Hello and welcome to the world of my opinions, recently discovered by the very famous scientist a.k.a. me in the distant galaxy of my brain.

The year 2020 has brought with it a lot of challenges, earthquakes, forest fires, cyclones, locusts and of course the deadly neighborhood virus that is known as Corona among certain circles, it also has some other names which I am not planning to bore you with.

The virus that has forced the entire world to act in unison, has also brought forth an era of working from the comforts of our home. I am a big fan of the whole working from home situation, unlike some people who would rather be able to go back to their workplaces and meet their friends, have a cigarette and gossip about the bosses in the break room.

Let me tell you my point of view so that you would better understand the pros of it:

1. I do not have to wake up 3 hours before my office time. There is no rush to get ready, put on make up, find the right clothes or matching shoes.

2. I do not have to get into the stinky, jam-packed cab for an hour long travel to the workplace with 6 others, one out of which is usually smoking pot in the back seat.

3. I do not have to be at the workplace an hour before the work actually starts

With all the time saved from not having to do the above mentioned things, I can watch an entire movie or about 2-3 episodes of my preferred show and I can do this on my TV screen instead of the small smartphone screen. I can read a book, run some errands and even sleep a couple of hours more than I get to sleep usually.

4. I may get calls from the boss and I may be irritated by it sometimes, but I still do not have to walk into his cabin or feel awkward because he is standing behind my desk waiting for me to make a mistake.

5. I do not have to make small talk with the co workers that I don’t really like and only talk to because there was no way to dodge them.

6. I get to eat home cooked food, fresh off the cooker and I also get to save all the money that I’d be spending on the not so good but expensive office food or the maggie from the thella outside the office.

7. I can be lying down in my bed in the breaks or even when there is no real work to be done, for there are some days that are slow.

8. If I have an errand to run which would take me a few hours, I could complete it without having to take a leave, hence saving me leaves or the salary that I’d be losing if I had no leaves in the first place.

9. I can listen to the music of my choice while working, or get up and dance if I want to.

10. I will not have to rest off all the travel and tiredness from the week on the weekends and hence I can enjoy more.

I might have a different way of thinking than most and your workplace might be the most hip place to be, but I would love to keep working from home if allowed to do so forever.

Hey guys! The lockdown has got me watching all kinds of stuff on Netflix. No, I am not watching You so you can relax.

1.

This new series called Never have I ever caught my attention before it was on Netflix India and something about it just made me add it to the list. I got to watching it last night and now, 24 hours after, I have already finished watching the whole series and am desperately waiting to watch more.

It is a story of this Indian-American girl, how she struggles to balance her life between the very American High School and an extremely Indian household. Even though the Hollywood does once again appear a bit offensive, they have managed to capture some things quite accurately.

Personally, they did almost get the accents, the arranged marriage angle was appropriately discussed and the discipline of an Indian house was precise. The want to fit in at school, to be popular and have cool friends. Impulsive decisions made to achieve the cool status and the stubborn behaviour just to hide the sad within.

I like the show and would love to watch more of Devi’s life adventures.

2.

Mindhunter, for all of you out there who are interested in criminal psychology or have thought why does a killer do what he does? or how can a man kill another man?; this show is for you.

I have always been interested in psychology and this show connected with me. At first, I did feel that it would probably be like those other adaptations where the makers add too much fantasy to the story just to make it more commercial but it isn’t.

The most fascinating part for me is that they have tried to capture the image of all the people as they are or were in real. Even though the timeline sometimes seems lost, the show is pretty intriguing.

I watched both seasons of it in a week. It kept me glued and wanting for more.

3.

The Confession Tapes is a docuseries that takes you through some of the most confusing confessions. These are people who confessed to crimes, of killing their own family and friends but later claimed to have been coerced into doing so.

People who are still fighting for themselves, saying they didn’t do it. People fighting for them, while the authorities have nothing else on them but mostly just their confessions.

It shows you a face of the system that we all know exists but do not want to see or talk about.

