Little drops of joy

This is not about the drink which re-invented a colour, santa claus and summer days. Ofcourse being a coke loyalist makes me relate to that tag line, however, they did fail to create a connect here with this copy which could be wonderfully leveraged. Moving on...

This is for all those times, when we feel the grey suit or the too- oft- dawned pair of black heels is slowly dumbing us down. Feeding on our brain cells, making us churn out 'mediocre' as a mandate. This is for days when you feel you should've spent more time and effort to develop more enriching skills like pottery or photography.  For weeks when you're yearning to pull out that incomplete letter of resignation from your drafts. This is also for enduring months of constant crucification before Atlas shrugs.

This is for you to notice those little things, that in their own way, inspire; because inspiration we all know begins with a smile on the face. Heres to all these inflection points.

1) Reads which can transport you to a different planet.

Takes me down the 'slippery slip' to a world filled with pop cakes and google buns  -The Faraway Tree

I am surprised that the Pan-galactic-gargle blaster is not a popular drink and that i hav'nt come across a restaurant called 'Milliways'. Sheer brilliance by Douglas Adams. I particularly adore the description of the most massively useful thing that an interstellar hitchhiker can have and his concept of deadlines :)





2) Dreamy frames: You will now get my concept of picking berries, cycling in the sunshine, having a glass of wine while walking along a clean lone road and staring at the sky.

The long winding road where they meet randomly.

The most picturesque ride with pristine coastlines, vineyards buzzing with warmth and visions of dazzling sunset. What makes it worth even more is three beautiful people.




3) The Sun, the Wind and the Rain: Perfect weather makes your state of mind

The pitter-patter on your windshield just makes a Monday Morning livelier.

A sunny-sitout with peanuts and nimbu-paani to celebrate the end of the week syndrome.

A stroll on a cold foggy evening is best enjoyed on roads where you can hear- the sound of your tappy footsteps, some jazz playing from the porch of the large bunglow facing the park and cold wind blowing across your face.




4) All things girly. WARNING: this is not for women who scoff at pink, think shopping is a waste of precious time or take pride in the fact that other women- nobel laureates, funky film makers, business barons- are not exactly what you or me would call beautiful or pretty or a sight- in crisper words they love it when the brain triumphs all beauty (did someone say cynics)

Epic chick flicks which made every girl want to own a vera wang even more ...

...or get their hands on Kalteen Bars which can cause great damage to one but helps repair another's ego.







                                                          
 Dresses which highlight just want you'd want them to. Your exclusive pick; heavenly creations on cloth, made to be adorned just by you.

              
A single rose in an earthy vase, a bunch of lilies placed on your bedside table and a whiff of Issey Miyake on your pillow.

Bows, ribbons and glitter. Hairclips with small diamonte flowers , balloons with twirly bronze ribbons, shiny green aluminium streamers with red and green mistletoes, white candles with silver glitter dust..

5) Elegant Stationary: Delicate hand crafted or slick & smart. A smooth black pencil or a florescent yellow eraser. A quirky card holder or a clean-cut brochure. We all love stationery and treasure a well designed book mark.

6) Cobbled streets with painted entertainers, lazy diners, souvenir shops and narrow alleys. Going beyond the European feel...I also quite like the almost- cobbled streets behind the hauz khas tank in the market.

7) Cutting chai or a glass of wine: I strongly believe that if there is one thing that can replace, tea drinking in India, the ritual that it is; it is the tinkle of wine glasses. Nothing can lead to the same sighs with the first sip.

8) A good song: Music is a lot of peoples refuge, it begins where speech ends. If there is one form of art which is nigh to tears it is this. As rightly said by Tolstoy- Music is the shorthand of emotion. Hope, sorrow, joy, disillusionment, love is well brought in by strumming a chord or drawing the bow. Here are few lines, I know, that made hearts ache...Remember when I moved in you, the holy dove was moving too and every breath we drew the Hallelujah...            

