Preeti Shenoy's Blog, page 64
April 23, 2014
She loves me more.
"Siblings fight, pull each other's hair, steal stuff, and accuse each other indiscriminately.
But siblings also know the undeniable fact that they are the same blood, share the same origins, and are family.
Even when they hate each other.
And that tends to put all things in perspective."
----Vera Nazarian.
My two children (my son who is 16 and daughter who is 12) are no different. They fight, tease each other, bicker, play together and have their own secret language, which all siblings who are close do. Sometimes I eavesdrop on their conversation, when they think I am not listening. I enjoy it immensely.
Overheard yesterday:
My son to my daughter: You know what, mummy loves me more.
My daughter: Of course not, she loves us both equally.
My son: No, she doesn't. They haven't told you, you are actually adopted.
My daughter pauses for a few seconds. I hold my breath.
Then she says " At least they chose me, but they are stuck with you."
Yes, I am still smiling, and this one is straight going into the memory box :)
______________________________________________________________________
ps: Have you read The One you Cannot Have yet?. Buy it from Amazon just Rs.99/- for a limited period!
Or pick from the following :)
Crossword: http://is.gd/Touchcrossword
Flipkart: http://is.gd/TouchFlipkart
Landmark: http://is.gd/TouchLandmark
Infibeam: http://is.gd/TouchInfibeam
Uread: http://is.gd/TouchUread (Uread ships internationally too)
http://preetishenoy.com/
But siblings also know the undeniable fact that they are the same blood, share the same origins, and are family.
Even when they hate each other.
And that tends to put all things in perspective."
----Vera Nazarian.
My two children (my son who is 16 and daughter who is 12) are no different. They fight, tease each other, bicker, play together and have their own secret language, which all siblings who are close do. Sometimes I eavesdrop on their conversation, when they think I am not listening. I enjoy it immensely.
Overheard yesterday:
My son to my daughter: You know what, mummy loves me more.
My daughter: Of course not, she loves us both equally.
My son: No, she doesn't. They haven't told you, you are actually adopted.
My daughter pauses for a few seconds. I hold my breath.
Then she says " At least they chose me, but they are stuck with you."
Yes, I am still smiling, and this one is straight going into the memory box :)
______________________________________________________________________
ps: Have you read The One you Cannot Have yet?. Buy it from Amazon just Rs.99/- for a limited period!
Or pick from the following :)
Crossword: http://is.gd/Touchcrossword
Flipkart: http://is.gd/TouchFlipkart
Landmark: http://is.gd/TouchLandmark
Infibeam: http://is.gd/TouchInfibeam
Uread: http://is.gd/TouchUread (Uread ships internationally too)
http://preetishenoy.com/
April 21, 2014
An interview with Kiran Manral on her new book
Though I have known Kiran Manral for many years now, from my early blogging days, it was only in January 2013 that I met her, during the launch of my book 'The Secret Wishlist'. When we got talking, it felt as though I have known her all my life.Kiran is a wonderful, sensitive and warm and she did an amazing job of my book launch.
She is a superb orator too, and spoke extremely well. You can watch the entire video of the launch here.
I love her witty writing (from her blog and numerous other places that she writes) and picked up her first book 'The relectant detecive' , which I thoroughly enjoyed reading.
Kiran has also starred in the Dove ad, as well as in tangerine colours of life. Here is Kiran Manral's short bio:
Kiran Manral has worked as a journalist before she quit to be full time mommy. Her blogs, www.thirtysixandcounting.wordpress.com and www.karmickids.blogspot.com, are both in Labnol's list of India's top blogs. She blogged at Tehelka Blogs on gender issues. She is also considered a 'social media star' on twitter by the TOI and IBN Live named her as among the 30 interesting Indian women to follow on twitter and among the top 10 Indian moms to follow on twitter for 2013.
Post 26/11, she founded India Helps, a volunteer network to help disaster victims post 26/11 and has worked on long term rehabilitation of 26/11 Mumbai terror attack victims and 13/7 Mumbai bomb blast victims, amongst others.
She is part of the core founding team behind CSAAM (www.csaawarenessmonth.com) and Violence Against Women Awareness Month (www.vawawareness.wordpress.com), two very well received social media awareness initiatives across twitter and the blogosphere.
