Yet another day..

Its just another day when I can't figure out what to write here in my not-so-popular blog. Interestingly, I have been surfing the net for tips on how to get my blog popular! But I don't think my errand came of any use what so ever....I have about a hundred friends on facebook and I have linked every other post on my blog but not a lot of people turned out to read my blog let alone follow it. My blog is not of the type which has something important to say. I have nothing sensational to share, I take no interest in writing Book reviews or music reviews regularly perhaps I am the girl next door telling you what happens to her everyday. I thought about sticking to write something which is more often read by an average reader but then I find these random posts a lot more enjoyable to write than something I will have to force myself to write.

I completely understand the fact that there are not a lot of people who would be anywhere near excited to learn about a simple Indian 17 year old trying to leave a tiny mark in this visibly huge world. I feel like this cute little star lost somewhere in the milky way galaxy, singing her own song and trying to shine hard.Wow! That was highly poetic I suppose. I do get mistakingly poetic sometimes you see...its only in these kind of moments I spare a few minutes and jot down a poem. I cant repeat these kind of moments again as per my convenience though that would have made me some kind of a poet by now but alas these moments are like some bolt of lightning or in my style, I puke out some rhyming lines on and off without any warning!

There are no fascinating pictures here on my blog. I don't live in a magnificent countryside or something of the kind so that I could flaunt some high resolution pictures.(actually this place is sort of beautiful but my readers, we are not allowed to take pictures of this place, for the sake of national security, This being an important IAF base!) All you can see is my own pretty face and some of my immature sketches.

The bottom line remains that I shall continue to type away my regular life as it is in the hope that my musings find some readers.Busy days are coming ahead, its about time we started packing as the shifting time is inching near. There is a cousin's marriage I have to attend some time soon so you can get to read the first hand experience of THE BIG FAT NORTH INDIAN WEDDING in coming days. Then Ill be taking off as a fresher to college within a month or so, that gives me more stuff to write but amidst of all that I may find myself being nostalgic thinking about my school life that is now left behind and the life Ill have to leave here in Agra. Living my life is a roller coaster ride I guess with no time to scream "Whee" but just enough time to get myself out of the shock and get accustomed swiftly to every change.(unfortunately I suffer from air sickness!)Till then Ill wait for the next instance when I can share a piece of  life.

I do believe in fairies...

"When the first baby laughed for the first time, its laugh broke into a thousand pieces, and they all went skipping about, and that was the beginning of fairies."

When little mumu read this she knew what Peter Pan was talking about.That little girl grew up into a little lady but in her heart she was still like Peter Pan....the boy who refused to grow up.Here she is now, typing away her crazy thoughts! (Yea...I know mumu isn't a conventional nick name!Apparently my mum decided to call me mumu as I made similar sounds as an infant!!)

All my life I have believed in the fairy tales i read as a Kid...one day you get up to find yourself amidst magical beings trying to figure out your life and helping you make your dreams come true!Be it Pinocchio...looking for the Blue fairy to turn him into a real boy or the little girl whose flowers kept blossoming with magic!As I grew up I was rebuked and told now and then that real lives are not like fairy tales.At times I told myself..maybe they are right, there is no magic in the real tales.But I am happy to declare that they were wrong!I do have a Tinker Fairy of my own she goes skipping about when Im happy & tries her best to make me smile...sometimes I can hear her ball ringing in my ears.maybe if you too hear closely you might hear her bell!

Wondering why am I romanticing this post?Well, Antheia my readers, has reached a new platform.Remember something about me appearing for NIFT 2010?Yes, I cleared it with AIR 28!!I was a long way through the written & Situation test but I finally made it to the top!YE ME!YE my tinker! Believe it or not I can feel her sittin on my shoulder cheering for me!After four solid years I will be professional fashionista!!Tell you what even a designer like Ritu Beri has been a NIFTian.So far so Good...now I am waiting for 19th June..the Counselling day.I wonder where my life will take me next?Wow!I might find myself beside people from Dior! 


