The Pink Chaddi Brigade

I was sent an invite to join the pink chaddi brigade- for pub-going, loose, and forward women.
I don't consider myself pub-going, i don't drink alchohol and hence pubs are out for me. I don't fit into the category loose. I may be forward in my thinking. Hence i thought one out of three criteria wasn't my cup of tea.
Yet, my point is, that if a woman should choose to be pub-going, loose or forward, its her personal choice. Just as a man may choose his habits, so can she.
Just because she may have children one day, and alcohol is teratogenic to her future foetus, is not reason enough for her to be banned from drinking alcohol. If a man can purchase a cigarette packet with a statutory warning which says "smoking is injurious to health" why can't a woman be offered the same choice?
Mutalik's take on women being banned from going to pubs is ridiculous, its preposterous to propose that women be clad from head to toe because the men around them are titillated by looking at the insides of her wrists, or the curve of her hips or the shapely ass on it!
Banning valentine's day was another mindless propaganda. In my opinion, valentine's day wasn't even so famous, atleast on my side of town! So what is the solution? Revert to joint families, ban dating, ban being seen with a girl or a boy because he maybe more than a friend to some pervert whose horizon does not extend beyond sexual innuendos?
If a woman chooses to be sexy, to show her cleavage, to cast a spell on the men in her life, that is her choice, and it was free will that we fought for as a country.
If India's youth are aping the West, its time for Mutalik to show some explemary Indian qualities- tolerance to begin with. He could instead set an example of intrinsic values of our culture that are celebrated world over. Ideals that have been quoted several times over, do not include disregard for the fundamental rights of any human being in this country, not just the female child.
If he wanted to do something about stopping evil, i think he had a wide range to choose from, rape, child molestation, female foeticide,robbery, dacoity, murders, cyber crime, to name a few. Its a pity, women who were unobtrusive and having a good time for reasons of their own, that they were in every way entitled to, were picked on just because they didn't fit into a man's idea of what his ideal daughter must do.
Many cults speak of devotion to the female goddess. The divine female power in the world that is worshipped by many. Mutalik actually said that one mother thanked him for opening her eyes to what her daughter was upto. If i were a mother, i couldn't be ecstatic that my daughter were felt all over her nubile body by some stranger and justify it for opening my eyes. Its a shame for a mother to thank such a vile person for something that lacked dignity and sincerity of purpose.
The divide between parents and teenagers must be dealt with in less humiliating and violating methods.
It is shameful that now it is being made a source of communal disharmony that a hindu girl was spotted with a muslim boy on a bus.
SO WHAT?!
He happened to be her friend's brother, and under our oath as indians, aren't 'ALL INDIANS OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS'?
And even if they did share a romantic relationship, why must religion interfere with anyone other than the two people in the given relationship?!
Being a 'Hindu' does not mean that noone in this world other than a hindu must be interacted with. Even as children we are taught, "hindu, muslim, sikh, isai" are treated as one both by the laws that govern our country and by the intrinsic law of humanity.
Perhaps, as a medical student, The Ram Sene would be infuriated that i shook the hands of a little Muslim boy who suffered from rheumatic heart disease, but i know that as a hindu, my God would be happy i did so. I was touched by that family, his mother and the boy of seven who bore a smile everyday, despite living in a dingy pediatric ward for over ten days and taking painful injections every single day of his stay, who held his mother's hand when she cried worried for his health.
Talibanism in India, must be curbed asap! It is a shame and a violation of the rights of the people, the dignity of our democracy to have such mischief mongers walking freely amidst us. At the end of the day, we are humans, with aspirations and disappointments, desires, regrets, diseases and death.
If a woman chose to go bald one day, despite seeming unattractive to her husband, her rights must be upheld.
If a muslim boy holds a hindu girl's hand with her permission, their rights must be upheld.
If my friend chooses to wear tight jeans with a spaghetti when she is comfortable in her skin, her rights must be upheld.
If my newly wed cousin and his wife choose to take a stroll holding hands, their rights must be upheld.
Every female child conceived too, has all the rights to a life of liberty and happiness.
If mutalik wants to be pro-hindu, he must begin with being pro-humanity. Depravity of our Indian culture is bred by none other than such mindless fanatics.

