Maya- not all that enrapturing

Alright, so my brother’s in town. So it was a reason for some celebration indeed. I docked into my aunt and uncle’s house to spend the next two days in the company of a brat I hated and loved from the bottom of my heart (approach-avoidance conflict [>_<] thx to psychology found a name for this ever changing relationship).. So our Sunday was going be spent on some good eating at a place called Maya at Khader Nawaz Khan Road in Nungambakkam.  The road that has about 7 eating joints is what one can call a foodie’s paradise.  Nevertheless we decided to give the more established places on this street a miss and go for this relatively new Andhra Restaurant that promises much. 

Located at the basement of Platinum Building, Maya offers a nice setting to come eat with family.  The place has some amazing interiors, comfortable furniture and very good lighting. At least I liked it. The music, sometimes dull and instrumental and more often than not jarry with a woman screaming some telugu carnatic song that certainly didn’t aid my digestion, however didn’t soothe my ears throughout my brief stay here. When I first entered the place I was expecting a dull boring menu card, typical Andhra food (sorry but I wasn’t really keen on coming here) but I was in for a surprise. The service was good, the waiters were courteous and well mannered. The menu was quite simple.  For a buffet priced at rs.599 per head, there was a lot on the menu, with offerings for both plant and animal eaters. Now to get to slicing into the positives and negatives of the food:-

Starters

Fryums

An array of podis and chutneys : paruppu podi, curry leaves powder, Gonkura Chutney Red chilly chutney, white coconut chutney

Mushroom fry

Buttermilk/musk melon juice

Paneer fry

Crab fillings

Onion wada                     

Chicken fry

Egg salad

Mutton meat balls

Review:  that’s quite an amount to eat! Some yummy food was on the offering. Items like mushroom and the crab fillings went waste with us coz none of liked either!  The muskmelon juice seemed god (judging by my aunt’s expression on gulping it down), the onion wada was a good starter, and so was the paneer fry.  Now to get to the mansahari part, the chicken fry was amazing, crisp, hot and spicy it was perfect to get ur mouth to salivate. The meat balls were amazing as well, soft and just breaking down with ease once bit into. Trust me if I, despite being a mutton hater, could enjoy it then anyone can.  The egg salad, well I would be a bit undecided on it. I found it good maybe coz I just love eggs irrespective of what variety they come in. But this one, made from mayo, a bit of pepper, boiled eggs, tomato and onion was not all that tasty, if one was to go by my brother. Personally we’ve tasted better eggs. The chutneys were good. But the gonkura chutney wasn’t as spicy as expected. 

                                              After such a task to go through the entire platter of starters, it was time to dig into the main course. Vegetable pulao, potato stir fry, spinach kootu, ladies finger kara kuzhambu, chicken stir fry, chicken biriyani and onion rich raita. Hmm… smy tummy is yearning for more now. To be honest, the array certainly had variety. But the chicken biriyani was disappointing. Considering Andhra cuisine I expected the biriyani to be the icing on the top but it was quite flavourless. The chicken stir fry was a bit sweet, to my disappointment.  The desserts were also not  quite up to scratch, sago payasam, pineapple kesari (which needs major work) and fruit salad. I expected some vanilla ice cream for the platter and didn’t think I had to order for it separately.

Well, at the end of it all, I would say Maya is a pretty good place. Go with your family, you will certainly enjoy the food .  The interiors, the cutlery, the service all works in its favour. Its good variety, and manages to blend Nellore cuisine with a dash of variety from a few other cuisines. They can certainly work on the menu and definitely give a serious thought to giving some of the food served a good flavor check.

So getting to the numbers

Ambience : 8/10 (music pulls it down by 2 points)

The place also has a separate place a little to the outside where people can eat in the open. Even though I didn’t get to eat there it still seemed a nice setting to eat in.

Food: 6/10

Service: 8.5/10

I enjoyed my meal at Maya.

I would give Maya a 6/10. Good but has a long way to go. J

The Valentines Day Blog Post

              February, the month of love, the month of Valentines Day, the month to paint the whole town red, truly lived up to that stereotype! Considering the kind of cheesy and love obsessed person I am, I just had to blog about it! As interested as I was in going ahead and celebrating it, I was equally keen on finding out where its roots lay.  Dear Reader, do join me in traversing across the timeline of this ode to love!