Okay I ll tell you the story...it was in mid December last year when i asked my dad if i could appear for the NIFT entrance.He said yes but he wanted to know if i was really interested.I couldn't say exactly if i were interested, but yes who wouldn't wish to be in the league of Gorgio Armani & McQueen! But the hitch was that the exam fell rite ahead of my board exams in the last week of February, my school farewell just on the second day.The mist soon settled down and I found myself filling up the entrance form. 


Days passed & soon I could count the day till my entrance. A week before I scrounged the net for sample papers and tips.Thanks to some blogs I had a vague idea about what to expect from the paper.There are two papers, the GAT (general ability test) and CAT( creative ability test).I was kind of certain that i can crack the General ability test as i had no trouble with the kind of maths they asked, the English they have in the paper was comprehendible plus i have a knack for GK.But I was not sure if mt drawing skills were impressive, as a typical science student, I knew how to draw a cyclotron but I had no idea how to get a Female face right on a blank sheet of Paper.The damsel in distress needed help and to her pleasant surprise help was not far behind! Thanks to a few meetings with my lovely neighbor Sangeeta Aunty, I could put the pieces together for my written test.


The day before the exam me and dad were off to Jaipur, the exam was at some Bal Vishwa Something school! The next morning I dressed myself in my lucky highneck floral top and my good old blue jeans, I hopped into the car ready with my pencil colors!Daddy activated his GPS and we were off to make History! As we finally reached the center, I saw a huge crowd of girlies plus a few guys here or there and their mum dads.Interestingly, all i said all of them were dressed to impress as if they were to be awarded marks on the basis of their attires!As it was late feb, the sun was warm enough though the last remnants of the chill had not yet left but still you could find chicks sporting spaghettis & short skirts.I am the youngest among all my batch mates, as you see i started school earlier than others and on top of that my baby chub has not left my face, if you were me you shouldn't be surprise if a 12 year old comes your way and flirts with you at the local swimming pool! (yes this has happened!)So, in that crowd of matured faces, Kohl lined eyes and extra slick cell phones all the eyes looking at me were shouting out loud "What are you doing here Kid?"Haah...there I was, a little misfit amongst the mature faces!The first paper was better than my expectations but i was still dreading the CAT! I picked up some home made lunch in the car then dad and I decided to explore the nearby mall.I had some yummy Blackcurrant ice cream (my good old favorite flavor!) and soon we were headed back to the exam center.


My most dreaded moment was here!The paper had three questions in all, first was a grid of plain boxes in which you have to illustrate the given emotions, the kind of fire cracker I am, i naturally went ahead with the word ENTHUSIASM and piled the whole grid with bright colors with full vigor, I became so excited that I could see someone was staring at me!Second question, draw a postage stamp on given themes...I was missing my mummy by this time so I went ahead with the Mother's Day Stamp & drew all I could relate to it, I tried to make it look like its really me and maa in the picture.Last, draw a pencil sketch on the given scenes, detailing is important.Wow!That was panic time!I had no experience of shading & pencil sketches!O Hell!Now I really wanted my mommy!But then I took a chance on the theme Magic Show...the next half an hour was like Tug of war!I could feel sweat trickling down my neck and my palms went red.Thankfully by the end of the paper I was convinced that this was the best that I could have done.After the paper we went home bade goodbye to my granny and her pug daisy and headed home.I told maa i did well but the truth is I still didn't know what to expect.(its normal for me, after every exam i come out totally blank with no idea what so ever)


By April the result for the written exam were out, I was jumping up and down the moment I saw the green colored word Shortlisted next to my name!Next stop was NIFT Delhi, the Situation test on 24th Apr.OMG! AIEEE was on the next day...what was I to do now?We decided that i could chuck that exam as I never fancied being an engineer.Now this situation test thing was new to me, we were asked to bring stuff like tape and glue along with us to the center.More research over the net cleared the air....we would be asked to make something out of the stuff they will provide with the help of the stuff we have.SOS!What now??I told myself that there is no possible preparation I can do now with just some days left plus I am a mess with things like Paper Knife and PVA glue so just leave it on lady luck.I left for Jaipur for my summer vacations


Apr 23rd was here before I could wake up.It was me and Dad again scaling the Delhi-Jaipur Highway, my buddy Avikant was more than just surprised to hear i was doing something like this, he asked if I had planned this beforehand, obviously I hadn't!It is very typical of me to end up doing things I never planned and even more typical of my destiny to land me in situations unthinkable.The next morning we somehow survived the irritating Delhi traffic and reached NIFT,Hauz Khas after losing our track many a times.


