A healthy child makes a happy home-Dabur ChawanPrash

I was a fussy eater always. I never liked vegetables like carrots,green leaves,brinjal and beetroot etc.
being a sports person I needed the fiber and energy rich food while I loved gorging on samosas, chips, pani puri and chats.
I remember falling sick twice per month back in early 2000's. that would mean two-three days of school absence ,vomiting and lying on bed with weakness.it would be more troublesome for my parents to take care of me. I was fussy to even have tablets which would make me vomit more.

This had to stop because it could affect my growth and I was not mature enough to understand this.my parents were worried because they knew that playing sports without having healthy diet is even more dangerous.

My mother tried the milk flavoring cum energy supplement powders to make me drink milk . I honestly don't know if those drinks ever made a difference. I just liked the chocolate taste of it.Then,my mother brought a new thing for me to taste.It was Dabur Chawanprash.  initially I did not like the chocolatey brown-far-from-tasting-like-chocolate paste,but I had to eat it before sleeping daily due to my mothers demands and order.later,I started enjoying it and used to wait for my spoonful of chawanprash.

I grew up, eating my daily dose of this brown substance which became an integral part of our family routine. my mother came up with other innovative solutions to make me eat the non-tasty vegetables.
her new recipes included
1: bottle gourd paranthas (yummy, uuurgh  hated the dal of the same vegetable)
2: baigan ka bharta ( as I love spicy food,she used to make it the same)
3: beetroot with fresh coconut
4: soya pakoras and methi ke paranthe
5:spinach paranthas
6:beetroot sweetdish ( loved the red color of it)
7: sprouts chat
8:dal ke pakode


These new dishes were tasty as well as healthy. I started taking my nutrients and this definitely made me healthy.the frequency of me getting sick decreased to 4 times a year and now its rare. I did realize later how wrong I was in denying to eat those vegetables since its very important to get the fiber,nutrients,minerals and all other vitamins in our system in our early years for proper growth. These help create a stronger immune system.
The new Dabur Chawanprash has the power of  giving 3 times more immunity. It has a blend of herbs and antioxidants that keep your body healthy from inside, which is very important in today's world since children are prone to pollution, dust and unhealthy junk food.This also comes in new flavors like mixed fruit and delicious mango. with good taste now comes good health benefits.

A healthy life leads to a healthy mind.

Have a daily spoonful  of Dabur Chawanprash and keep yourselves healthy . click here to know more about the benefits of this miracle formula

My Dream home by Porcenanosa

Everybone has a dream about how their dream home would be.

Writing on what would be necessary to build the perfect "Home sweet Home" , I had to choose some products from Porcenanosa that I would be thrilled to have in my home. when I went to their site, I was in awe of the beautiful products they create. with over 40 years of service , they are in almost 100 countries and creating incredibly beautiful masterpieces for our homes.

well. in my home basically, I would love to have a blend of ethnic and modern design.I made a list of  items I would definitely keep in my house from Porcelanosa to make it stand out and let others burn...

Bathroom: my first love is always gonna be bathrooms. I like bigger and comfortable bathrooms and obviously clean.
I would keep:
1.Bathtub :

this Victorian style bathtub stole my heart away. I would spend hours together and wish to never come out of it

2. Rain Shower:
Who doesnt love rains. this will give me the needed relaxation after a tough and tired days work.I can stand under the warn water falling from it or hours together and maybe perhaps get a tub below it and enjoy the best of both.

3.Sanitaryware:
well, if all the ideas come alive in toilets. it better be a comfortable one. I loved the design and the finish on it. It doesnt even look like a toilet seat

4. Taps:
I like the modern tech touch to it. I would like to decide what temperature I want my water to be when I brush or wash my face.

Kitchen:

1.Kitchen furniture: I want too much space in my kitchen because I am a bit messy. I want to have designated space for all the items. and this fulfills both

2.sitting space: It would be so good to have your best friend or your partner to sit with you and chat and gossip while you are cooking delicious dishes for them.this goes well the kitchen design too.

