False Ceilings - Review

Title : False Ceilings
Author : Amit Sharma
Number of Pages : 256
Genre: Fiction

Amit Sharma has been one of my favorite bloggers . I started reading him some where in 2012 at mashed musings which has now moved to http://amit-sharma.co.in/blog/and instantly became a fan. The humour, plethora of emotions , his opinions on sensitive topics which were most of the times in sync with mine, his daddy diaries and many more write ups kept me always glued to his blog. So when I came to know that his book, False Ceilings got published , it was just natural to think of buying it. I was highly elated when Amit sent me a copy of False Ceilings. I would anyway have bought it but the personalised copy made the book more special. With out much ado let me share how I felt while reading the book.

The copy I got

Story line and my Review

The book starts with Aaryan and his , "if - else" statement amusing the readers as they will start thinking, what it is all about. Amit grabs your absolute attention from the very first page and some where the coder in him seemed wide awake. Page by page he connects you to all real life scenarios and tragedies where the if-else happens zillion times! The book keeps oscillating between different eras. In total, there are four different eras, pre independence , just after independence, 1980s and the years spanning from 2017-2060. However different the eras and modes of living are, it all gets hazy as so many emotions from different eras seem similar. The chapters flow seamlessly from one era to another but bemuse the reader as so many characters start dancing infront of him . When the puzzled reader uses all his might to connect the dots, there comes the secret wrapped in yellow cloth which does a parade on mind. 1980s and the then NewDelhi are perfectly captured. The book increased my awareness on tragic events which happened in our country years back, like for instance, I came across Operation Blue star in the book and understood thoroughly what it is for the first time! The scenic beauty of Dalhousie of 1930s and also the later decades is also captured so wonderfully!

The secret which is passed on between the generations  intrigues the readers. For a moment I felt, some sci-fi secret is embedded in it due to the tragic consequences it supposedly leads to, but unleashing the secret was a surprise to me. The suspense in the story was kept intact till the last page. Ultimately I realised that hatred , jealousy and obsession are the open secrets which can destroy the harmony and hamper the bonds in a family. Be it a family or the nation it was shown realistically how open rebuke can lead to severe damage! The blurb gives a peek in to what the book would be narrating and the reader travels from the narrow passages between the hills in Dalhousie, to the busy Connaught place of Delhi and also can visualise the sikh riots and the terror the country faced in 1984. As we enter the futuristic era of 2017-60s, where everything is fast paced , where our soups are in the form of capsules, I wondered has everything actually changed. Aren't the emotions, the love, hatred and confusion still the same ?

Be it Shakuntala , Meena , Lipi or Manohar , Vinod and Aryan , some traits are just passed on from generation to generation. There were junctures when all characters looked extremely blurry to me but then everything falls in to place and head gets clear as the book ends. Other than the entangled human emotions, there is so much more to know from pre independence and post independence eras. The book also reflects the scenario where when one is a continuous victim to other's venomous mind and caustic tongue there is a fair chance that they become venomous too!

All in all , the book makes a great read and will not disappoint you at all. Only desire I had was to know more about the futuristic time-zone - of 2060s. I would have loved to know and imagine more about the technology and how things worked after 50+ years but in any century humans will be humans is the crux of the story! You may feel like searching your own false ceiling and decoding the deeply embedded secrets of your life once you finish the book!

 I am awed as it is just Amit's first book. I wish more power to his pen and good luck for all his future works!

You can buy False Ceilings on Amazon and Flipkart . Do visit Amit at http://amit-sharma.co.in/ and share your views.

Happy Reading to you all too :)

"The Topsy-Turvy Honesty"

We were always told and taught that, honesty is the best policy
Our actions were controlled by this guideline, till we realised it's a fallacy!
Childhood was easy with a heart as clear as water.
As the years get added up, the emotions get complex and we falter!

The feelings we had as kids were either black or white
We had only two answers "Yes or No" and always felt al right
As we grew, the airtight heart started battling and lost the vigour
Not every thing was white or black for us as the visionaries got greyer!

