January 24, 2010

My Jodhpur travel-microlog

Filed under: DesiPundit,holiday,personal,travel,twitter — Twilight Fairy @ 10:32 pm

Recently I went on a trip to Jodhpur. During that time I was using twitter to update whatever came into my mind “on the spot” and also to document my trip for a later revisit. Many people asked me if there’s one place where all my updates, spread over a period of 6 days, can be seen together, so here it is!

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Jan 3rd

final packing happening for Jodhpur. train seems to be on time. # 6:37 PM Jan 3rd from Seesmic

Seated in the train. en route to jodhpur. my dad just dropped me, @mojosanjay n his wifey at sarai rohilla station. quaint place. # 10:09 PM Jan 3rd from mobile web

And we’ve embarked on our journey on time! had forgotten Wat its like to peer out of the door of a moving train :p # 10:40 PM Jan 3rd from mobile web

Seems i was right all along! the great indian tweetup shall happen on the train! @shivamvij is in same coach as us! # 12:06 AM Jan 4th from mobile web

Looks like i just shocked @shivamvij outta his wits! by identifying him in the same coach n introducing myself :p # 12:25 AM Jan 4th from mobile web

The ppl in my timeline currently in a train- @mojosanjay @shivamvij @bdutt @s4sukhdeep n of course me # 12:31 AM Jan 4th from mobile web

@shivamvij i was anyway gonna ask u, even if Twitter hadnt existed. btw guy under ur berth – his eyes almost popped out when u squealed :p # 12:35 AM Jan 4th from mobile web

settling down with @ashokbanker’s gods of war. # AM Jan 4th from mobile web

Jan 4th

Our train’s running at least 2hrs late :| . rajasthan is covered with fog # 10:36 AM Jan 4th from mobile web

Forgot to carry extra AAA cells for my mp3 player else u all may have got live commentary on my music like in my bhopal trip :p # 11:39 AM Jan 4th from mobile web

Omg! the train’s so late they’ve started taking orders for lunch! kab padharenge tumro desh? on a good note the sun popped out just now! # 11:55 AM Jan 4th from mobile web

@mojosanjay sounds like brain biryani that u get in chandNi chowk. eww # 12:04 PM Jan 4th from mobile web

Just told @mojosanjay n wifey abt how once @culdivsac almost missed getting onto a train in search of a cola bar. chain pulled.much drama. # 12:12 PM Jan 4th from mobile web

For year 2009: 5 most popular tweeple are @gulpanag @shashitharoor @b50 @twilightfairy @anaggh Check http://is.gd/5H7ze ^AK # 12:43 PM Jan 4th from web Retweeted by you and 4 others

Finally reached.quite sunny n warm here. quaint place devi bhavan. made of sandstone n lotsa bougainvillea. feel sleepy now # 1:58 PM Jan 4th from mobile web

Liking sunny jodhpur. every city i goto i want to own real estate! # 3:07 PM Jan 4th from mobile web

Sitting with owners of the place where we r staying who turn out to b family friends of @mojosanjay’s wife! # 4:01 PM Jan 4th from mobile web

They tell us they own the property where most of dor was shot with @gulpanag it was just before its renovation. will check it out # 4:03 PM Jan 4th from mobile web

@paavani there’s no such thing as free lunch or stay :p btw i uploaded a flickr pic before leaving @mojosanjay # 4:04 PM Jan 4th from mobile web

At nai sarak. not v different from the one in delhi. ear muffs seem to be the rage here! all hawkers wear them too # 5:53 PM Jan 4th from mobile web

And @mojosanjay just got pushed by a calf as he was standing in its way! survival of the fittest. or should i say the horniest :p # 5:58 PM Jan 4th from mobile web

Having a camera is like a magnet for all street kids shouting hello n wanting their pic clicked. if u oblige they ask for money! # 6:18 PM Jan 4th from mobile web

Beautiful twilight shots i got. saw some shops selling funny looking vaseline in green colour! most ppl r interested in getting clicked # 6:52 PM Jan 4th from mobile web

M in august company! thanks 2 all ye followers! RT @90di: 5 most poplr tweeple yr 2009: @gulpanag @shashitharoor @b50 @twilightfairy @anaggh # 7:01 PM Jan 4th from dabr

Now that @iamsrk is here, no chance for us mortals to make it to any popular top lists # :p 7:05 PM Jan 4th from dabr

Can anyone suggest a good restaurant in jodhpur pref rajasthani cuisine. nothing too fancy # 7:53 PM Jan 4th from dabr

Jan 5th

i always wonder about olden times Wen i see heritage. Planning to cover the mehrangarh fort tomorrow. # 12:32 AM Jan 5th from mobile web

