Cringing Soul o' mine!

Today, I feel no fear. I do not feel threatened. I  do not question why I was born a girl.
Today, I feel Shame.Shame, for the Nation. A Nation where women are idealized and worshiped. A nation where women are considered to be a symbol of care and a nurturing figure. Where women are put on a pedestal and in one go are brutally thrown off. A nation where girls are anything but safe!
Today, I do not feel unsafe. I have been feeling that since the day I was born. The day I stepped out of home to attend school. The day I went for tuition. The day I stepped out of the house to buy a loaf of  bloody bread! The day I decided to meet up with friends.
Feeling unsafe and being on my guard has always come naturally to me.
Ignore, the man singing a cheap song the moment you pass by. Ignore, the cheap whistles men seem to have a talent for. Ignore, the staring man who seems to be undressing you with his eyes. Ignore, the leering. Ignore. Every. Goddamn. Thing.
And if you do not ignore, you will either be harassed, molested or raped. And if anyone comes to protect you, he will be beaten up or killed.
So, we ignore. We think, its  not worth all that.
We ignore and the "Society" decides to put restrictions to "safeguard" our interests and how!
They take the route of ; The mighty Don'ts.
Don't, wear provocative clothes. Don't, roam around late at night. Don't, open your hair or cut it short. Don't, wear lipstick. Don't, have a boyfriend since they are all first rate scums. Don't, bloody live!
And if you go against these very many Don'ts you are bound to be in trouble.
Gee, its so convenient.
I am sickened today. So very sickened.
I feel helpless for all those women who go through this IN and OUT of their house. Who live through the horrors and most importantly, with them..
Where are we "safe"? Can we ever be? Is safety for women even possible?
God, I hope so.
Respect women you low lying creatures born to unfortunate mothers! R.E.S.P.E.C.T.

But today, I feel shame.

An Indian.

Ps. No moral policing. This was just a product of frustration and helplessness.

Music for my soul...

With Chopin playing and my headphones plugged in I am feeling the best I have EVER felt. I am typing along with the notes. Its lyrical.The sun is setting and a gentle breeze is making me shiver a little. A pigeon is walking on the edge of the balcony. He stops and he stares. I stare right back. I like this bizarre evening where I am up to "no good". I am simply writing what is on my mind.

Why do we get so busy in life that we cannot appreciate the beauty of things anymore?

Why is it that we don't play Chopin or Beethoven or Debussy and just breathe a while?

When I have such moments, I listen to the great creators of music who have shaped me as a person. I sit here today and think about all those days I moaned when my mother would push me to go for Piano lessons. All those days when my Piano teacher would call me names in Parsi when I would hit the wrong note. 

But when they say you often realise things late in life, I understand. 

Today, I am sobbing mess when I hear Beethovens; Silence or Chopins; Nocturno.

The beauty of music is often just lost in the blaring. 

I'd just say, sit back and just LISTEN to any piece of music you like or associate with instead of HEARING it. 

It makes things fall in perspective and happier. It is music for my soul.

I am one of those who wishes life had a background score. And when times are bad I just turn the volume up and take it all in. 

Today I just wanted to write. Nothing specific, no agenda. This is just pure babbling because today, I just wanted to write. 

And today, I feel peaceful. 

xoxo

Peace out!

A horse's tale...

Aloha! 

This is a first for me, writing two posts in the same month.  Maybe it is all the free time that I have in hand and the lack of things to do. But, writing has always been a good way to vent out for me or in polite terms "an artistic expression". Any which way, it is what it is. 

Now, before you have any ideas about what I am going to write by the title, stop right there. A Horse's Tale by Mark Twain has no relation whatsoever to my current post. (Can't help it but had you read my previous blog post you would know who Mark Twain was, just saying). 

Coming back to the post I am writing, its something that struck me while I was talking to a very good friend of mine, (big shout out to you sweet pea). Somehow, the conversation turned to horses and the idea struck me. 

Now, I am a big fan of romance novels (go ahead judge me), and almost every novella has a horse in it somehow. A knight in shining armor comes along riding on a horse, a cowboy rides a horse and the girl swoons, an ordinary girl who is not expecting love to strike her (that sounds a bit scary but I like the sound of love striking someone) see's a man riding a horse and love happens and many more. 