9) Yellow lights: Let me paint depressing for you; Light blue walls with a thick tubelight, a vase with artificial flowers and typically gupta furniture (no offence to the baniya community, i do know a Few who are quite tasteful). Now walk into a room with fab-india lamps with minumum 60W yellow bulbs, decorative T-light holders, scented candles and a meditating brass Buddha under a picture light , see my point now!                          

10) Quaint Little places and things: Charmingly odd especially in a old fashioned way is what quaint can be defined as. Antiquated and ornate also being in the same ambit, a lot will remind you of this. I am not talking about venetian drapery and victorian furniture, what I mean is Brass and wood mirrors with lattice, Jodhpur stone jaali windows, creaky wooden floors with old books and brick buildings with Virginia creepers, Vinyl records and the mouth-watering smell of freshly baked cakes.

11) Colour: A Soft sea-green Stole, a royal blue shrug, bright red stilltos-a la' DWP, a traditional Madubani painting, multi-coloured tresses in a wedding pandal, M &Ms.. all this makes one skip a heartbeat.

 12) Ice-Cream: Going out for an ice-cream post dinner is our attempt to save the day and sleep happier. A waffle cone is the cherry on the cake.

Living the high life is not just about exclusive hotel suits and mojitos at the beach... in our self-consolation phase, we can attempt to give it a shot with these little drops of joy.

P.S: Though they might give momentary relief till a few Fridays, do not escape taking a pause and looking at the bigger picture. Once you realize what you're looking for- Take the plunge!

Knot fair!

For the myopic many, it is an easy decision... to indulge in the prettiness and reach a towering exaltation which makes it smoother to go through the ordeal that is marriage. I also believe that the grandeur associated with a wedding is part of a conspiracy theory by the propagators of this institution to cloud the vision even of the most sagacious man or woman. It is only fair to be on a level playing field and then race for the 'whos more pathetic' title.

And then begins 'crappily ever after'. It comes full throttle first at the guys. Suddenly someone for whom handbags equaled utility realizes how your huge yellow bag has to accommodate a hairbrush, a kohl pencil, a lipgloss and the rest are sundry items thrown in as a filler. He now has huge vocab issues which he tries to cope with for he knows not what a clutch, a tube, a shrug or the MAC strobe lotion is. On a serious note, his TV time gets split between Ten Sports and Star World; He who has never panicked unless India's losing a match is now clearly stressed if the geyser breaks down. Never had any attention been paid to anything, apart from the TV or laptop at dinner and now in a flash he has to take time out to appreciate the delicacy prepared painstakingly for him. Between the devil and the deep sea, wanting to burn his fingers and dive into the stormy waters at the same time. Frequently meeting an expectant gaze or a disappointed sigh; for being solely responsible for another person, brings with it, along with undying love- PMS, high decibel venom and a lifestyle overhaul. Undying love now sounds like an oxymoron :)

Though more wieldy for the girl.. what stumps her is how elementary the transformation is and if you think thats music to her ears, it is'nt. Cuz she was armed with a duffel bag to dawn her jaw dropping avatar at her mothers' but not with an appetite to stomach food that her taste buds refuse to recognize.  Guilt is something she experienced when she overspent on a pair of striking indigo sandals, not when she slept till 11 AM on a weekend. And for the angelic non-diplomats it does take great effort to restrain from clawing someones face out every time the old chatty neighbour who happens to be her boyfriend's friend, talks like he knows it all, for she would'nt give a toss, had she encountered him at a pub, in a mall or while at work. The identity crisis looms large, she hangs on tight to her sleepover sessions with girlfriends, occasional drives to get a drink and trips to the mall with no agenda what-so-ever. She hates the cocoon which beckons.

And then unknowingly without making an attempt to glorify where they're placed in life, they notice the following: That everyone around them is getting married or hoping to someday and that the former meet their elbow grease to socialize with a frail 'hmm'... as if just trying enough to peek through the shell they've gotten into. The latter kick around before learning how to swim, they don't know what to do with life so they keep trying to entertain themselves by latching on to lonely others like themselves, like a log of wood to keep afloat. And slowly the blur that becomes reality has you nodding your head in agreement yet again to the age-old rule: Each generation carries with it a midas touch which gets lost in translation to the new age contemporaries, so you see the corrosion every time you see an amateur. Solving the ever-existing conundrum about why girls always fall for older men.