Requesting a simple thing we needed was a piece of cake then
Asking for a favour now takes all our energy and all our might
All our colourful dreams then, always took shape in a happy flight
Growing up meant practicality and made us calculate our delight!

Being inquisitive was an achievement in the past
As we grew, we realised it is an asset to run the race and be fast
Whatever we ask or don't ask, was always provided to us
Being dependable now is an act which is considered as a big minus!

It is a common phrase to say, "Honestly I think!"
We all say it nonchalantly with out even a blink.
But do we always mean every thing we say with or without a thought?
We forget most of the words spoken or heard by us which in the long run rot!

Yes, we are hearing it from ages that honesty is the best policy.
But indulging in honesty sometimes makes everything topsy turvy!
Everyone loves your honesty until you are honest about others with them
Your practice falls flat, when you are honest with them about them !! :)

image source: here

Second Spring Book Review

Title : Second Spring
Author : Sandhya Jane
Number of Pages : 285
Genre: Fiction

Synopsis and Review:

Second Spring is the debut novel by Sandhya Jane which narrates the life and happenings of Avantika a single mother, who has a strong persona and is highly successful in her profession. The book is all about the ups and downs in her life because of the love which hits her a second time, and on reading the synopsis, I felt the book will mostly reflect the hardships faced by Avantika in a innovative way but sadly I am heavily disappointed as page by page, the book felt like a daily soap or a Bollywood flick. I don't want to sound rude, but I was bored after finishing 50 pages. The story was going no where and was absolutely predictable just like any Hindi movie! First few pages made me feel may be this book has more to it than just the love, spark , infatuation and confusion episodes between Rohan and Avantika but I was wrong. The book has redundant episodes and thoughts of Avantika and Rohan. I really felt, the author should have done more work on editing and removing the repetitive lines. Avantika's son Aarav's bond with his mother was some thing I enjoyed as it showed how single mothers can get deeply attached to their kids. Other than this , I liked few tidbits like, description of the corporate atmosphere, the necessity to be quite social and the tactics one should possess to improve networking so as to have career progress. The respective episodes felt real and the author described the projects , meetings and presentations aptly as she herself works for an investment bank I believe. The intervention of Facebook and how lost friends can be searched and found is shown well. The life and episodes of Rohan and Avantika during the time they spent together, and after they part their ways covers 90% of the book. It is possible that the turn out of all the events can be a real thing, but the way it was narrated, I felt I was watching some hindi movie from 80s - 90s.

Source : here

Avantika slogs for the progress of her company and herself but it feels bad to see that she shifts to Missouri (USA) only to forget her love.  By the end of the book, the only thing I could appreciate was that the protagonist Avantika carefully and confidently chose what she wanted , with out falling in the booby trap of emotions once again but even this felt like, I was watching the climax of the movie Hum Dil De Chuke sanam . The book oscillates between Rohan and Avantika's diary pages thrown between infinite number of meetings and office hours. Rohan's family pressures, forced marriage and orthodox beliefs are all highlighted which are day to day problems in India but on this date and time when things are slowly changing , I could not relish the age old story line where he sacrifices himself for arranged marriage and so many lives ultimately get destroyed. The surprising element in the book is Rhea, a kid who is the love child of Avantika and Rohan. This surprise totally failed the story for me as once again , it got too filmy where in kids are born as easily as coffee comes out of vending machines, just by spending one passionate night together. Again it is a possible scenario but I couldn't make myself like it! Sorry to say that the book is too clichéd and I couldn't enjoy it.

I am not an author myself but there is a lacuna in this book even if it had good language and vocabulary. A weak plot, routine story line and monotonous episodes made me want more from the book.

I wish the author good luck for her future endeavours.

This review is a part of the biggest Book Review Program for Indian Bloggers. Participate now to get free books!

