15 August
Today is India's Independence day.

Here's wishing all the Indians throughout "A Very Happy Independence day"

Raksha Bandhan
Well yesterday was raksha bandhan. I somehow feel lost on every raksha bandhan everyyear. Coz i am the only child. Always wanted to have an older brother. Well i somehow don't have any "mooh bola" brothers and very firmly I dont belive in tying rakhis just for the heck of tying them. Coz i belive in the sentiment behind tying rakhis and not the ritual tying rakhis per se.
But guess what i had a great day today! i am the member of a youth organisation. We as a part of a project visited "ASTITVA", a home for mentally challenged people and tied rakhis to the mentally challenged guys over there. Felt so nice............... It was an emotionally rewarding experience. It feels really sad when i see their condition. They inhabit in a world which is their own. Some of them were so happy seeing us, they were overjoyed when we tied rakhi to them, but i think they were more happy by the fact that we treated them with lotsa sweets and chocolates. Some of them were in real good mood that day coz their sisters and family members had visited them. One of them was dancing with joy coz his sister was getting married. One of them spoke so well with me in english that i was shocked when i heard that he was a borderline case, an euphemism for a mentally unstable person. It was an absolute humbling experince which made me thank god for the fact that i was not one among them. Will visit them often............Anyways seeya!
Love, Shobha

Objectivity!
Hello friends!
Its said that "One should not be football of other people's opinion". But is it humanly possible not to get affected? Sometimes i wonder whether one can be really be objective about ourselves. Can we be really be unaffected by other people's remarks?
Coz i can be easily swooned by a compliment and can be easily hurt coz of a stray remark!!!!!!!!!!! Well guys whaddaya think?????
Love, Shobha

Afterthought
After all the hue 'n' cry about the findings of unacceptable levels of pesticides ( including urs truly.......), here comes a different perspective altogether that reflects on the sad situation that we are in rite now.

Despair!

To say i was disturbed after seeing this picture would be an understatement. This award winning photograph is taken by Kevin Carter. he won a Pulitzer prize for this picture. This picture was taken during the sudan famine. this picture shows a famine stricken child crawling towards the UN food camp which was situated nearly a kilometer away. The vulture is waiting for the child to die so that it can eat it. The picture shocked the whole world. Nobody knows what happened to the child thereafter. But Kevin Carter died after 3 months due to depression.
I think Bush should be sent a big picture of this photograph. When world is facing such basic problems like lack of food, war seems such a futile option and seems so trivial. If at all, all such resources were diverted to resolving such problems.... Now that is what i call wishful thinking..............

Get Spooked

Lots of spooky movies are being released during these days. Ghost-stories, thrillers being the in-thing today. Read some of the real life spooky stories.

First mineral water and now this!
This! news justifies my dislike for soft drinks.

Laloo mania

Also its learnt that Laoo had plans to go on the bus to lahore along with some media persons and 30 0dd Mps which is scheduled later this week. But couldn't go because his involvement with a scam....err......hm......ya.i guess animal husbandary scam has prevented him from leaving the country. Poor Laloo.........Meanwhile an amusing article on Laloo which u all would love to read. anyways guys seeya!
love, Shobha

Here's wishing all of u guys visiting my blog a veryyyyyyyyyyyyyy happy friendship day! :)
wanna write many things on this wonderful thing called "Friendship". But at the moment, no time! will definitely do so in my future posts. byeeeeeee everybody! have a gr8 day!
Love, Shobha

Mr. & Mrs. Iyer
WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! watta movie! watched Mr. & Mrs. Iyer for the first time and was completely bowled over by it. Now i realise watta loser i have been having watched the movie sooooooooooooooooooooooooo many days after its release. But as they say " Better late than never........ and i console myself.

