The Highland Connection

Kerala has always had its natural beauty in its hills, as these are the more preferred destinations in comparison to the beaches during the days when temperature is higher than it used to be. Among all these options, the first choice would always be Munnar, followed by these two special places – Thekkady and Vagamon. Located forty two kilometres, and about one and half kilometres apart, these two were to be combined in our trip. Our original idea was to travel to Thekkady and return after spending some time there, but the tour was rather extended. These two have been among our most visited destinations, with Thekkady being a place visited even when we traveled to the Tamil Nadu side, even though Munnar comes first as the most traveled hill station of all time, but a journey there would have meant eighty six kilometres and three hours, and so Vagamon seemed to be the much better choice.

At Vagamon, we stayed at Chillax Vagamon this time, and it was a simple place very close to the town itself, and the main attraction was a swimming pool at the roof top. During our earlier trip, we had stayed at Fairmount Vagamon Resorts, which was located further away from the town, and had a better view of greenery. At Thekkady, we stayed in Crown Valley Resorts, which was a grand place, a four star hotel which provided some fine facilities. During an earlier trip, we had stayed at Hotel SN International, which was closer to the town. The idea about this journey was more about traveling all the way there, and staying there to enjoy the atmosphere, and sight-seeing was not part of the plan. Well, at times, you need these hill stations for just the same, and not more.

The journey towards the destination always matters.

Reached the Crown Valley Resort, and then I had to take online classes.

Ford Aspire resting at Crown Valley Resort makes a fine view.

Note the route between Thekkady and Vagamon which is one grand sight.

What lies between Thekkady and Vagamon is the treat for the eyes.

Vagamon has its cute little hills at all places for you to see and admire.

There is always the setting sun which has the hills and clouds to hide itself.

Vagamon, even though the smaller among the hill stations, has its special charm.

View of the rooftop swimming pool of Chillax provided something to cheer for.

Some greenery is always there to be seen, from different angles and spaces.

*All the above photos were taken by me during our earlier trip in March 2021.

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<— Click here to go to the last published review.

TeNy

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Questions on a Sunny Day

It was on a sunny day that the ninety seventh human was allowed to get into the castle, something which was allowed only that many times through the history of the new and the old vampire worlds. Usually, the people allowed were someone who was good at one field or the other, this time, it was someone else, who had forced his way into this place, and so, none of the vampires happened to be happy about it. Still, they managed to deal with this person in the usual manner without exposing them to the sunlight directly.

Evil Human: Hi, inferior creatures, I am here, and I am going to praise my nation right now. So, listen to me as I go through it.

Vampire Bat: Why do you want to do that now?

Evil Human: It is what I do to make you understand my superiority in front of you lesser beings. I am going to sing our national anthem, and you have to stand up in respect for our culture and traditions which are the greatest in all world; otherwise, I will thrown you out of this castle like the useless dead people that you are.

Uncle Dracula: Enough of this. Tie him up.

[Vampires team up and tie up the man.]

Evil Human: This is an action against the greatest civilization, and the one true great nation of all time, which I condemn with the power that I possess due to our superiority over all those weak, pathetic…

Vampire Owl: This is rather unexpected. I have never even heard the Lich Queen or Mr. Werewolf Anger say this aloud in another territory.

Vampire Bat: One has to wonder how things happened to be like this. There should be some kind of control.

Uncle Dracula: This is quite natural, my friends. When a nation has so much of a great history, and the values that transcend what a common man can see, along with great development over the last few decades, uneducated fools like these will emerge.

Vampire Bat: It should be so depressing for a great nation to have people like this guy singing nonsense.

Uncle Dracula: Well, India has come so far into the modern world while maintaining its own powerful ideologies, values and culture which have contributed to the success of so many great people from the nation. It is the same reason why there is unity in diversity like nowhere else.

Vampire Owl: I was going to feed this guy to my zombie minions, but I am afraid that his extreme right-wing nonsense will poison their brains or what is left of them. They are all good people eating brain biriyani and having some graveyard fun, you know.

Uncle Dracula: It is only due to him not taking the essence of being an Indian, not taking the best of the great civilization right into him, and he seems to have been brainwashed into hating others rather than supporting his own nation and people. I have heard that uneducated humans fall into this too easily, and here we see the same proven with ease.

Vampire Bat: It is a case of shame that nothing can be done about it.

Vampire Owl: I am sure that politicians are also contributing to this. Such beliefs are what cause world wars.

Uncle Dracula: There is enough in Indian culture to be righteous and still gain success, but some people are just going on abusing others or choosing the wrong path to achieve success, and some dumb people think that it is all about religion, but the truth is that it is about politics – if there is no religion, there will always be caste, language, race and even celebrity worship among the others causing trouble. The only way out is to embrace the true essence of Indian culture, which has been all about truth, love, peace and non-violence.

Vampire Bat: May the essence get to be more powerful than the existence of people like him.

Vampire Owl: May righteousness prevail now, and towards the eternity that we look forward to.

Vampire Bat: My vampire friends, the human world has too many nations which consider themselves and their culture superior to the others. Only when the superiority is proven by their own actions of kindness and love rather than the rest of the things, that their world can be a better place. It is not by wealth and certainly not by fame, as there is that ancient Indian way of thinking that includes “Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu”, calling for happiness and peace not just to oneself, but to the whole world. When the world becomes a better place, happiness automatically comes back to you.

***The images used in this blog post are from the Official Facebook Page of the movie, Hotel Transylvania.

Witness the celebration of India’s growing global influence in Lufthansa’s TVC; for it is #MoreIndianThanYouThink.

TeNy

And There was the Need

I have had quite some time as break between passing my MA English exams and getting my first job, and this time period was spent the best by traveling around the town of Aluva or otherwise known as Alwaye as the people going through the railway station would know. Even before it was popularized by what became the second highest grossing Malayalam movie at that time, Premam, we knew that possibilities are endless, and I had a lot of time to undertake a random journey from one part of the town to the other. It never mattered if the journey was alone or with someone.

Watching movies could also happen with the same, and I often took some special time to travel in the KSRTC (Kerala State Transport Corporation) buses, as it has been on these government transportation that most of my life has been depending on – from our house to our flat, and also to our ancestral lands and to our current home, all were connected the best through the KSRTC service; even my schools, colleges and the work place were best reached by the KSRTC, or I preferred them before the private buses. The Aluva–Perumbavoor bus route has been my most traveled bus route ever.

Such journeys were needed, because there was not much about keeping on sitting at home all the time. A possible attack from a relative was always there to bring the danger and the terror, and it was capable of destroying a day or maybe even a week with the power, making these journeys the way to making the day better. It was during one of these journeys that I came across this person from another state, standing on the same bus stop as I was, seemingly not sure about which bus to choose from a long queue of transport.

As I was not someone in a hurry, I waited in my usual style, for a bus with empty seats to arrive, and that took some time. It was during that time that he asked about the bus to Angamaly, the other town which has bee popularized by a recently released movie, Angamaly Diaries. We usually expect such a person to ask about how to go to Perumbavoor, but this time, it was Angamaly. That was not that much of a difficult question for me, but him getting there was going to be more difficult. What he needed was an ordinary bus, and that was only possible from the KSRTC bus stand.

So, this was the time to remember “Atithi Devo Bhava”, and I had become the righteous host for the town of Aluva, the place where I was spending most of my youth. Prescribed in the ancient texts and also becoming the tag line of India’s Ministry of Tourism’s campaign, this was to become more and more significant in the wake of racist and nationalist attacks all over the world – at least us, who are part of a civilization with deep roots, and are determined to hold on to keep our values and culture strong, had to make sure that the slogan about “the guest being equal to God” was to stay alive.

