Ideamarked Nov2011: Window Gardens, Bookstores, PS3 & Kolaveri Di

I’ve always loved November. Diwali festivities, vacations to look forward to…as I’ve gotten older, I find the end of the year packing up. The weather is crisper, even in hot & humid Mumbai. Everyone starts to let their hair down and spends more time thinking about parties, picnics & get-togethers than work. The world takes a break next month & November is all about the planning and anticipation of just that.

It’s been a packed and enjoyable November for me. I attended the NH7 festival in Pune, in its second year. A story on women bloggers featured me in a prominent way. For the few of you who remember my long-winded adventure with NovelRace, I finally managed to complete it! Whether this ever comes out or not, I can now die happy knowing that I did write a full novel.

On that cheery note, here’s this month’s links. As you can see, there was a lot of link-love going around too!

• DewarsIndia’s channel features music travelogues across India. (on Youtube, link courtesy Sangita Bhargavi)
• ‘Simi’s new show: India’s most botoxed, banal & brainless‘: Of course, I agree. (via FirstPost, link courtesy Lakshmi Shesadri)
• ‘MasterChef India: Guaranteed to cure you of any desire to cook‘: Sadly, I’m having to agree. MasterChef India has a long way to go before it can be in the same league as MasterChef Australia. (via FirstPost)
• Window gardening for the urban-dweller longing for a touch of green – ‘Growing Organic Fruits & Vegetables at Home‘ (via Earthoholics, link courtesy Vishal Gadkari)
• ‘Worklish’ is a way to cover up how much one doesn’t know. They why is it that we who don’t speak it, are left out in the cold?: ‘Buzzwords at office driving you crazy? 6 ways to cope‘ (via Huffington Post)
• If your interest in astrology, tarot, dream interpretation & the predictive arts extends beyond mere curiosity, you should definitely visit Magick. The store  is currently looking for fulltime apprentices to initiate into the Wicca tradition. (via Swati Prakash)
• If you ever wondered why the people you follow, don’t follow you back, here are some possible answers: ‘The Top 10 Reasons I Will Not Follow You On Twitter‘ (via Mashable)
• Reviews, recipes and workshops, you have to stop by Tulleeho if you have a love of the drink.
• India as the Indians see it – non PC humour (on Facebook, link courtesy Shweta Madan)
• ’5 Tips To Help You Decide How Much Of You Should Show Up On The Blog‘ (via SharingWithWriters)
• Hail the motherland of idlis, software dreams & kitschy Kollywood songs! This month’s music craze – Kolaveri Di (via Youtube)
• A 5-yr old post that’ll still interest Mumbai’s booklovers: ‘A Bibliophile’s Guide To Mumbai‘ (via The Idea-smithy)
• A lovely gift from blogger to blogger – ‘It’s Not Just A Car‘ 55 word story by Manuscrypts!
• Kitab Khana, a bookstore recommendation courtesy Anuradha Shankar.
• A little thought on liking and love (via Slices of Time, link courtesy Rehab Chougle)
• ‘MICHEAL: PS3 Long Live Play‘: A fun advertisement for gamers (via Youtube, link courtesy Ashwini Mishra)

* Catch these links as they happen on The Idea-smithy Facebook Page. You can also post an interesting link of your own to the page and get featured on the Ideamarked post at the end of the month!

Klose & Kozy With Kim Kardashian

Yes, yes Kim Kardashian is divorcing her husband of 72 days. It is certainly entertaining but it’s not surprising. Her job description is, after all, Reality TV star. The Kardashians’ collective career is based on entertaining us with ‘real life’ tales. It might probably be appropriate to congratulate everyone concerned on yet another successful attempt to be in the news.

Maybe Kim will be the next ‘The Bachelorette‘. Or, if the family wants to get involved Indian-style, they could make it ‘Klose & Kozy with the Kardashians‘. Maybe Balaji Telefilms will be willing to produce it. I’ll be glued to my set if that does happen.