2015 Roundup- "A sheer roller coaster ride!"

The year 2015 was quite a roller coaster ride for me, as I shifted my city and multiple jobs. It taught me too many lessons which can never be forgotten and it also gave an insight in to my heart and helped me understand myself better with each passing day. I will try to maintain the tone of this post not too emotional and the length appropriate :) The year started on a high note, when Imran (my husband) and I decided to shift to Hyderabad from Bangalore. I was actually low but was feeling high as well, as new things make life less mundane! I was also high as I will be near to mom , dad and low as I would have to leave the city I loved the most. I will list down the major events of 2015 in my life!

High Points and Low Points

•  I celebrated Newyear 2015 after visiting God's Own country Kerala - Wayanad and wrote the below lines when the clock struck 12:oo A.M. on Jan 1st 2015 - "A new path is ahead of us. We may not be able to predict to where it will lead us but we know we have to walk it anyway and embrace it and not run away. Wish you all courage, strength, love, optimism, good will, health and fun while you tread along it ! Happy newyear 2015 to one and all" Well it is the same for any newyear. The trip was beautiful and rejuvenated me for the big move to Hyderabad

Taken at soochipara falls - Wayanad

• Hyderabad- The land of Biryani and Haleem and the land where mom, dad and bro live did pull me towards it. I was glad but at the same time was feeling confused as I hate being in midst of too much crowd and too many known people. Fortunately I was and am not a part of many social gatherings but still the very thought, spreads the phobia instantly in my head, due to various reasons, the major one is in the snapshot below :) , My dislike towards "variety" of people and liking towards books and my cosy corner, only increased with each day. Sadly I became more unsocial but I became much better , because who else can be better friends than books ? The best book I read in 2015 is Life of Pi , which is worth a 1000 friends !

source : here

• I joined a new job in Hyd in Feb, and it took it's natural course of time to get acclimatized. It was neither easy nor tough. Started missing my Bangalore office friends as each day felt more lonely. I finally got used to the place, did well in the job and received accolades and managed to get bonded with the team.My Doctor appointments increased due to carpel tunnel syndrome and other general recurrent health issues and naturally I had to mention this at work, but I felt blessed as most of the team was co-operative and polite. They had that rare attitude which wants the co-worker to do the work and go and I feel proud to say that my work always spoke for me. My timings in office, the energy or enthusiasm were measured ofcourse, but never scrutinized a lot, and I was at ease even with tight schedules and micro management only because I loved my work and they knew that fact! I slowly started forgetting Bangalore.

• A big personal blow which happened in 2015, is the breakup of a loved one with his spouse. I visualised how the marriage was broken and what all lead to it and was totally shattered. It still shocks me whenever I revive what all happened and when I keep hearing or seeing what all is happening. It taught me a big lesson, that a sweet smile, education and a beautiful face are not good enough reasons for a marriage. It is very tough to choose the right person specially in India where many people go with the tide and try to work on their broken relationships much later and fail. I appreciate the guts of the person who decided to file a divorce. A loud applause for making the decision to restart the life, because it doesn't make sense to live on broken remains with bruised hearts! My prayer for 2016 is that honesty and truth should eventually win. I want the hearts of all my loved ones who are facing the brunt of this broken relationship to be repaired. I want them to use their hearts again and feel good. When  I think of them, I always remember the below quote from the movie - Home alone and for those who have caused pain, their acts are their own curses !