Therefore, I decided to travel with him to the KSRTC bus station, and make sure that he got down there to get into the Angamaly bus, that too the ordinary service as he had wanted. When he came out of the bus after getting in, I thought that my understanding of languages was once again bad, but he had come to thank me, and then he returned to the bus to travel to the destination. Well, there can be many success stories, but nothing like being successful in helping others in need – it is part of our culture, and it should be on the top of the list of values that we would be passing on.

Yes, the idea of culture is more than just about behaviour, but how we behave with others does deserve to have the priority. Being Indian is more about how good a person you are, and not about how you force others to say that you and your country are so awesome. It is by how you treat others than others will be seeing you. Abusing people on the Facebook page or App page of an android application is not how one earns respect, and it should be the culture and values from our past, and not what has been developed by a modernised new generation, that should guide our lives.

Witness the celebration of India’s growing global influence in Lufthansa’s TVC; for it is #MoreIndianThanYouThink.

TeNy

Of Values and Culture

I wouldn’t consider myself among those who are termed as the highly acclaimed, successful people on the planet, or even in my extended family. But I have held on, against all things vain, and I have done that without losing hope. I have never been after titles, and never did I try to get a position better in comparison to someone else. I have been told that being good, and being fair to others is what matters the most. The same has been part of our culture, and success is something that will come to you sooner or later, as long as you keep the goodness factor alive, along with working hard. It is from the good deeds, that we make ourselves, and our nation proud.

There will always be the cousins, the distant relatives who have done so much with their lives, that people will always talk about how much they earn. It something that you will always have the ears to hear, and these people are certain to make sure that you are going to listen to the same. By any means necessary, more salary is required, and so is a wonderful married life which includes a partner with lots of money, and his or her family with more wealth. This is more of a deviation from what our culture has been. We are affected so much by the modern world that we have forgotten that our culture was not based on wealth, and it was all about the quality of an individual.

One would wonder if the problem is with the individual who keeps looking forward to only being successful in one way or the other, or with the society that keeps asking for the same. Growing in a family which has been so close to the Indian values, did make me wonder about where these qualities are going, during my youth. Maybe, the current situation has too many easy paths – but I would say no to them, and will work of my own to reach where I need to be; this has been my decision. There is a lot to do in this world and a lot to achieve, I agree to that – but I would also say that it has to be done in the right way rather than choosing a path which has all wrong letters written on the sign boards.

I am also not denying that the decision has been something that did prove effective for me in the long run. There were so many opportunities for me to go the wrong way, as the chances to lie and cheat one’s way through for money is quite natural in a world which has its people closer to each other with the social media and the internet. What the society has been asking was success, and beyond our culture, there is a new generation who are forced to take the easy way out, and some of them are really happy about the same. But I would not believe that everything is fair in love and war – it is just not the kind of saying that we can believe in, when we look from our culture and values.

Boasting has also never been part of our culture, which is why, the great figures further into the Indian history have been known less in the past, but have come to the picture now. We have always wished to live a simpler life, trying only to live fair and set a good example for a future generation. It is the same reason why, we have kings in our history who have sacrificed so much for their people, and it is on this sacrifice that our values are based on, even though there are still a lot of people who find it convenient to forget the same, and become the greedy, vain human being that has no part in our culture.

I would consider holding on to my values to be more important than stealing success, and showing off with my income and lifestyle. It was the same thing that I thought about when I attended one of those very few interviews which I came across during those early days after finishing my post graduation. I was asked about how good I was, and I replied that I am only that good as the resume says. I said that I would not go on to create magic all of a sudden, and I can only give my best, which was reflected on my qualifications and experience. That might be the only reason why I managed to get the job.

This might be the right place for me, or maybe it is not. I was never sure how long I was to go about with the job. But there was one thing that I was confident about, and it was that my life had to go on the right way, with the Indian values and culture, and not some fake ideology which has been brought on us just like on the other nations due to globalization, and the rest of the things that came as part of modernization. We are what we are, and we have our roots; it tells us to be true to ourselves and to the others; to lead a simple life, and to value humanity over wealth. It is how the hermits have earned so much respect in our history; we are a civilization that are beyond accumulation of wealth. It is how the trust is built, and a better world is constructed.

The same is reflected in Lufthansa’s TVC that is #MoreIndianThanYouThink.

TeNy

Airlift: There is the Impact!

There are only a few Bollywood movies which I have watched on the first day, for the first show; they are rarely my first choices. There are even fewer number of such flicks which actually worked for me. I had to watch terrible movies like Besharam and Tamasha just because I made the choice to go for Bollywood on a day of release. But things do change, and it was proven by Wazir earlier, and now with Airlift, making sure that the year started well at least when concerning the Hindi movies.

As most of you already know, I don’t watch many Bollywood movies on the first day, and it is surely not my interest to watch one for the very first show. I wasn’t confident about watching these movies, but I decided to go for Wazir because of the cast and due to the fact that it was a thriller; a different one too. The same applied to Airlift too, as it was also going to be different and also belonging to the same genre. Along with the same, I had the feeling that this was going to work so well.

Yes, the trailer helped, and the fact that the last two movies of Akshay Kumar which I had watched were Brothers and Baby, both being among my favourites. So, I decided to let Airlift do the job this weekend, and it was supposed to make an impact – what I can gladly say about it is that the movie did make that impact really well. It turned out to be a great relief from those usual Bollywood movies which have been terribly affected by meaningless romance and mindless action with absence of good stories.

The best impact that Airlift makes on you is by providing the realization about who you are. It reminds us of the people whom we are, as part of a great nation. The movie nicely makes the point that despite the differences that we have, we are all Indians, and it is something that we should be proud of. Each one of us is different, and the opinions will vary, but in the end, it is by our identity, and the roots that we will be known. At some point of time, it will define us as people because we never really leaves that behind.

I have personally felt that there is no place like home. I couldn’t be the same if I was at some other nation, because my heart is here and so are my people. Every second I was outside the nation, there were so many moments when I really wanted to be back home. Yes, we are lost in many things, but being at the place where we were born and raised, is something that we have a certain feeling for. Maybe some of the new generation people do have more love towards other nations, especially those born outside, but I won’t take it. Well, it is the nation which has made me what I am, and it will always be there in my mind. My patriotism will not be based on cricket matches like some fans, and about that, I am sure.

There are some moments in the movie which really make that impact – the most significant one is by the finish, with the tri-colour flag flying in the final moments, and everything else that happen around the situation. The movie also makes a big impact with its message, for the sacrifice and the courage to do the right thing when facing terror. Goodness is not easy to find when facing terrifying and tragic situations, but this movie has a protagonist who finds it, and the fact that it is based on real incident and related to the real-life heroes named Mr. Mathews and Mr. Vedi is another boost for Airlift.

It is once again up-to Akshay Kumar to create that desired impact with another movie. In the end, we have the right impact of patriotism, and it is not forced on us – this particular thing just grows inside us instead. While going through this movie, the one thing that was so much above the rest in impact, along with Akshay Kumar’s performance, was surely the feeling; that of being an Indian, and that desire to see this movie among the one hundred crore grossers because it is never the mindless entertainers that deserve to be there, but those like Airlift which not only has its brain but also the heart and the soul at the right place.

***The images used in this blog post are from the Official Facebook Page of the movie of the time, Airlift.

This blog post is inspired by the blogging marathon hosted on IndiBlogger for the launch of the #Fantastico Zica from Tata Motors. You can apply for a test drive of the hatchback Zica today.

TeNy

Best Offer Provided

Vampire Alligator: Do you know how much of a miser the Vampire Crocodile is?