This movie personifies " beauty in subtelity" such a beautiful movie but with such a powerful message but is devoid of any unnecessary drama. the movie hits you hard at appropriate places. Well for the unitiated, Mr. & Mrs. Iyer is a movie which shows communal tensions in India and how it affects the lives of 2 individulas a tamil brahmin played by konkana sen ( excellent acting) and a mulim photographer played by Rahul Bose ( cant keep my eye off him............... well now that's another story altogether.) Konkana sen is just perfect as a tamil brahmin lady. her accent was a revelation. Hard to believe that she is a bong female. They have worked very hard on costumes and the minute details of the chracter played by konkana which adds authenticity to her role. The customs, prejudices potrayed are all the same. I can say this beacuse i am a tam-bram myself. Even though i am not afflicted with any of the prejudices she is shown to have, i have seen such people in real life as icome in contact with so many "Mamis" of my community. The conservative upbringing reflects during her intercations with Rahul bose. Speaks of an amazing eye for details and characterisation. They have done their homework well.......... very well i should say! Rahul bose plays his part to perfection as amuslim photographer Jehangir chowdhary. Such subtle acting, he is amazing.

The movie has some excellent moments. The scene where Meenakshi comes to know about Raja aka jehangir to be muslim, her reaction is amazing. It really hits her as a bolt of lightening coz she is unable to stomach the fact that she has intercated with a Muslim, let him handle her child etc. This is where her conservative values are tested! But the scene where she shows exemplary courage and compromise of her values by declaring Raja as her husband when rioters barge into the bus. The most beautiful part of the movie is the relationship that meenakshi and raja share. During their last train journey when one sees subtle hints of both of them develpoing feelings for each other, one wishes the journey goes on forever..... But the end grounds you to reality. The journey of prejudices meenakshi from a conservative tam-bram to a mature woman who realises the foolishness of her beliefs is gradual and indeed beliveable.

The communal riots that are shown really potray the sorry affairs of the country. The typical scene in the bus wher literally mini-India is created is tribute to the unique diversity in our country. Bhishm Sahni and Surekha sikri play their parts as a muslim couple to perfection. Your heart goes out to them when they rioters drag them out to kill them.

An absolute briliant movie and if anyone has still not watched plzz watch it soon.
love, shobha

FLICK........FLICK....... Stop!
Hello ppl! well blogging after quite a few days........... Lemme share an interesting incident with you guys. Yesterday i was on my way to college in the morning. I was all sleepyand tired, me not morning person at all. I was on my way to the bus-stop when i saw a bunch of street urchins, not an uncommon sight in Mumbai at all. They all had unkempt hair, dirty clothes but a lovely smile on their faces. ( all this seems so common, but i guess this doesn't get any ironical than this! ) I wondered how can they be so happy with so much hardships!!!!!! Alongwith them there was a lady with a child in her arms. I preseme that she was the mother of few of the children loitering around over there. Suddenly a group of children huddled around the mother and then started walking casually in my direction. A few collge students too were walking beside me. Suddenly i saw a small girl of probabaly 8 years old cooly opening a compartment of the bag of a college student with the college student completely oblivious to the whole situation. The kid was so adept at her art that she maintained her cool inspite of the presence of so many people on the road. And here i was walking real fast with my eyes totally fixed on the bus stop searching for my bus. I dunno how but suddenly amidst all these chaos i just happened to glance at my right where this young girl is coolly attempting to flick something. Seeing her at work i screamed. On hearing my scream the girl looked at me with a glint in her eye ( note: no fear at all) and befor anything could be done she coolly dispersed off in the crowd. It was then i noticed that all this was happening with her mother's guidance. Then i proceeded towards the college girl and told her what happened and asked her to check her bag. She freaked cause the compartemnt which the girl was fiddling with was the place where she had kept her mobile phone. She thanked me profusely on seeing her mobile safe and sound.

OK........ so the start to my morning was not too bad but it really pained me too see these little kids indulge in theft and that too under their parent's supervision. But i guess poverty makes one do all nasty things in life. Maybe she might have needed money for her ailing brother, maybe she might have needed money for paying off the mortagage, maybe............. and the list goes on...... and thus i saw another case of "Death of innocence".