Indians Welcome In Goa !!

This was the heading of one of the articles in TOI. While going through the article I recalled my experiences in Goa. Anyone who has been to Palolime beach is mesmerized by the beauty of that place. The beach is beautiful, the water is clean and the sea is mostly calm. So it’s a perfect place if you are looking for beach holidays. There are mostly shacks, no big hotels and everything is so organized that you will always like to visit the place. The food is good and economical and the rent is also cheap. The places here are mostly occupied by the foreigners. We were told that they have clients coming to the same place for the past 15 years and they spend from one month to six months. Yes there were very few Indian tourists. We were the only ones at “ Big Fish” which has around 10-15 sacks and they used to bill us as “Indian Couple”.
Palolime has its own environment with a lot of foreign touch in it. Usually the day starts at around 9-10 with people taking a dip in the sea and enjoying the sun. The whole day is spent outside alternatively in water and sun. The beach is covered with sun beds and umbrellas and people scattered in bikinis and swimwear. As evening approaches you can see everyone dressed, the sand beach is covered with food tables with a candle at the center instead of sun beds. Each restaurant alternatively holds a music night where the singers are the usually the tourists. The place where we stayed was taken up in lease by a Nepali guy who has married a French woman. Yes, she was a regular tourist and they met here and got married. The person changed his name from “Narayan Bisht” to “Noha Bista” which was easier to pronounce by the tourists. No doubts that other restaurant staff too were inspired and awaiting their luck as they wait for the regular customers. If we talk about the discrimination -- yes it exists very much in Goa. The dollar power surely wins over rupees. Though the restaurant staff never makes us feel that way but still you can see things going around. The waiters are not in interested in communicating in Indian languages and they are more adapted to the foreign accent. So they will not get your hindi as well as your English. Everyone from the boatman, the shopkeepers, the waiters, to the the fruit sellers are well versed with foreign accent and things they need to say in that accent. Good morning, how are you? Do you have a girl friend? Take it for your friend? How beautiful? At times it was quite surprising to see someone in rags and talking such fluent accented English. The locals are ready to play with foreigners be it beach volleyball, just catch and throw or football but they don’t do it if you are an Indian. Once that happened with my husband too, when he offered to play with a local who was playing with the foreigner. That person refused, I still remember my husband was pissed and when I asked why, he told me “they play with foreigners only”. Though later on my husband made a place for himself in the football team. Another thing that I noticed that the women who used to sell seashells, jewellery and other knickknacks always avoided me. They never came up with their things to us whereas they were persuading the foreigners near me. Once I specifically called up one of the ladies asking for a seashell jewellery box and just for my vanity purchased a necklace. Neither were we approached for the massages. Yes definitely, Goa is a place where at times you feel that you are entering a foreign territory. Though there is discrimination but I will not entirely blame the local people. One of the reasons that they avoid Indians are the way they behave with tourists. Out of 10 in 9 cases the Indian men misbehave with the foreigner women. They make all efforts to touch females when they are in water. Many times we noticed foreigner ladies coming out of water as soon as they saw Indian men going there. Secondly even when coming to the beach they don’t carry the swimwear and enter in water with underwear and undershirts. You can see empty bottles carelessly thrown by Indian people. Moreover the foreigners are much more cordial with local restaurant people as compared to us.
I believe that with this campaign, the Goa government will make things easier for Indian tourists too. At the same time we also need to be more well behaved, considerate and should learn to live in harmony with the foreign tourists.

Fear Factor

Many channels are airing serials based on Fear Factor theme. Just this week colors TV started with Level 2 of Khatron ke Khiladi and for the past few days I have been watching Iss Jungle se mujhe bachao. One of the things that I wonder is the way the celebrities overcome their fears and do all the tasks whereas some of them are really too difficult. Bitten by spiders, python, crabs and still they are a part of the series. Not sure if we are born with fears, but yes, they do grow as we grow. It is always better to nip your fear when it is young but we are mostly not able to do it. If we talk about my fear, I am still struggling to get rid of deep water fear and fear of snakes.
Water-as lovely as it looks, the more deadly it is. Water has always fascinated me but I cannot enjoy it as I am scared of deep waters. To get rid of this, I took swimming classes but I think it increased my fear. Earlier I just knew the word drowning but in my swimming classes I experienced drowning and realized that within seconds what this water can do. I think that the problem was that I learned swimming very late and to add to it, before I could learn it properly I was asked to dive in deep waters. Diving was not difficult but once you come above the water we have to swim about 50 meters and reach the other end. But I never managed to reach the other end, I always drowned in the middle. So it was a regular site - me diving with full confidence and getting drowned in the middle and then the coach coming to rescue me. Last summers, I again started with my classes; however I couldn’t get rid of my fear. I can swim, but only in 5 feet water this is what I concluded. My body just gets numb as soon as I cross the safety mark so now I am not even trying beyond that line.
Snake - another dreaded thing. Thankfully, I didn’t come across many. I think just 2-3 times I have seen them from a distance of around 50 meters in their natural habitat but yes often in my dreams. My husband is just the opposite, he is a wildlife lover and doesn’t fear snake. I cancel the Corbett trip every time because of this fear. He watches the snake things a lot on Discovery TV and it appears to me that may be by this way I will be making peace with them. However, just a few days back a man was holding a python and just that made me hysteric. I shouted at him to stay away from me and that made me realize that still I am scared of them.
These are my two fears that I hope to conquer some time in my life. So, what are your fears?

