Charuta Pens

’11 Roll of Honour

Charuta — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 19:24:32 +0000

Yay..My fourth roll of Honor & well time just flies…

So after 2008, 2009, 2010 here is the list of 2011….ta da ta da

…and it has to begin with

THE Event of my life:

I am proud to announce the arrival of my son, Aadya(आद्य).
Aadya(आद्य) is a name of Lord Ganesh, which means the First One, Respected One.

Me & my son

Aadya was born this September and this entire year has been almost about him

Will post some detailed posts about that later when he gives me the time..

AND followed closely by..

I Shook Hands with GOD.

I met Mr. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar just before the World Cup and I could’nt do anything else that day!!

and this one was a collective Indian dream ..

Now the regular ones…

Gizmodo ‘11:

Used my existing ones this year, was strongly tempted to buy Samsung Galaxy Note but chose to wait for Nexus Prime in Jan 2012.

Yep. M has rubbed off on me

M has ordered BB playbook yesterday so maybe I can add that to the list too. Yep. I have rubbed off some on M too

Wheels ‘11:

I wanted to buy a car this year but the plan got postponed as I was not allowed to drive when I was expecting.

So this year it was the wheels of Aadya’s cradle if they count

Havent watched as many films as pervious years ..but still

Best Hindi Film ‘11:

I would have to say The Dirty Picture. Vidya Balan is simply a powerhouse and she makes a strong case for us women who are not surfboards.

And yes D.K. Delhi Belly for the sheer wackiness!!

Best Marathi Film ‘11:

Ashamedly none, I didn’t watch any of mention.

Best English Film ’11

I liked Ghost Protocol, MI-4 not the least coz I raced in my pajamas to the theatre and bought last tickets in front row , when for once I got A to sleep in time for last show.

Talk about a movie buff!

Best Book I read in ‘11:

Oh..read quite a lot of books this year….

but not much would fall under enduring literature..

Liked Time traveler’s wife the best..and of course What to Expect series.

Best Food I had in ‘11:

Ohh lots of food this year when I had the license of cravings

Existed almost solely on chaat during the queasy first trimester and then it was pav bhaaji!

But the best was the awesome South Indian food during my Banglore-Mysore trip.

MTR thali is to die for. I was so sluggish after the meal, that I literally dragged M to the nearby park bench for a nap before we could continue our sightseeing.

Best Drink I had in ‘11:

Khatri Mango Mastani wins hands down for sheer quantities I had ( its a miracle I lost my pregnancy weight) and the quality!

Best Place I visited in ‘11

Mysore and the lazy babymoon in Mahabaleshwar in torrential rains!

Hmmm..looking at the list, my pregnancy and baby have influenced most choices and I ain’t complaining. It’s a helluva of a journey and it has just begun, as Sonu croons..

Abhi mujh mein kahin
Baaqi thodi si hai zindagi
Jagi dhadkan nayi
Jaana zinda hoon main toh abhi
Kuch aisi lagan iss lamhe mein hai
Ye lamha kahaan tha mera
Ab hai saamne
Issey chhoo loon zaraa

So adios 2011, hope the Mayans are wrong and I get to write another roll of honor next year

Have a good one, all of you!

lyrics courtesy: http://www.lyricsmint.com/2011/12/abhi-mujh-mein-kahin-lyrics-sonu-nigam.html#ixzz1i8oIywbq

Well said Marley!!

Charuta — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 12:58:01 +0000

I’m not generally not one for PDA on WWW, cryptic posts is the best I get, M has an even stricter policy than me…but sometimes an exception banta hain…M whenever your feed/blog lines show up this post…this one is for you

Indian lunacy anybody?

Charuta — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 10:40:41 +0000

Mohsin pointed out this site Encyclopedia of American Loons and we spent quite a few amusing minutes speculating if there was an Indian version too..something like Encyclopedia of Indian Loons..

That sure would be a rich list..with all the politicians, saffron-men-wanting-to-be-politicians and all other people who adorn the India TV type channels…what say you?

Lesson Learnt

Charuta — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 04:34:00 +0000

Never be a participant when you are supposed to be a spectator, however strong the temptation.

I mind…

Charuta — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:29:29 +0000

I don’t mind being naive ( though most of the times I accept taht only when events clearly show that) where most people are sensible or cover their tracks.

What I really do mind is when my naivety is exposed to me callously or unknowingly….

It REALLY hurts either ways and makes it that tiny bit more difficult to take life in your stride..

Flashback

Charuta — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 09:03:28 +0000

Today while M was driving me to work, the car radio started playing, “Saathiya..” from the film Saathiya released in 2002-2003…

Both of us looked at each other, our faces in a grin & daily tasks thoughts being shooed away by the days in college when this song ruled roost.

