Besharam!


So the Delhi Besharmi Morcha has ended. It was India’s version of the global reply to the taunt of a police officer in Toronto who said that women should stop dressing like sluts if they didn’t want to be eve teased. 
Well, well, one MCP dares say that in Toronto and all women are up in arms. Here, we have everyone from authorities to strangers to elders in the family telling us the same thing; only they leave out the word ‘slut’. Probably why the Indian morcha left it out too.

We have guys cat calling and wolf whistling and worse day after day at us fully dressed women, and what do we do? We bow our heads in shame and just walk by in silence. Why? Because hum besharam nahin hain. We are not shameless. We are ashamed of ourselves. How could we have attracted those guys? Maybe we should change our route to college/work/school tomorrow. Maybe I should wear a longer kurta with my jeans. Maybe I should lower my eyes so that I cannot see beyond the tips of my toes.

Yes, we have to make all the changes. The guys can still sit on the wall and continue. No one’s going to push them off. The police? Oh give me a break. They have lots more serious cases to work on (read: distort facts/’lose’ evidence/harass witnesses).

During my college days, the inmates of the girls’ hostel had a curfew time of 6:00 p.m. and the guys…..well, they didn’t have a curfew. That obviously wasn’t enough for them. So, they got onto their terrace and started whistling and yelling out to the girls who were having a walk in the hostel gardens. So, authorities made our compound wall higher. Then we started hanging out on our terrace to enjoy the fresh air and watch the birds flying freely. But then it was closer to the guys’ terrace, a fact which was taken full advantage of by them. That resulted in a ban from frequenting the terrace for us. Always us. Never them. 

We did protest, of course. We weren’t going to let it go without a fight. But everything fell on deaf ears. “It’s for your own protection” was the answer all the time. But what we actually wanted was justice. They were the perpetrators, why weren’t they taken to task? Even today, the injustice of that makes my blood boil.

Images Courtesy: ibnlive


Just shows how long a way the Indian public (man) has to go. I really doubt how much a walk like this will help to that end, but maybe someone somewhere in a position of power will sit up and take notice. If there is someone like that out there (who also reads my blog :-)), here are a few suggestions from me:

  1. Educate all children – girls and boys – right from a young age that you CANNOT pass lewd comments at passing girls/women. They should be told that eve teasing now comes under ‘Crime against Women’.
    1. IPC Section 298 (A) and (B) sentences an eve teaser for a maximum of 3 months.
    2. IPC Section 292 sentences someone who shows obscene material to women to two years imprisonment and a fine of Rs 2000.
    3. IPC Section 509 sentences obscene body language to imprisonment of one year and/or a fine.
Learning a law in its entirety makes it more real to common people.

  1. Have plain clothes policemen around all school/college areas to pounce upon local ‘roadside romeos’ (hate that term).
  1. Ensure a government initiated supply of pepper spray to all girls over the age of 16 and educate them to use it on guys who harass them in any way.
  1. This is the most important: Change the attitude of the police. They have to give sexual harassment a very high priority, because the delay will only complicate matters and let the harasser walk away free. Also, a little more sensitivity on the part of the police in such matters would be helpful.
Have you got any more to add so that we can walk in peace anywhere (and not just in a slutwalk)? Please do!!

Recipe for the Week - Easy Tuna Sandwich

This is the easiest version of a Tuna Sandwich that I know of :-). Just mix everything together and voila! The tuna I used was canned in springwater, you can use ones in brine/sunflower oil etc. but they need to be drained well.

What you’ll need (1 sandwich):

  1. ¼ can tuna flakes (in springwater)
  2. 2 slices bread
  3. 1 tbsp mayonnaise
  4. 1 stalk celery chopped
  5. olive oil
  6. salt and Pepper to taste

What you’re going to do:

1. Drain the tuna well and sauté for a few minutes in ½ tsp olive oil.


2. Mix the tuna, celery, mayonnaise and seasoning in a little bowl.




3. Spread the mixture on one slice of bread and cover with another. Press down gently to bind everything together.


    Grilling this sandwich is optional – some people like it that way. I personally prefer the cold/ungrilled version.

    Now, wasn’t that easy? This can now be expanded into as many layers as you like with all sorts of filling. My suggestions – lettuce, onion, chopped capsicum.

    Now it's time for my weekly health resolution update. Here goes:

    1. One glass of toned milk everyday
    2. Weight training every alternate day
    3. Green Tea everyday
    There’s a whole month of fasting coming up in August, so sticking to my resolutions is going to be difficult. But I am going to make sure that I do, after all consistency is key, right? I might have to shuffle around the timings of my workout, though.

