Memories and more

When you look back at all those memories
best friends, colleagues, lovers and acquaintances,
And as time flies by; from months that turn into years,
There comes a point when you realize
that it took nothing much to erase some memories,
That It took very little for them to fade;
yet it took eons to work on and build these relations
And a lot to get get them there...


There.. where it left a mark on your mind
there; where it drove your heart for the longest time,
With many smiles and mostly joy; you celebrated outings with dear friends
With love and passion; you cherished with your lover every moment of togetherness


And while these memories kept your mind preoccupied for the longest time,
It took a few rude moments and ego to stampede,
all that you once thought was life!


Yet as we walk ahead; some carrying the weight of these memories on their mind
while the others who constantly move on,
They lie ahead of us
and yet somehow 
not many have successfully predicted them


- Memories memories and more memories!

Saurashtra... to be precise Gujarat - a humble experience

A travel list always existed and there are the fixed top 20 destinations to cover, but I never really planned Saurashtra - the south west region of Gujarat which comprises of the famous Rajkot, Jamnagar, Daman & Diu, Gir forest, Palitana (the center for Jain Pilgrimage) and few more attractions. Its not a destination one would usually plan unless your a Gujarathi or Jain headed there to touch base with your roots, for your yearly temple visits, meeting relatives etc or if your like my elder sister strictly hunting  down non commercial places for touring.

In the heart of Saurashtra; admits the cotton and corn farms you will find Amreli. Now I have visited quite a few tier II and tier III cities in India mainly based in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra but there is something else about this land, the fresh air, docile people, scanty population and yet the town is hustling with movement during the morning and evenings. With afternoon sleep as a daily ritual and fancy flavoured Sodas for desserts; what caught my attention is the simple life, innocence of thought and action. Nope I am not going to crib and discuss the fast pace of life because that is the charm of metros and makes life worthwhile in cities like Mumbai but yes I would love to talk about the difference in mindset, innocence and lack of exposure which is peculiar to Amreli and similar cities which could convert any one whose lived here for over a month; into a full time family man.

And coming to the second most striking experience of Saurashtra is the Gujarati experience I was blessed with!

This trip was possible and full credit going to my dear friend Nikita; whose home town is Amreli. Nikita is one of the most non Gujju people I have ever come across. But her attachment and connection, stories and description of Amreli (her "so called backward Village" though its actually a Tier III) convinced me instantly to accompany her and given the fact I was going to burst out with stress in general, it made perfect sense to head to Amreli with her if I had to continue existing in Mumbai.

I was fortunate to stay with her close knit joint family, live the local experience, do immense traveling and meet some of the nicest people - her family in Amreli. Her Mama and Mami who removed four days to take us to Palitana, Somnath, Gir and the local farms on the out skirts of Amreli. Our Trip began with the fixed route trains Mumbai - Rajkot - Mumbai; an overnight journey. From Dhoda station in Gujarat; we drove down 180 kms to arrive at her hometown. We knew the trip was going to be a bumper when a snake crossed our path while driving (which is considered a highly auspicious sign in the land of Nagnath).Her home was in the heart of Amreli; in front of which was their family built temple; the finest and biggest there. Trying to keep it light and easy on day one, we decided to cover their farms and meet the farmers. Our actual discovery began with Palinata; having heard of this pilgrimage site from practically all my Jain friends I was certain on instantly liking this place. Unfortunately the town was closed the day we visited; nonetheless we covered the base temple. Subsequently we went to Somnath (one of the biggest Jyotilings in India). Legend has it that this natural Jyotiling emerged from the sea and the biggest discovered in India back then, thus the magnificent temple was constructed to house the Lord Shiva lingam. After a night's stay at Somnath we headed to Diu (with another snake crossing our road) and straight to Gangeshwar. And I am glad we did. One of my favourite places in the world now; Gangeshwar hosts 5 Shivlings under the hill and worshiped by the Arabian Sea! It is a small, quite and highly attractive place, one of a kind temple; not accessible in monsoons and during high tides. The waves hitting the Shivling, washing away all the offerings or perhaps accepting them on behalf of Lord Shiva lingers in the mind for a while. On our way back to Amreli we traversed through Gir Forest. Perfect timing as the early monsoons advent bringing with them a cool evening wind, lush greens and fuller streams! Fortunate as we had been so far; there it was, a gorgeous Lioness wandering along the narrow roads staring at our vehicle, almost as though she was acknowledging our presence yet ignoring us. Ahead were Deers, Jackals, Rabbits and a variety of birds. The forest would resemble a green canopy almost completely blocking the night sky creating a perfect arch effect as we drove slowly through it.

From the farmers to the Temples, small towns to the gigantic Diu Fort, the forest and fresh air... Saurashtra resembles the better parts of Rural India. With Balaji having over 70% of market share in the FMCG industry in Gujarat, the region is a playground for competitors wanting to penetrate the rural market. Needless to say the cotton farms flourishing here explain why Gujarat is the Textile capital of India.

Been thinking hard on the one line that best describes Gujarat... but with so much to offer, the state is a power in the making, a wonder yet to be fully discovered.