Kiran is now out with her second book 'Once Upon a Crush' which is to hit the stands soon.
So I spoke to her, and asked her some fun interesting questions. Here is what she had to say:
1. How did you become a writer?
I think I always was a writer. Ever since I can remember, I was busy writing out elaborate stories, with magic driven plots and interesting characters and since back then, I loved sketching, I would even sketch out episodes from those stories. I think my mother even has some of those stories still with her and showed them recently to my son. I think more than a writer, I was always a story teller, and nothing pleased me more than to lose myself in either reading a story or writing one out.
2. What according to you are three absolutely essential qualities to be a writer?Three absolutely essential qualities to be a writer according to me would be curiosity, compassion and the ability to communicate. All in equal measure. If you allow me a fourth, I would add a sense of wonder, because if one doesn’t have a sense of wonder, one wouldn’t find anything worth writing about.
3. Your book involves office romance. And in present day scenario, it is very common to develop crushes on someone which may develop into a full-fledged relationship. What is your advice to both parties, in case they are committed or married?I’ve heard of this strangest new phrase “work spouse” wherein folks who are married or committed, have folks in the office they are so close to that they almost consider them spouses. I haven’t been working full time for over ten years now, but I would like to state that it is very easy to develop an emotional or romantic attachment with someone in the workplace, given one is spending long hours together with them, and is probably getting from them the attention one perceives one isn’t getting from a spouse. In such a situation, it might be good to step back a bit, examine why there is a gap in your committed relationship to allow a third person to enter between the two of you. And an office relationship can get very messy, it is best to stay away. Or keep your relationship and PDA outside the office.
4. How important is in love in real life?I think love is very, very important. We all need validation as persons, and the only thing that does this is the love of another. What is life after all, but moving from one love to another, the love of a parent, to the love of a spouse or a partner, to the love of a child.As a writer, I think all of what we write is driven primarily from love or the need of it or lack of it in our lives.If it is good and fulfilling, it fills you up with joy and makes you creative. If it is despairing and dark and torturous, you will still write to deal with the angst.
5. Favourite movie/movies?I am a horror movie buff and catch watch The Ringu movies umpteen times, Exorcist, The Amityville Horror, and so many more. But not slasher movies, movies which involve the paranormal fascinate me. I am also fond of sci-fi and fantasy films. I am also a sentimental fool who sobs when I watch tear jerkers so I tend to avoid those.6. Music that you like?I run the gamut from Naina Devi’s thumris to Lady Ga Ga to 80s and 90s Pop and Rock to Gregorian chants to modern Bollywood music. I think I am an equal opportunity music lover, but I really don’t get rap.
7. If you weren’t a mother, writer, blogger, CSA activist, what would you be?A television anchor. I’ve always wanted to be on television. Somehow I never got down to fulfilling that dream and have always regretted it. Interesting because I am basically a very introverted person, so this is something completely contrary to my nature.
8. What authors do you read? What kind of writing do you enjoy?I read anything I can lay my hands on. I bore quickly of reading that is very high brow and demands I dip into a dictionary constantly to figure out what the author is trying to say. I like the writing of P G Wodehouse, Dave Barry, Terry Pratchett, Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, Mark Twain, Haruki Murakami, Jodi Picoult and Stephen King amongst others. I must say I am a sucker for an interesting turn of phrase, or a thought presented powerfully in the most innocuous looking sentences. I like writers who can deal with most mundane topics with a sense of wry humour. Like Erma Bombeck for instance.
9. If you had to do one thing in the next 3 hours that would make you very happy what will you do?I would do a long leisurely lunch with my friends. It has been so long that I’ve done a long girly lunch that I miss it so.
10. Could you give us your favourite part of the book?My favourite part from the book is the part where my protagonist, Rayna De goes to get a haircut. She has long hair she’s rather proud of, but the hair cut is kind of symbolic of her wanting to shake things up in her life, and it is more than just a hair cut for her in that sense. It a casting off of what she perceives as her ‘image’ and an embracing of a new her.
You can check out (and pre-order!) the book using the links below:
The book can be pre ordered here:FlipkartCrosswordInfibeamAmazonThe twitter hashtag is #OnceUponACrush
If you have enjoyed reading this or if you have any questions for Kiran, do leave a comment in this post!
