Geetanjali, the Restaurant Critic!

I’ve been thinking I should take up an alternate profession – that of a restaurant critic. Why? Well, I’ve always enjoyed filling out the suggestion/comments form given in restaurants, but off late, I’ve noticed that those forms are becoming increasingly crucial. Why you ask? Well simply because of the falling standards of services, not to mention cuisine, in most restaurants. Restaurants are popping up at every nook and corner like wild mushrooms. Unfortunately the increase in their number hasn’t led to an improvement in services. I’d have thought that the increasing competition would make them treat their clients better, but it seems that the scarce importance given to the client has also disappeared!

To me, the complete gastronomic experience includes not just quality meals but also a good ambience and service. If even one of these criteria isn’t fulfilled, then the experience simply isn’t satisfactory. And I’m sorry, but if I’m paying for the meal, then I think I deserve to enjoy my meal…and if I’m not content then I think I have the right to express my discontent and have it noted and taken into account.

This weekend, to celebrate my cousin’s birthday we’d gone for dinner to Bombay Brasserie. I’d been given the impression that it is a rather posh restaurant, BCBG as the French would say – Bon Chic, Bon Genre - only to discover the restaurant was far from it!

The entire experience was so unsatisfactory, that it bordered on disgusting. It’s a fact well-established that one can’t find good personnel in a restaurant in Pune (except perhaps for the waiters at the Blue D restaurants and at La Dolce Vita) but the waiters here had exceptionally dour faces, and were remarkably inept and ignorant. It didn’t help that they had a certain tendency to lean too much into the client’s space while serving (or was it just one client whose space they insisted on trespassing?) Their food and service had me disappointed before the first-course arrived on our table....

Needless to say, by the time I finished my meal, I was utterly disgusted with the complete waste of a good evening. To eat over-salty, over-spicy food in an over-lit restaurant with tacky string lights on the steps of a wooden floor that had been scratched and abused, with waiters who don’t change the cutlery after the first-course (unless specifically asked) and table-cloths that were dusty – well that is far from my description of a good gastronomic experience. I didn’t hesitate to inform them that their cuisine and services were befitting of a lower grade restaurant and that it pained me to be paying them the prices they demanded. I ensured that my uncle who was paying didn’t leave them a tip – I have to be really annoyed to refuse to leave a tip, so you can well imagine the quality of food and services.

Word of Advice – Stay away from Bombay Brasserie, Dhole Patil Road, Pune.

Simultaneous critique in French on Francesay

From the Unwritten Diary

Swirling whorls of dust descended on us, sweeping up in their fury clothes not pinned down, saplings already struggling to survive the heat and awnings that tried to obstruct their course and slow them down…seated at my computer staring out the window I marveled at how I couldn’t even make out the form of the building in front of ours. And then, as suddenly as it had descended the dust storm disappeared, leaving behind an eerie silence that echoed in my ears uneasily. There is a restless energy inside me that’s been scrabbling for attention, begging for release. I tried to drown it out with music, turning the volume up till the floor beneath my feet throbbed with each beat, but the restlessness inside me just grew, making me yearn for the forbidden. I tried writing, hoping it would bring forth the much needed calm, but what came forth helped naught…my senses are jarringly, electrically alive and my mind jammed with an entangled mess of images. I’m aching to cut loose and head for the unknown, the unexplored…

The skies outsides are a heavy overcast grey, the sunlight streaming through the clouds bathing the landscape in a strange luminosity…and I must rein in this edginess and focus my concentration on a new project. A long, incredibly boring evening lies ahead – oh how will I survive it? I think I shall shock some people tonight…dare I?

Back From Hibernation

I’ve pinched myself several times the last few weeks, trying to believe that it’s really happening – it’s difficult to believe that this dream is actually coming true, that I’ve actually cleared all the obstacles from my path and that very soon I’ll embark on a long awaited voyage. Somewhere deep inside of me, I’m still incredulous about the whole affair! A friend recently commented on my (changed) notions of romance/love, others have drawn my attention to my (apparent) practical attitude towards all matters related to relationships/ambitions/dreams – I think it all boils down to the fear of losing what’s dear to me…

A much delayed (and embarrassingly mediocre) response to a Limerick tag by the charming Wandering Dervish

There once was a girl quite bright,
Her intelligence was much tried,
As were her generosity and patience,
Till at last she lost all her sense.