Bournville

This gustatory phenomena as Cadburys would probably like to call it, really amused me. It was only today, while i was scanning the calorie content that i looked at a magnifying glass which said 'inside'. I opened out the cover of the chocolate slab to discover a treat just to read, behold instructions to savour and make the best out of your chocolate slab. I was imagining swirls of chocolate like the ad and wondering if this was what i would experience. :)
I smelt the chocolate, despite the sniffles, and then placed a piece on my tongue, waiting for it to melt and take over me and be lost in the bittersweet flavour of this dark chocolate which had 44% cocoa from Ghana, roasted and ground by Cadburys. It had natural anti-oxidants, flavonol etc which absolved me of the guilt of having eaten two extra pieces! It made me wish i could work under Willy Wonka!

Cycle

My skin raw from the chafe…

Wounds inflicted,

Healed,

But still broken…

The only way out,

Finding another who is like me!

And yet,

I hurt, to believe.

You picked me up,

But I still crave the hurt,

I am used to!

So cruel our ways of sympathy!

Sangeetha 6/5/08

Untitled

The crest of the tide rises high and swells.

A unified wall,

Our bond forged.

Though we froth and fume and crash,

And disengage,

With time, we are one again!

The ebb of the tide-

A time for retrospection,

The gentle lapping up,

A sentimental nudge down memory lane!

Sometimes we revive merrily,

While others surrender our reveries to

This ceaseless ocean.

The divine stars rise up above,

The nightfall dark and bright!

The gentle breeze caressing

Our faults, and

Lost in our embrace,

The sky parts ways,

And we are awake

In our new reality.

Our life, our love, our pain,

Submitted to eternity,

We get better at what we lost,

Or we foray like never before.

But what was, what is, and what will be??

Wasn’t I swallowed by the sea?