Related articles

• You: Kim Kardashian Divorce: Kim Should Bare Blame for Elaborate Wedding Scam (bleacherreport.com)
• Kim Kardashian 2: Things to admire about Kim (thepunch.com.au)

Ideamarked Oct2011: Public Transport, Blogger Events & Watching What You Say

October has been a better month than the couple of months preceding it. For one, the rains have finally stopped!! Even if they did give way to scorching, melting, burning sunshine, for me, that means the shorts, summer dresses & flip-flops can finally replace easy-dry clothes & plastic footwear!

I’ve been traveling a bit, first to Bangalore and then to Bordi (posts coming up, of course!). There’s also been a fair bit of socializing with two back-to-back blogger meets by Indiblogger – the first, a blogger preview of MasterChef India2 (photos) and the second, the launch of Dove’s Damage Therapy range via a mini-spa for bloggers. Both were delightful, fun and had some great giveaways (now come on, bloggers are human too – we like freebies just like everybody else!).

Image via Wikipedia

One of the highlights (lowlights?) of the month was when Cadbury’s-Sula asked me to host a Dark Duet Party and botched it up, then topped it with a bad rescue attempt. Incidentally another friend reported another fiasco at her Dark Duet Party, the following weekend.

And finally, Marvin’s World back! After a bit of acting up, my Android has been taken care of with a SD card format and is app-browsing again! Onto some link-love:

• ‘Social Networks Defined Through Peeing‘: Oh ewww! And hahahaha! (via Reface.me)
• A new reason to watch your words: Barring a witty retort, the other person might say “That’s what she said!”. And here’s more TWSS! (link courtesy GautamGhosh)
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  Image via Wikipedia

  Apple founder, Steve Jobs passed away a few hours ago. The products he pioneered have touched many of our lives in different ways, whether it was the iPod that was the first thing you saved up for & bought with your own money or, like me, if you were lucky enough to have a Mac for your first computer. Fans, detractors aside, here’s what stays with me – Steve Jobs’ 2005 Stanford Commencement Address. (via Youtube)

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  Image via Wikipedia

  If you ever wondered about the correct way to say ‘bruschetta’ or ‘panini’, here’s an easy guide: ‘How To Order At An Italian Restaurant Without Sounding Dumb (Or Pretentious)‘ (via HowAboutWe.com).

• Hope for public transport-tortured Mumbaikers may be around the corner in the form of a 24-hr dial-in autorickshaw service. Login to Rickshawale.com or check their Facebook Page. And here are some early impressions (link courtesy SharinBhatti, )
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  Image via Wikipedia

  Schedules and timely updates on the Mumbai train lines (via MumbaiLocalTrains, spotted at the Indiblogger-Dove meet).

• Annie Zaidi & Smriti Ravindra’s latest book ‘A Bad Boy’s Guide To The Good Indian Girl’ explores the relationships women have with men, with each other and themselves. The promotional video features me (!) and a number of other women talking about The Good Indian Girl. (via Youtube).
• Always a good read or listen: ‘Everybody’s free to wear sunscreen‘ (via Youtube, link courtesy Sanjita)

* Catch these links as they happen on The Idea-smithy Facebook Page. You can also post an interesting link of your own to the page and get featured on the Ideamarked post at the end of the month!

Related articles

• Ideamarked Sep2011: Cocktails, Dabbawallas & Wisdom (ideasmithy.wordpress.com)
• Ideamarked July2011: Social Networks, Twitter Talk & Internet Memes (ideasmithy.wordpress.com)
• Ideamarked Jun2011: Conspiracy Theories, eGadgets & Hakoba (ideasmithy.wordpress.com)

Food Musings

Image by rtppt via Flickr

I finally managed to catch MasterChef India 2 yesterday night. Does it seem like the judges talk down to the contestants, a wee bit? In that sense, it feels closer to MasterChef USA (minus horrible Gordon Ramsay) and less like MasterChef Australia’s cheerful, encouraging Gary, George & Matt.

