In a lighter vein, JK?

On a lighter note, May I, Ms Jayanthi Krishnan ?

 

I return from my early morning walk, open our front door to step in.

A commanding voice rings out from some corner of our home where She is dusting..

‘Wipe your shoes properly on the door mat outside!

Stack your shoes in the shoe cabinet,  neatly!!

Peel off your sox and drop them inside the washer!!!’

And I give a silent salute, whisper ‘Yes Ma'am’ and perform all these tasks diligently before I unhook my headphones and switch off my iPod!

Yes, I kow-tow to this supreme being every day and much before I prostrate myself in front of the panel of gods and goddess and offer my morning prayers.

And my short prayer to the Gods happen after a short ritual.

She places a small velli kinnum (silver bowl) of freshly boiled and sweetened milk.

Then She keeps a copper tumbler half-filled with freshly drawn water from our Aquagaurd inside the puja room.

And then I enter the small puja room, perform a quick aarati.

And I thank the Gods & Goddesses for all the good thing they have doen for me , my family, my friends and relatives,  and every one in general (saha kutumbh).

And request him to preserve the status quo.

And this strict regimen we follow every day.

And Yes, our house is run by no one less than  a 5-Star General!!

And many times I wonder if the  CO  (Commanding Officer) & Subedar Major of our NCC camps were this demanding and so particular.

I remember those times (hours) spent in polishing my brass buckles, shining my shoes  to a glassy finish and ironing my clothes to get that knife-edge crease!!  And folding my sheets and blanket and placing them neatly under my pillow and my duffel bag tightly tied and kept on the side.

And cleaning my .22 and later my .303 rifles and lugging them for the inspection & parade.

Inspection happens at home too.  

On days when I dust our bed cover, fluff the pillows and  make our bed, She would keenly scrutinize, align the pillow edges and smooth out the small wrinkles at the corner before giving me a satisfied sign off!

Jayanthi and I come from two different backgrounds (and that is a sober understatement).

I was brought up in a small smelly (every  place,  during those days, smelled of fresh and dried cow dung, horse droppings & wet mud) town in Uttar Pradesh (now UttaraKhand) town.

Dehra Dun or the Doon Valley is situated @  the  foothills of the Himalayas.

And I grew up in that rustic, unsophisticated environment , a raw small town kid who was spoilt for a fight and who could stream out a mouthful of choicest Hindi and Punjabi Gaalis within seconds!

(Punjabi Gaali = a dirty phrase punctuated with one relative and one body part)

And Jayanthi was raised up in a traditional orthodox & conservative Iyengar family from the the well known area, T Nagar in  Chennai.

Her parents ran a boarding school & a coaching center. Her grand father was a member of the Theosophical Society of India, and her dad was an active Lions Club member.

And they lived in the heart of T Nagar, near the famous Pondi Baazar and close to the cultural hub of Vani Mahal  (where they were life members)

And fate bought us together on that memorable Good Friday of 1982!!

Three months later, we got married !

And Jayanthi, aged  19 years & 6 months, moved into our home as a newly wed mattu-ponnu (daughter-in-law)

And, from a sprawling mansion-like house in T Nagar surrounded by huge palm trees and mango trees and tamarind trees, she came into  a two bedroom flat on the second floor of an six  storied building  in Bandra East , Mumbai. Must have been difficult.

It was claustrophobic for me too when we had to move from our modest house in Dehra Dun (with a lawn in the front and a kitchen garden at the back) into this flat.

And to top it all, at that time we had my mom & dad, my dad’s mom, my mom’s dad & mom and my youngest college going sister all in this flat!!!

And very soon my dad and mom left for Bahrain, leaving me & Jayanthi (mostly her as I traveled very often) to take care of the rest of the family.

Since then, but for a few years, we always had some elders staying with us.  My Grand dad and Grand mom for a long time, then her aging dad and mom next  to us and then my dad who moved in with us after my mom died.  And my dad at 90 years stays here with us here mostly.