Sangeetha 6/5/08

Day trippin' in Karwar 07

It was a Wednesday night, the 31st of October, 9.00pm that twenty seven eager and youthful women set out on a day trip to Karwar from Bapuji Hostel for Women, DVG. We traveled by two safaris, watching movies, girl-talking, and of course catching those winks of precious sleep!
We wound along the (10km Ghat section) bends and turns and reached Karwar at 4.50am on the first of November,2007. Karnataka must be proud that we made it a point to explore the expanse of her natural magnificence on the day of Rajyotsava. As the inspection bungalow we were scheduled to rest at was not going to be opened until 8am, we headed to a nearby hall suggested by Akshata's uncles( Akshata being our classmate and a local who accompanied us on the trip). There, we thought we would welcome the sunrise on the beach so we decided to leave at 5.3am. Although not ungrateful, i would like to express my dissent, for girls who chose this very time to be lethargic, and pamper themselves! (We left the hall only at 6.15am)
Akshata was a huge help herself, but her uncles deserve special mention. They woke up at 3.30am for us, and accompanied us to all places and gave us a memorable guided tour. Even foregoing their breakfast in our hullabaloo, they wore a broad and welcoming smile on their faces all through. Although I am unaware of their names, or professions, in a way it is significant that they made an impression on my mind! Maybe, all we need to be is a good human being to be remembered!
Being our day, even the sun willed to linger longer behind the clouds before we could watch her glow into her surreal self. We stood on a bridge- to one side of which was Kalinadi, and the other, the Arabian Sea. We were narrated a story about the pilgrimage of pujaris and idols on a single banana leaf each year from a temple on the Kalinadi side to a cave temple in a hill called Aamegudda(turtle rock) in the Arabian Sea. Apparently, many have perished in this attempt but the faith keeps this tradition alive. They say, it must be written in the sands of your destiny to make that journey.
Karwar looked delightfully calm, contented and serene from that bridge. The bridge itself was unique as the Sadashivagudda was cut through, in order to make it! It rattled beneath our feet when a heavy vehicle crossed it, so i would think it must have been quite old. Karwar, as a secular Indian town, boasted of a Lakshmi Devi temple atop the Sadashivagudda, and a mosque at the foot of the hill, hence pilgrims offering prayers to one, also bow to another, and give each the reverence one man has for his own.
For almost an hour, we watched awestruck by the beauty of the sunrise, which we watched from dawn till the time that the water shone like it was kissed by specks of eternal light, fluttering but only to appear in another ripple nearby.
Breakfast, was at a small hotel called Poornima, where the papery dosas and the bland sambhar wasn't the best we'd had, but with a promising encounter with the rapturous sea, we politely downed it.
After this, we drove to the Tilamati Beach, a 20km drive, and we stayed there till about 12.30pm. The sands at Karwar are distinct from those at Madras, in that, it is firm and steeply sloping, the water too literally crashes into the rocks ashore. The rocks were of a deep black stone variety, solid and some were jagged edged while others were smooth topped.
We did a mini-trek of about 2km to reach a secluded beach in this place. We made our way up, and down a hill looking over the sea. Breathtaking views, gullies dangerously overhanging the sea, crevasses on the rocks, varieties of butterflies, hay-coloured grass growing over the hill on one side, lush green bushes on another, were some of the wonderful things we managed to catch a glimpse of.
Once we reached the beach, we were overcome by the urge to rollick in the water and never return. Here, we let loose, 'bum-blocked' the mighty waves coming our way, played ring-a-roses, felt and acted silly and as child- like as we could be, punctuated by snatches of glorious photography looking sunbathed and gorgeous. We saw huge crab gatherings, sea birds etc here, which were both frightening and amusing!
It was with much reluctance that we left the beach and trudged back on that 2km trail. Skies blue and clear above, as compared to the cloudy overview early that morning. Humidity and the sun-soaking made us exhaust our stores of energy!
We said our goodbyes to the crabs, loving rocks and the wondrous sea, and made our way back to the town with the intention of visiting another beach at Karwar.
This time we went to the inspection bungalow, with 27 of us having to bathe in 2 bathrooms, a morning repeat didn't do us much good. The luxurious use of conditioner by one, and indulgent bathing by another, and it was 3.30pm by the time we were ready for lunch. Hence, most big hotels in the town, were closed or not serving lunch at that time. Our growing appetites did not let us submit, and it willed we would not go without a sumptuous meal, and so we managed to research a certain Shanti Sagar that was willing to serve us lunch at around 4pm.
Supposed to be purely vegetarian, was situated right next to a fish market, and had much of the same odour at its entrance. The accommodating nature of our hunger at that point wouldn't jump to criticism for our Annadaatha. It wasn't a spectacular lunch-Pooris, cabbage curry, rice, suji halwa(an unfortunate reminder of our hostel mess) but our hunger supplemented by an insufficient breakfast, and the water games, led us to a hearty meal. The sev puris in my opinion, were delicious!
That evening, after lunch, we went to Karwar Beach, rode on a camel named Kaajal!, and had the privilege of watching the sun go down into her sea-home against a picturesque horizon. From the beach we saw the port of Karwar, the light house, the Konkan Railway line etc. We took a 15min toy train ride encircling the war-ship museum on the beach.
The war-ship museum was an enchanting place. It is actually an old war-ship that has been converted into a museum for the benefit of the public, so we can see the actual interior of her majesty! We were first shown a video of the story of the pioneer naval attacks during the Indo-Pak war of 1971, which won our Naval Force much respect and admiration. Frankly, I didn't see too much victory in bombing a ship to watch men go down, but the strategy employed was indeed meticulous.
The engine room boasted of 4800Horse Power, 35 propellers, and the power of 75cars put together. The life-like replicas of men aboard, were really amusing, ex-the waiter sahib outside the kitchen, the typical officers! The different parts of the ship were enlightening to my amateur eye! It looked really cool, massive, intricate and intact! Thinking of her at sea set our minds ablaze! So much so that I forgot my wallet at the steering wheel on deck! Luckily to my relief, noone else had noticed it when i rushed back to search for it, and thus making my search fruitful!
I have to narrate the use of technology in my life, with regards to this incident. It was about ten minutes after we left the war-ship that I realised to my horror, that i had left my wallet in the ship! But it was a photo of myself holding the wallet, that helped me navigate my way through the huge place, and know for sure that I'd lost it somewhere after that point, which made my search surer and quicker!
While the non-vegetarians ate the famed seafood at Hotel Amrut, we dined at Hotel Sai International. It was not insipid, but not a treat to our taste buds either. The non-vegetarians too, I was told, were not taste-bud tantalised!
Anyway, all in all, we had a fun girls day out, and a break from the monotony of our lives. We left Karwar at 9pm and were put through a rocky, heart in mouth drive back home to DVG, with a rash and sleepy driver, homely irritation, and annoying idiosyncrasies we melted back into once it had registered that our destination and purposes were different-Friday college!
I only wish, the next time, we spent our time imbibing the air of the place rather than being absorbed in ourselves, and losing precious time in moments and places far and few, like this Dakshin Kashmir in R.B Tagore's words.

