Missing (Part – III)

Name of the Team: tête-à-tên

Read the previous part of the story here Part I, Part II

Juhu Beach, Mumbai – 14:00 HRS. -18:00 HRS

“Ah! Mumbai –I love you” exclaimed Jennifer capturing the perfect shot with her Nikon D7100 for her assignment on coastal lives. Capturing the changing coastal landscape all they way from Cochin to Mumbai. She had developed a knack of capturing faces and places using natural light to better the effect.

It was difficult to figure out what was more radiant–the flash in the camera or its owner. Jennifer chose  fluorescent colored  accessories that adorned her slender neck and silky arms. The royal blue phoenix tattoo needed a refill but still stood out as her message to the world. A near perfect example of a dusky southern belle with a chic sense of dressing. A carefully-careless sense of style,white cotton shirt half tucked in her casual pair of mint-colored shorts.

She panned the camera west to east capturing the essence of the ever busy Mumbai streets. Children playing on the beach, food stalls, flies, smoke billowing from a kettle, vendors and their trinket stalls, women walked down the street with their baskets perfectly balanced over their heads and babies by their sides draped in a typical Maharashtrian style Sari. Serpentine queues waiting for the bus on the other side of the road. Few steps away from the bus stand was a little girl in a frilly frock and two pony tails, perhaps with her elder brother, enjoying the strawberry ice creams. A bunch of girls, fashionistas, were chit chatting, sitting on a rock by the road. A middle aged couple sheepishly held each others hand, oblivious to the world going by, looking into each others eyes as the sun prepared to set in the backdrop.

There was a shot for every moment.Jennifer could not have asked for more.

 

Versova, Mumbai – 19:45 HRS. -20:30 HRS

It was nearly impossible to recognize the elegant Tara with all the scruffiness. Her puffed eyes gave away her mindset. She pressed the third button on the elevator at least a dozen times. Digging into the handbag, she searched for the keys and her cell phone.

“Yes, here it is”, Tara mumbled irritatingly. The clanking of the keys did not distract her from unlocking the main door with one hand while she speed dialled Shekhar’s number with the other. “Shekhar, any clue?”, she asked hopefully, yet knowing the response. “I’m trying my best,‘sweetheart?’, the word echoed in her mind for a fraction of a second, but the pain of her missing daughter overshadowed it.

‘Tara, did you post it on Facebook?’he asked.‘Huh – oh yes, I think, uh no, let me check’ she stuttered.  “Bye”, and he disconnected the call. Tara rushed towards her laptop. Her fingers mistyped a number of times a simple message. A cry for help from a helpless mother. As the hands of the clock rolled over, she cried incessantly, while writing a note about her missing cherub. She picked up her favorite picture – Roohi in a cheerful mood and colorful attire. Tara made sure that her daughter’s face was identifiable and cropped the rest of the photograph.

Tara Dutta had never been so nervous before entering a ‘post!’  Parallely, she called up her entire contact list friends and relatives alike, to spread the word. Within no time there were 80 comments and 261 shares. Shares looked more convincing to her than the sympathetic and sorry messages. Some even clicked on the “Like” button.

***

Ramada Hotel, Juhu. Mumbai – 20:15 HRS-21:00 HRS

Just when Jennifer was about to close the Facebook page, it refreshed. Her selection went from “Most recent to Top Stories”.“Holy crap! Haven’t I seen this little one before?”, Jennifer sat up on the bed. “How is it possible? Where have I seen her?” “I must’ve spotted somewhere!” her mind went on a time loop.She clicked on the profile details just to double check the hunch.Yet she could not point exactly why she felt a sense of déjà vu.

Jennifer kept on reading the comments and messages so that she could place the picture to the right location. Not able to find a connection, she switched off the laptop and lay on her back, staring at the ceiling. And then it struck her. ‘Yes the camera’! She yelped.

Capturing shots from the time she set foot in Mumbai, her camera had one thousand two hundred and thirty four photographs. Her fingers never tired browsing through those hundreds of images of the mayanagri in hopes of finding the little kid in one of its lanes.

The pictures covered the essence of this majestic city with a visage of young and old, rich and poor, the happy and the sad but none had managed to capture the little miss sunshine.When Jennifer was almost on the verge of giving up, she saw a similar face. A black and white photo of a little girl slurping an ice cream amidst the smoke and dust of the heavy traffic near Juhu Tara Road. ‘That’s her! I knew I had seen her. This is unbelievable!’

She went back to the Facebook post and compared the two photographs, back and forth, not once, not twice, but at least for fifty times before she could believe her eyes were true. They found Roohi.

***

To read more, click Part IV

“Me and my team are participating in ‘Game Of Blogs’ at BlogAdda.com. #CelebrateBlogging with us.”

Enliven up Your Home—From Chic to Traditional

It is rightly said, “There’s nothing half so pleasant as coming home again.” And, I believe that it’s all the more pleasant, if your home is well-kept and each item that it holds is hand-picked by you. No matter how hectic your day is at work or how tiring your journey was, you feel high in spirit as soon as you are back home. A home need not be full of luxurious belongings, but items that pleases your eyes and give you ample comfort. The place where you find the greatest comfort next to your mother’s lap is your home.

I always put my best efforts to make my home look elegant and sophisticated without overdoing things. I’m an ardent believer of the fact that true beauty lies in simplicity and I love to keep it simple yet beautiful. For the same I’ve given my sweet abode a magnificent look and feel. At least, not a single guest of mine has ever missed to compliment me on that and I feel elated when they do so. My minimalist approach helps me not to hoard things and that makes my life easier as it gives me ample opportunity to re-do my home furnishings.