The sky is an incredible azure blue in jodhpur. lovely. almost like ladakh # 3:40 PM Jan 5th from mobile web

Spent the day at mehrangarh. now watching durrie making in progress. some local artisans singing their version of Nimbuda. # 3:52 PM Jan 5th from mobile web

@madversity yes i know. @vijaybainsla err no never seen green vaseline ever @pritishnandy delhi in jeans n shirt? :) Wat were u thinking :p # 4:38 PM Jan 5th from mobile web

Looks like ‘top 5 in 2009′ khitaab by @90di has got me many new followers. welcome ppl, hope to keep u interested n make it worth ur time # 4:42 PM Jan 5th from mobile web

Out of the top 5 in 2009 by @90di – m following all & m also being followed by all except @shashitharoor. wonder when he wd if he does :p # 4:59 PM Jan 5th from mobile web

ravikapoor">.@ravikapoor one assumes that if @shashitharoor wd follow non-celebs like us it might make him more aware of wat WE want in our govt? # 5:49 PM Jan 5th from mobile web

Caught some sunlight at the golden hour. saw the blue city from the fort. the sounds of the city travel far.almost a person it is like. # 5:54 PM Jan 5th from mobile web

Unfortunate truth- every fort i’ve visited has ppl peeing on the parapets! confronting them makes them turn a deaf ear. disgusting behaviour # 6:00 PM Jan 5th from mobile web

The sun has set. azaan calling out. the whole city’s reverberating with that.twinkling lights r slowly coming on in the blue city of jodhpur # 6:02 PM Jan 5th from mobile web

@flyyoufools wanted to shame them by clicking their pic. but realised its least of their concerns. nothing shames such freaks # 6:06 PM Jan 5th from mobile web

twilight time! took long exposure shots. used my purse as tripod. lovely shades in the sky # 6:33 PM Jan 5th from mobile web

The sandstone path. the swallows chirruping. the wind blowing. the maharanis would have passed all this before making sati marking on walls! # 6:44 PM Jan 5th from mobile web

@ravikapoor m sure all celebs like @shashitharoor get bombarded with info, bt dunno how much of it is relevant.hence “normal” ppl suggestion # 10:49 PM Jan 5th from Seesmic in reply to RaviKapoor

almost every shop in Jodhpur writes “recommended by lonely planet” for itself! along with some french mag names too. smart at marketing # 11:01 PM Jan 5th from Seesmic

Jan 6th

Smelt lot of ittar today at the fort.one was opium. smelt like incense sticks. one was called monsoon. did smell a bit like the rain on mud! # 12:26 AM Jan 6th from mobile web

Off to ossiyan for the day. agenda is to see the temples, camel ride, check out fort used for shooting of dor # 10:39 AM Jan 6th from mobile web

to All followers esp new ones – m currently travelling n have limited connectivity via phone. frequent replies not possible.pliss to adjust # 11:26 AM Jan 6th from mobile web

@enbose thanks. did u mean don’t get fogged out? jodhpur is sunny n bright :) # 11:32 AM Jan 6th from mobile web

Sitting in a vehicle without a seat belt on makes me really uncomfortable. sadly the ones in backseats of most cabs r mere showpieces # 11:34 AM Jan 6th from mobile web

What is it about the winters n the warm sun that makes one so sleepy! # 11:57 AM Jan 6th from mobile web

First stop! the haveli ummedgarh where @gulpanag’s dor was shot. girish karnad stayed here in the film. the place is full of pigeons # 12:09 PM Jan 6th from mobile web

Tikam chand from the haveli says hi to @gulpanag :) # 12:10 PM Jan 6th from mobile web

A central courtyard around which the main house builds up. a tulsi plant in the designated corner.oh for the want of space in modern houses! # 12:29 PM Jan 6th from mobile web

@aparnaandhare yeah i don’t have a courtyard :p one always wants more n more greenery :) # 1:04 PM Jan 6th from mobile web

Out from the different world that was ummedgarh. the silence only broken by pigeons taking flight, sparrows, parrots n bulbuls tweeting. # 1:07 PM Jan 6th from mobile web

Just saw some windmills in jodhpur. the driver tells us that they belong to @juniorbachchan n ash! they get carbon credits for it # 1:23 PM Jan 6th from mobile web

Saw very few solar panels in rajasthan considering the sun they get. on that note, reached sun temples now # 1:25 PM Jan 6th from mobile web

Just had bajra roti with ghee n gud/gul at a local dhaba. # 4:17 PM Jan 6th from mobile web

Riding on camel back n tweeting :p the camel standing up was really rotfl thing # 4:46 PM Jan 6th from mobile web

Off the camel back now. plan to watch the sunset from the sand dunes. # 5:13 PM Jan 6th from mobile web