It  really doesn't do much harm, when on a foggy winter morning you've got someone to drive you to a plate of waffles with warm maple syrup.

Spellbound

Often I stand dumbfounded, looking at a black overcoat with a scrunched collar extending over the shoulders or or a red silk tube dress with perfect grecian drapes, wondering if these had been divinely blessed.

... it may best be described as a state of trance where a piece of clothing captivates you.- What helps is, perfectly lighted sparkling mirrors, floaty..dreamy music, dilated pupils which make you look cuter and see better, the sheer necessity for a funky teal muffler because you don't have that colour even though it does'nt go with most of the stuff you own and what elevates you and makes you hit the climax is the scramble for the last piece in a particular size- here you reach the 'what the heck state'... 2 pairs of socks to fill up shoes which are a size bigger, a white satin belt with a bow to hold up that dress closer to your waist, breathing in spurts to fit into that stunning purple chiffon skirt...

My visits to the mall (I say mall because large retail spaces with variants in different colours, fits and textures is the epitome of confusion ) almost always leave me enamoured; my impulse then leaves no room for brain. My sense of sight completely takes over and plastic reigns supreme again.

Then on one such day in quest of a smart pair of socks in black, I chanced upon a red coat dress. In my dictionary this would be classified under a 'must-have'. After the first trial I realized how irresistibly hot it looked. I played it up till the seventh trial when my adjectives stopped working, La Vie En Rose  was now devoid of any tints, I could see clearly why the last piece in size S was still there- it looked shabby with jeans and was too long to look chic with tights.  I broke the spell that held me long. Enough to prevent me from spelling broke.

The Yes, the No and the Can't Say

If you observe people and patterns you will take note that some people are always OK with things- available for a quick drink, up for an unplanned road trip and have no strict preferences on cuisines. Some others are wet blankets, resistant to change or a new hangout, at their hang-uppy best all the time, always ready with an instinctive 'no'. There is a third compartment of people too, those who have a problem committing to just about anything-the kinds who need a minute to decide whether they want their burger with or without cheese, the kinds who'd give out a 'hmm' when you're looking for a definitive yes or no, a typical trait of theirs is heavy usage of words like 6ish, brownish, inappropriate, kind-of, we'll see.. and the likes.

While the buddy who's always game is your caffeine on a bad winter's morning, dig a little deeper and you'd be entertained by the fact that her most oft-used means to get out of relationships, a casual social gathering which intercepts her shopping plans, a birthday lunch which coincides with a day at the spa or a friend's bachelorette because she is too lazy to wax, so far has been to stop taking phonecalls, hand over her phone for other people to answer or even change her number, each time assuming that the person on the other end would get the hint :). In their defense, we have phenomenal writers like J.R.R Tolkien who believed that escapism had an element of emancipation in its attempt to figure a different reality. 

A killjoy may be driven by logic in the parallel world which exists in his mind but to you he may seem to be possessed by the spirit of a miffed 5 year old. He just might avoid a European jaunt because weather.com predicts mild rainfall, a stick jaw at night because he'd have to brush his teeth again or wash his hands off a fabulous deal because minor issues like utility and frequency of use begin to do the shimmy in his mind. Infact they are on such a trip of their own that they refuse even to consider that a Valentino dress or a louis vuitton bag would be an investment passed on from one generation to another. What saves them is the commonsensical, down-to-earth and seasoned projection of a pragmatic thinker. The left side of their brain is embedded with tenets and precepts while the right side is wired to choose the strangest combination out of these for them to creatively state reasons for not doing something and baffle people they know, yet again.


Type 3 delude themselves into believing that the world will wait on them. The kind who always want to have the option of curling back into bed, putting on their dancing shoes or throwing on a snug stole and walking out to watch a play. They hoodwink you into thinking that they are the ones who stand strong on their word, however in reality its nothing but a disclaimer absolving them of any responsibility. I wonder what will become of their modus operandi when find their cosmos shrinking with age and the constraints which come with it as an appendage. Loneliness they say does'nt leave you many options... 