There are several stories associated with Valentines Day! Wikipedia’s page made too boring a read and so I switched over to the vast expanse of google that had quite a few interesting suggestions! One version that I picked up from nearly everywhere was this- Three hundred years after the death of Jesus Christ, the Roman emperors still demanded that everyone believe in the Roman gods. Valentine, a Christian priest, had been thrown in prison for his teachings. On February 14, Valentine was beheaded, not only because he was a Christian, but also because he had performed a miracle. He supposedly cured the jailer's daughter of her blindness. The night before he was executed, he wrote the jailer's daughter a farewell letter, signing it "From Your Valentine." Another legend tells us that this same Valentine, well-loved by all, received notes to his jail cell from children and friends who missed him. (Aww how cute) Another legend goes as follows- Another Valentine was an Italian bishop who lived at about the same time, AD 200. He was imprisoned because he secretly married couples, contrary to the laws of the Roman emperor. Some legends say he was burned at the stake. Yet another says that the ancient Romans celebrated the feast of Lupercalia, a spring festival, on the 15th of February, held in honor of a goddess. Young men randomly chose the name of a young girl to escort to the festivities. With the introduction of Christianity, the holiday moved to the 14th of February. The Christians had come to celebrate February 14 as the saint day that celebrated the several early Christian martyrs named Valentine. (We learnt about the whole holiday lifting thing in history- no offense to anyone).

So many theories and still I stand with no clue on how the day actually came about. Anyway, apart from all the theoretical confusion this day holds, practically its one that no one would mind celebrating… As early as 7.30 in the morning, couples walking around, hands tightly held together, or duos on bikes, with the girl clutching the guy tight greeted me. Despite having a psychology exam that day, my eyes only drifted to all those people happy to have found partners to spend the day with.. And me? Well I guess psychology was my date! :P

Pleasantries, wishes and hugs flew around everywhere in school. Who cares about the strict rules? It’s the day of love anyway! Love and bonding was everywhere apart from few people who preferred to consider Valentines Day as an eyesore (they don’t know what they are missing out on now do they?). Consider the happy mood of the post, I don’t want to ruin it by announcing and describing the sad demise of m psychology paper… So getting back, the mood was a euphoric one after the tests. The school lane was characterized by an oddly large number of people walking in twos.! I’m happy I had a person to walk with- my bestest (such a word doesn’t exist I’m aware, but another friends  as unique as mine doesn’t either) friend  :D Its while deciding what I could get my valentine for the day that I realized what an amazing day this actually is. Flipping through every cupboard at home for a nice gift (mainly to save me the trouble of going and getting one), scanning the world of internet for easy gift ideas, digging through the plethora of cheesy ideas in our heads, all makes one memorable experience. Thinking of his tastes, distastes, the colors he/she might or might not like, thinking of making his/her gift the best even though we aren’t dating and are just friends are all amazing things to go through. It’s the whole urge to make this the best V-Day for your valentine that makes this day extra special.

However said  that age doesn’t protect you from love, but love, to some extent, does protect you from age, must have been lucky to catch glimpses of undying love, as I have. Youngsters in jeans, and married couples walking around with the fruits of their love by them weren’t the only ones I spotted. Old people, probably in their 60s or 70s didn’t leave any stone unturned in impressing their better halves. The man, being more robust than any youngster around, and the woman, blushing like a bride, newly wed, brought a smile to every watcher’s face. Its not just us humans who celebrate valentines day! The male dogs in my area used the day to woo their favourite bitches :p. The girls  were left in a dilemma as they has such a range of dogs to choose from, as their valentine! At the end of the day, several canine couples could be seen, sharing their lives and love, with the setting sun providing the best romantic ambience.  It is delight, sheer delight that one gets in seeing such sweet love being celebrated.

For those in love, every day in Valentines Day! J Truly so. And just in case one thinks that Valentines Day is only for couples, then you’re so wrong, my friend. Valentines Day finds itself in the list of fav days even among siblings, friends, parents and their children. It’s a day of love, irrespective of who the concerned parties are. At this point I must confess that my valentines day was so much about my valentine for the day, that I sorta neglected that woman, who has been my valentine through the previous 16 yrs of my life- my mother. (sincere apologies ma, just wait for next year). You’ll always be my first and best Valentine Ma J

Love is like wine, tastes better with age, if taken care of properly.  Valentines day is a day to make that vow, to your better halves, to your parents/siblings/loved ones or even hose friends who you know you are going to be stuck with( :p with pleasure) forever, that you will take care to make this seed of love grow into a fine tree whose fruits can be enjoyed by all. Love too like everything else needs work my friends. The moment you have in your heart this extraordinary thing called love and feel the depth, the delight, the ecstasy of it, you will discover that for you the world is transformed. Life has taught me that love does not consist in gazing at each other but in looking outward together in the same direction.