Done with the sunset. n took some silhouette shots. the sun goes down really fast in the last leg # 6:01 PM Jan 6th from mobile web

One more camel ride done n we r on our way back to jodhpur.the camel owners held my hair in their hands to check if it was real! much fun # 6:29 PM Jan 6th from mobile web

one camels name was maanak. the other was paapu. 6 & 8 yr old respectively. shitting n pissing all the time. :p apart from giving bumpy ride # 6:40 PM Jan 6th from mobile web

@om not really :)  @madversity hardly straw like :p @pathfyynder was there today # 8:53 PM Jan 6th from mobile web

Looks like bollywood was there in autoexpo today. much like they r now on Twitter. just saw @iamsrk on news thanking us Twitter ppl! # 10:35 PM Jan 6th from mobile web

Jan 7th

Delhi u better get the fog outta the way by the time i get back from sunny jodhpur. almost got sunburnt yesterday # 9:22 AM Jan 7th from mobile web

Though i’ve driven in zero visibility fog many times n had lot of fun it can be done without. # 9:26 AM Jan 7th from mobile web

pigs n beautiful peacocks scavenging the same garbage dump together. yeh mera india. # 9:34 AM Jan 7th from mobile web

In jodhpur ppl seem to love driving on the wrong side. yes more than in delhi. auto drivers seem to be on a permanent opium diet. they sway. # 9:36 AM Jan 7th from mobile web

At bal samand lake palace. beautiful place. bt surprisingly not a single soul cd b spotted to direct us around.wandered around huge estate # 2:02 PM Jan 7th from mobile web

Saw a colony of bats on a banyan tree. for the 1st time in my life i found them ‘cute’.they wrapped their huge wings like blankets arnd self # 2:06 PM Jan 7th from mobile web

seen mehrangarh,nai sarak,osian village,mandore garden,balsamand palace in jodhpur.Wat else is worth? ummed bhavan has 3500 cover charge # 4:09 PM Jan 7th from mobile web

@pritishnandy quite nice weather here. no fog. comfy warm sun. nights r chilly. a nice azure blue sky to boot. # 5:31 PM Jan 7th from mobile web

@pritishnandy @hiway i know ppl who r scared of anything that moves :) # 5:34 PM Jan 7th from mobile web

so we weren’t even allowed near ummed bhavan cos museum closes at 5.main hotel has cover charges of 3500 per person just to enter! no thanks # 5:39 PM Jan 7th from mobile web

@pritishnandy it is quite nice indeed :) i like quiet places n the place where we r is one such place. balsamand lake palace is another # 5:49 PM Jan 7th from mobile web

@austereseeker none at all. din let us get past the gate! not even to exterior. # 5:51 PM Jan 7th from mobile web

@lakshmi_h was planning to add hashtag but it takes up precious real estate in tweets. m likely to put all related tweets manually in a post # 5:54 PM Jan 7th from mobile web

Now sitting by the pool. the sun’s gone down. sounds of an egret like bird r filling the area. @ashokbanker’s gods of war for company # 6:09 PM Jan 7th from mobile web

@anaggh my pic uploading is quite bad :| .. will try to make one album or a travelogue or something.. may write for a paper too # 6:52 PM Jan 7th from Seesmic in reply to anaggh

me there too RT @mojosanjay: sitting by the blue pool at the hotel, in lush green, here’s a pic of what i see http://tweetphoto.com/8198662 # 7:00 PM Jan 7th from Seesmic

@Twindhu no its the pool at devi bhawan, where we r staying @mojosanjay # 7:52 PM Jan 7th from Seesmic in reply to Twindhu

@pritishnandy ”myinnisfree” is a place? or u have ur own place in every city? :) # 8:07 PM Jan 7th from Seesmic in reply to PritishNandy

Plan to goto bishnoi village tomorrow. hope to spot a blackbuck , a chinkara or two. will shoot but not like salman khan # 11:07 PM Jan 7th from mobile web

Jan 8th

On our way to bishnoi village. in an open jeep! covered up in shawls. comfy. but can’t imagine a stunt like this in delhi at all # 8:37 AM Jan 8th from mobile web

Salman blackbuck shooting seems to be the high point in the history of this village. all references start with that. sad in a way # 8:40 AM Jan 8th from mobile web

Baba ramdev seems to be quite popular here in jodhpur. his face seems to have launched a million health centres. # 8:43 AM Jan 8th from mobile web

Saw a potter at work. not the harry kinds. i tried my hand at the wheel too! got the cliched potter wheel shots too # 10:09 AM Jan 8th from mobile web

@cgawker thank u sire. to Wat do i owe this pleasure? # 10:13 AM Jan 8th from mobile web