So she has seen, experienced, endured and managed bravely every possible challenge an elder person can throw at you - be it making food to appease their cravings,  observing the traditional rituals on religious and festival occasion (which invariably involves elaborate cooking and serving many people), taking them to the temples, to visit relatives  and hospitals frequently.

And they can be extremely demanding and She had to  stoically bear up with their tantrums and frequent bursts of anger,  administer medication, clean up the mess they make most times, and much more. And frequently train and manage the frequently changing full time nurses who are so unpredictable.

All said and done..

We have successfully completed 37 years together. (I am also counting in 50% of the time I used to spend travelling during the first 10 years of our marriage, another 25+% over the next 15 years, and an average of 3 days  a week that I spent in Gurgaon for the another  8 years)

And I would not hesitate to claim that we have shared our responsibiolities and burden equally.

Like the house we built in nearby Vinayaka Nagar ..

She approved the blureprint, supervised the construction on a daily basis, stood in the Q for BSSB water  & BESCOM connections and finally fought for the Katha and managed to get it!

And I, very efficiently and periodically, without questioning, signed all the payment cheques right from the initial advance amount up to the final settlement!

Like when we bought this SP apartment.

She came periodically, surveyed the progress and signed the cheques.

And I diligently ensured that she had enough balance in her account!

Like raising our daughter Anusha

She sat with and helped Anusha with her homework most evenings,  complete her weekend assignments and cur pictures from mags, made charts and cardboard models for her summer project work.  

And I taught her  to climb the big slide from the sloping side, ride a  bicycle  and blow a wolf whistle! (wolf-whistle = the technique of placing you right thumb and index finger under your tongue and blow out  a very  loud, sharp and piercing tone). And I even taught her how to modulate it as well.

Like raising our son, Sirish

She would go thru his school dairy every day and help him complete his assignment. When he missed a day, she would call up his classmate’s parents and get an update.

And I diligently typed out his leave letter and signed them . And also his quarterly report card !

And I even bought him Lego. Mechano and Jigsaw sets to sharpen his mind!!

Like shopping @ DMart

She would mentally make up  a list of all things to buy and walk thru the  aisles and pick  up things she wanted. And after checking the expiry date she would then hand them over to me.

And I  followed her closely behind, pushing the huge overloaded cart.

And you know how challenging that could be, especially when you get one of those carts with misaligned wheels that get stuck every now and then. And you have to push them at a specific angle if you want them to go straight!

And I also swiped my card and entered the pin @ the checkout counter!!

And over time, I am glad to say,  we  became specialists at our chosen areas and wonderfully complemented each other..

Even in areas of decision making which could be a highly contentious matter in many house holds.

Not in ours and we rarely have any clash of egos.

I totally support women empowerment…

Hence Jayanthi  takes all the decisions related to our household and connected with our family.

Whether it is  buying this flat or trading-in our car for a new one. Or how much Diwali Bonus to give this year and what should we eat tonight.

And I focus on the broader challenges like Nuclear arms race, Global Warming , World Hunger. And the future  impact of  Artificial Intelligence and Bio-Engineering !

And I also seriously consider all decisions related to the future of Mankind!!

Krish..

Lalitha Sahasranamam & Navaratri !!!

Many of us would be aware of Visnhu Sahasranamam  which is the chanting of the one thousand (sahasra) names of Lord Vishnu. It is said that Bheeshma while lying on his death bed taught Vishnu Sahasranamam to Yudhishtra.

Though it is called Sahasra Nama (1000 names) in fact it contains only 901 distinct sounding names. Eight hundred and fifteen names are repeated once, Seventy-five of these names are repeated twice, nine of these names thrice and two of these names four times. The acharyas have attempted to give different meanings to the same word in different places successfully. (Ref: Hindupedia).

Lalitha Sahasranamam ? How many of you know??

Lalita Sahasranamam contains the thousand names of the Hindu mother  Goddess Lalita Devi, considered to be a manifestation of the Divine Mother (Shakti) or Goddess Durga (Parvati, Mahakali). The names are organized as hymns (stotras). It is the only sahasranama that does not repeat a single name.

Lalita sahasranama is said to have been composed by eight vaag devis (vaag devatas) upon the command of Lalita. 

