubavangal: தன்னம்பிக்கையே சுய தொழில் செய்வதற்கும் அதில் வெற்ற...: "தன்னம்பிக்கையே சுய தொழில் செய்வதற்கும் அதில் வெற்றி பெறுவதற்கும் வழி காட்டுகின்றன. ஐம்பது சுய தொழில்களை ஆரம்பித்த முதலாளிகளை சந்தித்தப்பொழ..."

An Eye-Opener

It was the shortest possible deadline I faced, and the question - "am I mad to take it up?" - rang in my head. But unless you try, how do you know if it is possible or not?

I was commissioned to interview 60 entrepreneurs in less than a month. July 17 was to be the book launch. And we did it. Yesterday, the book was released and appreciated. A compilation of stories of 50 entrepreneurs, titled - Pathbreakers, Scintillating Stories of Steadfast Entrepreneurs.

While meeting/talking to the 50 was a journey in itself, the book release function gave me a sleepless night. The high cannot be described, but the thoughts shared on stage by the likes of Mr. S. Gurumurthy, Mr. Gopal Srinivasan, Mr. Ashwani Mahajan - Prof in Eco at DU, and a Dr from Bangalore - Dr. Shivakumar, were definitly worth contemplating on.

And to think I was on stage with them!!!

Will try to publish a photo if I get it... Yet another cherishable evening.

The Right to Dream

 

What does it feel like to ride a Scooty Pep? A chance to experience it... So what if I can't try it on the road. I can still capture the feeling by sitting astride, as I would when riding it.

A Tyre Tube and a Pond

That is all it takes two boys to enjoy a cloudy summer afternoon. Unfortunately, the image is captured only in my heart, not in a camera.



From the passenger side window



One of the boys lay, 10 years, on it as if it were a floater and the other was clinging to it from the side. The smiles on their faces...the innocent pleasure of playing in water. 

You may also like: The Power of Gossip; Bringing Up; The New House ; God Give me Patience

Front view from the car



Also experienced driving into and out of rain - a windy one. We saw it from a distance when we stopped to climb a mound to enjoy the view of a lake. We saw the rain a few kilometers away. And then, we drove into it...Was it windy! First to our left then behind us, and then we were out!

Never had this experience before...