source : here

• Expect the unexpected, I had to leave the job after 6-7 months due to travel plans to Europe and the conveyance issues to office, which were hampering my health but the twist in the story is , I couldn't travel due to few unavoidable reasons and joined another renowned company much near to home after a short gap. I felt it is the solution to all my problems and I can save my time, energy and stay fit but God indeed is a gamer. My health problems increased in a month of joining the new office. The place was unfriendly, work was always random and unclear , and people somehow were too disconnected and I was cheated as there was a  mismatch between the written policies in joining forms and the actual baseless policies which were mentioned to me at work. I somehow failed when it comes to "attracting" the new manager and new people with my work. I always was and am passionate about the work I do but when the boss sucks and when Devil wears Prada doesn't work for long, I felt I should resign . The lesson I learnt is to never ever express the vulnerabilities at work place as the person to whom you report may seem empathetic in the start with the honey dripping tongue but has full potential to be an actual jerk. After too many arguments , verbal fights , and me escalating and mailing the other authorities , I left the job. I definitely am not enjoying whatever happened. It took me 10-15days to recover from the poison spurted out from crap mouthed person who is the sole reason for my resignation. I still am in shock and it will take time but this only made me more strong and when I will be back, I will be back with a bang. She (my manager) for a second seemed to have sucked the soul out of me like a dementor in Harry Potter. When demons invade from all directions , you are shaken and you loose confidence for a while but then you have to come back because you know your worth and no Tom , Dick , Harry can measure it in a span of a mere 2months. To hell with her and to hell with the people who lick her feet. I was never so glad just because of not seeing a person on daily basis! 

I want to suggest a book Big Leap by Gay Hendricks for all who are sailing in the same corporate boat and have to face rude bosses , unhealthy work culture and robotic people around you. I am sure it will definitely help you either to go with the flow or just amend or get rid of the mess!

source: here This is my all time favorite movie- Pursuit of Happyness. I feel so peaceful , when ever I watch it. I watched it after I resigned and regained the faith that I can conquer the world and I will not let any idiot tell me, what I can and can't do

• Another major event for this year is my husband's visit to Belgium as part of his office assignment , for a period of good 3 1/2 to 4 months. Long distance made me miss him like never before and I can surely say it strengthened our bond. Minus point is that I did not plan to visit Europe and joined the new job which I left now :( Biggest learning is to not miss such opportunity if it knocks my door again. I was extremely tensed after the Paris terrorist attack as husband visited Paris just two weeks before the attack! I was quite edgy till he landed in Hyderabad and let out a sigh of relief as soon as I saw him in the airport. At the risk of sounding dramatic, I want to say that as soon as I saw him half of my worries vanished and my faith in myself got restored with him by my side again :) The bonuses from the trip are the Belgium chocolates , which taste heavenly & the gifts I got from Paris!

• I travelled to Mumbai for just 2 days, to meet bloggers and attend an amazing event #BNLF (Blog Now , Live Forever). It gave many memories and made me glad as I travelled with a friend and this is something which I wanted to do from long. I went to watch a movie all alone. This must be a silly thing for many, but I fulfilled it after ages , so making it one of the milestones reached in 2015 :) . I visited Pondicherry, which is blissful due to the beaches, ashrams, and the general calmness around the city! It is the best place to unwind and relax away from the run-of-the-mill life!

Pondicherry Beach Sunrise

The loot from Belgium

At #BNLF Mumbai

Some desires and to-do's for 2016

I don't have any resolutions for 2016 as resolution sounds like a heavily loaded word, but I want to make a to-do list, strive to implement most of the stuff from this bullet list and yes, I do have some prayers!

• To read more and to travel more. I have read around 10 books in 2015 and I definitely want to increase the number. I have challenged myself to 30 and I am really hoping to reach the goal as I am a slow reader.

• My prayers for my loved ones. I really pray they get rid of the evil vibes which are bothering them from long. May the good omens be with you!

• A prayer to not witness terrorism and be a part of some good change and do my bit, giving importance to burning issues and NOT BE PART OF ANY MUDSLINGING on trivial crap over social network.

• To reduce the intensity of FaceBook usage and deactivate my account for a while. Only blogs keep me glued to FB or twitter but excessive usage damages brain at times. I am waiting to take a break from online socialising rituals and see less updates from the entire world :)

• To work in a company only if I feel good about the change and not take any hasty decisions while taking up a job!

• To blog more, cook more, learn new recipes, to continue the gym regime and to just be in good health, be happy and smile a lot.

A very Happy new year to one and all. Have a great 2016 Fellas!

