flavour of India

In India, we come across various types of people taking  risks, some times at the cost of their own life. I have a collection of some weird, some humorous, and some scary  photographs which will  arouse different emotions.Enjoy seeing these rare photograhs.

               This lady seems to be enjoying this scary feat.







     Bye ,What a crowd !!  What a journey!!  What a courage!!!




                                   Travelling lock, stock and  ''donkey''

                   What, if there is a flood. Let us enjoy the programme!1




                                          Special Visitors!

                                           Oh,oh,oh! learning to skate??




                                 Comfortable in this luxury bed !!
                                                   






                                        Are  you Research   Students ?      





                                         Welcome , Sir!




                              Ouch!  




                                            A  common sight !!



Written for  Blog A Rhythm, weekly thread 31st  May to 6th June 2015

pics courtesy google, pixabay

wordless wednesday

 



Wordless Wednesday


                            




Wordless Wednesday, coming on Thursday! What is the mystery!!

From all directions , ACarpe Diem haiku

                                             tt


                                                        Coming from all directions
                                                    cool and soothing rays of the moon
                                                           are a  perfect bliss.

                                              

                                                               From all directions
                                                    rain drops falling on her being
                                                        make her romantic..

                                         
                                                       
                                                     Thundering seawaves
                                               roaring,  sound from all directions.
                                                     Baby hides in mom's lap.




Written for Carpe Diem  # 743 ;From all diretions'

pics courtesy google







                                       


















                    

Wordy Wednesday #2 May 2015 # Picture Prompt

                         
                                     



Wow  such fresh  tomatoes! Fit for stuffed tomatoes. Let's make  now .Take tomatoes and cut a round slice. With a knife scoop the tomatoes.In a pan put olive oil, cottage cheese and the tomato pulp,salt  and pepper powder. Stir it  for 3 to4  minutes.Fill the tomatoes with this stuffing. Place the round slice on top and insert a toothpick. Grease the oven tray and bake the tomatoes for 10 to 12 minutes in a  pre heated oven.  Arrange them in a serving dish. with coriander leaves. Amusing to see the kids fighting for the baby tomatoes.. Heavenly, ectastic taste!! 

                               


Pic courtecy google

        written for Blog a Rhythm Wordy Wednesday # 2 # Picture Prompt                                                                                                 

Naming a baby

Damayanti and Rajesh , a newly married couple, while on a honeymoon to Goa had endless  things to share. They went on and on chirping and tweeting.They were travelling in a  Deluxe Bus  from  Mumbai to Goa. Every  one in the bus was  watching them curiously.  The couple, sitting on the seat behind them were enjoying  the romantic sweet nothings. An old couple in  their seventies  were especially excited. These two were indulging in ''chupke chupke '' romance. 
        No one in the bus  could sleep. They were trying to guess what was the subject ,the newly weds were discussing. Two teenage friends slowly  got up and moved behind the honey mooner's  seat. They heard the sweet and cute conversation between them.
D :I want a boy, handsome like you.
R: No, no, no. I want a  girl, as pretty as you.
D and R  repeatedly  went on and on insisting upon their point, with hugs and kisses in between. The two friends listening to them got bored and moved away.
           Another set of people sat behind their seat to enjoy the ''fun',' that  the newly weds were having.   Perhaps they had  arrived at a common  decision to  have a girl (as if it was in their hands). Now their  romantically oriented  argument was about naming the baby girl. If D said Bindu,R  immediately rejected, '' Chh, it is very old fashioned. We will name her  Narbada,   which was not acceptable to D.'' The  people sitting behind , did find any romance or interest in this discussion and went off to sleep.
   Our story ends here . No one knew what was the  conclusion  of their  discussion. We are anxious to know whether it was a boy or a girl and what was she named. Be ready for the  final  result!!
  They had a  baby girl with cute dimples on her cheeks. Today she  is getting married. What was she named!! No unanimity was reached. Due to her dimples, she was endearingly called 'Dimpu'(what a name). and remained Dimpu all her life. 














R

A prayer from the heart

Oh God ,maker of vast world
We thrive under YOUR control
Creater of all living and non living
 beings on  this  vast wide, universe
Your benevolent eye equal for all  
We function under your sole control’



From a high pedestal. He surveys

The kind hearted  and benign souls

They are laden with blessings galore

His  eyes  locate the pure and  kind

Casts  a wide  protective umbrella

Leaving back  His  loving affection.

Oh God , a whiff of your protection

Is all I need till I breathe my last breadth

On your lotus feet, I bow my head down

To give me a pinch of your kind mercy..

After  committing unpardonable  sins

I surrender  to YOU  with hope and prayer.