Extramarital affairs

Extramarital affairs- this word always seems to be existing in serial or filmy plots. Though in today’s world we still come across these affairs but when I was in school this was a taboo topic. These affairs were always associated with foreign or high page 3 society.
This is about the time when I was in class 6th.I didn’t have any common school and home friend, I mean none of my friends stayed close to my house. However, by chance once I met my classmate-“A” in my lane and after that we started going to each other’s place discussing the school stuff. “A” was a very simple, overly decent, polite girl. With time my visits to her place increased as she just had her younger brother and mother at home. In school we didn’t use to spend much time together but I was a regular visitor at her home or rather I was mostly the only visitor. I used to chat with her mother a lot who would guide us at times. She was an educated lady, who had resigned from the post of lecturer after her marriage. A’s father was posted in a distant village and because of their studies they were living here with her mother in a rented house. She told me that her grandmother stays with her father. I used to think that may be her mother and grandmother didn’t get along with each other that’s why they were living apart. I never saw her grandmother and even her father rarely. In the time span of class 6th to 12th, I saw her father just 2-3 times. “A” was in a rented apartment and they had very few furniture just the basic things. Her father was a doctor and sometimes it would strike me that they live a very simple life as compared to their social status. Her mother was always clad in poor quality cotton sarees, I never saw “A” wearing any fancy clothes. Still we were always so involved in school gossips and work that I never suspected anything. After 12th, I moved to a different college and we stayed in touch for sometime and eventually we lost contact.

After my marriage, I met someone from the same village where A’s father was posted. He told me that her father has an affair with a nurse. And the latest is that her mother died because of kidney failure and the nurse has now even come to their house. “A” did her MBA but she is suffering from memory loss. I feel that may be that nurse might be putting something in her food who knows. It would have been better if they could have married her and after that continued with their illicit relationship.

This was so shocking for me cos I have seen A’s family very closely. If I recall our conversation about her father, she always spoke highly about her father. I don’t know why she never talked about all these thing. May be it is very difficult to say bad things about someone so near to you. May be you cannot trust anyone once you are betrayed by someone so dear. Maybe you are forced to put a false face cos you are ashamed about him.
Extramarital affairs- now is not anything restricted to serials or film plots but are much more complicated as compared to what is shown in
reel life.

Love you monsoon!!

I was going somewhere and all of a sudden I noticed clouds in the sky. Monsoon brings a lot of joy. Watching the sky itself is happiness unlimited. The clouds with different patterns and colors make the sky a visual treat for eyes. Sometimes the clarity after the rains make everything pure like God is redoing the work. Sometimes the dark clouds turn the day look like night; sometimes the clouds in the light of sun give the impression that God is working on a big canvas. Not only the sky, the surroundings too are refreshed in the monsoon. The greenery increases in the otherwise barren mountains and tiny springs come out from different places.
Love you monsoon:)

Back Again!!!

It’s been more than a week that I am back from my traveling. Throughout my return, I was thinking about the post I will be posting once I am back home. However I am not sure what stopped me; probably the guilt feeling that I disappeared from the blog, breaking my promise to be more frequent on blogging. I know that I disappointed my readers. I apologise to my blogger friends, for not visiting their blogs. I hope you will understand that sometimes (rather say many times in my case) you just want a break from your schedule.
If you are thinking that I was enjoying all the time away from the blog you are wrong. My trip was not that good. When we started I was very excited about me spending time in Delhi. I had planned to meet my friends and was looking for some change from my monotonous routine. But seems my life is stuck in monotony. Once I reached Delhi and before I could even start up with my plan, I was down with fever. It took me almost 10 days to recover. Once I recovered and thought to start with my plans the deadly swine flu was in the air. Everyone who was at my hometown persuaded me to come back as it was not a necessity for me to be there in Delhi. So this was the Delhi trip minus hot choco fudge minus movies minus shopping minus Dilli haat momos & fruit beer etc.
The only silver lining was that before coming back we went to Kullu – Manali.I will be doing a full post on it once I get the photos

Truth in Wine!!!

As I stepped in, I could hear the party music going on, the dancing steps and people greeting each-other. The party is thrown for me “the new superstar”. The party is supposed to be for people close to me and I am amazed to see the number.
It has been fifteen years when I first came to Mumbai, chasing the stars- dreaming to become one of them. Initially it looked easy with so many contacts and my dad to support my needs. However dad’s death changed everything and surviving became the priority. Friends look like an alien word. I was lonely but determined and continued the theatre along with the part time jobs. It has been long, but every wound feels fresh even today. Standing in the storm of people is making me uncomfortable.
People absorbed in the party looked like wolves, who howled at me and ready to tear me out.
My thoughts were broken by a sudden voice
"Good Evening, Sir, drink for you”
“Thank You” I said to the waiter and took the glass of red wine.
As I looked upon the wine and people drinking it, all of a sudden I felt my blood and sweat being poured into it. I threw a glance around my surroundings and the next moment I slipped out in the darkness.
“What else can you say about a species that would not offer me food when I was hungry but offer me wine when I'm full, successful and a teetotaler”

I submitted the above story for a contest "In Vino Veritas (Truth in Wine)" Short Fiction Contest.Last time also I participated in the contest "Ascension". All the entries are brilliant I believe and it must be very difficult for the jury to choose one among those excellent pieces . I know that I am far away from winning but still I enjoy participating as you get an opportunity to share your ideas with some acclaimed writers. Still wish me luck for the forties club. I am following all the stories and till now around 90 entries are posted up there.
Also all the best to Adisha and Sonia who are participating for the first time.Adhisa has come up with a excellent story and Sonia with a very nice poem:)

P.S:My entry is #98

Thank you!!

Its been long that I didn’t show up here. Many reasons and excuses for it. Initially I wasn’t getting anything to write and with time I became lazy and yes have been real busy for a week with guests.
I know that when we ae not writing we disappoint the people who visit our blogs but people who visit our blogs but there are times when we are not able to do the things we want to.Yet I was totally surprised to see my name among the award winners in Pallav’s blog.Thank you Pallav, this really inspires me:)