Tagged: Extempore, Idle Mind, Jo

Current Book: Che Guevera’s Motorcycle Diaries (don’t recommend the film – I know I’m a fool for having missed it since it’s an astoundingly brilliant film! I don’t need salt rubbed into my wounds! Grrrr!)
Current Music: Say it right by Nelly Furtado
Current Mood: Frazzled by the heat, work, studies and myriad chores.
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PIFF - the complete review

Pune International Film Festival 2007 – despite what the newspapers might have said about the crowds it pulled, please be informed that the crowd was extremely disappointing. Even while it’s nice not to worry about not getting good seats, or worse watching a film sitting on the floor of the hall, it’s not at all nice to attend a film festival when the halls are half-empty and it feels like you’ve come for pathetic cinema, instead of the other way around. Also, the organization and the schedules were really screwed up this time – what’s with screening three Chinese films simultaneously and scheduling all the good films at the same time, so you’re forced to choose one and miss three others?

Now that I’ve got the criticism out of the way, let me go ahead and inform you that this year too was a great experience! I hardly saw any films in comparison to the last 2 years when I truly did camp out at ESquare for one week but I still managed to catch over a dozen films, short-films and documentaries. If the films I saw in the last two years appealed to the intellect, this year it was largely the senses and the emotions that were appeased.

Unlike last year, when I saw many serious films, I managed to catch some really big-budget, very mainstream European cinema, which was really fun, yet very moving and intelligent cinema:-

Les Bronzes (French Fried Vacation) – France – Patrice Leconte
An exceedingly side-splitting riotous film about a bunch of French people on a vacation – the insane activities, the hilarious attempts to get laid by all-and-sundry and the hysterical swimming gear had me screaming with laughter!

La Vie est Ailleurs (Life is Elsewhere) – Switzerland – Frédeéric Choffat
Three stories, three countries, one common theme, that life is elsewhere. A very interesting film – its main appeal (for me) was the fact that a large portion of the film was shot in trains and stations in France, Italy and Germany. Needless to say, nostalgia hit very hard as myriad images from December 2003 flew across my mind.

Winterskys (Kissed by Winter) – Norway – Sara Johnsen
A marvelously sensitive film dealing with loss - shot in Poland it revolves around a young doctor who loses her son to leukemia and consequently shifts to a small village. It goes on to deal with her various experiences as a county doctor, her attempts to rebuild her life and her struggle to come to terms with her role in her son’s death.

Tibor vagyok, de hódítani akarok (Young Dumb and Full of Love) – Hungary – Goergely Fonyo
The Hungarian version of American Pie – yes that’s it. How else could I best describe a film that deals with the humorous attempts by an adolescent to lose his virginity on a summer vacation, all the while armed with a fluorescent condom? There were also some hysterically funny scenes revolving around a golden cell phone, oops I meant dildo! ;-) Obviously big budget, very mainstream, but just so much fun. It’s almost liberating to watch such a crazy film at a film festival, normally associated with a more serious genre of cinema!

Ik omhels je met duizend armen (Thousand Kisses) – Netherlands – Willem van de Sande Bakhuyzen
Once again, very big-budget and very mainstream cinema; this one dealt with relationships, guarding as it’s take-off point the relationships and lives of young professionals in the world of fashion and cinema/television. Much crazy fun, sex, partying and holidaying, but also another level of complexity in relationships at home, dealing with the fatality of a parent and losing the parent to euthanasia. As much as I enjoyed seeing this one, it was an equally heart-rending experience sitting through the scenes dealing with euthanasia and much as I miss him and wish he was still around, I’m suddenly very glad I didn’t have to see Papa go through that and want/opt for such an end.

Yadayim Kshurot (Tied Hands) – Israel – Dan Wolman
My second film by Dan Wolman – I’d seen Ben’s Biography last year, and like it, this too, was a sensitively and very intelligently made film dealing with very prevalent issues, yet not being preachy and militant about it. Without revealing much about it, the film basically deals with the attempts of a mother to obtain grass for her son who’s suffering from a fatal disease and needs grass to gain some respite from the pain. In the course of that one night, physically away from her son, she truly comes to know her son and ends up closer to him at the end of the night…and his life. An extraordinary film, worth watching – I’d go as far as asking you to actively search for the film and get your own copy!

And some others as well, namely – Cry, The Beloved Country, The Collector, Reyhaneh, the very strange Macedonia, the stranger A Bahraini Tale and the interminably long and boring The Road.

