Aamchi Pune, to Our Pune-Happy Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day: a time of the year reserved only for our better halves, the special loved one, soul mates and family. More often than never, we leave this day aside to make all those lengthy preparations to come through, trying our best to make our special someone feel the love. But when do we stop, think and spend time with something that we’ve been with all these years? The place will be permanent, even though the people may change. The city that has made us what we are, and has been the center of all the opportunities that we seized without a second thought. The city with a deep rooted culture, yet cosmopolitan. Amchi Pune, the city with Ravivar Peth and Shaniwad wada,  M.G Road and Koregaon Park... a place where you can celebrate Ganpati in Dagdusheth, and the Pune Wine Fest at Rohi Villa.

So why not celebrate the most romantic day of the year with your city? That’s precisely what I came across this year, at Phoenix MarketCity, and absolutely loved the initiative! A refreshing take on Valentine's day, it did changed my perspective this time around. 

 It only came to my notice after I saw #ILovePune on Twitter, which not only got me to look up the details of the contest, but also observe and participate.  Each reply brought a smile on my face, lighting up my mood with every tweet. It was lovely to see so many people I don’t know, connect with me on our hometown (Social Media Junkie Alert, yeah!) I have spent a large chunk of my life travelling, but since the last 12 years, Pune has been my home. It has given me the people I value the most, and the education and profession I’ve always longed for..opportunities and life lessons, it's been a wonderful journey here in Pune. This is precisely why every tweet got me a little nostalgic about old times and growing up in this place. I’ve seen it change from a small town with the only shopping ‘mall’ being West Side in M.G Road, and the only multiplex being Inox  back in 2001, to a city with multiple malls (Phoenix Marketcity being one of the biggest) and a gazillion multiplexes. I doubt  the younger generation will be able to see such a magical and drastic change over a reasonably short period of time.  I’ve watched this change, been a part of it, grown with it.

I decided to pamper myself this Valentines, and headed over to Phoenix for some shopping. On reaching, I saw a small crowd collected near this enormous flex board where people would come and write why they loved Pune. They were also sticking something that looked like coins ( on inquiring, I found out that they WERE coins) I loved the vada pav cartoons that some of them were making, and the bun-maska chai...there was a really cute cartoon of a dog holding up an umbrella for a cat... looking at the pictures got me nostalgic. And it doesn't stop here! The money collected after selling the coins is being donated (Yes, I was curious, cos it struck me as odd. Why would you collect money on Valentine's, right?) to an NGO- Ekansh (for physically disabled people) What a BRILLIANT initiative!

 They even let people get pictures clicked where they’d get the polaroids within no time. Since I was alone, I couldn't really get myself to draw or take pictures (where are your friends when you need them? :P ) Jokes apart, I was pretty impressed by the innovation of this particular idea. 

I would never have stopped to think about the love I have for my city on Valentine’s Day. I absolutely loved how beautifully Phoenix brought out this new way of looking at this precious romantic day, yet bringing out the essence of it. We never forget to dedicate time to make our loved ones feel better, but how often do we spare a few minutes to thank the city that has made us who we are? 

Being from an Army background, I should be used to traveling every 2 years. But Pune does this to people...no one wants to leave Pune,we all get back here.One way or another.

#100Happy Days- The Happiness Challenge

This is a wonderful concept, I personally believe. Haven't found many who'd agree with me, but I ain't doing this for them. 

Before I go ahead with this, I'd like you to take out 5 minutes to check out the website:

100happydays.com

Hopefully this means that people will now KNOW the concept, and probably understand the reason why some of us might want to follow it.

It's very easy to be sad in life, extremely easy. Things like not getting your morning coffee can spoil your day. Have you ever stopped to think about how many of these little things have we taken for granted? This challenge is taking me there, one day at a time. Days when I feel nothing has made me happy, I realize we take the word "happy" for granted. We only acknowledge "ecstasy". So yes, my pedicured feet and cup of nesquik have made me happy, and I shall instagram them!

I usually instagram pictures at the end of the day. If in case I do not have any pictures., I do make sure I tweet. End of the day works for me since it gives me time to reflect on all that has happened that day. It sounds cliched, but it does make me realize the importance of the little things that I've taken for granted in life. 

Anyway, here's my journey so far...follow me, and try doing it too. It takes a little time to get used to, but you see the effects soon. 