Saw the opium making ‘ceremony’. tasted a few drops. extremely bitter. calm n serene mud houses. fat & unafraid sparrows pecking on millet. # 11:12 AM Jan 8th from mobile web

@flyyoufools yeah? i said ‘fly you fools’ to those fat sparrows. they din even bother. kept munching the millet :p # 11:22 AM Jan 8th from mobile web

now at a weavers place. showing us how he weaves durries. m being the good samaritan by translating for some foreigners n the weaver :) # 11:30 AM Jan 8th from mobile web

The wildlife part of our trip was an anticlimax. got to see only deer n neelgai. no chinkara no blackbuck. the buck’s stopped here. # 12:28 PM Jan 8th from mobile web

Done some shopping. enjoying the sun before dreaded dhundh in delhi. photography in old city now. have had my fill of kids asking for money # 4:37 PM Jan 8th from mobile web

The shopkeepers here r v smart. keeping in mind the clientele they put up toilet paper rolls at the entrance of shops.like the nimbu mirchi. # 6:06 PM Jan 8th from mobile web

Ok jodhpur i m NOT a foreigner dammit.its getting to the point of harassing the way everyone comes n says hello wats ur name n asks for foto # 8:09 PM Jan 8th from mobile web

Our safar back to delhi has just started becoming suffer. seems train is 2hrs late from jodhpur.dunno how much it would be further # 8:14 PM Jan 8th from mobile web

Ok jodhpur i m NOT a foreigner dammit.its getting to the point of harassing the way everyone comes n says hello wats ur name n asks for foto # 8:09 PM Jan 8th from mobile web

@zigzackly actually they see the camera n want their foto only, not mine. but its quite harassing – the zoo display animal feeling # 8:17 PM Jan 8th from mobile web

@cgawker ah so its all good then :p. M back to city life by tomorrow # 8:21 PM Jan 8th from mobile web

Thank u all for the follow fridays. finally i realise its a friday. regular programming to continue from next week # 10:02 PM Jan 8th from mobile web

Sitting in the jhoola opposite the pond with the koi fish. at this time i should’ve been in my train instead. its so damn late. groan # 10:19 PM Jan 8th from mobile web

Finally seated in the train. still a lot of time to departure. this trip would have been best as a road trip in a car # 12:35 AM Jan 9th from mobile web

Goodbye blue skies of jodhpur. goodbye starry nights. hello white wall of fog aka delhi # 12:47 AM Jan 9th from mobile web

The indian railway coach we r in, is one of the worst i’ve seen in a long time. filthy & modified in a way that the end seats r compromised # 1:04 AM Jan 9th from mobile web

All those asking, its AC2 not even 3rd AC. now requested TT & exchanged the berths with better ones # 1:49 AM Jan 9th from mobile web

Jan 9th

areas near alwar seem sunny in parts. hope delhi is too. # 11:03 AM Jan 9th from mobile web

The jodhpur travel microlog has come to an end. thanks to those who kept writing in betwn. removed the illusions of it being a monologue # 11:06 AM Jan 9th from mobile web

@nithinkd that’s good news. sara credit khud hee? :p i got the warm sunshine from jodhpur too :) # 11:08 AM Jan 9th from mobile web

Khatara AC2 coach that we r in doesn’t even have plug points for charging! no blue night light either. total fail! # 11:18 AM Jan 9th from mobile web

Reached ncr now. hope to reach our station soon. # 1:18 PM Jan 9th from mobile web

back to home sweet home after the jodhpur trip and finally online.. what did I miss in the past week ppl? # 7:32 PM Jan 9th from Seesmic


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August 15, 2006

Free as a bird

Filed under: holiday,personal — Twilight Fairy @ 3:38 am

This independence day is not going to be like most independence days I have had. I am not going to be lined up in school prayer, later indulging in mass throwing of the distributed, hardened ladoos on the blackboard, which are so hard that they stick to it, instead of crumbling. This year, I am not going to be dressed in Khaadi, roaming around the empty Lutyen’s Delhi, looking for good photo ops. This year, (though I miss that place), I am not celebrating Independence day at the Indian embassy of a foreign land, where I try to make some sense of the soft, lustrous, red petals of rose floating around the tricolour. This year, I shall just relax. May be entertain a guest or two. May be clink a glass or two. May be catch up on a movie. May be shop for myself. May be, just be. Free as a bird.

Hope we all have freedom. From our own thoughts which bind us down in so many ways.