_____________________________________________________________________________
ps: My latest book has been getting some fabulous reviews. Buy it from Amazon just Rs.99/- for a limited period!
http://preetishenoy.com/
April 10, 2014
Waste to Garden Gold!
Have you ever thought of what happens to that plastic cover that you chuck into the dustbin? Or the potato peels? Or the leftover slice of Pizza? Do you throw them all into the same bin or do you separate them?
If you aren't segregating your waste at home--you really should.
Pic courtesy : Dailydump.org
The fact is big Indian cities produce about 3000 tonnes of waste a day, at the very least. Most of them are dumped into illegal dumps just on the outskirts of the city. Organic waste from your kitchen is 60 percent water. The municipal department spends money transporting this waste! If we do our bit, we can manage our waste at home, thus saving resources and time, that can be utilised better for other things like education and infrastructure.
Organic waste really does not need to travel. Also, thousands of people in our country are rag-pickers who make a living out of scavenging in the waste bins and selling the plastic dumped there. If the plastic is not covered in rotten food, left over chicken curry, vegetable peels and other things, they can earn more.
If you cook at home regularly, then your kitchen itself generates about 750 gms to 1000 gms of raw material every day. Of course you can segregate it and throw it out ---but there is a better way to manage it. How?
You can make your own compost! And it isn't hard at all.
I started doing it almost an year back and I am super pleased with the results.
This is how I do it:
First I invested in the above kit. It is not very expensive and also it is a one time investment that is going to pay you rich dividends. If I remember right, I paid around Rs.1200 for the above three containers. However, if you do not want the containers, you can also use pots.(They are a lot cheaper)
I bought my kit from Pelican Biotech. In Bangalore, there is also Daily Dump. (from which the above information has been condensed). Do check out their website --they do some fabulous work. Do find out the organizations in your city that are similar.
One also needs to buy comp-absorb, which costs around Rs.125/- for a 5 kg bag. The bag will last you for more than 2 months.
Next, you line the bottom of the first pot with newspaper. Then you add a layer of comp-absorb.
Now you are ready to go.
You begin by adding the organic kitchen waste. Do not add rotten food.
After a 2 inch layer of kitchen waste is added, you add the comp-absorb. The process continues till the container is filled. Then it goes right to the bottom and the next container comes to the top, and the same process continues. There is absolutely no smell if you do it right.
If you have any questions do check out both the links above, which answer in great detail, the process for home composting.
By the time the third container is full, the first container (that you placed right at the bottom) will be full of dark, rich organic compost! Look at the compost I made.(Have planted sunflower and Bhindi in it)
This is a superb medium and you can put the plants right in. Even if you do not have a garden, trust me you will want to, once you see the compost that you have made! (In any case, even if you just chuck it outside, you are still doing the environment, society and yourself a massive favour by composting!)
Here is one of the plants that I have grown in my compost:
And here is the rock-garden that Satish and I made. (Many of the containers have the compost that I made)
Inspired?
You are sitting on a mine of garden gold. Don't waste the waste It isn't that hard. It just takes five minutes of your time to segregate and dump right, once it is set up.
Now, go do it!
_____________________________________________________________
Get my latest book The One You Cannot Have
Crossword: http://is.gd/Touchcrossword
Flipkart: http://is.gd/TouchFlipkart
Landmark: http://is.gd/TouchLandmark
Infibeam: http://is.gd/TouchInfibeam
Uread: http://is.gd/TouchUread (Uread ships internationally too)
Amazon: http://is.gd/AmazonTouch
http://preetishenoy.com/
If you aren't segregating your waste at home--you really should.
Pic courtesy : Dailydump.org The fact is big Indian cities produce about 3000 tonnes of waste a day, at the very least. Most of them are dumped into illegal dumps just on the outskirts of the city. Organic waste from your kitchen is 60 percent water. The municipal department spends money transporting this waste! If we do our bit, we can manage our waste at home, thus saving resources and time, that can be utilised better for other things like education and infrastructure.
Organic waste really does not need to travel. Also, thousands of people in our country are rag-pickers who make a living out of scavenging in the waste bins and selling the plastic dumped there. If the plastic is not covered in rotten food, left over chicken curry, vegetable peels and other things, they can earn more.