(The Challenge was accepted on 2 Jan 2014)

Day 1- Nesquik and emails. Comfort zone ^_^

Day 2- An impromptu plan to eat out, and BOY was it good! Tandoori Chicken is very very very under-rated. 

 Waking up to check my phone, only to see that smile. *sigh*
Butterflies in tummy is how each day starts, this can't be restricted to 100 only.  

Day 3- Dad's birthday :)

After a tiring 4 hours at the mall (NEVER shop during sale season, spending 2k extra is WORTH it)
and picking up one lipstick (must control urge to pick up pretty colored expensive lipsticks) and listening to
the younger sister complain about life, in general.  Sister's day out- Day 4.

Day 5 - Another random plan to fulfill butter chicken and appam cravings.

Day 6- Finally remembered his birthday this year. What started off as a quiet dinner turned into a chaotic (yet fun) night. Also, this is the first time I landed up at a house party absolutely un-invited, only to have the whole world I usually try avoiding present there. Highlight of the night- me being the only sober one around (I don't drink), it was fun seeing people surprised by my ability to have fun with people I openly hate, especially when I hadn't even had a sip of alcohol to drink.
High five to me. 

Rambling on about life's little problems, only to see her doze off. She's forgiven, cos she's cute.
Day 7 with le sister.

Day8 - After downloading the NBA 2K14 twice, visiting the post office once, burning the game onto DVDs twice, buying a completely new game, testing it, and finally sending it to le boyfriend. What started off as an annoying task ended up making me feel very um...awww. Cos I'd not do it for anyone, duh. 

Day 9- found a lot of stuff while cleaning my room. This is an airport ticket from 5 June 2013.
Nothing can make me forget the hug and the tears that flowed during that extremely painful goodbye. I choke up looking at it. But yes, it makes me happy. 

Day 10- Successfully managed to pick up things I didn't need. 

Day 11- Nesquik, Pulp Fiction, and Sundays. 

Day 12- Gossiping with le sister. And a little bit of nostalgia. 

Day 13- Food review! Didn't know it at this time, but it's helped me become a biggie in the food bloggers circle in Pune! 

 Day 14- I decided to explore a little more. And I'm happy to say that I'm now learning how to interpret artwork. It's very very interesting. Changes perspective, you know.

Day 15- won them on Twitter. No one can possibly be unhappy around chocolates. 

Day 16- Met these boys after 2 weeks, and it felt like forever. There are a few people you meet who end up being a part of you. These are a few of my peeps. 

Day 17- A day that starts at 3:00pm, followed by coffee and carrot cake, and ends with biryani from Blue Nile. 

Day 17. 

Day 18- Yes, I'm still too excited to put this into words. Review of the Fat Cat's Cafe. And people LOVED it. I'm glad I could share this experience with them ^_^

Day 19- dinner with my peeps! A "Pulp-Fiction" mood followed by complete madness. Also ended up reviewing the place (Mad House Grill) 

Day 19. 

Day 20 - Brain storming session with le sister. My skills had left me impressed. 

 Day 21- my blog post went viral. The post was regarding the defamation of the Indian Army done by the music artiste Delhi Sultanate. I received messages from all over the country, thanking me for standing up for them and not being intimidated by the "bullies" I hadn't expected the post to get that big, but it was overwhelming, nonetheless.

Day 22- friend from the US came down for a visit. What started with dinner and drinks (also got a few free flaming shots from the manager *tee hee*) ended at 2:00am after an eventful night of dancing. Also ended up bumping into people from Mumbai who seemed to recognize me from Twitter, and were in Pune for a few shows. Ah well, felt good :)

Day 23- Was invited for a food review to Taj. Made a whole lot of contacts, and yes, the review was loved by many.
Once again, I was overwhelmed. 

Day 24- Networking. It's important.

Day 25- Kick-started the day with the Republic Day parade on TV. So PROUD of the country and it's defense forces ^_^

Day 26- It finally struck me that maybe it was time I made a few long term decisions. A whole lot of contemplation, lots of mood swings later- I know I am ready. And a little more determined than what I ever was. A new me. Feels good.

 Day 27- 19 hours of non-stop shooting (YES, I BAGGED A *tiny* ROLE IN A MOVIE!!!) Made a whole lot of new and extremely interesting friends. Cant' wait to get my hands on the photographs that were clicked that day.
And suddenly I don't see movies the same way anymore. What we see is MAGIC. What goes behind all the magic is um..organized chaos. 5 takes for one angle, you kidding me? But the difference is seen on screen. Daniel (who has a special nick-name for everyone and calls me sassy) very casually said "we don't know what we are doing, all that we know is we need to do our best. It's automatically transferred on to the screen"


 Oh also, I am apparently not camera conscious! So much happiness!!! Plus the director is a humble and friendly human being, and I know I've made a nice friend ^_^

Day 28- Pedicures make me happy. 