Free as a bird,
it’s the next best thing to be.
Free as a bird.
- Beatles (Free as a bird)


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March 30, 2006

By the moon and the stars and the sky

Filed under: holiday,movie/play/book review,nostalgia,personal,photography — Twilight Fairy @ 4:04 am


The prominently evident flavour last weekend can be described in one word – spontaneous. After seeing a rather pathetic movie which finished at 1:15am and ended up giving me a headache instead of laughs, it was time to freshen up a little. I digress, but here’s a one word review of Malamaal weekly - “bakwaas”. This important event of “brevity in its real element” having been put aside, I shall now proceed to describe the wonderful spontaneity that ensued.
1. I wanted to see the sunrise in the hills since long now.
2. I have been to and lived in, various Jhumri tallaya corners of our country but never Rajasthan/Jaipur.
3. If I am awake that late, there’s no way I can get up by the time sunrise happens. Except if I never sleep to begin with.

Put 1, 2 and 3 together and you know what followed. After a quick “camera-jacket-sneakers-cassettes-water bottle” pickup, we were on the Jaipur highway by 2am. Well, practically I am on it every single day at least twice, but this time the destination was not yonders.

So off it was, with some breathtaking Kandisa in the middle of the night. Eerie moonlightI have said it earlier and I say it again. ‘Kaun chaday roz yeh sooraj, pawan kaun phoonke’ echoes just the sentiment I had at that time. The mesmerising moon followed us everywhere. It was almost full and there were no clouds. Everything was bathed in the full moon light. After the first toll check, small little hills began dotting the landscape. In the milky whiteness of the moonlight, all of them seemed even more pristine and untouched. Venus, shining brightSome attempts at taking the moon’s pictures got thwarted because of the sheer luminosity of it. I had been much more successful earlier the previous weekend while attending an Indian classical music concert in Nehru park, when the moon had bashfully peeped out from under the clouds. Kandisa soon gave way to Roxette. The darkness soon gave way to an eerie blue sky. At 4:30 am we stopped and had some adrak chai from a dhaba. All this, while Venus was shining brightly in the night sky. It’s a strange feeling, this exploring in the darkness business, while the world sleeps. It unites one with nature, just a little bit more, than what one would be in the daytime. It all seems to be one’s private haven, one’s private adventure, one’s private magic show. In the morning it would be there, but it would be for everyone. That is magical yes, but special – no.

Soon the milky whiteness of the night began giving way to orange hues in the eastern corners of the sky. The western corners were however unconcerned with whatever was happening on the opposite end and retained the same look. Lots of kilometers and trees went past. Finally we stopped again, just as the sky was beginning to glow a ripe golden. I tried a panoramic shot which I later stitched together. The most fabulous golden sunrise wasThe panoramic sunrise just *about* to take place along with a big moon against a blue sky, just about to vanish away like the cheshire cat’s smile. The ripple of clouds spread above the sun like a natural quilt, only enhanced the colours more. While I took a series of shots to create a panned panoramic shot, I could see the sunrise taking place in a different frame (than my camera’s) and the sun actually coming out from behind the hills as if golden butter floating its way to the top in a pan. The opposite end of the sky was of course still drowsy and birds lazily flew along, carrying wisps of brightness with them. The fabulous sunriseWith the glorious sunrise witnessed, we inched our way towards Jaipur.

On the outskirts of Jaipur is Amer fort, built atop a hill. Since we didn’t have much time to spare, we knew this would be the only “Jaipur” we would be able to see. So off we went spiralling up the hill with “Kuschel Rock” giving us company Shall we dance?over music. Never before had I realised that hills are so close to Delhi! This fact itself quite pleased me. The place was absolutely scenic and full of greenery as well as lots and lots and lots of peacocks. There were entire peacock families moving about calling out to each other. It reminded me of my childhood when my sister and I also used to go “Keyooon” along with the peacocks in ChandiMandir and they would reply back with equal enthusiasm. We spotted a lot of peacocks Stretching by the moon!dancing too. Soon we came to a clearing from where the splendid view of the valley below was visible. Wisps of cloud hung in the air over the town and over the palace in the middle of a lake. Typical Rajasthani stuff. We reached the gates of the Amer fort soon but there was nobody to greet us except the longtailed long..err.. langoors. They made quite a picture, perched on a tree against the fast vanishing moon. The fort would have opened at 9 am and we were already there before 7am. But with enough of happiness and smugness collected for one day, we set back towards Delhi.