If you cook at home regularly, then your kitchen itself generates about 750 gms to 1000 gms of raw material every day. Of course you can segregate it and throw it out ---but there is a better way to manage it. How?
You can make your own compost! And it isn't hard at all.
I started doing it almost an year back and I am super pleased with the results.
This is how I do it:
First I invested in the above kit. It is not very expensive and also it is a one time investment that is going to pay you rich dividends. If I remember right, I paid around Rs.1200 for the above three containers. However, if you do not want the containers, you can also use pots.(They are a lot cheaper)
I bought my kit from Pelican Biotech. In Bangalore, there is also Daily Dump. (from which the above information has been condensed). Do check out their website --they do some fabulous work. Do find out the organizations in your city that are similar.
One also needs to buy comp-absorb, which costs around Rs.125/- for a 5 kg bag. The bag will last you for more than 2 months.
Next, you line the bottom of the first pot with newspaper. Then you add a layer of comp-absorb.
Now you are ready to go.
You begin by adding the organic kitchen waste. Do not add rotten food.
After a 2 inch layer of kitchen waste is added, you add the comp-absorb. The process continues till the container is filled. Then it goes right to the bottom and the next container comes to the top, and the same process continues. There is absolutely no smell if you do it right.
If you have any questions do check out both the links above, which answer in great detail, the process for home composting.
By the time the third container is full, the first container (that you placed right at the bottom) will be full of dark, rich organic compost! Look at the compost I made.(Have planted sunflower and Bhindi in it)
This is a superb medium and you can put the plants right in. Even if you do not have a garden, trust me you will want to, once you see the compost that you have made! (In any case, even if you just chuck it outside, you are still doing the environment, society and yourself a massive favour by composting!)
Here is one of the plants that I have grown in my compost:
And here is the rock-garden that Satish and I made. (Many of the containers have the compost that I made)
Inspired?
You are sitting on a mine of garden gold. Don't waste the waste It isn't that hard. It just takes five minutes of your time to segregate and dump right, once it is set up.
Now, go do it!
_____________________________________________________________
Get my latest book The One You Cannot Have
Crossword: http://is.gd/Touchcrossword
Flipkart: http://is.gd/TouchFlipkart
Landmark: http://is.gd/TouchLandmark
Infibeam: http://is.gd/TouchInfibeam
Uread: http://is.gd/TouchUread (Uread ships internationally too)
Amazon: http://is.gd/AmazonTouch
http://preetishenoy.com/
March 30, 2014
A step in the right direction
A good friend of mine has this quote as his status message on gmail:
"Sometimes a step in the right direction may begin with a thousand steps in the wrong."
This picture I clicked, when I went on a walk. It reminded me of the quote.
No matter what the past, you can always begin anew.
All it takes is a step in the right direction.
_____________________________________________________________________________
Get my latest book The One You Cannot Have
Crossword: http://is.gd/Touchcrossword
Flipkart: http://is.gd/TouchFlipkart
Landmark: http://is.gd/TouchLandmark
Infibeam: http://is.gd/TouchInfibeam
Uread: http://is.gd/TouchUread (Uread ships internationally too)
Amazon: http://is.gd/AmazonTouch
http://preetishenoy.com/
"Sometimes a step in the right direction may begin with a thousand steps in the wrong."
This picture I clicked, when I went on a walk. It reminded me of the quote.
No matter what the past, you can always begin anew.
All it takes is a step in the right direction.
_____________________________________________________________________________
Get my latest book The One You Cannot Have
Crossword: http://is.gd/Touchcrossword
Flipkart: http://is.gd/TouchFlipkart
Landmark: http://is.gd/TouchLandmark
Infibeam: http://is.gd/TouchInfibeam
Uread: http://is.gd/TouchUread (Uread ships internationally too)
Amazon: http://is.gd/AmazonTouch
http://preetishenoy.com/
March 26, 2014
5 questions to take you closer to your goals.
Sometimes our families limit us without intending to do so. We grow up with beliefs so strongly embedded that it might be hard to even visualize a different perspective. If it's a family with more than one child, invariably parents end up comparing the two, despite best of intentions, not to. Even in a family with a single child, one may end up 'conforming to a pre-determined role'. (The responsible one, the dare-devil, the singer, the comedian etc).