This year’s PIFF was also my real introduction to the documentary genre – saw some great documentaries which were not only informative, but extremely sensitively shot and touching.

Vietnam Symphony – Australia – Tom Zubrycki
A heart-warming documentary about the Hanoi music conservatory that had to move to the country-side during the Vietnam war, it narrated the experiences of the students as well as the villagers who welcomed the school and its member into their homes – some 40 years later the students, now professionals, go back to the village for a performance. An excellent experience, not only vis-à-vis to what it opened my eyes, but also from the angle of music (except perhaps for that one shrieking wonder!)

The Black Road – Australia – William Nessen
I wasn’t very sure about this film dealing with Aceh (otherwise famous for its struggles post-tsunami) and its struggle for independence from Indonesia. Informative, but highly disturbing, as would be expected from any film dealing with the subject of struggle and that too, such a militant and violent one – I emerged from the film wiser for sure, and wondering what really drives us to indulge in such horrendous deeds all in the name of power.

Rhythm is It – Germany – Thomas Grube and Enrique Sanchez Lansch
Interestingly the first German film I’ve seen despite 3 years of attending PIFF and the only German film I’ve seen apart from Run, Lola Run – an exhilaratingly liberating experience if I may so. Revolving around the production of a dance performance based on Stravinky’s Sacre du Printemps, conducted by Sir Simon Rattle (quite delectably handsome if I may so!) the performance brought together nearly 250 young debutant dancers from variously realms of society and their growth (professionally and personally) through the course of the preparation for the performance. My aesthetic senses and sentiments were highly delighted.

And then, ofcourse there was the Kristophe Kieslowski retrospective. Hard-hitting cinema that forced me to think – really glad I saw at least some of his films and would definitely recommend his films.

My Students – the “Lumières” of the 21st Century!

When I started teaching I never imagined that apart from being incredibly de-stressing and satisfying at an intellectual and emotional level, it would also be an amazing source of humour…the things I hear in class are worthy of being compiled and published in a book! Here’s a teaser:-

• J’ai emmené mes mères là-bas. (I took my mothers there) – My immediate reaction was “Really how many do you have?”
• Je suis une question. (I am a question.) – You can imagine the mirth that followed at this one! Ah bon, really? The student meant to say “J’ai une question” (I have a question.)
• J’étudie lingerie (I study lingerie.) – it took several minutes for all of us to calm down before I figured out that the student meant to say “J’étudie l’ingénierie.” (I am studying engineering.)
• Je suis mort l’année dernière. (I died last year.)- this came as a response on being asked to rearrange the given points and write a biography using the past tense. It seems we don’t know the difference between a biography and an autobiography. I couldn’t help adding another line, “Maintenant je suis phantôme” Now I’m a ghost!;-)
• Souris! (Mouse!) – I’d just reprimanded a boy for talking too much in class and when he said this I did a double-take and was quite horrified. It turns out he was just trying to frenchify the word “Sorry” so instead of saying “Désolé” or simply “Pardon” he ended up called me a mouse!
• Talk about vain efforts to elucidate and illustrate without using English. The word in question was “incroyable” (incredible) and I decided to use an extremely unpunctual student as an example “ Ashwin est arrivé à l’heure? C’est incroyable!” A student’s immediate reaction – “Ah incroyable ça va dire la fiction” (“Incroyable” means fiction!)
• Je reader des nouvelles, player de la guitare et talker with mes friendsa – this one was a classic case of frenchifying english by converting all english verbs into the group of French verbs with the suffix –er. It shouldn’t be difficult to figure out what it means – here’s how it should have been said: Je lis des romans, joue de la guitare et parle avec mes amis.

And I saved the best for the last…

• J’aime fairer un serpent pour Noël. (I like to do a snake for Christmas) – I almost choked on hearing this one – what the student meant to say was J’aime décorer un sapin pour Noël. (I like to decorate the Christmas tree)

And on the same note,

• Vous avez fait qui ce weekend? (Who did you do this weekend?) – to say that I was horrified with this question would be an understatement; luckily the student realized the faux-pas and immediately replaced “qui” with “quoi” so that the question correctly said “Vous avez fait quoi ce weekend?” (What did you do this weekend?)

So what’s the verdict, people? Rib-tickling material isn’t it?