The boy commented that the contestants are primarily housewives. I guess that reflects India’s approach to food as compared to Australia and the US. Looks like there still is a very strong feeling that the kitchen is a woman’s place of pride. The few men that I do know who cook well, are part of the small, urban elite that’s really more Western than Indian. Food and its creation are associated with archetypal ‘family values’ and ‘maa ke haath ka khana‘. We don’t really see it as a creative field in itself, with all the experimentation, newness and edginess of other arts.

Speaking of which, I have something to say about the so-called foodie. I never claimed to be one myself. I have very marked tastes as well as a few health concerns about certain foods (corn allergies, mutton disagreeing with me etc). But I’ve always been enthusiastic about trying out something that I haven’t tried before. Perhaps because of the size of my portions (small), I get branded as somebody who isn’t really a foodie. That’s really funny, considering I’ve had no qualms putting a cooked octopus arm into my mouth but a lot of my ‘foodie’ friends would shy away from that.

What’s more, my vegetarian preferences make me a bit of an unfashionable standout in the crowd that says it loves food (translate that to liberally masala’ed, hefty meat portions). But isn’t enjoying something about how much pleasure you derive from it, not how much of it you consume? And what’s with the meat snobbery? I think a real foodie finds a way to appreciate anything that’s tasty, whether it is a steamed idli or a baked tandoori chicken.

I guess I’ll revise my declaration from ‘I am not a foodie’ to ‘I am not a food-snob’.

* Also served at Plain Salted.

Related articles

• Indiblogger-MasterChef India2 Blogger Meet – Hot & Appetising! (ideasmithy.wordpress.com)

Where’s Coca-Cola Going With ‘Do Diye Zyada Jalao‘?

I get that Coca-Cola’s ‘Do diye jyaada jalao‘ advertisement is cashing in on the festive season sentiment. Except that anybody who has grown up in a Diwali-celebrating culture knows that this is a with-family festival, not a go-out-celebrate-with-others one. That’s Christmas, Holi perhaps (minus the hooliganism & harassment) and yes, even Ganesh Chaturti & Pujo. But Diwali? That’s for diyas & rangolis inside the house, sweets with family.

I’m not being a religious fanatic here, just a purist on social customs.Yes, yes, I hear the voiceover suggest that we do something different this Diwali. But let’s bring it down to the basics, shall we, before suggesting change? The festival of lights essentially welcomes the Goddess of wealth into the house (in addition to other celebratory things, of course). Prosperity, beautiful concept as it is, is something that you wish for and celebrate with your closest family. It’s completely different from forgiveness or freedom or new beginnings, which are concepts you might want to go out and spread. Prosperity isn’t what you’re going to wish on the college principle who punishes you often or the girls’ hostel watchman. Incidentally, religious lights are not supposed to be blown out, by tradition so what’s that saree-clad lady doing foofing out the diya before dropping it into the youngsters’ baskets?

Also, what does a fizzy, sugary drink have to do with Diwali? Try as I might, I can’t think of Diwali as anything but ghee-filled sweets and rich, Indian food. Oh some alcohol as well, perhaps, with the card-playing, a tradition adopted from my northern friends. But cola? That’s for washing down pav-bhaji or at best, softening rum.

This advertisement bothers both, the social observer as well as the marketer in me.

Indiblogger-MasterChef India2 Blogger Meet – Hot & Appetising!

I’ve been following MasterChef Australia with great enthusiasm, both last year and this one. I also managed to catch MasterChef UK (though Gordon Ramsay failed to charm me the way George & Matt Preston do). So the Indiblogger-MasterChef India 2 meet on Saturday sounded really promising.