One child may get labelled 'Performer' and other may get labelled 'Under-achiever'. These labels may not be direct, but as children, we pick up so many unsaid things through so many actions of our parents. The labels may be just inside our heads, but they stick on, long into adulthood.
The 'under-achiever' may be really smart. He/she may top the school academically, might have many laurels, and yet deep down may feel inadequate because of early comparisons made at home. We carry our beliefs deep into adulthood, and we don't pause and reflect. We simply live with these. but sometimes a little reflection helps.
Here are five questions to ask yourself, that will need some thinking from your side.
1. What label are you holding on to? Think and reflect.
2. If you did not bother about what your family would say or how they would react what is the one thing you would want to do?
3.Do you think that your sibling or your dad/mom or any other family member is better than you? In what way? Why?
4. Is above the absolute truth or do you think a neutral observer will have a different opinion?
5. What are you going to do about it?
The Sunflower and Zinnia are two completely different flowers, that need a large dose of sunlight. Both are beautiful in their own way. If you are a sunflower, do not try and want to be a Zinnia!
Both have their places in the sun.
________________________________________________________________
Get my latest book The One You Cannot Have
Crossword: http://is.gd/Touchcrossword
Flipkart: http://is.gd/TouchFlipkart
Landmark: http://is.gd/TouchLandmark
Infibeam: http://is.gd/TouchInfibeam
Uread: http://is.gd/TouchUread (Uread ships internationally too)
Amazon: http://is.gd/AmazonTouch
photo credit: adwriter via photopin cchttp://preetishenoy.com/
March 20, 2014
Cosmopolitan India. March issue. @cosmoindia #cosmoindia
Hi folks,
Here's a bit of nice news from my side:
Got featured in the March issue of Cosmopolitan India! :)
The story is on 'Top 8 jobs you want'. They had conducted an online poll and being an author was right among the top most coveted jobs.
Cosmo flew me down to Delhi for the shoot. It was a fabulous experience and lots of fun. They did make me feel like a supermodel with the best make-up artists and the best photographers as well as the very talented Cosmo stylists. The features editor was warm and friendly.
For the whole story, do go and pick up the Cosmo March issue which is now on the stands.
The interview that appears in Cosmo is edited a bit. Here is what i would have liked to add:
Q: Why is being an author your dream job?
Several reasonsI am my own boss and I report to no-one. I can take as long as I want or as little time as I want to complete a novel.I have total creative freedom—I can play God.I get invited to speak at premier Institutions like IITs and IIMs.My work is therapy for me. It is a huge stress buster. I forget everything when I write.I have a portable office that travels with me everywhere! All I need is a laptop, to work.
Q:. What are the qualities required to be a successful author?
First and foremost is discipline. You have to be disciplined and persistent enough to keep writing till your novel is completed. The other qualities would be a large dose of imagination, ability to research, empathy so you can get into the heads of your characters and of course a good grasp of the language you are writing in. Also, when you write, you are exposing yourself completely and that needs a lot of courage too .You also need to read a lot!
Q. What are the work hours like?
It varies and entirely depends on the person. You can decide your own working hours. I have written five books since 2008. I tend to work for about for about 5-6,hours a day and this includes time spent on research, time spent on connecting with your readers on social media and actual writing. But this is only when I am writing a book. Closer to the book launch I tend to work 14-16 hours a day. There are days when I have worked round the clock too, and hardly slept!
Q. What's the best part about your job?
The fact that I can sit at home, with my dog cuddling up next to me, while I am working! Also, I can take an off whenever I like and I have no fixed hours, plus I report to nobody except myself. I can turn up for work in my night clothes if I feel like it. Also when people tell me that my words have made an impact on their life, it is an all-time high.
Q:. What's the worst part about your job?
I enjoy it so much that I can’t think of a single negative! But I can tell you about a nightmare that happened to me. I was 25000 words into a new novel that I was working on. I had the plot, the outlines and everything else that would go into it, planned. Then a new book by an Irish author came out into the market, and I was horrified to discover that the plot eerily was very similar to the one I was working on! I of course, squished my entire work and abandoned it completely and felt bad for days.
Q. What's your honest advice for young women who want to become award-winning authors?
Awards like the Booker prize, Pulitzer Prize and are mostly given to literary fiction. Ask yourself what kind of writing that you want to do. Do you want to write a romance, a fantasy, a thriller, a historical fiction or any other genre that you may think of? Then study the kind of work in that genre which has won literary awards. You will thus get a fair idea of the kind of writing that it requires. Make your reading wide and varied. Join a writers group, take classes at a University and keep writing.