Current Book:- The Dream of Scipio - Iain Pears (it’s captured my attention and imagination completely. I wish I didn’t deal with words all day long and that I had more energy at the end of the day so I make faster progress with it…)
Current Music:- Naked and Sacred – Chhyna Phillips (from the erstwhile Wilson Phillips)
Current Mood:- Most content – after meeting best-friend over lunch and splurging money over the Robert-Collins Français-Anglais-Français dictionary for my translation work, a copy of Hotel Rwanda, so I can finally see it and this incredibly nice, red corduroy skirt…I was (and still am) looking for a short number and this is anything but short, but still very appealing and sexy! :-)

Blame Wandering Dervish for this one ;-)

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There is Therapy and then there is Therapy

I started studying in earnest yesterday - yes that means, out came the new stationery, the highlighters, the myriad coloured pens...and then I sat down, read, underlined, highlighted and started making neat, organised notes with highlighted headings, and post-its and what-not to ensure clarity at the time of revision....yes I know, I'm an incorrigible geek. Geeky Geets - I love her, don't you?

I went shopping today - it wasn't much, just some basics (well not very basic, but basic enough to not feel indulgent, though I did want to indulge, but felt too lazy to seek it...am I making any sense?) but enough to perk up my mood and feel leisurely pampered.

I have three books lined up for the weekend/upcoming week - The Last Song of The Dusk - Siddharth Sanghvi (I figured it's about time I stopped being a snob and gave it a shot, after having avoided it for so long and having heard diametrically opposite reviews about it...), The Motorcycle Diaries - Ernesto "Che" Guevera(really looking forward to reading this one) and The Dream of Scipio - Iain Pears (this I've already started reading - a most fascinating novel set in France, and spanning the collapse of the Roman Empire, the period of the Black Death and the Second World War)...and get this, for a change, none of them is mine, they all come from the informal "AFP teacher-student-colleague library" !!!

I started the day with a heavenly breakfast comprising of scrambled eggs, pancakes, toast, coffee and fruit...and I just ended the day with a dessert that comprised of some Nutty Caramel Mousse Cake, Rustic Chocolate Mousse Cake and some Cappuccino Mousse Cake

Need I say any more?

Current Mood:- Calm...finally

Current Music:- Like a Prayer - Madonna

End of the Tether

I swore to myself I wouldn’t break down – I told myself I’m strong…and I am, but I’m very, very close to the end of the tether. Nerves stretched taut, my patience is wearing thin and my tolerance levels for any kind of inefficiency, indiscipline, incompetence, ignorance, insensibility not to mention insensitivity are at an all-time low. My temper has flared more than once and nearly reached the dangerous levels beyond which I am incapable of practicing reason and am only concerned with making the object of my ire feel like the lowest form of cretin that exists…have had a vicious fight with my brother, lost my temper in class with very horrifying consequences – I’ve actually taken to turning my back on such issues and counting to ten, numbing my senses in order to keep a handle on that temper. Doesn’t help that I’ve had a nasty cold since last week, coupled with a hacking cough and congestion that forces me to take breaks while teaching just to cough and clear my throat like an old woman! That’s when I’m not blowing my nose like a freaking trumpeting elephant! Gah I’m sounding like a woman bordering on PMS – and gah again, I’m not even close to it…someone give me a valid reason for this abominable behaviour, and I mean "valid reason" not "excuse"….sigh. How do people get through life with such low standards for themselves? How do they avoid the inevitable stage of disappointing one self?

Current Music:- Nothing…head hurts too much to take any sound at all. It’s all noise inside my head right now. Tout est bruit, rien n’est musicale, rien n’est agreeable.
Current Mood:- Worn-out and extremely irritable, longing to give more than one person a piece of my mind (to hell with the consequences), but holding back because bloody hell the consequences would be horrifying. Can someone please send a hug by courier, ‘coz I sure could do with one right now…and oh, while you’re at it, toss in a full-body massage as well!

