Hard Times

Title: Hard Times

Author: Charles Dickens

Thomas Gradgrind, a wealthy retired merchant who was known to be a "fanatic of the demonstrable fact", raises his children in the same manner, forbidding them any pursuit of imagination and grounding them to the factual truths in all subjects. Gradgrind also runs a school on the same principles and philosophy of rationalism. One day, he allows Cecelia(Sissy) Jupe, an imaginative girl, admission into the school on charitable grounds after her father disappears from the circus he was working in.  Gradgrind's two children grow up in their own confused manner, thanks to his active suppression of the imagination. Many events take place and the story meanders through the lives of Gradgrind, his children, their husbands and wives, the people in the town, Miss Sissy Jupe, and has wonderfully descriptive takes on the worker unions, the philosophy of rationalism, and so on. By the end, there is a classic turn around of Gradgrind and his fact-factory of a school by the gentle, imaginative, and kind-spirited Sissy Jupe. 

So, what makes this classic Dickens novel any special? 

1. It is a brilliant story. Dickens has always been an author whose descriptions I absolutely love. Reading a paragraph or two out of his books can literally paint the scene in front of your eyes. His novels are always of infinite, minute details that make it such a pleasure to read. 

2. It satisfies the classic-hunger for the classic-lover. Old school classics have a way with how they take the story, and usually have dramatic set-ups. The language is another pleasing oddity with Dickens' classics, and you get enough of it here. 

3. This book is incredibly short, considering that it's written by Dickens! Hard Times is a quick read compared to any other novel of Dickens. It is also has a different setting in the small, grim, industrial backdrop of Coketown, in contrast to the usual London country set up of most of his novels. And, this brings a fresh change to how we have usually seen the descriptions in his books, and also how the storyline is maneuvered. I really enjoyed it. 

Hard Times is typical and atypical of Dickens, both at the same time. And this, according to me, is the best part about this book. We get our familiar Dickens, yet it is adapted to a different backdrop and stimulating storyline, and this freshens up our exposure to classics in a very wholesome manner! I loved it, and so will you (especially, if you love Dickens)!

Today, incidentally, happens to be the 150th anniversary of this grand and legendary author and litterateur. I feel happy and honoured to be co-incidentally finishing this wonderful tale today, and putting up this post. If you want to read more on the life and works of Charles Dickens, check out my post on this man who lived his great modern life!

The Fault In Our Stars, Or Is It?

If you pick an average young child, in a bracket of space that the world would consider as average- not shining the brightest in the lot when the results come and yet not breaking the hearts that floated the expectations to be met- the child will probably not be as much an average in skill. And yet, what you see is an average performer. Why?

The simple answer to such a probing would be that the child didn't want such performance, or couldn't perform because of a certain, determined set of factors. From here, the thought process can take two branches. Let's see both of them. 

One: the clear lack of wanting to do it. It is most likely that the child really didn't care about getting that 10/10, or didn't think that much about it. He/She just cleared off the goal that the society expected, and settled happily in the average category. What's wrong with that? In fact, that's the most sensible thing to do. Assume that you aren't really driven about cleaning your table, and your mom repeatedly keeps asking you to clean. Would you clean it spic and span, and maintain it what way? Or, would you just clean to the extent your mom wants it to be cleaned? Why would you do extra work where in the first place you weren't even that keen about working?

It may happen that when you do what your mom says as a compulsion initially, you may start liking the clean set-up. And, when you start liking it, and when the clean space starts making you happy, that is when you'd go beyond the expectations of anyone around you and rise above the societal average, and fall into that niche category of those with self-driven cleanliness. People will start quoting you as an example to other people who are still in the average zone. This might not happen in every area that the society wants you to perform in, and it might happen only where you become interested genuinely. Or, none of this might happen, and that is also okay. 

The point that I am trying to make is in either case under this first thought process, there is absolutely no issue- because you are happy anyway. So, when does it start taking a negative turn? 

Two: the inability to make yourself do it. The child wants to do it, but doesn't actually do anything for it. You want your table clean, and you tell everyone that you love cleanliness, and you talk long about how you cannot be in a place which isn't clean, and then you never clean. People will have a problem with this, and so will you. Neither are you matching societal expectations, nor are you fulfilling your own. If you have big dreams, then you have to act towards it. You cannot let your imagination run wild to push up your own expectations sky high when your actions can't match it. That is when being in the average category will feel like a failure, in contrast to the first thought process where being in the average was equally happy and okay. 

“The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves.” - William Shakespeare 

That is exactly where it starts taking a negative turn. We may start feeling as if the stars conspire to push us into failure even with so much talent! We'd think of ourselves as capable as someone who is great at what they do. And yes, we may be skill-wise. But, intelligence without actual work, and expectations that don't match activity, is called 'fooling yourself'. That is the last thing that we should do to ourselves. If I want a good blog, I need to write regularly. There is absolutely no point claiming to be a good writer when I don't write anything at all. Nobody will dispute that I may be a good writer, but everybody would agree that just the skill is no use at all. No excuses, and definitely not the one about the 'fault in the stars'. 

Be brave to face yourself, be brave to accept the truth about what you can and cannot do, and if you believe you can do something then go for it. Emphasis: don't forget to GO! At the end of the day, nothing matters as long as you are happy and you don't do any conscious wrong to anyone. But, make sure that you work towards what makes you happy, or if you think you can't do that then be happy about whatever works for you. There is no ranking in either of these ways, because at the end you are happy and that is literally all that counts!

Don't blame your stars, or anyone else, for the choices you personally make. There are already several factors other than that you can probably attribute to your stars, but not on what you had the power to do. There is no point being discontent when the outcome was already predictable considering how much you worked on it. The stars neither get the credit for your successes, nor the blame for your failures. Own them both, they are yours. And learn from them, because it is never too late to learn!

A Sad Post On The Books That I Missed Reviewing

In a recent flurry of searches for some of the old posts to relevantly link to a couple of my current blog posts, I found so many missing!

Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder

Catch 22 by Joseph Heller

The Godfather by Mario Puzo

Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes

The Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsyth

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

Not A Penny More, Not A Penny Less by Jeffrey Archer

Kane and Abel by Jeffrey Archer

Tom Brown's Schooldays by Thomas Hughes

These are just some of the many titles that I found missing. I always knew that I didn't review  quite a few books, so what came as a slight downer and unpleasant surprise for me is how I failed to write about these books. I don't remember much about why I didn't write, or whether I didn't write. But, these books were some of the ones that made me most excited while reading and even after reading. My dad clearly remembers so many conversations that I had with him over so many of these books. 

We were thinking that maybe I wrote and it got deleted, or something like that. But that is absurd- it won't really delete itself, and definitely not selectively over a stretch of one or two years of reading. The only theory that could explain this was my lack of posts around 2016-17. This was during my Class XI and XII, and it makes sense because I read most of these books around when I was in high school. 

I feel very sad that I didn't write about these books and many more. The list above has so many of my absolute favourites, and I still remember about all of them and how I enjoyed reading and talking about them. Puzo's The Godfather and Archer's Kane and Abel are absolute favourite epics in the world of fiction, and so is the ultimate revenge tale of The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. I can't believe myself when I see I didn't review Catch 22 by Joseph Heller! What a disappointment, so much for talking all the time about it! 

And thus, a general bout of downtrend in the blog posts those two years reflects on me missing the opportunity to talk about these classic books. I can still write about all of them- but it won't do justice to them. Reviewing is best when done immediately, when your mind and body still has the passion of the story and plot internalized. And, that is the only point when you'd be living the story. Writing about it now would just be a memory, and not one that would be as genuine to my feelings as I felt then. 

If I ever read any of those books again, I'm definitely coming back with a post. And until then, I'm never missing a book review again- ever!

Born To Run

Title: Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen

Author: Christopher McDougall

Why are we not able to run long distances with speed without regular injuries? Why does our feet pain? And, how do the Tarahumara Indian tribe, snuggled safely in the recluse of the savage Copper Canyons in Mexico, manage to be long distance runners at amazing speeds without even having any of the regular injuries? What starts as a quest with this simple question and thought, leads Christopher McDougall to explore the lives and the ethnicity of this soft and passionate tribe nestled away from the rest of the world. 

"How come my foot hurts? Because running is bad for you. Why is running bad for me? Because it makes your foot hurt. But why? Antelope don’t get shin splints. Wolves don’t ice-pack their knees. I doubt that 80 percent of all wild mustangs are annually disabled with impact injuries."

After an impact injury and painful running experience, McDougall sought answers for his questions. And, the only ones who knew the answers—the only ones who lived the answers—weren’t talking. Especially, not to him. Seeing the Tarahumara tribe for the first time in an article, he thinks the image is of "some kind of wishful Atlantean legend about an extinct empire of enlightened super-beings", only to realize later that all that he thought was true- except for wishful and extinct. 

"I felt as if I’d discovered the Future of American Running, living five hundred years in the past."

The Tarahumara Indians called themselves Rarámuri, which means 'the running people' in their language. We sprint through the events in the book, swiftly yet steadily, just like the run of the Rarámuri- as we meet them one by one, their kids and the society, and their unbelievable running culture. With a brief insight into the history of ultra-running or long disatance running, and the science behind it, McDougall paints the contrast picture of the same idea in the mind of an urban and the Tarahumara tribe. Not only was the tribe full of ultra-runners and superatheletes, the author finds himself facing a tribe with a great immunity and endurance. 

Born to Run is a wonderful book, and I could feel Marcelino and the kids whizz past me as I witnessed their rarájipari, or their famed running races, through McDougall's vivid and fast-paced description. Exploring the contrasting aspects of Science from the Harvard lab tests and pro-running shoes, to these rocky pathways where the Rarámuri ran in thin sandals, the author brings up wonderful questions and seeks answers for them in this hidden tribe. 

"His feet were jitterbugging like crazy between the rocks, but everything above his legs was tranquil, almost immobile. Seeing him from the waist up, you’d think he was gliding along on skates. With his chin high and his black hair streaming off his forehead, he looked as if he’d burst straight out of the Steve Prefontaine poster on the bedroom wall of every high school track star in America."

We are allowed a tiny insight into this warm and happy tribe to whom running comes second nature, and we learn how and why they run the way they do. The author also narrates how the Tarahumara-style of running helped him become a much better athlete, and how he gained endurance and reduced injuries while running. 

This was such a pleasurable and highly enjoyable read. I loved the narrative format in which the story took me through, and I loved all the characters and the people of this book. It gives a gleeful glimpse into a vibrant tribe of born ultra-runners, and highlights the learning that we must take from them. Also, it just amps you up so much when you read about the tribe and their running, it motivates you and makes you realize that running is one of the most natural things that we can do!

I really enjoyed the book. It has been one of my best reads this year!

Engrossing Plots, And Your Hunch

Ask any heavy reader- they'd probably have had several bad postures. When you are reading The Godfather, it's simply unputdownable. You cannot leave the story and that means you stretch along hours without moving beyond the four by four feet of space that you settle in. But, we usually toss, and turn, and lie down and sit up, and do some half-up-half-down postures, all within the same the square of area. 

I have sat for hours in the same hunched up position, a book in my hand, neck bent down towards the book in a posture as unhealthy as possible, looking down for hours together immersed in the world of fiction with just the fingers turning one page after another, without realizing the strain that it's putting on my neck and spine. All that is left would be a satisfying read and a stiff neck. Bad posture- it's a perennial issue if not consciously rectified. 

My mom has always been the one to correct me on my posture while reading, and make sure I sit well and comfortable. Nowadays, I try to be self-conscious and settle down in a position where I won't be slumped in a baleful posture for hours. It is a very important thing. As much as it is fun to relate to memes that show the different postures of bookworms, it  is nothing to be proud of. Sitting erect and comfortable without straining any part of your body is absolutely necessary to avoid unpleasant effects of it in future.

So, next time you sit down to read, make yourself comfortable and ensure that you are in a good posture. This actually applies to anything you do, not just reading! Sit straight, and don't slump. Keep your hunches limited to your guesswork on the plot, don't extend it to your posture.

Happy reading!