What were your #Talesof2015 and do you have any plans for 2016? Do share :)

I’m sharing my #TalesOf2015 with BlogAdda. 

Thanks to Blogadda Team for this topic as it helped me to reopen my blog :)

Salute to Mumbai Martyrs (26/11)

Saw a Spine Chilling documentary on 26th Nov 2015,of the Mumbai terror attacks and the Siege which lasted for more than 60hrs from 26/11/2008 to 27/11/2008 and was too shocked to speak or have any opinion. Excerpts from Ajmal Khasabs interview in Hospital shown on HISTORY channel are shared below.
Police: Whom are u asked to kill?
Kasab : Logon ko (People)
Police: U know what is meant by Jehad?
Kasab: Nope!
Police: Then Y r u killing?
Kasab in a satirical tone: For the money sir (Paisa milta hai baau)
Police: Dont U feel guilty for doing so many killings? Havent U questioned your trainers that?
Kasab: Yes. At times I feel so, but they do wash our brain and in 3 months make us ready for sacrifice.
Other than this, all the live conversations on radio phones between the handlers from Pakistan who were coolly giving instructions to each Terrorist to kill, to not get diverted, and to scare people by throwing grenades or burning the dome were recorded. They also passed continuous instructions on how to fight till the end and not get caught by police men made me too dejected , helpless and my eyes and head were boiling by the end!
I was not aware that they also had put Rdx in taxis which took some more lives . Looking at the feed of surveillance cameras made me silently cry. Hearing to stories of survivors did not make me courageous. At one juncture the handlers from Pakistan over the radio phone, when the attackers were amused by the hotel were exchanging conversation like below:
Attacker : “You know here they have computers with 30 screens or so, masha allah ! So amusing!”
Handler: “Don’t get distracted . Have you put the rooms and dome on fire or not? I should see them on TV Live . Do that ASAP.”
They were discussing their agenda and passing orders between each other simply like we do in case of an office project or some sport played for fun or a good cause :( I watched the massacre on TV for more than an hour and couldn't sleep properly the whole night as the scenes and voices kept dancing infront of my eyes!
8 terrorists or may be more in groups of 4 destroyed the city like never before. They are doing it with out any thoughts or feelings , like robots who are keyed and loaded with evil programs. I was too terrified when I saw that the terrorists made it a point to kill till their last breath. Not sure if it is right to feel this, but when a guy called Fahadullah said that his partner died just beside him, I felt pity - Pity on their nonchalance, the life they lived, the parents who gave birth to them, the country(ies) who nourished them. I felt weak and hopeless when they were chanting the beautiful words like Insha-allah and Masha-allah for these evil deeds. Again the same questions bothered me! How can they be brainwashed? How do they become so evil? What can stop all this? How can we uproot terrorism? How to do our part in uprooting it?
I know there are many Indians too who are recruited by all the terrorist organisations like ISIS or Al-Qaeda or any such inhuman organisation which makes me shudder. How and what can stop all this ? Can we be united and come up with a strict agenda to end the evil? It was Mumbai or Hyderabad then. Peshawar or Gaza later, Paris and Mali now and the places like Syria, Palestine, Nigeria, Gaza, Pakistan, Iraq, Afghanistan and so on , so forth who always live under the canopy of terror."Saddest fact is that the main motto of these people who call themselves saviors of Islam is to destroy Muslims like me and many." The terror waves are getting bigger with each day and How ? What ? Why? When? - such questions keep flogging the mind as always.
Wish the youth gets a right direction. Wish God takes the lives of terror creators in worst possible way. Wish initiatives like this - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Islam-and-terrorism-now-in-madrassa-course/articleshow/48383137.cms keep increasing. How I wish everyone can prefix the words Non-Islamic to all the terror organisations, instead of tagging “Islamic” with all attacks. How I wish I can live a life where there are no questions bombarded at me about the religion I follow!
But for all the perpetual questions, the only answer I have is- " I am a human and any human who does an act which I can't even fathom for the betterment of humanity is God to me!" I am not sure how to end this post but I just want to salute all the brave hearts , like Vijay Salaskar, Unnikrishnan, Hemant Karkare , Tukaram Omble and many more who have lost lives during this massacre - http://www.ndtv.com/photos/news/a-tribute-to-mumbais-bravehearts-982#photo-9649 . Whether or not it counts this is my tribute to all the “HEROES”