These vaag devis are Vasini, Kameshvari, Aruna, Vimala, Jayani, Modini, Sarveshvari, Kaulini. The sahasranama says that "One can worship Lalitha only if she wishes us to do so".

@ Sobha Palladian…..

The tradition of chanting Lalitha Sahasranamam every Friday evening was set in motion by Ahila & Venki as soon as some of us early settlers moved into Sobha Palladian. And within a few months families volunteered and took turns to host this chanting in their house . And this practice has been continuing uninterrupted for more than two years.

Once the group got proficient in reciting one set of sholakas, they would start learning a new set and thus a lot more sets of shlokas got added to the main chanting practice

Last year, this group decided to have the chanting session each day of the Navaratri season – during the 10 days of Dusssehra festival. And each day was hosted in one household.

And the ladies decided to wear a different colored saree each day.

Thus adding some zing &  a good dose of glamour to their godliness!!

This year , the number of families have increased and hence the group decided to have two chanting on some days , so that every house got the chance to host.

And they chanted a variety of songs & verses including Lalitha Sahasranamam, Mahishasura Mardhini, Lakshmi Ashtothram, Saraswati Ashtothram, Sri Suktam & Medha Suktam and a Thirupugazh for Aarthi (nadha vindu kaladi namo namah..)

And here is a chronology of the 10 day event.

Day 1, Sunday 29 Sept’19.

Color theme :  Bright Orange signifying the break of dawn/start of a new era!!

@ Ahila & Venki’s

Prasadam :  Shakarai Pongal & Payaru Sundal
and

@ Seshambal aunty, Prabha & Hrishi’s

Prasadam :  Kesari & Pattani Sundal.

Trivia :  A Navaratri story as told by my Patti .. 

Our country, Bharatavarsh was rich and prosperous. Everyone was happy and making merry and wallowing in their wealth. And they totally neglected acquiring knowledge and investing in reading the vedas and improving their mental faculties.

Goddess Lakshmi became very angry. In order to teach them a lesson, she took the form of a giant white horse and started rampaging the fields every evening.

The elders and rishis recognized this challenge and advised the people to appease the goddess and invest in reading &  learning.

So every evening the people made Sundal (made from boiled grams/pulses) and offered to this white horse. For nine days continuously they made sundal from nine different pulses (nava daniyam) and offered to Goddess Saraswati. On the ninth day they made the horses’ favorite Kothhu Kadalai (Black gram) sundal and celebrated that day as Saraswati Puja, The day of learning.

In south the next day, Viajaya Dashami, also marks the initiation of young kids to school & learning.  And in Vellore I have also joined a bunch of kids led by  Nadaswaram and Taval musicians and gone on a parade to the nearby school where our teacher took my hand and guided me to write  (A) and  !!  and I wrote on a slate with a balabam kuchhi. (a wooden-framed black shale tile and a sharpened piece of thin hard calcified pencil)

Those were the days !!!

Day 2, Monday 30 Sept’19.

Color theme :  White.  It represents purity, cleanliness, peace and knowledge. The goddess of knowledge, Saraswati is always shown as wearing a white dress, sitting on a white lotus..

@ Saroja aunty, Nirmala & Raghu’s.

Prasadam : Sakkarai Pongal & Karamani Sundal!!!

Nostalgia : In Dehra Dun, every year, religiously, my dad would take all of us to Ram-Lila maidaan, which was near the famous Paltan Bazaar & Ghanta Ghar (Clock Tower). A huge dusty ground where huge effigies of Raavan, Kumbhakaran & Meghnath were erected. Stuffed with firecrackers and decked in brightly colored  glittering paper, Raavan, in he center , sported a huge mustache that went all the way on both sides to both the ends of his 10 heads!

And as the evening & the crowd grew, the place became dustier and filled with smoke. Wonderful smelling aroma from the frying Bhuttas. (corn on cob) Smoke from the shakkar gandhis (sweet potato) sizzling and roasting on hot coals and the ubiquitous thick smoke billowing from the hot earthen pots placed on top of that huge mound of Moong Falis (un-shelled peanuts). And along with that were the standard big glass jars containing Revadis & Gazaks made from freshly  harvested til (sesame seed)!!

