Mental Excursions

Phantoms in my head? Stills taken from Volkswagen ad video My post did not appear last Saturday because I did not write at all. It is true that I have granted myself the freedom of not being bound by subjects or specializations. I can babble about anything under the sun with almost equal enthusiasm, so there should be no dearth of topics for someone like me. Besides, I want to catch you on Saturday mornings Indian Standard Time before all of you get into the weekend mode. So, what happened? I am ashamed to admit that I got distracted. I wallowed in the distractions and by the time I came to my senses, it was too late. The irony is I watched videos (forwarded) on You tube about fighting distractions and how some people who have done great in life, are focused on the job at hand. I can see most of you doing eyerolls! So, I am not going to elaborate on that. Instead, I want to ask you about another distraction. Has anyone ever seen a ghost? Although one does get a spooky or eerie ...

Bride under repair ... on the road! Bumper stickers are a big thing in other countries, but in India, creativity flows in our veins. Therefore, it is not uncommon that even those who do not enjoy their time on the road, see something original written/painted on the back of a vehicle which brings a smile on their faces. (Top photo) How are they going to accomplish this on the road,  in full view of moving traffic? This auto driver seems to hate vehicles behind him honking, so he has a Kaun Banega Crorepati (Who’ll be a millionaire?) level question painted on the back. What happens when you honk in traffic? a.    The light turns to green sooner. b.    The road widens c.    The vehicle starts flying d.    None of the above Now we totally agree with that. Don’t we? Simple warning by BRO, not the brother kind, but the Border Roads Organisation. They chose not to mention that the result of not protecting any other part of the body a...

Hope I am never superstitious, touch wood! Her mother fell in the bathroom but touch wood, there were no serious injuries.   Touch wood , the play does well and the director can finally pay the artistes. We just got the house painted; touch wood , it does not rain now. I met my aunt in Ahmedabad and touch wood, for an 80-year-old she is doing very well. I was late to office but touch wood the boss had his back to the door when I crossed it to go to my cabin. Hope Covid has gone forever , touch wood. We might argue that we are not superstitious, but ‘ touch wood’ has become a part of speech, and at least once in a day most of us utter it and follow that with touching an object made of wood. We are aware that the expression is used (superstitiously) to ward off any imminent misfortune or to invite good luck so that whatever good happens, continues. If something favourable happens, you do not want the spirits to get jealous, do you? So, we say touch wood and actu...

Dive into the world of make-believe! Former US First Lady Michelle Obama dances Bollywood steps Slide your plans to do anything tomorrow aside, plug in the laptop/tablet/phone to charge. If you are the boss of the house or believe so, find a way to have monopoly over the TV and air conditioner remotes. Stock up on chips, popcorn, sugary drinks, fluff up the cushions.   Tomorrow, Sunday, the 24 th of September, happens to be World Bollywood Day.  In spite of the flux of OTT platforms and streaming services, Bollywood is still able to draw viewers to watch stories enacted by mega-sized stars. The two-hours plus hotpot allows one to plunge into a picnic for senses, with romance, action, violence, crime, and a liberal mixing of melodrama , shameless display of emotions . Watching a film is always exciting. Selecting the film, time and company to watch it with, play an important part. Whether you sit in the bone-chilling temperature in a cinema hall with sound surround systems, ...

To do, or not to do If you ask me on a Wednesday what topic I am going to write about that week, most of the times, I am not able to tell. Except the travel-related posts, it is very rare that I am certain what would finally appear on Saturday. Dozens of topics/issues catch my attention, compelling me to share my thoughts with you; yet I write about only one a week. It gets difficult to decide the subject. Making the decision takes me a long time. Sometimes I might nearly complete something, and then decide that the time/topic/material is not appropriate or opportune and change or rewrite. Others call this ‘indecision’ and label me as ‘indecisive’. The dictionary meaning of the word ‘indecisive’ is ‘not able to make decisions quickly or effectively’. Forget the big issues with long term effects, like choosing a career/job/apartment/car/life partner, or ending a relationship, retiring from work, changing jobs, even less significant matters take people like me a long time to de...

Tigerless in Sundarban Inspired by the joyful thought of sharing the account of my travels and trips with you, it seemed an excellent idea to tag along with Mani when he went on a business trip to Kolkata, and agreed to extend it by just a day to tilt it into the category of pleasure. The Sundarbans National Park was never on my list of places to visit but not the one to say ‘no’ to travelling, and with all the recent talk about conservation of tiger population, it was with a fair amount of excitement that I landed in Kolkata. The Kolkata stay was very comfortable. The rain god was in a good mood, so one could open the windows to enjoy the breeze instead of being cooped up in an air-conditioned room. The nearest airport to Sundarban is Kolkata. There may be other routes to reach the park; we drove out of Kolkata, reaching Godkhali via Canning in a couple of hours. The nearly two-hour diesel boat ride with just us two passengers, took us to the hotel/resort we were to stay at. ...