Pictures from Kenya

Lion smiling at us from a cliff, Masai Mara.

Giraffe running away on the road, Naivasha

Hi friends,



I had gone to Nairobi, Kenya with my kids to visit my brother and family in May. I guess most of you would have seen the pictures on FB and some of you would have seen the articles on Masai Mara I wrote for Frontline. I am providing the link again in our blog.

Superb starling, a beautiful bird
waiting for some crumbs from our lunch plates,
hotel in Naivasha.

Giant cactus

http://www.frontline.in/stories/20120824291606400.htm

http://www.frontline.in/stories/20120824291607000.htm

Baboons on the road



Flamingoes in Lake Oloidien

Trust all of you are keeping fine. Right now, I am a bit obsessed with fb, so I have been visiting the blog less. I hope to make up for the lapse :)



Roshin.

Asian writers in English

Have any of you read The Reluctant Fundamentalist? Guess Maha would have. Well, I just finished reading it in a week's time, snatching a few hours in a lean week at work. It is not an achievement, I'd say since many would be able to finish it off in a day's time. It was nominated for the Man Booker prize, and for a seemingly boring narrative - a monologue by a Pakistani young man who left a successful career in New York in the post 9/11 scenario to a wary American stranger that is suggestive of the distrust between the east and the west - it reads very well .
I liked all the little details about life in Pakistan which reminded me how similar it was to life in India - the power cuts, the exotic food, cross-border tensions etc. - and despite the tensions of a possible war in the wake of the Dec 13 attack on the Indian Parliament, one feels a sense of kinship with fellow inhabitants of the subcontinent and the continent.
Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner was another novel I loved. I understand the movie is out.

p.s. From a cbox message on my blog, I decided to clothe my views into a short, proper review. I hope it is not unwelcome.

Some links on MCC:
http://www.hindu.com/2009/09/23/stories/2009092360220400.htm

http://www.thehindu.com/mp/2009/04/13/stories/2009041350270400.htm

A new mall is coming near my house. I am looking forward to more cinema trips and landmark...
http://www.thehindu.com/mp/2009/09/24/stories/2009092450750100.htm

Zooming past

A demonstration in support of LTTE chief Prabakaran in Chennai last week... They were actually more policemen than demonstrators as trouble was expected. Our office was a fortress too and we had the para military apart from the police guarding our premises. But nothing untoward happened. It did bring traffic to a standstill for almost an hour. (Not the best of pictures, since it was taken on my mobile quickly... I didnt want the police arresting me :)

Here in Chennai, things have been slightly more interesting than usual of late. Pre-election campaigns, election results, post-election wrangling for ministerial berths by the Chief Minister, 'death' of Tiger chief Prabakaran (though some still believe it is not him) and of course the IPL tournament. Though Chennai Super Kings didnt see the light of the final, we tried to be happy that another South Indian team won the trophy.

The zoozoos caught our imagination more than the cricketers. They lit up our otherwise mundane lives for a while.

And now the IPL is over, the katthri heat is supposedly over (but the sun still shines mercilessly on the city) and schools are about to reopen.

Little drops

That's the name of a home for the aged and destitute we visited after church hours. The visit was planned by the Family Fellowship group, and there must have been some 15 families (children included) going on the trip. The home was in a remote location, Moulivakkam??, down the Porur road.

Seeing all those sick (some mentally too) and elderly people, many of whom are picked up from the streets made me feel how lucky and privileged we are. There are a few orphans and some mentally challenged youngsters too.

They seem to be well looked after. A couple from our church and another couple manage the place. There are over 400 inmates and feeding them a meal each cost Rs. 4000 and more. Yesterday lunch was sponsored by the church and we partook of the lunch too.

That's a side view of the church from the rear.

Fabulous Mahabs

Inspite of living so close to Mammalapuram, where the 7th century Pallava kingdom flourished, I have never found time to visit the place. So on the Saturday after Independence Day (these days it is safer to be at home on such important days because of threats of bomb blasts), we took the ECR route to Mahabalipuram.

The stone temple close to the seashore was first on my agenda. It was smaller than I anticipated and people swarmed like bees to it. One thing that irritated me and my hubby were two North Indian ladies having their meals near the sanctum sanctorum. By the time we reported to a guard outside (in my broken Hindi; looks like there are a lot of inter-state postings in the ASI) the ladies had finished their lunch. It upset me that I didnt have the courage to shoo them away from defiling that precious relic of Indian art.

That is not a pensive mood, just looking down to protect my eyes from the glare of the midday sun.

There are lions sculpted in stone all around the temple, some cemented to the base but most of them just balancing beautifully. There is a park around the temple now, which probably explains the rush.

We also visited the Five Rathas, Krishna's butter ball (a huge boulder balancing on a rocky surface; it has been there for centuries together) and Thirumurthi cave (in picture) close by. There are more historical sites but one needs more than a day and more energy to view them at leisure.

