Friday 21 August 2015

A bucketful of wishlists fulfilled with 4G internet speed!


Speed is the new name for life today. Whether it is the hustle and bustle of the city or fast- changing things in your own life, things have become way too faster now than one can imagine! Gone are the days when pigeons and postmasters used to deliver messages over days, now is the time for ultra- fast speeds- messages can be reached and large volumes of information can be transmitted over flash of a second!

All we need then is an equally amazing internet speed to keep pace with the speed of our life. Choosing a good service provider is the first and the most important step in that direction- as the world is constantly shrinking. And who could have done better to achieve this task than Airtel, which has always been a pioneer in providing quality services to its customers at affordable prices!

So what are the essential characteristics of a great internet plan? For most of us, it would mean being able to stream our favorite videos online on our smartphones itself, or being able to download that latest movie in a matter of hour. Airtel 4G is faster than that, it can help you download a high- definition movie in a matter of few seconds! And this is no mean feat!

I could do so much more with such a great speed at my disposal- it would save so much time for me to do our other work- rather than waiting for hours for download to occur. Also the quality of the video streaming would improve drastically! Also, I listen to music online using apps such as Songza and Google App music. A great internet plan would help me seamlessly listen to high- quality music on-the-go. Also it would help me download work related documents, or video lectures for educational purpose at a fast speed- thus helping me in my career goals as well.

Also, without high speed capabilities, the connection can be slow if there is more than one person in my household using the Internet at the same time. I don’t have a Wi-Fi connection at my home so if sometimes my existing plan on the data card is exhausted, I can use my smartphone as a hotspot to get back to lightning fast speed on my laptop and other such devices. Also as Airtel provides me high-speed Internet service, a number of people are able to use the Internet at the same time. For example, one of my family member could be researching information online while another is streaming a movie or television show. Simultaneously, a third family member could connect to the Internet from their smartphone and download a new app. With high speed Internet, everyone in the family is able to utilize the Internet concurrently without a hitch in connection, that too at affordable rates.

Airtel 4G is definitely worth the investment for those with family looking for entertainment, and those who need a strong network for their career. Not only will you be able to browse the Internet without having to reload pages, you will be able to open multiple pages at the same time with lightning fast speed. So Airtel 4G is the new name for a great network!

Friday 10 July 2015

Balanced diet with Honey for a balanced life


The importance of a sound balanced diet cannot be less emphasized in today’s times of new varieties of junk food, long hours in front of computer, mobiles and all those distractions which result in pounds of belly fat and make us obese. Obesity is well rampant in today’s times. The rising importance of yoga centers and gymnasiums is a testimony to the fact that people are not as fit as they used to be. But does everyone have time to spend those long hours at the gym? Ask the majority working class, especially people working in corporates and you will get a firm “no” as a reply.

So then what is the alternative? The best and the most effective answer to this question is a healthy and balanced diet with honey, which would help eliminate the useless toxins of the body, and help you detoxify, thereby increasing your energy levels but also burn the layers of fat under your skin, in a longer run but effective way. Remember, Rome was not built in a day! So the urge for a healthy diet has to come from within.

Some of the best benefits that a person may derive from a healthy diet include:

1. A healthy diet helps us have more energy to do things in our day- to-day life, unlike fatty food, which is temporarily filling, but deeply harms the body in the long run.

2. A healthy mind dwells in a healthy body! It’s a fact, not just a saying. Its scientifically proven that a body which consumes balanced diet has a more active mind than an obese person.

3. It makes you look more attractive- Remember that fit guy from office who received lots of proposals from beautiful girls on Valentine’s Day? It’s not a secret. The better the diet, the better the body, the more heads will turn towards you.

4. It increase your self- confidence- When a person is fit, he naturally feels better from within. Having a balanced diet requires only a thoughtful mind, but it can have multiple benefits, ranging from control of body weight to strengthening our immune system, more energy to do our work, happiness, improving our skin tone, the list goes on and on.

5. Makes us happier- It's scientifically proven that a healthy diet helps avoid depression and avoids premature ageing.

6. Saves the doctor’s bills- Naturally if we stay healthy, the doctors bill is bound to reduce as we will be less prone to diseases and thus this saving will eventually lead to prosperity going by the ever increasing cost of medicines in today’s times.