I was welcomed at the larger than life NIFT campus with the same feeling, my friends back home even commented that Ill possibly be kicked out of the campus by the guards who will say "This place is not for kids, silly!" but fortunately THAT did not happen!Once again I was among well dressed youngsters dressed to certainly kill the onlookers!After the last experience I tried to look good too, again in a floral A-line long sleeveless top along with black leggings.I was looking chic!(at least I thought so!)


I was soon seated in the basement, I could see some familiar faces around, the people I saw at my examination.Our syuff was in place and we were soon handed over the question paper.I attempted the one which wanted us to make a mask on NATURE CARE and then write down our ideas on the given sheet...hmm..I thought for a moment and all I could remember was Antheia, the Goddess of Blossoms.I made a simple yet practical mask showcasing the elements of nature, the flora & fauna, the sun and water.Jotted some sentences about what I was thinking, made a table telling what i used where and why and lastly a string of key words related to my masterpiece alongside a rough sketch of my model.Like i said before I wasn't sure even this time if I did well or not but still I told everyone that I did well!!


On 18th the result was out...shockingly the baby faced underdog made it! ;)

At the Bottom of the Ocean..

Finally today I have a lots to write...strange title isnt it? But this post is nt like any other.Its for a dear one who will surely see the titles significance.I know, even I dont wish to keep you in darkness...this honey bun is Ankita aka Blueberry Cheese cake aka Paharon ki rani aka Paro.
I met Ankita back in '07 on a pleasant spring evening in a birthday bash.back then the two of us were quirky teens with red zits adorning our cute faces.She was deliciously thin as for me...pumpkin could have been a nice nickname.Hey chikita....remember Vaishakh and his crazy lines!!(sorry Vaishakh!!if you ever happen to read this...) Soon enough we had to part.
she found me a year later via social networking and the next thing I knew, she was coming back to me!!As they say, true love keeps bouncing back to you.We spent hours together talking over the phone, taking long walks on dulcet evenings and further still chatting over the net.

Did i tell you that we are poles apart? I am Ms.Pink Panther while she is the Punk Princess and what you have here is a delicious cocktail...PinkiPunk!!I love Pink, she adores blue..I groove to jazz and its Rock all the way for her.I am the Geek she is the Punk.That reminds me, we even planned to get our kiddos married my Pinki with her Punk, what a cute couple they would make! Trust me guys, this is just an instance of our wild world!!
We met as dreamy eyed girlies with only each other by our sides to endure....well..lots of stuff!Now as we part...we have transformed into young ladies who are sure of what they are looking for.We are looked at as a weird pairing and mostly we have found ourselves in knots but I would stick to the fact that we have a little world of our own and there are certain parts of me that I have never shared with anyone but her.
How can I ever forget my Chinese Budday and tonnes of other inside jokes I share with her.I am a little introvert when it comes to flaunting emotions but I promise you kid Ill turn into a broody hen if ever you need me.(you have seen that avatar of mine, haven't  you?)Even if you don't need me your Basanti will forever be there with you.At this very moment you are scaling miles across the globe and I am here at loss of precise words to give form to what is on my mind.(yea..I am going a little hay wire here!)
I sat down to write a lot of stuff but look at me...I have reached a dead end here.i think I'll sign off from here and let you understand the rest like you always do.

P.S. Please don't kill me for posting those last day pictures!I think however we look...ITS US at the end of the day...the way I want us to be forever.
P.P.S.Hope you didn't forget my present from Europe!He he..I'll be waiting for it! 

