These are a few of my favourite things!

these are a few of my favourite things... some sights, sounds, smells, tastes, feelings... some of them i have experienced, some of them i havent, but would love to. thay are not in any order... i kept writing as and when a thot came to my mind... what are some of your favourite things? do lemme know!

1. winter morning sun
2. sunrise/sunset colours
3. rippling waters of the ocean/calm lake
4. waves splashing on your feet
5. birds flying in a formation over the horizon
6. dewdrops on plants in the morning
7. walking on the wet grass barefeet early morning/late night
8. beautiful colours of flowers / butterflies
9. voice of cuckoos, dancing peacocks
10. birds feeding their lil ones
11. kittens/puppies playing with each other... in fact all baby animals
12. smile of a baby... or a sleeping baby
13. cute lil toddlers wearing cute shoes n dresses, running around, shrieking with laughter!
14. toothless smile of the old
15. the glow on the face of a couple in love, a pregnant woman or a new mother!
16. sunlight streaming in teh room late afternoon/ moonlight late night..
17. the smell of your favourite dish, just when you are damn hungry!
18. finding money unexpectedly in your old jeans pocket
19. running into your old long lost friend and realising that you can still pick up from where you started
20. a sweet smile or compliment from a stranger
21. your guy unconsciouslyholding your hand while you both are crossing a road
22. no queues!!
23. no quizzes at IIMA!!!
24. Saral Da's OM classes
25. a song dedicated to you on tv/radio
26. soeone calling/messaging/mailing just to say they miss ya
27. someone admitting they have a crush on you
28. Sanjeev Kumar... oooh!! [too bad he is dead :( ]
29. mountains covered with flowers!
30. scooping up snow in your hand
31. bathing in the rain, then having hot tea and samosas!
32. the feel of a baby's skin
33. losing weight, however little! ;)
34. earning your first salary, and getting gifts for your loved ones
35. being proposed in public, unexpectedly, with the guy down on his knees, a ring in hand...
36. walkin on the beach at night, barefoot, in teh moonlight
37. sound of the bell announcing the end of day at school/college
38. tasty sams, aloo parathas, mangoes, lichis...
39. kadhi chawal, rajma chawal, chhole bhature... and the likes!
40. my doggie when she licks me on my nose!
41. floating in a pool, on your back, under the sun, with a drink and a book in your hand..
42. squirrel nibbling on nuts
43. a cheetah charging towards his prey... running smoothly and gracefully
44. winning a contest, game, lottery..
45. your best friend's / your own wedding
46. your best friend/you yourself in love! :)
47. sitting on the couch, with your legs propped up on the table, with a pack of popcorns and a glass of chilled pepsi, watching your fav movie!
48. riding a bike, gliding, with teh wind in your face..
49. your best friend's shoulder when u need to cry
50. BLOGGING!! :))

Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder

After a hectic week at office, I managed to get a weekend off, and rush back to meet my family in Delhi. On that idyllic Sunday, when I entered Cafe Coffee Day to grab a cuppa Irish Coffee, I bumped into a long-lost good friend, Tanuj. We used to be at school together. After leaving school, we went to different colleges to pursue higher studies, and soon lost touch. That day, I met him after almost 7 years! After lots of oh-my-god-is-it-really-you expressions, we sat down to catch up with each other, and fill each other in with everything that was happening in each other's life. Apparently he was there with a friend, (someone I did not know) Arjun. He was sitting on the chair, wearing sunglasses, dressed in smart trousers and a crisp shirt. He was quietly sitting, and smiled towards me when Tanuj introduced us.

I sat there, talking to Tanuj, while Arjun sat, listening. Not once did he talk. Tanuj told me he had married Sana, his school sweetheart... Sana! That amazingly beautiful babe, model-like in her beauty, I was sure she was gonna make it big in Bollywood! I congratulated him, and told him I was very happy for them, and that he was lucky to have found such a beautiful bride. He looked at me and smiled, saying " Well, a good looking guy like me, has to get a beautiful bride. She is good, but not half as good looking as I am! She is the one who is lucky here!!" And he burst out laughing. Tanuj... he hadn't changed. The same ol' good looking tho very egoistic guy. Got a pretty and smart girl... and gave himself all the credit.

I had had enough of Tanuj so I steered the conversation towards Arjun. I asked him if he had some woman in his life. He smiled and blushingly admitted... "Yes, I do have a sweet gal in my life, and we just got married last month!!" I congratulated him, and urged him to tell me more about this girl. He said -

" Her name is Sanya. She is the most beautiful creature made by God. Her beautiful almond shaped eyes, the long black cascading mane of hair, the flawless skin, luscious rose-red lips, slender neck, full figure, petite hands with long fingers and pretty nails, long legs and the prettiest feet ever... every dress, every cloth, every style, every colour suits her. She never needs any makeup, flowers, jewellery... she is a natural beauty: cherubic, angelic, heavenly. There is no one as beautiful as her, she is unique, and I am glad that she is mine!"