As it was, they earned a big plus by having an air-conditioned bus ferry us to and from the event. The venue was RK Studios (where MasterChef India 2 will be filmed). This has to be a landmark of sorts for this city, given that it was home to some of Bollywood’s most iconic films. I am no expert on television sets but even to the rookie eye, the MasterChef India 2 set stands out for its quiet elegance, neat lines & bright, airy feel. Every setting that MasterChef viewers would be familiar with – from the contestant tables to the dining room to the pantry, the cutlery/crockery stocks to the stage where the results of each round are announced to the ubiquitous ‘M’ – are comfortably contained within the space.

The main area was furnished with tables for the blogger meet, that day but will hold the contestant tables during the show. Beyond the stage, cordoned off behind glass bead curtains lies the main dining area. Lining the main area on either side are the pantries, the cutlery/crockery shelves and the cooking implements. Upstairs on either side, replicating the MasterChef format are the galleries from where safe contestants view the proceedings.

The blogger meet started around 2:30 p.m. This gave us enough time to walk around and get in some photographs, which turned out to be a good thing since it got really busy later. The event started off with the Indiblogger staple of blogger introductions. I love the fact that Indiblogger meets include a display screen with a live-tracker of who has just entered and tweets about the event. It lets bloggers/tweeters identify each other. It also makes conversing from across the room great fun!

Once the introductions were complete, the three judges Vikas Khanna, Ajay Chopra and Kunal Kapoor took the floor to talk about the show and address questions. The obvious question of why there was so much coverage of contestants’ personal lives (and the ensuing politics) instead of focusing on the cooking, came up. The replies were slick, if not scripted but this was deftly deflected by turning the discussion over to the bloggers. Who likes sharing stories better than a bunch of bloggers? Soon the group was swapping food memories, from the sweetly nostalgic to downright touching. Among other things, there was a minute’s silence to honour the recently deceased mother of one of the bloggers, after she talked about how much she loved the show.

Post high tea (very befitting of the most popular food show of our times), we got a sneak preview/taste of what it’s like to be a MasterChef contestant through a set of short competitions. The first was what the judges said had been their first cookery lesson – dicing apples. Chef Ajay Chopra demonstrated the right way to do it and then conducted a competition among some of the bloggers. Chopped apples and one cut finger followed.

This was followed by a ginger julienne mini-Masterclass by Chef Kunal Kapoor and a competition. I participated in this one but my ginger strips just weren’t good enough to make the cut (yes, that’s a pun!). The third class-cum-contest was on chopping potatoes to prep for french fries (or finger chips, as we like to call them). The final competition was a mystery box challenge (whoo, whoo, whoo, MasterChef fans!). Under the box, we found a bunch of ingredients that had to be correctly identified and then all used to put together a recipe.

The event concluded with another Indiblogger staple – the chart-as-comment-box. Every blogger was given a chart with a string to hang over their backs. Then we were let loose to share notes, leave Twitter handles or email addresses, ‘I love your blog!’ comments and other little nothings that bloggers like saying to each other. This is another great idea to keep track of all the great people you meet at an event but are just not able to connect with later. The giveaways, yet another Indiblogger staple included Masterchef aprons and a special thermal mug that lights up when it is filled with hot liquid! Good, no?

What really worked for this event was that there was a very definite value provided for the bloggers who got out of home on a Saturday and made the journey. Visiting the MasterChef set was spectacular. Being able to interact with the judges was great too but the real clincher was simulating an actual MasterChef episode with the contests and class. Food is very cool right now, in pop culture and nothing can be more exciting for a foodie than being able to talk about it to other like-minded people and with acknowledged experts in the field. The afternoon was well worth it.

I was looking forward to catching MasterChef India 2 anyway, having missed the first season. Now, after having actually been on the set and talking to the judges, I’m going to be extra hooked to the show. I think this event acted as a real appetiser for the show to follow. Great idea, Star Plus and fab work, Indiblogger putting up a wonderful event!

See more pictures of the event on Facebook and Flickr (starting here). The tweets of the event were tagged #MasterChefIndia2.