Vampire Hamster: How can I know? I have no memory. Who is this Vampire Crocodile? Is he your long lost brother whom you found while eating 5 Star chocolates on a sunny day?

Vampire Alligator: Okay. Sir Owl and Sir Bat, do you know about the strange deeds of the Vampire Crocodile? On him being a big miser?

Vampire Owl: Yes, he didn’t let me travel in his car on the other day.

Vampire Alligator: Actually, that is because he doesn’t like you and not because you weigh a lot. A crocodile weighs more than many owls together, you know.

Vampire Owl: I knew that he was a smart evil crocodile! Didn’t I tell you all to be careful about him? Then why am I not careful? Damn!

Vampire Bat: What were you actually planning to talk about? Are there things that we don’t know about the Vampire Crocodile?

Vampire Alligator: He has his special skills in bargaining. He comes from a very rich and reputed crocodile family around the Lake Placid, but pretends that he is very poor. He does such a huge bargaining that it shocks everyone.

Vampire Bat: We never knew that. We could have used his bargaining skills during the next conflict with the werewolves over territory.

Vampire Alligator: But it is a secret, and so he will never bargain for you; neither will he agree to this. He will only do that for himself. Have you seen the clothes which he use? They are also the cheaper ones which are the result of further bargaining.

Vampire Owl: See how shell-fish he is.

Vampire Bat: Why do you say selfish like shell-fish? Are you hungry?

Vampire Owl: I thought that it would sound cooler that way.

Vampire Hamster: Excuse me sir, Is this Vampire Crocodile the one whom we call the VC?

Vampire Bat: No, not at all! It is Vice-chancellor, and that position is held by Uncle Dracula until the end of his times…no I mean until the end of the Vampire University as he is de facto immortal and cent percent perpetual vampire.

Vampire Owl: He is still better than the Vampire Crocodile, I would say.

Vampire Alligator: Have you seen the Vampire Crocodile’s chappals? Do you know how old it is? It is older than any human alive on Earth. It has already achieved immortality, but it has so much stitches done to it that if you look closer, you will know that it is nothing less than a distant cousin of the Frankenstein monster.

Vampire Owl: Now we know why he doesn’t climb the rocks. It should have no grip at all.

Vampire Alligator: Most of the shirts that he wear were inherited from his great great grandfather. They might be older than most of the vampire apprentices here. As I am young and cool, they should surely be older than me. He has some special tailoring skills which make them look better.

Vampire Owl: I say we shift him to the tailoring department of the castle.

Vampire Bat: I have actually noticed the happiness in his eyes whenever he got a discount or when something was given to him for free. But that joy seems to be bigger than everything.

Vampire Owl: Yes, I know that you understand that very well because whenever there is any discount at Flipkart, Snapdeal or Amazon, you are like – “attackkkkk!”

Vampire Alligator: That reminds me; the Vampire Crocodile even wrote a letter to Flipkart asking if there is special discount for crocodiles who are vampires.

Vampire Owl: What? That is bloody racist! How can he ask something like that?

Vampire Bat: I agree that it is unfair. We, the Vampire Clan are only allowed to ask for discount in the name of the greatest of them all, the Lord Protector, Uncle Dracula.

Vampire Alligator: He is actually smart. When he last bought my old PC, he was saying like crocodiles and alligators like brothers belonging to the lovely reptiles community and so I should give him extra discount. He also said that therefore he needed a graphics card and a joystick for free.

Vampire Hamster: I think I remember now. When he bought my old mobile from me, he was like it was available at a smaller price at Lake Placid, and that crocodiles have always been tolerant of hamsters and so there should be special discount for him.

Vampire Bat: That’s it! We are also going to go through a Paisa Vasool offer and we are not going to inform him about it!

Vampire Owl: Now you are talking in the right way.

Vampire Hamster: Is it party time? An economical party?

Vampire Alligator: Is it a trip sponsored by Uncle Dracula’s Vampire Apprentice Travel Relief Fund?

Vampire Bat: No, we are going to travel to Germany in Lufthansa Premium Economy class, which might be the extra bang for our buck. It will be the best option that we have for a paisa vasool travel, and we have always wanted to go to Germany, right? Yes, some of us want to go to Italy, others to Spain and some others to France, but Germany is like a common place of love. We are going to Germany in a Lufthansa!

Vampire Owl: Now, you are talking very smart!

Vampire Hamster: I am going to get a new video camera for this!

Vampire Alligator: I will inform the Vampire Panda and the Vampire Penguin. Hail #LufthansaPremiumEconomy.

The idea of Paisa Vasool runs through the minds of us all. We Indians do think about that a lot while purchasing something. If there is any doubt, you can choose a random person from the common people and ask, and the signs will always be there. We all need to make the maximum utilization of the money that we spend, and Lufthansa manages to come up with something which provides us exactly that. Lufthansa Premium Economy is another nice innovation from the reputed airlines from Germany, which you will need to check. It is economy, but is also bigger than regular economy, but not the costly business class either. This is going to prove very interesting for the long distance flights in particular. Go to think link for more details about the same: http://premium-economy.lufthansa.com/

***The images used in this blog post belong to Lufthansa. #LufthansaPremiumEconomy

TeNy

Into the Lodgy Universe

On 9th April 2015, Renault Lodgy was launched. It has been a much awaited seven/eight-seated car for some time now with a price range below Toyota Innova. It is also a lot better looking than the other cars of the same category. I find the front grills as well as the lights on the back to be unique. Originally named as Dacia Lodgy, with the Romanian manufacturer being a subsidiary of Renault, this car is going to make big changes in the automobile industry in India. Into this new Lodgy universe, I would like to take a few things.

Simona the Kitty: Well, Simona the Kitty hasn’t gone for a journey in a car yet. She has been afraid of the motor vehicles and runs away in case one of them comes any close to her. But she loves to rest under the cars or even around the tyres when the vehicle is at rest. With the new Renault Lodgy, we would like to take her on a journey, may be to our ancestral home or to one of our uncles’ places. It will explore another world for her, and she is going to love those seats.

The Book Rack: I have a small book rack in my room which I would like to add to the list of things to be taken along with all the books on it. The advertisement itself tells us to take our world with us, and there is no real world without the books, and these will nicely suit the bigger universe that Renault Lodgy has to offer. With Renault preparing to revolutionize the Indian automobile industry, I see no reason why those favourite revolutionary books are left behind during any journey – books are permanent need.

Badminton Equipment: The sporting needs get to another level now. Once upon a time, we used to play a lot of badminton at home. But now there are not enough people who are willing for a game, and our new place is terribly dull. So, it is time to take the game with us, and all these equipment will need a lots of space as we go to the relatives’ place. It is quite a big collection here which we have here, and it will be a pleasure to go for the game in a Renault Lodgy.

The Laptop and the Tablet: There is no life without the laptop, and the tab just comes as the plan B item in case the laptop turns to be not that good enough for the time. The laptop does weight a lot, and so my parents never really allowed me to carry something which took so much space in the car, but never more with Renault Lodgy and all the space that it provides. It will only be the second time that I take my current laptop somewhere; the first time being to Delhi for the India Today Conclave, and surely the first time for my tablet.

The Figurines of Saint Christopher and Our Lady of Good Voyage: There are two of these which I would keep with me to ensure the safe journey. The latter one has been part of my car for quite a long time, and along with a figurine of the patron saint of travelers, I would like to keep my Renault Lodgy a blessed place. These would be the fifth and final items which I would like to take with me in the Lodgy, as there is this car which asks to #LiveLodgycal.