For all those who hate or prefer to stay away from Valentines Day, I have just one thing to say- you are missing out on one hell of an experience! See how it feels to love and to be loved as well…! It will change the way you look at stuff forever..!

As Lucretius said- “We are each of us angels with only one wing, and we can only fly by embracing one another. “

Wishing everyone a Happy Valentines Day! (Belated, sorry I’m late )

                                      

Burden of abuse of tiny shoulders

India is celebrating her 63rd year as a republic. The expectedly beautiful parade unfolding in Rajghat has many of us gawking with awe at the amazing displays from states ranging across the perimeters of the country. Delhi became a fortress for the first few hours from dawn to ensure that this spectacular display of culture and heritage proceeded with no hurdles. The tricolor is seen fluttering with pride high atop the usual and mundane sight of sky scrapers. Republic day truly is a photographer’s delight!

          But then the day is also an occasion for reflect and reason about the various things happening in the country. When I switched on the television this morning, the first piece of news that greeted me was this “INDIA- REPUBLIC OF THE HUNGRY” with several clippings of malnourished children flashing by. And then came the usual talks of politics, politicians, corruption so on and so forth.  Disturbing as it was, I just pushed aside these disconcerting scenes and went about getting ready for a day out. After an amazing day out, I came back only to find more grave news. “Delhi: 2-yr old bashed battles for life at AIIMS”. 

       

Now this was quite a shocker and not the usual kind of spiced up crap that one could well live without knowing. The very highly spoken of fortress of Delhi stood shell shocked at the appalling condition of this little baby, Falak. She was brought by a teenage girl, Mahi Gupta (around 15 years of age) who also claims to be the baby’s mother. The baby was brought to AIIMS in an unconscious state. The little one, in her life span of 2 years so far has suffered more than one can imagine. The baby has bilateral fractures in both arms, a smashed skull, cheeks that have been branded with marks made with hot iron and human bite marks all over her body. The doctors say that few parts of her flesh were even bitten off. They even suspect sexual abuse which can be ascertained by a gynae only after she has recovered.  If this wasn’t enough, the child has suffered two cardiac arrests. She is on ventilator support. 

 

  

 Falak is now literally battling for life in AIIMS in the neurosurgery ICU. Mahi, the girl who brought her to the renowned hospital on 18th of January claims that the baby fell of the bed hence the injuries. Obviously the lines of evidence on the baby’s form go completely against this rather vague statement. The child has suffered intense brain damage and keeps slipping in and out of consciousness. Her chances of survival are 50-50 and even if she survives she will have to face severe neurological problems. As for her SO CALLED PARENTS, let’s not even go there. For a person who loves babies, this is something that ignites the flame of anger to the max level. Parents, it seems! What sort of parents are they? Irrespective of the shame of teenage pregnancy, one can’t just pummel babies. The poor little things wouldn’t have opened their eyes completely to the world, by then horrendous disgraces to the institution called parenting begin scripting the end of their chapters.

How nice it is to be with children, the purest form of innocence, to see their tiny little fingers thrust out to grasp in every aspect of the world around them, to see their beautiful forms running around the place or making the weirdest yet most beautiful sounds on earth! These angels, these bundles of joy are such delights to see and even more pleasurable to hold in one arms. Such innocent lives with their pure smile, expressive eyes, non-hideous behaviour and sweet little actions are what make us understand and appreciate the creation of new life by nature. It’s just sad when you come across instances where those little fingers are stained with blood, where their eyes are so bruised that they can hardly open their lids, where their innocence and purity makes them vulnerable to abuse in a way that shuts them up forever!  Its heart breaking to see pictures of children, especially babies lying on hospital beds with million tubes and wires and hospital equipment hanging around them, when they actually can be at home in the comfort of their mothers’ bodies surrounded by dolls and all the love and affection in the world. Seeing their lives scarred like this is gut- wrenching for even the most patthar dil insaan on the planet! What’s more is that these toddlers are hardly capable of expressing pain in any other way than screams and tears and they more often than not end up being silent sufferers of whatever torture is meted out to them. It’s just sad that these children are being shut out from life even before they open its doors fully. Children are like wet cement, whatever falls on them makes an impression said Dr.Haim Ginnot. But judging the way Falak is doing, one wonders if Falak will survive to even think about that statement in her scenario.