Moving to dehli

Yea.. you got that right! I am yet again moving my headquarters from Agra to Delhi. Dad has yet again been posted to Vayu Bhavan and that means Im going to have a whole new home, new lot of friends and a new city to discover. Till now I have spent my years only on small to medium towns and living in a Metro will be a whole new experience.I don't know how I ll take this transition of a small town to one like Delhi.I am so used to living in the confinement of an Air Force Station... everything at a walking distance, friends at your doorstep, away from the chaotic city.  I have visited the Capital hundreds of times but still dint get the hang of it. I have planned to do my higher studies from Delhi university or NIFT. God knows where my results will take me... I am counting days for my CBSE results. Lets hope I survive with a decent percentile.
I see moving to Delhi as a great opportunity for there I can surely pursue Classical Dancing ... it has been my fondest childhood dream, though I learnt Kathak in my formative years... but I want to take it to a higher level. I have mixed feeling in leaving this town. I have spent four years here in Agra...I came here as a pumpkin like geek teenager and now I will leave as a young independent lady headed for college. I found out a lot of things about myself, grew into a more responsible and self reliant individual.(maybe!) I ll miss the woods around my house, the swimming pool nearby and the heart warming scenery near the Runway.I ll miss the Taj..though I did not visit it so many times as you would think but yes whenever you behold it, there is an abrupt rush of beautiful feelings inside you. But mostly i am sure to miss the Agra Chat wala in Sadar, I swear if ever you have visited Agra and missed out on his chat then Im sorry folks... you have missed out on an experience of a lifetime. People swear by the Agre ka Petha but I wont suggest that if you lack a sweet tooth like I do.
Looks like my life is headed for a full toss here! Pray for me people..I may not come back to you again!Lets also pray that this post is read by a few....amen.

Random...

Today I am feeling totally random.So I am just going to do what i am best at...talking about everything and nothing at all.Hah...the strangest thing about me is that I never run short of stuff to talk about.Ya..I just cant stop thinking stuff...my mind works like an engine.I ll tell you something..I am thinking about a hundred things like MOMOs...(yum!) Micheal Buble, My 12th board results, 2nights T.V. schedule and everything else..

Ohh..to all the mothers in the whole wide world..(esp. my own mumma..)HAPPY MUMMY"S DAY!! I swear ma..u are the most amazing person I know..you have made me what I am today...an individual.

I cant figure out this thing called a TOM BOY...the phrase used for seemingly naughty girls.My first question...are menacing & messing about the traits associated only to boys?I mean why cant a person be what he really is without being tagged?Take me for an instance...I am supposedly a Girly girl as I love the color pink (evident from the layout of my Blog!), play with dolls (YES! even today i call little girlies from the neighbourhood and have a good time combing my barbie's tresses.) but there is more my readers.I am a huge sports enthusiast, I am the tennis encyclopedia, I cant stand stuff like waxing & plucking eyebrows (haven't been to a beauty saloon ever...just for periodic hair styling) and I love T.V shows like Deadliest Warriors & WWE. So now you see..its all relative, no traits i feel should be classified as guy like or gal like.hmmm...I am good at witting relatively irrelevant stuff!


Spending unproductive days is fun...ya, wake up late..slog around etc etc.Till the time i try to figure out how I should be spending my day, it comes to an end!!haha..Ill sign off here today & try to figure out what movie I ll catch up with tonight.By this time you might have figured out that I have come to an inspiration rut.. Ill go & look for my Muse too..hah..Good night People..Michael Antonio SERENA Patent Party Heels

Shigaf - the incorrigible crack in Kashmir's soul

When you read Shigaf... you fall in love with it, you can’t live a second without it, it lolls in your mind each moment and you pine for it when you have to part ways.

I am naturally no writer, no critic or linguist. I am a plain reader and this novel successfully connects with the reader deep inside me. I could not help myself from turning pages and forgetting everything else. The descriptions have a hypnotic effect, in seconds you are transported to he narrator’s world holding the book in your hands. At one moment you are dueling with the windmills as Don Quixote in La Mancha and at other you can breathe the mountain breeze and behold Jhelum from her eyes. In one place you are devouring Baked potatoes and Red Wine while at the other you can nearly smell the mouth watering Goustaba and Kahawa.