The best thing can a person can do first thing in the morning- and I have been an avid follower of this practice too- is to have a glass of warm water with honey. It instantly helps to kick start our metabolism- which helps remove impurities from our body, and prevents belly fat from accumulating. It is also an effective alternative to sugar, which is the root cause of obesity.

Dabur, a company which is established worldwide for its vision in the direction of healthcare and general well- being, has set the trend yet again by launching yet another healthcare revolution in the market, called Honey Diet. It is a must for people of all ages and will go a great deal in achieving the health goals of the masses.



So, stay fit, feel young with the goodness of Dabur honey!

Thursday 9 July 2015

UC browser for seamless cricket experience!!


How much important Cricket is to the people of India does not need much elaborate description! The fact of the popularity of the game can be easily estimated by the fact that people worship the cricketers, become sad at the drop of a hat if their favorite team India loses a game. It then becomes a question of utmost importance, almost integral to have a seamless cricket coverage.

In earlier days, when not many people had access to smartphones, working class of people used to line up outside showrooms to catch live action.

Cricket is one game which keeps Indians together. We might be all divided on our views of issues carrying social or national importance, but if Yuvraj Singh fails to perform in that all important match by playing a rash shot, we will all be unanimous in criticizing him.

In these days of technology, it has become much more easier by live applications which can help you catch our favorite game on the move on our smartphone itself. However life is not that simple, is it? There are lot of things to keep us away from catching live coverage of the game such as that all important business meeting which your boss wants you to attend, or that most important lecture in tuition which you can't afford to miss- life is full of these small things that a true Indian fan has to accommodate- along with cricket of course!

Internet has almost become integral to our lives today, it is almost as important as oxygen in today’s times of wide social media outreach. However, honestly speaking, the quality of service provided by the internet network providers is not upto the mark. It becomes then a matter of making a smart choice by using a smart web browser which can seamlessly help us reach the desired speed and check out our live cricketing action for an avid cricket buff.

I am myself a great cricket enthusiast. I love to have a good internet speed on my mobile being a professional. Hence I was looking for a good web browser since a long time, as the pre- installed web browser on my android smartphone is not easy to use and smart enough. This is when one of my friend recommended me to download UC Browser. Initially, I was bit apprehensive about using a new browser, but my firnd said me to try it out. He was confident it would solve my purpose.

It’s been almost a year since that incident and I still am using UC Browser as a primary browser on my smartphone. There is almost no drawback in this browser, it offers seamless speeds which help me surf through webpages in flash of a second, it offers great download speeds, it has a great easy to use and multi-purpose interface which takes way the need to constantly enter the website URL on the browser. It saves my recent cookies and also has an option of saving data on cloud storage in case the storage capacity of the phone is limited. In no time it has gained immense popularity in India.Using UC browser makes the web experience so much easier and hassle-free, with the kind of exciting features provided by it, the speed and awesome variety of options available to choose from!

Not only that, knowing the heart of India, UC Browser has launched UC Cricket, a space which enhances the cricket watching experience of die-hard cricket fans like me to a whole new level. Now it’s possible to stream cricket videos and watch live matches on my smartphone as good as a television coverage, if not better. The below UC browser advertisement aptly demonstrates how the amazing browsing experience has made ace Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh a fan himself of this awesome browser.




So surf it all, and surf it fast with the amazing UC Browser!

Tuesday 23 June 2015

My amazing #Sniff-Sniff meet experience!


If the #sniff sniff activity was itself exciting enough, the #SniffSniff meet was definitely the cherry on the cake!

There were rounds of speculation across blogging network as to what the mysterious product is going to be. Finally an amazing surprise was unveiled at the Four Seasons Hotel, Worli. As the rain gods had their way, it was pouring heavily since morning itself. The welcome of monsoon to the city was an amazing experience. Being a weekend, the trains were less crowded. I was enjoying the sight of rains and thinking what an amazing day, when suddenly a middle- aged man came and sat next to my seat in the train. He seemed to have forgot his umbrella, and as a result, was fully drenched in rain. In addition to it, there was a pungent smell coming from his clothes. I was disgusted to say the least! I was thinking, could there be a way that we could ban body odour? Some awareness on the subject? It was strictly needed in a city like Mumbai, specially in the crowded local trains.