I drove on the way back, with speeds between 120-140kmph. Glisten carefullyMore smugness followed. I promptly earned myself some ma-behen gaalis like “Michael Schumacher kee maa” and “Narain Karthikeyan kee behen”. But in the end, nobody can ignore true excellence and I got a compliment on my excellent driving skills when we landed in Gurgaon by 11:30 am and promptly went to 32nd milestone for a brunch. Surprisingly I wasn’t drowsy even after a night out and eventually slept after 36 hours. All in all, a great funfilled weekend which I shall always cherish for all times to come. But this wouldn’t have been the same without my friend who actually was spontaneous enough to get up and go all the way to Jaipur in the middle of the night, who was patient enough to stop and watch each time I felt the urge to click pictures, who let me drive his car, and who also listened to entirely my choice of music. For all this praise that I am showering on you, I am sure next time you would let me visit Chowki dhani and let me buy some nice mojris too :p.


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January 27, 2006

Republic day

Filed under: holiday,photography — Twilight Fairy @ 12:28 pm

Instead of a “Khadi kurta clad, clicking pictures getting pictures clicked in Parliament street”, Republic day, this year saw me in a “non khadi, non parliament street wandering, clicking pictures all by myself” role. Here are the pictures of the Lotus temple aka Bahai temple – one of the prominent landmarks in Delhi today.


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October 28, 2005

Of snowflakes and quick breaks

Filed under: holiday,personal,travel — Twilight Fairy @ 12:39 pm

I have been powdered over. As I walk back from office, I can see white swirls all over my hair.. the whole place has that bluish tinge. The night is not black any more. It’s blue. It’s started snowing since Monday. Sigh..I am more of a summers person. I don’t get all mushy when snow falls. It’s the snow that does. I don’t get all excited seeing everything only in white, forget black & white. I need colour. If I had to see white flakes, I would just look at my own reflection in the mirror sans moisturiser. I don’t need lessons in skiing. Every day is a new lesson in the art of balance. It pays to know your own centre of gravity and of course your weight. Plus that weight of the groceries. Plus that weight on your mind. But it does feel nice to imagine that now I have the freedom to build those unearthly snowmen like Calvin. In a span of 4 months, I have seen spring, summer, rains, autumn and now snow too. Wow.

Actually speaking snow does make me feel nice and lucky also. When it reminds me of a skimpily-clad-Sonam or a baring-it-all Kimi Katkar or even a I’m-still-in-south-India ‘Chandni’ aka Sridevi, braving the snow during their respective scenes. It also gives me a sense of “making a mark”. Somehow when I walk along those deserted roads, with those swirly things dancing in my hair, I start identifying with
“tum samein kee ret par, chhodte chalo nishan, chhodte chalo nishaan;
Dekhti tumhe zameen, dekhta hai asmaan, dekhta hai asmaan”.

It’s time for some “art of balance” and hence I am off to Switzerland for a quick trip. Wish you all a happy, colourful, sparkling, joyous, prosperous, safe and if you desire – snowy – Diwali!!!

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October 5, 2005

A breather

Filed under: holiday,personal — Twilight Fairy @ 12:52 pm

…is what I want right now. I am drowning in a lot of things on work front and personal front both. Also on my agenda is a rushed trip to Paris – the romance capital, with guess whom – I, me and myself. (Wow, I have choice on which one to call Irene). As of now, not only do I need to “finnish” my work, give myself some much needed peace of mind and purge all those thoughts niggling at my mind for quite some time, but also need to chalk out an itinerary for the 4 days I spend in Paris. I also need to find myself a soft copy of the Da Vinci code, which I know very well, I would not be able to scan before I visit the Louvre museum. I also need to get a jhatpat crash course on *how* to use my hi-fi new digicam that is the most expensive impulsive shopping I ever did, last night, just so that I have a good camera before leaving for Paris. My good old Sony handycam met with a much tragic accident – OJ spill. It’s no consolation that it’s such a common thing that it’s even got an abbreviation on the net – this orange juice spill thing. The faithful old thing still clicks great pictures, but unfortunately no movies, and I almost feel disloyal by beginning to use the new Canon Powershot S2 IS. As if all the above mentioned things aren’t enough, apparently now I have more attachment to my non-living posessions than even my own colleagues or the neighbour’s kids.

Ho-hum. Well anyway, I can put “buying a new camera” as trying to give some competition to a certain Leonardo da vinci, in the reproducing-the-subtle-smile-of-a-lady department. Hopefully that smile would be my own.


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September 6, 2005

Experience teacheth

Filed under: holiday,humour,nostalgia,personal — Twilight Fairy @ 12:58 pm

‘Experience is the best teacher but its fees is very high’. This happens to be one of the favourite quotes of my mom. Teacher’s day has more importance in our house than Mother’s day, since my mom’s a teacher and in my schooldays there were never so many this-days and that-days but only a few countable ones like Independence day, Teacher’s day and Children’s day. Of course now we wish her on all the this-days/that-days too. For us, Independence day meant the national anthem and ladoos, Children’s day meant Chacha Nehru and Teacher’s day meant that my mom had a special function to attend at school and that she would come back with bouquets, cards etc which my sis and I would go through, at times finding it odd and at times finding it sad that we had to share our mom with so many!