My overall rating of the place: 3 stars, maybe if i had seen more, 4
My advice: Visit more places, and be time efficient, visit Murudeshwar and other nearby locales! Goa was only an hr away!

Its been really long since i wrote, and after first year, i have finally gotten back into touch with my writer side...and more of the reader too :) hopefully i can write regularly from now on! so..this basically goes to say...IM BACK!

Yesterday, i went shopping with one of my really close friends, I did a fare amount of shopping, but i have to narrate to you my experience at Health and Glow-a beauty cum drug store.

So i go there with the intention of buying a conditioner for my hair, and deodorant, and some hair clips. Now, as soon as i enter, the salesgirl asks me if she could be of assistance, and she thus shows me to an entire shelf of conditioners! wow! My beautician had spoken of the 'leave-in' conditioner, but she didn't mention the brand name! Lo and behold, ahead of me, are some seven brands of shampoos, conditioners and other hair care products, each enticing me with their "oh so gorgeous" models showing off their "oh so gorgeous" lustrous locks, and as if that were not enough to sway the mind of a focussed buyer, each of those brands, had, a multitude of wholesome, nourishing, and exotic ingredients providing that extra something, to "give your hair the protection it deserves"!
So battling many thoughts, i draw out a certain 'leave-in' conditioner, apart from my regular conditioner(which i had already taken), only to notice the price! My middle-class self, argued within as to how useful would buying something so expensive be! and i resorted to taking the valuable advice of the salesgirl, who-i am sure-was trained to cough up praises on behalf of every product, regardless of what its effects were!
When asked which was more useful, the regular conditioner or the 'leave-in', she said the 'leave-in' was more for the party wear and the regular conditioner for everyday! At that instant, i felt a sort of communications of souls, two girls, roughly the same age, in this consumer war, in awe of all those beautiful faces on the covers of the hottest magazines, in an era, when hot or not totally counts! Standing flabbergasted, and in need of something to undo whatever was innately wrong with our features, and compensate them with either gloss, or sheen, or volume, or bounce!
Incidentally, all this hair-madness began when i went to a salon to get my long hair chopped and traded for a spunky, short, new look. Where, all my woes began, because i had to combat hair-loss, hair-repair, and the above mentioned deficiencies and defects of my natural tresses!
As of today, i have purchased the following in aid of my alopecia and associated hair-disorders!
Garnier Fructis : 'leave-in' conditioner for dry, rough, sensitized hair:oil repair Rs.65/-
Lo'real Paris: Coloured hair conditioner Rs.maybe hundred and something?
Lo'real Paris: Smoothing oil essence, oil balance level 1 Rs.600/-
Parachute Therapie: Hair loss solution, prevents hair loss in just 45 days ( * not for hereditary hair loss) Rs. 190/-
Parachute Hair oil: Rs.19/-
Roots Hair Brush: Flat:Rs165/-

Now, let us pray, that my hair, not only withstands these successive attacks, but also, survives and grows with renewed vigour!