I reached the venue of the meet a bit late, thanks to my fellow bloggers who chose to enjoy the rains till the venue. As we grabbed our seat, we saw the section of the lobby had been divided into 2 rows, with male bloggers on either side. There were a few lady journalists as well, being a media event.

As soon as I settled down, I saw a pretty female anchor for the evening. Till now we were not aware about the brand that was going to launch the mysterious product until we saw Nivea men written all over the launch banner.



After an introduction, th lady made way for our host for the activity segment, Mr Animesh Gupta. He seemed to be a very enthusiastic host, giving us a brief about Nivea as a brand and made it clear that we were going to learn all about body odour and how to prevent it! (Wow, what a respite as I was just thinking about the same an hour back.

The meet commenced with an interesting activity where the bloggers were divided into teams of 5.In each group 2 of the bloggers were blindfolded who had to smell different things and depending upon the smell had to identify the personality of the person who smelled like that. The other 3 had to pick five items at a time and make the 2 blindfolded persons smell them.

In my group I braved the task of getting blindfolded and man! The items were quite diverse. Ranging from Roses to onions!

Thereafter, there was another session where Animesh educated and took our feedback at the same time on diverse questions on body odour like 1. What is the biological reason for development of body odour. 2. Effects of different kind of food habits on body odour. 3. What kind of diet is preferable when you have a body odour. 4. How to confront a person who has bad body odour and make him/her realize the same. 5. How to react when someone confronts you and says, “You smell bad today”.

A pleasant surprise awaited us at the meet when my friend told me that a handsome bollywood superstar is going to grace the occasion! We were all hell excited to know who he was. But knowing Nivea and bollywood it wasn't that difficult to guess. Can you? Yes, indeed Arjun Rampal

I had been a fan of his work and not his looks that much unlike everyone else, but seeing him in real, I could say he can give any handsome hunk a run for his money!

. The pretty host lady for the evening couldn't stop blushing on seeing him! He had charmed everyone by his sheer presence.



He talked about his connection with Nivea and the beauty of its products. Also he answered the questions asked by fellow bloggers. He was so right when he cheekily remarked that "beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, smell is not!" :P

He was gracious enough to let the shutterbugs click photos with him.

It was time to break for a sumptous lunch, accompanied by photos with fellow bloggers.



Off we headed towards the hall which was all set for the launch!!

It was time to unveil the mysterious product.



#BanBodyOdour was trending all over India. There was a hilarious video streamed spreading the message to #BanBodyOdour.

Mr Rakshit Hargave, the M.D. of Nivea India finally took the centre stage. Lights, camera and action – “India’s first body Deodorizer” was revealed.

A turning podium was in front of us which had a large model of “Nivea Deodorizer” and Arjun Rampal was hugging it tytly!



It was Q&A round as Arjun Rampal and Mr Rakshit Hargave took centre stage and braced some funny as well as some serious questions from the media regarding the Nivea Deodorizer.

After responding to around 7-8 questions it was time for curtains and photo session ensued

We too had our mini photo sessions at the end of the meet.

It was time to head home with our goodies as the #SniffSniff meet concluded successfully.

As I opened the goodie bag, surprise surprise: “India’s first Deodorizer” gave my day a kick again :)

I attended the #SniffSniff product unveiling event by BlogAdda in association with Nivea.

Thursday 18 June 2015

Taking a peek into future at the Reliance retirement fund meet!!

"An investment in knowledge pays the best interest"

What amazing and true lines these are by the great American philosopher Benjamin Franklin. Indeed these lines came true when I attended the Reliance Retirement Fund meet organised by Reliance in association with BlogAdda!

It was a day full of excitement as I reached the venue of the meet well in advance as being a finance student, investment is something which I very often hear about, but wanted to learn practical ways of doing it. And what better way to do it, than attend an event organised by the giant Reliance company!

The session was indeed a dream start as it was organised at the hub of finance in mumbai, the Indiabulls Finance Center building. As we bloggers from various spheres of life and various corners of the city gathered for the meet, the meet kicked off.