4.

Cooked with Cannabis is a reality show where the contestants have to cook with a twist of Cannabis in their food. They have to get the jury high… literally… with the tasty treats that they cook for them. It is fun to watch and also gives you some crazy party ideas! lol!

This is should come with a disclaimer to not try this at home and if you do, we will not be responsible for what happens next.

The lockdown has got us all cooking though we’re not yet baked, maybe… hmm, I’m gonna go be a chef now! Bye!

Most of you people who know me, know that I was in the United Kingdom for the past few months. I’ve been back more than a week now, I’ve been to about two interviews, visited a couple of my relatives and met a few friends. During this last week, being with me, was like listening to a non-stop radio commentary about the countries.

The one thing that best explains a country is the people who live in it, because they are the country after-all. If there are no people, no families, no societies; there will be no countries. We the people of India lack the understanding of our duties, we’re not great at taking responsibility and the being patient bit is kind of ‘too much work’ for us. Now, I’m not generalizing here, there are all kinds of people, everywhere in the world; some might even say that there are aliens living amongst us in this very world, but that’s a discussion for another time.

As I said above, the country is made by its people, it is important for us to accept that we are not entitled to receive anything from our country if we are not wiling to give back equally. The people in the UK understand this for the most part which in my opinion is the reason for them being where they are today. They do not need to see a policeman standing by the side of the road for them to honk follow the driving rules. It made me ashamed to think that we as a society have failed to give this kind of teaching to our children because that is where it all starts from, but then, how do we even expect our children to understand this if we don’t do it ourselves?

There is only one explanation to all this, we are irresponsible when it comes to our country and our duties towards it. We can boast all we want about being patriotic and loving our country but what do we have to show for it, as a person? Nothing!

Some people would argue saying that there are rules in those countries and there are fines for everything. Let me tell you, against the popular belief, we do have rules and fines in India too. The difference is that we always try to find work-arounds and shortcuts to everything, we don’t want to change. Why do we need a policeman to be on the road for us to know that it is important for our own lives to wear a helmet or to stop at the red signal? Why do we need a fine to be imposed to make us stop spitting and peeing in the public places? Why do we need someone to tell us how to be human in our own country when we will do it willingly in some other place at the very first chance we get to go there?

I’ve seen people questioning governments and police forces for things that we as a society can and should change on our own. The government can make rules, the police can punish you if you don’t follow them but it’s not their job to make you want to follow them. It should come from within you. How do you think that would happen?

I know most of you would have thought ‘What can I do alone?’, to answer that, you can be the change, you can start it, you can encourage others to make the change too. Our excuse for doing something that we know was wrong is that everyone else is doing it so why not me?

It is very easy to put the blame on others, on the law, the law enforcement or the government, that’s what we do, because we are cowards, we don’t want to accept that we are wrong, we don’t want to work for it but we just want our country to change overnight or something. We dodge the responsibility but we are the first in line to ask for the benefits. We should rethink this as a society, as an individual and as a citizen of this country, where do we want our India to be headed? Why does it have to be the UK, the US that we look up to, why not India? Why not the India that we can create with small changes? individual efforts?

We can do it people, we just need to stop taking our motherland for granted. Respect the mother before she decides to make you respect her.

Are you people familiar with anxiety? Well I’m sure all of us have felt it at some point in our lives. It could be before an important meeting, an exam, an interview or in my case a flight back home.

I will be leaving the city of Birmingham, England tomorrow to go back to my home Delhi, India. I should be excited, right? But I’m not.

I’m anxious. It’s not the flight that scares me, it’s the night before it.

I couldn’t eat well all day today, I can’t sleep right now and I have packed, unpacked and repacked my bags so many times, yet I don’t feel very satisfied. I have a body ache from all the packing and running around. I weighed the suitcases too many times and couldn’t wait for help so carried them down from the first floor by stairs on my own.