Note: This is an FB note I wrote on 26th November

The pics courtesy : https://www.facebook.com/Indianarmy.adgpi/photos/a.154174701445834.1073741939.123788044484500/437212886475346/?type=3
http://drop.ndtv.com/albums/NEWS/2611bravehearts/1ff.jpg

The biggest "Tamasha" called Life

After a dilemma to choose from some new movie releases (like Cheekati Rajyam & Size zero ) I finally zeroed on Tamasha.

Film: Tamasha
Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Deepika Padukone, Piyush Mishra
Director: Imtiaz Ali 
Writer: Imtiaz Ali

Tamasha - After watching it, I felt reviewing is tough because  not every one can be an Imtiyaz Ali who can explain all the complicated emotions in such a simplistic way ! Like some one told in a review , only he can understand the complicated heart matters like no one else and also succeeds in letting the viewers understand them! 

Tamasha makes you go in to a pensive mode. Fun and emotions are blended well and it presents to U the finest PAIR OF THE YEAR Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone heart emoticon - Both have evolved beautifully and Imtiyaz brings out the best in both the actors. Deepika is drop dead gorgeous and Ranbir is no less. His demeanor which naturally gets transformed, his expressions, the Dev-anand act , the very acting prowess will just charm you.They both complement each other perfectly well.

Story line, songs and my views: 
Tamasha is a fantasy world created by Imtiyaz which is not actually full of fantasies and depicts the real tamasha we all face called life. It is an off beat movie which suits only a niche audience. It is like a stage show from start till the end where you get enchanted by the characters dancing on the screen and also the characters which come to your mind from your real life experiences :) 

If the song Chali Kahani kick starts the story showing the little Ranbir who gets intrigued by all the magical stories embedded in the universe and happily lives in his world, the song Matargashti gives you a picture of a fairy land and fills a kind of zeal in your heart which makes you want to go out and be the free spirited person, you actually are from your heart. The song Heer to badi sad hai shows the transition and transformation of characters which evolve in a period of years. The song Safarnaama sung by Lucky Ali, shows the path to your own heart and describes the journey.

The imaginative narration and unique story telling technique used in songs will definitely create happy and sad emotional waves in you! In the first half the bonus is the beautiful Corsica in France where our mystery boy and girl meet. 

image source : here

Deepika is more or less like Ranbir from heart, who loves stories and Asterix in Corsica is the reason she travels to the place which shows that she longs to live the stories she reads or hears. She gets totally awestruck by the hero. However, as per their pact of not revealing their identities, they separate without the knowledge of who they actually are and the second half of the story shows the transition of hero who gets used to the maze created by the world, becomes a product manager and lives the same day every day and is tuned to being monotonous and boring! I loved both the story telling DON in the first half and the robotic Ved in second half, who is more realistic and strikes a chord with 90% of population who kill their hobbies or passions to earn money for a smooth life! Ranbir showed his excellence in both the roles.

 You may occasionally remember the Jordan of Rockstar where he finally succeeds in making passion his career but doesn't succeed much on the personal front. There are glimpses of Ranbir from Yeh Jawaani hai Deewani as well in the movie!

The story is all about the journey of the boy Ved, who loves hearing stories and dwells in the spirit of all stories but eventually gets burdened by the education, mathematics, management and in general the life which makes him do everything he dislikes. Meeting Tara creates ripples in his head and he ultimately decides to explore his own story and embrace his inner self. The way hearts are broken and distanced is also so beautifully shown , that you almost want to go in to the screen and hug Tara and Ved during the song , agar tum saath ho and the book shop scene. However I would have preferred a more supportive Tara who could have helped Ranbir when it’s traumatic for him!