Turbulent Times

Turbulent would be putting it mildly if one were to ask me how the days have been –
I’ve been complimented on my professionalism and efficiency at work, at the same time I’ve realized that certain aspirations connected to work might have to take a backseat for another year;
I’ve missed my father so much this past week and am going to miss him so much more as the 4th of March draws closer – all the related ceremonies and the things being done to commemorate his life and actions make me feel so damn lucky (not to mention proud) that I am Mr.R.Shrivastava’s daughter, but it’s just as (if not more) traumatic;
I’ve said good-bye to yet another friend who’s seeking greener pastures, wishing him the very best even while wishing the greener pastures were closer home, knowing all along that this is where the friendship will finally be tested, for if it survives the distance, there’s no getting rid of me till the big ol’ ticker gives way;
I’ve been back “home” to bring in best friend’s birthday (I think this is the first time ever – strange considering he’s my closest friend) with an incredibly fun soirée, surrounded by friends and some very interesting…though unfortunately highly unavailable and ineligible bachelors ;-) and lots of excellent wine;
Last but not by any definition the least…
I’ve finally gotten high (little surprise considering the copious amounts of wine consumed on an empty stomach) and I think it was quite enjoyable, though I think I could easily keep my distance from the wine for a bit (this despite my “bewadi” reputation!) ;-)

Current Book:- The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros (very interesting work) and A Dog’s Life by Peter Mayle (gift from a dear friend and a fellow-Mayle fan)
Current Music:- Tékitoi by Rashid Taha feat. Christian Olivier (from the recently acquired Génération Française 5 courtesy CAVILAM and the External Affairs Ministry of France)
Current Mood:- Nostalgic – incredibly so, with my mind filled with a galactic collage of memories from the last one year. Missing so many people so god-damned-much and wishing I could have them right next to me always…

A Year Down...

What could give me a greater sense of pride than the fact that even a year after my father’s demise, the company still looks up to him and not only recognizes his contribution to their existence and growth but is constantly making efforts to concretize the fact? That apart from having put up a huge photograph of my father at the reception they now want a plaque put up next to it, dedicating the foundation of the company to him, laying it down on stone that Phoenix Mecano India is synonymous with Mr. R Shrivastava…

What could be a bigger honour for me than to be asked to script the text for it? And what could be more painful?

Coz Goodbyes Suck....

18^th August 2006 – I heard what seemed like the most incredulous excuse (and that point I even thought pick-up line) for getting my phone number. As I refused, a smile tugging at my lips, little did I know that nearly six months later, just the mention of the same person’s name would bring an instant smile to my face…well almost always; like with all my close friends, there are always those moments when I’m all too willing to bring a beer bottle crashing down on the unfortunate victim’s head. In this case, there have been times when I’ve contemplated far more painful and sadistic means of gleaning revenge. ;-) Who’d have thought I’d be so glad I changed my mind a few weeks later and gave my number to D…and I must admit a little regretful that I didn’t do so when I was first asked! (I’m never going to hear the last of this, but to hell with it – every dog has its day(s) and D’s share seems to be rather big!)

I thought I’d reached that stage where I wouldn’t be able to trust someone so completely, and to love anyone apart from my closest family members and closest friends so unconditionally – yet looking back at the last six months and how our friendship has grown, I know that there is now one more person about whom I’m almost irrationally crazy. Close friends have wondered about the nature of our friendship, warned me not to get too involved, knowing my wonderful capability of giving so much importance to a friendship, only to be disillusioned by betrayal later – and I must admit I even tried reeling myself back a couple of times, but something just seemed so right in this crazy friendship that has made me defy every rule in my book, that has made me behave so uncharacteristic of the Plain Jane that I normally am, that has made me throw caution to the winds and for once not think, but follow only my instincts…

D, is leaving town next week and I know I’m going to miss those lazy afternoons when we watched movies/television and I was teased mercilessly about all my goof-ups and my apparently “moronic” behavior. I’m going to miss having someone to accompany me for films, someone who’d arbitrarily decide that my lunch is not sufficient and I must have some more (whether I want it or not is immaterial), someone who can make me forget the reason for my ire/frustration with absolutely inane conversation, not to mention some outlandishly hilarious suggestions (which also gave me some ideas, but they were mostly rib-tickling material!)…

I’m going to miss a wonderful friend who has become an irreplaceable part of my life. Damn but saying goodbye sucks…

Picture This...

Shaniwarwada – fort constructed in the 18th century, bang in the heart of Pune. The old part of the city – traditions, conservatism et al. A pleasant February evening. Approximately 1000 people from all walks of life and all age groups (5 years to 60+ years)…and to set the mood for the evening we had Merzhin…

Merzhin? A rock band from France, hailing from Bretagne and known for their rich and contemporary rock music!!! The concert was organized by AFP of course – my first rock concert and what an amazing experience! I was hooked and moving to the music seconds after the first chords were struck – the wealth of sounds thanks to their use of the flute and the snake charmer’s instrument, the palpable energy levels of the group made it a “rocking” experience!