Dear Reader,

I am not writing this blog with a view to spoil anyone’s day with such grave news or put anyone off or for the sake of it. This blog post is my tribute to all those Falaks out there who suffer in silence, my tribute to all those children whose sufferance is unimaginable but still continue pushing through the traumatic wired fences of abuse. This post is also a strong word of condemning to all those heartless pieces of stone who can actually do such things to the most chaste forms of man. This post is also my prayer for Falak and all those babies who have just had the misfortune to be born in the wrong place! 

 

Beginning and Evolution- From the First Look to the last

At the starting line of life

She was nothing but a small cell

No troubles and no strife

Inside her cocoon, she lived well…

Day by day, a little more she grew

Eager to see the world as time quickly flew.

Fervent to know what wonders the world held

The little excited one wanted no more, to be shelled.

Finally, after a long wait came the big day,

When she got to feel, upon her tiny self, the sun’s first ray.

Her ecstasy and curiosity knew no bounds

How happy she felt to be able to feel, she could not expound.

Soon she phased to a woman, from the tiny toddler she was

Along the way, she learnt to respect herself and mend her little flaws

From being the dependent quadruped, she learnt to stand on her own two feet

Every predicament, all those challenges, with guts she did beat.

There were many times when she felt out and down

Times when even that put on smile couldn’t conceal that frown

Time when she wanted to give up and scream aloud

Times when she wanted to break free and stand out in the crowd.

Little by little, she overcame every failure and tear

Of failure or rejection, she had no more, any fear

Every time she fell, she was quick to rise

Following her heart she went about ignoring all the free advice!

A beautiful mother she soon became  

Troubles didn’t end though and she was still subjected to shame

Despite all the thorns in the path she didn’t quit

With resilience, in her heart, hope’s lamp she lit.

The child grew and soon left his mother’s side

She was left alone again, no one to live for, no one to guide

She waited for her lungs to empty out, her breath to halt

She yearned to go back to the dust she came from, to be covered in mud and salt.

 

Soon she died and left behind of herself not a trace

Society spoke of her for a while as a big disgrace

In realizing a truth, though, they didn’t quite delay

That she had lived her life well, caring a damn for others,

                                                         Living it her own way

Book Review 1: Indulekha - O Chandumenon

(Written in 2010)

In the pressure and mounting tension of my first semester examinations of standard 10, everything other than my lessons seemed to be my focus. As my social studies neared, me pacing up and down through every room of my house, trying to remember the most trivial details in the book was a common sight indeed! Social studies is my favorite subject, but the kind of torture history was meting on me made me despise the subject. As this saga of reading and cursing continued, one little detail in the book caught my attention- the mention of a novel- Indulekha written by mallu author Chandumenon. It was a nice feeling to see a malayali author getting a good 1.5 sides to himself in a standard 10 history textbook. (Call it mallu sympathy or whatever). Thanks to the exams, my admiration had to stop there. After the exams, when I was scanning my aunt’s book shelf for a good book to read, my eyes caught sight of a beautiful malayali girl and the words ‘Indulekha’ written above her. That’s when I sat down to read this book.

“Aristocratic, accomplished, educated in English and incomparably beautiful, Indulekha loves her cousin Madhavan who returns her devotion and holds revolutionary views. She fights a composed and witty battle to fob off the lecherous and elderly Surinambuthiripad who seeks a sambandam with her. When Indulekha uses the first person singular as she rejects his advances, her action reverberates across Nair society” This is what the back of the book read. A look at this and one could definitely conclude that Indulekha was quite a bold book which dealt about avant-garde ideas and one that was quite interestingly woman-centric.