Some of the scenes which will stay with me:

• The scene where Ved’s storyteller from his childhood- Piyush Mishra mocks him, when Ved requests him to give an ending to his story. He shouts, ” Kaayar , apni kahani kaise khatm hogi mujhe poochta hai. (You are such a wuss, you ask me your story’s ending?)” It is like an eye opener to all the viewers who seek advice from others and wait for approvals!

• The entire Corsica episode and the fun and frolic side of Ved and Tara which is beautiful and heart warming. 

• The scene after the stark realization Ved has , where he narrates a story of Heero to his dad (Javed Sheikh) , mom , Sushma Seth (grandmom). You should go to theater and hear to the actual story which makes you question yourself!

• All the songs of the movie which are unique. I loved the way the wat wat song  (sung by Arjit Singh & Shashwat Singh) is shot (the auto driver whose passion is singing is shown in this foot tapping song).

Even if this is not something which You haven't watched before, You gotta watch this just for the unique "story telling" style! Three cheers 2 the team! Jab we met is undoubtedly Imtiyaz's best to me . The music of Rockstar and Highway is heart touching and the music and story of Tamasha is like Chicken soup for the viewers' soul which is soothing and nerve tingling and definitely helps in clearing your head :)  "Tamasha is the best possible reason to divert yourself from all the Aamir Khan's Tamasha" 
tongue emoticon smile emoticon Go for it glasses emoticon . 

All those creative people who are more or less like Ved, can identify with Ved’s character; who is mesmerized with stories but has outgrown his imaginative self due to the mundane life he chose. The film definitely helps them to recognize and revive their old self. The concept of the movie is rather appealing, but it may not every time work in real life, because a lot of home work needs to be done before turning your passion into a full blown career!

PS: You may either love or hate this movie but cannot have any mediocre feelings after watching. You will definitely get high on emotions! I end the post with my favorite song.

Originally Published at The Views Paper

For the love of Maggi...

I think almost all the Maggi lovers will mark the date and time of the return of Maggi. After all the hoopla around the ban happening from about 5-6 months, Maggi has finally come back like a boss in full confidence, flanked by its fans. Snapdeal invited Maggi with much love by packing 12 packs of maggi with freebies and a 2016 year calendar. I felt I was insane to register myself for the Maggi 2 minute Masala noodle Welcome kit sale but once I received it , I felt glad and nostalgic. Nestle's Maggi did create ripples with it's come back. 

Maggi is back :P Image source : here

image source: Here

Though not all, atleast 60- 70 % of Indians have a story associated with Maggi. The ads are touching and real coz many people have such emotional bonding with Maggi. Before you frown, let me share my Maggi experiences and journey with Maggi so far :)

It was in school when I first tasted Maggi Noodles brought by an aunt from Bombay. I had my introduction to Maggi during one of those summer vacations and I didnt become much of a fan then. Even in the later years Maggi was not frequently consumed at our home as we preferred traditional breakfasts / foods like idli, dosa, bambino semiya or many more to Maggi. Slowly Maggi seeped in to our minds as it was easier, tastier and was fun too. It used to be fun to dig your fork and roll your noodle around it and eat with a slurp sound and it is fun even now :) I realized the importance of Maggi in my life only when I started living away from home.

Maggi is a blessing to all those like me who cannot cook but want to eat something which doesnt taste like hostel food (I claim that I can cook now though Maggi is the only thing I can cook with confidence ;) ) . Hostel food usually is a riot of colors which all taste the same. There are many pale yellow liquids of different texture. You can name them only after tasting them. Sometimes it is rasam , sometimes sambar and most of the times it comprises of different kinds of Dals! Some deep fried Indian curry which is brick reddish or brownish in shade and totally not eye pleasing is also served. A white curd, a red pickle , burnt paapad or fryums, a boiled egg or a bowl of oily chicken (which actually used to be heavenly after a week's torture) usually are part of the menu. Whenever my taste buds used to become thick and fail to serve their duty, I used to find my peace in this magical yellow packet with a taste maker.