3.Kitchen Taps: As important as it is to wash the vegetables and fruits ,why not it look beautiful too.

Wall Tiles:
 Mosaics: I like the idea of covering the wall with small tiles rather than a whole wall.it gives a unique feeling and you can actually design it yourself
I like dark and this looks pretty awesome to have it on your wall. lighten it with with lights and you will land in a different world.

This is my list for my home and I am pretty sure I would not like to go out of my house. It will give me the luxury of a five start hotel as well as the warmness of a home.

This is my entry for "Pick as many items as you can from Porcelanosa to build your dream home. Tell us why you chose them and why"
Browse the awesome designs for your home  here

Life’s Game – by Crowning Glory

 Chapter 25

Read the previous chapter here

Shekhar was flabbergasted. He pulled himself up and grabbed Tara’s wrist as she held on to his collar. He pushed her and looked at the audience that had suddenly arrived from nowhere.

“I..I..how..you..?” he started

“What are you doing here Shekhar and where is Roohi?” demanded Jennifer. Shekhar could see the anger in Jennifer’s eyes; her nose was flared and it seemed she was trying very hard to control herself from doing anything bad.

“Where is Roohi, you moron? Why did you bring her here?” Tara cried out, as she stood up from the ground with her elbows bruised. Cyrus lurched forward, launching himself at Shekhar and gave him a shove that made him fall on the ground. Shekhar was momentarily taken aback at the turn of events.

“Speak up Shekhar or I will make every bone in your body cry for help” Cyrus shouted.

“All was going as planned.” said Shekhar, getting up on his feet. He started pacing back and forth and as if nothing had happened.

“Thank you Jennifer for coming home for that stupid photo shoot. The day I saw your tattoo, I knew what I had to do. It was so easy to plant the suspicion in your head against Tara. You being an inquisitive person working for a magazine, I knew you would try to dig information on how Tara climbed the ladder of success so quickly. Thereafter, I followed you everywhere like a shadow, watching you closely and whom you meet and what you do. Your intellectual boyfriend, this dumbass lawyer cum blog enthusiast, was so thrilled when I called him and gave him details of the Gala Gang that he put it on his blog and showed it to you. I wanted your past to dance in front of you and make you to see the similarity between yours and Tara’s past. I called you for Roohi’s birthday and planted the visiting card with that number written behind. My plan and you were following it like a puppet.”

Cyrus, Jennifer and Tara were stunned and stood frozen with their eyes following Shekhar pacing up and down. They could not believe what they had just heard. It was all Shekhar’s doing especially behind this discovery that Jennifer thought she had made. She was just doing what Shekhar had made her do. But why?

Just as Tara was about to open her mouth to throw a round of abuses towards Shekhar, they heard Roohi coming out of the darkness and as soon as she saw Tara, she ran towards her with a smile on her face, ignorant of what was happening around her.

Shekhar moved forward and picked up Roohi “Dare anyone come forward and I will kill her” he threatened with a vengeance in his eyes and everybody stood still.

“Tara, you bitch, what did you think? Being your husband for seven years, I would not be aware of your dirty past? You will sell your kid to those goons and think that all will be fine and no one will find out? Guess what, I found out! You knew how much I wanted a baby of our own. You had one and you hid it from me. You sold your own daughter and you betrayed me, my trust and my love. "

"And to top it all, you started to flirt with that bastard Aryan Ahuja. one of the key players of my game,I knew who he was by the research I did on your past, Tara.I called him here to blackmail you for money and send you to jail.he was my bait , my evidence against you.

But, you did not spare him too Tara, was he so charming? Did he make you laugh more than I did?  ” Tears started to flow from Shekhar’s eyes as he continued

“These past few years, all I have heard are comments from outsiders, your fans on what kind of man I am, sitting at home and enjoying the money of my wife. A good for nothing man, an unsuccessful writer and not a good husband too. Did I not love you Tara? I loved you more than my life, my career and what did you give me? You used me to fill your life, have a family for namesake and Roohi, You did not give her the love of a mother she deserved”

Tara fell to her knees, crying, as Jennifer and Cyrus tried to figure out how to get Roohi safely away from this madman.