Given the number of people who fall in the above three leagues whats off-colour here is balance. Balance is placid. But I'd rather have the waves crash into rocks or feel them pull the sand from under my feet.


P.S:People who are always game, keep their word and show up on time are the ones who don't really have a life ;)

On the face of it

What happens when a gawky 25 year old South Indian-nurse looking-curly haired woman suddenly realizes that looks don't really matter at her workplace and her head reeking of Coconut oil is the key to the treasure trunk - She goes on a vindictive power trip! She shuns away all chiffon skirt swaying, jimmy choo wearing variants with a stiff hairy upper lip.

Then again there is the blue eyed, golden haired and milky white stunning statuesque who came out of the chasm and  instantaneously learned how benevolent it was of her to agree to be born, and that their single-most insignificant gift to mankind is the enthralling beauty for which they themselves cannot take any credit. Too bad that the makings of a strong persona with habits that a dignified human being must possess take a backseat. For a good pedicure can always make up for appalling behaviour or bad breath.

Most fascinating are people who constantly work on different versions of themselves. They hit puberty at 28 when they land up with pink tresses and have a parallel personality on Facebook. You can't really blame them, they've always been on the line which spells mediocrity, always just short of a strike out. So when most people their age get over all that jazz, these aspirants start to paint the town..

All three above know not the art of cutting the Gordian knot. If you can't get what you want by being smart just play dumb or dewy eyed. Beauty in flesh will continue to rule the world.. but you wont want a fifty dollar haircut on a fifty cent head. Normal is good. Symmetrical is uncommon. Too quirky kills it. But before trying to pull of any of my priceless pointers remember beauty is skin deep but ugly cuts to the bone

Going Solo

Have you been privy to those few performances on a karaoke night which would've sounded great with one powerful voice but be equivalent to cacophony with two three people going ga-ga (literally) on it. Why would a musician take the pains to create a choir with the Altos-Sopranos-Bass combo (technically of course with a lot of sub-categories within each) if all she needed was 10 people singing 'father figure' in nursery rhyme fashion.


The sad part is that most people don't know when to kiss the mic and when to give it a pass. Worse is when they forget the life-jacket while braving stormy waters- A slight amount of reverb to soften the edges and add a bit of depth. So when do you stop looking around waiting for someone to join you- for the book reading sessions on a comfy Sunday afternoon or at the buffet table for a second helping of the scrumptious peanut butter pie and then at the gym to burn away that sinful treat?


There are times when even two is a crowd and you just need to "Run, Forest, Run!" Just make sure you have your sipper full and your gear intact.


Those who swear by sidekicks rather than superpowers, might want to examine how the kid in yellow, red and green became an archetype. They might even want to argue how Betty was Riverdale's darling while Archie wed Veronica..cough cough..don't know about that but well Betty was almost short of earning the title of the eternal doormat that day ;)

Shine on you crazy diamond

Just like, when its murky you have to find a bright spot, you have to believe that its your song playing, to be able to sing along. You've got a zillion takes to paint your palette because you have the black, the grey and the white to rescue.

Our life has a drag and drop tool with a fill colour button and a ctrl z which works in certain places but I've seen very few play the game with the same joy like that of a 5 year old. I see some people yearn for happiness like its a drop of rain which on the mercy of the rain Gods is supposed to fall from the sky and into their lap. And then I see some just walk into the starry night with a smile on their face leaving behind- a relationship whose inevitable failure was visible to them long back, a job that made them crib every night before going off to sleep and every morning while driving to work, a plot of barren land the acquisition of which nearly gave them a heart attack, a country which could never be home...

If you think you have to walk your way through a minefield and that every next step that you take or detract from may spell doomsday, you start to tread carefully, measuring the outcome of every move, ironically though if it actually is the eschatological final battle what has one to lose..

Also very few can confront the elephant in the room, the rest just put on a pair of dark glasses and continue with their miseries. So next time you decide to use  · · · — — — · · · send it out to your heart instead of your head.