And we would watch all the the effigies burn one by one as the loudspeaker blared with Jai Shri Ram and other chants. Dehra Dun, that time was predominantly a Jan Sangh stronghold. So you can imagine the fervor with which all such events were managed.

Jan Sangh was the predecessor to Janata Dal and BJP.

And we would return home after buying the mandatory set of teer-kamaan (bow & arrow), a Hanuman mask and bright colored bangles & scarfs for my sisters.

Those were the days !!!

Day 3, Tuesday 1 Oct’19.

Color Theme: Red. Signifying energy, wealth and celebrations. Goddess Durga & Lakshmi are depicted wearing red.

@ Baby aunty & Bhuvana’s

Prasadam : Mysore Pak, Karuppu karamani thitheeppu sundal (sweet black beans) and paan-beeda

@ Jayanthi & Krish’s

Prasadam : Karamani (lobia/black eyed beans) Sundal.

Trivia : The Navratri Golu depicts scenes from ancient times - celebrated Indian stories that have been passed on from generation to generation like the Ramayana, Puranas, and the Dashavataram. This is the time of the year that you revisit those precious lessons from timeless, age-old stories. The steps may also be interpreted as the evolution ladder that we are all traversing in the journey of life.

Checkout the wonderful Golu Display @ Sukanya & Mohana’s.

Day 4, Wednesday 2 Oct’19.

Color Theme : Royal Blue, the third primary color. It spiritually signifies the Healing Power of God. It is the most sublime color which represents, bionically, the Word of God. .. ( Ref. Google)

@ Lalitha aunty, Jayashree & Nataraj’s.

Prasadam : Aval Kesari (poha keasti) & Karamani Sundal.

Trivia :  Navratri is a celebration of Goddess Durga’s victory over the demon Mahishasura. A victory of good over evil. To end the atrocities of the demon, the Gods created Durga. Mahishasura wanted to marry her as he was fascinated by her beauty. Durga agreed on the condition that he defeats her in battle first. The battle went on for nine days and nine nights. On the tenth day, Durga emerged victorious as she killed the evil, buffalo-headed demon.

Listen to this wonderful recital of Mahishasura Mardhini that was recorded live by Nataraj!!

Day 5,  Thursday 3 Oct’19

Color Theme : Yellow.. Has stood for wisdom and intellect throughout the ages. It aids logic, memory, concentration, will - power and communication. Yellow is full of creative and intellectual energy. (ref Google)

@ Sukanya & Ashwin’s.

Prasadam : Kesari & Konda-kadalai Sundal (Kabuli chana)

Trivia :  Worshiping the nine planets: To propitiate the nine planets for a life of happiness and plenty, in some parts of Western India, ladies plant nine different kinds of food grain seeds in small pots during the nine days of Navaratri. The young saplings are then offered to the Goddess.

Day 6, Friday 4 Oct’19.

Color Theme : Green.  The color of life. Of rebirth and renewal!

@ Padma & Venkateshwaran’s

Prasadam :  Payaru Sundal  & Aravana  payasam (made of red rice, jaggery, ghee, cashew, coconut pieces, cardamom & dry ginger)

Aravana payasam was delicious and out of this world !

@ Sridevi & Ramesh’s

Prasadam : Semia Payasam & Konda Kadalai Sundal

Trivia :  The Saundarya Lahari (Sanskrit: सौन्दर्यलहरी) meaning "The waves of Beauty" is a famous literary work in Sanskrit believed to be written by sage Pushpadanta and Adi Shankara. ... Its hundred and three shlokas (verses) eulogize the beauty, grace and munificence of Goddess Parvati / Dakshayani, consort of Shiva. (ref: Wiki)

Day 7, Saturday 5 Oct’19.

Color Theme: Grey . Calmness & detachment. It is the color of balance and neutrality. 

@ Sangeeta & Mahadevan’s

Prasadam : Coconut-Besan burfi and coconut rice.