“All was going according to plan, Jennifer would have put you behind bars and Roohi and I would have enjoyed your wealth, happily ever after. But you sick woman, you wanted to divorce me and give everything away to Roohi! What did you think that I would see my plans washed away so easily? No, I will kill Roohi, make you go to jail and take all your money.

Yes, yes. I will do that.” Shekhar was blinded by his greed and Jennifer could see the revenge in his eyes

Tara started pleading to Shekhar and told him that she would do anything to redeem whatever she did in her past and start a new life with Shekhar and Roohi.

A loud siren broke the spell of silence that had been put over Jennifer and Cyrus as they witnessed the turn of events. It was Mumbai Police and they were right on time. Shekhar tried to flee but the officers were fast enough to catch him around the waist and made him taste the soil as he fell, face down on the ground.

Tara ran towards Roohi, who had fallen down and was crying on seeing all the drama unfolding in front of her and her dearest daddy being taken away by some uniformed people.

 Jennifer stayed with the mother and child as Cyrus explained the details of the night and Shekhar’s confessions of trying to kill Roohi.

Tara was looking down in shame and could not control her tears as she was taken away by the police for interrogation

---------***

The police station was silent at that time of the night and apart from few constables and a superintendent, all had gone for the daily night patrolling of Mumbai streets.

The officers had officially recorded  Tara’s and Shekhar’s confessions and had registered a complaint against them. They also had an arrest warrant taken out against Aryan Ahuja after the statements given by Tara and Shekar.

Meanwhile ,Roohi was peacefully sleeping in Jennifer’s shoulders, tired after the eventful night.

“She has to be given to a child protection society for the time being” explained the officer, “Poor kid, she became an orphan again.”

Jennifer and Cyrus looked at each other, held their hands and said “No. Not this time sir, we think she finally found a permanent home”

 Alls well that ends well! read the epilogue here

The smell of old rocks of a 1000 year old temple-Helebidu

Dating back to 12th century, The Hoysaleswara temple in Helebidu in Hassan district in Karnataka ,is a masterpiece, studded with a profusion of carvings.you will be blinded by the intricacies and the minute detailing carved on the rocks.

The basement of the temple has the most richly sculptured friezes. Horsemen charge, war elephants charge, all in stone. Scenes from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata add to the grandeur.

I visited the temple a second time recently and found that half a day is not sufficient to  explore the carvings. the temple enshrines the deities of Hoysaleshwara and Santaleshwara, named after King Vishnuvardhan Hoysala and his wife Queen Shantala

the carvings on walls

 Shivlingam in the sanctorum has been commended as a perfect prototype of Hindu style of architecture. Its architecture is considered as the pinnacle of Indian architecture.

visiting the temple in the monsoons gives it an even grandeur look and feel . walking towards the main temple you can smell the wet grass and soil from the garden around it and get the earthy aroma.

inside the temple

once inside the temple, you get surrounded by cold blanket.

instead of getting a damp ,dark and a confined space smell, you actually smell of old rocks with water dripping inside the small hole and pores. the fragrance is mixed with the garlands on the shrine and the smell of the flame of "Aarthi" or "Karpoor" burning.


its a mix of fragrance of  fresh flowers ,burning cotton strands dipped in pure ghee and the old rocks.



Its like the smell we get in villages inside the houses made of clay roofs and walls but it is surprisingly refreshing and clean .

The play with the sun and shade and placement of the pillars inside the temple is spell bounding. the pillars inside are carved in a such a way that lights reflect from each and falls directly on the main diety which is shiva. the shine on the pillars and floor is still the same . when light falls on floor, it looks wet and shines tremendously.

the play with pillars and sun and shade

the walls outside which are lined with carvings of mahabharata and ramayana stories. You can actually take a full round of the temple and see the stories unfold itself in the form of 3D sculptures.

the rain makes the exterior of the temple shine and when you go near to the small carvings or sculptures you get a earthly smell of old rocks mixed with water. you can feel the labor of the people who have tolled for years to make this masterpiece.

temple during monsoon

it is indeed a HOLY fragrance, with a difference. one you would not get inside crowded temples.

