“It is our attitude at the beginning of a difficult task which, more than anything else, will affect its successful outcome.” ~William James.

There is nothing worse than having to wake up every morning and getting ready to go to work you don’t like.

I joined my first corporate job after finishing my second masters’ degree, back in 1990.

But soon found myself jumping from one job to another, before settling for the one I liked. May be, I was not ready to adapt myself to my new routine and  probably was intimidated by those high-pressured corporate jobs, during the initial phase of my work life.

Hmm…I should have learned to love what I did and continued…too late.

There is nothing better than being able to bring a smile to someones face and make them happy. Yes, I did it again!
“I have other commitments lined up for this week already and I may not be able to take up this project. Moreover I am not a professional photographer, I can ony style the food to some extent. And doing 60 dishes in such a short span of time is practically impossible.” I replied showing my helplessness to accept the said project to my friend ‘P’ on phone.

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.”~Winston Churchill.

“Our company is into motion pictures and TVC (television commercials), are you interested in doing a project with us? If yes, we would like to meet you today, as the shoot schedule and the artists are already fixed” the caller on the other end continued and waited for my reply.

“Sure, I will come in the evening and let you know about my decision” I replied to ‘C’, producer of the Ad agency.

I got to know the enormity of the said project, a television commercial for Malaysia after meeting the director in evening and was slightly skeptical to take it.
I was a bit nervous when I entered the location early morning, what with hundreds of people running helter- skelter carrying giant light boxes, reflectors and the like.

I gave myself a few moments and quickly regained my composure after seeing a few familiar faces on-location. And after that there was no looking back.

There is no better time than now to be happy again to receive a mail from Natasha, feature writer of a popular Asian magazine ‘Better Photography’.

“I just had a look at your beautiful blog and I must commend you on your work. Your passion for food really shows! There is such love and care in the way you have arranged your food and props. Being a photographer myself, I really love the picture you have taken. There is a beautiful sense of composition and the colours are stunning 🙂 ”

She sent me the above mail a few days back and asked whether she can share a few photographs of mine in their website with due credits to me.

“When you take the step towards your dreams, you will be met with fears because you have never traveled this way before. As you go, you will discover that you had nothing to fear.” ~ Gardner
And before I could think of anything, I was already prop shopping for this premium Australian brand – Longleaf Tea Vodka with Kunal Daswani, a very experienced and eminent Photographer in Chennai.

Every time a photo-shoot assignment lands on my lap I am like a happy kid, running around, shopping, planning and stacking props enthusiastically for the shoot.

And then came the moment we all were waiting for. I almost held my breath and didn’t move a bit when my children took their first bite. They ate, looked at me and gave a mysterious smile which peaked my curiosity 🙂

I could not make out the taste when I scooped my first bite into Avocado Chocolate Mousse, but with the second bite I was instantly transformed into chocolaty haven. The rich, creamy and buttery taste of Avocado mousse seduced me into taking one bite and then another, till I was scraping the corners and reached the bottom of my ramekin.

The no-cook, easy and quick Avocado mousse taste exactly like how I expect my dessert to be. Food is the most delicious expression of emotions.

I received a phone call from a photographer friend the other day, “Hello, Sanjeeta, there is a photo shoot day after tomorrow and I said yes to the client, believing that you are there to help me out with the ‘food styling‘ part.”

“You have to cook 15 plus recipes in the studio and style the same. Things moved too fast, and I could not ask for more time from the client.” He concluded hurriedly.

And I was like “What?”. From sourcing props, shopping raw ingredients, planning the shots and cooking recipes in the studio to styling the sets …all in a day’s time…single-handedly…

There is nothing more admirable than when you see your work getting recognized in your own homeland, all the more so, when you are staying away from it. But as they say, we may leave a house or a town, but that does not mean those places leave us.

Whenever I miss my hometown in Udaipur, I would sneak into this online News portal ‘Udaipur Times’ for hourly updates and latest happenings in my town. But never thought that some day I will make ‘News’ in the same.

And just when I was sitting back and reminiscing about what all good the year 2013 has brought in for me, I got yet another pleasant surprise. I found my name in the list of “Top 30 Indian Food Bloggers of 2013, first on Awesome Cuisine and then on Rediff.com, a very trendy online web portal.

I couldn’t have asked for anything better. These are times when I take pride in what ever I have achieved and feel thankful for the choices I have made in life.

My kitchen is warm from the heat of oven and the smell of baked cookies is driving me crazy. Baking is pure magic. I know, I have repeated the statement over and again in many of my posts…can’t help.

Flour, butter and a few add-on and you have one of the crunchiest of goodies to munch upon. Baking cookies is such a cinch and I often involve my children in the process of rolling and cutting out cookies.
But I don’t wish to keep posting recipes alone which will dilute the purpose of my blogging. I blog to share memories and the nostalgia associated with the food alongside the recipes I cook in all my blog posts.

That hand-written small piece of paper struck with a magnet on my fridge ‘There is a life beyond your blog, Sanjeeta, go easy’ keeps me grounded.

“Hey, turn back and see who is sitting right behind you” hubby spoke to me in hushed tone during a special cocktail dinner party organized for the senior officials of his company in Leela palace last night.

I gently turned around to see a dashing young man in body-hugging white shirt and tight fit blue jeans behind me.
I used to wonder whether opposites really attract and do they make a perfect couple?  But after being together for the last 20 plus years with him, I know for sure they do 🙂