* Cross posted to Plain Salted.

Related articles

• World Chefs: Khanna hopes to inspire with book, TV show (canada.com)
• Just because you can cook, it doesn’t mean you should go on MasterChef. (shaicoggins.com)
• Fox Renews ‘MasterChef’ for Season 3 (aoltv.com)

Socialites

I didn’t think there could be anyone more annoying that Paris Hilton, for being in the news for no reason whatsoever. Then Kim Kardashian turned up. And oh my god, now the rest of her family follows.

Image via Wikipedia

Image via Wikipedia

3G: No Getting Away Or Getting Any?

Considering the number of commercial messages bombarding the TV viewer (and mallgoer and movie watcher and city traveler), advertisements are as much pop culture as anything else. Saw a new ad the other day and old instincts dying hard in me, I perked up in attention. The ad went thus:

A single, big car stands in an underground parking lot. It shakes, then stops. It shakes, then stops. It shakes and then…a phone rings and a voice answers. The tagline flashes, “No getting away”.

Considering a certain sirjee‘s recent proclamations (“Ab India ho gaya hai 3G pe bijee!“), I’m just wondering just what the telecom companies have got against the human population’s best loved activity? Curious to know just what kind of people will admit to thinking that a mobile phone network interrupting & replacing sex is cool.

Related articles

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• Tata docomo 3G online recharge (madrasgeek.com)

Homebird

Home is a place of comfort, but not necessarily luxury.

It’s discovery, soapy finger by soapy finger, under layers of dust & other people’s existence. It’s building it, one familiar memento at a time. It’s owning it, inch by inch with every step, every piece of my own life that I put down in it. It’s looking around and saying, “I created this.”

Home is a state of mind, as much as of a place I’m at.

It’s where I feel able to take off my clothes, my masks, my inhibitions and my fears. It’s the place I fall asleep, when everywhere else is just a space for a nap. It is a place, a time, a person, a mood, a state of being that recognizes me, that facilitates me, that makes it possible for me to be me, that says, “So-and-so lives here.”

Home is where I lay my hat but it’s also where I rest the deepest, most precious part of my soul. There’s nothing more personal than home. Home, truly, is where my heart is.

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Two very different pop culture references to home:

First, Jagjit Singh in an Asian Paints ad, which puts into words that irrevocable attachment we feel to home:

“Har ghar chupchap se yeh kehta hain, ke andar isme kaun rehta hain
Chhat batati hain, yeh kiska asmaan hain
Rang kehte hain, kiska yeh jahaan hain
Kamron mein kiski kalpana jhalakti hain
Is farsh pe nange pair, kiske bachche chalte hain
Kaun chun chunke ise pyaar se sajata hain
Kaun is makaan mein, apna ghar basata hain
Har ghar chupchap se yeh kehta hain, ke andar isme kaun rehta hain
Kyonki har ghar kuch kehta hain”

(rough translation)

“A home whispers of who lives inside it
The roof tells us who owns that piece of sky
The colours speak of whose world that is
Whose are the dreams that sparkle in each room
Whose are the children who run barefoot on these floors
Who has adorned this space, bit by loving bit
Who has made their home within these four walls
Because every home says something”

And secondly, a Simon & Garfunkle song called Homeward Bound which tells of that intangible sense of incompleteness & yearning that surrounds us when we are far from home.

“All my words come back to me,
in shades of mediocrity,
like emptiness & harmony,
I need someone to comfort me.

Homeward bound, I wish I was.”

We all need a place to belong to and home is what lets us know that there is room for each of us in this universe.

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If you liked this post also read:

• How a city I resist brings me closer to the city I love in A Tale Of Two Cities
• My conflicted emotions when I travel in Home

Related articles

• Dur tak nigaah mein hain… (diligentcandy.com)

RomComs To Action Flicks

Jennifer Anniston is the one person who can make me go from HBO to AXN in a click. Not a great talent for a romcom star to have.