Life’s Game – by Crowning Glory

Chapter 9

what happened before? read chapter 8 here

Jennifer was red with embarrassment

“No, nothing lik…” she started to defend herself. “Am I so boring? Here I came all the way from Delhi to see you and you seemed lost in others”, taunted Cyrus

Jennifer was smart enough to sense the sarcasm and replied with a wink “I am not interested in tall, fair and nerdy men you know”

She pulled away her hand shyly as he tried to hold it. It’s in his eyes, but I want to take it slowly, she thought.

Cyrus’s phone rang and he excused himself. Jennifer decided not to tell him what she felt about Tara since he seemed inspired by her personality. No. not yet

Cyrus came back and sadly announced that he would have to leave. “So after all, you did not come to meet me” scoffed Jennifer getting up from her chair. Cyrus looked displeased for having to leave such a great company and promised that he would make it up to her.

They both came out of that coffee shop and the sound of traffic surprised them. It was so calm and quiet inside that they had forgotten they were in the middle of a busy street of Mumbai. Cyrus offered her to drop her to her PG as he had a company car at his disposal. “I am important to the company after all” he smiled and said.

Sitting beside him in the car she could smell his rustic scent which was opposite to his looks. He so different than my ex. He has made me forget him. If only he could see how happy I am with Cyrus right now. She subtly crossed her fingers wishing this thing between her and Cyrus would be for the better.

They turned left in Malad close to her PG, when she suddenly saw a market and asked the driver to stop. “I need a cleaning kit for my camera and other stuff for my room and will get down here” explained Jennifer. Cyrus looked disappointed but nevertheless opened the door for her. “Sorry dear, I will not be able to join in your shopping” he said. “That’s okay, you will go crazy seeing me bargain” chuckled Jennifer. She gave him a quick hug before Cyrus sat back in the car.

Sigh.

She looked at the market flooded with people and mentally prepared herself for the adventure she was getting into. She was taught by her colleagues to deal with shopkeepers here and she was becoming better at it.

She seemed amused by the Marathi talking ladies, bargaining with shopkeepers with their small kids chewing the end of their mother’s saree, waiting to get back home. She took help from the locals to find the camera shop and moved towards it.

As she peered into a lane, her eyes scanning the market, she froze. Her eyes widened like the goddess Kali and she immediately turned her head away. As she walked away from there, her mind started racing. Did he see me? How did he come here? Is he following me? How does he know I am here?

She ran away as fast as she could and ignored the nasty remarks directed towards her as she pushed people out of her way. She saw a taxi and immediately got into it and asked the driver to speed. Sweat trickled down her temples and she was afraid the driver would hear her heart beat so loud

 ***

Noooooooooo… please no- Jennifer cried frantically trying to free her arm from the hand grabbing her tightly. He was so strong that she could feel his grip getting tighter as if it would cut through the wrist

“Shut her up or I will hit you with this hot rod”, she heard a loud manly voice which surprisingly belonged to a woman. Jennifer was blindfolded and could only smell sweat and fish. Jennifer knew she was in deep trouble. She could sense a lot of people in a small room, and hear faint sobbing and an occasional sound of someone getting slapped.

Her voice was drowned by the strong grip over her mouth by another man and she could no longer shout. Her efforts in biting the palm went in vain as she heard the men laughing at her.

Minutes passed and she became calmer. She then felt a needle working on her wrist. The next minute fell down with a thud.

Regaining her senses, she found herself in a dark room sans the blindfolds. She looked at her wrist in the dim light coming out of the window and saw a tattoo of an eagle catching a prey. “I am that pray”, she thought.

 ***

“Madam? Hello, madam? We have arrived”. Jennifer was brought back with a start. She quickly handed the money to the driver and ran into her apartment, locking the front door.