I have looked over the bags thinking of all the possible scenarios in which I might mess this up. I’ve got two suitcases, one backpack and one handbag, all of which are overstuffed. Apart from these I’ve one scarf, one book, one phone, one coat and one hat too. I am pretty sure I’m going to fall a few times or drop a few things before I reach home.

I can’t stop going over the whole check in and boarding process in my mind again and again. Every time it starts with me doing something silly and each time it’s something different.

You might be thinking that all those bags and stuff is a bit too much for just one person but most of them are gifts. In fact I had to throw out some of my own clothes to meet the weight limit on the bags. Things you do for family.

All these thoughts and worries are keeping me busy today but I know everything will be so much better when I see everyone’s smiles.

It wouldn’t matter if I fell over while picking up my bags off the belt or if I slipped on my scarf or even if I looked all clumsy and uncomfortable, because when I leave that airport in India, I’d be relieved of all the weight on my shoulders and my mind.

Even though what still makes me worried is if my luggage goes missing. I don’t know how I’m gonna juggle all this stuff and the duty free shopping together but I guess I’ll have to manage for those whom I love. I just hope the luggage doesn’t go missing. *Fingers Crossed*

Hey guys!

No this isn’t like the movie Mirrors and I’m not seeing or talking about ghosts.

When you look into the mirror what do you see? Seriously, just think about it. What do you see? Your reflection, that is the right answer but there’s more to it.

Most of us see our flaws, the ‘reflection’ of ‘me’ in a form we find fit. You may be a supermodel for the world but when you look into that mirror, you see the pimples, the blemishes, the fat tummy, the dark circles, bony hands, double chin and what not.

Do you know why? That’s because we look at ourselves with the eye of a critic, all we want to see is the faults, we search for detail . The world doesn’t really notice those things, most of it doesn’t(except some fancy people…ahem). Everyone is busy trying to perfect themselves.

I decided to try something different this time. I looked at the girl in the mirror and I really looked at her, I noticed the way her curls fell on her cheeks and how her lips are shaped. I stared deep into her eyes and I saw her pain. She broke into tears when she felt that I cared, that I was there to understand.

I talked to her, I told her that it is okay to be hurt and to cry. I told her she could let go and she did. She let go of all the pain she had stored inside. A tear fell from her eye and I felt it slide down my cheek.

We were smiling now, we were smiling at each other because we had each other and no one can ever take that from us. We’re friends now and will forever be.

That person you see in the mirror, they can be real good friends if you would just try to talk to them once. Try it, I’m sure it will be fun. *Winks*

Here’s a message to all you beautiful souls (if you thought even for a second that this is not for you, just go meet the person in your nearest mirror and this time, just look at them, for real):

Let me tell you what’s wrong with this movie and no it is not just about the slap or feminism.

While everyone’s talking about this movie and the character and how he was such a dedicated lover. I think he was nothing but a sad man, who did not have enough courage to face the reality and hence took to drugs and alcohol to run away from what was happening around him.

It’s not your dedication towards your lover but your own selfish interests that hurt you more. If you were so much in love with them, you would not insult their parents and would be more concerned about their “maan, sammaan” than they themselves are.

Your friends are not just people you use as and when you need them, they’re there because they care for you. Even after so many people being around you, trying to help you out of that sorry state, you act like no one would be affected by your actions.

This character is everything that a woman should not support. Too possessive, too controlling and the aggression to top it all. He has anger management issues since the very beginning. He claims to the students that this particular girl is mine as if her opinion doesn’t matter.

I get it that the girl loves him because he cares for her and beats the guy who harrassed her but that does not make his actions correct. Also, what was that bit between him and the guy? “Tu promise kar” and then the guy says “I promise and you and you fo”. It wasn’t necessary and seemed like a forced add on to the already streched movie.

A relationship should never come to the point where one has to hit the other person. The girl’s asking you if she can stay there for two more days, instead of asking her why she wants to stay you just say no and why do you have the right to take decisions for her? There’s not a single point in the movie where he asks her, for her opinion about something he’s about to do. Isn’t that weird? Is this how a relationship is supposed to be?