Natasha Bedingfield - an Artist, Inspiration and Way of Life

She was nominated for Grammy, Brit and MTV awards with her first album itself for the hit single 'These Words". Though my favorite from her first remains 'I bruise easily'. So while she was an instant hit with her first solo album, its interesting to know she has been into music for years with her two siblings. Daniel Bedingfield was already successful when she launched her solo career.
Back then around 2008 when she launched her second album 'Pocket Full of Sunshine' I though to myself, most of her songs or rather her hit numbers are typical commercial american pop kinds, targeting teenagers, beaming with life, positiveness and up paced beats. They were some great tracks like 'Love like this' and the title track 'Pocket full of shine' that got me interested in her music.

And the reason I am writing about her is her latest album 'Strip Me'. And its shockingly amazing, all the tracks and the title song and above all - to see this huge transformation in her both as an artist and individual. I fell  i love with 'Strip me' instantly, its one of the rare songs that hit the soul and make you question the ways of the world versus who you are and what you should be. The lyrics are powerful and captivating, as though she has figured it all out and its time to share it with the world through her music. The video is simple yet beautifully correlated to the meaning behind the song. And I love how she is constantly changing her look from nude (no make Up) to 10 different looks (with all the glamorous make up) and she looks fabulous in each frame.

Post this song, I you tubed her other latest songs 'Run run run', 'Touch', 'Who knows' (this I discovered while watching the movie 27 dresses), 'Soulmate'. Though 'Strip me' tops the charts for me, I am as much in love with 'Run run run' and 'Who knows'! Lets just say I listen to each of these songs atleast 3 times a day.

Soon I started tracking her latest interviews, blogs and site; searching for what ever information I could get my hands on. And I am glad I did.
Her journey was just like any struggling British Pop singer trying to make it big in America at the young age of 23. She was a workaholic and her passion for music kept her going. Apparently although she is know for her positive vibrant songs; she has written more sad slow songs only that they were never produced. And when success finally came her way with the second & third albums; she knows she has finally found her path in life to travel the world and collaborate with artists and cultures in diverse countries; only to expand her horizon in music and offer more insightful tracks to her fans.

Natasha Bedingfield is unlike your regular R&B or Hip hop artist who create/duplicate music that is one track with baseless lyrics. Her lyrics are what one would feel in their inmost desires and thoughts, only that she manages to put it correctly add to that excellent tunes.

I hope someday to meet and thank her for givings us such brilliant all inspiring songs, daring and different from most pop music which is a commercial hit in the west. Artists like her, Corine Bay Railey, Leona Lewis (I figure most British artists) have a depth to their songs which keeps the other half of the world listening.
Also just seeing her transform and finally discover her self, her music and path for life; boosts a certain confidence in me that there are people who are achieving what I aimed to do... living your dreams, life to the fullest.


Must watch - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnhDIGTldho&ob=av2e
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwwLLT120vk

Apple Cinnamon cake - mostly my own creation

This is a tried and tested recipe, and on request of a few friends I am sharing it with you guys :)

This recipe infact is a combination for a few others with my modifications

The below is for a half kg cake -

Ingredients:

- 1 cup flour finely sieved 

- 3/4th cup super fine sugar

- 2 Table Spoon honey

- half an apple thinly sliced soaked in rum for couple of hours

- cinnamon powder 1/2 cup

- 2 eggs

- fresh cream

- 1 pinch salt

- 1 tea spoon baking powder

- pinch of cooking soda

- Olive oil (for the heath conscious guys) or Butter or Margirin (3/4th to 1 cup)

Method: 

1) sieve the flour, baking powder, soda and half of the cinnamon powder and mix

2) Beat the sugar and butter/oil with an electric mixer for 5 - 7 mins till the batter is smooth fluffy and light in weight

3) Add only the egg yellow (make sure the egg whites are separately removed) and honey to this sugar mix and continue beating till a liquid consistency is obtained. Then add the fresh cream to this batter

4) Now bit by bit start adding the flour mixture to this liquid batter... making sure no lumps are there. This should be mixed by hand for 10 mins

5) Simultaneously pre heat oven for ten mins @ 150 C .. (u can also use microwave for this cake)

6) Now to the Egg whites add 1 pinch of salt and start beating it with electric mixer to obtain a fluffy white batter

7) Once the flour and cream batter is smooth  add this fluffy egg whites and gently stir it in for few mins only

For the decorative icing first rub in butter/oil on the base of the metal pan, then dust the entire inner lining with flour. place the apple pieces in round twirling design. now dust Cinnamon powder all over this design and along the inner lining of the Pan

Add the cake batter on this apple cinnamon pan, i suggest cover the pan with foil so ur cake does not burn.

Put in oven for 40 mins @ 130 degree C .. check towards the end if the cake has risen, if not put it in oven for another 10 mins...

Incase ur using a microwave put this cake batter in a glass pan for 6 mins only.