Current Mood:- Blah!
Current Music:- Sexy Back – Justin Timberlake
Current Book:- Marley and Me – John Grogan

La Fille Occupée

Ah, it’s been a busy few days – busy and tiring, but equally satisfying and fun…except perhaps for my weekend class which is beginning to be a royal pain with those stubborn, unenthusiastic students who refuse to get rid off their blinkers and perceive the world beyond their well! Translation assignments, a soirée that was quite exhausting because of the high levels of boredom and exasperation that I experienced (the saving grace was the wine!), Aristera’s weekend visit (I so love that man and it’s been so long since we spent so much time together, just chilling out, that this was the highlight of the weekend! ! The noise I’ve made about this visit has certainly got some people very jealous of his presence in my life – hehehe!), good films( Mon Oncle, Parzania), great meals(Parsi food at Dorabjee’s, Rosti and Pizza at Swiss Cheese Gardens, Chinese at Silk Route and Mainland China, apart from some pretty decent home-cooked food!), greater conversation (be it with Aristera, D, or my students S and J)– all in all the last few days have been pretty good. The one thing that has been irritating me is out of my control, so I’ve decided not to let myself be bothered by it. De toute façon, que sera sera, je n’y peux rien, alors pourquoi agir avec frustration?

Musical Motley

“how do I live without you… don’t talk just kiss… and I hoped all the time you’d be faithful to me… how do I breathe without you…when the night falls, the loneliness comes…all I’m asking you for is for you to be my baby…oooohhhh…let your tongue fool around…i wanna dance with somebody…i wanna feel the heat with somebody…yeah!!”

Hehe…wonder if my choice of music says something about me! Freud sure would have a field-day with the randomly selected phrases that I’ve just thrown together I’ve just posted from the songs playing on my Windows Media Player. Well he can have his fun; moi, all I care about is keeping my spirits buoyant, for I’m going to have a rather awkward discussion tomorrow and I need to feel my confident best in order to do so…que dieu me bénisse!

Current Music:- Dressed for Success – Roxette
Current Book:- Bloodlines – Fred D’Aguiar (an engrossing novel in verse form – the first of the type I’m reading since Vikram Seth’s Golden Gate and I do believe I quite enjoy the style.) Yes Yes I finished Incest on Tuesday – don’t I just rock?
Current Mood:- Not Taking No Shit From Anyone…Not Today

Bonjour Bookworm

Oft have people questioned my habit of splurging my rather meager salary on books, specially since the kind of books I buy don’t exactly come cheap – there are those who wonder at my insistence on buying original copies, instead of the pirated copies available freely on the footpaths and at small book vendors. Apart from that fact that I firmly believe the author deserves his royalty even if he is dead and buried several feet underground, there is the fact that these kind of oeuvres simply aren’t available in the pirated version, since they aren’t exactly consumed by the larger audience, and if I may, common audience! Tell me when you last saw a copy of Marquis de Sade’s Incest, or Ellen Feldman’s The Boy who Loved Anne Frank or Lawrence Durrell’s Monsieur gracing the footpath, beckoning you with open arms, inviting you to pick it up and take it home with you? And then, how do I explain the sheer pleasure of holding an original publication in one’s hands – the feel of those crisp pages, the words on each page staring back at me unwaveringly, urging me to devour each alphabet? I guess this, despite my increasingly regular (not to mention disturbing) spells of inability to read more than a couple of pages a day, is what marks me as a literary snob and a bookworm…

Bookworm – oh how I reveled in that pseudonym, even more so than my other plume de nom, Plain Jane…and how I ache to read once again with that voracity that made me devour books with a ravenous hunger of one who has been starved of Literature, even though reality was that I was always surrounded by it. Yesterday after a really long time I found myself lost in the book, oblivious to other commitments and responsibilities, and I spent a blissful afternoon transported to another world as I greedily worked my way through The Boy who Loved Anne Frank – a brilliant work that not only moved me, but has forced me to question my interest in the Holocaust. It made me wonder how I could possibly pretend to understand or even sympathise with the pain of the victims – me who was born in a society where “war” is something distant, when my only associations with starvation and poverty are with what I see (but not feel) on the roads as I commute in a bubble of comfort in my air-conditioned car (or even that rickety, uncomfortable bus which also puts me several ranks above them.)…

This morning I started Incest, a work that scandalized the readers when first published, with it’s exploration of the most devious and skin-crawling morally evil act. To be able to say that I’ve read one-third of the novel already (and this mostly while commuting) makes me want to gloat and crow in sheer exhilaration.

