An Indian wedding is a perfect blend of traditions, grandeur, delectable cuisine and sacredness of celebrations. The unbound enthusiasm and the flow of emotions of all the family members have to be seen to be believed.

My children have attended many Tam Brahm marriages of their paternal relatives in Chennai but have never seen any Rajasthani marriage from my side. They were too small to remember anything about my brothers’ marriage in 2004, son was hardly four years and daughter was just a few months old.

During my recent  visit to Udaipur in May 2013, I got a chance to take them to a typical Marwari marriage.  And they were really amused to notice the stark differences between the rituals and proceedings of marriages of two states of India. My daughter quipped that she wants to get married in Rajasthan so that the groom comes riding a horse

Home is where the heart is….my heart belongs to Chennai, the place where I got married and have been living since 1996. I have wholeheartedly accepted the city and have accustomed to the traditions, climatic conditions and the food here.

But even after spending a good 17 years in Chennai I feel that a part of my heart still lives in Udaipur. The place where I grew up, studied and spent the most beautiful years of my life with family and friends.

And why not, if one is the place of my birth than the other made me a complete woman! I take it as a special privilege of belonging to the two different cities at once.

“One friend with whom you have a lot in common is better than three with whom you struggle to find things to talk about.”  ~ Mindy Kaling. I have experienced the same during many of the regular family meets with hubby’s office-mates. When everyone else would be seriously involved in discussing Cinema, TV serials, fashion world, latest gadgets to who is the best dressed man/woman, the feeling of being left alone in crowd really scares me out.
And I was really surprised to know how much common ground we all share, true to this saying “Each friend represents a world in us, a world possibly not born until they arrive, and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born.” 

You can take a girl out of desserts, but you can’t take desserts out of a girl. Oh yes, I was born with a dessert spoon! According to my nanny my mom was feasting on hot Malpuas dipped in creamy Rabdi a few minutes before she went into labour pains, much to the chagrin of my stressed out doctor father.

Desserts were an important part of our everyday meal during growing  up years in Udaipur, Rajasthan. Our family was certainly not an exception in a state where a day starts and ends with a sweet, what with people queuing up in food shops before the day breaks, fishing out hot Jalebis floating in warm milk for breakfast.

“So you are a housewife and you blog at your free time, lucky you” I am still trying to figure out what the young blogger wanted to convey when we met in a blogger meet recently. Am I lucky because I am a housewife, a blogger or because I have extra free time?

To me ‘Time’ is a luxury if you are bound with responsibilities and also have a passion to follow. I feel that only the achievers know the secrets of how to tame this elusive element of life called ‘Time’ and make the most out of both the worlds.

I was at loggerheads with time twenty years back when

World is celebrating International Women’s day today. Hmm…Is a single day enough to celebrate womanhood? May be, who cares…
Though a little late but am glad that I came out of the veil of a daughter, a wife and a mother to appreciate in broader perspective, the most precious gift of God – womanhood!

Creativity has no boundaries and is best expressed when the mind is free and the world is your canvas to work upon. For the last couple of days South Indian cinema and politics is abuzz with a certain ban on the release of a Tamil movie. Though I don’t follow the happenings from the field of cinema or politics much, but this one caught my eyes. People in the shops, morning walkers, school children, my maid and not to forget the screaming TV channel anchors, everyone seems to be worried about the freedom of expression overnight.

Anyways, hope both the sides resolve the issue amicably soon and the freedom of an artist to express art without any boundaries or political pressure is restored and also the powers of politicians to bring in peace and justice are appreciated.

Anyways, hope both the sides resolve the issue amicably soon and the freedom of an artist to express art without any boundaries or political pressure is restored and also the powers of politicians to bring in peace and justice are appreciated….

Like all the best families, we too have our share of family disagreements. Daughter likes plain flat breads (chapattis) while son prefers stuffed breads and if hubby likes Lachha parathas, its a big no-no for me. But there is something at home we all are one with…our good old Tandoor or grill, and anything cooked or baked in it is liked by one and all.

Crispy Missi Rotis (chickpea flour flat breads) and spicy Panchmel Daal (five lentils) is yet another popular combination of scrumptious foods from my hometown Rajasthan. People living in the desert areas cook this healthy, filling and delicious recipes during winter season when their body require more fuel in terms of protein and fat to combat the adverse cold conditions of harsh winter months.

Villagers in many places of Rajasthan still light their hearth by burning either wood or cow-dung to give them warmth from the cold waves and also to cook their meals on it.

“Travel wasn’t fun if you didn’t get to see or do what you wanted.” Though we have traveled extensively to many beaches of South India, there still are a few things left in my wish-list. Sit on a beach and gaze a ship leave the shore till it meets horizon, observe a day in the life of fishermen and wander in marshy Mangrove forest are a few of them. Our recent trip to a few places in South India last weekend made it happen.

Most of our trips are decided on the spur of the moment. But these unplanned vacations have a special magic in it such that the enthusiasm & suspense remains till the end and our recent trip was no exception. More about the same here.

Each night we would sleep with dreamy eyes to see some other horizon the next day. Waking up at 4.30 am each day, sipping tea overlooking the sea, seeing busy fishermen on the job, walking in the woods and watching the world go by…ahh, the feeling is yet to sink in…am still mesmerized.

‘A Brinjal by any other name is still a Birnjal’…was my one liner when mom used to cajole us eating eggplant or brinjal dishes in the name of Bharta, Brinjal Chokha, Raitas, stuffed Baingan and so on. But then most of the children I know have love-hate relationship with Brinjal…and I too had mine, so no regrets.

I feel the pinch when I watch Asian chefs tossing out exotic eggplant recipes on television shows and savoring them with a Hmm..wow…I should have taken a risk to explore the versatility of this humble veggie then.

Though I keep trying various eggplant recipes at home but all I know is  Brinjal Bharta (smoked eggplant with spices), brinjal fritters (coated with chickpea flour) and a few Indian curries. Anyways Brinjal is a favorite at home now and even my children love it….and yes, I don’t have to cook up new names to make them eat this purple veggie anymore