Trivia :  Here is another not well know story on Golu and Dussehra. Could be a modern ‘creative spin’ on the whats App. But nevertheless, interesting.

Goddess Durga is the 'Shakti' created by God Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh in order to curb the powers and kill the demon king Mahishasur, who had grown extremely powerful after getting a boon from Lord Shiva.

And the Goddess needed tremdndous power to fight the fierce and prolonged battle. So all the Gods and Goddess transferred their powers to Durga and they all stood still as statues all thru the nine days & nights of the battle. 

Hence the prominence of Gods & Goddess in Golu !!

Kind of neat explanation , is’nt it ??

It is also believed that Goddess Durga visits her mother with her children Ganesh and Kartik on the day of Durga Puja and returns to God Shiv on Dussehra.

Day 8, Sunday 6 Oct’19

Color Theme : Purple.  The color of royalty. The color purple stands for independence and liberation of one's mind and feelings.

@ Lalitha aunty, Jayashree & Srini’s

Prasadam : Ashtami Prasada Thali offered as Samardhanai.

(poori,halwa, til-coconut-peanut-jaggery laddu,rajgeera sweet, sweet potato-potato subji,fruit,coconut & a lifafa!!)

Jayashree and Srini had just returned from Char Dham viz., Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath and Badrinath. And as per South Indian tradition the  devotees would perform a ‘Smaardhanai’ after  completing such an arduous journey. (Over a period of 15 days trekking over 3,00,000 steps, over 160 KM.)

Samaradhanai is a general prayer to all forms of the Almighty, offerings and feasting with the congregation. Samaradhana means thanksgiving to the deity and is celebrated with prayers and feasting with all friends and families in togetherness. (Ref. Google)

Day 9, Monday 7 Oct’19.  Ayudha Puja, Saraswati Puja !!

Color Theme : Peacock Green (Bluish Green or Greenish Bllue). Signifies Vision & spirituality. The Peacock is associated with Goddess Lakshmi who represents patience, kindness and luck.

@ Sudha & Kumar’s

Prasadam : Semia Payasam, Burfi & Pachha Pattani Sundal (Green Peas Sundal)

Trivia :  Ayudha (implements & tools) Puja - Worshipping computers & cutlasses: On the ninth day of Navratri in Tamil Nadu & Karnataka, implements used to earn a livelihood are worshiped. In some places even weapons are worshiped. For most of us it was Computers, CDs and software, books and musical imnstruments.. Of course, vehicles, machinery, rifles, machetes and cutlasses are also worshipped. And you can see Buses and Autos and Trucks beautifully decked with flowers, banana fronds tied to the grills and splashed with sandal paste and kum-kum!!

My car too sported a pair of banana fronds, triple stripes of vibhuti and a few splashes of Sandal paste!!

Checkout this beautiful live recording of Lalitha Sahasranamam

Day 10, Tuesday 8 Oct’19.Vijayadashami !!
Color Theme : Pink : Represents universal love for everyone. Pink represents friendship, harmony, affection and inner peace!

@ Mohana’s

Prasadam : Fruits Custard & Rajma Sundal

Trivia :  Lord Rama was a worshiper of Devi Bhagwati, the supreme power. He worshiped her for nine consecutive nights to emerge victorious over Ravana in the Dharm Yuddh. On the ninth day, Lord Rama proved his devotion to the devi and it was on the tenth day he emerged victorious after killing Dashanan (Ravana). Since then different incarnations of Devi Bhagwati are worshiped and it is on the tenth day Vijaya Dashmi is celebrated.

The end of Navratri, or the tenth day, marks Dusshera. 

And the ten hectic days came to an end @SP.

A Big Thank You to all the hosts and the enthusiastic participants.

And especially to all the senior ladies who attended regularly without a single break.

And to Seshambal aunty for teaching the first 50 shlokas Soundarya Lahiri so patiently and with so much dedication.

And most importantly  to the many new-comers and other invitees and guests for participating so eagerly and wearing the theme colors!!

Krish & Jayanthi.

The Two Facets of Sixty !!

Sobha Palladian is a wonderful place!

It has a wonderful mix of people across all ages.