There’s this particular point in the movie when Kabir tells his brother that “my profession is the only thing that I’m proud of.” Doesn’t make sense. If he was so dedicated to his career he should have not taken it so lightly. He is shown as being a great surgeon even after being drunk and drugged. Practically he would’ve known the repercussions of his actions and would have refrained from any such act that endangered his job.

During the entire movie, there are scenes that make no sense. One more such scene is when Kabir wakes up from his morphine overdose episode, he goes downstairs where some rituals are being followed after his brother’s marriage. Goes back up to the terrace and starts flying a kite. Why?

Then there’s the ending, absolutely amazing! He just happens to see the girl again, in a park, goes to talk to her after some days. It turns out she is pregnant with his kid and is no longer married to her father’s choice. She has been waiting for him to come and then they get married.

What is surprising is that the script writer had all the time (that he wasted in useless scenes) to showcase the real reactions that one would get from their families if such a situation arises, but he chose not to do so. These newly weds (girl being 9 months pregnant) are readily accepted by both families.

Happy ending! Yay!

The only sensible character in the movie was the Grandma. She says things like, “when a girl is in love, her priorities change” and “tere liye budhdu honge, uske to papa hain“. The best thing she said in the entire movie according to me was “suffering is personal, let him suffer”

Also, I love Shahid and he did a great job as Kabir Singh. The only reason I even watched the entire movie was his acting. *Dreamy eyes*

So this was my suffering and although it was personal I choose to not suffer alone. *Evil laughs*

Hey there!

This isn’t like those you tube videos where the presenter tries to pass off a random incident as a matter of life and death. This is a real account of what happened when I was (probably)12-13 years old.

Summer holidays!!

My father had a regular job so we did not have an option to go on a long trip. We decided to go to the Ganga Ghat as a one day trip.

Me and my sister were excited for two reasons, first being that our favourite cousin was going with us and second was of course a chance to play in water.

We reached there in the morning and had planned to be there till late afternoon and then head back. Back then my father didn’t own a car and neither was he good at driving, he was still learning. So, one of his friends was taking us there in his car. We addressed him as ‘kaku chachu’ which is sort of funny because kaku itself means chachu.

Anyways, we were so excited when we reached there that, we headed straight into the water. There were boats all around us to take us to the other side of the river.

The water was knee deep where we were at and the ground below our feet felt firm.

A short backstory: My grandmother is from a Bengali family and she spent her entire childhood in this big house in Bengal. They had their own lake and hence she is a pro at swimming. She would just be there floating on the water as if it was a foam bed.

So, Mum (that’s what we call our grandma) was floating in the water and my sister wanted to do the same, she thought that the water is barely to her waist and she would be able to reach Mum easily.

I was busy playing with my cousin and Maa when we saw my sister who was now drowning. Maa rubbished it by saying that she is trying to scare us, she even started scolding her. I on the other hand felt that there was something fishy (no pun intended).

My sister was about 4 feet and I was 5. I thought it would be fine and I’d be able to bring her back if she was actually drowning. As I reached her I was on my toes and I felt the silt move from below my toes one by one. Before I knew it I was standing only on the thumb of my feet and the sand was still moving out. The ground was literally slipping from under my feet.

By the time I had gotten a hold on my sister I too was drowning. My first instinct as that of any human was to use her to push myself up. Fortunately, my conscience remained intact and I didn’t panic, I held her by the waist with both my hands and pushed her up.

Now, me drowning, made it clear that this was no act. The boatman were getting ready to rescue us. My father headed towards us too. The catch here is that my father doesn’t know how to swim either but he tried, he just kicked and used his hands in whatever manner to reach us.

By the time he reached us, I had been under the water long enough, I wasn’t able to jump up and the only strength I had was consumed in holding my sister. I barely managed that too.