Apart from just the hair care alone, the salesgirl was crying offers for various other cosmetics-lotions, foot creams, bleaches, wax, perfumes, face masks, gels, toners, astringent, nail polish, French manicure, Nail strengthener, cuticle care cream, etc etc etc
I felt like the world was crashing down on me, Satan had my wallet and was putting me through this consumer hell!
Everything on that shelf, was mine but for the money, i could visualize each of those products simply endowing me with fabulous looks and a glossy feel!
As i paid up at the cash register, i stared down at my favourite addiction:orbit chewing gum:'sugarless and for the calorie conscious'. I felt victorious at my onslaught, and miserable that i couldn't take the rest home with me!
Walking out, i recollect a time, when i would be and glowing from the home-made besan scrubs c/o my mother! and life was but running naked and being said "shame shame puppy shame to", when life was pimple free and scars not there to be forgotten, and i thought,
Was i beautiful??

6/09/07

Jobless research endeavours!

Yesterday, as i was putting my boredom to good use and looking up the meaning of the song 'yellow' by coldplay, i came across a lot of different meanings, and yet funnily, i was left with no conclusion. It seems Chris Martin wrote the song and mentioned something about the inspiration for it coming from the yellow pages, another said how it was a sign of 'caution' and how it was about a woman who gave off all 'warning' signs but he still fell for her. Another, about how yellow signifies brightness etc.
I also happened to visit their official site (or so it said) and found out that the equal sign on Chris's hand was not a tattoo but was inked in pen like a constant reminder of the fair trade that they were sticking up for and whom he was singing for. He also wears coloured tapes signifying x and y on his fingers now. Also has a tattoo of 'A' on his hand, signifying 'a' for apple (no he wasnt bad with alphabets, that's his daughter's name...which incidentally is Apple Blythe Alison Martin). Now that his son is Moses, he might just get an 'm'. hehe.
Apparently the band's original name was 'starfish' but they later borrowed the name coldplay..which comes from a poem! Singer Chris Martin only took voice lessons after they were already famous! Chris martin and jay-z are apparently good friends and mutual fans! And has collaborated with Nelly Furtado on a song from her latest album 'loose'.
More after some deliberation.....:) :p or mindless wandering!

I love these lyrics!! and his voice!

Ordinary People John Legend lyrics
Artist: John LegendAlbum: Get LiftedYear: 2004Title: Ordinary People
Print Correct [Verse 1] Girl im in love with you
This ain't the honeymoon
Past the infatuation phase
Right in the thick of love
At times we get sick of love
It seems like we argue everyday.
[Bridge]
I know i misbehaved
And you made your mistakes
And we both still got room left to grow
And though love sometimes hurts I still put you first
And we'll make this thing work
But I think we should take it slow
[Chorus] We're just ordinary people
We don't know which way to go Cuz we're ordinary people
Maybe we should take it slow (Take it slow oh oh ohh)
This time we'll take it slow (Take it slow oh oh ohh) This time we'll take it slow
[Verse 2]
This ain't a movie no
No fairy tale conclusion ya'll
It gets more confusing everyday
Sometimes it's heaven sent
Then we head back to hell again
We kiss then we make up on the way
[Bridge] I hang up you call
We rise and we fall
And we feel like just walking away
As our love advances
We take second chances
Though it's not a fantasy
I Still want you to stay
[Chorus] We're just ordinary people
We don't know which way to go
Cuz we're ordinary people
Maybe we should take it slow (Take it slow oh oh ohh)
This time we'll take it slow (Take it slow oh oh ohh) This time we'll take it slow
[Verse 3] Take it slow
Maybe we'll live and learn
Maybe we'll crash and burn
Maybe you'll stay, maybe you'll leave, maybe you'll return
Maybe another fight
Maybe we won't survive
But maybe we'll grow
We never know baby youuuu and I
[Chorus] We're just ordinary people
We don't know which way to go
Cuz we're ordinary people
Maybe we should take it slow
(Heyyy) We're just ordinary people
We don't know which way to go
Cuz we're ordinary people
Maybe we should take it slow (Take it slow oh oh ohh)
This time we'll take it slow (Take it slow oh oh ohh)
This time we'll take it slow

im feelin the same way all over again!