Starting from infants and yet-to-be-born infants to 93 year old veterans!!

And there would be more senior citizens than juniors under 18 years!

And amongst the SrCz’s we have a good number of defense folks who have seen action in the battlefields, corporate honchos who have played war games in the boardrooms, and many ‘Pros’ who have fought against market forces, competition and managed intricate political designs to succeed and get to where they have reached.

And now all of them are happily settled in Sobha Palladian!!

And if  you could compare what they were in their ‘hey-days’ to what they are today, it would be a very interesting study.

My life is one such case study.

I crossed 60 four years back.

And I have changed quite a bit.

Between 22 to 59 years, that’s 37 years, I worked in a corporate.

Chasing numbers, living (surviving) from one quarter to the next, year after year.

I have seen much action. Been there, Done that! Many times.

It had been a furious rat race. And many times I have been in the lead pack.

And that meant I was one fat & mean rat!!

And in my eagerness to win and win it all, I have done many unpleasant things. Some out of sheer desperation and some for that sadistic pleasure of beating the S%*! out of the adversary!

At times I have been ruthless, arrogant, unforgiving, impatient  and a self important snob!

And my lifestyle played along with this attitude. Working hard & playing hard.

Smoking more than a pack a day, I have also gone overboard over my coffee and drinks.. Until the docs found dark patches in my lungs. And gave me a choice between the red-pill and the green-pill (Matrix style)

By the way have you tried that beer made from Basmati? TOIT used to serve some years back.

And that does not mean I have not done my bit of  good deeds.

I have done more than my share of hiring promising freshmen, coaching them and nurturing their careers. And I am proud that many of them today head big companies and country businesses. I have helped out large number of customers in tight situations, bending company guidelines  and relaxing warranty policies  and a few of CSR activities as well.

And I have equally taken pleasure in trampling people’s toes,  driving hard bargains, beating the h@!! out of competition with guerrilla marketing, under-cutting deals, poaching channel partners etc etc etc..

And now, when I look back at all these misdemeanors, I feel sad.

What if I had not done those unpleasant  things.

I am sure I would have still survived.  Maybe I would have missed a couple of opportunities.  But that would not have made me any poorer.

Nor would I have gone  hungry any day.

And as I get older, subconsciously I seem to be making amends to some of those misdirected actions. Maybe  to atone myself ? Prayashchit ??

And  so I have changed !!

 And here I am generously borrowing from a wonderful  Whats App message that has been doing the rounds for quite some time. Unfortunately I do not know who is the original author so that I could give him/her the due credit and ask permission to use the material.  You may recognize some of what I say …

  

I am no longer all that important. I am not at the center of the universe and the world does not rest on my shoulders anymore !

I have stopped bargaining with vegetables & fruits vendors. A few Rupees more is not going to burn a hole in my pocket but might mean a lot more to them. But I do bargain for a fair price to bring down the price of that croton plant and the ceramic pot from the astronomical price quoted. And I may pay a little more depending on the way these folks behave & bargain.

I do not insist on getting the odd change from Auto and Tax drivers. Thankfully Paytm has solved most of this challenge now.

The other day I could not find a five rupee coin  nor a ten rupee note. So I gave a 50/- rupee note to the  pathetic & disheveled beggar woman outside the temple. The surprised look of delight and the shower of blessings I got in return were priceless!

I stopped telling my 90 year dad that he had  already narrated that story many times. After all, the story makes him walk down the memory lane & re-live his past. And I am happy for him.

I do not correct people even when I know they are wrong. Why spoil their fun or their beliefs. If they are happy and it does not hurt me, its peace!

I give compliments freely & generously. And I give all feedback ratings  a perfect 10!

While I do point out any deficiencies clearly and raise it up to the managers, my final score is always a 10. I believe detailed and qualitative feedback are more useful for improvement than numbers for a bar chart.

I do not bother about my clothes combination anymore. Blue jeans and white shirts/ kurta make up most of my wardrobe. A crease or a stain on my shirt/pant does not upset me anymore.