The new me

It is early morning, so my face is a bit puffy...

Things that happen here

A man strangulates his wife and 4 children in Palakkad, Kerala in the hope of marrying his paramour. The oldest child, who is only 12, was sexually abused by him several times before her death. He has been caught and is behind bars. An incident that has greatly pained me in recent times.
A couple in Mumbai approaches the court for permission to abort their 5-month-old foetus because it could have heart problems when born. Their appeal is rejected but they get offers of medical help (such as a pacemaker every 5 yrs for the baby) or even adoption (from the Catholic church which is against abortion).
Two of a gang, beleived to be behind the Vadapalani serial murders, have been held. It brings an end to speculations that the killings were executed by a psychopath.

Gujju delights

For tasty Gujarati food, visit the Gujarathi mandal in Broadway that has vegetarian thalis for Rs. 45. Like we did yesterday, when a colleague gave us a party there. For a Westerner like her, it was a thrilling experience - these little joints that offer wholesome food at down-to-earth prices.

The restaurant has been there for ages. It is on a road opposite to the High Court and Law College.

But the area is quite seedy and may not be relished by the faint-hearted. The pavements are in a pitiable condition thanks to the slums and rikshaw-dwellers in the vicinity. Once upon a time, this must have been the city's best locales. No wonder the British called it Esplanade (since it led to the Marina Beach) and the Broadway. But the locality badly needs to be decongested (the shifting of the inter-state bus terminus to Koyambedu has helped to some extent) and replanned.

Gopika the bride

With Malayalam Superstar Mammooty...

With actress Kavya Madhavan, her peer.

With actor-couple Dileep and Manju Warrier.

Usha forwarded this to me... Maybe some of you have seen Gopika in Tamil films or at least heard about her. She first shot into the limelight with the movie "For the People" which has the song Lajjavathiye which was a runaway hit in Malayalam. I think the movie was remade/dubbed into Tamil...
She is a Catholic girl from Trichur whose real name is Girlie (just as Nayantara's name is Diana Kurian)! She is now headed to Ireland as she her groom is a doctor there. That is the routine for most actresses, especially in Mollywood. They are at the peak of their careers when they decide to get married; in fact the film world is a shortcut to land a good groom, preferably an NRI one. Take the case of Madhuri Dixit, Divya Unni, Ambika...

Laurel & Hardy

Prem, having a king's meal, at Hotel Ashoka near Pantheon Road (where Fountain Plaza is). He was here on business for a day and was to catch the evening train. The three of us caught up for lunch, well past lunch time.

Venky and me had already had our lunch, so we settled for sambar vada and filter coffee. Venky is quite like his old college self and takes care not to put on weight. So in the end, Prem's lunch dessert of a vanilla ice cream remained untouched. We are all on various forms of diet restrictions - old-age ailments that now land in middle age.

I almost mistook Venky for a local political dada when I saw him in his white Scorpio. He is doing a PhD in Law from SRM university, for which he is legal adviser. His topic is "The evolution of the English language in legal judgments".

In contrast, Prem says he is only a small-time lawyer, not flashy and successful as Venky is.

p.s. They look more like two Hardys now, since Prem has put on weight.

Palmleaf paintings

from Orissa...

Radha and Krishna, the eternal lovebirds from India.

I have a fascination for elephants and processions involving elephants :)

This looks like a tribal village.

Northie splendour

A reception of a Jain wedding at Hotel Accord Metropolitan.
I feasted (apart from the vegetarian food) my eyes on the very
colourful and splendid designer saris that the women wear. In
comparison, my modest designer sari looked like the stuff N. Indian
women wore at home (that comment came from hubby dear).
In all, it was like watching a Hindi movie.

Mount Road naps

The heart of the city gets to breathe and nap when the red lights are on at traffic junctions.
Remember our occasional trips from Tambaram to Mount Road? It was like going to another country - the long ride, Landmark, Best Wishes, BC and USIS libraries.
:)

And a bus stop near LIC building.

Christian dancers

This is margam kali, the traditional dance of Kerala's Syrian Christian women in a their very traditional attire of chatta (v-necked long blouse) and mundu (with a fancy fan-shaped tail at the back) and neriyathu (daavani in tamil parlance). Dont miss the kunukku on the ears and the golusu on the ankles.

But these are young performers, not grown-up women, the kind who did the dance in olden days. Youngsters brought from Bangalore for a huge fee for two performances. Sponsored by a friend of ours.

This was at our church on Saturday last, when the church held a perunnal and convention. I missed it since I was working late that evening, while V went with his father. The rain spoiled the last half, especially a splendid Kerala feast at the end for all who attended.