Welcome back Bookworm – it was real lonely without you…hope you plan to stick around a while! Amen!

Current Music:- Don’t Talk Just Kiss – Right Said Freddie, Be My Baby - Vanessa Paradis
Current Mood:- Indolent and sensuously relaxed, after a glorious body scrub and long hot shower…and itching to get under the covers and finish that book ;-)

GRUMPF

I could just about sink my teeth into someone right now...

Ola 2007!

My first post in 2007 – I hope to be more regular this year, but I won’t promise – the last couple of months have proven without doubt that the best intentions don’t necessarily lead to the promised actions. The year kicked off in a rather sedate fashion – a very calm, lazy vacation in Bangalore spent surrounded by family. Great weather, peaceful days, languid routines, afternoons spent sunning myself like an indolent lizard on the terrace/balcony of my relatives homes and some shopping (though not much when you think of the shopper’s paradise that Bangalore is!)…I’ve returned back to Pune feeling very lazy, but itching to get back into action…and boy does it feel good!

After some initial confusion, I’ve managed to get the batches I wanted, with the timings I wanted – working just in the morning this time, so that I have the rest of the day to plan my next day, read up/study for my DFA course and actually accomplish other things as well, apart from le français! ;-) The Alliance Française (world-over but particularly in India) had changed its text and organization of courses from this year – so it means a little more effort vis-à-vis class planning, but I think I’m going to enjoy teaching the new book far more than the older one! Time shall tell…here’s hoping 2007 is a better year on all counts! Amen!

Wrap-Up

Last night, as the year-end drew closer and as I got ready for a short trip to Bangalore with Ma, I sat and stared up at the stars and thought about all that had happened this year and what lies ahead in 2007. It’s been a year like none other – it’s changed the way I think, my views and attitudes…

I think I’ve grown this year in more than one way. I’ve lost so much this year – losses that can’t be balanced out by what I’ve learnt or what I’ve gained for nothing can take the place of my father. It’s been over nine months and sometimes I still wait for him to walk in through the door, I still yearn to talk to him, I still miss those moments when he’d come and run his hand over my head before he went to bed…and I still regret the fact that I fought with him before he left for Kottayam. When I think of the other relationships that went awry this year, of the lies and betrayals I faced, all of it pales in comparison and I wonder why I gave them so much importance – I think I’ve learnt from my mistakes and I hope I never have to face those kind of heart-breaks again…but then who knows what lies ahead, for the biggest lesson I’ve learnt is that whoever is up there, pulling the strings of our life, has a very weird sense of humour and loves pulling the rug out from under us just as we start getting comfortable.

It’s not been all bad - after taking baby-steps towards my goal for so long, I’ve finally embarked on my métier and am slowly moving up that ladder of progress. I believe I’m learning and improving with each passing moment and despite some really embarrassing goof-ups (I still cringe every time I’m reminded of them), I think I do a pretty good job of what I’m paid to do…if all goes well, then next year I should finally be able to fulfill another long cherished dream. Amen. I’ve met some fabulous people and strengthened the foundations of friendships that were still on unstable grounds. I’ve done some crazy things, that I never thought I’d do – and much as I wonder where it’s taking me, I don’t think I’ll regret a single moment. Now if only I could truly toss caution to the winds, caring two-hoots about what the others think and for a change just follow my instincts, paying no heed to what practicality, common sense and fear of the unknown tomorrow dictates…

Burnt indelibly into my conscious (and I think sub-conscious and unconscious as well) this year :-