It is the time to live lodgycal, with Renault Lodgy. Its spacious world makes sure that it is the universe that we have always wanted, and the power also contributes to the same. It is a family car – so we never really have to go without our people. You just need to go to their website to know how good it looks, not just on the outside, but also inside the grand new vehicle. There might be many cars, but Renault Lodgy is surely something which catches our attention quite fast. #LiveLodgycal

I’m participating in the #LiveLodgycal contest with Renault in association with BlogAdda to get a chance to be a part of the #LiveLodgycal Drive in Goa.

***The images used in this blog post are from https://www.renault.co.in.

TeNy

The Spiritual Variety

As I have been thinking about variety, there are a number of churches which come to mind – those which would seem like small structures, but manages to catch our attention with a certain amount of difference with their looks, as they are combined with beauty and spirituality in the right manner. Here are a few of those smaller, but beautiful structures which I wish to share here – all of them from Kerala, and to be more exact – from the Ernakulam district except for the first one in the special mention.

1. St. Joseph’s Cathedral, Muvattupuzha: On the way to Muvattupuzha from Perumbavoor, the dome of this beautiful structure catches our attention from a distance. The photo was taken before the church work for the rebuilding was complete and so it looks even better now. Unlike the other churches around here with a dome, this one has onion domes of different sizes. It reminds me of Saint Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow, and whenever I dream of traveling to Russia with all the churches with similar domes, I look at this cathedral and be happy, telling myself that I shall see more of it 😀

2. St. Joseph Church, Karayamparambu (Angamaly): I have waited very long for this church to complete its renovation or rather rebuilding. After the process, this surely looks like a structure that you can’t miss while traveling from Cochin to Trichur on the National Highway 47 connecting Salem and Kanyakumari, just after Angamaly, on the way to Chalakudi. It has a very beautiful altar and you have to look under that beautiful dome right after you enter. There is a lot of nice imagery surrounding the dove as the Holy Spirit. A small structure here, but still so Herculean in its beauty.

3. St. Xavier’s Church, Aluva: This rebuilt church at Alwaye has been my favourite church to attend a Holy Mass for quite a long time. They have the English Mass too, and what catches one’s attention more than anything else are those glass paintings which are around the altar and beyond. The saints are there, and so is the representation of the scriptures. The crucifix image is also different and catching our attention – there is a lot of spiritual feeling with the evening programs as the lights enter through the glasses. It is the major reason why I go for the evening mass too.

4. St. Thomas Church, Chowara (Aluva): Unlike what people think, Aluva surely has some of the most beautiful churches, scattered around the town and its outskirts, mostly Syro-Malabar and Latin in rite. It has a mixed design, and inside, part of the old altar is preserved. The floor has wood as well as tiles, and the option of AC is also there. The imagery is nice and so are the surroundings. You can see the top of the church building from quite a distance and is located just before the town when coming from Aluva on the route to Sreemoolanagaram/Kanjoor.

5. St. Thomas Church, Karumalloor (Paravur): With all the lights inside switched on at night and shining in the darkness around, I have found this one a very special structure. You can easily notice the beauty if you have travelled through the route at night. With some very effective lighting, the church has some simpler and yet effective imagery inside. The lighting as well as the borders and colour combinations make the images more beautiful. There are also some nice work on the glasses, even as they are lesser in number. This is on the right side while you travel from Aluva to Paravur.

Older churches: Special Mention:
St. Thomas Church, Palayur: This church founded by Saint Thomas the Apostle in 52 AD is believed to be the first Church and thus the oldest standing Christian worship place in India. Connected to many ancient trading centres through rivers and lakes, and with the existence of ancient Jewish settlements, this had become a perfect place to find the church, and this structure maintains the ancient Kerala architecture even with a lot of additions being made to it. It has a Saint Thomas Monument and a museum too.

St. Francis Church, Fort Kochi: Here is the oldest European church in India, and its antiquity is actually easily visible from a distance. Vasco da Gama died in Kochi in the year 1524 and was buried in this church before his remains were moved to Lisbon, Portugal. The structure has a great historical significance, as it was a witness to the colonial battles for supremacy and a long lasting symbol of India’s colonial past. There are a few things of interest inside the church, but as photography is not allowed inside, I have no pictures.

***All the images used in this blog post are from my camera (Sony Cybershot DSC W-310).

TeNy

Kochi Biennale 20:20

I do still want to visit Kochi Biennale (http://kochimuzirisbiennale.org) this year, but it turns out that I am too lazy to travel that far and have been unable to find someone who can go there with me. Yes, finding partners to see art has never been this difficult. Therefore, I was looking at the photos taken by me during last Biennale and I wish to share twenty of them with you. All of them were taken on my Sony Cybershot DSC-W310 and chosen just because they look interesting for me now at the first look 😀

Keep calm and hope to go for Biennale 😀

TeNy

Hope for Indian Football

Days have passed after Kerala Blasters FC overcame all odds as everyone desperately tried to make Chennaiyin FC win by whichever way possible – by giving cards to Kerala players and even sending one off even before thirty minutes had passed, along with allowing a penality for no good reason and even allowing a goal by hand when there was a good view for the referee. Even Chennaiyin’s owner was showing disrespectful actions, and the crowd was not that sporting. There was a high level of play from Chennai’s team, but no righteousness.

But still Kerala Blasters had progressed to the finals becoming the first ever finalists of the league, a position which was reserved for the teams which came first or fourth in the league. They had the power of poetic justice and karma which favoured the righteous who played the fair game rather than those who took another unfair path towards glory, not caring about sportsmanship. It struck lightning on those who played the rough game like what happened to Netherlands against Spain in the 2010 FIFA World Cup Final, even as the Orange team was better until then.

But that game had a better referee, but it was not the case here, as every step was taken to ensure that Kerala Blasters doesn’t win the match. But karma once again took over as Marco Materazzi ended up on the wrong side this time, with missing penality and getting a red card just before Kerala scored the winning goal. Yes, nobody messes with Zinedine Zidane and escapes, as the grand curse stays for a long time. They say that Luis Suárez bites, but there are worse things that happen on a football field, and I would consider being bitten better – ask the Vampire Bat (http://moviesofthesoul.wordpress.com/bathistory/)

So what happened on the next day? It was Sourav Ganguly’s Atletico de Kolkata taking on Virat Kohli’s FC Goa. There were two teams who had their first leg as a draw. There was the team of a retired legend cricketer taking on the team of a future legend to take on the team of the immortal cricketer. This time, there is nothing carried over, and one match was to decide things. So, I decided to watch the full match this time without missing any second, as there was no tension for me with my favourite teams everywhere.

My belief was that it was going to be a fair game, and as both Goa and Kolkata had owners who believed in giving their best and as they have been the ones who showed their fighting spirits rather than showing off, I was sure that this one would be a better game of real and fair football even as I was not sure about the amount of thrills. Yes, Goa seemed like a better team, considering the second part of the league. But my love for the City of Joy was eternal just like my admiration for Sourav Ganguly.

But things seemed different this time, as there was no goal at all, compared to the seven we had seen in the other semi-final matches, and it had to end with a shoot-out. Surprisingly, the best from Goa missed the first kick and another one hit the crossbar, giving the match and a spot in the final to Kolkata which had all shots right into the goal. It would be Sachin Tendulkar’s team vs Sourav Ganguly’s team; a match between two teams which had the most attendance during their matches, a treat for the most passionate fans of the league. Yes, this is the dream final. Kerala gets recognition, Sachin is happy and Dadagiri never ends. This is a final in which both results can make me happy.