    Overall, I find that the food-related resolutions are easier and the fitness related ones are trickier. Maybe it’s because in order to workout, you actually have to get off the couch and put on your shoes and start. Requires more effort than just refusing a second helping or making a cup of green tea. Well, no more excuses, like the Nike tagline says, “Just Do It!”.


    Image Courtesy: mindofarunner

    Defying Gravity


    Lately, I’ve been listening a lot to this song, ‘Defying Gravity’. In case you don’t know, it’s a song from the Broadway show ‘Wicked’. It’s a beautiful, inspiring song, which talks about letting go of all your inhibitions and setting yourself free from all the shackles that hold you down. It’s about taking risks and basically, just going for it.

    Saying that I love this song is an understatement. Listening to it gives me a feeling of exhilaration, as if I could suddenly grow wings and just soar into the blue sky. It’s a great pick-me-up on days when I feel like the whole world is driving me nuts, or when I really want to do something but feel like there are too many obstacles in front of me.

    This song is a reminder of the amazing power that music can have on us. If you haven’t heard this song yet, here are two versions of it from Youtube.

    This one is the ‘GLEE’ version, sung by Lea Michele and Chris Colfer. (I first heard this song on a Glee episode :-)):



    This one is from the original Broadway show, performed by Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth.


    I personally prefer the Glee version. What about you? Do you have a song that really inspires you and changes your mood whenever you hear it? Do tell me!!

    True Love Photos

    True love is very positive way to express your love which you can see in these photos of true love:-





    Photos of Salman Khan

    Salman khan is the real rockstar of bollywood, he is seriously a damn personality. Remember his movie WANTED, oh man seriously an action pack and his body Oh my God!!!! he is just amazing person. Salman kHAN ia the bollywood actoR Who is a dominant person of the Bollywood there are many movies which are very famous in india like HUM APKE HAI KAUN movie is a family movie with Madhuri dixit and the other movie is recently released DABANG a very dashing personality and a very dabang style of salman his first movie was maine pyar kiya and a very decent role in that movie, salman rocks, you can easily see this in these salman khan photos and wallpapers:-





    Friends for ever Photos

    friends always are the best and helps us in every situation, so we called friends for ever.





    Being a Good Girl!


    Yesterday was a really fun day with shopping and eating out and just good plain fun!! I followed all my shopping commandments to the T :-). I put a lot of thought into each item I selected and then surprise, surprise - returned a lot of stuff back onto the rack!!! I know, weird isn’t it!! Never happened to me before!! Also, after I let myself get over the whole ‘SALE’ thing, I was able to look at every single thing for what it really was, without all the marketing gimmicks. As a result, I ended up buying a few things that were not on sale!! Again, first time for me!!

    Here’s why I'm calling myself a good girl:
    • I stuck to my list and my budget and I’m proud to say that I succeeded in staying within both
    • I avoided plastic bags almost everywhere, relied on cloth and paper bags
    • I avoided paying with plastic, and used cash everywhere. It really helped me stay on track.

    A lot of stuff bought was for the menfolk in my family – Cub, Mr. Tiger, my brother. Here’s a sample of what I got:

    A red crush kurta from Lifestyle. I was drawn to the bright color and it's super comfortable too. I’ve been wanting to get a crush kurta for quite a while :-)

      A pair of nude sandals from Mochi (No sale there). I had a pair almost exactly like this one some time back and they were really comfy. Hence I didn’t hesitate much with these :-)



        I also got a sleeveless tunic from Lifestyle, a pair of black tights and some other stuff like manicure set, deos etc. I also wanted a pair of black kitten heels, but didn’t find any that I was 100% satisfied with. Might hit the shops again this week :-).

        There’s just one thing I got that wasn’t on my initial list. (Ok, ok, I’m not a very good girl now :-)) It’s a pack of colorful little wooden pegs, I found them real cute and got them for Cub’s room:


        So that was all I shopped for yesterday. Well within control..and I must admit, it felt really good and satisfying to know that I had exactly what I wanted and nothing more!!

        5 Commandments of Sale Shopping


        I’ve got great plans for tomorrow – my sis and I are going on a girls-only shopping trip, yippeeee!!! Cub will be with my mom the whole day, which is a win-win situation for both of them :-).

        Since I don’t want to commit my previous shopping sins yet again, I thought I’d come up with some commandments and ensure that I stick to them. So here is what I came up with:

        1. Thou shalt not be swayed by offers like ‘buy 1 get 1 free’ unless thou has actually spotted 2 items thou likes in that rack, before spotting the offer sign.
        Image Courtesy: auctions.overstock

        1. Thou shalt not try on clothes thou doth not intend to buy and thus hog the trial rooms when there are several other impatient maidens waiting outside.