Literature For Young Girls

Children's literature can do wonders to children. And, especially as a girl, there are several wonderful books that all young girls must read. Books, in general, have some of the highest powers to influence someone deeply, and that is precisely why one must be careful in reading a book. As adults, we may have the capacity to read a book neutrally without getting influenced by it (it may still be difficult), but you cannot expect the same from a child. 

I have grown up with some of the best books, and most of the books that I will talk about in this post are written by  strong and beautiful women who pass on invaluable positive influences through their classics for children. It is a very responsible task to write a children's book- not easy. You cannot be careless with how you depict or glorify a quality as it gets embedded deep into your tender, lovely readers. Children read with utmost honesty and trust, and thus it becomes necessary duty to portray things the right way.

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott is definitely the first in the list. Little Women shows the strength behind the women, their dreams, their aspirations and how marriage is not all they want in a time that society believed that the only strength of a woman was her wit and charm to marry wealthy! Jo March is an all-time classic character, and someone that every little girl would look up to. And, through this warm tale of five strong and beautiful women, Alcott teaches kids much more than you could otherwise teach!

I have always loved The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. It has all my heart. A little girl, with the ultimate mix of zeal, vigour, passion, empathy, stubbornness and pride, is all that another young girl needs. This is a book that makes every girl who reads it believe that they are princess from within! And, this is a book that teaches you the importance of perspective.

“If you look the right way, you can see that the whole world is a garden.”
― Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden

Heidi by Johanna Spyri and Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm by Kate Douglas Wiggin are other well-known classics for young girls. And, what's not to like about the smart, soft, and absolutely lovable Heidi and Rebecca!

Finally, I'd like to conclude with my all-time favourite: Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery. This one, to me, is the best of all. I always saw myself in Anne. This young girl's passion for writing and adventure, her pride and her empathy, her confidence, her absolute disregard to pointless discouragement, her enthusiasm to learn and correct her wrongs, and her spirit to fight back when she is confident that she is right- I cannot express in words how much they influenced me, and till date influence me. To me, Anne was a best friend with whom I grew up. And, we grew up as strong women- thinking beyond trivialities of external beauty, and believing in oneself. 

I don't think that any ten year old who reads Anne of Green Gables would ever bother twice about her appearance or her lack of abilities- not after this book. It is a treasure that thrashes all your insecurities, and makes you fall in love with yourself, just like Anne Shirley Cuthbert does, with her head held high. These are important things, and you never know what little girls go through. Some may have such feelings, others may not, but books like these, that make you feel the strength you have inside you as the little girl you are, is something that will help all. It can give confidence in a way that any adult talking to you about it can't. And, at that age, maybe you cannot talk to a kid directly about all these, yet the book can do wonders. Because, at that age, Anne Shirley will be true for me. And, I will see myself in Anne Shirley.

A lot of my thoughts have been moulded beautifully by these wonderful characters and books- thanks to the beautiful women who wrote them! Most of the prevalent children's classics impact you in a good way, but these teach you how to be a proud, confident girl who can grow up to be a strong, confident woman!

I love these, and if you have young girls around you- you know what you can gift them!

Meeting In The Cabin

Meet me in my cabin at 3, we need to have a word.

Why? Why did she want to meet me? I already submitted the papers one week ago! So, it couldn’t be the project. Or, maybe there was some weird result in the plagiarism check? But, I had written almost every word of it by myself, and it wasn’t like there were many sources to lift from! No, it cannot be the project. Wait, did I forget to format the citations? I didn’t think so, as I remembered looking up the OSCOLA references. What could it be?

Did I do something in class? I was listening to her in class and making notes. Well, mostly. But, that really isn’t a crime. If she was calling me to her cabin, it must be something serious. Did I annoy her by chatting a bit in the middle? I had made sure she was turned the other way round. No, she couldn’t have known. Oh right, it must have been the phone. I had just taken a sneak peak at it in class, come on! And, I did that only to clear away the notifications and turn off the vibration. I made sure she didn’t see me do that, but…  Did she? God, I hoped she wouldn't take away my phone, maybe I shouldn’t take my phone along with me to her cabin. Yup, a sensible idea- leave the phone behind. 

Wait, wait, wait, by God, I knew why she called me. I was talking about how she didn’t really do a great job while teaching the second module. Pretty loudly, actually. But that was not on purpose, that’s just my voice. She was in the mess! Was my heart beating faster? Would she believe me when I told her I actually loved her teaching but it was just a casual statement only about that module? No, that’s unbelievable, only a fool would believe it. This was just going to annoy her more. I didn’t really mean it that day. At least, not how she’d have taken it to be. This was it, you always have bad luck when you talk about other people. It was my fault, and I will profusely apologize for it. She would have to accept it. 

She said 3, it’s already 2:55! Enough panicking, time to pick my bags and run. That was such an uncomfortable footwear to run in! The last thing I wanted to be is late. I could not afford to make her more mad. Stupid me, should have known it was this! Please, save me, please, please. My heart was thumping even faster. I was not sure if it was because of the running or the fear. Maybe, both. I could see her cabin. 

Wait, let me drink some water and calm myself, and put up an earnest, innocent smile. Just be the most sincere kid for once, could I? No water. I left the bottle in the mess, and I had to pick it back up without forgetting- this was the third bottle already this semester! Okay, for then I had to focus on the cabin. I calmed myself, looked at myself in the reflective glass door, wet my lips and put up a smile that said- mam, you had called me! - as if she had called me to praise me. Was I sure that I was ready to push open the door, and enter? And then, I could not undo the opening. She must be inside. 

I brandish the thoughts with a shake of my head, and then push the door open. 

'Hello, mam!' I said.

‘Please knock before coming in,’ she said, in an off, dismissive tone. 

That’s it, I was gone. I just made it all worse. How could I not do the most basic thing ever? Knock. This was an unnecessary addition to my already existing problems- of course, as always, brought upon me by myself. 

‘Take a seat,’ she said. 

‘It’s alright, mam’ I said, but then I sat down anyway realizing that it would make me look less nervous. 