 Many before me have come and gone  

Heart full of evil thoughts they came                 

But left with  grace and  bounties a plent            

Oh,maker of the  universe I  bow my head

And seek  for YOUR humility and  grace

for  the rest of my  life for ever and for ever.






Pics courtesy
1 Golden  Temple Amritsar
2.Drgah sharif, Ajmer
3Se' Cathedral,Goa
4Tirupati Balaji, Tirupati
5 Akshardham Temple, New Delhi



Written for Blog A  Rhythm  weekly thread 24 th30th May 2015. 

Carpe Diem 738 Not permitted to tell

 Tough journey upward 

no permission to tell the family

women  not allowed.

In reality, there were many temples throughout the world in which women were not allowed.Such temples still exist in South India.Here women aged 14 to 50 are not permitted .

Written for Carpe Diem 738

 Not permitted to tell

pic courtesy google

fragile twigs Haiku

                                               Autumn winds are here
                                         no more the trees bear the  burden,
                                                Fragile \twigs fall.






Written for Carpe Diem Basho Encore  2 , Fragile  twigs

Second Innings

                                               


 The life  follows a set circle from  birth to death of a person. Childhood is a period when  a person knows no worries. It is all play  without  any responsibilities. Then comes a period when the same individual  has to enter the portals of school and college and prepares  to face the ups and down of life. Once his studies are complete, he is left  to look after the needs of his family. This is the period when an individual  is faced with a burden   not only to provide  for the family, but also to ensure that  the children are well settled.
                               This is a story  of Mr. Pradeep Puri. Today he has retired from a prestigious post  of a class 1 gazetted officer.  For the last few days he had  reminiscences about his past. His whirlwind romance with his wifeSuman, their first born, a cute little girl, followed by a sweet  boy, which made his family complete. 
  Like a video player, the real incidents from his life were  being  played before his eyes. He had completed all his obligations towards his family. Both his children were well settled. He had a house of his own. What next? What next? was going on in his mind. There was no other option but to sleep whole day or to read the news paper. There was nothing left to be accomplished. He drifted into sleep.
 In the morning he got up  with a heavy head. While taking his usual cup of tea, he switched on the TV. A cricket match was on. The commentator announced,'' The second innings is going to start.Hope India will do better now.'' SECOND  INNINGS . These two words went on and on in his mind. Suddenly he got up and said loudly,''I will play second innings. I will not give up.''
               He contacted the Social Welfare Department and expressed that he would like to do something for the poor children. He was provided with the addresses of poor families.   Now Mr. Puri was fully occupied. He taught poor children and also catered to their small needs. He  and his wife went for morning walk and remembered their days of romance' Mr Puri assured her that he would soon write the story of his love. He  fulfilled his promise to his beloved wife. The book named, ''Reverse Gear'' was released on her birthday.
            Tomorrow is Mr. Puri's eightieth birthday. Both his children were present. Mr Puri looked smart and healthy for his age. His children requested their parents to live with them, but they refused.''No,'' he said,'' Only now WE have all the time in the world to romance.'' 


                             
This is a fictional story

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

Wordless wednesday posted for B A R dated 29th May 2015
pic courtesy  Google

Uff these maids!

Have you noticed that where ever two or more ladies have assembled what is the topic of discussion. Generally  there are three  favourite topics ie(.1.) the maid  (2)sarees and (3) husbands. There are a few more subjects, like children, and  the boss(in the case of working ladies) . But it is the maid who generally takes the precedence.
                                             Just flavour this conversation between a maid  seeking appointment and the lady of the house.,Mrs Ahuja. The maids, these days know their importance, and hence  umpteen conditions are  laid down before they are appointed. A woman in her late twenties is being interviewed. From her appearance she doesn't look like a maid, with all that dark lipstick and a bright sari..  After the initial introduction, the interview continued.The  mistress told her,''You have to reach here by seven o'clock. Immediately the girl replied,''So early!! I get up at seven o'clock.I will reach here by eight.'' As no other option was available, the mistress had to agree.The would be maid asked about the salary. The maid demanded twelve thousand.After heated discussions the salary was fixed at eight thousand per month 
                              Next day, (the first day  of the maid) she arrived at nine 'o clock. When questioned,, she laughed and said that she over slept.  Mrs Ahuja gave her a disapproving look, but the maid walked in , as if she had come too early. As soon as she entered the kitchen, she asked the mistress,''Where is my  tea? All madams  prepare  tea for the maid.'' Now this was 
 ridiculous. She was waiting for the maid  for tea  but the maid expected her to prepare tea, as if she was a VIP. Mrs Ahuja bluntly told her  that in her house, it was the maid's job.She had already prepared  breakfast  for hubby and the kids. The maid prepared a quick breakfast and said, ''Madam, please switch on the TV. I will watch TV, while I have breakfast. The mistress peeped inside the room. The maid had merrily made herself  comfortable  on the sofa and was enjoying.Mrs.  Ahuja  called her. After half an hour the maid came and told the mistress,''Madam , I will just go the next house. I will wash the utensils and come back fast''. Without waiting for the approval from the mistress, she rushed out. She returned and started cooking lunch. In the midst she would come and stand, narrating some gossip from the neighbourhood. The mistress was not interested, so she would return disappointed to her cooking.
                                       Some how a  month passed away. There was a kitty party in the neighbourhood.  Mrs Ahuja went there. There was all chitter chatter.Suddenly one lady addressed Mrs. Ahuja,'' I  have heard that you have become very serious''. Mrs  Ahuja looked  surprised. The hostess said,''Your maid has been telling every one that you are a very hard taskmaster''.  It goes without saying that  after reaching home, the first thing that Mrs Ahuja did was to dismiss the maid.
                              A search has started for a new maid. 
Written for B A R  new thread, 17th May to 23rd May 2015.




