I was awed. Never had I heard anyone describe his loved one so passionately, never had I imagined a being so beautiful, and never had I seen love soooo deep... I sat there, quitely, drinking in the image of the woman he created, when Arjun interrupted my thots and said -
"Would you like to see a picture of my beloved?" I nodded my head in agreement, eager to look at this heavenly beauty. Arjun took out a picture from his wallet and handed it over to me. And I looked at him standing next to his beloved: A Plain, rather not good-looking short, dark and plump woman... I thought he gave me the wrong picture. Before I could say anything, Arjun said that he just remembered he had an important work to do and had to leave asap. He got up and left in a jiffy, forgetting the photo behind. I showed Tanuj the pic, waiting for an explanation. He just smiled at me and said -

"Yes, she is the same girl he was talking about... Sanya. They have been together, in love for almost 15 years now, even tho Arjun is blind by birth, she happily married him. They are totally in love with each other... they are really the most beautiful couple I have ever seen... Hats off to them yaar!!"

And I looked at the picture, nodding in agreement: She really was the most beautiful woman, and they were the most beautiful couple ever!!

A shiver running down my spine... and my table, bed, room...

Wednesday, March 8th, 2006, at 12:00 am an earthquake of intensity 5.6 on Richter scale hit Gujarat. No casualties reported, though the aftermath of the 2001 episode has people terrorised still.

My experiences....


I have lived in Delhi for 22 years, and have experienced many earthquakes.
Nothin serious ever happens there. Gujarat one was the worst earthquakes I have ever experienced.
And one before that... the day "dil se" and "volcano" movies were being telecast on TV, and around 2 am types there was a major earthquake at the precise moment when the volcano burst in "volcano" and bomb blast happened in "dil se"... people actually thot the tremors were special effects!

Earlier I never used to realise an earthquake was happening. Mom n Dad used to come to my room.... and ask if i was ok... cuz there was an earthquake. But i had no clue.
Over the years, I became good at detecting tremors...
But lately kuch zyada hi ho gaya hai..
Every now n then I feel tremors.....

A coupla days ago at IIMA at 4 in the mornin I was roused from my sleep cuz of what I thot was an earthquake.. sleepily I checked rediff n all to see if there is any news of earthquake.
kuch nahin tha... and i heard no screams so I went back to sleep.


Today again I was sleepin when the tremors hit My bed and every thing around me was moving... and I told myself "Beta Aditi...so jaa... phir se you are imagining it..." and I was going back to neverneverland when there were harder tremors... and then shouts...
And I was happy!! For the first time... I was right! This Time it was ACTUALLY an earthquake... and not a figment of my imagination!! Excited, I ran out....
Usually I am very very scared of such things....
But today, when Earthquake in Gujarat happened.. (earthquake and Gujarat
together in a sentence make me shudder), I was anything but tensed!!
Very happily I climbed out of bed and ran upstairs in the open, and a few minuted later, came back to my room, and settled in my bed, smiling :)

But jokes apart, I am glad everyone is ok here.. and hope that's the case everywhere!!

Roadtrip!!

It was a cool day in December. With end term exams coming up in the near future, we were bored of mugging... and decided we had to have some action in life. So it was decided. We were going to have a road trip to a nearby archaeological site: Lothal. Now I know even you have forgotten your class 6 history lessons... Lothal was one of the port cities of the Mohenjodaro-Harrappan civilization, located about 60 km from Ahmedabad. We got the directions, arranged for bikes, the drivers and pillions, and decided to set out on a fine Saturday afternoon. Why afternoon you ask? Cuz baby, this is IIMA: we have classes on Staurday as well! :(

Anyway so we got everything ready, got over with classes, had lunch, and set out. This trip introduced me to some new people: a guy I had only heard of but never really known - Danko. Another guy, who I didnt know was even a student - Vikas! Anyhow after hurried introductions, hajaar instruction, rules, regulations and much deliberation we finally started off: MaNac and Dhamki, PG and Mirchi, Vikas and BV, Danko and ME!

We reached the highway, and turned right. We kept going on, smoothly, 4 bikes: 3 gals and 5 guys... with hair flowing in the breeze, sailing on the smooth Gujarat highway roads. After about 45 minutes, we were nearing Gandhinagar when PG decided to ask one of the localites if we were on the right way. This is how the conversation went.

PG: "Bhaisaab, yeh Lothal jaane ke liye sahi raasta hai?"
Guy: "Kya??"
PG: "Bhaisaab, yeh Lothal jaane ke liye sahi raasta hai?"
Guy: "Kya keh rahe hain aap? Lothal? Arre bhaiya, yeh raasta Lothal nahin jaata!"
PG: "Kya baat kar rahe hain?
Guy: "Aap log galat aa gaye hain... Lothal Amdavad ke doosri taraf hai..."
And he walked away, leaving us all stumped.

We had gone the wrong way! It was already 3:30 pm, and we had lost almost 1 hour, in the wrong direction. We would need another 45 minuted to just get back to Ahmedabad! We quickly got all the bikes rounded up and took a poll: What to do? Go back and go home, or visit Gandhinagar and Akshardham etc., or actually go ahead with Lothal anyway? We all decided we had enough enthu to continue with Lothal, no matter how fruitless it could get. So off we went, about turn forward march, back to Ahmedabad and on to Lothal.