        Image Courtesy: lifeofpri.blogspot

        1. Thou shalt not buy clothes simply because they are marked down. To confirm, just ask the garment in question, “Do I love thee so much that I would buy thou even if thou weren’t on sale?”
         Image Courtesy: shopping

        1. Thou shalt pause before heading to the cashier and look into thy shopping bag. Look at each garment and ask “Wilt thee turn into clutter once in my wardrobe, or wilt thee be happily worn many times in different ways?”
         
        Image Courtesy: books-online-store

        1. Thou shalt make a list and a budget and thou shalt stick to it. If necessary, thou shalt check thy purchases before leaving every store to stay on track.
         Image Courtesy: englishjab.blogspot

        I hope my attempt at Middle English ‘thou’ language isn’t too jarring, just thought of trying it since I had titled the post ‘5 commandments’ :-)

        Hope everyone’s having a great weekend!! Enjoy!!

        Dreading a Style Change?


        Have you ever met someone who’s wanted to change their style for ages, but just can’t seem to go through it? Well, what’s stopping them from taking the plunge? I did some analysis and number crunching (Okay, I asked a few people :-)), and here’s what I think are the top ‘style trappers’ holding people back from changing their personal styles:

        Note: This post is not about the following:

        1. The lucky souls who’ve got their style parameters all figured out and are happy in their place
        2. The I’m-not-sure-what-to-call-them people who don’t have a clue what style or fashion is and who couldn’t care less about it.
        Now, back to the style trappers :-)

        1. Mental Block/Hesitation to try anything new – You’ve been having the same style for so long that now you simply can’t think of getting out of your comfort zone, even though you know you can do much better.
        1. Societal/Peer pressures – In many places, people think that once you’ve had a kid you needn’t be fashionable any more. In others, it may be that your co workers/classmates are all badly dressed and you don’t want to stick out like a sore, albeit stylish, thumb.
        1. Familial pressures – This is kind of rare, but trickier than the rest. You are dying to change your wardrobe, but your husband/mother in law/mother consider fashion as something for ‘shallow’ people and would not like you to spend any time or effort on something so ‘frivolous’.
        1. Financial constraints – This is a no brainer. You’re having a rough patch with Mr. AccountBook and can’t really afford anything stylish for a while.
        1. Body image issues – You desperately want to look good and get out of your old clothes, but you’re convinced nothing will look good on your hips/backside/shoulders/arms.
        1. All of the above
        Now, all of these are real issues to real people, and I don’t have an easy solution to any of them. However I do think that a way out of all these problems would be by going slow and taking it one little step at a time.

        Image Courtesy: cartoonstock

        Try to deal with the main issue bothering you, bit by bit. Rome wasn’t built in a day, so go at it slowly and sneakily, if necessary (applies to scenarios 2 & 3 mentioned above). And anyway, your style is something that evolves gradually; as you learn more about yourself, you also learn to love yourself more, and that confidence and positivity eventually reflects in the way you dress.
        Image Courtesy: aaronshaver

        As for me, I’m still a work in progress. Every makeover starts with accepting your body, figuring out what works for you and what doesn’t and going from there. It’s a long but fun journey. After all, you only get one life, so isn’t it better to keep it stylish rather than drab? Of course!!

        My health resolutions are going fine this week, except for a couple of misdemeanors :-(. Resolutions for the next week are:

        1. Meals and snacks at fixed times – even if not at home
        2. Drink at least 1 litre of water every day, or even 1.5 (on hot days)
        3. One cup of green tea every alternate day

        That’s for next week. For now,

         Image Courtesy: dazzlejunction

        Shri Ganesh Ji Wallpapers

        Son of Lord Shiva, Ganesh JI Wallpapers
        Ganpati bapa morya......






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        A Tiny Little Post - Kiddie Books

        Today was crazy, running around in a bank all day. I reached home exhausted and at the end of my tether. Honestly, some banks can drive you nuts.

        Finally at home, I was too tired to blog, though I kept getting a familiar feeling; like I hadn’t done my homework or something :-). And then, in came a little package from Flipkart, it was for Cub. He was delighted, so I thought I might as well put up the pictures of the books on the blog :-)

        The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams

        This is a classic tale about a boy’s toys that come to life. A cute little fantasy :-)



        No More TV, Sleepy Cat (I’m Going to READ! Series)

        Here’s the description:


        So goodnight everyone, looks like its bedtime now, see you tomorrow!

        Cute Ayesha Takia

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        Beautiful Anushka Sharma Wallpapers

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