 

Sweetest songs tell us of saddest thoughts

''Our sweetest songs are those that tell us of saddest thoughts'', these famous words of an English poet, Shelley, were adapted by Talat Mahmood, a famous ghazal singer. Who has not heard of Talat Mahmood! He was the Ghazal King of India. No one can match him in singing  ghazals. He started singing private ghazals. The ghazal, ''Tasveer teri  dil mera behla na sakegi''I was in my teens  when I heard this song. 

Talat Mahmood

He was a good looking  person and had an ambition to join movies. He tried his luck , but did not succeed as a hero. In one of his early movies,Waris, he acted as a hero with Surraiya, who was a rage in those days.  The songs were popular, but the  movie was not successful at the box office. A duet  from  the movie is presented. Rahi Matwale

The next song is from the film Sujata. This is a very sweet song.Jalte hain jiske liye.

The  next song is a very romantic  song from the movie Sangdil. Filmed on Dilip Kumar, Talat's silken voice has a special flavour in his voice. Yeh Hawa Yeh Raat Yeh Chandni

Now a song which is an all time favourite. The song is pictured on DevAnand, who has rendered it in his styish manner.Jayen toh jayen kakan from Taxi Drivefr

A ghazal from the movie, Foot Path, has Talat Mahmood's voice at its best. Sham-e gham ki kasam aaj gamgeen hai hum

Meri yaad men tum na ansoo bahana from the movie Malhaar is a famoius ghazal.

In the year 1958 Talat Mahmood mada another attempt at acting. The film was 

Sone Ki Chidhia . Nutan was the female lead in the movie. The song, pyaar par basto nahin hai mera was one of my favourite  songs.

Talat Mahmood died on 8th May 1998. This a tribute paid to him.

Videos courtesy google

Enjoying old age

This year  I  will celebrate my eightieth  birthday. Many people feel shocked when they come to know my age. Actually there is nothing which makes old age a  stage which is painful,  full of miseries and difficulties to face. On the contrary, I  take old age as a period when  there are no worries about the drudgery of day to day life, when you have to plan and execute several  issues related to your  family and yourself. At my age I am a free  bird, can go anywhere at any time I wish to.

Without giving any excuse, we can go any where , at any time and for as long as we  want. We need not justify the reason for our  long absence from home.

                                 In our youth, we had many problems, which we  had to face and solve. Now we have all the time in the world for ourselves. Age is just a number. Our heart is always  young. In the company of our spouse, our gray hair, our  back ache and our fading eyesight are forgotten. We only cherish the company of your spouse.

In our younger days, when did we have the time to relax in the  company of our spouse?

                      

Old age has its own  thrills and joys. It is only at this age I can sit undisturbed in my balcony and  enjoy each moment of the rising of the sun. One can go out and enjoy the beauty of nature.
 Somerset Maugham  said''The complete life, the perfect pattern, includes old age as well as youth and maturity. The beauty of the morning and the radiance of noon are good, but it would be a very silly person who drew the curtains and turned on the light in order to shut out the tranquillity of the evening. Old age has its pleasures, which, though different, are not less than the pleasures of youth''. Life is all about family, friends and well wishers who have  lived with us and shared our joys and sorrows. 

I know that sometimes  I forget things, but it hardly matters. All the important  milestones of my life are fresh in my mind.









I  end the post on a humorous note,




 so have a good time.



pic courtesy google