These teachers were always great at a build up. My heart was already in my throat. Why couldn’t she just get to the point? After a couple of more seconds of appearing busy and opening random tabs in the computer in front of her, she spoke again.

‘I read your project,’ she said, and then gave a pause. That pause- such an effective one. I made a mental note on how effective pauses can be.

So, it was the project. Partly, relief. And partly, confusion. A wave of relief washed over me and my nervousness cut down by half because it wasn’t my comment in the mess. I was confused because I didn’t really plagiarize anything or write anything wrong. I had followed all the specifications she had wanted. 

‘It is great, I can see the hard work. If you are interested in working a little more on it, we can get it ready to try a publication.’

I just sat there, and smiled- a blank, mundane one. My mind could only think of all the brainless things I had managed to do, and I didn’t even realize teachers could call you for other reasons. I thought my justifications would come off as unbelievable. But, she played me well. Teachers could be unbelievable sometimes, too.

Why Do We Splash Some Water On The DosaKal?

Image from Adobe Stock

Dosai (or more popularly dosa as you'd say it if you were talking in English), is a wonderful dish. I haven't met a single person who hates dosas. There are so many varieties and variations that one can do with a dosa. It's one of those dishes that you'd never be tired of having daily. 

I can make decent dosas (quite well, actually). I have earned the badge of being consistently good at it, thanks to the critics at home- brother, mom and dad. My grandmother is a huge inspiration for me. She is the ultimate dosa master in our family, and she makes such wonderful dosas. I always aim to be as good as her, and that is why I think I have the interest and the motivation to try and make every dosa well. 

So, how do you make a dosa? You take a scoop of batter and pour it in the centre of the hot tava on the stove, and then quickly work your way in circles from the centre to the outer edge, spreading the batter to a thin, round looking sheet of batter. You put some oil on the edges, and then when the base is cooked, you turn the dosa over to the other side. That's it. Seems easy? Not that easy, though it will come to you easily if you have interest. 

Before making the next dosa, we usually sprinkle water on the tava(called DosaKal). I never understood this part alone. Why do we splash water on the DosaKal? When I asked my dad he gleefully pointed at the noise that the water makes on sprinkling on the tava, the famous whoosh that you hear when people make dosas. But is that the real reason? I did some googling to discover that people do it so that the tava doesn't get overheated. Now, this makes absolute sense to me. 

One of the most important things to successfully make dosas is to have the DosaKal in the right temperature range. It can't get too hot, and it can't lose too much heat- everything about the making the dosa is about cleverly managing the DosaKal! I felt really happy to understand why I was doing what I was doing. It makes so much more sense now. 

Everything that we do as a part of a process does have a reason. It is up to us to find out the reason before we conclude anything about it. The reason may be relevant or not in today's set up, but it is not without reason that something is/was followed. All it takes is a little interest to find out why!

Mumbai: A City Of Unforgettable Memories

A view from Marine Drive

Mumbai. One name, and many tags- the city of success, the city of dreams, the city with a warm heart. I stayed one month in Mumbai, all by myself last year, and all of that is true. It is a city of magnificent dreams, a city that never sleeps, a city where the people are so warm you feel welcome and happy the day you land, a city where there is no dearth for help anytime of the day if you are in need of it, a city that encourages you and your spirit. 

I had the greatest time in Mumbai every single day that I spent there. I explored quite a bit from the alleys in Parel, its famed Lalbaugcha Raja (being there during Ganesh Puja time is on my bucket list), the spice markets, the flower markets in Dadar, the gigantic malls in Lower Parel, Worli Sea-face, and then went up to Bandra, the famed Prithvi theatre and cafe in Juhu, the faloodas, ice golas and street food in the Juhu Chowpatty, then down south went around to Churchgate, Nariman Point, Colaba, and Marine Drive was a staple part of almost every other day! 

Chinchpokli

 And, while commuting so much around Mumbai, I got a guilt-free, embarrassment-free opportunity to try out all the Hindi that I learnt in two years of University. That way, Mumbai people were the absolute sweetest! It is heartwarming to see them break into a small smile when I communicate with my error-ridden phrases, and when I struggle to find the exact word of something and drag my phrases when my mind tries to scan the vague Hindi vocabulary in its racks. Every cab driver, every helper, every waiter always took that much time and effort  to give me a small compliment, and I felt so good about it. Till date, the compliments closest to my heart are the ones given to me by the benevolent Mumbai people- "aapki tooti fruity hindi humko bohot acha lagta hai".

Prithvi Theatre, Juhu

Food was great in Mumbai. Since I lived in a heavily Maharashtrian-populated area of Mumbai, I had the best and authentic taste of their vada pavs, bajji pavs, misal pavs, usal pavs, maska buns and the rest. I was also thrilled by the number of totally amazing dosa shops there. A couple of my favourites were eating in Juhu Chowpatty, I loved the faloodas and ice golas there. Another place that I went to repeatedly over that month-long stay was K.Rustoms & co. Ice Cream Parlour near Marine Drive. They had such beautiful and homely flavours, and for the first time I felt like I was eating an ice cream that was mindbogglingly tasty and yet didn't give that highly-processed feel. It was a great experience!

But, Mumbai is an expensive city. Either you had all the fancy restaurants that billed you in thousands, or you had those dirt-cheap restaurants that costed you less than a hundred for a meal. I found very, very, less middle grounds in Mumbai. For all its fame, I was very surprised to find Prithvi Cafe with great food at very nominal costs. I was lucky to have a lot of food joints that were sided towards a middle ground around my area, so that went better for me. 

Another thing that I clearly despise in Mumbai is its traffic- it is plain sickening. Having known this before even I went there, my only criteria for the place that I need to stay was that it has to be close to my office that I was interning in. And, I think that was the sole decision that made see the beauty of Mumbai. I don't think you can enjoy the city as much when you get stuck for 4 hours in traffic every day of that month!

What became my all-time-favourite ice-cream destination
in Mumbai

The pace of Mumbai is so fast, that whether you want it or not you have to match the city's pace. There is a certain energy that Mumbai demands of you every single day, and if you don't have it then it may not be a city that you would enjoy. More than whether you can match the pace or not, it is more about whether you want to. Coming from Chennai, I found cities like Ahmedabad, even though not as big as Chennai, more similar to the pace and culture that I have grown up being comfortable in. 