In love again!

The smile that colours my face-
Dipped in passion,
Steeped in love!
A flash of that special something,
A fire aglow!
On a fiery day, its snow!
The complementary other half;
All that rings in your ear is his laugh.
A caress-
The smell of his cologne lights up my thoughts.
Yes, those forbidden kisses that flirt with danger.
Those clichéd names when imagination evades you.
Whispers of affection,
Tangled in your arms,
Unravelling a mystery,
I revel in the unknown.
Delving into the abyss of your mind,
I dive in.
The corners of my mind you bring alive,
The sweetest thought-
You’re mine!

Sangeetha Sivaraman
16/06/06
9.00am

Food for thought??

Sometimes i wonder, is it just me? or the female psyche? or the collective wisdom of the generations that came after the discovery of the cocoa bean? Does chocolate really alleviate your grief, pain, depression and generally a kind of a low?
I know i am not alone though. I know of more than a dozen girlfriends who feel blue and gray all day..and then dive into chocolate and the next thing you know...their mind is calmer, happier and generally less affected. For me, anything with sugar content works...today's remedy for stress buster= cake fudge from my beloved corner house!! If i may tantalise your senses describing chocolate- its velvety smooth texture, the feeling of pure heaven melting in your mouth, the mother of all comfort foods, your ticket to fantasy land in a world of facts, delightfully delicious and marvellously miraculous.
Mayb alanis morisette's pms singing has a lot to do with lack of good chocolate!!! Btw..if you haven't already tried...belgian chocolate truffles...do so soonest!! Can i become a chocolate addict? or am i one already? mayb i'll have to go to rehab what with new found cures to new found diseases! Just as Captian Haddock grabbed his drink...i will grab another spoon of this trickle of ecstasy in my world of churning brains!
Inconsequential as it may b..i'll also drop in a tad of trivia...according to ynr.blogthings...im white chocolate! ( i dont even lik it!!).
:) oh and for all those of you who didnt find even one sentence interesting so far (why would you read till here though?), chocolate is also known for its properties as an aphrodisiac!
there! Sex always works!

Poems I have written

here goes!!
These are some of the poems i have written recently. I am no biggie at this but i have recently grown to love poetry and appreciate the art of saying so much with so little. Though i am verbose, i appreciate brevity!
:)


Sunshine Boulevard

A surprise visit,
A new day revisited.
Having the had,
Getting the gotten?
; Thoughts of that day forgotten.
Sunshine boulevard-
Smiles are grimaces,
Cries are few,
Yet I soak in a feeling new.
Turnings curved,
Stones turned.
What I knew unlearned!
A fountain of feelings?
A pool of experiences?
I crash into you.
The fire within simmers,
Until I glow.
I outshine the rest.
Headfirst into a puddle of
What is?
What was?
And has been.
Sunshine Boulevard,
My past remains to be seen
And wide awake is my dream!

Sangeetha Sivaraman 21/5/06



Love on lost ground


Loyalty’s string tightly bound,
My love lorn palace found;
Where the seeds of infidelity bloom and blossom,
And where you reap what you sow.
Together- a world of the presently past,
What holds in store for tomorrow?
Deadly Devotion,
Silent surrender,
The victor of my heart- a rule bender.
Promises to make or keep?
Look me in the eye and tell me where and when our love died.
A word…
A sigh…
A reminder of the world gone by.

Sangeetha Sivaraman
1st November, 2005
10.27pm


I think…

A thought surfaces…
Reasons many…
I disagree…
A cheer greets a tear.
Transcending thought,
In cold blood lies my fear.
What if I didn’t think?
Well…that’s a thought!

Sangeetha Sivaraman
11.40pm
7/03/06