And I have happily given away most of my blazers and suits and my collection of Laptop cum overnight strolley bags. And most of them to Nepali cowkidaars and security guards from north east, when they go back to visit their families . 

I can never imagine doing this 10 years back !

And my collections watches and pens and those fancy raw silk & pure cotton ties.

Once upon a time I would meticulously keep track & gloat over them and lovingly clean/polish/press them every few months. Now they are just scattered in my closet in some corner and I am not bothered even if a few are missing.

And I have surprised a few of my relatives’s kids by presenting them one of my fancy watches or pens . And I would hand then a 500 rupee note telling them to buy a new original refill or a battery cell.

 I do not need them now. I have all the time in the world and all my writing is on my PC MS Word  set to Calibri 16 font size!!

  

I remain cool when someone jumps the queue at the checkout counter.

And I no longer throw an abuse or curse at the impatient and ill-tempered Call-center cab drivers when they sit on their horns and try to overtake me from the left. ‘Wonder why he Is so eager to reach his FINAL destination so soon’, is my only observation.

I answer all kids questions patiently. I have been asked “when is library open ?’ a hundred times. And I am happy to answer in details each time.

Yes, I am changing.

I've learnt to live each day as if it's the last. And one day it will be my last. And until that day every hour is a present!!

I am doing what makes me (Jayanthi included) happy. After all, I am responsible for my happiness, and I owe it to me.

And I must call up all my near and remote relatives and make time to visit all those ones who are in town and nearby.

Yes, I must make up for all those lost times and opportunities!

Krish..

Two Movies You Must Watch !!!

Last week, Jayanthi along with a group of her SP friends (all giggling teenagers@heart), went out for a movie. 12 noon Matnee show.

And I was abandoned, home alone. With half a tumbler of milk to make my own tea. And 4 sad looking (bought out) dosas stacked inside the microwave.. And a small katori of dangerous looking red chutney.

And the calm serene environment inside my home created the right ambiance for me to fire up my computer and type out this post.

Happy Reading !!

Two films I saw recently on Amazon Prime.

And I strongly recommend them for  the very same reasons that they did not become box office starrers nor get top 5 star ratings and raving reviews.

Dhunki: A 2019 Gujarati film starring Pratik Gandhi and Deeksha Joshi.

The Wedding Guest: A 2018 English film starring Dev Patel and Radhika Apte & produced in UK/USA.

Reasons :  They do not have superstar casts and were not backed by huge promos. So they were not aggressively sold. And they still survived to make a decent ROI.

There was no masala or hit songs or fancy foreign locale shootings either.

TWG is in English - So more than 85% of the target audience that loves Hindi or other regional languages was lost.

Dhunki is in Gujarati with English subtitle – and obviously for similar reasons.

Both movies are good to watch – not because they are great in any way, But because they are so ordinary and easygoing (mediocre may be a harsh term)  that they will have a soothing  effect on you.

Imagine you had a a hectic day @ office – an exhausting business negotiation, or  a firefighting situation or an intense counselling session with a difficult employee. And you want to reformat yourself.

You can go to a pub and sozzle yourself. That will help suppress your  feelings, like a steroid , but will not cleanse & relieve you of your  stress . And you get a nasty hangover as well.

Or you can go home and get irritable and pick up a fight with your family – Not advisable.

Or have a quite dinner, nestle up in your den with a chilled glass of your favorite and watch these two  movies back to back !

And I can assure you that you will soon feel peace, de-stressed and maybe even end up in a peaceful slumber and wake up the next day fresh as a daisy!!

Alternately if you are retired and bored of watching action packed thrillers on NetFlix or those Horror ones on  Hot Star, then these two movies will be a refreshing change.

Both will detox you, and leave your mind sober & peaceful. Much like an annual mental pilgrimage to Tirupathi or Vaishno Devi.

Or else imagine your partner is on a long tour, and the maid does not turn up, and predictably the power goes off.  Your day heads south. And  on top of this you go for that dreaded dentist appointment,. And you return back all psyched up. What do you do?

Just mix a tall glass of chilled lemonade on the rocks, add a shot of Bombay Sapphire Gin if you will. Curl up into your favorite bean bag and switch on these two movies back to back !!