As a usual norm, we were made to introduce ourselves and our blog. As an interesting part, every blogger was asked about his dreams and where he sees himself 20 years hence. There were lots of interesting replies, ranging from holiday in Miami to buying a Lamborghini or having a rich penthouse. Naturally these things were not possible without a solid investment backbone and great savings. This is exactly where Reliance chipped in, and explained to us various trends in the Indian investment scenario, and why investing for our future is so important on our life. There were interesting trends which were projected by top corporate honchos of Reliance who explained to us how India is so much lagging behind in terms of contribution by youth towards their investment. We were aghast to see the present value of rupee in future terms after 20 years, which was hardly 30% of its value, all thanks to the ever growing inflationary pressure in the Indian economy.

We were also educated about 2 popular investment plans: income plan and growth plan provided by Reliance to its customers which indeed projected great future prospects and were tailor made for the type of investor- a young budding entrepreneur who wanted to aggressively invest vis-à-vis a middle aged person who would be in need of his accumulated savings after few years, and hence had an appetite for lower risk. This was well explained with the help of a practical demonstration on Reliance's website itself.

We were quite enlightened at the end of the session with respect to retirement planning and its importance and were also thankful to Reliance for doing such an extensive research on the subject.

The meet concluded with the generous hosts Reliance and BlogAdda clicking photos of the bloggers and then with a sumptuous lunch organised by them. Indeed a day well spent! Here's attaching some wonderful photos of my day at the eventful meet!

This post has been written for Reliance Retirement fund meet in association with BlogAdda.

Tuesday 24 March 2015

Sunday 22 March 2015

Stay cool, stay happy!


Happiness is just a state of mind. It is the ultimate objective of every human being around the world. Every person tries to search for happiness in some way or the other; some find it in their dog’s licking after reaching home after a busy day, while for some happiness is an adventurous journey far away from home. For some others, it is having a pleasurable moment with family members while at home. However, the common thing among majority of people is the feeling of refreshment and coolness that happiness brings in their lives. Coca- cola brings such kind of happiness everyday in the lives of millions of its consumers by spreading smiles on their faces. It not only satisfies thirst, but re-energizes the whole body, making us feeling refreshed and rejuvenated.

For me, happiness is about doing things which I enjoy doing. Weekends are the days which make me feel the happiest. Being a professional, these are the only days when I get a break from the usual boring lifestyle at work and I am able to explore the different facets of my personality. The feeling of lazng around in your bed for hours with no tensions of world round you, just relaxing yourself, or wearing comfortable casuals and stepping out to new unknown places with my loved ones excite me the most. But nothing beats the experience of going on an adventurous journey with my friends.

Recently, I had been to a trek to Karjat with my close pals. It was a rejuvenating journey. We stepped out at 6 am from our homes, met at a common place around 6.30 a.m, and boarded a train towards Kasara. Karjat is approximately an hour and a half away from Mumbai by train. The train journey was an ultimate experience. We all friends are from the same age group an hence, we laughed and engaged in light banter all through our journey. Once we reached Karjat, we hired a “tam-tam” (a type of auto rickshaw) as it is called in Karjat. From there it took us an hour more towards Amby Valley. We had carried enough eatables with us in our backpacks as well as Coca-Cola bottles as we knew we would not get much to eat or drink there. There we trekked the mountain Kothaligad which was a rocky and difficult trek. Once atop, we opened our Coke bottles and enjoyed as we danced and sang on the hilltop. The weather was very cold out there and this helped keep our drinks fresh and cool. After the trek, we went to a nearby dam and enjoyed having a dip in the freezing water. It was one of the best experience one could ever have. Amidst everything, we clicked a lot of photos to preserve our memories of the day. It was one of the happiest days of my life, as being a hard-core travel maniac, nothing brings more happiness on my face than travelling with my best buddies. It just added a fresh dose of refreshment, brightness and cheer to my life which was becoming dull at office and brought fresh energy in me. The same way as Coca- cola brings energy and happiness in the lives of its million lovers all over the world, as you will vouch for after watching this video:



So, on international day of happiness, we must always stay happy, and keep doing things we love, as life is too short to have any regrets.

Sunday 15 March 2015

The power of being together with ones you love!


Life is a stressful journey. It doesn’t let you be happy for a long period of time. There are stressful and sad moments which just make you feel like taking a break for a while and just let it go. Those are essential part of life’s journey. It is during such moments of hardship that we realize the importance of being with loved ones, forgetting about the world around us, strength and motivation we need to replenish our optimism. These moments can be ranging from anything, right from going out on a date with your girlfriend, taking your family out for dinner, buying a special gift for your sister, or just an evening walk with your dog or best friend.