So, basically what I understand is that a horse has a LOT to do with love and all that comes with it. *ponders* 

Its funny how that is true. Not that I am saying that we fall in love with a taangewala (horse carriage driver), but he too must get attention through his job profile. Wow. 

A horse has a lot to do with love, apparently. Whether it is a horse carriage ride in Central Park, New York or the same in Marine Drive, Mumbai. The way a man would woo a woman. Indian weddings have grooms riding (sitting potentially these days, ugh what happened to real men?!) a horse to the wedding venue. Though now its elephants and vintage cars or just plain cars. To each his own.

A horse is everywhere love is. 

The other day I was watching The Runaway Bride( a girl has to do what she has to do) and in the end there was the most handsome and cute Richard Gere and the jaw dropping-ly gorgeous Julia Roberts getting married....cut to them riding off, on a horse, into the sunset. Ah! 

Now, I am not very fond of horse's. We don't really look each other in the eye ever since Hero (oh! the irony) , my training horse, kicked me off! Ahem, but what I find interesting is how the city slicker Richard Gere who drives a corvette knows how to ride and ride like a pro...But that is all keeping aside the romance of it. See, this is why logic is so claustrophobic at times. 

So, back to the film, there I was watching the two ride away... 

But...what...a horse...but... Of course! 

*sigh*

Diddle dum diddle da, a horse is the prime factor in love. Much like a precursor. 

Now now, I am not saying that it is God's own truth and this may sound like faff to a LOT of people. But this is what I have come to realise. 

Its all a horse's tale my friend. All a horse's tale.

That is more than enough for now! 

Stay Alive.

Peace out! 

xoxo

This..that and books!

The world. A five letter word with a lot of impact. 

There is just so much going on in this world at this point in time. The world scenario is changing as we speak. Politics is a favourite topic all over, be it America, Russia, France or our very own India.Terrorism has not ended (there is an even higher chance of us dying in a terrorist attack than get hit by a truck!). People are still committing heinous crimes. And we are still reading about ALL of this in the newspaper every morning over a cup of tea (if British and Indian), coffee (if American, Indian or whoever) and the new Herbal Tea, and commenting about how bad the situation is and how its never going to change (boy, so much positivity early in the morning!?). 

*Sigh*

Now, I am thinking to myself what should I write about? The politics is all over, so that is out. Terrorism is something I have never felt anything about. Plus, a bunch of stupid people who think about nothing but themselves and thrive on publicity are not worth it. And heinous crimes, well, that is something we read and talk about every day! It is now, sadly enough, a "part of our life". 

So, that leaves me with what? My life? My friends life? Films? WHAT?! (I am writing this as I am feeling it and the feeling right now is of complete and utter confusion).

*one hour later*

"No matter how busy you may think you are, you must find time for reading, or surrender yourself to self-chosen ignorance."

Confucius

I have over the period of one hour struck gold. While talking to a friend I came up with the next topic I want to talk about. 

Books. 

I am an ardent reader. I like books or rather I love books. I have a book in my bag at all times. Once I start reading I keep just cannot put it down till its finished. It is an addiction of sorts. 

But, all that being said, what I do not get is why we have stopped reading?! Back in school, when we were given Oliver's twist and Scarlett Pimpernel, I would run away. Miles away. My mother would read the book and then tell me the story for me to pass the exams. Then something big happened. Harry Potter. The magic of that story being weaved around the young minds of my generation. The eleven year old's waiting eagerly for their parents to go to the nearest Crosswords and make that purchase. Ah! That was the best feeling. 

It was a revolution. Now now, don't smirk at my words, if you recall it was quite a phenomenon. Children picked up books and started reading. And they read and read some more and then some... 

As young adults we had Harry Potter all the way. We grew up with them. But there was a section of children who just did not have any interest in Harry Potter. Understandable. Happens at that age. 

Time flew, wham! We grew up. We changed. Paper back books became e-books and a Kindle started replacing paper back books. 

All that is just fine. 

What is a little saddening is the fact that people stopped reading. The stress of the work life is just a bit too much for people to sit down and read. Then there are the school kids and college students. They have many other things to do than read. 