It doesn't exactly take two minutes to make and I never complained for whatever time was spent in making maggi, because by the end of it , it always pleases all my senses :)

Image source : here

We at hostel used to feel like master chefs when ever we invaded the kitchen with Maggi packets in hand. The hostel cook and his staff politely used to allow us to use the utensils and all the ingredients. There are different Indian-versions and variations of Maggi. Some make it with egg, some with boiled chicken, some with onions, tomatoes and peas and some like it just plain. As there always is a problem of a mixed crowd of vegetarians and non-vegetarians we mostly used to cook it with veggies and matar . The end result may not be as beautiful as in the ads but it was delicious enough to soothe our taste buds and get our senses back! Like this, Maggi became a forever warm friend who used to bring smiles during the dull, mundane hostel life. The partnership with Maggi only became strong with passing months and years. Different people want it differently. Some like it in a watery texture, some prefer it semi solid and some want it to be dry. Maggi is wonderful at marketing as it keeps coming up with varieties of maggi for various consumers. For health conscious public, maggi introduced vegetable atta noodles and oats maggi. Now whether they are actually healthy or not is an open question but the only answerable question is that every living being on planet can easily make maggi. If you train your pet it can make maggi too :-) . This makes maggi the most sought out food and the most favorite food for people living away from home!

During many instances Maggi came to my rescue and so many encounters with maggi are forever memorable. Some are listed below!

1.) I still remember all those lazy days and nights in Infosys Mysore Training Center spent with Friends and Maggi. I do miss those long mid night talks and violation of the rules by boiling Maggie in the kettle. The fun quotient of training days increased due to the boiled maggi in rooms and spending endless nights with friends sharing life goals, horror stories and love stories :P

2.) I remember the day I had high fever and couldn't eat any thing till 3 A.M. in the morning and was suddenly hungry when the soupy noodles brought back life in my eyes and I slept peacefully much to the bliss of my mom

3.) My husband's maggi recipe is super hit at my place. The one made with scrambled egg and onions. A sunday which starts with that maggi can never go wrong. 

4.)  Most memorable maggi incident was when we went to Rohtang Pass , a high mountain pass on the eastern Pir Panjal Range of the Himalayas (Source: wiki). When every one was suffering from Acute mountain sickness and suffering from headaches and falling sick , Maggi and a hot piping chai felt like elixirs of life  .A plate of steaming maggi was the only solace when our empty stomachs were growling! There used to be a maggi ad in mountains which exactly matches the scene we were in that day with tired bodies and sick faces!

Rohtang pass vaali Maggi

5.) Mountains , hillstations, rains, sleepy towns and maggi go hand in hand. You can find a maggi stalls in any quaint little town. Maggi is the quickest choice of food during your long journeys . I found solace in Maggi during my trips to Nainital, Munnar and many other places

There are many more anecdotes which can be narrated here, that describe my fondness for maggi but I will stop here and end the post on a happy note , with the pictures of my snapdeal package and a funny video made by some fans on FB. Now all those who have removed cooking, under their hobbies, can add it back in their biodata as Maggi is back ;) There were many whats app jokes floating around during the ban and now too which are outright hilarious- 

Boy- I Love u…

Gal – but I don’t love you…

Boy – agar kal tum ne mujhe i love you nahi kaha to…

Gal – to kya karo ge? 

boy – to main Maggie kha k apni jaan de dunga…
 

(A boy is threatening a girl that he will give up his life by eating maggi if she doesn't accept his proposal)

Snapdeal Welcome package - Quite impressive

                               
PS: My breakfast today was Maggi which gave rise to this post

Maggi might be not the healthy choice of food . It might be having Lead but it has not lead to any serious consequences so far and I hope it continues to please our palates and hearts. This post is dedicated to all those students, people staying away from home and each and everyone who survived on it many a times!

Originally published at ViewsPaper