But on Sunday, we all took part in the closing ceremony when we had a procession round the church with muttukuda (ornamental umbrellas you might have seen at Kerala festivals), chendamelam (drums) and breakfast of appam and chicken curry courtesy the church. My son got a tiny umbrella to hold - many people hold the umbrellas as a votive (nercha).

Unfortunately I dont have pics of the latter - one forgets to carry the camera on crucial occasions (like today when my daughter started her new school at WCC).

p.s. I will think of uploading a video of the dance IF I find time at home.

Rise and shine

Working in a large office with a sizable women workforce has its advantages. One being that at least one woman will give a positive feedback and make your day when you wear a new dress. While people closer to you are bold enough to give negative feedback, unalloyed compliments flow from an occasional stranger or passing acquaintance.

Feeling slightly embarrassed in a shiny kameez, which a friend of a colleague said reminded her of Hritik Roshan's outfits in Jodhaa Akbar, I proceeded to the canteen for a cup of coffee. An old face in the workplace, from another department, looked at my outfit curiously and smiled. That made me want to go under the table with the tea tumbler. A while later, she came over to me and said: "Your dress looks great!"

Phew! That was comforting to say the least. "Well, actually I was feeling a bit embarrassed wearing this to work." I didnt tell her that my hubby had forbade me from wearing it to church or anywhere I went with him.

"Did you go for a wedding?" she asked sympathetically. That is the only occasion journalist staff get bold enough to wear glitzy outfits or kanchipuram saris to work.

I let her think so. Anyway, she made my day. Or at least made it a bit better.

JACk of all scribes

Here's an article written by Glady, the TOI sports reporter on the IPL sporting extravaganza.

http://ipl.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Get_ready_for_the_punchline/articleshow/2969279.cms

It might be a bit stale now. I hope I can net his latest bylines soon.

***

Chennai is getting a new Assembly complex by 2010 in the Omandurar Govt Estate, opposite The Hindu office in Mount Road. It is going to dward the LIC building in height and become the tallest building in Chennai. I hope it will look good and not be like the garish and huge, new Assembly building in Kerala.

Walking in the moonlight

I take my daughter for a walk early in the night, usually after I reach home from work. Say, between 6.30 p.m. and 8 p.m. It also helps me to prove to my maid - who is surprised and impressed that unlike Kerala, Madras after dark is a safe place for women - that I can do it without fear of being eve-teased or assaulted on the streets.

Yesterday I decided to take my daughter along as I went to meet my tailor in the quiet and secluded colony near my house . There are not many people on the streets there save for lovebirds looking for a deserted corner to chat, an occasional jogger or a couple of chauffeurs or watchmen in front of some of the bungalows on that dim-lit street.

I took Mira in my arms and hastened my gait as I saw an unkempt man coming behind. I wasnt sure if he had stopped to talk to the drivers and I hurried to keep pace with a jogger in front, who anyway was too fast for me. As I passed a house that was under construction, a man on a moped came and stopped near a truckload of bricks kept on the wayside.

"Would you be able to tell me this address?" he asked.

"Which address?" I asked thinking that he would read out some address.

"Will you look at it on my mobile?" he requested, switching it on.

I took in one glance that he was wearing a lungi and a t-shirt. There was something wrong about a man on a moped in a lungi. Of course, a mobile is as common as a watch or a pair of slippers. People might not have the latter two, but they will surely have the former. A mobile is indispensable even for the poorest of Indians.

"Huh?"

"You wouldnt know this address?" he asked realising that I was suspicious.

"No, I wouldnt," I said and hurried away to my destination.

I wasnt particularly worried or scared when I walked back home. But as I narrated it to my husband late in the night about meeting a guy who could've been a chain-snatcher, a fear came over me. It worsened when I woke up some time in the night. If he were more well-dressed or had passed on a piece of paper to look at, I might have been more gullible. And in the process he might have relieved me of a chain worth Rs.30,000. I should call myself lucky. Rather that God had protected me.

I am glad that I read the TOI article about chain-snatchers the other day. With all the hullaballoo that life with preschoolers is, it is not everyday that I get to read relevant news in the dailies.

Vacation Kerala

I'm back!

Did I tell you all that I got back to Chennai and the Internet after along break in Kerala?
p.s. And as fat as this person...

Chennai shots

Swans at a hotel on the East Coast Road. A drive down the ECR is not to be missed - there is the sea on one side and rural landscape on the other. Next time you NRIs come down take a trip to Pondy.

Summer is here. The temperatures have been in the 39 to 41 degree Celsius so far. It is expected to peak to 46 deg C soon. Sugar cane juice and tender coconut water are ways to cool your system. Here is a nice stall in Anna Nagar Shanti Colony.

Me having a "quick meal" of sambar rice, curd rice, keera rice, chapati-kuruma and kheer. The variety in the Tamil Nadu cuisine amazes me. Topped it with a watermelon juice without sugar :0