With this approach, I’ve kept my living room organized without spending too much of time cleaning and dusting as a daily ritual. The best part is, I can change the theme of my living room from time to time; and the time is now.

I kept a chic and classy look for almost three years and now is the time when I give it a new look. For sure, I can do this by bringing in some new stuff, especially some splendid art pieces or home décor items. This time I wanted to go for some ethnic items to add a pinch of traditionalism.

I started to look out for home décor and furnishing items a few weeks back, but nothing could allure me enough as I wanted something unique and resplendent. Everything looked so ordinary and boring, be it online or in stores. I was about to give up on the idea to save myself from spending uselessly on shopping for things halfheartedly till the time I came across this fascinating website called makemyhome.com. I think it just hit the right chords and knew exactly what I wanted.

Here I am on the verge of giving my imagination a new platform to turn into reality with the help of makemyhome.com. I’m completely baffled to see the products on this website and I’m sure this would help me renovate my home more frequently. However, for now I’m just stuck onto these three interesting items that would change the chic ambience to an ethnic one:

1. Illuminating Corners of the Room – This silver night lamp made of silver on the corner table in my living room is sure to add surreal charm in the ambience of my living room. I can imagine the beauty that it’s going to add to the walls and surrounding objects. Though this lamp is way too expensive, but it’s going to be an investment in silver. I have completely fallen for it and loved the finish, which gives it all the more sophisticated look. 
2. Adding Ethnicity – Now, to balance out my budget, I certainly have to look for some reasonable stuff, without losing on the quality and elegance. And, this Keshan Carpet would help me do exactly what I need. The color of this carpet would complement the color of my walls. I’m super excited as my living room is almost done. All I need is an ethnic décor for the wall, adjacent to my LED. 
3. Giving Final Touch – This would fulfill my requirement perfectly. Not at all expensive, this terracotta handmade painting is sure to give an absolutely terrific look to my living room.

I simply can’t wait to re-do my living room with these exquisite items. Makemyhome.com has made it so convenient for me that I can shop often. It’s better to buy exceptionally good items by keeping your shopping limited, rather than going for too many objects at the same time as, “A house is made of walls and beams; a home is built with love and dreams.” It’s time for me to fulfill my dreams with ornate items that are unique. How about you?

This post is a part of Makemyhome activity at BlogAdda.com

 

Image Source (Top Pic): Google

Jantar Mantar: A Spellbound Experience

It was one of the dreadful days so far. I was at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi as a Media Person. It was a first time experience to be at a place like Jantar Mantar—a place with a flavor of politics and aroma of societal issues. I say, “Flavor of politics” as I was stunned to see the crowd supporting one of the rallies of a political party. Hundreds of people carrying placards in support of a few politicians, I knew of and others I did not even recognize; at least I did not. The show sha to complement this rally was humongous. Hundreds of banners, endless placards, topis (caps), stage arrangement, party flags, countless brand new cycles for distribution, and what not.

It was a live experience for me to witness our great politicians and future nation builders, wasting lakhs on a single political agenda. Truly, I felt disgraceful to think if this remains the condition, then we are on our way to doom. The hundreds of people hoarded in support of the party and unaware about the leader’s achievements or strategies. Seeing the class of people gathered, you could easily figure out what pennies would have brought them there to scream and hoot about their Neta (Minister).

Jantar Mantar, as the name suggests, is sure to leave you spellbound. You would see a queue of pandals (tents) back to back on either side of the road. In each of these tents, you will find a group of people supporting one or the other social issues. All in all, the causes were almost the same, but they were demarcated just like the LOC. The atmosphere chaotic, each pandal with their loudspeakers at highest volumes and a spokesperson in each of these pandals (let me reiterate, adjacent to each other) on top of his voice, trying to convey their message across public. Are you able to picture it in your mind? Yes, this is a shocking state of this democratic nation.

People divided–in groups, parties, culture, religion, states; are fighting for the same causes. What are these causes?—Corruption, Violence, Terrorism, Rape, etc. It’s an extravagant affair. In order to promote your thoughts and to reach out to public, media or government, seeking support; numerous groups and parties are doing spendthrift promotions of the same ideologies. And, this is definitely not in favor of our nation or its citizens.

Oh! And that’s not all. On my way to Jantar Mantar, there was another appalling sight. In the heart of the most popular Connaught Place was another huge establishment by a different party called “Pole kholo abhiyaan”, with huge banners displayed at every few steps with comic strips showcasing who else, but the latest buzz, Arvind Kejriwal. These banners were a mimic of him with all the negative things ‘in bold’ about him, displayed throughout the circumference.

The first thought that struck my mind seeing those banners was how insecure and useless our politicians have become. Today, instead of talking about their own achievements, these political parties have all the time in the world to organize a grand display, to talk about the shortcomings of one person. This isn’t hilarious, but a shame on our nation.

Only, if we could save on this daily nuisance and think on progression can we transform from a developing country to a developed one. Redirecting money to the right places and in right direction, coming together to bring the revolutionary change instead of fighting individually for the same cause.

Why can’t we have sensible and educated politicians? I’m not in favor of any political party, but today’s sight has left me in agony and urged me to think as to how can I (Shift+Del) this government and get some logical minds into picture. I wish I could bring that change.