With time, Teacher’s day started meaning something else altogether. I realised early enough, that in class XIIth, one gets to wear one’s own clothes and not the school uniform on teacher’s day. As if that wasn’t exciting (read embarassingly) enough, females needed to wear a saree and some (un)lucky students even got “teacher’s duty” to get a taste of the other side by supervising a junior class in that fancy dress! (That reminds me of the time everyone got titles from the junior class during farewell, but that makes another post). Years passed by when I would stare at giggly and unelegant girls metamorphosing into ‘women’ suddenly. Stupid grins got replaced by lipstick, school ribbons and hair bands gave way to open wavy hair, or maybe a mature looking hair bun – stylised to suit the occasion, the school shoes (with the horrible buckles) gave way to high heels and of course the uniform’s existence was forgotten as if the day marked freedom from well-ingrained ‘conformity’ of 12 years. That was the day most girls went all out. Of course they had another chance in the form of ‘farewell’ when they could air the backless cholis and halter neck blouses meant to expose a back or a cleavage in a ‘popping the cherry’ sense. But then the farewell also meant boards and pre-boards round the corner, leaving lesser scope of getting noticed by the ‘dashing’ guys or leaving an everlasting impression on a crowd which had other issues like exam fever or the turmoil of finally bidding goodbye, on their minds.

I was never the butterfly and was quite scared at the prospect of showing the world what my tucked-under-a-school-shirt,-skirt-and-belt tummy looked like. I had never worn (like many others) a saree in my life nor had I any experience in brandishing my palloo as if a saree was the thing I came to school in. Matters needing attention, like how to keep ones hairstyle in place, ones lipstick in check and heels from getting stuck in the saree were the ones I considered would be topmost on my mind, when my turn came. God forbid if I got a teacher’s duty (of which there was a high chance, being the man-eater..err monitor), I would have died of fright at the thought of being mercilessly torn to pieces by the boys just one year junior, who considered it their duty to take advantage of the fact that a damsel in fancy dress couldn’t even deduct their marks, if the need arose.

So it was with butterflies in my stomach, rather than being one on the outside, that I approached the teacher’s day when I was in class XIIth. ‘Silk is the easiest to handle’, was what I was told by my mom and my aunts. Several times. But then past experiences with silk had taught me that it also cluttered around in a very unbecoming fashion and one needed to be mannequin thin to look elegant in it. I chose to take a risk this one time and chose a blood red chiffon saree of my mom, knowing very well that it was a self inflicted nightmare, for not only did I not know the s-a-r-e-e of a saree, I didnt even know the spelling of chiffon, leave alone managing it with the above mentioned attention seeking things niggling at my mind. But then one gotta do, what one gotta do, when it’s just once in your life.

This teacher’s day saw me getting up rather early, to wash my hair, iron the saree, get ready with the help of my mom, who being a teacher herself had other things to attend to, than my own saree. Unfortunately this time she wasnt even in the same school as I, which would have given me some solace in case my saree failed to comply and landed me in Draupadi like trouble. Armed with only the courage that a FAT safetypin, a reliable saree pin and a long, stomach-and-back-covering blouse lent, I set out with my lipstick in place, heels carefully kicking out the saree (as I had been advised) and a fancy strappy purse on my shoulder just for the effect.

The first hurdle came soon enough even before I reached the bus stop. My neighbour’s pesky kid instantly remarked ‘Oh you look like Juhi Chawla’. My already flustered mind got even more flustered when it couldnt make out whether this cheek of a girl was paying me a compliment for a change or taunting as usual. I had other important issues to concentrate on. Oh! the woes of an inexperienced sarree-wearer! Next I had to get into a modified army threeton. Can one imagine the plight of a rather flustered girl, trying to balance a precarious saree, being stared at in the face, with not only the mammoth task of now accomplishing the feat of getting into a truck with all this finery, but also the amused looks given by the rest of the school kids who wonder if that’s a new teacher or just twilight fairy out on the path of self destruction. I understand, I really do, what an Indian bridegroom goes through when he gets onto the mare. Well, an army officer’s daughter is taught to plunge head on, and that’s what I did. I leapt onto the modified truck’s steps, throwing caution and my saree to the September wind and thinking that I would carry out the damage control, when I got to school, for there would definitely be more of it. At least my hair was a manageable length and I had carefully ensconced it into a bun, replete with a whole packet of invisible and fancy joodaa pins, which posed a problem for later but would help me hold my head high just this while.