We raced the bikes. Forgotten were all the rules of "no driving above 80 kmph". But it was fun, reeeally fun! A lil too sunny, and the wind would make your eyes water, but it was one hellava ride! The roads were well maintained, divided, with very little traffic.

As far as I consciously remember, I have hardly ever sat on a two wheeler, leave alone own one. So in teh beginning I was a bit skeptical about putting my life in someone's hand, but then i thot "what the heck.." But I did not regret the decision: Danko drives really well, and it was great fun! On the way, we almost ran over a dog which suddenly came in the way... but thank god for Danko's reflexes... nothing happened to any of us!

On the way, I was enjoying the sights and the scenery... after a few factories, all we had around us were trees and fields, smooth roads, cooooold wind, and beautiful weather! I could not help noticing the ads for an engine oil called "Laal Ghoda". It reminded me of a particular brand of tea which seems very popular in Rajasthan. Its called "Laal Ghoda Kala Ghoda Chai"! Everytime I went to Jaipur, I saw hordings, bullock carts, buildings etc... everything short of humans painted with this Ad!!

Anyhow after a fast and furious ride, when we were trying to race the sun (cuz if we were too late there was danger of the museum and site being closed down for the day), we somehow managed to reach Lothal at 5:45 pm. And guess what? it closed down like 15 mins ago!! We got down, and talked to some employees sitting around, hoping to get in. We begged, and even offered bribe, but they would not agree. Not cuz of any other reason but that they did not have the keys. The officer took them and went to Ahmedabad. The gate to the excavated site and museums were locked. Since there was no way we could get in the museum, we jumped over the fence surrounding the site.

It was deserted. And actually quite an anti-climax. Not as amazing as we thot... quite derelict and decrepit... some wells, some kitchens, some baths... The so called houses were too small to qualify as a full fledged house. However, as mentioned in my history textbook, I did notice that the structures were in proper right angles and the drainage system was amazing! (Better than IIMA I'm sure... everytime it rains the whole institute is flooded! Louis Kahn forgot to make drains it seems... ) We had a lot of fun taking digs at the Harrappan Civilization, making fun of everything around us, weaving imaginary scenarios and stories... when PG says "People, beware. The atmas of Lothal may not like all this... the bhatakti atmaas may tak revenge!!" Anyway, after hanging around for 20 mins or so, suddenly a guy materialised from nowhere. He said he was Harish, one of the caretakers. He said he jumped over the fence too, and showed us around. Explained the whole structure, very passionately. PG, the ghost-crazy guy was convinced that teh Harappan spirits had sent him to stop us from making fun and giving us gyaan!

After some time, it was around 7, and we were getting hungry, and there was no way we could reach the insti on time and have dinner in the mess, so we asked Harish if he could arrange for some food. He said that there were hardly any houses nearby: Lothal is a pretty dead place. It would take a lot of time for anyone to get food from any place. But he agrred to go look for it anyway. We thought of having a bon-fire. We asked him if we could get some sticks etc. He just nodded and went away. We waited for him for 15 mins, but no sign. We called out for him, but it seemed that he had disappeared as suddenly as he had appeared.

Bas, phir kya tha, PG was back in his Bhootiya mood.. "Guys lets narrate scary stories.." It was getting dark. We were on the way back to the well where we kept our helmets etc. when we saw a neat pile of sticks... as if conjured from thin air! When we arrived here, it wasnt there. And here it was, sitting happily, as if it had been there all this while. And there was no way Harish could have set it up, cuz he was nowhere to been seen for miles. We wondered how it came there, but gav eup soon and lit a nice crackling fire. Danko got a bedsheet, which we spread on the grass, and lay down, to look at the stars.

The sky was soooo beautiful!! Never had i seen so many stars, twinkling in the sky... we also spotted quite a few satellites. After a coupla futile tries of narrating scary stories, and some bakarr, we decided it was nearing 7:30 and it was high time we leave. It was decided we would have dinner at some road-side dhaba. So we packed our stuff, put out the fire and jumped out, and went off.

We reached the highway and saw 2 dhabas: one did not have food, the other had some stuff, made for the owners. But one look at our hungry faces and the guy agreed to arrange for some food somehow! He finally got us some weird dal, pyaaz aur aloo sabzi, another weird looking dish, a dish made of farsaan, and tasty parathas, with achaar and salad! We dint care what we were eating: we just gulped everything down with gusto! It was one of the most fulfilling tho weird meals of my life!

After a hearty meal, around 9 pm we got back on the bikes and had a freeeeeezing trip back! As usual, I was being my "i-dont-feel-cold" self.. and was wearing floaters and a single sweatshirt! I almost froze the death!! But the experience was fun all the same! On the way back, we clicked our pics in the darkness: 3 headlites shining on the dark roads... all in line.. it was beautiful! By 10:45 or so, we were back in the campus. Snug in our rooms, after a hot bath! Boy! Was that one hellava Raodtrip! It was my first and the best ever trip!!