Adding to that is the fact that books are being turned into films. That potentially drops the market of readers. People find it so much better to watch the films rather than read. 

Ah! Only the person who reads knows the joy and mystery of a character. There are no preconceived notions.  The world is yours to form and run. It is an adventure. An experience. 

The little things that an author wants the reader to notice and then perceive on their own. 

Sigh. 

My whole idea of writing this post is not preaching. Who am I to?! 

All I am saying is that the joy that we get from reading a book and experiencing the smallest of things is worth it. (Now I just sound like a Lo'real commercial!) 

But, seriously, if you've not read a book for a while, catch up! Its fun! 

And if you just "hate" reading, well, I just do NOT get you. I don't. But, whatever. 

But seriously, without sounding like a complete ass, READ people! Don't miss out on this. 

"The habit of reading is the only enjoyment in which there is no alloy; it lasts when all other pleasures fade."

Anthony Trollope

That is more than enough for now! 

Stay Alive.

Peace out! 

xoxo

A road less travelled..

Fashion. Fashion. Fashion. 

Is it hyped? Yes. No. Maybe. Who cares?!

Just recently I was in the Delhi Metro, travelling to another planet, when I saw a woman wearing a golden coloured pants and a stark white shirt. My immediate reaction was "Oh. My. God." But, soon I recovered. What I noticed after my "recovery" was that she was uber confident and that confidence actually made her look good. Even though she was dressed in a pair of golden pants on a hot summer day she looked good. 

And that is what this is all about. Confidence. It is a concept that develops in a human being. Every girl goes through a phase in life when she is gawky, conscious and very aware of people looking at her. Its the "ugly ducking" phase. A phase when you wear clothes you feel stupid in (generally because your mother has chosen them for you), when you feel that it is so annoying to be a girl altogether. [I am primarily talking about a standard girl, not aspiring beauty queens who think about world peace since the word Go!]

Fast forward to the grown up times. By definition a "grown up" is a person who takes his/her own decisions about things. A person who is not dependent on other people to make decisions for them (which may not be true in many instances). But, you do "dress" yourself up. 

After being a Metro traveler for over four years I have noticed a lot of fashion trends. Yes, this happens when you travel for over two hours one way. I am now a self proclaimed fashion critique of the women in the metro. I say women specifically because men, well men don't figure out in my current scene. They will appear sooner than later though. It is on the  "to-do" list. 

Coming back to women and "dressing" up. Well, there are a number of fashion trends I see every day. Some good, some bad and some outright ugly. Now I know why Clint Eastwood was an angry man. Okay, bad joke. 

Women wear all sorts of things. The other day I saw a woman wearing a frilly skirt with a pair of loose pants and neon green plastic shoes. My instant reaction, WOW! Why!? I was quick to notice though that she was quite happy in what she was wearing. She did not in any way look like she was embarrassed. Now that, that is something you see a LOT in the Metro. Women from all walks of life wearing all kinds of things and yet being confident. 

"Go girl!" the feminist in me says. The Fashion lover in me says, "Oh why?!" 

Now look, I am not being a meany. I am just saying that some women need help. The thing is we all have something or the other to wear in our closets. Something we love ourselves in. Something we look fabulous in. The trick is to find things in our closet which we do not like, things we think are not flattering or attractive. What women most need is an "out of the box" thinking. Mix and match, it is the name of the game. 

Don't spend money in buying new clothes without looking into that closet of yours and finding something worth while. It is all about thinking before dressing. 

If a thought is out into everything we do, why do we neglect clothes? The one thing that make you look and feel confident. 

Fashion for everyone differs. They say fashion is something you feel comfortable in. I beg to differ, you are most comfortable in sweat pants (not me, I detest those things) but that does not mean you wear sweats and roam about. That just shows how interested you are in yourself (hint: not at all). 

Moral of the story, take risks. Make yourself look good. Wear golden pants, Georgette skirts, frilly skirts or even mickey mouse t-shirts from Janpath with striped capri shorts. Wear anything you like. But, make an effort! Take the road less traveled and revel in the confidence you get from that. 

That's enough for now, until next time!

Stay Alive. Be confident. Experiment. 

Peace out!