Wednesday, May 23, 2012

KYRA - The Shining Diva Comes To Town!

A cute lil girl aged 6 is sitting in front of the mirror. She is trying hard to tie her soft curls into neat braids just the way her mother does it for her during the school days. After umpteen unsuccessful attempts, she finally gets it right and finishes it up by slipping a pink bow band to secure her efforts tightly. Suddenly, a hand from behind pulls it out and lo! Her curls are all over her face again! Fuming, she turns around, spots the culprit and runs behind him with a pillow!

----------------------- * ------------------------------------- * ------------------------------------------

My reverie is broken by the noise of the landing airplane. A faint smile crosses my lips and I can’t help but wonder if she, after 15 long years, would still remember it all? As the plane comes to a halt, my eyes look out for her – ah there she is – beautiful, bubbly and vivacious! Halo, my mischievous cousin, my shining diva and partner-in-summer-vacations-crimes, how do you do?, I welcome her with a wink!

----------------------- * ------------------------------------- * ------------------------------------------


Kyra is here on a 2 week break from her Lakme Beauty Course that she is pursuing in Greece, to have some fun with her cousins. She has bought loads of goodies along with her for all of us. Since we will be spending much of our time outdoors, she has even convinced my otherwise averse to beauty products mom to use the Lakme Sun Expert Range of Creams that she has got for her. Must be something really fabulous if my mom agreed to it, I muse in pleasant astonishment!

----------------------- * ------------------------------------- * ------------------------------------------
Go Green

Out in the sun, our agenda is a bit unplanned! But, I know, Kyra loves it to take things on the flow. She likes it spontaneous and we hit it off on the roads. Our first stop is a nursery. The nursery is full of flowers and we buy for ourselves a small little sapling each.



Kyra is a great enthusiast of the “Go Green campaign” and wants to start her trip in India with a tree planting campaign in the neighborhood! Whats more, with summer vacations going on, she has roped in all the kids of the society too in this noble cause! Way to go, Kyra!

Kite flying

Next, we all rush off to our terrace. Kite flying was always so much fun for both of us I remember, but ... but Kyra --

Its no kite flying season now – I tease her - Have you forgotten our festivals?, I ask.

I very much remember them DS, it's you who have forgotten to live them!, she snaps back. Saying this, she snatches the thread wheel from my hands and rushes off with her kite to the terrace with all kids in tow!



The entire sky is ours to conquer, her voice echoes in the golden air, as we giggle and laugh and please our palate with the Undhiya's and Jalebi's which she has already ordered for all of us in lunch! The celebration of good old memories of Makar Sankranti soaks us all!

Get Together

As the sun starts to mellow down a bit, we rush off for our next fun activity in thew society compound! A make shift dais is set up in no time and Kyra takes center stage. It’s a kind of a reality show where  the kids get to sing, dance, draw... And the best part is that there are no judges! The aunties have come out trotting too and are busy gushing about the Lakme Sun Expert Skin Lightening and Lakme Sun Expert Fairness creams that Kyra had gifted to them earlier in the day!


Kyra says that each child is gifted and has a unique talent hidden in him/her. So, we let the kids run wild with their imaginations after a small talk to them on the stage. This is followed by a huge round of applause and the show kicks off with a round of introductions. The warm and sweet girl that she is, Kyra hits it off instantly with the kids and develops a loving bond with them. The kids indulge in a diverse range of their favorite hobbies like dancing, singing, drawing, mimicking, etc... The camaraderie is well evident and the informal atmosphere turns the entire setting into an entertaining and an enjoyable evening for all. To conclude, there are fun one minute games, winners of which are given goodies brought by Kyra. Goodies are given to the remaining kids as well and everyone is happy!

--------------------------- * --------------------------------- * -----------------------------------------

The kids were extremely delighted and so were their mommies who rave about that evening even now, long after Kyra has returned back to Greece to complete the remaining of her studies. We miss you, Kyra!, is the only message that everyone tells me to convey to my spirited and chirpy cousin, Those times spent with you are fondly cherished by all!!!

PS: All the images are the result of my hard work!!!


PPS: This post is done for The Lakmé Diva Blogger Contest held on Indiblogger!! Check out Lakme's Facebook Page HERE.

PPPS: If you liked reading this post, please vote for it here. Thank you :)

Friday, May 18, 2012

My Cricket Wise on Vodafone!

The letter was in my hands – my much coveted ‘Offer Letter’. It had been more than 1 year now since I had been wandering jobless. All this while, I had tried for MBA and a couple of other lucrative job promising exams but to no avail. And today, the day had arrived... Finally! I had landed a good job... a job with a respectable income and more importantly a job which was to bestow upon me a new found sense of value and standing in the eyes of the society.

I flew high in the air not only that instant but soon enough in reality as well with the Jet flight taking me to my new home - Bangalore. I soon settled in my modest one bedroom unfurnished rented apartment along with one colleague of mine. There was no source of entertainment as I had left my idiot box and my desktop behind in Mumbai. A rudimentary way of life greeted me ahead in Bangalore.

Days passed by and with a new job came new friends and lots of other exciting activities but gradually home sickness started to creep in. Mummy ke haath ka ghar ka khana, sibling rivalry, TV were just some of the usual things whose absence bugged me often and... there was one more - Blogging!

Yes, I missed Blogging – my old companion from the very day I had graduated from my engineering college to the day I had joined my job here. I reminisced how blogging had been like a true friend and a constant source of motivation in all those times of solitude and loneliness. Whenever, I would feel alone and depressed, ‘Cricket Wise’ had come to my rescue. He had a unique way of talking with me and always bought with him a smile for his best friend, without fail! I had developed a fond passion for him, He understood me like no other and he was also the one who bridged the gap between me and the ‘Love of my life’Cricket... Thus, now matches were not only watched by me but also analyzed and ripped apart in ‘MY Analysis on Cricket Wise'! How proud those moments were, I remember, when I would open my dashboard the next morning of publishing a piece and receive a certain number of comments.. ah! How gratifying! The discussions that ensued helped me meet some crazy cricket fans like me... how much I waited for all of it and how much I missed all that now!

Cricket Wise Vodafone mobile blogging
Internet is fun - Thanks to Vodafone!

Enough! I had to do something, this was enough, I told myself one day... I cannot live without my blog anymore; and why should I? I started searching for feasible solutions in the market and after a bit of looking around stumbled on 2GB data plan for Rs.147 by Vodafone! It looked good.. umm actually great and I instantly subscribed to it and lo! Cricket Wise was now alive; I, little by little, took to mobile blogging and revived my Cricket Wise!!! IndiBlogger came into the picture next and soon enough I found new friends there!

Today, I am well into my job and that is what keeps me busy most of the times. I still don’t own a pc, forget a laptop, but my mobile internet connectivity is what keeps my flame for blogging going... and going strong! Without it, this wise man would have died long back!

Thank you Vodafone – you don’t have a clue what you have given to me... mobile internet is actually a lot more than just fun for me...

For me... IT is...


"Cricket Wise" is...
My Life!!!



PS: This post is written for Vodafone - Internet is Fun on Vodafone! If you liked reading this post, Please vote for it here. Thank you :)