Meanwhile, I really hope that the fans of the teams had showed more respect to others, and among the fans, I have found the North East fans the best. As a team representing eight states, I have found them to be better than most of the other fans who have been fighting and abusing each other. And John Abraham also deserves a lot of respect for supporting football in the right manner as the righteous as well as the supporting owner, and not being bad towards the rest. I wish NorthEast United FC the best of luck for the next season. May Indian football thrive, and so do the teams which play fair football.

*I am surprised that Amitabh Bachchan said in Twitter that many decisions were against them when everyone in the world felt that referee was the twelfth player of the Chennai team against the Kerala team of ten players. I wonder if Big B changed sides while tweeting it. ***All images used in this blog post are from the official page of Indian Super League at Facebook.

TeNy

The Righteous Negative

There are only a few things about which we can be negative and still be happy about it. The belief in true love should also be something that brings as much doubt in our minds as in the case of a corruption-free government. But among those things about which I can be righteously negative, there is alcohol, there is the cigarette and among them, a different one should be pre-marital sex. This is also a question that is derived from A Passionaate Gospel of True Love : A Mystical True Love Story by Poonaam Uppal – a simple yes or no about pre-marital sex, and with so much ease, I choose no, and it is the righteous negative, for which I shall only preach what I practice.

For going further deep into the same, one has to think about what love really is. If it involves infatuation for the body and the lust which is uncontrollable before getting married, can it be true love? I wouldn’t think so. Infatuation comes and goes, and so does lust – neither of them stay. They are just parasites that feed on the love which is supposed to be eternal and makes it a lesser emotion, creating an effect which can be connected to Satan and the fall of Man. The pre-marital sex is the snake that causes the fall of true love, from its Garden of Eden, as romance becomes something of lesser quality, without anything heavenly in nature.

Om Shanthi Oshana: A movie depicting true love and nothing otherwise.

What kind of true love is based on sex and not the intellectual and spiritual unity? Then, what is the assurance that the partners can remain true to each other in the lack of sexual interest in the future? Time walks around with a sickle – it takes down the beauty and the sexual attachment in the blink of an eye. Well, love should have its pillars on one’s character, and then on the thoughts which are shared. It is not something which can be grown by sex; it should have its roots on understanding and mutual concern. Here is something that should go completely against the romantic comedies of Hollywood, but it is where I stand.

A relation based mostly on sex won’t stand, as it is not something that your partner can always offer, and might be something that another person can offer more. Pre-marital sex is one step that gets one interested in future infidelity – extramarital sex can follow. What needs to precede marriage is a case of honour and respect to each other, and a romance which hasn’t lost at least some of its innocence. If the pillar is of pre-marital sex, it is more like being made of the corpse that your relationship will be in the future.

Thattathin Marayathu: Another movie depicting true love and keeps it unblemished.

This is one thing for which I completely agree with the comments of some of the BJP and RSS members. At least some people have the guts to talk against such things which have jumped into our culture from outside. It will be one more reason for BJP to get stronger in Kerala too. The protest from some Hindutva organizations against Valentine’s Day is also justified. True love doesn’t need a day unless it wants to dedicate it for sex – for love needs the whole life to love. Pre-marital sex is not what our culture has stood for. It is actually not what any civilized society has stood for. Every religion, with its moral code, has called for truthfulness within wed-lock.

Yes, there is modernization, imitation of Western culture, the need to be cool which comes only with such activities, and so on. It is reaching new heights at a time when the Westerners are imitating India and its spirituality. Western Christianity has gone too liberal and has rather let its culture take over its scripture, but in that case, shouldn’t we follow the Indian culture that we have been familiar with for years? Our culture had an immense amount of goodness and virtue, and can’t we rather embrace it and develop true love? Even William Shakespeare will agree, and so will our great writers.

All these years, I feel that I have been living in a period of transition. I have rarely belonged to the viewpoints of any of the generations of people, and is usually left caught in the abyss of nothingness which goes nowhere. It is the same reason why I have to make clear that I am not against whatever the new generation decides to choose. I have never been making choices for others. It is also because that would make a very old man, and after reaching the twenties, I have hoped not to grow up anymore as it would be more like growing too old.

Poonaam Uppal, a fashion designer and the author of the book.

But you can see that I limit this opinion to myself, and let the rest of the world do whatever it wants. They do have the right to think otherwise and choose. After all, I am a jobless person writing random things in front of a Dell laptop – who am I to advice to the more advanced society? But I take control my life, and choose to say no against pre-marital sex. I don’t see any glorification in indulging in the same. For how I see true love and how much I will value marriage as an extremely valuable thing, I have to choose the option “no”. It remains a question if I get married or get dead and buried before that, but my idea about this will remain the same. You can’t choose to stone me to death for my choice just because your idea is different.

This post is related to the work A Passionaate Gospel of True Love : A Mystical True Love Story written by by Poonaam Uppal, which is supposed to be a journey from the casinos of Las Vegas to the snow clad mountains of the Himalayas, revealing a mysterious love secret from beyond. Once again I thank the author as well as Indiblogger for this opportunity. You can check the book here: A Passionaate Gospel of True Love : A Mystical True Love Story (A Levaanah Publication). Also sharing the author’s website here: http://www.poonaamuppal.com/ – it is where the author’s photo is taken from, and the other two images are from the official facebook pages of the respective movies.

TeNy

Safety is a Priority

On the road safety should be a priority. The number of road accidents don’t seem to come down by much, and neither does the deaths by the same. If you open the newspaper early morning, this is what you get first. Yes, there are news about other kinds of deaths, murders, robbery and everything else, but this is more of a case that you can avoid as long as everyone can find safety as a priority, and not some other random things like reaching a place early or driving fast and in a stylish manner with almost no reason. *Except for the first photo on the road which was taken on my Sony Cybershot DSC W310, the rest are from Nissan Safety Driving Forum (NSDF) website.

1. Let there be no pothole: Even as this is completely in the hands of the government, it is up-to us motorists to raise our voice for getting the roads repaired. Yes, it is injurious to the suspension of the vehicles, but the bigger problem is when people suddenly breaks or turns the vehicles causing accidents – there are even cases of people falling into some of the deeper ones and losing control of the two-wheelers, sometimes even causing deaths. There is more than one kind of terror that these potholes can come up with, and repairing the roads shouldn’t take long. There are too many bad roads around, and each pothole is a possible death-bringer, especially during the rainy season. We have such problems even on the state and national highways – not fair at all.

2. Know no traffic signal breaks: We see this too often, and the cars which do this often are the big ones, and the same is the case of those huge trucks or buses and often the auto rickshaws. Sometimes, it won’t be that easy following the signals, as they could work in a strange manner, and there might be occasions when they just stop working or when the police tries to help, it doesn’t work well. But our duty is to obey the signal, and at the same time look for the movement from other vehicles. Yes, a few adjustment would be needed here as there is a difference in the concept of “yellow” for many people. So always look for any vehicle passing through before obeying the traffic lights. Some of those who breaks the traffic signals even have number plates which are hard to read – how can someone allow such a thing?

3. Realize your speed limit: Even if someone has bought a costly car with a top speed beyond comprehension, he should also be paying the fine for breaking the speed limit, may be a bigger fine for the bigger cars – small fines rarely make an impact due to having a big purse. What we should do on these occasions is to try not to race with the maniacs who can’t decrease their speed. Let’s keep within the speed limits because a rule is a rule, and it is a fair thing to do. Along with the same, use helmets and seat belts – yes, we may be driving slow and causing no trouble to others, but there will always be those maniacs who drive fast and without any responsibility. Let’s save ourselves and not fall into the death-trap for the fault of someone else. After all, it seems like a group of drivers who don’t care at all, and it is up-to us to bring a change here. Let’s also hope for more “hidden” cameras to catch these people.