------------------------------------------------------

It was a Saturday evening and Tara was making Italian pasta for Roohi which was an unusual scene in the Dutta house.

Shekhar was talking on the phone but his eyes were on Tara. He was worried she might burn the pasta as she had hardly cooked anything in the last few years. “God knows what has gotten into her today”, he wondered.

“Who was it?” Tara asked as she saw Shekhar putting down the phone

“Someone from work” replied Shekhar just to get rid of her question. Why such sudden interest?

“I got a few calls last week from my PR informing me of an offer to write advertisement jingles. You know you can do them” she said, wishing he would agree.

“What? You want a novelist to write jingles?” She is hurting my pride-damn you, Shekhar thought.

“I don’t have time to fight with you on what you are and what you were. I just know that you sit at home all day and don’t even try to do anything to change your life. I just thought maybe I could get you back on your feet and make you see a better view of life outside of this house.” snapped Tara, visibly irritated by his behavior of not accepting his fault.

“Daddy!!!!” Shekhar ran to where the voice was coming from to see Roohi on floor crying. Her doll was broken

Tara scoffed and continued making the pasta.

   

excited what happens next read chapter 10 here

     

My team and I are participating in ‘Game of Blogs’ at Blog Adda. #CelebrateBlogging with us.

There is a Dog in my life -reasons-why-its-necessary-to-have-a-dog

I remember carrying a white furry purse that resembled a Pomeranian pup to show to my girlfriends that I own a dog. and this was when I was hardly 5. I was longing for a dog since then but my mom would not allow. she had her own reasons and they seemed legitimate.

Finally god heard my prayers and I got a Pomeranian as pet in 2003. it was a singaporian breed,born to two beautiful  dog parents at my relatives. we had a huge melodrama at home before we got that.my mom agreed on few terms and conditions namely -
I would not touch it no matter what happens.
I will not feed it,since we have brought it,its our responsibility to take care of it.
I will not clean its Shit.
It will not climb on bed or come inside kitchen.
It should not roam around the house shititng everywhere or make a mess.

we agreed to all her conditions,chuckling in our heads since we knew all of the above would not hold once we get the pup.how do you expect a small puppy not to shit or play around. we were far too happy to make our mom understand that.
and so it came,our newest member of family and lives were just about to change. we got two pups,one to give to some other relative.the one we had to take was marked in pink by our aunt as it was supposed to be a calmer one and my mom wanted a calmer dog. few days with the puppies,we realized that ours was indeed a lazy fellow who only wanted to sleep. we named it scooby.

days passed and months.as that lazy fellow grew,I dont know what got into him, he became the most clever,energetic and beautiful dog. the one who always wanted to sleep,did not let us sleep from then on. what we faced next was a series of embarrassment. me and my mom running around the neighborhood to catch our dog and bring it home . and this little devil used to enjoy this chase and never came in our hands easily. I remember him hiding behind a small wall,my mom on the other side and me on the other, and this fellow peeking to find a way to escape. as soon as he came out of the wall, I made a dive (similar to a fielder) at him and finally we caught him...The one thing that scooby gained from all this drama was my mom's love and attention of all my neighbors. he became the apple of the eyes of all.

Years passed ,scooby became chubby and the bond between him and my mother became stronger than us.It became so strong that my mother started taking care of him like a son. they both became inseparable.he followed my mom everywhere,started waiting for her at the gate if she had gone outside for grocery.
 Infact, he became our alarm to tell mom is back. we used to see TV while she was away and as soon as we heard chubby howling we knew she was back and our books got opened and TV shut.
 we loved chubby. he changed our lives.I wanted to teach him tricks,but all he could learn was a shakehand.we loved it when after coming from school, he greeted us by madly wagging his tail and jumping around till we patted him down.he made us forget all our tensions. his way of greedily watching us eat our food and making obvious barks to give him some too was adorable.

we also came to learn about this dog behavior that they wont hurt small kids even if they are twitching his ears or pulling his tail. if growns ups do that,he would growl,but no never to small children.