There are several authors whose books have sold millions of copies and are always on the best-seller lists, but haven’t won any awards.
For me personally, my biggest validation comes from my readers, who write in and tell me that they could relate to my book, and they saw themselves in my writing.
Hope you found the above useful!
Good luck to all of you out there, aspiring to be authors.Just write!
LovePreeti ____________________________________________________________________________________
ps: My latest book has been getting some fabulous reviews. Buy it from Amazon just Rs.99/- for a limited period!
http://preetishenoy.com/
Here's a bit of nice news from my side:
Got featured in the March issue of Cosmopolitan India! :)
The story is on 'Top 8 jobs you want'. They had conducted an online poll and being an author was right among the top most coveted jobs.
Cosmo flew me down to Delhi for the shoot. It was a fabulous experience and lots of fun. They did make me feel like a supermodel with the best make-up artists and the best photographers as well as the very talented Cosmo stylists. The features editor was warm and friendly.
For the whole story, do go and pick up the Cosmo March issue which is now on the stands.
The interview that appears in Cosmo is edited a bit. Here is what i would have liked to add:
Q: Why is being an author your dream job?
Several reasonsI am my own boss and I report to no-one. I can take as long as I want or as little time as I want to complete a novel.I have total creative freedom—I can play God.I get invited to speak at premier Institutions like IITs and IIMs.My work is therapy for me. It is a huge stress buster. I forget everything when I write.I have a portable office that travels with me everywhere! All I need is a laptop, to work.
Q:. What are the qualities required to be a successful author?
First and foremost is discipline. You have to be disciplined and persistent enough to keep writing till your novel is completed. The other qualities would be a large dose of imagination, ability to research, empathy so you can get into the heads of your characters and of course a good grasp of the language you are writing in. Also, when you write, you are exposing yourself completely and that needs a lot of courage too .You also need to read a lot!
Q. What are the work hours like?
It varies and entirely depends on the person. You can decide your own working hours. I have written five books since 2008. I tend to work for about for about 5-6,hours a day and this includes time spent on research, time spent on connecting with your readers on social media and actual writing. But this is only when I am writing a book. Closer to the book launch I tend to work 14-16 hours a day. There are days when I have worked round the clock too, and hardly slept!
Q. What's the best part about your job?
The fact that I can sit at home, with my dog cuddling up next to me, while I am working! Also, I can take an off whenever I like and I have no fixed hours, plus I report to nobody except myself. I can turn up for work in my night clothes if I feel like it. Also when people tell me that my words have made an impact on their life, it is an all-time high.
Q:. What's the worst part about your job?
I enjoy it so much that I can’t think of a single negative! But I can tell you about a nightmare that happened to me. I was 25000 words into a new novel that I was working on. I had the plot, the outlines and everything else that would go into it, planned. Then a new book by an Irish author came out into the market, and I was horrified to discover that the plot eerily was very similar to the one I was working on! I of course, squished my entire work and abandoned it completely and felt bad for days.
Q. What's your honest advice for young women who want to become award-winning authors?
Awards like the Booker prize, Pulitzer Prize and are mostly given to literary fiction. Ask yourself what kind of writing that you want to do. Do you want to write a romance, a fantasy, a thriller, a historical fiction or any other genre that you may think of? Then study the kind of work in that genre which has won literary awards. You will thus get a fair idea of the kind of writing that it requires. Make your reading wide and varied. Join a writers group, take classes at a University and keep writing.
There are several authors whose books have sold millions of copies and are always on the best-seller lists, but haven’t won any awards.
For me personally, my biggest validation comes from my readers, who write in and tell me that they could relate to my book, and they saw themselves in my writing.
Hope you found the above useful!
Good luck to all of you out there, aspiring to be authors.Just write!
LovePreeti ____________________________________________________________________________________
ps: My latest book has been getting some fabulous reviews. Buy it from Amazon just Rs.99/- for a limited period!
http://preetishenoy.com/
March 12, 2014
Wordless Wednesday No.41. Sunrise
Here is my post for Wordless Wednesday.