4. Respect the rest of your kind: There is nothing like giving chance for the rest of the humanity, including the motorist and the pedestrian a chance to pass. We are not the only busy people out on the streets, an everyone needs a fair chance. It might not be easy to let someone pass through and take a turn when some random stranger is honking from the back, but lets give that person a chance. To add to it, the road doesn’t belong to anyone in particular, and so keep left and stay off the side of the path. It is only by respect towards the rest of the people on the road that once can claim to be a good driver – not by driving fast, scaring others or by showing circus on the bike. It is not about having a costly vehicle and making some ridiculous sound either – give respect and take respect, as for a good number of people, vehicles are for transportation and not to show off.

5. Discover the indicator: Some people still don’t know where this button is. It comes under the steering, for some cars on the right and for the other, on the left. It also seems to take too much strength to do the same, that a lot of people just turns without prior warning, especially the auto rickshaws, buses and trucks. I have often wondered where their indicators are? Do they usually come out of the showroom without that facility? Everybody needs an indicator, and let’s hope that someone will tell these people about the same. Meanwhile, lets make sure that each and everyone of use indicators whenever there is a need, and after taking a turn, we need to be sure that it is turned off – we don’t want to create another nuisance on the road by having a tendency to turn in a direction almost every second.

6. Find a way to dim the lights: This is a necessity, especially as the road is no private property. There is roughly around fifty percent of the night drivers who dim their lights. It is all about what they can see, and the rest needs to adjust. They don’t realize that the other person also has the need to see the road. Even when we brighten and dim our lights, some people don’t seem to care. I would guess that it is because night driving is not taught in driving schools. Those who wish to get a licence are taught only how to take the “H” in the case of four-wheelers and “8” for two-wheelers. Even the driving time on the roads happen during the daytime and nobody knows that what to do with the bright and dim feature. The system of giving driving licence surely needs a change.

7. The things that are never to do: The first thing to follow is never to drink and drive. Any doubt about the same is just plain ridiculous. There are so many of such incidents that we know from the newspapers. The second thing is not to use the mobile phones while driving. I don’t know why too many people do this in broad daylight when other people are watching. It is clear that doing so is not safe. But it seems that some people value that more than human lives. When there is a phone ringing, stop the vehicle and talk or call back later. There is the need for bigger fines for these two categories. Another thing – never keep changing lanes; it could be solved by developing a certain amount of common sense, I guess. But it is becoming more and more rare these days – not common. Let’s try to do what is in our power and hope for better results.

This blog post is written in relation to Nissan Safety Driving Forum’s nationwide safety campaign with the concept of “Safety begins with me”. It says that saftety and etiquette are not to be taken lightly as it is the responsibility of each and every driver and not a selected few. There is a duty that we have to our fellow motorists as well as the pedestrians who consists more of the common man. For more details, please check https://www.nissan.in/innovation/NSDF.html and make sure you drive safe.

The Nissan Motor’s Nissan Safety Driving Forum (NSDF) is part of its safety driving promotion activities, having the beginning in 2012. Starting with three main Indian cities – Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai – it has gone on to touch other cities. This year, NSDF has new cities to go – Chandigarh, Jalandhar, Jaipur, Vadodara, Nagpur, Chennai, Mangalore and Cochin with a reach to about two lakh citizens. NSDF has also seen an impressive 126% growth in the sensitisation of wearing seatbelts. It also conducts simulated car crash to understand safety. Nissan’s NSDF continues to try to build awareness of safe driving in India as it encourages drivers and passengers to wear seatbelts through interactive programmes. Nissan’s aim is to decrease fatalities and injuries caused by traffic accidents, and it considers the same a commitment to the customers in India.

TeNy

The Legend of Colossus

The largest aircraft in the history of commercial aircraft, #LufthansaA380 is flying to Delhi! There will be daily flights on the Frankfurt-Delhi route, and our capital becomes the first city to welcome the giant, and lets see how many more tourists will arrive to see Taj Mahal, Akshardham Temple and the rest of the attractions aboard on this wonderful flight. Here is celebrating this with a contest from Lufthansa and Indiblogger. Do check the airlines’ India website for more details: http://a380.lufthansa.com/TAKEPART/#/DE/EN/home.

Cheers to #LufthansaA380 on this occasion, and all the best.

The bigger, the better. I don’t think that there will be a second opinion about it. Take the popularity of Kraken and Leviathan in the legends, or think about the Giant Robot. The better vampire was always Count Dracula with the huge castle. We want bigger cars, bigger houses, and even bigger world to accomodate us. It is what we have been striving for, and there has been a certain amount of infatuation with the bigger things, or making our lives bigger. Into that situations, another giant, Lufthansa A380 enters.

This airplane is a colossus, no matter what your idea about a big plane is, as this is one step ahead of the same. We are a nation with a huge population, but with lesser airports and flights – Kerala is attempting to take another step forward, building two more airports in addition to the already existing three international airports at the three different areas of the state. But in totality, India is in need of more airports, and this scarcity is up-to an extent solved by a colossal airplane; the answer is right here in the new Lufthansa A380 which inspires people to travel on flights.

The smaller aircrafts with lesser number of people will only lead to more complicated air traffic and should cost more aviation fuel, finally leading to more pollution. I am taking the bus versus car comparison on this one, and about why the public transport is better than private cars. Having one huge aircraft which takes the maximum number of people will only do good. Let’s hope that it will bring the air ticket prices down too. More air and rail transport means less congestion on roads too. Well, the plane itself is a big, amazing structure, and for the same, people will need to travel through Lufthansa.

It is also good to see that an airline industry with such a global reach is trying to make their market better in India. India can use such interest from the global giants in aviation. It is something which will catch the interest of the usual travelers to undertake more journeys on this new huge aircraft which will surely be nicer and more comfortable to travel in, as the turbulence should me much lesser due to weight and size of the big thing. As this is a bigger plane, there is the certainty of better leg space, and more storage space should also be guaranteed.

One thing I am sure about is that I would love to travel in a Lufthansa. So far, I have only travelled in Kingfisher Airlines, Emirates, SpiceJet, Air India, Jet Airways and Indian Airlines, coming very close to travel in AirAsia, and at the same time hoping to travel in a possible Air Kerala which has been proposed. At the same time, Lufthansa has been nicely promoting their airlines, and it is impossible for someone to not travel in one of their flights. I hope that the opportunity for the same shall come someday.

The number of Indians outside the nation has been steadily increasing, and so is our population. In this case, may Lufthansa be a big boon for India, especially its giant aircraft. There is ever increasing globalization, and the world will only get closer to each other as time progresses. I once again wish Lufthansa best of luck in making nations and people closer to each other. Best wishes to the aviation industry as a whole too. Cheers to #LufthansaA380 and Indiblogger. *The images used here are  taken from Indiblogger’s #LufthansaA380 contest page and cropped, and therefore belongs to Lufthansa.

TeNy

Attempt for a Clean India

We are all proud Indians, and our national awareness and patriotism reaches new heights when Indian cricket team wins the World Cup or during some other international event. We are extremely happy if an Indian somehow makes to the next round of a big tennis tournament or wins a medal in any of the games. But do we have the same feeling concerning cleanliness? Do we find a clean India as something to be proud of? Shouldnt we consider it the more significant thing and not abusing the players from other countries?

Our new Prime Minister, Narendra Modi also came up with a request for the same, as the new government seems to have their attention on cleanliness. There are advertisements all around the movie theatres and multiplxes concerning the same, asking us to respect and follow the path set by the father of our nation, Mahatma Gandhi. They have raised their voice through the media and made things clear. It has actually made a lot of people aware of the need to the same. But have most of us changed, or is it limited to a few people or practiced only when camera is rolling?