He knew he's not strong enough to fight and so made a clever plan to scare away people. he used to hide and as soon as someone passed by our gate.he used to make a sudden appearance and give a shock with his loud bark.

we three siblings left home for higher studies.during holidays when we used to come home we would be on cloud nine to see him greet us by barking madly and licking all over. we were happy he never forget us.
ahhh those eyes. I can bet ,he has the best eyes in world. check it out yourself.

our chubby is one tough guy, its been 11 years now. he has got bitten by jealous street dogs,had suffered from several diseases but still manages to spring back .there were times, when the vet said that he is old now and will die within few weeks or a month because of this disease or injury, we used to sit with him day and night with tears in eyes, but this tough guy has managed to come out of all. he is healthy now , eats like a horse,still runs and barks at everyone.
yeah has become lazy, so lazy that he doesnt even bothers to get up if a mouse is nibbling away his food from his own bowl or a cat jumps over him to enter our house. I know, that sounds funny but its true.
He taught me to love someone unconditionally ,to have an empathy towards animals. all they want is love and all they give is love.

There should be a dog in everyone life atleast once.

Here are my reasons for having a dog:
1) some one will love you unconditionally.

2) keep you healthy. with those evening and morning walks with dog.

3) distract you from work stress. one look at those eyes and you will forget your tension.

4) empathize with your pain. if they see you sad,they will sit beside you and try to console in their own cute way, hand on your knees. aah so adorable

5) give you time off from entertaining your kids.dogs do that much better..;)

6) will make you laugh with the funny things they do.

7) you will want to make them do something wrong  just to see their guilty face asking for sorry.










8) keep you company in your loneliness. listen to you talk with straightened ears.

9)you can play,do their makeup,make them wear weird clothes,do almost anything with them and they wont fuss.instead,they will join you.

10) protect your home from outsiders.if not actually protect.atleast bark to make you aware something is wrong and the rest is in your hands..:)

11) the most loyal friend you will ever have.

The dog is a gentleman; I hope to go to his heaven, not man’s.
~~[ Mark Twain, letter to W.D. Howells, 2 April 1899 ]

Shweta Basu - sympathise or criticize or accept.

I loved her in Makdee and Iqbal. cute face and solid acting skills. Was expecting her to turn out into a good mainstream actress and she did. I had seen in "Kotha Bangaru Lokam" and loved her performance. and then she was lost,

 She sprang into news recently by getting caught red-handed in a prostituion racket at a suburban Hyderabad hotel. she was selling herself to renowned industrialist and businessmen and Politicians.
the first step taken  by any normal person caught in such circumstances is to deny it and say that you are being framed.But what did this brave lass do- she confessed to having doing it. how many people have guts to accept that ,knowing that this may spoil her life, her image and her future career too.

In her own words: "I have made wrong choices in my career and I was out of money. I had to support my family and some other good causes.All the doors were closed and some people encouraged me to get into prostitution to earn money. I was helpless and with no option left to choose, I got involved in this act"

I am not here to judge whether she did right or wrong. I worried myself thinking what might be her situation that she felt the need to go to this far for money. was she being pressurized by her family for money or she had commitments she couldn't fulfill without money . There would be so many people doing the same thing.she was unlucky enough to get caught. I cant judge her not knowing her reasons.

I am sickened and goddamn angry with the media for highlighting just the girl. what about the businessmen who paid her and were with her when she was caught.they should also enjoy being maligned in public. their families should also be come to know about their recreational activities and get humiliated by media and their special words.WHY did media hide their names.?

didn't they feel that this might ruin whatever hopes she had for future? will it not be impossible for her to move on?will she have the strength to accept the criticism she will get and not take a drastic step to end her life? If its media's duty to present whatever happens then why do I don't know any one of the businessmen name? why is she in remand home and the other people involved not behind the bars? was she alone in the act? No, then why this half justice

what I would say in this is: its fine people, shit happens. as if we haven't done something we are ashamed of in life.give her back what she deserves, her life ,her image and a chance to move on. I have seen far more worse things people do in their lives.