Day 29- Won these on Zomato. Awesome, I know right?

Day 30-

Resisted the temptation to eat something at Fat Cat's Cafe while I sat there for 30 min. I am SO PROUD of my will power right now, I am going to reward myself with an entire cake tomorrow. 

Yeah.

Day 31-

People are selfish, sadistic, and at times extremely ruthless. No one is going to save you, you are in this all alone. If you want to fight, be prepared- NO ONE is going to support you though your struggle.

I don't get angry easily. Yes, it is very easy to tick me off, but anger is something I'd experience once in 6 months. But when I am angry, God save you. No, I will not throw things at you, I will not yell at you, I won't even FIGHT sometimes.Oh, you won't even know I am angry!Anyway point is, when furious, I tend to go mad internally.

So I'm sorry, my patience has been tested. I'm livid, so livid that I can't get myself to EAT. Or SLEEP. I'm going to try and remove the frustration on the treadmill and in the pool. No one can make me feel so UNWANTED and get away with it. Just because I don't want to fight doesn't mean I don't understand what's happening. Why am I making others sound like evil villains? Because they haven't given me a reason to feel otherwise.


What's happy about this day? Well, there's hope. And that some day, the goodness will be returned to me.
What goes around comes around- Karma.


Also, the emotion of hate can only be reserved for someone you love very dearly. When I love, I love.




Day 32- Got a mention in DNA-Pune for going ahead with this challenge. Aww well, I feel famous ^_^

Day 33- Dad's classmate from down to meet him from Australia. Seeing his excitement on meeting a friend after 30 years was more than enough to get us happy high on life. A night full of reminiscing, wine, and oooh, gifts from Australia!! Hello CHOCOLATES!

Day 34- Writing. Writing makes me happy. Wrote a review for Chung Fa, Pune. Well, I write about food only because I want people to share my good experiences with people, and not cos I am getting free food, you know. And the food at Chung Fa is really good! It's sad that so many haven't eaten here. Hence, the review.

Day 35- Got my first real break as a lifestyle blogger. A couple of newspapers have now given me projects, and yes, I have been working on them. It's great news, and yes, I am overjoyed.


Day 36- Another review. Another story. Another mood. Read- nostalgia.

Day 37- Picked up BEAUTIFUL earrings (must stop myself from buying things on pure impulse) Anyway, I also got a free red velvet pastry at my FAVORITE coffee place in Pune, The Fat Cat's Cafe. Oh God bless them, that's all that I can manage to say. #droolmax

Day 38-  An interview of an International DJ. An event to write about. Another surprise invitation to a launch party. Free dark chocolate. Oh this day was EXCELLENT! (Even though friends did cancel out on plans without bothering to inform me beforehand, or coordinating with me to begin with, especially when I had worked out my schedule according to them. *sigh* Shit happens.)

Day 39- It started off on a bad note. Depressing even. Ok I have my days when I absolutely MISS my boyfriend, a little too much for my own good. There is so much to talk about, and all I'd want is to spend some time with him. Ah well, karma. My patience and love shall one day pay off I guess. Anyway, what started off on a depressing note slowly spiraled downwards into self pity and rage. And then I just decided to take my mum and sister out for a chill scene lunch. There's a diner in town- The Brooklyn Shuffle. Not my kinda food, but the mood was such. They had a great time, I personally didn't enjoy much, but well, the evening ended on a good note.
Family. Friends. Love. We take too much for granted.