Kitty caught in what humans’ litter (Photo taken on my Samsung Galaxy Duos)

People still throw their waste on the road, and even relieves themselves in the open, leading to the spread of diseases through mosquitoes and rats. A lot of big cities are facing this problem in a bigger way. One has to wonder why people are so careless about it. There are big garbage collections on the side of the major roads and nobody cares? Isn’t that one of the most depressing things a fast developing nation can have? Are we not better than this? Than why does this happen? The bigger question is about why nobody is saying anything about it?

We have the tendency to avoid a few things which don’t directly affect us, especially if we don’t consider them as a big deal. We might look at the world around us and try to adjust with the lack of cleanliness rather than doing something with it. We are determined to make adjustments to the situations. But things are surely changing. #AbMontuBolega is a campaign for the same reason, and it reminds us that it has been a long time since the need has arisen for the common man to come up and do something about it. One can try raising his or her voice, and see what happens.

Not among the cleaner beaches, right? (Photo taken on my Sony Cybershot DSC W310)

We have the right to do so, as much as concerning any other thing. Cleaning and maintaining that cleanliness have been a thing of problem for our nation. We haven’t been known to be among the cleaner countries in the world. There exists a lot of foreigners as well as NRIs who have complained about the same. But no right step has been taken. People become more and more aware of the same, but don’t care to do anything about it, because we adjust too much. We need to keep calm and speak about it like Montu at the website http://www.abmontubolega.com/.

So, next time when we see some garbage, let’s make sure that we make an impact. Let it be certain that we don’t drop garbage on the streets, and also try to do a certain amount of cleaning by ourselves. If we see someone doing that, there is the need to raise our voice and talk to them about it. If there is a real bad situation concerning the waste disposal, it is our duty to inform the authorities and make sure that they take the right action concerning it. Our nation needs collective efforts and one or two people can begin to make a difference.

Every place needs to make sure about trash (Photo taken on my Sony Cybershot DSC W310)

This blog post was written in association with #AbMontuBolega campaign from Strepsils in association with Indiblogger. The campaign asks us to raise our voice against the lack of cleanliness, and deal with everything dirty, as there are places which needs our attention. It is only if we raise our voice that the desired results are achieved. Please do check the website http://www.abmontubolega.com/, as well as Strepsils on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/StrepsilsIndia) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/StrepsilsIndia) for further details.

TeNy

Diversity has its Unity

Do check Lufthansa TVC

There is something about pride being the Devil’s favourite sin. But what Mephistopheles hopes to thrive on as per the instructions of Lucifer is rather that pride that a man or woman has on oneself and that selfishness which boosts vanity; it is what the Devil always roots for in man among the Seven Deadly Sins. It is from the lack of care for the other that the pride arises, and it has made man fall beneath the abyss, just like Christopher Marlowe had shown us with the example of Doctor Faustus in a tragic story of human devastation.

With a population that goes above a hundred crores and having a wonderfully diverse culture, an outsider will always have the tendency to think that India is not one – but that is not true. We are one, and this unity among ourselves is rather boosted by the diversity that is there. We actually love the customs of others and respect it, and there lies the pride which extends to the one who is seemingly outside one’s culture, but still part of one’s own extended family. There are exceptions, but considering our population, they are very few. It is a strong message for the outside world.

Sameeksha @Kalady, promoting inter-religious harmony (taken on Sony DSC-W180)

Here comes the question of being proud, yet again. Yes, we have the right to be proud about our nation, and it is entirely different from being proud of oneself boosting that vanity. This right to be proud is something that we gain by doing something for the nation and keeping its traditions alive rather than something that comes up only when Indian cricket team wins the World Cup or as the means to abuse people from other countries. You are part of a nation by birth, which is rather the accident and you earn the right to be part of the nation when you do what is good for your country. Here, we can see that it includes people who are different from oneself, coming from different cultures.

I remember what I was told when I was a child – that India is a lot like Europe, but we have always had people who had chosen to stay close to each other despite having different languages, religions, cultures and traditions. It is something that would have been entirely difficult at the early times, but has been managed since 1947. We have been one nation of different people who have respected and celebrated our differences like no other nation. It is a message that India has for the world, to respect the other, and it is a message that India should always carry. It is that message that the majority of Indians have had with them.

Lufthansa does portray the Indian side as they could, but the fact remains that India is not just the land of Bollywood, Namaste and one kind of food. India has strong movie industries in the South, with Tamil movies having a huge fan following (I remember seeing the posters of Anniyan at parts of Malaysia), and there are Malayalam movies always coming up with the intellectually superior stuff plus there are also the strong Telugu and Kannada movie industries. Cinema of West Bengal always had my attention, and the film-making occurs in rather too many languages for someone from another nation.

Kadamattom, a mix of different myths – the passage to underworld (taken on Nokia N95)

And in the case of namaste, there can also be namaskaram, vanakkam, namaskar and many others changing throughout the nation. At the same time, the diversity of food is rather mouth-watering, and not something to worry about. This existence and the respect for diversity is something that India can give to the rest of the world. There is the message of peaceful co-existence and harmony is something that some part of the world does seem to agree with and some other parts need to check and think about. Everywhere in the world, we see wars over small disputes and nations wishing to divide themselves on the basis of something or anything just increasing the number of world nations further, and we wonder why it is so hard to live with people who are different.

There are not many things as beautiful as having a diversity among people. It certainly supports love and care for those who belong to different races. Some people would feel that diversity is a curse and having the same kind of people who think alike will support unity further. But that is clearly not the point as far as you can go through India. There will always be one reason or the other for people who want to hate and divide. In India, it is the diversity that is the beauty which powers the unity, and when we realize that and love the other, it is the message that we pass on to the world, and it is what it needs as turbulence is always waiting for a chance. This example that India has set surely has made some impact already, and it is undeniable.

*The above photos were all taken by me. This blog post was written in relation to the “More Indian than you think” contest from Lufthansa India in association with Indiblogger. Please do visit the link below for further details about the same:
http://bit.ly/MITYTIndiblogger

TeNy

Past, Present and Health

We all have memories of our childhood, but mine actually started much later, but among those days which are part of the big memory train, are those early days of school and what followed the same. I was considered as a child for a pretty long time, and therefore I haven’t really kept the exact border for the moment which I ceased being a child, and that should indeed be debatable. All the pictures that I share below are scanned from my old photographs.

Among the things that I can remember from those days include a number of calcium tablets, and a few tablets for immunity, but there was always Dabur Chyawanprash which took the centre stage on a lot of occasions. I used to run away from anything which was said to be good for health, but this one did have an interesting taste at that time, even though I did ask for one chocolate after having the same just because it had become a routine for me.

I was pretty good at smiling those days 😀

The need for some extra immunity rises from the fact that these days, there is rarely the time for children at the hands of parents who both would be working, quite in contrast to that idea of having the mother always being present for the child. Yes, things have changed radically, and the need to improve the child’s immunity and protect him or her from illness now has more requirements, and parents might not be able to do the same.

This is where something like Dabur Chyawanprash would come into the picture. It has also happened in my case, and I didn’t have that much of a healthy childhood. Born to working parents, and with a father who is always working at one or the other corner of the nation, not really there when you needed him the most, and the mother struggling to handle two pesky kids (I was still the less mischievous one, even as irritating enough), it was never going to be easy to get the right nutrients to the kids.