Indulekha which dealt with several topics- the idea of a sambandam, society’s view of Nair women, the prevailing social order, the varying approaches to English education and a subtle love story woven within all this, made this book a very interesting read. The charming, well educated and amazingly good looking Madhavan captures every female reader’s heart. His bold outlook, frank and ambitious nature is truly venerable. Indulekha, portrayed as a beauty with a whole lot of brains, makes a perfect companion for Madhavan. Chandumenon needs to be commended for the way he has described her beauty. It sort of brings the character alive in flesh and blood right before your eyes.  The book brings out several things other than the love story of the protagonists. The way of life, the customs and thoughts prevalent are all sewn into this story with a certain simplicity and elegance. Considering that it was written in the late 18^th century, the book is well ahead of its time in terms of the thoughts that form the foundation of this novel. The follies of Suri Nambuthiripad and his portrayal as a very ignorant and foolish man though of noble blood, makes the reader immediately turn a blind eye on him. However not all is dismal in the Nambuthiri camp. The witty and clever Cheruserinambuthiripad, impresses with his sarcasm and sense of humour and also empathy and is quite a likeable character. Indulekha, a silent sufferer, Madhavan, a hopeless love sick romantic pining without his lady love bring in the emotional factor of romance into the story. The amazingly flowing way in which the book has been written makes us travel along with the characters across various hurdles in their lives. The story just comes alive before us, and I won't be surprised if you too, like me, find yourself immersed in the story.

Practices of polyandry, expecting women to comply with the needs of men are all topics that are quite extensively dealt with through this novel. Chandumenon, a Nair, penned this novel down at a time when tensions were rising between the Nair Community and that of the Nambuthiripads regarding rules of marriage and stature.  The educated Nairs were slowly carving their own niche in society, rejecting the old and dying norms put forth by the Nambuthiripads. Indulekha depicts Keralan society with great élan. The book is sure to be of use to enthusiasts of history, sociological studies and literature. Its simplicity and bold baseline, and a very sweet and touching love story is perhaps what makes this book the only novel to have been reprinted nearly every year for over a century. 

A PROUD SISTER

.               .               . When I was sitting in a birthday party arranged for a little kid I didn’t even know, I was just searching for stimuli to relate to. My aunt was thankfully there to give me company. Known faces to her but alien to me, kept passing by, exchanging pleasantries. Suddenly I heard my brother’s name being taken up for discussion. “He is in Pune, designing an Audi car for racing.” No matter how much I despised him thanks to our childhood rivalries, this particular statement made my heart swell with pride. Suddenly in front of my head I saw this motion picture running with images of my childhood memories with my brother flashing right in front of my eyes as if it happened yesterday.  Sitting inside his room without him feels quite weird now. The walls of the room ooze his style and temperament and just automatically bring back a lot of memories.  Like cat and dog we were throughout my childhood as far as I can remember. We had our share of fights and fun and managed to stay tight. His fascination with my snub nose that turned red every time he pinched it and his obsession with exerting his rights of being elder by eight years and 364 days, always got onto my nerves. But then those were never heavier compared to the weight of protectiveness he showed on me. It was nice to walk around with an elder brother to flaunt to the world.

.               .               . First cousins we may be, but grow up we did together as siblings J He was the mastermind behind several of my broken toys and wasn’t the apple of my eyes back then. But as they say one realizes the value of something only when it’s gone.  It’s only now that I realize that brother and sister are as close as hands and feet. Care, compassion, love, fights, fun, tears are all things that you can share only with a brother and I am happy I had one to share these and more with. A brother is someone you share childhood memories and grown up dreams with. It’s a pleasure having a brother around, someone to lean on, someone to count on, someone to tell on..

I’ve always had your image in my head as this lanky big brother who loves bullying me. But now the avenues of your life have broadened and you're going places too. You’ve made me proud. Times may change, situations may change too. I know that no matter what, no matter how the world changes, one sweetly-irritating person won’t.  

Forbidden Love

One came out at Day
The other graced the sky at night
One with authority and other with a graceful sway
They sure did make a beautiful sight. 


Soon between them, the sparks did fly
Their love grew more profound as time went by, 
Soon, a moment couldn't pass without them longing to be in each other's arms
But meet, the could not, without causing the earth harm. 


Finally, resist they no longer could
At the end of the day and before the fall of night
Meet at the horizon they would
Turning a cruelly blind eye to the people's plight. 


Passion grew so intense that their intimacy burnt the earth
Men, women and children fled from home and hearth
The sun and moon ignited the atmosphere with their love
When finally it was time for some intervention from the one above. 


Zeus, with his trident in hand
Proclaimed loud, that their love was thereby banned,
For having caused all the mess
For the Sun's execution, he did press.


Soon from his lungs, the air did leave
The moon was now shattered, left to grieve
Nothing or no one could console her broken heart
She was crestfallen, her world was torn apart...


Moon spent her life yearning for her mate
Despite the initial anger, people felt sorry for her cursed fate
Nothing could mend the heart of the moon
Live, she did, in an eternity of gloom.