Though we went to same college, we didn’t know each other then and both of us were lost in our own threads the song brought, but bound together by the common thread of nostalgia…

For me..this song was one of the first one I had on a special customised CD (big deal when CD writers weren’t as common or cheap) , Vivek Oberoi on his bike the collective fancy of girls in our room, the movie we made our older sis pay coz we were short on cash..then again seen with gang to catch Vivek & Rani..( I seriously can’t think why we liked Vivek so much back then )..the song blasting on somebody’s PC while we completed or “tepoed” journals midnight before submission , the same song blasting on tea stall when I could eat 2 wada-pavs in one go and not bother about calories & BMI etc etc..in short full on reminiscing about the “summers of 2002-03″…

and then song ended and the RJ announced that he will be back after a break in “Flashback” to get some more of such forgotten but melodious songs….n grrrrr..like scratch on tape…….M & me looked at each other, snapped back into reality.

Are so we so ~~old~~ grown-up now that songs we identify with as youth plays on Flashback?

I’m consoling myself that the RJ didn’t get better songs to play on Flashback today..

One Day

Charuta — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 08:48:17 +0000

I wonder if anybody has read this novel..One Day..

Well, today is such a day in my life, over close to a decade, exceptionally good & exceptionally bad things have happened to me on this day regularly w/o fail. ( V, no reference at all to your b’day, enjoy your day )

I had the option of staying hunkered in bed today, my throat infection which refuses to respect the antibiotics providing the perfect guise..but somehow it’s just not me..I want to break the jinx…

So far, the day has been totally uneventful & for once I am happy the way it is. Crossing my fingers that it continues to be so..

Will write a P.S. about the how the day was..and it would be great if I have nothing to write.

P.S. : Yep, the day was totally uneventful. yay!!

’10 Roll Of Honor

Charuta — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 07:38:55 +0000

Yay..My third roll of Honor & I feel good about continuing at least one resolution:

So after 2008, 2009, here is the list of 2010….ta da ta da :

Gizmodo ‘10:

Android entered my world this year & how!

Somebody could really woo me with a gadget Thanks a lot !

Motorola milestone has been my trusted companion for most of the year. Not just me but friends also have gotten used to turn to me for snaps being clicked, updates noted & shared instantly.

Also, loved the various gadgets I got to use at work & home : iPad, Dell Vostro, Samsung tablet.

Wheels ‘10:

Still Flyte serving faithfully, but I was really tempted to buy Ford Figo.

A car is definitely on cards for me in 2011

Best Hindi Film ‘10:

I eagerly went to a lot of films this year & most didn’t fail to disappoint , the only exceptions being Dabangg & Robot!

Salman IS a rockstar & Rajnikant GOD!!

Best Marathi Film ‘10:

Unfortunately none, I just watched one film & didn’t like it much.

Best English Film ’10

Hands down, Inception. What we think about Dreams will never be the same again..rather, its one of all time-favorites.

Awesome concept & awesome execution. And it did touch some raw nerves..

Best Book I read in ‘10:

An overall good reading year given the frantic pace of life this year.

To kill a mockingbird. I know I know, you read it at school, my bad, I didn’t know something such wonderful words existed till this late.

Liked the 3 cups of tea too. Read some more books ( part of my resolution to read 50 books in this year).

Best Food I had in ‘10:

Lobsters in Langkawi, shaadi ke boondi ladoo (anybody’s shaadi will do) & just yesterday, an awesome chicken pizza baked in a wooden oven at Mariott.

Best Drink I had in ‘10:

Masala Coke @ BBQ Nation (13 glasses between 3 people) & the Arabica filter coffee at home, freshly brewed with the CCD coffee maker (do get it, I can negotiate almost anything with my hubby in lieu of a steaming mug )

Best Place I visited in ‘10

Taj Rebak Resort, Langkawi.

Never had such a luxurious stylish holiday.

So adios 2010, this has been the most eventful year of my life and yes I am grinning at the end!!

Wrapping up 2K10..

Charuta — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 06:40:29 +0000

I have always been fond the final week of the year, and the air around me is buzzing with farewells to the year gone by and plans for the new year.

I plan to celebrate it in my own way with posting some end of year posts.

I don’t know if anybody else reads those, love you if you do, but they are serving to be a great chronicler of my years for me to reminisce about.

Do check out my reading blog as I try to update my reading list and see how far I have come in resolution to read 50 books in this year

So let me start with a new year greeting which I got off Mark’s great blog.

It’s a video greeting card sent by a VC firm, FirstRoundCapital. The video has the firm’s portfolio companies doing a new Year jig.

Very warm & very smart marketing at the same time. Have a look to see what I mean.

Blogging Heroes

Charuta — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 15:09:37 +0000

Hey, guessed all fellow bloggers would like to read about this:

http://maryawrites.wordpress.com/2010/12/21/top-blogging-tips-by-best-bloggers/