Unveil the Other Side

 Shravya, a young girl from Bangalore, was living a new life in Mumbai’s bustling Seepz, Andheri. It was the early 2000s, and her first job, fresh out of college, had brought her here. Away from home, she embraced the thrill of independence, juggling work deadlines and weekend outings with her newfound friends. The city taught her to manage money, from budgeting her modest salary to savoring street-side vada pavs. Each day was a lesson in self-reliance, and her tiny rented apartment became her sanctuary. Shravya was no longer just a girl from Bangalore—she was shaping into a confident, independent woman.

 There I was, shivering my way back home after dropping my little one off at school. The cold wind bit at my cheeks, making me wish I'd layered on more than just a thin coat of moisturizer. As I hurried along, I overheard two teenage girls animatedly discussing their skincare regimes. Words like "hyaluronic acid," "niacinamide," and "double cleansing" flew around with the same ease as if they were talking about their favorite Netflix shows. I couldn’t help but smile and drift back to my own teenage years—a time when my skincare routine consisted of splashing some cold water on my face and hoping for the best. Back then, the closest thing I had to a skincare regime was occasionally swiping some of my mom’s Nivea cream when the winter winds made my cheeks as chapped as a pair of old leather shoes. It was a simpler time. There were no multi-step processes, no serums, and certainly no influencer-endorsed products. The height of sophistication was knowing w...

 It was constant pitter pattering outside with thick rain drops hitting the glass pane at the brim of my balcony. While I lay on the bed lazily reading my book all I could hear in the last half hour amidst the monotonous rainfall was a couple of honking at the nearby junction where cars sped by indicating their movements. A faint cry of a bird that lived in a nest on the backyard tree was heard too. Yes, the distant dog barked profusely, I presume it to be due to the sight of kids walking in full rain gear and boots. My focus shifted back to the story in the book.I frantically started reading the next few pages that had me gripped. When the story ended I closed the book and still engrossed in those characters and their doings I failed to realize that the musical rainfall had waded off and the silence was replaced by noisy traffic, people talking, loud music from the neighbors house, the florist who comes on his cycle selling flowers shouting the names of the seasonal blooms as he p...

Come again August , the plan to visit Lal Bagh for the Indepedence day flower show is one that I wouldn't want   to give a miss. And waiting for "The I Day" makes it impossible to soak in the right essence of the show. The crowd is getting intolerable on weekends and public holidays over the week-long festival year after year. I generally pick the weekend before "The I Day" to avoid bit of a crowd. If you are lucky enough to breathe through the hustle bustle, grandpas, grannys, lovey-doveys who seem to be inseparable, recent fathers pushing the trolleys of their babies while the mom is capturing some macro flower snaps, the school outing team, then I'd say you are a perfect Bangalorean. And me one such Pakka Bangaloored lady take this challenge every six months. The adventure this time did not please me much, may be my expectations were high. It was plain and simple. Some attractions in the glass house are - Panda made of pink flowers   ...

Saturday evening it was. My sis had mentioned a new European Cuisine outlet about a kilometer distance from our place. We had plans of visiting this restaurant a week before but had to forego the plan for the "Pizza hut" demands :) Okay this saturday the trio - Sis , me and my cousin gave it quits to the food prepared at home and headed for the munching at the Euro-Restaurant. Dont ask me about the experience. It was an unpleasant one. I dont want to comment any further. But I cant let go my furious self otherwise. The reastaurant looked quite spacious [We later noticed it was not spacious but empty except for a few college buddies hanging out in a corner]. We were talking about the feeling of an isolated area only to be startled by the waiter's soft voice who placed the menu cards on the table and left us to decide on our choice of platter. [he kind of forgot about us until we reminded him of our existence with a waving hand] Bruschetta - totally italian for a starter wa...

The month of January coming to a close marks the birth [12 January, 1863] of a legend [ Swami Vivekananda ] and the death [30 January 1948] of a legend[ Mahatma Gandhi ]. Last week of December I was in Kanyakumari and here is the beauty of the town - it has a Vivekananda Memmorial and Gandhi Bhavan.Sheer co-incidence or was it right there only for this post? Vivekananda Rock memmorial captured at night in the lights. The world is the great gymnasium where we come to make ourselves strong. ~ Swami Vivekananda Gandhi Bhavan with the symbolised charaka! Anger and intolerance are the enemies of correct understanding. ~ Mahatma Gandhi I am not a follower of either but thought of sharing some gyan!!