Mumbai is a beautiful experience, and an all-accepting one! It taught me many things, and this is a city that can make you feel welcome instantly. The beauty of Mumbai is its vibe, and whoever you are and whatever you like, given a month, you are sure to start jiving to the vibe! It was an unforgettable experience!

WriterDuet: A Lucid Platform

I have been attempting to write a story in script/screenplay formats, and WriterDuet is the wonderful discovery that makes the whole thing look so much lesser of a mess to me in this first experimentation of mine! It is not for nothing that this writing tool is called as the 'Google Docs' of Screenplay. 

With automatic backups and sync, this platform is really cool to use. It acquires a sense of the flow of the sequences, and is very useful even for those attempting to write a full-length script for the first time. When used with a desktop version, the software saves the work neatly in both offine and online modes- making it a reliable platform that doesn't require you to keep hitting the save button. 

The features that appeal the most to me are the real-time collaborations allowed on the platform, and the neatly filed and comprehensive edited versions of the script with co-writers. It also has this cool provision to put up a mind-map of the scenes in the story, allows outlining, tagging, and taking notes while writing. Customizing your experience with the platform is a pro-feature of WriterDuet, but the free version in itself is great. 

The whole process is neatly arranged, and the space looks stylish and clean- you genuinely feel like writing when you open the tool! It's been one of the coolest finds, one that makes you happy to have found it at the right time! You can check them out here if you are interested- WriterDuet. 

Happy writing!

Chimes With Tinkle

The month's copy of Tinkle arrives, and there is frantic page turning till the one-page Suppandi jokes are read, re-read as you double up with laughter, the happiness reaching your heart and eyes, and then you go to your Mom, Dad, brother and everyone else and share the joke, and they laugh too.

Tinkle is never read in a definite order by anyone. We all had our favourite picks and we went to those stories first. We couldn't help ourselves from getting to our favourite ones before we read the rest of it! So, here's my list of constant, evergreen, lovable superstars who gave most of us such a wonderful childhood with beaming eyes and riotous laughs!

1. Suppandi. There is not a single person who has read Tinkle and doesn't like Suppandi! His stupidity is just too adorable. And, baby Suppandi stories were just too, too cute and funny. Best, and the one that gets the first attention when a Tinkle copy arrives. 

2. Pyarelal and Lajo. These two kind-hearted village couple from Hastipur were my most favourite. I just loved the Pyarelal stories too much. And, Pyarelal to me was way too pyaara. I would love the way Lajo, fond for Lajiwanti, Pyarelal's wife, used to make him his favourite Jackfruit curry with so much zest, and I loved the way Pyarelal always talked to his wife about all the problems and they solved it together, and also how he always made small gifts for her like swings and garden. These characters were too genuine and innocently beautiful for me to not fall in love with!

3. Shikari Shambu. Dream of snoring away to glory, and hitting jackpot of luck, rewards and praise? That's Shikari Shambu for you. A sleepy and scared misfit forest officer always finds himself being praised and lauded while the wild animals he was supposed to trap keep running into self made traps as he sleeps before them. What's not to love about a good Shambu story!

4. Tantri the Mantri. Raja Hooja, the naive and laddu-loving desi king, and his sinsiter mantri Tantri is all that is necessary for a good entertainment. Seeing every planned plotting of Tantri to dethrone Raja Hooja backfire beautifully for reasons the crop up from nowhere was the best feeling ever! This was one hilariously fun series!

These were the absolute favourites, but I also used to like Nasruddid Hodja, Ina, Mina, Mynah, Mo, and Defective Detectives a lot. There were also many favourites from the stand-alone single stories that featured every month. The only comic series that I never liked, for some reason that I never figured out what, was Janoo and Wooly Woo. 

Tinkle was doubtlessly one of the best things we have grown up with! Have an old Tinkle at home? Pick it up, and read them again! If not, check out Tinkle Online!

Fairy Dust Of The Hoi Polloi

Abracadabra, whoosh, and an elegant, voguish wave of the mind-wand! That's all it takes to endlessly sprinkle the magic dust of the Hoi Polloi, and we have quite a few of them!

Kindness. The best of the lot. They say, in a world where you can be anything, be kind. Kindness is a wide umbrella that incorporates and overlaps with other key human traits such as forgiveness and helpfulness. You be kind, and you will see others being kind to you.

“But remember, boy, that a kind act can sometimes be as powerful as a sword.”― Rick Riordan, The Battle of the Labyrinth

Patience. Be patient with yourself while learning, while listening, while being. Be patient with others, for it is when you are patient that you start to notice things and understand them they way they should be. 

“No, no! The adventures first, explanations take such a dreadful time.”

― Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass 

Empathy. Listen when someone talks, see what someone shows. You don't have to agree, but you also don't have to decide not to agree before even you give it a chance. When you don't like something that someone says, try to understand why they say it. This is a superpower that we have that has the greatest potential to bridge the gaps and play fair. 

“I did not know how to reach him, how to catch up with him... The land of tears is so mysterious.”― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince

Respect. This is the sine qua non to life- the most necessary of the lot. Without respect, there is nothing. No other virtue- not kindness, nor patience or empathy, nothing can earn you respect. Give respect and take respect- it's a no-bargain area. While we can manage to cross through a phase without kindness or patience, it is difficult to cross one without respect. And, self-respect and the value you bear upon youself is the core that makes us keep going. 

“Above all, don't lie to yourself. The man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to a point that he cannot distinguish the truth within him, or around him, and so loses all respect for himself and for others. And having no respect he ceases to love.”― Fyodor Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov

And, many more! Humans are creatures blessed with a range of emotions. But, like a fairy keeps away from mischief, so must we! Neither entertain mischief, nor pull off any. Let's do the world the good we can. And, we just need to sprinkle on the people we know everyday- mom, dad, siblings, friends, teachers, and acquaintances. That's really all that it takes.