The author is my mummy dearest and like she can claim my faculties inside out, so can I read her mind like a tarot card reader reads her cards. But even the weathermen are oft surprised by the clouds…mum baffled me with the way she has maneuvered with the sensitive “K” issue. The human heart is inclined to be biased about certain issues and I think when a writer deals with a sensitive political issue one has to keep a straight mind, keeping it from leaning on either sides. As far as my humble knowledge is concerned, it is a multithreaded issue and even talking about it is like treading on land mines. The “Heaven on earth” has been marauded by evil forces at large. The common interest of the people has long been forgotten. Starting from Kashmiri Pundits in exile to the women in Kashmir… irrespective of class, have seen endless times of turmoil which never come to a halt. There is no time for raising questions now… there has to be a peaceful solution, a better way to end the dance of terror. Shigaf takes you to the innards of Kashmir, shows you the lifeless villages which have lost their young men in the merciless and demeaning war, takes you to those houses where the women struggle to feed their families and shows you the blood bathed landscapes which were once adorned with orchards and saffron fields. On reading this novel I find myself guilty as an Indian that I remained aloof to all of the injustice running at its fullest in my country. I try to imagine how a girl of my own age lives in a small village near Avantipur. Can she imagine wearing the clothes I wear everyday? She must be struggling to feed her little siblings, must be worried about how she will manage water the ext day. Has she been educated like me? Can she think of higher education? What does she feel about all of this? Is she proud to be an Indian? Doesn’t she feel like running away from all this? Think about the fear she lives in everyday… can she trust anyone? These questions are continually bouncing in my mind looking for satisfactory answers.

The characters impart their emotions onto the reader. I found myself sharing Amita’s dilemmas and Yasmeen’s times of turmoil. I grieved for Zulekha, grinned at Amita’s wit, frowned at Zaman’s bitterness and went gaga over Shantanu. These names quietly tip toe into your mind and even when you are finished with reading the book, you keep looking back and ponder over their words, actions and decisions.

I witnessed Shigaf grow from a gurgling baby to a sassy teenager and eventually into a mature creation. I wont stop myself from saying that mummy should be proud of herself to have authored a wonderful reading experience.

Congratulate the humble cover designer... thats me!

Long time no see...

I also made a stint in Delhi for the NIFT situation test. I am a well known movie geek and this video library I know of is too great! I found a rare Audrey Hepburn DVD with movies like Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Charade and Paris when it sizzleBreakfast… was a cute love story of an uptown playgirl in New York. Audrey is looking her best. George Peppard was an Actor to die for! Charade was an intriguing mysterious thriller… with a hint of Romance in Paris.  Paris when… was a romantic comedy inside out mostly a satire on contemporary Hollywood.                                                                                    

I want to apologize for this long emptiness since last month! I had been on a considerably long vacation in Jaipur where my nani lives. Thankfully I gained a few pounds (hey don’t grin! I needed them!) and got my nose pierced (OOUCH!! still hurts! But nevertheless, it looks great on me...).

s.

Read quite a few books… “Sophie’s World” book on philosophy woven in a surreal tale of a fourteen year old girl Sophie. My mind took a while to enjoy this book… but eventually I came to get the pulse of it and got absorbed in the world of Philosophers. Along came “Dracula” by Bram Stoker, the first novel of its kind… the mother of novels like Twilight Saga which have come out to be cult literature. It was rather a novel of classic depth. I myself have no keen interest in horror… I rather dislike horror literature and cinema. But I don’t know what made me read this book. It gives you genuine thrills but what really attracts me the most about this novel is the logic involved. It does not negate or fully force you into believing the existence of vampire but urges you to “Keep your mind open”. Considering the period in which it was written… in the times when the masses completely believed in matters of occult interests like witchcraft & wizardry, the superstitious approach too is understandable. I got the first hand descriptions of London & its people in those years. An instance I would love to share… Wilhemina, writes in her diary,

“Some of the ‘New women’ writers will some day start an idea that men and women should be allowed to see each other asleep before proposing or accepting. But I suppose the New Woman won’t condescend in future to accept; she will do the proposing herself. And a nice job she will make of it, too! There’s some consolation in that”

So my advice… read Dracula to taste the Victorian London & Transylvania (today’s Romania.) 

O...yes..my darling Daisy is now mother of four pretty pups..these pug wonders were born on 1st May & since then they are screaming "mayday" on top of their tiny voices!Watching them grow little by little is sheer bliss!Will upload some pictures as soon as I get back home.