The flower show at the Botanical garden in Bangalore[Lal Bagh] is an event that puts me into a world of imagination. I love the creations and the thoughts that are poured in every year. As a part of the Republic day celebrations this year the glass house is filled with various creative flower arrangements. This show happens to be the 100th exhibition event since Dept of Horticulture started the flower show. On a pleasant saturday evening, I started off my stroll from the west gate and stopped at the lake which had floating floral boats. It was indeed an amazing view. South Korean Buddha Stupa is the show stopper this year which is housed in the centre of the Glass house. Made of roses, carnations, Orchids and foliages - a total of over 4 Lakh flowers are used to build this massive 30 feet tall structure. Alstromeria and Carnations are used to build yet another beautiful Floral flow structure - "Flower Pouring Out of a Pot". The concept in itself is a wow factor. I had only ...

That's a title as suggested by my sister and cousins who accompanied me yesterday for a ride on the "Namma Metro" - The first ever metro train in Bangalore city.The most hyped attraction of the city which has missed several deadlines and finally made its grand opening this October is the first step in bringing some peace to Bangalore traffic I'd say. With the reach of Metro, not really that attractive as of now, I guarantee that upon its completion in the years to come we can see some organized structure in the movement of traffic in this city. The plan was in place. Sis, I and two other cousins had the idea of enjoying this ride when it opens to public. What better day could it be than the Karnataka/Kannada Rajyotsava to make this event dream come true! Yes, we headed out on the road early yesterday morning (Pretty early). Reached MG road at around 8:30am. Walked past the Deccan Herald (office of a daily newspaper) and there we walk the first time ever into the stati...

Today was one of those monotonous mornings, however with a surprise element. On our way to office, sis and myself happened to sight an individual riding a 2 wheeler. As this person was ahead of us at first we could just see from the back. We started debating on whether it was a he/she for obvious reasons. We had to halt at the signal with the seconds counting down from 120 (Yes! some traffic signals are a complete 2 minute wait here in Bangalore) and our converstation continued. Look at that neatly permed long hair - I definitvely said it should be SHE . After a moment I noticed the way he/she was sitting and riding the bike - pretty straight and macho - I redefined my statement and said it was a HE for sure. Now, with a body hugging Tee and a skin tight jeans which had a floral print on the pockets. - What do you say I questioned? - Both me and sis in chorus said "It's a SHE" . (Also to add the helmet worn was so girlish!) The seconds blink 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1 .. and we zo...

Disclaimer: For Non Kannada readers this post is about an evening travel back home in a city bus and the experience with a little imagination. However a gist is at the bottom of this post on popular demand. ಅಂದು ಸಂಜೆ ಬಸ್ಸಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಮನೆಗೆ ತೆರಳುವ ಸಂಭವ ಮೂಡಿ ಬಂದಿದ್ದು ಒಂದು ತರಹ ಒಳ್ಳೇದೆ ಆಯಿತು ಅಂತ ಈಗ ಅನಿಸುತ್ತಾ ಇದೆ. ಹೋಗಿರಲಿಲ್ಲ ನಿಮಗೆ ಈಗ ಈ ಲೇಖನವನ್ನು ಓದುವ ಅವಕಾಶವಿರುತ್ತಿರಲಿಲ್ಲವಲ್ಲ :) ಅದ್ರಲ್ಲಿ ಹೊಸದು ಏನಿದ್ಯಪ್ಪಾ ಅಂತ ಕೇಳ್ತಾ ಇದ್ದೀರಾ? ಆಫೀಸ್ ಮುಗಿಸಿ ಬಸ್ ಸ್ಟಾಪ್ ಗೆ ಬರೋಷ್ಟರಲ್ಲಿ ನನ್ನ ಕಣ್ಣ ಮುಂದೇನೆ ೩ ಕೆಂಪು ವಜ್ರ AC ಗಾಡಿಗಳು ವ್ರೂಂ ವ್ರೂಂ ಅಂತ ಹೋಗಿಯೇ ಬಿಟ್ಟವು. ರೋಡಿನ ಈ ಬದಿಯಿಂದ ಆ ಬದಿಗೆ ದಾಟುವಷ್ಟರಲ್ಲಿ ನನ್ನ ಅವಸ್ಥೆ ಕೇಳಬೇಡಿ. ಆಗ ತಾನೇ ಹೈದು ಹೋದ ಬಸ್ಸಿನ ಕೊನೆಯ ಸೀಟ್ನಲ್ಲಿ ಕೂತಿದ್ದ ಮಗು ನನ್ನ ಅವಸ್ತೆಯನ್ನ ನೋಡಿ ನಗುತಿದ್ದಂತೆ ಇತ್ತು. ಹಾಗೋ ಹೀಗೋ ರೋಡ್ ದಾಟಿ ಮುಂದಿನ ಬಸ್ಸಿಗಾಗಿ ಕಾದೆ. ಎದುರಿಗೆ ಬಂದಿದ್ದು ಮಾರ್ಕೆಟ್ ಗೆ ಹೋಗೋ ಒಂದು ಸಾಧಾರಣ ಬಸ್. ಅದ್ರಲ್ಲಿ AC ಇಲ್ದೆ ಇದ್ರೂ ಕೂರಲು ಸೀಟ್ ಇದ್ದಿದ್ದು ನನಗೆ ಕುಷಿ ತಂದಿತು. ಬಸ್ ಹತ್ತಿ ಎರಡನೇ ಸೀಟಿನ ಕಿಟಕಿಯ ಪಕ್ಕ ಕೂತೆ. ಒಮ್ಮೆ ಹಾಗೆ ನನ್ನ ಕತ್ತನ್ನು ಸುತ್ತ ಗೂಬೆಯಂತೆ ತಿರುಗಿಸಿ ಜೊತೆ ಪಯಣಿಸುತ್ತಿರುವ ಪ್ರಯಾಣಿಕರನ್ನು ವೀಕ್ಷಿಸಿದೆ. ಮುಂದೆ ಕುಳಿತಿದ್ದ ಯುವತಿಯರಿಬ್ಬರು ...