Maintaining one’s health is extremely important, and there is no need for any text book to talk about the same. When a child gets sick, it destroys the flow of daily life and the problem takes over the whole household. The children can always be asked not to go outside to play or venture out when the climate could get bad, but the question is about why can’t there be the thought about increasing the child’s immunity rather than stopping him or her from enjoying life before getting stuck with a boring life that is to follow?

Still, one of the more dangerous kids around, of course 😀

Here comes Dabur Chyawanprash again with its offer of a better immunity. There is no time for the parents to see what all the children eat and drink, and they often let them have food from outside – but how can one be sure about what they are provided with in the canteens and restaurants with their friends or relatives? Even yesterday, there existed the news about a number of restaurants given notice for supplying old food – and most of the times, these people are repeat violators and we don’t even realize that. There is nothing that we can do about that.

Despite our hope for an immune India, the world around us won’t get any better, and the choices we would have can only get worse. Due to the same, it is only a very good option to choose something like Dabur Chyawanprash. After all, what we want is the best for the kids, and what is better than giving them protection, that supply of immunity which they need, and what parents have the duty to provide them? Let’s hope for the better days and healthier children on this wonderful festival of lights, and keep the faith alive.

*This post is specifically written for the Indi Happy Hours campaign, A HEALTHY CHILD MAKES A HAPPY HOME! Thanks to Dabur India and IndiBlogger for the opportunity. For more details, please visit the link below:
https://www.liveveda.com/daburchyawanprash/

TeNy

The Diwali Nostalgia

PepsiCo #GharWaliDiwali film

There are only a few celebrations which survive on my nostalgia list, and among them the strongest surely might be Onam for all Keralites, but the brightest has indeed been Diwali or Deepavali as we call it here. This festival of lights have always given me hope throughout my life with its message that levitated above all despair to push it down, and reign supreme on that day which was another wonderful one. All the photos shared in this post are from my collection of snaps related to 2011 Diwali celebrations at our apartments.

As we used to live in an apartment building, the celebrations always brought us together and kept us interested. We have now changed our home, and the need for such meaningful celebrations was disappearing quickly from the minds of our new generation as well as the older generation which cared less. But there was always that time when the celebrations where at full power, and among them were the days of Onam, Diwali, Christmas and New Year – they had a certain beauty about it.

Let the light go on (taken on my Sony DSC-W310)

Among these celebrations, Diwali always maintained its separate identity. It was celebrated without any hesitation and no discussion was needed about how it was going to go. Every other celebration needed planning, but this one was just done. It was a spontaneous thing which we kids and youngsters took over and celebrated without thinking a lot about it. We decorated the place and arranged the lights along with a few candles as a few of us took the opportunity to buy extra crackers and the fireworks.

The sweets were brought by a few people who volunteered, along with our apartment’s association which bought the most of the same as well as sponsored those fireworks and crackers which would be brought by a few of us. I have always been scared of the crackers and fireworks, but this was one particular moment of the year when I found that lost courage and stood there praying and believing that it would all be just awesome and nothing else on the festival of lights.

One of the better shots I have on a Diwali night (taken on my Sony DSC-W310)

There are not many things that we have loved more than the Deepavali sweets which we had on those days, and some of our friends from the other states contributed with even better ones. There would also be the speech about the triumph of good over evil along with how we should care for others society and related stuff from the elders, and also a few songs which contribute to the day. There would be little kids and the old people alike who would wish to sing and contribute to the occasion.

We always took the special care about those lamps which found the best of us, and taking snaps with the same remained a priceless activity. We kids and youngsters always took the opportunity to enjoy the same a little bit more with exchanging gifts and wandering around the Sivarathri Manappuram which would also have its own beautiful arrangement for the festival, and then finishing off the day with porottas and milk shake; in my case with that unavoidable tea. It was a celebration which brought us together.

And there remains the fireworks (taken on my Sony DSC-W310)

Those days are gone now though, with the shifting of the home, and those friends who have already been lost to the extremely busy and barbaric world, with three of them who passed away in the last few years, and they have left that void which can never be filled, especially Jean Mathew who succumbed to brain tumor last year. There have been no Diwali without him capturing the essence of the festival with his camera, and he will be missed, every time there is Diwali or any other festival anywhere. The story of his fight against the disease and his faith has always brought hope and belief in our lives like the festival of Diwali itself.

This blog post was written as a part of the Indiblogger Happy Hour Campaign on DIWALI – A TIME FOR FAMILY! See more at: https://www.gharwalidiwali.com/

TeNy

A Change or No Change?

There are a few things that are difficult to change. Among them are the passion for cricket in the subcontinent and the worship of cricketers. This has always happened at the cost of the devastation of other sporting events. Cricket has almost annihilated all the other sports from India, and this struggle that the other sports seem to be putting up is just because they are working so well outside the subcontinent, and there are still some good people left in the country who choose to watch the rest.

The arguments for cricket are completely invalid. The first one is that Sania Mirza is also a big name even without winning anything huge – but it is a wrong argument, as she is popular just because of her looks, and it is disgusting to read how some people make comments about her. The next argument is that India is winning in cricket, and so it gets support. But no, the case is that Indian cricket team is winning because they have money and facilities, and also because nobody outside the subcontinent gives a damn about the game.

Team Kerala Blasters (Pic from Kerala Blasters FB Page)

Let’s take the case of IPL. It has deteriorated into the worst level with its match-fixing scandals and other scams, with two of its teams already terminated and two or three almost getting terminated, with players banned and controversies coming up again and again. Even with all those fake entertainment stuff in it, they couldn’t even come with a story-line better than WWE, and it is a real shame. One actually has to wonder if there is any point in following a sport which only one nation actually plays and two or three nations make a half-hearted attempt to try.

Consider the evil that has IPL has turned cricket into, one has to wonder what ISL will do to Indian football. Indian Super League is certain to be better than that though, and can create a better Indian football team for the future, with the number of fans also increasing. It is a much needed thing to have a team for us to support in the FIFA World Cup – we can surely qualify from Asia in a few years or so. India will surely be a power to look out for in twenty years, I would guess. We should just keep the politics away from this one.

Sourav Ganguly for Atletico de Kolkata (Pic from team’s FB Page)

Unlike IPL, this league also have the teams from the right areas, as Kerala and the North East always deserved its teams even in cricket. It is good to have more balanced distribution of teams here. Among the teams, I can easily declare my support to Kerala Blasters ownder by Sachin Tendulkar and from my home state. Let’s only hope that people would not resort to abuse, as it is what Sachin fans have been resorting to – hope they will respect the opposition this time rather than going in the path of that terrible Malayalam movie 1983 which called for the abuse of all who don’t support Sachin Tendulkar.

Leaving the immortal cricketer’s team behind with its large number of Keralite football fans, my next support will be for Atlético de Kolkata, in the name of Sourav Ganguly, the greatest left handed batsman and the best captain India has ever produced, and also for the beautiful city of Kolkata, and hope that they can win if Kerala Blasters can’t. They also have my favourite logo in the league. Then I give my support to NorthEast United FC, as I hope that the beautiful North East will have all the attention that it deserves with this team. May be John Abraham can bring it there, and the actor’s commitment social work have always been things worth cheering for.

John Abraham supporting football as usual (Pic from NorthEast United FB page)

I shall leave a little love for Goa too, and about the rest of the cities which have had an IPL team for more than one season, I would care less. I hope that one of those cities, states or collection of states which haven’t had much of IPL action with them, shall go on to win ISL. More over, I hope that it will trigger the much needed resurrection of football in India, as it will surely bring hope for the other neglected sports, and end the dictatorship and evil ways of cricket. May the two great men of cricket Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly bring it to soccer. I wish the league all success.

TeNy