I have been working as an trainee for one of the professional exams that I am about to appear for. It is a part of the curriculum of that course for any student to go through 3 years of practical training under a qualified Chartered Accountant. What is stressful about the profile at this stage is that you are not a qualified professional, and in addition to it you have the studies going on as well. So it’s a juggle between office and tuitions whole day, which leaves you with little energy at the end of the day!

It had been a stressful year at work, almost a year since I joined my company. There were various ups and downs during this interval, and as the life of any employee goes, he is never satisfied with the amount of work he has to do, especially at a trainee level. And this is even truer when you are working with leading companies. I was working with one of the leading Big 4 firms, and while life seemed sorted for initial few months, slowly the regular late- sitting as well as work pressure started getting the better of me. I was longing for a break.

It seemed god saw my plight and heard my prayers. We got a well- deserved 10 day break at the end of December. I was naturally overjoyed, as was my family. We deliberated and zeroed in on Darjeeling, and immediately booked our tickets. The climate was best suited for a fun time at Darjeeling, it was winter season, and I just love winters. And we took off, to our trip. Darjeeling is a beautiful place, it was chilling cold there. The pleasure of sitting on a toy train, going to an ancient Buddha shrine which is considered one of the oldest Buddhist shrines of the world. Sitting atop Tiger hill, sipping a hot cup of Darjeeling tea made with the freshest tea leaves that you may ever get in the world, was a breathtaking experience in itself. We were also lucky to witness the Darjeeling carnival, a 10-day festival of Darjeeling which is celebrated in their characteristic simple way. Seeing the smiles on the faces of my family members made me just forget all my stress at work. I could actually feel the stress being released from my body.

This amazing trip refreshed and re-charged me completely for the life ahead. Seeing the simple yet satisfied life of the natives there made me re-think about my approach towards work, and I realized that the key to happiness is in being content in what you have. The memories of that trip have stayed with me till date and rejuvenate me whenever I feel low in life. These are exactly the values that Housing believes in, which makes it such a must-have for everyone in their day to day lives. So even if the journey is stressful, it feels good when the time spent with your loved one makes you feel that he is together with you in this journey.

Wednesday 11 March 2015

A bold step that brought a beautiful change in my life!


Chasing your dreams is one of the most beautiful and unsatisfying feeling in the world. I use the word unsatisfying here because as a great philosopher once said “True dreams are not those which you see when you are asleep, but they are those which do not let you sleep”. In my life I am proud to have chased one such dream and took a bold step to achieve it.

I had made up my mind to enroll for Chartered Accountancy (CA) course as soon as I cleared my Higher Secondary board exams (equivalent of 12th standard). I used to be always fascinated with the respect a Chartered Accountant enjoys in the society. It was an easy cakewalk till the initial few days, as I was able to clear the Common Proficiency exam (entrance exam of Chartered Accountancy with ease. However, the real challenge lied thereafter. I, being from a middle- class family background, did not want to depend on my parents for my coaching for further education. And the cost of coaching for CA classes was quite high at that time for a reputed coaching class. And I did not want to compromise with quality of education. The new- found feeling of self- dependency got the better of me, and I decided that I am going to fund my coaching myself. That time I decided that I would take up work at some well- known Multinational Corporation (MNC), and postpone my CA attempt by 6 months, in exchange of being able to fund my coaching myself, in addition to a bit of practical learning about corporate life which would help me later.

Initially, it was a bit of struggle. Nobody was ready to hire a 12th pass as the minimum requirement at most places was that of a graduate. However, a leading MNC called FIS saw my potential. They offered me to work on a contract of 3 months with them. I was overjoyed. It was exactly what I wanted. FIS not only helped me achieve my goal of generating enough fees to fund my own tuition expenses, it also helped me get a great corporate exposure and getting acquainted with work culture. Overall, it was a great experience.

It also raised my self-respect as well as my parents were proud of me. But the cherry on the cake was when I paid my own classes fees myself, I was feeling proud and my confidence was at its peak. I, with dedication put in hard hours of study in the classes, and in the end managed to achieve the rare feat of clearing both my exam groups papers in a single attempt (a feat quite rare in CA exams these days!). And from there on, there was no looking back. Today, I am employed with a leading Big 4 accounting firm as a trainee, and a bright future awaits me in the corporate world!