Clicked this morning from my terrace. Bangalore, India.
_________________________________________________________________________
ps: My latest book has been getting some fabulous reviews. Buy it from Amazon just Rs.99/- for a limited period!
http://preetishenoy.com/
Clicked this morning from my terrace. Bangalore, India.
_________________________________________________________________________ps: My latest book has been getting some fabulous reviews. Buy it from Amazon just Rs.99/- for a limited period!
http://preetishenoy.com/
March 6, 2014
Why it is good to move.
All my life, I have moved and lived in various places. My dad had a transferable job and after I got married, so did my husband. I have lived in about 11 cities and two countries now. Apart from English, I speak 5 Indian languages (out of which I can read and write four). I never learnt any of these languages in school (other than Hindi, which was a second language). I just picked them up by constantly listening to them. I also got the alphabet books of these languages and asked a lot of questions (as a child) to anyone who was willing to answer. I remember reading all the film posters (as they would typically have large letters) in regional languages and feeling very proud as it was something I had taught myself.
I think living in different places teaches you a lot. You learn about various customs, culture, cuisine and a whole lot of other things unique to that region. You learn to make friends. You learn to blend in and yet retain your own identity. You learn to get along. You learn to respect boundaries. You learn that it is okay to be different and it is these very differences that make us rich.
Many people ask me if it was difficult to keep moving so much and whether I found it hard to 'adjust' to a new place. To be honest I never even thought of the 'difficulty level' involved, because, for me a leap into the unknown is always exciting. I love it! I have lived in a place where the temperatures touch 45 degrees Celsius during summer and have lived in another place, where it has touched a minus 15 during winter! Was living in these places hard? I don't know--I was having too many new experiences and soaking it all in, feeling fortunate that I got a chance to experience it! How many people in the world get chances like that? That was the way I viewed it. Which was good, because it was not like I had a choice, anyway :)
Also, a new place is a new possibility. There are so many things waiting to be discovered. There are so many options waiting to be explored. It is like starting life afresh.
If you get a chance to move to a new place, grab it. If you are a person who does not like change, you might be uncomfortable at first. But that is good, because it pushes you to do new things. Things that you might not have done in your comfort zone.
And no matter where you move, the human emotions are just the same. We all need love and warmth. We need people whom we are comfortable with. People who accept you for who you are. We need a cozy hidey-hole called home to come back to.
If you have that,be grateful and say a little prayer, for indeed you are blessed.
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ps: My latest book has been getting some fabulous reviews. Buy it from Amazon just Rs.99/- for a limited period!
http://preetishenoy.com/
March 5, 2014
New(s) at my end
For all of you who have written to me asking me why I haven't updated my blog and asking if I am fine (Thanks folks! You are so sweet to me!) here it is.
The reason for this slightly-longer-than usual silence is that there has been a lot of stuff happening at my end. The first being that I moved homes. (I am so totally in love with my new home and was busy settling down, getting the Internet, phone lines etc. Done and dusted now)
The other news from my side is that I now write a column for Financial Chronicle. My column is called Sex and the City, and it is on Saturdays. The first one was out on 1st March and generated a lot of buzz.
You can read it online by clicking here.
The next one will be out 8th March.
Of course I intend blogging as usual. My blog and I cannot be separated for long.
So will see you around. :)
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Buy The One You Cannot Have for just Rs.99/- in a limited period offer at Amazon and Flipkart
http://www.preetishenoy.com/books/the-one-you-cannot-have/buy-now/ http://preetishenoy.com/
The reason for this slightly-longer-than usual silence is that there has been a lot of stuff happening at my end. The first being that I moved homes. (I am so totally in love with my new home and was busy settling down, getting the Internet, phone lines etc. Done and dusted now)
The other news from my side is that I now write a column for Financial Chronicle. My column is called Sex and the City, and it is on Saturdays. The first one was out on 1st March and generated a lot of buzz.
You can read it online by clicking here.
The next one will be out 8th March.
Of course I intend blogging as usual. My blog and I cannot be separated for long.
So will see you around. :)
____________________________________________________________________
Buy The One You Cannot Have for just Rs.99/- in a limited period offer at Amazon and Flipkart
http://www.preetishenoy.com/books/the-one-you-cannot-have/buy-now/ http://preetishenoy.com/
February 23, 2014
How to be truly beautiful.