Guaranteed solace and peace rolled into one!!

And with that I end my promo pitch and get to the review.

Dhunki story revolves around two sober software engineers,  Nikunj and Shreya in a startup company.

So obviously  you do not expect Nikunj to fight 5 local goondas single handed. Nor does he punch the big fat  one and launch him up 10 feet into the air and see him roll midair and fall back to the ground in slow motion.

And Nikunuj is married to Ankita (Kaushambi Bhat) even before the movie starts. So there is no college scenes, no skirmishes and ego clashes before love ultimately blossoms.

And while Nikunj”s profession is Software QA, his passion is Cooking!  And very soon you see him quitting his job and starting is own food catering business. And its USP : good healthy food supported  by an easy to use on-line ordering App!!

And Nikunj is struggling with his startup (nothing unusual). So he has little time to attend to friends' birthday parties, participate in group dances like those in Karan Johar’s films,  or take part in quawali contests.

And his other colleague, Shreya – ditto.

Except that she has the additional burden of managing her possessive & high maintenance fiance’.

So no sugar, no salt , no spice ! No Onion no Garlic either!!

You are served a Gujarati version of a plain diabetic Jain meal at best.

And this movie rolls on for 135 mins  at a very leisurely pace. And you can almost predict what will happen next  and obviously the story gets centered around work life balance and cash flow challenges and chasing potential investors for funding . And haven’t we seen that so many times ??

There are some mild background  songs. And Thankfully NO slapstick comedy or forced suspense, nor unwanted action and fight sequences  to spice up the mildly boring  story-line. And I must give credit to all the actors and directors for they somehow just manage to keep you awake and sufficiently interested so that you do not switch off.

And the 135 min, you spend in a mild trance that soothes your frayed nerves, brings down your pressure, calms your pulse rate takes you to a level on Neo Bliss.

Nice sober acting by all and particularly Kaushambi’s expression and her subdued smile are great to watch!!

And what happens in the end. A happy ending or a uncertain suspense ?

Does it really matter ??

The Wedding Guest is dubbed as an Action Thriller.

I only saw some mild action, a hint of suspense and definitely zero thrill element. Never once did my pulse rise nor did I get on to the edge of my sofa.

An interesting story of a hired professional Jay (played by Dev Patel) , who kidnaps a Pakistani girl Sameera (played by Radhika Apte) from her house on the eve of her wedding. And she is smuggled into Amritsar at the behest of her lover  so that they can elope and drop off from the radar of all their families. Apparently the lover boy and the girl both grew up in London and planned to marry ….  until the girl’s family decided otherwise.

And even the best of plans fail. A security guard gets killed during the snatch and scram operation and the kidnap cum killing makes headlines both in the Pakistani and Indian media. And basically s*&t hits the fan!

Lover boy chickens out and wants to dump the girl back into Pakistan and run. The hired pro does not want to baby sit an unwanted bride any longer and the story takes an interesting turn.

Not for long. The lover boy gets killed in a fight  and the story-line gets thinner and thinner as the pro and the girl travel by road from Jaipur to Goa . And the plot maintains just the bare minimum stickiness level  so that your eyeballs do not drop off the screen.
And as one can understand, the Stockholm syndrome takes over and there are some intimate scenes between the kidnapper and the kidnapee.

Again this movie has no intentions of giving a great social message nor does it have any lofty ambition of wining an Oscar!

It just manages to continuously transition your attention from one slow-moving scene to another and it does a great job at this.  And your mind is blank , body comfortably slouched into the sofa corner and the second refill of your favorite erases all traces of your day’s stressed out memories.

Dev and Radhika are at their mature best. And they carry the story throughout with not  much support from anything else. Good direction , good clipped British accent and no extra baggage.

And during  the last section of the movie, Radhika Apte, very briefly , but boldly flashes certain parts of her anatomy.

Interesting & nice,  especially for a pair of  64-year old eyes to see!!

And if you ask me what happens finally…

Does it really matter ???

And if you are really particular, Chk it out for yourself!!!

Krish..