A Long To-Experience list, just one life!: 2017

Chicrama - The Online Shop

Accessories 5:32 PM

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FRIENDS - How it's like to grow old with your best friend.

10:09 AM

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टमाटर की कहानी, टमाटर की ज़बानी

biography 10:28 PM

नमस्कार! मैं हूँ टमाटर. मुझे तो जानते ही होंगे?

वही, जिसे आप आज कल कमा कर भी नही खा पा रहे हैं... लोल!
आपकी सब्ज़ी, सलाद, और बस यूँ ही लोगों पर पड़ने वाली चीज़ हूँ.

अभी कुछ दिनों पहले से ही मेरे भाव कुछ बढ़ गये हैं. आख़िर क्यू ना बढ़े, अमाँ हमें भी बुरा लगता है, जब हमें ना तो ठीक से सब्जी की केटेगरी में रखा जाता है, ना फलों की.
और तो और हमारे जैसे ही लाल सेब हमसे इतना महेंगा है, तो हमे भी कोफ़्त होती है. फिर क़रीब एक दशक पहले, जब हमारे तामसिक मित्र प्याज़ ने अपने भाव आसमान को छू लिए, तब हमने भी एक कसम खा ली, एक दिन मौका देख के हम भी भाव बढ़ाएँगे.
बस फिर क्या, तबसे बाट जोह रहे थे. फाइनली मौका पा के हमने भी चौका मार ही दिया. अब भला क्रिकेट किसे नही पसंद? (माफ़ कीजिए ज़रा भावनाओं में बह जाते हैं हम कभी कभी!)

वैसे हर परिवर्तन के कुछ फायदे, कुछ नुकसान होते हैं. मगर इस परिवर्तन से तो बस नुकसान ही दिख रहा है. उदाहरण के लिए हमारे भाव बढ़ने की वजह से इंसान तो क्या हमारा खुद का परिवार मुझसे नाराज़ है. छोटा बेटा बोलता है की अब टॉमटीनो फेस्टिवल में कैसे जाएँगे. और तो और अब तो देश के लिए शहीद होने के लिए हम उन बेकार नेताओ पर भी नही मारे जा सकते हैं, क्यूँकि आपने हमारे भाव बड़ा रखें हैं.
आख़िर ऐसे कब तक चलेगा, हम कब तक बेरोज़गार पड़े रहेंगे.
चुटकी लेने के लिए मैने भी उन्हें कुछ मीम्स दिखाए. एक सुन्दर कन्या ने कानों में सोने की बालियों के स्थान पर हमें लटका रखा है. ये भी बताया की आज कल लोग एक दूसरे के घर जाते हैं तो मिठाई नही, २किलो हमें ही पैक करा ले जाते हैं. बताओ, इससे ज्यादा इज़्ज़त क्या मिलेगी?
बस तभी से घर में कोई हमसे बात ही नही कर रहा है.
आकस्मिक आपदायें जैसे की इस बार हुई अत्यधिक बारिश की वजह से मेरे कुनबे पर बड़ा अत्याचार हुआ, अमूमन आधे से ज़्यादा लोग मृत्यु को प्राप्त हुए और लगभग एक चौथाई लोगों ने घायल हो कर दम तोड़ दिया. बच गये हम. तो अब क्या व्यंग भी ना करें? तकलीफें इंसान को शायर बना देती हैं, हम तो बस कहानीकार बने बेठे हैं ज़रा सी आप बीती और कुछ नही. ऐसी वर्षा कभी नही देखी, नाना दादा के साथ भी कभी ऐसी अनहोनी नही घटी. और ये तो बस शुरुआत है. जिस तरह मानव जाति ग्लोबल वार्मिंग बड़ाने में जुटी हुई है, मेरी बड़ी हुई कीमत तो शायद अभी बहुत कम है.

अब मैं उन्हे और क्या जवाब दूं. क्या आप बता सकते हैं? शायद नही. मगर अब कुछ कह नही सकते तो कम से कम कुछ कर तो सकते हैं आप लोग की नही? ग्लोबल वार्मिंग को बढ़ने से बचाएँ, ग्लेशियर पिघल रहा है, धरती की जलवायु बदल रही है. थोड़ा योगदान आप भी दें. ए.सी. कम इस्तेमाल करें, बिजली-पानी बचाने की हर संभव कोशिश करें. अमाँ यार, कुछ तो करें. नही तो जैसे आज मेरा परिवार मुझसे मेरे बड़े हुए भाव का कारण पूछता है, आपका परिवार शायद ये सब जानने के लिए रहे ही ना. कुछ दशकों से ग्लोबल वार्मिंग तथा आकस्मिक जलवायु परिवर्तन की मार सह सह के मेरा छिलका भी मोटा हो गया है, नोटीस तो आप सबने किया ही होगा, अब आसानी से नही गलता मैं. मगर इंसान ने कारण समझने की कोशिश नही की. खरीदने वाले मेरा छिलका उतार के इस्तेमाल कर लेते हैं और बेचने वाले मुझे इन्जेक्शन लगा के बेवकूफ़ बना लेते हैं.