Many of you must have come across the news items featuring the bearded Sikh girl who has been applauded for her courage, for refusing to conform to what is considered beauty and having the courage to be who she is. In case you do not know what I am talking about do watch the video below.
I came across this a few months ago, when it first popped up on reddit.I, like all other, applauded her courage to stand by the choices she made and her mental strength. Then I forgot all about it.
Till this morning.
This morning I came across another lady called Valeria Lukyanova, a model from Ukraine who has got a lot of plastic surgery done to resemble the popular Barbie doll.
Do check out the link . It left me quite astonished!
Both are extreme cases. In one, the person has consciously rejected the society's norm of 'beauty' and in the other the person has embraced it to the fullest.Both have received large volumes of mails of admiration, as well as hate mails. Does anyone else have a right to comment on their choices? I do not think so.
Yet, physical beauty does drive a whole lot of things. Economists have found out that physical beauty affects wages even in professions where appearance does not seem relevant to performance.
Here is my take on this whole beauty business.
I am against beauty pageants like Miss World and Miss Universe, simply because it has absurd conditions like the woman has to be, between a certain age and has to be unmarried (why?! How does it matter?!). Also, this whole objectification of women, where she is just reduced to her looks and clothes (never mind the interview questions that are asked!) and judged on the basis of that, is something I find distasteful. I would rather applaud that girl whose parents were uneducated labourers from the poorest sections of the society and yet, she stood first in her exams, studying by the street-lights. That according to me is true beauty. So is a woman who achieves something in a sport or another who rises to head a multinational. Those are the ones I shall applaud.
Same goes for men. Yes, I may admire a muscular guy who has a great physique, but will he command my respect? Not likely, unless he is a true gentleman.
Beauty is only skin deep.
To be truly beautiful, what you need is a warm wonderful smile, a kind heart and purity in deeds and thoughts.
True beauty is seeing the good in others, making the world a slightly better place when you leave, by spreading cheer, hope and positivity.
True beauty is not hard to achieve. It doesn't need plastic surgery.
All it needs is a mind-set.
_______________________________________________________
ps: My latest book has been getting some fabulous reviews. Buy it from Amazon just Rs.99/- for a limited period!
http://preetishenoy.com/
I came across this a few months ago, when it first popped up on reddit.I, like all other, applauded her courage to stand by the choices she made and her mental strength. Then I forgot all about it.
Till this morning.
This morning I came across another lady called Valeria Lukyanova, a model from Ukraine who has got a lot of plastic surgery done to resemble the popular Barbie doll.
Do check out the link . It left me quite astonished!
Both are extreme cases. In one, the person has consciously rejected the society's norm of 'beauty' and in the other the person has embraced it to the fullest.Both have received large volumes of mails of admiration, as well as hate mails. Does anyone else have a right to comment on their choices? I do not think so.
Yet, physical beauty does drive a whole lot of things. Economists have found out that physical beauty affects wages even in professions where appearance does not seem relevant to performance.
Here is my take on this whole beauty business.
I am against beauty pageants like Miss World and Miss Universe, simply because it has absurd conditions like the woman has to be, between a certain age and has to be unmarried (why?! How does it matter?!). Also, this whole objectification of women, where she is just reduced to her looks and clothes (never mind the interview questions that are asked!) and judged on the basis of that, is something I find distasteful. I would rather applaud that girl whose parents were uneducated labourers from the poorest sections of the society and yet, she stood first in her exams, studying by the street-lights. That according to me is true beauty. So is a woman who achieves something in a sport or another who rises to head a multinational. Those are the ones I shall applaud.
Same goes for men. Yes, I may admire a muscular guy who has a great physique, but will he command my respect? Not likely, unless he is a true gentleman.
Beauty is only skin deep.
To be truly beautiful, what you need is a warm wonderful smile, a kind heart and purity in deeds and thoughts.
True beauty is seeing the good in others, making the world a slightly better place when you leave, by spreading cheer, hope and positivity.
True beauty is not hard to achieve. It doesn't need plastic surgery.
All it needs is a mind-set.
_______________________________________________________
ps: My latest book has been getting some fabulous reviews. Buy it from Amazon just Rs.99/- for a limited period!
http://preetishenoy.com/