• The first breath-taking sight of Parvati temple at Ellora caves.
• Papa, at work, sitting proudly behind his desk at Phoenix Mecano India.
• Papa stepping into the elevator telling me he’ll come back and discuss my plans for the future.
• My first batch of students presenting me with a cake that said “Alliance Française Rocks” and asking me to cut it.
• Rain drenched Seven Bungalows from the 4^th floor of Gayatri – I wonder whether I’ll ever think of any other place as “home.”
• The pride and delight of seeing my closest friend’s name in a magazine and hugging him – wish I’d done that the next two times as well!
• Papa, cold in that awful coffin – lying on the cold hard floor of the crematorium and being taken away from me.
• The disappointment in my friend’s voice, the fear of losing him…and yes, the peace and joy at patching up. I don’t ever want to go through that agony again.
• Being told that the song “You’re Beautiful” by James Blunt reminds someone of me…being told that I am beautiful.
• That last hug at the airport before Appu checked in for her flight to Chicago.
• Those lazy afternoons with Kitana over cappuccino at Barista.
• Walking into Khadki cemetery with a friend and watching her face light up with delight at its sheer impeccable beauty and the possibilities it offers vis-à-vis photography.
• Teacher’s Day – my first as a teacher and being gifted that wonderful card…followed by my birthday, when once again my students presented me with a card and cake.
• The pride that surged each time my students fared well, despite the fact that I seem to set rather “high standards” for my students when it comes to exams ;-)
• The cold pit in my stomach when I realized I’d screwed up in class and the relief once I’d set things right and my students reassured me that they still liked me as much as they did before they were told I’d erred...and how!
• Coffee by the roadside, tea at the tapdi, popsicles sitting perched on the footpath.
• Sharing Nala Park (a.k.a Osho Teerth Park / Zen Garden) with someone I’ve grown very fond off over the last two months.

Dereliction of Duties

Oh I feel terrible terrible – not a single word for so long that Extempore got the opportunity to reprimand me for derelict of duties! It’s been a whirl-wind of a fortnight, and believe me while I thought several times of sitting myself down to blog, the energy to follow up on my thoughts simply wasn’t there. Much work has happened, minor crisis has been averted, and the cold/cough/fever that has been trying to make it’s presence felt since May this year finally got a chance to take hold of my respiratory organs and has since created havoc inside me forcing me to take class when I barely had energy to stand…and worse, forcing me to conceded defeat and cancel class! Oh how terrible I feel – double dereliction of duties. Could it get any worse?

Currently:- Cantankerous as hell bent over the monitor, sore/red-nosed, sniffing into a tissue, coughing like an eighty year-old woman and praying I can take class tomorrow.
Currently Reading:- Monsieur by Lawrence Durrel
Currently Listening to:- RFI on World Space

Licensed to Kill...

The Bond Mania has never made much sense to me – the way I saw it, they were just a series of films with a typical plot revolving around espionage of some sort or the other, solved by this hunk who apparently had superhuman capabilities and could get away with just about anything with a smile and his 007 tag! There was a time when I’d admit with much embarrassment that I hadn’t really seen all the Bond films – today if you ask me, I’ll tell you that I’ve only seen those with Pierce Brosnan since I am a loyal fan of that incredibly eatable man ;-)

I saw the latest Bond film – Casino Royale – a couple of weekends ago; I believe it was the very first weekend that the film was screened in India (now that’s impressive for a Bond-indifferent person). I won’t say I was bored or that I didn’t enjoy the film – but yes, I definitely didn’t see anything worth raving about…so, the dude believes he’s Spiderman (or was it Superman?), so the dude beats up a bunch of people and manages to extract information from them, so the dude has a soft-spot for hot babes…umm, tell me which leading man in an “action” film doesn’t have all the above characteristics?

I can’t compare the latest Bond with his predecessors, except perhaps for Brosnan – and I have to say this…I’ve been re-watching the Brosnan Bond films the last two days, and the sheer style, charm and smoothness of that man make all those bizarre stunts easier to digest! I mean really – wrecking half a city with a tank, just because you have to rescue the babe? For that matter, do tanks swerve that fast and that smoothly? The only reason I wasn’t rolling my eyes and snorting in disbelief was the presence of Brosnan in the same frame – and I’m quite sure that’s the reason behind the success of all those many Bond films – the film-makers obviously chose their Bond carefully. There are those who are drooling over this latest guy (I don’t even remember his name; I had to google it, beat that?) – give me Brosnan any day and I’ll happily convert to a Bond fan! ;-)

In the pipeline :–

• A Good Year (am going to see this one, since it’s based on a Peter Mayle script and it features one of my favourite French songs – Lolita, by Alizée – hopefully the French countryside will help me ignore Russel Crowe’s presence in the film!)
• Busier, longer days with more than one class a day – it’s going to be 4-6 hours of French a day from next week! Yippee???
  

On my bed-side table :- Malaria – Susan Hill Mori, Paroles – Jacques Prévert, Le Français Dans Le Monde (a magazine for FLE professors, i.e those who teach French as a foreign language)