Pure & Simple!

Mornings are beautiful. Perhaps that’s why we call them ‘Good Morning’. But not every morning is always a good morning. A pimple is enough to turn an awesome morning into an awful one. Pop it appears and everything else gets spoiled. Especially when you have that important job interview or a dinner date, trust Murphy’s Law and this face menace is always there to give your confidence a tough competition! Damn! Why me? Why I don’t have a normal skin? Why do I have to constantly sleep with the fear of an outbreak the next morning? Forget beautiful, even having a normal clear pimple free skin is like a dream. If you too have oily skin that is prone to breakouts like me, you would understand what I mean. My whole teenage years were more of a constant fight with pimple problems than studies. The worse was when everyone around me was more worried about my skin than me. Suddenly everyone around me became a doctor and started advising me on how to tackle pimples.  One would say go for facials, the other would advice to go for natural products like multani mitti (Fuller’s earth). Some would swear by the benefits of besan (chickpea flour) while some would say apply curd. Then there were also patrons of papaya, lemon, tomato, cucumber and what not. Sometimes looking at my plate I would rather want to put it on my face than in my mouth. But that wasn’t all; there were some really crazy and embarrassing ones too. Like, “perhaps your stomach is not clean, eat papaya every day”. As if my poop has got to do with these pops. Hahaha. God! What days were those! For all the 9 months I would eagerly wait for the 3 months of winter, when everyone around me would complain about itchy, dry, rough and flaky skin and I would be glad of my oily skin, for a change. But that happiness was always short lived. Soon summers would strike and my super shiny, super sticky skin would be back with pimples and their marks. Shining with full glory to make me look ugly & gory! Gosh! Even remembering about it makes me sink into a sad state of mind.

 But all this was way before I got this amazing product introduced into my life- Garnier Pure Active range. I saw their promotions on TV and print. But that wasn’t enough for me to get convinced. After all everyone claims of giving you a pimple free skin but is having a pimple and marks free skin really possible? So I wrote to their customer care with my query. And it was really nice of them to revert back to me. Actually I wasn’t expecting them to answer back. They also sent me one pocket booklet that contained detailed information about skincare, explaining the various layers of skin, how oily skin functions and the 4 magic steps to clear skin- Cleansing, Toning, Mosturising and Exfoliation. For the first time I got to understand not just about my problem but my skin in detail and also understood on how to take care of it. After all it isn’t as hard as it seems. I  had to just replace my soap with Garnier Pure Active face wash containing real Neem Leaf and Tree Tea Oil extracts, exfoliate with the Pure Active Blackheads Uprooting scrub once a week and for those sudden breakouts I have this magical Pure Pimple Control Pen that vanishes my pimple like it was never there. Now I know what to do and what not to do with my skin. I have  stopped worrying about my skin and started loving it.  If you too want to fall in love with your skin then here is the solution http://bit.ly/GarnierPureActiveNeemWebsite. For more tips on skincare have a look here http://bit.ly/GPABlogLinkIndiBloggerActivity

A ray of hope...cut short

It was the year 2009. I was fresh out of college and was working in my first job as a reporter with a city based web portal. Though travel and lifestyle were my forte fleeting into the human interest stories every once in a while was always a welcoming change. On one such occasions while flipping through a local daily I came across a very small write up about an old age home run by two young men. Now what's so interesting about it? These guys , in their early twenties, were professionals working with well known MNCs. The old age home was an outcome of their passion towards social service that consumed almost all their off-work hours. Now that makes an interesting story, i though. A story that needs to be told to everyone. In the urban rat race where we often get engrossed in consumerism and self-consumption, the though of helping the needy and giving back to the society often remains, just a thought.So i asked my boss to allow me to cover this story and gladly he did. On reaching the old age home i met Parthasarathy. One of the founders. He was a young, energetic man. Quite jovial and friendly. We chatted for a while about their inception, the residents of the home, how he manages to run it on his own, what keeps him going and stuff like that.While he spoke, he kept doing his daily chores at the old age home like giving bath to the bedridden ones, feeding them, going to each one of them and inquiring about how their day. He also introduced me to the residents. I was amused to see how this young guy, just few years older to me, could posses so much compassion and care. When most of us cared about earning a good salary, achieving our dreams and scaling high on our social status, here was this guy who was giving a new leash of life to the ones abandoned by their own people.