Next time you dismiss someone's words, maybe show some empathy, respect? Go back and think why they said what they said. Maybe, you were wrong. Maybe, they were wrong. Maybe, they aren't empathetic, they why should you be- is that what you are thinking? Be kind and patient, they will learn, and so will you!

Frayed, Yet Fond

Frayed, unkempt, seeming like a debris,

beaten and worn out from usage umpteen.

Tensed strands clenching on to save the free-

flying offcut; an unending attempt to keep.

Farther down my piece, another hole-

visible nibbles of yet another moth. 

Save me, before it eats me whole 

and I get thrown out without a thought.

Cool comfort you sought, and give- I did,

Now I need your thought and wit.

Without a thought? Parting hurts, 

such a loyal t-shirt I was! 

Save me, before situation asserts 

that I be thrown away to rot
-your closest since seventh class.
Remember, I may be frayed- but I was
fondest among the fond!

"I beg you- please, play me fair!"

My close friend, from school, and I were not really people who tensed up before an exam. In fact, we had a chilled out policy- if you studied there's nothing to worry about, if you didn't there's definitely nothing to worry about! So, we always took the exam in a very relaxed manner, and mostly never discussed the paper after the exam, because why trouble yourself realizing your mistakes! And, we had a standard reply at home. 

How did the Maths test go? It went great.

How did the Science test go? It went great.

How did the Social test go? It went great. 

And, English?  Great, of course. 

My brother was worse. If my mom asked him how he wrote his paper, he'd reply 'using my pen/hand'. So, there was never a debate about anything until the scores came, and then it was a one-hour talk till the report card went back to the teacher (hehehe).

During our Class XII was the first ever time we felt a little that we must be pretty serious about studying, and that too for around three months from January of the Board year, because if we didn't get through a competitive exam then the score would matter. But, once again, when I entered the University, I went back to the 'chill-policy'. I make a point to plan and study (like I talked about in my post on 5 things that help me in college), but I never get tensed. 

On this note, here's a fun poem by my close friend, Priyanka, that she wrote during our high school!

Every day we inch closer,

Thinking 'bout you 

makes my heart beat faster,

Just your name makes me jittery all over,

O Lord! Make the evening go slower!

You- I badly wanna forget,

But only stronger and stronger

in my thoughts you get, 

I beg you- please, play me fair,

Annuals, you are giving me a scare!

And, for a lot of people, exams do give a scare. It's nature to some people to get worried, but it can be consciously toned down by practice and an aware decision to try to stay cool whatever happens. However, this in no way means that you can fool yourself to think the scores will be fine, because they can't be fine unless you worked enough to deserve them. But there is only so much you can do on the day of the exam or one day before, and that is to stay calm and cool. Wrap up your books, have your meal, drink water, chill and write to the best of what you know. If not the results, at least your mind and experience through your exam will be much better!

Also, check out this cute fan-poem we wrote as we resided in the world of Harry Potter around Class VII: If you go to Hogwarts... School and school friends bring way too many happy memories for me!

Atomic Habits

Title: Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones

Author: James Clear

We all have numerous habits- some good, some bad. And, all habits have an effect- sometimes for the better, and sometimes for the worse, depending on whether it is a good or bad one. While we inch through life, we have goals that we try to achieve through processes, and the processes incorporate a lot of our habits. James Clear, in Atomic Habits, talks about practical ways to make some good ones, and break a couple of the bad ones. 

"Can one tiny change transform your life? It’s unlikely you would say so. But what if you made another? And another? And another? At some point, you will have to admit that your life was transformed by one small change."

This the crux of what the book is about. The author goes on to break down habits to their very fundamentals, and show us that it is the thousands of small habits done over thousands of times that yields what looks like a big achievement. Breakthrough moments are often the result of many previous actions, which build up the potential required to unleash a major change. And without such a build up of potential, it is rarely possible to bring any major change. 

The book is extremely practical, and the ideas it talks about is not something that we don't know already. It is something that we all know and yet fail to do. And, the book seeks to give you pointers on actually doing them. Habits are necessary for everything- from businesses, to parenting, to self-maintenance, to your professional work, and social life, they play a strong role in every single facet of your life. 

I loved the way Clear has brought down the concept of habit to 'identity'. Associating a good habit with your very identity makes things much easier and more natural to maintain such habits. I can absolutely understand this at my personal level, for example. Sandhya has a reputation or identity, over the years, for being punctual, not gossiping, sleeping early, waking up on time, etc. Now, these comments about my good habits are most definitely associated with the very identity of my personality by both myself and the people around me- and this makes me motivated to keep it up! More than the identity in other people's eyes, it is your own that makes you stick to your habits. When I tell someone that I hate when people are late, and I am proud of myself being punctual, I can never go late myself. It is as simple as that. 

“If you’re proud of how your hair looks, you’ll develop all sorts of habits to care for and maintain it. If you’re proud of the size of your biceps, you’ll make sure you never skip an upper-body workout. If you’re proud of the scarves you knit, you’ll be more likely to spend hours knitting each week. Once your pride gets involved, you’ll fight tooth and nail to maintain your habits.”

But, as much as such reputation and pride can make you stick to good habits, it can do the same thing to a bad habit, too! And, that is the catch. James Clear once again gives great actionable insights on how to wean away from destructive habits. Just like one day's workout will not result in a toned body, going five minutes late to a class may also not have any immediate negative effects. But, over time both these habits will have the cumulative effect of having been done a thousand times over when it seemed like they didn't matter. 

I loved the way James Clear has tried to explain all the other concepts associated with habits, like identity, practice, disappointment, and the rest. I think for those who have long pending lists about a habit they wanted to inculcate, this is a book that you can actually try out like a thoughtful workbook!

It was a great read, and I really enjoyed the way it expressed simple and necessary ideas with such freshness, clarity and diction!

I have previously written about how my own blog looks as beautiful as it is today because of what became a habit through several years, in my post The Power of Habit! Think about your habits- both the good and the bad- and evaluate them for yourself, whether or not you read this book!

Slam Book (More Like Sham Book)

Slam books were a thing when I was around Class V/VI. They were important because it shows how much you knew about your friends, and also because generally it was a cool thing for a kid to have around that time. Eleven year old Sandhya also obviously kept up with the trend and owned one!