वैसे लगता है की शायद ये इंसान कभी नही सुधरेगा. चलता हूँ. कोशिश करूँगा की इस बार बारिश की मार सह पाऊँ.

Sketch (c)kavk 2017

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Kids and hobbies make for an unbeaten partnership

childhood memories 10:17 AM

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Top Animated Movies By Studio Ghibli That Will Move Your Soul

Animation 6:36 PM

Say animation and children movies- enters Disney.
While no other production house may take Disney's place for what it's been since ever, and while I enjoy watching amazing Disney movies and cartoons, I somehow feel that in India the right kind of animated kids movies are underrated. Movies, which are for kids yet deliver a strong message or a thought, aren't complex and teach some insightful lessons making a child's imagination sore high. To cover that all, comes Studio Ghibli for you.

One of the favorite bits of my precious childhood memories is growing up watching the movies by Studio Ghibli that I'd proclaim with rejoice. The movies so surreal, that each of them left me speechless with their compelling story-lines and the cuteness of every character. Simple plots crafted with perfection with little details that'd leave you with a smile on the lips and bewildering about how could it be so perfect. You would find every movie to be the best of all, until you see the next one.

To all those who don't know about Studio Ghibli, I must say, you know nothing about the great anime movies. Studio Ghibli is an animation film studio from Tokyo, Japan. It is famously known for its anime feature films, but like I mentioned that I doubt people in India know much about it. Each story is based on a fantasy or driven by a real life event with a hint of progressive thinking and some elements that'd make you think and wonder. The silent moments speak volume. The emotions calm your senses. All the plots, incidents, events woven carefully to give a pleasant experience. I call them the movies with soul.
I did try searching if people have written about this amazing production house in India already, but couldn't find much that'd justify the greatness of such amazing production house. Hence in this blog, I am putting down some of the best movies out of all by Studio Ghibli to make you feel what you've been missing in life.

1- Grave of the Fireflies- An animated war drama (1988)

This is one of the finest movies and the very first movie which made me realize that animated movies could be full of drama & seriousness rather than just being funny. It tells a story of two siblings and their hardship to survive through the period of World War II, in the city of Kobe in Japan. Their innocence, struggle, dismay, you'd feel all of it throughout the movie and your heart will reach out to the little girl, the younger sibling, satsuko. Truly one of the greatest movies set on the background of world war II with heart-wrenching emotions.

2- The Secret world of Arrietty- An animated Fantasy Movie (2010)

A family of super small people who take food from the houses of Humans and call it borrowing while the Humans aren't aware of the secret world of these tiny people who live right under their houses. The movie features Arrietty, one of the tiny wonders who while borrowing a sugar cube from a house, caught seen by a human, a nice boy. The boy eventually helps her and her family escape from the fellow human beings trap.

3- Ponyo- An animated Fantasy Movie (2008)

Ponyo is a story of the friendship between a little boy and a tiny pretty goldfish, and his struggle to safeguard his little fish friend. Sounds cute enough already, eh? Wait-for-it. The goldfish grows legs and convert into a pretty little girl. And then the duo embarks on an adventurous journey on their magically enlarged toy boat.
You should watch!

4- My Neighbor Totoro- An animated Fantasy Movie (1998)

Okay. This I'm sure people would know about. Because of the popular merchandises inspired by the movie character Totoro that gradually became a cultural icon. It features the story of two young sisters and their imaginary friend Totoro. Imaginary or not? you should watch it yourself. One of the super beautiful and cutest movies ever.
Fact- people do have theories that the movie resembles a real life event.

5- Only Yesterday- An animated Fantasy Movie (1991)

A story narrated by a young lady of her precious childhood & sweet memories and how she ends up choosing a countryside life over her luxurious city life. This would surely hit hard on your nostalgia button as the movie not just targets the younger audience but slightly larger audience including adults.

6- Kiki's Delivery Service- An animated Fantasy Movie (1989)

A story about a girl, kiki, who delivers parcels from town to town on her magic broomstick and that's how she earns her livelihood. Oh, and she has a cute talking cat. Awesome enough that the movie was produced in collaboration with Disney.

7- From Up on Poppy Hill- An animated Fantasy Movie (2011)

A teenage boy and girl trying to make their own place in school, become friends, and take up the deed which is, saving their school from being demolished by cleaning up the school's club house and make it worth to be retained.

8- Whisper of the Heart- An animated romantic drama Movie (1995)

A boy. A girl. One cycle. Fate. Ambitions.

An unusual well-crafted love story of teenagers. #NuffSaid

9- Castle in the Sky- An animated fantasy movie (1986)

An adventurous story of a boy and girl secretly trying to create some kind of magic crystal, and while doing so, also locating a mythical castle. A castle that floats and is hidden somewhere in the sky.

10- Spirited Away- An animated Fantasy Movie (2001)

Recognize the spirit's face? It's all over in the market or may be you've seen it in a couple of videos representing the look of the ghosts and spirits. Anyways, the movie features a story of a 10 year old who loses her parents in the middle of nowhere in a jungle and how she finds them by going through some really unusual creepy situations.
Whoa, she is brave, I thought while watching it.

11- When Marnie was there- An animated Fantasy Movie (2014)

This is a ghastly one. The movie features a life changing trip of an adopted girl, Anna, who meets and befriends a lone girl Marnie who's been living in a vacated mansion right across the river which people believe is haunted. Soon enough they become really good friends and with the help of Marnie, Anne unfolds the truth about her family.

12- Howl's Moving Castle-An animated Fantasy Movie (2004)

That is an interesting movie all the boys would like. It has fantasy, technology, war, magic everything rolled into one movie. It promotes the message of antiwar, the importance of freedom and the destructive effects of war in the society and its people.

That's all guys! There are many more movies by Studio Ghibli, but these all tops the chart for me. You know, most of the movies have one thing in common. That is, having a cat. You'll see for yourself. I hope you'd like watching most of the movies and share with me how you find. OR if you have seen them already, which one you like the most? Do share here with me :)

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Colaba

Food 6:05 PM

It was another usual trip to Mumbai in 2017. And after I've been there so many times and turned down by fellow busy friends lately, I decided to keep it quite and spend my weekend alone somewhere around my stay. But as they say, you get surprises when you least expect them. A friend, who just happened to know that I was in Mumbai, couldn't wait to take a bus from Pune and arrive to make a sunny weekend of January truly exciting for both of us. The morning, we decided to spend roaming around Colaba for which she had a far fetched list of where to go, where to eat, what to do. HaHa! I was so happy cause for the first time , I wasn't the planner and I didn't need to be one. In the time of mobile notepad, she had a page torn from an actual notebook with all the places and eateries scribbled on it. Sweet. That list and we on our feet, helped us cover almost everything that we passed by.
Started our breakfast at Colaba social [Not so nice for two vegetarians 😕] but definitely nice ambience & the location.

A post shared by फैशन चाची (@kattitudette) on Jan 20, 2017 at 10:09pm PST

Then, we started our trail to cover Colaba on our toes from 10 in the morning till 5'o'clock and couldn't be more satisfied (and super tired).

- Getaway of India
Our first stop was Getaway of India indeed. That's given, if you are in Mumbai, this is the must-visit place, and I'd finally ticked it off. Luckily we didn't find much of a crowd even if it's a Saturday. The sea. The Getaway and The Taj on the opposite side; was all worth it. But we could hardly stayed there for more than 20mins due to the scorching heat of a sunny day.

--
Around a km away stands about 125years old,
-Knesset Eliyahoo Synagogue
From the Getaway of India we walked towards this Jewish piece of architecture only to find out that it's closed on Saturday. Have heard less about it but its painted with pretty turquoise & white interior isn't a thing to miss if you're around. And right next to it you'd find the 'Kala Ghoda' graffiti art by Asian Paints.

A post shared by फैशन चाची (@kattitudette) on Jan 26, 2017 at 3:49am PST

-Jahangir Art Gallery
Just a quick cut on your left and then right, you'd find the gallery. Don't confuse it with the Nation Gallery of Modern Art which is also at a walking distance on the opposite road. The entry is free and photography is strictly prohibited. Divided in two, it will take at least 30-40 minutes to cover the whole art section. If you want to kill the time and love art, the place won't disappoint you.

-Prince of Wales Museum
After my visit to the Bangalore Palace, this was my second museum that reminded me of Blore palace cause it has the audio tour. Took about 2 hours and we really enjoyed exploring the place (I love museums). From the prehistoric times, to civilizations till today, the museum offers a lot to know and learn about India and the whole world. Paintings from England, souvenirs from china, armory from Rajasthan. I guess it was the first floor where all the gifts and collectibles from India and overseas owned by Mr. Ratan Tata was on public display. (A proud moment) The museum also has a small canteen and drinking water for free. The entry fee for Indians is max INR100 basis what all you want to cover.

A post shared by फैशन चाची (@kattitudette) on Jan 21, 2017 at 1:46am PST

- Britannia & Co. Restaurant
We were famished after we're through with the museum, but our stamina to walk couldn't die. We walked all the way to the famous 'Britannia & Co.' Cafe from the museum which was 2km. And there we had the famous Paneer Berry Pulao which was so Oh-so-delightful. Hope people didn't stare at us cause we're hungry & didn't realize how quickly we finished. We had soda lemonade and caramel custard (contains egg) as well. May be they're keeping it as is deliberately to give the old time look, but the building seriously needs some renovation. They only accept cash (and tip).

A post shared by फैशन चाची (@kattitudette) on Jan 21, 2017 at 5:54am PST

By the time we finished our lunch we decided to take a walk around Church gate and eventually catch a local.
By 5 we were done and so we left deciding where to go next on our way back.
Bandra Fort it was for the very next morning :)

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A Long To-Experience list, just one life!

Chicrama - The Online Shop

FRIENDS - How it's like to grow old with your best friend.

टमाटर की कहानी, टमाटर की ज़बानी

Kids and hobbies make for an unbeaten partnership

Top Animated Movies By Studio Ghibli That Will Move Your Soul

Colaba

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