Ventured out on a casual stroll In the street saw I A kid cajole its mom , for a decent toy buy Shabby looks, clothes tattered Cruel 'NO' is what I hear Dreaming kid's heart shattered Rolling down its cheek, I see a tear Kid rest his head, couched safe Mom sits there and embrace She had no penny To feed her little sonny Harsh was reality that hit her hard Begging continued on the street No signs of betterness on the card She stood fighting the cold, bare feet A stranger crossed the busy road Filled of trucks with heavy load Picked the toy from the vendor Placed it in the hands of the little wonder A gentle tender smile Is what I'd been waiting all the while Bewildered, I stand there Ahh! there are people who care and share..

This was not the first time I visited Lal bagh. Yet it had its own charming welcome. Colors around and pretty decorum made it the perfect outing. Alone I started this journey and the best part of the day was the attractive Lal Bagh Flower show. Its been a beautiful part of my life now as I can cherish the memories viewing the clicks I happened to capture in the lens - How ever they dont match the real view that's stored in my brain :) Lucky me - to have been blessed to see this colorful nature. Part of the Independence day celebrations started a week before the actual date. I thoroughly enjoyed the Flower show and here is a glimpse of what I saw in Real. Next time if you are in Bangalore either during the Republic day weekend or Independence day weekend and if you love colors , nature and gardening - Please don't miss this event. Vande Mataram. Jai Hind! Macro shot of a Dahlia in white and Maroon. That's an Anthorium in Red. Loved the cont...

The Meteorological Department had its forecast in place, ahead of time. Wet weekend it had to be - So was it. Friday evening as I sit on my chair keying in some words making the rugged program work accidentally happened to glance at the window and my vision is stuck to the dark clouds. The setting at any IT office is pretty much similar - Lights are on throughout, giving an imaginary illusion of day beyond 6 in the evening as well. However I sit in a place that gives a clear view of the sky. Hurdling through the bustling traffic, avoiding as many potholes possible - made the trip back home in a ridiculous 3 hours drive. Cars carried mud along, auto rickshaws pulled themselves with all the strength - drivers making the best of the opportunity. Bikers - ones afraid of falling sick took shelters off the road until the rains mellowed a bit, the ones who did'nt care of drenching - zoomed along. Adding to the splashing surprise for the city on Friday, more rains and thunder-show...

I walked past the long iron bars , hmm you can call it ' The gate' , the one I walk pass by every day. Today while I do this, I was mentally preparing myself - making a note of all the emails I need to draft, the tasks that needed my attention and finally as I climb the stairs that lead to my cubicle, was just hoping for no " End of day " deadline tasks in my bucket. Friday !! and to top it the weather being kind enough to stay beautiful and awesome throughout this week had taken me out from the working mood. Reaching the desk, first thing I did - checked my Inbox and sighed with great relief. Hip hip Hurray !! No major assignments today. Sipping some hot espresso, logged onto my blog - I was more than overwhelmed! I had recieved my first set of awards for my small space out here that I've been sharing my thoughts through. The moment I saw this Golden comment " you have just won a set of awards ashwini.. check my recent post:-) " from Mishi, I could ...