Housing is a witness to similar stories of success by taking bold steps in creating Houses and making our life better. It saves the valuable time of the consumer that he wastes in carrying out basic task like selling or rent property, creating rental agreement or finding an agent. Please watch the below video for further details.



Indeed Housing is a symbol of change in today's limited time for everyone.

Friday 6 March 2015

Dry bottoms- The recipe for a rocking baby mood!


Parenthood is indeed the most exciting feeling in the world! Seeing a new-born baby grow up in front of your own eyes, his first steps, his first words, each moment is worth capturing in itself. How important is then the smile of the little one in the house? Indeed a lot! When your little one greets the day – and you – with a smile, all the stress of a hard day at work or at home seems to melt away.

I still vividly remember the days when my sister was born. She was born on the auspicious occasion of Raksha- bandhan, which made her birth all the more special for me. I was 10 at that time, but I still cannot forget all her growing up years, her initial days when I was given the responsibility of changing her diapers frequently. She had a liking for music since her days as an infant. She used to instantly used to smile and start moving her tiny hands when we played tunes of Happy Birthday or Jingle bells near her. And this discovery came to my rescue as every time she started to cry when my mother was not around, I would start playing these tunes on my piano and it would instantly make her quiet and happy. She was also fond of dancing ever since she was small, and as the days passed by, while learning her first steps as a toddler, she would get up and try to walk a few steps. I would put on her favorite music and while holding her hands, would try to make her body sway to music a little, which would excite her a lot. Eventually, as she started to walk, she would sway her bottom a little while listening to music, which would catch everyone’s fancy as she used to look very cute while doing these steps.

But even while doing all these fun activities with her, I noticed that dry diaper would contribute to a lot of extent to her mood. She used to instantly start crying in the middle of the night when she had wet her diapers, and our sleep would go for a toss as she would not stop till the time her diapers were changed. Infact, In a recent survey conducted by Pampers called “Baby Got Moves”, ‘Waking up dry’ of babies emerged as a top factor in ensuring that babies started their day in a happy mood. And this in turn, impacted the mood of the mothers as well in the day. For instance, 74 percent of moms who participated shared the consensus that their baby’s smiling face was indeed the best thing they looked forward to in their morning. And 60% of them said that their baby’s mood in the morning impacts their won mood for the rest of their day.

However, most diapers only focus on being leak proof and ensure dryness on the outside. Only the new Pampers Baby Dry Pants promises dryness for your baby on the inside. Its Magic Gel locks in moisture so that your baby’s skin remains dry and healthy for up to 12 hours. These diapers have 3 layers of absorbency versus only 2 in an ordinary diaper, which helps them stay up to 3 times drier. With the Ultra Absorb layer, These diapers offers outstanding leakage protection and flexes for a snug, comfortable fit all night long. Pampers diapers are softer inside and out to help your baby get the uninterrupted sleep he needs for a great morning. To see how Pampers contributes to a happy morning for you and your baby, check out this video below:



So to sum it up, if you want yourself and the baby to have a fun, uninterrupted sleep and great childhood, Pampers is the best and most reliable choice as it keeps babies dry, and as I found out, a dry baby is a happy baby!

Thursday 5 March 2015

Hope for a bright future!


Optimism stories can be found all around us, but the best stories to narrate are always the ones which are a part of our own experiences. In my short life of 22 years, there have been very few moments which self-inspired or self- reinforced the feeling of optimism in me, but those are worth narrating.

It was a usual rainy month of August. I was sleeping wincing in pain on my bed trying to ignore the gushing sound the wind was making while it rained heavily. I was down with Chicken Pox as the doctor had confirmed, and it did no good to me as I was 19 years at that time and in case of such ailments, the later they occur the more impact they make on the body. My whole body was filled with bumps which were slowly growing into blisters, causing all the more pain. I had missed my CA coaching classes for almost 3 days in a row, and it was not helping at all since I had my exams coming up that November. I was almost feeling like my body is covered by pointed thorns which will pierce through my body. It must have been 2.30 a.m at night. Suddenly, I heard some noise near the door of my room. It was my mother, who had kept awake, just because she could not see me in pain. She came inside the room and put her palm on my head and run her fingers through my hair. Her next words still echo in my ear “God gives us pain because he wants to give us double the happiness later.” Over the next couple of days, she was by my side for most of the time, taking care of me, giving me all the things I needed to eat, getting neem leaves as a cushion for me as they are known to heal chicken pox faster than any other thing. The blemishes still remained. But she did not lose hope. And now, with her motivation, I was prepared to fight this battle and defeat the ailment. I took good care of my body and slowly, went on course for a speedy recovery.