For those who aren't aware what a slam book is, here's the Wikipedia definition:

"A slam book is a notebook (commonly the spiral-bound type) which is passed among children and teenagers. The keeper of the book starts by posing a question (which may be on any subject) and the book is then passed round for each contributor to fill in their own answer to the question." 

What lies we all wrote! We all wrote anything and everything that made us look that much cooler. I still have my slam book where so many of my friends have written the weirdest, funniest things, and we have a good laugh over it now and then! Slam books can be a treasure to rediscover the most bizarre dreams we had as children. Not one entry said they wanted to be an engineer, or doctor, or lawyer slogging off in a nine-to-nine workplace. I had friends who had dreams of becoming artists, painters, singers, dancers, magicians, scientists, actors, writers, businessmen, fashion designers, models, astronauts, wizards, and what not! Just a look at it makes us smile! 

Till a couple of years back, I have often picked up the slam book to trace the phone number of a friend not on social media. All the numbers that I used to have in the slam book were landline numbers since we never had a mobile till class eleven or twelve, and most of the landlines still work!

I have often heard that slam books were also used as a medium to write mean, anonymous comments about other kids, and thinking back it is true that such a thing could have been possible. However, I am glad and thankful that no such bullying ever happened through a slam book to me or any of my friends when we were kids. 

To me, slam books are a happy memory that take us back into the slap-happy dreams of ourselves ten years ago!

Ralph Breaks The Internet

Movie: Ralph Breaks The Internet (Wreck It Ralph 2)

Genre: Animation

Directed by: Rich Moore, Phil Johnston

Written by: Phil Johnston, Pamela Ribon

Music by: Henry Jackman

Vanellope von Schweetz is bored of driving around the same old tracks, and being the same old star racer in her game, Sugar Rush. There is a new plug-in to the surprise of all the game characters in the arcade- 'WiFi', but they are strictly forbidden to enter that zone. In a misfire when Ralph creates a new track for Vanellope to make things interesting for her, a desperate human player of Sugar Rush at the arcade turns the steering wheel a bit too much trying to control Vanellope in the game, who had ditched the original track to explore the new one by Ralph. 

Sugar Rush is an old game, and the human girl finds out that the only one final steering wheel available is on eBay. The owner of the arcade decides to unplug the game as the steering wheel for the game is much costlier that what the game makes in a year at the arcade. Ralph and Vanellope decide to enter into the Internet through the WiFi zone so that they can buy the steering wheel from eBay and save Sugar Rush.

I'd have loved to say that is all the movie is about, but that's not all. The first half of the movie was extremely entertaining, with some very relatable and hilarious personified depictions of what we come across on the internet while browsing like pop-ups, suggestions during search results, advertisements, 'trending' videos, and several other things. But, towards the latter half of the film, it slid into what was more a fight and insecurity about friendship. That was still fine. Towards the very end, it was just Ralph and Vanellope taking turns and competing to be sad for not being a good friend to each other. 

Those who have watched the absolutely brilliant and fun first part Wreck-It Ralph: you'll know the premise in which the theme of friendship has been used in this movie. However, it was plainly weird sentiment rather than any concrete story or plot towards the end. Even with such an interesting and promising start, and steady build up of what seemed like a nice storyline, Ralph Breaks the Internet somewhere lost its story towards the end, and held on to a single point, leaving other factors hanging. 

It was an okay film, but nowhere close to the amazing Wreck-It Ralph. So, if you are watching it after the first part, don't carry over your expectations from there!

Zumba: Party-like-Workout, or Workout-like-Party?

All of us like to dance. All of us. Maybe, some may like to portray that they aren't really interested in dancing because they may be scared they aren't good at it, or they may not be comfortable enough to dance in front of other people. But we all shake a leg in private just as soon as groovy tune reaches our ears. Dance is literally as basic as the body's reflex to music. Then why not dance your way to glory (I mean a glory, healthy life)? 

I discovered Zumba around Class X thanks to a family friend and doctor. I went as a bubbly, chubby, pretty and plump kid to The Swingers Dance, and I absolutely, absolutely loved it! For the first time I felt like a proper heroine dancing, with no inhibitions, no judgement, as I danced away like crazy to my heart's content, dubbing the songs and matching them with the co-ordinated and easily choreographed steps, as I admired myself dancing, throughout the workout, in the full length wall mirrors in the studio! Until then, I had never taken much to keeping fit, and when I went for the Zumba classes, I didn't even realize that I was doing all this to lose weight!

Not even once. Not even once did I feel like not going or skipping. It was in fact the opposite. I used to be so enthusiastic about them- because why not, I was going to be the star of the day with some killer expressions and uninhibited dancing! Zumba classes were a major stress-buster and so much fun. The oodles of weight went away without even me thinking one moment about it. And soon, people started asking me. Wow, you've lost so much weight, what did you do? But, the issue was: when I told them Zumba, they eyed it like a workout, which it didn't feel like to me. 

Zumba classes in India are fun- they mix the right amounts of fun Latinotics, salsa, bachata, jazz, reggae, and peppy Bollywood with bhangra and other desi steps, all in the same spirit. The only place you can dance without a second-thought for Chikini Chameli and be its heroine is in an absolutely fun Zumba class! Zumba is in between aerobics and dance. It is more dance than aerobics. It is designed to make you feel great while doing it, and the music drowns your consciousness about the effort and pain during the workout. 

I think Zumba is an excellent option, especially for women. And, I say this because I have done Zumba for three years. It is the kind of workout that I know is my type. What seemed like a party produced such brilliant results, and over time I did become naturally health conscious. If you have a fitbit, or any other calorie counter wearable, do use it, it's great encouragement. I have a Ticwatch now, and I use that for my activities too. 

To those who are thinking about Zumba, and to those who have never thought about Zumba as an option: don't think, just do five sessions for a start before you think anything about it. It's way too much fun and it gives you mind-blowing results. How I am today is proof to that. 

Tip to those who already love Zumba: watch the mirror and yourself when you dance for songs you already know the steps for! You just tend to do it that much better!

Have fun (even while working out)!