Working mind had gone blank Thoughts were a lot But there came a clot - How Do I Reach That No.1 Rank ? All those high brain Nerds there Seeing them I was scared The feeling - little akward No one seemed to be bothered Busy in their routine Portraying a definitive mien Hurray was the only Word 'Cos after this , they'll be Honored White paper,on it the black ink's wink Got me to the act of blink blink blink Penning the words that flowed Poured poured and poured Finally, it was over and I was out So was the crowd discussing their doubts Happy and merry sounded I My soul within knew I would stand that high Came that day I shout the word - Hurray No. 1 was my aim No. 10 is no bad I exclaim. [Zero has no value right. Be it No.1 or No.10. Who cares ? Ha ha ha :)]

Time passes by, days roll, years grow and so do we. Its one more year added to my career-life. Going a few years down the lane , I can see myself sitting in front of the interviewer who seemed funny not because of his behaviour or his attire. He was asking questions way beyond the thinking capacity of an engineering student still in her last year of the course. Yes it wasn't simple to get into an MNC. Especially getting placed through college was a dream come true. I was selected!Hmmm something must be really wrong with those guys thought I. Later did I get to know that it was a part of stress test they were carrying out on all the candidates. I had cleared the test , Not bad, my patience level was way too high. Dont expect that now.. Pleaaaseee! If I go back to the days of my training - Thats going to be another blog in full [some other time please]. Gosh! No I did not want to be trained on Mainframes - Not knowing the fact that its gonna be an alltime high and evergreen in the I...

Vidyarthi Bhavan - One of the iconic restaurants in Bangalore/Bengalooru makes me feel elated every visit there. If you are in and around Gandhi Bazaar area, then this is one place you need to hop into, for the very reason of gulping in a hot cuppa filter coffee while munching away a calorie-rich-ghee-roasted Masala Dosa. This restaurant, with the interiors backing to the age it opened with [Started in 1943], is a mark of old Bangalore/Bengalooru . Breakfast or an evening snack - this is the right place to be. Its a small crowded place and people flock here all hours in the day till the doors close. Diet! - Forget the routine for one day to enjoy this restaurant's special masala dosa. Bid a bye to your calorie conscious soul while you relish the crisp crepes[Dosas] accompanied with coconut chatni and lentil sambhar . You need to wait for atleast 15-20 minutes to occupy a table. A common scene one would come across here is that people stand next to you when you are eating, as they ...

I can hear a lot of you asking 'why this question now'? A few are thinking what went wrong. Yes I did watch a few scenes from the block buster movie Gajini last night but I'm not into any temporary memory loss or the kinds. Then Why am I asking this stupid question? I have one younger sister who has made me laugh,wiped my tears, hugged me tight, watched me succeed, made me mad, cheered me up and made me the strong person I am now. She is one beautiful, talented and a very intelligent soul I know. This may not sound something new to quite a lot reading through. At parties or other family celebrations if we are caught amidst the group of gossipping relatives ( which we most of the times avoid ) its become a practice for us to nod our heads when we are addressed by any of our names. Its been a big confusion till date amongst our relatives whom we visit not quite often. Both of our names start with "A" . Is that the reason for the confusion? In our childhood days we...

Yeah yeah you're right.. I turned another year old Friday the 17th. I have never missed a bite of my favourite chocolate - Cadbury's Crackle on my birthday ever since its release. This Birthday was no exception. It is a Crackle that completes my birthday! Well this year there were two other bites waiting in my gift list. In the evening after I reached back home, I was lying down on the sofa relaxing myself a bit. I was surfing through the channels to find something that interests me. When I found a reality show, I paused the surfing act and started listening to the song - " Dil cheez kya hai aap mere ..." that was playing.That was when I enjoyed the next bite - hmmmmph! It was a honey bee sting on my left ankle that left my leg swollen for the next 3 days. Wonder how people take so many stings to create a record in Guinness :0. Some Interesting fact I discovered when googled for the honey bee sting : [ Most bee stings removed: The greatest number of bee stings sus...

Last evening my cousin sister came home with her son Samarthan . He is a darling, smart, handsome cutie pie. Today the generation of kids go " out of the box " to figure out the world better. Their questions range from the degree of embarassment to technically not possible to answer kinds, serious to fun. Most of them are so very curious to know about developments happening at home to what is rocket science all about ???... Aaahhhh! Kids to be Kids but sometimes they behave like a grandpa and grandma when they start with their set of questions - Why? What? Who? When? How?Where? ... My dear nephew is no exception. As soon as I reached home ,parked the car and stepped out to greet him a smiling "hiiiiiiiiiii...." . He was waiting at the gate and was eager to reveal how he landed at our house telling all the modes of transport he had used to reach his destination - our home. His words literally went like this: Me: "Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii... Samarthan"...