This is one prominent incident whose memory will stay with me throughout my life and I would be forever indebted to my mother for the kind of support she provided me when I needed her the most. To know how Housing can make your life better, you can visit here

So that was the most relaxing moment. Time stood still for me. Within a day, the blemishes started slowing down. I cleared my CA exams in first attempt. And later went on to join a Big 4 accountancy firm. Still this optimism has stayed with me till date. Which proves, its essential to look up always in life!

Saturday 24 January 2015

Of Love, Love and Love!


“Life is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear; too long for those who grieve and too short for those who rejoice. But for those who love, Time is eternity”- Henry Van Dyke

Love is indeed the most beautiful expression of the human race. It is one feeling which transcends boundaries, can pierce through people without the use of a weapon and can make anyone’s heart melt in a matter of minutes. Thus love needs to be expressed, not hidden. But unfortunately, the case is right opposite in reality. We can counter the whole world if need comes, but when it comes to love matters, we are very vulnerable. I first saw her in my orientation class. We both were studying the subject of Chartered Accountancy, and she instantly caught my attention the moment she walked into the class. She was wearing a black top paired with faded blue jeans. I simply couldn’t resist looking at her again and again into the lecture. So much that, at one point, the faculty of the day Mrs. Barkha Shah looked at me glancing at her and instantly gave me a sharp look, as if saying “I know what you are thinking about.”

I wanted to befriend her, know her name and quickly. The orientation program was a 3- day program and I knew I had to strike quickly to make an impact. The only thing working in my favour was that the third and last day was the best day it could be to open my heart towards her – Valentine’s day.

It was not until the break on day 1 that I managed to talk to her. I was sipping tea at a stall below the center, and to my luck- she came there. I knew I had my chance, to make it or break it was upon me now. I instantly broke the ice by asking her about how she was finding the whole program. She said it was ok. The next thing I asked her was the most awkward thing anyone can ever ask to a girl whom you have just met few minutes before- “What are your plans for Valentine’s day?” My friend standing beside me was giving me tough looks- as if telling me “I told you not to mess around now you are going to get slapped.” To my surprise, she gave me a shy smile and said- “Not much. What about you?” I knew I had lit up a spark there. We somehow exchanged numbers and then started chatting vis text messages. As its said- some people are just meant to meet in life. We became thick friends and started spending most of the time together.

Come day 2 end and my heart was in my mouth thinking what should I do she might be already having a date for Valentine. Chanting my favorite god’s name, I picked up my phone at 11.55 pm at night. To my surprise, it wasn’t busy, which in our country is impossible if the girl has a date. So finally, we spoke for around half an hour during which I asked her about tomorrow’s plans to which she said nothing. That was my moment. Gathering all my energy, I burst out “Aastha I like you. Will you be my valentine for the day?” For a moment she fell silent. My heart stopped beating. Then came an instant reply “Well umm, I guess yes. Not a bad idea!” I jumped with joy, as if I had won a battle. I had indeed. The battle of love.

This post has been written for the Close-Up Cupid games contest by Indiblogger.

Thursday 22 January 2015

The waste of India


“Different people's houses smell like different weird things. God forbid someone should come and nail down what my house smells like. It'd probably be a litter box... sweaty socks... and burnt bacon. That probably is what it smells like..” - Wendi McLendon-Covey

While most of us may not know who Wendi McLendon- Covey is, we all can imagine the kind of disgust he has tried to portray about the aspect of littering our own home. To litter is a disease which is not at all uncommon for the people of our country. It comes as naturally to us as breathing. With a population of more than billions (and counting!), it is not surprising that lack of awareness has caused dear to the cleanliness of our country. Since times immemorial, chewing of ‘paan masala’ (considered manliness) has shown it signs on innumerable walls of our country! Take for instance this below picture:



So they said they are going to transform Mumbai into Shanghai! Well, not if people keep dumping filth left, right and center. In fact, the places where there are signboards of not throwing garbage, filth etc witness the maximum dump of garbage.The whole world is considered dustbin for that matter in our country at our disposal. If all the garbage that people dump in India was to magically get converted into notes, not a single poor would have to stay hungry for the rest of his life! If we ourselves don’t keep our country in a clean condition, what else can we expect of tourists? No matter what we inherit or no, one thing Indians have inherited over the ages is the philosophy of “Never mind.” Whether making the once-clean juhu beach a daily defecating zone, or throwing garbage openly on the path to our heritage structures, there is no stopping the great Indian litterbug.