Day 40- A Monday morning that started at 5:00am (I had a movie shoot at 7, and it was 10 degrees here in the morning, and I FROZE) The shoot went off well, I got back home, caught up on some sleep, and spent the whole evening eating street food cos well, it's  project I have taken up. So right now, I am running a temperature, eating maggi, getting work done, and LOVING it. Writing gives me a high. Working hard, so that I don't have time to think about other depressing stuff (like how I miss him and REALLY need to meet him soon and God to give us SOME SUPPORT cos otherwise He is being super sucky) feels liberating. You know what I mean? :)

Day 41- WRITING. Most of the days, wriitng has made me happy. That's ONE thing I've learnt through this exercise. So yeah, not bad eh? This time I wrote a review for Brooklyn Shuffle (again)

Day 42- #TastyThirty is a brilliant initiative taken by a couple of students who are just passing out from SIMC PG. They wish to promote the top 30 street food joints in Pune. They asked me to help them out with a few places, and I was more than happy to accept the invitation. We visited street food jionts all over MG Road, and I can't wait to go ahead with the second phase of this project. I also wrote about this on the blog. Here's the link-

http://everyshadeofrandom.blogspot.in/2014/02/street-food-pune.html

Day 43- Magnum chocolates has launched in the Indian market, and Pune was one of the few cities that was selected for a launch event. I've covered it in the link given below, do have a look-

http://everyshadeofrandom.blogspot.in/2014/02/mother-of-god-chocolate.html

Day 44- Valentine's Day. Ignoring past hang ups, I decided to be in love today. And there's nothing happier than the feeling of being in love, and fighting for it.

Day 45- This day was about me, myself and I. Cos no one is on their way to save you. Sounds depressing, but once you learn to accept this fact, it's a confidence booster. So yes, for me, this was a day about being my aggressive self. It felt nice, after very very long.
Oh yes, I also wrote :)



Day 46- Brunch. Whites and pinks and the girls and mocktails. I love brunches!! ^_^

Day 47- FINALLY managed to watch Hasee Toh Phasee. If you haven't seen it yet, I suggest you go ahead and do so now. It's the cutest and most refreshing thing you will come across in recent Hindi cinema.


Day 48- An article that I had written in the vaguest of moods(with absolutely no intent of having it published anywhere) gets published on THOUGHT CATALOG. Yes, guilty pleasure, I was caught, and well, excited as well as paranoid. Excited cos it's not everyday that your article gets global recognition. And paranoid because I had NO CLUE what I had written (I am moody that way) plus was sure I could have done a much better job.
As I found out hours after it being published, I had made a goof up in the opening line, which did turn off quite a few people. Well, I do accept my mistake, plus I hadn't even edited the draft I sent to TC, and yes, I must have been high on God alone knows what to have sent it in the first place.
Anyway, peace out women. Peace out.

Also, gossiping with the girls over coffee and cake can't ever be disappointing ^-^









Day 49- I need 50 hours in a day to get through stuff like this. Gym. Work. Brainstorming sessions. Gossiping with the girls. CAKE.Writing. Reviewing. The day started at 6:30am, ended at 1:00am (only to be repeated the next day) But hey guess what, this is FUN. There is so much to do, there is so much to leanr..it's EXCITING.

Day 50- I am halfway through!! This makes me happy to a certain extent, yes it does. Plus a long long day (it's 11:45pm, and I can't see myself going to bed before 1:00am) filled with a whole lot of KICKASS work, meetings, coffee, conversations, and writing. Plus the boyfriend got internet signal for a while, so yes, chatting with him has got me a little high on life again :)

In The Moment

< Fiction>

<Just because it's happening in my head doesn't mean it's not real>

The choice is yours.

Happy reading!

All our lives, we are looking for answers. Will I pass this test, will I get the job, will I get a degree, will I get the dress in my size, will she say yes, will I find true love…the list is never-ending.  It saddens me to see people get so busy trying to find answers, that they forget to live. It’s something that we take for granted, we hardly ever stop to see what’s going on around us, IN THE MOMENT. I gave a couple of interviews today, where a gentleman asked me – “What are you willing to add to the organization? And this might not necessarily be a professional skill” It took me 5 seconds to think about this (which in my world is a lot since I have answers ready before you have asked me the question) and said vaguely- “Enthusiasm. Enthusiasm to live. To enjoy life outside of work. To wake up early every morning and work out. To eat healthy. To be quirky. Yeah, enthusiasm.”  Maybe I was a bit too honest, maybe that’s not what he had in mind, but my intuition tells me I’ve nailed it.

Point being, the interview made me realize I had once again managed to take life for granted, being too over dependent on others for my happiness. Everyone goes through bad phases in their lives, since when had I turned into the depressed weakling who’d stay in bed for days on end because things weren’t going her way?

I’ve been going through a lot of negativity lately. Low-self esteem, rejections, incorrect judgments being made by the society, the works. I did think it had something to do with unemployment. But I’d hardly call myself unemployed. My blog has crossed 10,000 views, my food reviews are doing well, my passion for food is being recognized by industry stalwarts and yes, I’m on a high! So no, this negativity has nothing to do with unemployment.  It’s just…a low phase in life.