The Devil's Advocate

Title: The Devil’s Advocate: A spry polemic on how to be seriously good in court

Author: Iain Morley

What does it take to argue a case in court? Is it a ‘born-talent’, or can it be learnt? Is studying the law, and knowing it, enough to win a case? Advocacy is an art, not science: says Iain Morley, and it is to be honed through practice of litigation, like a skill that one is passionate about, learning and bettering oneself with every case. 

“And by ‘practise’, with an ‘s’, I mean the verb for getting up and repeatedly doing a thing until you get good at it – note the different spelling from ‘practice’, with a ‘c’, which is the verb for carrying out a profession.” 

The book is called The Devil's Advocate because it may make you see advocacy from a new perspective. It makes you see what makes a difference in court, and what makes a difference in how you think while looking at a case. The book is majorly from the perspective of countries that follow an adversarial system of justice, like India. In such a system, the fight is about whether a set of proofs find a particular person as guilty or not guilty. Going to the bottom of the truth is not kept as the ultimate aim, and our courts only try to draw that much truth that they perceive from the available evidence. 

So, for an advocate in such a system it is all about the test of the evidence adduced and how to control the evidence that emerges in court, and not necessarily the truth. Perhaps it should not be like this, but in reality this is what happens. Therefore, advocacy in an adversarial system is all about using ‘persuasiveness’ to win within these rules. Somewhere inside us a voice might say: perhaps it shouldn't be. But it is. And, the advocate’s goal is to win.

"Every advocate is a salesperson, selling a client's story."

Iain Morley, very precisely and in a way that doesn’t exhaust you but still makes you think, has designed his book in small capsules of thought-provoking interpolations on truth, the psychology of the tribunal, the poise of an advocate, persuasiveness, questions in a case, witnesses, examinations and cross-examinations, the closing speech, and many other such key factors. The book seeks to make you think on those aspects rather than force any lesson on you. As Morley puts it:

“You won't agree with everything you read. Good. At least you are thinking. Thinking about advocacy. About what works and what does not. And why.”

It is a great book, and the best part is the format in which it takes you through the outlines of advocacy. The book recommends itself to any lawyer with 0-5 years of experience, and that’s why it’s a great book for law students-irrespective of whether you are considering litigation as a career or not. I think it’s one that stimulates a certain kind of thinking in the readers familiar with the law. 

I loved the book! I especially loved the chapters on persuasiveness and cross-examinations. And, I think I might go back to it at several points later, just to skim through and keep the ‘thinking’ alive!

Point Of View

It had been several months since I properly kept the balcony open. After investing an hour on dusting, mopping, and sweeping it clean, I dragged up a comfortable chair, and sat out in my balcony, gazing idly at the idleness. We, as a society in general, were suffering from an enforced, pensive idleness due to the outbreak of a pandemic. I stared at the poster of Neeti Jewellers on the two barricades placed to restrict movement in and out of my street. We heard that morning that the number of cases in our street had increased, and so they came and blocked the entrances to our street with the movable barricades. 

Sitting across my balcony, on the apartment opposite to mine, was a small girl who looks about eleven or twelve. I broke into a smile as our eyes connected. 

‘Tell me if you like the book after you read it,’ I called out to her. 

She smiled briefly with a coy nod, then turned her attention back to the copy of Burnett’s The Secret Garden in her hand. I smiled again, this time to myself. I had read it too, must have been around when I was her age. I went back to staring at the Neeti Jewellers poster, but this time lost in my indecisive thoughts on whether I should go get a book for myself, too, or whether to continue staring at the deserted street. 

The sound of a four-wheeler made both me and my young friend across the balcony turn towards its source. A car was coming from the other end of the street. As it came nearer to the barricades, it slowed down to a halt, and a young boy got down from the car to scan the barricades and check if they can enter our street.

'Excuse me, hey, they have blocked it because there are a few infected houses here,' I called out to him. 'Where do you have to go?'

'We need to go to Arcade Flats, is it too far out?' asks the young boy. 

'Not really, right over two blocks away. You could park your car, and walk up,' I clarified to them. 'Try not to touch the barricades while you go, they may not be safe.' 

The young boy went back to the car, bent down to the level of the window and had a word with the other man inside, must have been his father. After what seemed like a brief argument that they had, the young boy, with a slightly put-off face, dragged the barricade to the side to make space for the car to go. I looked at it with surprise and bemusement. The young boy got into the car, and they took off only to stop in front of the flat that was two blocks away from mine. I looked across my balcony at the little girl, and she looked at me. 

I gave a smile that read 'hopeless', but she looked indecisive. 

'What happened?' I asked her. 

'The barricades,' she says, pointing to them. 

'I know, I told him but they still went through. I also asked him not to touch it and that's exactly what he did! They wanted to go in, I think,' I replied to her. 

'But they didn't move it back,' she replied simply, and after a couple of seconds, went back inside her house.

I sat there looking at the pushed-open barricades. While I was still thinking about how I hadn't thought what the little girl did about the barricades not being moved back, the little kid and her father came out from the gate of the opposite building.

'Stay there,' he instructed her, and went towards the barricades. His hands slipped into a make-shift polythene cover, he dragged back the barricades, took a rope from his pocket, and made a loose knot connecting the two barricades. He then removed the make-shift glove-covers and threw them in the street dustbin nearby.

I allowed myself a smile. 'That's a good idea, uncle, but what if someone needs to go through?' I called out. He looked up and gave a short laugh.

'She wouldn't let it stay open, it's a loose knot and I thought the rope is a better deterrent while looking at it from the car, they might not try to take it off unless necessary,' he commented, and walked back in with his little girl.

While I had focused all my bemused thoughts on how the people in the car still went in despite me telling them that it's just two blocks away, the little girl's thoughts had been on a more useful place- to ensure it's shut again so that more people and cars do not pass through. My abstract thoughts led me to realize how small changes, in what and how we think, can do much more good than just pointing fingers at something wrong. My thoughts were more accusive, while her little brain was proactive. Both are right thoughts, but hers was more useful.

I smiled again. Kids had a lot to teach us, and a world with such thoughts might be a better place for all!