My meeting with Parthasarathy lasted for few hours but the incredible impression this guy left on me lasts till today. So much so that a person like me who is terrible at remembering names has till date not forgotten his pure Tamil name. So this X'mas when i was hunting for the poor and needy on the streets for sharing some homemade Christmas treats, my husband suggested a more organised way. Why not associate myself with an NGO? So the first thing that came to my mind was Parthasarathy. Like most of you, the changing phone syndrome has made me lose most of my old contacts. So i headed to the cyber space to get back in touch with him. Even after my repeated attempts and searching on almost all social and non-social sites I couldn't find Parthasarathy. Little did i know why. Dead men don't make their presence online. After changing my key words from Parthasarathy to Aarathy (His charitable trust) i could finally reach out to them, and then came the horrible news. Parthasarathy is no more. Horrible indeed. Whats's more horrible is to know that he was a murdered. And if that sends a chill down your spine then better i not reveal that he was married for barely 6 months and his wife was 4 months pregnant at the time. Ever since i came to know about him i can't get over this question. Why bad things happen to good people?

More than expressions of my emotions through this post i would like you to know  about this noble soul who is no more among us. The aim is simple: a tribute to this fantastic social servant i feel fortunate to come across. And if in case you are curious to know more about the trust this might help http://www.aarathy.org/about.html . This post doesn't intend you to send in your donations or help. But if you feel to do so, you can. There are many well known NGOs but NGOs like these that are run by individuals are the ones who need your help the most. The trust is now managed by Parthasarathy's friend Suriyakumar.   

My Beautiful Food!

Mixed in a delicious array of yogurt, saffron, and exotic spices. Marinated for hours to perfection. And then slow cooked in firewood to bring out a flavourful creation that’s one of its kinds, known to the world as, Zafrani Gosht. A Mughlai culinary artifact made out of tender lamb infused in the flavours of freshly roasted whole spices and cashew nut gravy to create a delicacy that lingers in the taste buds.

A beautiful dish presented in an equally beautiful dishware. Glass. Not an ordinary one but Borosil http://www.myborosil.com/.  Pure and pristine. Enabling to see through each layer of the rich brown gravy flowing over the contrasting white bones cozily  wrapped around their succulent, melt-in-the-mouth meaty counterparts. Making way in between the creamy gravy are the tiny little pieces of whole spices. Totally submerged and their flavours well incorporated. On topmost is a layer of pure desi ghee, revealing the true royal self of the dish. And finally, a dash of décor with freshly chopped coriander leaves. Wow! To accompany it is the long-grained basmati, eagerly awaiting in the Borosil glass casserole kept next. Warmth and aroma well intact. Need I say more? Dig in!

ArVind Of Change

There is something in the air….

A revolution. An election. A better selection.

There is something in the air…

The craze. The blaze. The gleaming new phase.

There is something in the air…

Something honest. Something modest. Something to make India the best.

Soapalicious!

Yesterday i got this soap as a free gift from a saree shop here in Kolkata. Look at its ingredients- Papaya, Avacado, Pomegranate & Cream. Yummy!! I seriously felt like eating this soap than bathing with it!! ;)

Jaya Ho Ya Mamata Vote Sabko Mangta! ;)

Mama Mia!

Woman is certainly the most beautiful creation of God. Without her the world would not have been so charming or rather there would have been no world without her. She is like the solitaire of a golden ring whose presence enhances the beauty of the ornament and without which the ornament is not worth a wear. Whether it is the four walls of her home or the cubicle of a corporate giant, she plays many roles in one single character of woman. Pick up any face from the crowd and there you will find her- our 21^st century working woman. Like the one I come across everyday in the local train. Her charming accessories can catch the fancy of any eye. Her sense of style can leave the fashionistas far behind. She is flawless in her dusky skin. She is beautiful. She is unique. She is just like my Mia. http://mia.tanishq.co.in/

A gypsy selling accessories in local train

So what if she is a gypsy? Does that mean her beauty is not worth any appreciation? Does that make her hard work less acknowledgeable? Doesn't her everyday interactions and persuasions with the customers amount her to a working woman? She isn't fortunate like many of us in many aspects but she is certainly one of us. She too has her own set of sacrifices. Her own share of dreams and desires. Her own joys and sorrows. Her own work and her own way of making her work beautiful. She is my Mia Woman. 

She too balances her work and home life, and sometimes balances a little better than us. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qq3Kh-tHsyk&feature=youtu.be

Home delivery anyone? :P

This one i came across in a property fair. Creative or not, i leave that to you but certainly eye catching and gives you a good laugh! 

I lost my life

Now I'm dead

The soul has left

Just the body is kept

Alone and ail

It’s gone all pale

Lifeless and hopeless

I closed my eyes

And now I’m dead!

Jeeyo J.K !!! :)

Now this one is from Facebook, yeah I mean sourced out from there. Doesn't it make so much of sense and definitely a great feel good factor while gulping down that sinful dark forest pastry without a guilt!!

Well said Rowling, can't agree with you more on this!