I don’t usually express myself, but when I want to, and I can’t- that’s a painful scenario. So here I am, living in the moment-

Getting Inked

Initially I thought tattoos were just another attempt at being cool. A few close friends got inked, and it made me realize that yeah maybe, that really mattered to them! So yes, I respect you for all the tattoos you have on your body, ‘cos I’m assuming you know what they mean and that they really matter to you.  Just another way of expression is how I’d like to see it. So yes,I'm getting inked. A word/ symbol that will always be an outlet. A fierce, yet hidden expression. There are many such words I could think of while speaking to the tattoo artist- faith, perseverance, focus, optimism, karma, respect, fierce. She said she will get back to me in a day. I want this to come out really well, since it’s something that would remind me of that ONE quality that has seen me through some very very tough moments in life.  A word that might only make sense to me- I’m okay with it, as long as it does.

So yes, I’ve thought about it. And I deserve this. The one who figures the meaning and feeling behind the tattoo, deserves me, or so I'd like to believe. 

Writing

I guess the repressed feelings of rage and sadness inspire me to write.  So here I am, writing this instead of a food review. I write because it makes me happy. And seeing people being positively influenced by my writing gives me confidence. So hey, hang in there, do what makes you happy.

Missing Someone Is Healthy

You know the early morning sleepy cuddling that he probably doesn’t know he’s doing but you feel warm and tiny and fit into that nook? And him holding on to your hair while he sleeps, so that you won’t leave his side?  And the hugs where you can’t reach up till his shoulder, instead you settle in to hear his heart beat? And holding his hand only to have it jerked off in surprise since he hates PDA? And stealing his last slice of pizza? And the hug at the airport, where you wished time would freeze?

That.

Fight

For yourself. But if it’s about love, fight for the two of you. 

If you are lucky, once in your lifetime you do come across someone who accepts you for exactly who you are. He doesn’t look at your qualifications, your background, the way you dress up, your weight, none of it. He connects with you on a spiritual level.  So don’t be surprised when he knows the voice in your head, or when he can say what you have in mind,10 seconds BEFORE you’ve thought of it. It sounds impossible, yes, but if it does happen to you, hold onto that magic. And fight for it. He’ll make you vulnerable, hopeless, defenseless, but he will stay there as long as you support him.

So do your thing girl, smile, and spread the joy!

Love

Long distance. 8 months. I can’t even BEGIN to describe how saddening that is. Every time I have to tell someone about him, I choke after saying this. So yes, it’s a relief that people get the point and don’t ask me to explain further.  But it’s been a happy journey. Not too many ups and downs, it’s been a learning process of sorts. If I could use one word (okay two) to describe him, I’d say he’s God-sent. I’ve discovered myself as a person, and I only have him to thank for all the positive changes that have happened in my life.

What sucks is when things are perfect, but something/someone doesn’t let you be. You get what I’m saying? We haven’t had fights, we haven’t been depressed; yes it’s been hard, but it’s also been beautiful. It’s been 18 months, and I still get butterflies thinking about him. It’s magical, yeah.  So it’s not humanly possible to un-feel this, if in case we have to. There are a whole lot of external problems, but we’ll make it through. Right? We have to. I know we do. (I've been told)

  

Settle Down in Life

All my life, I have been a restless soul. I’ve always found it too hard to settle down, in my professional as well as personal life.  After being independent for so long, after going from one place to the other, rejecting one boy after another, I have finally come to a point where I feel I can settle.  But….I can’t. 

Society will Judge

You can’t help it. This is no reason for you to refuse going out. You want to act, go become an actress. You want to write, go become a writer. Why must you be bothered by what people think of you? Shouldn’t they respect your decisions instead of making you sound like Satan? Society will judge, all that you can do is go ahead, make your life, and have a valid justification for all your decisions.

Explore your options

Who said you need to do a desk job just because you have an MBA? Who said you can’t write? Or act? People will always try to put you down- I faced a lot of opposition when I decided to quit my job and explore writing. It’s been 28 days, and I’ve reached places. I’ve also managed to get a small role in a movie! (yeah, me, Captain Klutz) So yeah, go out there and explore your options! The things you will learn during the process will leave you more confident than ever. You will learn from your failures, and you will find your calling.

Go out there, live a little!