My sister was in a slightly better state but she too wasn’t able to jump anymore, with whatever strength she had, she stretched out her hand in what seemed to be a last cry for help.

My father saw my sister’s fingers and threw his hand in an attempt to grab at them. He caught two of her fingers. I was nowhere to be seen. He kicked and pushed with all the power that he had and dragged her.

He states that he too wasn’t sure that we were headed in the right direction. He had no idea where I was and the boatman had tied their boats when they saw Papa come to the rescue.

Luckily, I had not let go of my sister’s t-shirt and I was dragged along with her. Both of us had drank enough of that water but somehow we managed to stay alive long enough.

As we approached the shallow end, Papa pulled us out and helped us to the stairs. We sat there too shocked to talk or even cry.

This incident cut short our stay there and we headed back. On our way back, I was told how I acted like a power ranger (that’s what I was crazy about in those days) and saved my sister’s life.

I’m glad to have been saved. Here’s a funny thing, most people would probably be afraid of the drowning part, what scared me was the thought “what if a croc comes here now and eats me?” Lol! Crazy ideas in my head since forever.

Hey there! I know it’s been a while since we talked about love and I also know that some of you are already thinking of not reading on, but, you should read on.

Ah! I see you’re still not convinced. Umm… Ok… Here’s what we can do, I’ll tell you your story and you can tell me if I’m right or wrong. Deal?

How do I know your story? Oh, you’ll see. Let’s start then.

Once upon a time there was a little person, named A and they liked another little person named B. Now B was like a dream to A. A had a group of friends, their names were J, K, L. B too had a group of friends, X, Y and Z.

B always heard stories from X,Y and Z about how they liked someone. They used to talk about their crushes and praise them, their way of talking, their innocence and everything else. Amidst all this, B wondered what it would be like to be adored. B had no idea about A being madly in love with B.

A on the other hand, used to talk about B with J,K and L, so much that they started to get bored of it. They’d make fun of A and tease A whenever B was around.

B, clueless of how A felt went on each day thinking that no one would or could ever like B in a manner that X liked V, or like Y adored W.

The story went on, and, well it ended and turned in different directions for us all. The end of the story is not mine to tell, because it’s not just my story.

You’re probably feeling lost, so let me help you here. You can be either A or B or both in this story. We all have sometimes been in situations that made us feel like B, like we were not wanted, not loved. We remained clueless of someone who secretly liked us. We were so busy looking for someone, we missed to see that someone’s looking at us.

Or, in another scenario, we were like A. We liked someone but we did not have the courage to go ahead and tell them about it because we either thought they’re “out of our league” or assumed that they are with someone or in most cases just feared a rejection. We’ve all been there and that’s how I know your story.

Because, each story is as similar to one another as it is different. Now go on and tell B what you feel, because s/he needs to know. You may be the only one who can give him/her the love s/he needs. Here’s one of my love quotes, you can use it if you need 😉

Memories are the only portal that facilitates travelling back in time (for now) but sometimes, there are certain memories that we don’t wish to go back to.

We bury those times deep under the layers of dark and light, we lie to ourselves and we make our mind believe that it never happened. We don’t want those horrors to haunt us ever again.

This catacomb that is created to keep the devil in is not nearly as impenetrable as we would want it to be. Shreds of that time slide through the gaps and hit us hard at times we don’t expect.

They are like radiation, we cannot see it, yet it breaks us from within (since I’ve recently watched Chernobyl). Eventually the fear to face that part of our past increases and it becomes our weakness.

Anything that even hints at the incident is enough to make us shift in out seats. We may put up a brave face socially but whilst isolated it scares us, it haunts us. In our attempt to run from it, we eventually find ourselves even closer to it, or a much exaggerated form of it.

You’d probably ask, “so what can one do?” Well, talk. “But that’s not easy, what if…?” Yes there are a lot of ‘what ifs’ to this scenario, but trust me, talking is the only way you have a chance of ending this endless fear.

Don’t get stuck in the cycle of lying to yourself because: