Weekend Masti

Hey all the girlies out there , How was your weekend.

 Once you start working, weekends become so cherishable, so dear to heart, so awaited. Tragedy of my life is that I even work on Saturdays and you all have now idea how many curses I have hurled towards my organisation for this barbarism. Anyway how do u guys spend your weekends. I normally sleep a lot , sometimes cook, watch movies/plays , surely eat out and of course read books.

 This weekend I pigged out at Urban tadka , Mumbai on Saturday. How I love that restaurant for North Indian cuisine. Though the Mumbai is a cosmopolitan city filled with food joints , North Indian cuisine in a North Indian style is hard to find and my North Indian taste buds keeps on craving for it. And that is why I adore Urban tadka. They got a Punjabi Dhaba style ambiance with big paintings depicting scenes from Punjab and the walls are adorned with dholes, bangles and lanterns. The food is totally yummilicious (with lots of butter and ghee) , menu consist of all Punjabi dishes and is a delight for both veggies and non veggies. Plus it's quite affordable too. Very few of the restaurants who doesn't levy service charges. Do visit if u reside in Mumbai and has not paid it a visit yet.

On Sunday we went for this play -Blame it on Yashraj at Sophia's Auditorium, Breach Candy. The play has been there for past many months and was also on my to be watch list for quite a while . The tickets are expensive and though it is playing since long, all the shows are still houseful .

The play is directed and written by Bharat Dhabolkar and cast consist of Anant Mahadevan, Jayati Bhatia, Punit Tejwani etc. It's a musical comedy set on the backdrop of modern generation families totally enchanted by weddings shown in Yashraj movies. The play started with the initial introduction and few witty liners by Anant Mahadevan. He is shown as a Punjabi upper class guy comfortable settled with his family of four in plush flat at Bandra. His wife , a Bengali las is a full Bollywood drama while his son is a typical new generation lad and as quoted by Anant, can be reached only through Facebook and Wassapp. Anant's daughter, the apple of his eye studies in Newyork and is home on vacations. However the bomb is dropped when she declares that she is in a love with Muslim guy and wants to get married to him. Father's wild imagination makes him visualize his daughter's future in laws as a family of terrorists. However this is a just initial part of the play. When father comes around to finally accept the marriage , he is appalled by the fact that how the simple social affair is turning out to be a high profile event. All his thoughts and suggestions are vetoed by the wedding planner and his own family members and the only contribution required from his is the payment for this grandeur. 

The plot is hilarious aptly filled with dance sequences on the music numbers played by Louis Banks. There are quite a number of jokes on Muslims, Punjabis and Bangalis and some of the one liners by Anant Mahadevan have you in splits. It's a light clean comedy to be thoroughly enjoyed for two hours and you leave the play with the understanding about how it's has become so popular. The dance sequences are performed by a troupe (I forgot the name of the troupe) and they are the awesomest. I surely recommend this play.

After the play, we went to eat out at Pizza by the bay (earlier known as Pizzeria) at Nariman point. It's my favourite place for pizza in Mumbai and Bombay Masala is a must try over there. 

So all in all I had a fun weekend and now I am desperately waiting  for the next one. Don't you all do that.

Btw I have got my Jan Fabbag and will do a next post on it. 

Farvel.

Book review of Those Pricey Thakur Girls

Those Pricey Thakur girls by Anuja Chauhan was on my reading list for quite a while. The book got my attention while browsing through crossword primarily due to its catchy name. The name sounded entertainment, mystery and a good humour. N though I am  always skeptical in picking up the fiction book written by these sudden flock of Indian writers , I somehow was attracted to this one. N believe me, it didn't disappoint me. The book is a laugh riot , my hubby couldn't understand why I was giggling continuously and it is so beautifully written that I managed to finished it in 2 days.

The story revolves around Judge , his wife and his five beautiful daughters who have been named alphabetically . The obsession with symmetry in alphabets gives rise to number of comical incidents in Judge's family. All the characters have been described in an epigrammatic style such that they easily forms  an image in your mind and with the flow of the book you are able to relate your sentiments with each of them.

Though there are many entertaining characters in the book , Chachiji -Judge's sister in law is the knee-slapper. Her ridiculous totkas and wacky curses have you in splits and though you may feel guilty in rejoicing her misery, she is impossible to sympathise with.

Then there is Debjani -lover of losers and Dylan Singh Shekhawat-the one with the great butt. They are the main protagonist of the novel. Their love story is the typical Bollywood masala- Rough Casanova falling head over heals for a simple girl ,but  Anuja's writing has infused freshness in the repeatedly told story . The over interference of their families makes it insanely funny.  And after finishing the novel, I had a crush on this Dylan character. But the love drama only forms the background  of the novel and the story mainly focus on the Delhi's culture during 80's and country's situation after Indira Gandhi's assassination. The references made to Campa Cola and Doordharsan as the prime T.V channel is surely going to both delight  and make people nostalgic belonging to that era. 

Sometimes the novelist begins with a great story , built quite many intricacies and introduce various characters to engage the readers , then gets lost in their own web of complexities and finally ends the book with the mediocre climax. The mediocre climax is always very disappointing and unsatisfy the reader. Thankfully Anuja was able to tide over the situation. As I said earlier , all the characters in the book are  aptly described and have their own significance in the plot and though some are written just to add humour, it is a very well written humour. The happy ending is blended with the mix of comedy and you leave the book yearning for the sequel (thankfully she is coming with one). 

Overall it was a well read for me and will definitely make it to my list of good reads of 2014. I have read that Zoya factor has been Anuja's best work and I am eagerly looking forward to lay my hands on it.

Have u read pricey Thakur girls yet. Did u like it . What book you have manged to read in Jan 2014? I would love to hear all about it. Till then, 

Au Revoir

TBS Rainforest Coconut Hair Oil

We all have grown up listening to our mommies , dadis and aunties raving about benefits of applying coconut hair oil and the gruesome consequences of lack of the same. I always hated the smell and the whole process.  And since I have got oily straight silky hair , the necessity of applying hair oil never dawned on me. But good sense finally prevailed and my tryst with hair oil has quite improved over the years. Though I have experimented with quite a number of hair oils, the hard work required to entirely wash it off my hair and still the greasiness left behind has always put me off.I tried TBS with the similar prejudiced thoughts.

 My first trial of Rainforest coconut oil was with the free sachet provided by the TBS people and lack of any other hair oil at my place. N believe it or not the single sachet was enough to make me buy the whole bottle the very next day. Yes it is that convincing. 

 Rainforest coconut oil comes in transparent brown coloured cylindrical shade bottle with a flip cap . The 200 ml bottle comes for Rs. 645/-. 

The hair oil consist of coconut oil (of course) and organic Amazonian pracaxi oil.Pracaxi is the name of a tree found in Amazon and it's seed oil is use for the treatment of skin spots, severe acne marks , hydrate and promote cellular renewals and is also use as a powerful antiseptic in hospitals. Some of the hair related benefits of Pracaxi oil are

• Promotes conditioning to the hair
• Promotes smooth feel to the hair
• Increases hair brightness

(Source:organics-nature.com)

On application, oil feels very light on the hair and is easily absorbed . I normally apply hair oil for overnight and this one does not leave any greasy stains on the pillow covers. It has the characteristic coconut oil smell but in a sweet fragrance way. The one that doesn't give u a nausea. However the true test of any hair oil is during the hair wash. This one easily comes out in twice a wash and oh my hair feels so soft and shiny after that. The smell of oil doesn't linger and absolutely no greasiness is left behind. U actually feel like running your fingers through your hair on quite a lot basis. On continuous use, I have seen a significant improvement in the texture of my hair. With such remarkable qualities it's a fab purchase. 

Its my HG hair care product . And I would recommend a definite purchase.

So what hair oil you use on a daily basis and whether anyone could make it to your HG list?

 Also I am a fan of Fabbag and they have started rolling it out from today. The day I receive it I would surely do my review on it. Till then,

Ciao. 

Iraya Nourishing Lotus Body Butter review

Iraya is a Nagpur based brand found by Rahul kale in 2005. The brand is engaged in four main product lines

• Ayurveda
• Botanicals
• Bath & Shower 
• Spa at home-it is used by all the leading Spa centers in Country.  

Iraya has setup it's manufacturing facility outside Nagpur and cultivates its own ingredients through Herbal and Organic farming. It's retail store in Mumbai  is located at Ground floor, J.P road, 7 bungalows , Andheri (w) and products can also be found at retail stores of Hyatt, J.W Marriott and Westin Hotel.

About Iraya Nourishing Lotus Body Butter

I received Iraya Lotus body butter in my Dec,13 Fabbag (earlier known as Vellvette Bag)and is the best amongst the lot I have received from the Fabbag.The body butter comes in a very cute tub packaging of 250 gms costing Rs. 795. Fabbag sent me a sample of 35 gms which is quite enough to last me for weeks

 I have got a combination skin for my face while rest of my body skin is quite dry. And though I live in Mumbai, my skin gets all scaly and flaky during winters . The normal body lotion keeps my skin moisturised for 2-3 hours after which the dryness reappears. For such instance,  Iraya body butter has proved quite beneficial . It consists of Aloe Vera, Lotus  seeds and Kokum butter and penetrates deep into the skin giving it a soft glowing texture .Best past is that skin remains hydrated for quite a long period. In my case the hydration remains for 8-10 hours.