Here’s a hilarious video on how a newborn child who is too innocent to even understand the meaning of filth, gets trained towards contributing towards the waste of India:



Spitting openly is another deadly virus that has hit our country since times immemorial. There is a joke spreading around that the Red Fort got its color because of stains of pan spits over it over a number of years. The situation gets even worse in states like Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, where you will find all varieties of filth and everywhere- on roads, inside the houses, on trains- people literally wouldn’t mind spitting next to each other if that was not explicitly prohibited!

In the end, we have to take note that we have to clean up our act, quite literally! Initiatives like Clean India campaign are just a starting step towards a cleaner India. Initiatives like cleaning the beaches, installing dustbins on platforms and all those places which are prone to attacks by the great India litterbug need to be protected. Only then will be able to proudly dram of our cities becoming as clean as some of the others of the world!

Wednesday 14 January 2015

No tension. Relocate 'Quikr'


"Home is where the heart is"



How rightly these simple lines describe the importance of our home in day-to-day lives. Indeed one of the biggest tensions one faces in life is when they are relocating to some other location, and more-so if that other location is a different city altogether. Not only the aspect of detaching ourselves from our comfort zone that we have built around around our place that we have been living in, also the thought of moving your valuables and other logistics is painful. However, not to worry now, since Quikr is here!

Quikr is a place where you do just about anything, ranging from Cars/ bikes to property search and even services such as cook services. You can also search for jobs, place matrimony advertisements, buy your dream home and a lot of other things. Please visit the Bangalore Quikr website to know more.

If I was relocating to Bangalore, I would put Bangalore Quikr to my advantage by searching it to find good jobs for myself in the IT city of our country. Also, being a foodie, Quikr.com will come to my rescue for searching for great restaurants around my area so that I can be rest assured to find a solution to my hunger pangs. On Quikr, you can find advertisement by great cooks about their specialized dishes. Also since my house will be in a renovation stage for a short while till I shift there I will find a suitable accommodation to stay in along with my family with the help of Quikr’s vast search engine. Also, Quikr will help me to sell my immovable property in Mumbai by helping me find a good price for my assets from buyers all over, so I don’t have to hunt much and wait for a long time to move to Bangalore. Indeed, a big relief to my worries.

Not only that, since I will also be interested to know about the nearby hospitals in my area as medical emergency can occur anytime and I would be totally new to the city Bangalore, Quikr will help me check out the best-rated hospitals in my vicinity. Quikr would also be a great boon to me by helping me avail tiffin services at the cheapest price and by the best service providers. After the place to relocate in Bangalore is zeroed upon and while the renovation is going on (which admittedly proves to be an expensive affair now-a-days with Carpenters charging great amount of money for basic work), Quikr will resolve my worries by finding me the best local Carpentry services available in my area. Not only that, even fixing of my internet connection as well as installation of Wi-Fi in the new place will be taken care of with the help of Quikr.

Last but never the least, Quikr will help me find the perfect maid for my mother for our new home, a task most mothers consider to be the most difficult on the planet. Thus overall, I would get relieved of all my renovation tensions by the help of Quikr’s great services. Words are not enough to thank Quikr for making life so simple!

Friday 2 January 2015

A day full of LOVE, HUGS AND ROSES




“If I say your voice is an amber waterfall in which I yearn to burn each day, if you eat my mouth like a mystical rose with powers of healing and damnation, If I confess that your body is the only civilization I long to experience… would it mean that we are close to knowing something about love?”

- Aberjhani, Visions of a Skylark Dressed in Black

How beautifully these lines describe a passionate lover's emotions for his better half! Love is indeed the most beautiful feeling in the world. True love can be only felt, not really expressed in words. Having said that, we all try to express our love in the best way possible. It is this beautiful expression called love which keeps our hunt alive for survival.