Thankfully I had no classes to ‘take’. But this fact did little to make me less jittery. The truck soon reached the school and now I had another hurdle – getting down from the truck without the saree giving the vehicle a much needed sweep or all other kids stepping on my saree from behind. It was my mom’s precious possession after all. Not only was I responsible for myself, but also for the saree, the heavy earrings and the ’tilladi’ (a sikkimese pendant) I had borrowed from my mom. Somehow, aided with the weight of the joodaa pins, my head held high, I made it through the gates with panache – into the school. Colorful butterflies gave me some comfort. Seeing others whom I had seen in uniform all along, distracted my mind somewhat. The comparisons would come later, for now I just wanted to reach my classroom. Never had I realised that reaching my class, something I did everyday, would be so difficult just this one time. No amount of kicking the saree out, helped, I was more scared it would eventually just kick off and if that happened I would just kick the bucket. Amidst the exchange of compliments, I finally reached my classroom and under the protective cover of the two other girls in my class out of a class of 60 students. The excitement in the air, the “oh you look so different”s, the combination of various heady perfumes, made me forget soon enough that I *was* wearing a saree. Relieved just a little, I began to enjoy the attention, rather than getting embarrassed. At the end of a day well spent, I understood, just how magical it can be, wearing a saree and just how a ‘woman’ is born.

After this school function, I went and watched my first movie ever in a cinema hall (Yes, at that age in life), sans the saree and in the comfort of a long skirt and frilly top. It happened to be a Chirpy Chawla movie. But that makes for another post altogether.


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August 26, 2005

Freedom of thought

Filed under: holiday,personal,poetry — Twilight Fairy @ 1:06 pm
Independence day was spent at an alien office this year for a change. It was odd, not having a holiday since I am not in India. For me, Independence day has meant roaming around the deserted streets of Delhi, along with psycho, both of us in our Khaadi kurtas, enjoying the extended time and the extended space, that’s so rare to come by in our daily rat race. It was unanimously decided this year that we (my colleagues and I) would all go to the Indian embassy here in Finland (where a lot of other desis were getting together). The flag hoisting ceremony was to start at 9:30am. The distance between my place and the embassy, made me cringe at the thought of getting up ultra early. But then soon, (if I may say), ‘patriotism’ took over and I ignored my body’s pleas the next morning to let it make up for the accumulated sleep deficit. I got ready much ahead of time and set out with a lot of buffer. As luck would have it, I encountered a traffic jam (the first I encountered here so far) and there was absolutely nothing I could do about it. I reached the venue at 10:15am. With the hoisting over, the national anthem already sung, the crowds dispersed … all that was left was the Indian flag, fluttering slowly, looking quite forlorn. Then I noticed something quite exquisite. The blood red and silky looking fresh petals of rose, were all around me on the street and on the pavement. Somehow it all looked so wrong. What was that *royal* flower doing down there on the street? It didn’t deserve getting trampled by mere passersby. And then came a moment when one answers one’s own questions. The following lines suddenly fluttered in my mind from nowhere.

Mujhe tod lena ban-mali,
uss path par dena tum phenk
Matra-bhoomi par sheesh chadhane,
jis path jayen veer anek.

Pluck me, O keeper of the garden,
And onto that path throw
To lay their lives for the motherland
On which several heroes go

- from ‘Pushp Kee Abhilasha’ (A flower’s wish) by Pt. Makhanlal Chaturvedi

And then I realised, I was the one who was diminishing their true worth, not the mere pasersby.


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March 24, 2005

Living dangerously

Filed under: holiday — Twilight Fairy @ 1:38 pm

She glanced nervously towards the buildings towering over her. Her hawk eyes scanned the parapets and terraces for any movements. “You never know, when they might strike.”, she thought to herself. Even though she had taken cover from the overcrowded parallel streets, by switching to the narrow bylanes between blocks, she was still feeling uneasy. It was already difficult to make her way through the seemingly desolate streets, trying to keep an eye on the road as well as an eye above for ariel strikes too. The feeling of being watched was constantly dogging her. She was walking in such a hurry, it seemed that she was almost running, but since she didn’t want to come into notice, her gait was a funny sort of “fast walk”. The past instances of being hounded kaleidoscoped through her mind.

And with this background dear reader, here’s wishing you a very HappyHoli. Please don’t throw balloons/eggs/what-have-you’s at passersby.


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November 11, 2004

I’ll be back

Filed under: holiday — Twilight Fairy @ 5:59 pm

No, I am not on a blog break or anything. It’s just work, work and more work, which has left me with little time for anything else. But I’ll definitely resurface soon enough. Here’s wishing everyone a bright, sparkled diwali and Id mubarak!! Hope everyone has a safe, pollution free, dangerous noise level free, traffic jams free – weekend.

Hope you like these small little fireworks on this page.


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