Just before using Iraya , I had got severe rashes on my hands and my hand skin had become very scaly and itchy (I am allergic to metal and metal bangles gives me bad rashes-but then they look so pretty). I was actually thinking of consulting a dermatologist. Somehow after applying Iraya for a week there was an astonishing improvement in the texture of my skin and scaliness was quite improved. I am not sure whether this was an Iraya effect or my skin simply healed over a period of time but it converted me into a fan. 

On application, it feels a little greasy but eventually is well absorbed by the skin.It leaves behind a mild fragrance which acutely reminds me that I have applied Ayurveda stuff but then I have got use to the smell. Plus these days there is big revolution in the form of increased usage of Ayurvedic and organic stuff in every aspect of the lifestyle and I guess it's only going to get bigger.I really like that fact that all ingredient of Iraya are cultivated at their farm itself. The thought gives me such a fresh feeling. I will recommend a definite purchase of Iraya body butter especially in the winter season. 

P.S:  It might look a bit greasy and may not be absorbed effectively by the oily skin. 

Hasta La Vista Everyone

My 2013 Reading List

Hello everyone,

2013 was a year of many sequels and awaited publish of some of the renowned authors. Some of the novels/authors I waited for with bated breath and even managed to read were:

Ok I was not waiting for Bankerupt with bated breath , just included it to fill my fourth blank :D

I could not read many other books due to my current fixation with Game of Thrones and of course my family and work commitments.Amongst these four, Khaled Hosseini was the biggest disappointment. Maybe I had too high expectations from him after reading his previous two novels -Kiterunner and Thousand Splendid Suns and this was not even 10% of the magic he created with the other two. 

I liked Dan Brown-Inferno. The story built up and narrative of Dante work is great but end is uninteretsting. Maybe Dan brown like Director of movie Talash got bored after weaving all the intricacies and wrote the climax with the weariness.But it's Dan Brown and some part of his novel is always appealing. His Angels and Demons is my the best read and I just realised that I didn't include in my previous post of all time favourites(My bad). That novel actually motivated me to take symbology as a profession. I still feel it would have far more interesting. 

About Oath of Vayuputras-it had too much of geography and too less of story. The only good parts were fighting of Kartikya and Sati. But still I would like to see what Amish writes next. 

Bankerupt was the typical Ravi Subramanian novel. There is always a bank fraud, always some top notch getting too ambitious, murder of some crucial character and mix of 2-3 organisations. It's like he has no need to publish his name on the book, people will identify anyway. But then the book was engrossing. I must say he writes well. 

Apart from these, some other books I read in 2013 were:

• Jeffery Archer's Best Kept Secret-I loved it and waiting for the sequel.
• Dada by Vibhor Tikiya-Another IIM in the rat race. Do IIMs keep a dedicated course for budding authors. If they do they should discontinue it immediatley and show some mercy towards mankind. 
• Inheritance by Christopher Paolini- It was the fourth and final book in inheritance series and absolutely enthralling like its predeccors.
• N of course Series of Game of Thrones- I will dedicate the whole post for review of this one.

Do tell me the about the books u read in 2013 .Till then

Auf Weidersehen Freunde  

Book Love

Hello friends

Through my second post on this blog , I will be talking about my favourite topic which is Books. I am a bookworm . I cannot sleep or travel without a book by my side. It seems since the time I learnt to read, I have been reading books , magazines and anything I can lay my hand on ( of course this doesn't apply to course books but I use to read my Hindi and English lit school books well in advance).I was a huge fan of Diamond comics and later on of Enid Blyton.

Currently I am hooked on series of Game of Thrones. I am a sucker for  period fiction , magic superpower kind of thing and hence thoroughly enjoy reading such kind of books. I also tried watching the series but it's too gore for my taste . I have also recently started reading Vogue on a regular basis due to sudden interest in fashion and makeup. I owe this to certain bloggers about whom I will talk about in more detail in my later posts.

Apart from GoT , other book lying at my couch waiting to be read is Those Pricey Thakur Girls by Anuja Chauhan. Though I seldom read Indian authors , I do experiment with them in between. Authors like Arivind Adiga , Vikram Seth, Suketu Mehtha and Amish do feature in my favourite list.

Some of my treasured books are :

A Suitable Boy
The White Tiger
Maximum City
Of course the Harry Potter series
Twilight series (I can read the last book over and again)
The kite runner
Thousand splendid suns
Jurassic park
The Best Kept Secret
Godfather
Memoirs of Geisha
 N latest addition -Song of Ice and fire series

Though I can babble endlessly on my love for books, I will save the babble for my next posts. Through my next post I will try to do a review of most talked about novels of 2013.

Till then, Adios Amigos