After removing it from oven, let the cake cool for half hour then turn it upside down onto a plate to have the apple side as the top icing ....

serve with Vanilla Ice cream and viola!!! Its Yummy all the way :) :)

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Guest Lectures - A Stepping Stone

I have always loved talking, narrating or describing incidents - sometimes my own version sometimes exaggerated stories ;)  but on a serious note, this passion for expression evokes in me an interest to teach.

Teaching; in any form, nature, subject or to anyone in any way - is in my view the most powerful of acts. Ofcourse to teach the right, factual concept is of uttermost importance. Beyond that, its the ability to influence the youth, friends, colleagues or family that requires substance of character. Above all it requires knowledge, experience and an open mind. In the last week or so; I finally managed to reconnect with this passion. I was invited to speak on two occasions - one at my B-School as an Alumni for the in coming batch of MBAs and the second at my Graduate college as an alumni and ex-member of our events club.
Thankfully on both accounts I knew exactly what I had to share - they were purely motivational sessions on how the youth should go around their tenure in their respective organizations/schools, what should be their short term goal, how to develop it, their aspirations and what they can achieve from the organizations and lastly correcting their attitude towards the course and life in general. The reason I can say 'correcting' with confidence is because there were many students who came back to clarify many of the doubts and misconceptions.

These 2 sessions I would categories as purely motivational, providing guidance or generic (catching up with an Alumni in their case perhaps). But for me; personally this was a stepping stone towards ONE of my many long term goals. For it bestowed in me many things, for starters I managed to grasp the attention of the audience, could easily curb their raising voices, figured that most of them had attentive and interested faces whilst I spoke to them and lastly a lot of them came back with doubts. A successful session I say.

This only motivates further to develop myself, have as many varying experiences professionally and personally simply because I would much rather inspire people on the grounds of 'Who' over and above 'What' I am.

The Era of Entrepreneurship has/had Arrived! PART - I

We seen the last 5 decades; well perhaps up until 2002 as the era of the Service Industry in India. With the late 1990's came policy changes, industrial sector reforms and most importantly privatization. India's GDP was growing from average of 5% to 8% pa as we crossed over into 2000's. The value system was strong and the traditional mindset of families were to see their children become White Collar professionals mostly Doctors and Engineers back then.
With a boost to the Financial Sector; Higher Education, Retail  and other such industries; there was a para dime shift in the Traditional Indian family - and everybody is doing MBA to join the services sectors. The job security, heavy packages and fast paced life all glorifies the service industry.

Well that was then.

Today in metro cities in India; we are seeing an up splurge of Entrepreneurs actively involved in IT, Hospitality, Tourism and Travel, Events and Media and other such industries. These young dynamic Entrepreneurs are managing one or multiple ventures and yet in a small but quick way contributing to our economy.

Then there are the smarter ways to make money. Equities & Commodities Markets are booming (for all stakeholders). Celebrities, socialites, rich kids and the intelligent ones are finding their entry into various ventures; the less capital quick returns model to run their business. Most socialites today either run their own business or use their brand name to support their partners'.

Another very interesting Industry is Weddings in India.
Currently every event company, set designer, production house and individual as Freelancers are offering Wedding Planning services because this is a Market (estimated at $10 Billion) one cannot miss, simply because it is  profitable, tax evasive and pure entertainment! Given the black money floating in India which is twice as much as the white currency is proof to the fact that Indians love their tradition and have great savings, and the sum of the two variables is a Big Fat Indian Wedding. This is mostly because having a Grand wedding is a matter of Prestige and Privilege while the real reason being disposal of black income.



circulating in the economy and purchasing power parity at $ 2946 US Dollars (making us the world's largest economy) we definitely see why Entrepreneurship is here to stay and soon the Service Sectors will be paying its Employees heft packages to avoid Attrition and another commoner turning into a businessman!

 

and what do you do with a few hours in a Metro city..?

The Audi Car company recently launched 14 showrooms in ofcourse 14 different cities in India.
My company landed with the contract to do exquisite Floral Decor for the showrooms.
Due to fast moving Weddings vertical and business coming in last minute;
I had to travel to 4 leading metros in India. The primary task. of any personnel traveling is smooth and successful operation of the Floral set up in these showrooms. As manager ihad the liberty to do over look smooth set up without ofcourse actually Setting it up.  occassionally in each city stole  a couple of hours to grab lunch and cover the best sights of the city in the limited span of time.

Every city is unique indefinitly but because we re talking about india - the indianness remains common to all cities!

For instance truly enjoyed the sumptous lunch in Bangalore from a local joint - Chicken Dum Biryani and Dry Nellore Chicken.
I actually. Did lick the plate after eatig food meant for two in quantity.

Kolkatta has a rich cultural heritage seen across its buildings, chruches and local cusines!

Serving Chai in a 'Kulhad' is typically village like but such a commodity here. The moderness of Park Street and damaged ancient mansions running parallel is an eye candy.

Though these were 1 day set ups; including flying the previous night and back home post the party, the rush of pushing myself to explore each city or simply unable to catch sleep while wandering On the streets to kill time - the highs and lows were all welcomed and good fun.