This is why the movie DDLJ sucks

Please do not get me wrong. This is absolutely my opinion, and I would like to express it through the medium of a powerful weapon – Words.

Good things first. Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge is perhaps one of the most epic movies of Bollywood. The charming chemistry and the imposing presence of Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol in the film is hard to miss, and their pairing is considered to be one of the best in this film industry. The upscale locations from Switzerland to Punjab etc. etc. etc. add more beauty along with the powerful performances of most of the characters. BUT, there are certain aspects in the movie which give wrong message, and I absolutely disregard them.

The ugly truth is that Bollywood has a tremendous impact on people. Whatever the audience watch in the reel life, they envisage in their real life or expect something similar to happen. Hence, to a certain extent, this film fraternity should hold some social responsibility as well towards the public. Actually, this is true in Hollywood as well. We all are aware of that gruesome massacre where a masked man dressed as joker, inspired from the Dark Knight’s character, killed 12 people at a movie theatre in Colorado. Hence, you can imagine the immense impact of movies on people.
Let’s discuss the movie now.

Firstly: Remember the epic scene where Shah Rukh Khan meets Kajol for the first time and lends her a hand so that she can board the train? When both of them are stuck in the train’s compartment, the way Shah Rukh Khan hits on Kajol is extremely creepy. In their first meeting, he is trying to come so close to her – physical contact – that she gets agitated. The scene looks so annoying, and if someone does that in real life, we all know what is going to happen. It does not end there. In the song “Ruk ja oh dil deewane”, the creepiness continues where he tries to touch her, and, forcefully, dance with her.

Secondly: So let’s be practical. Kajol grows up by strongly following Indian culture and values where she respects her dad tremendously. She will wear Indian clothes in front of him and will listen to Bollywood oldies; I think we all agree to this. But, the moment Shah Rukh Khan comes to Punjab, she is ready to elope with him irrespective of the fact that it would put her dad into the most humiliating situation.
Boys and girls: Things like running away from home just look good in movies as they never show the “happily ever after” part of life.

Thirdly: Most of the times, our movies show that arrange marriages are not preferred. And in this movie as well, you do not feel good when you see the actual groom a.k.a. Kuljeet Singh. He is presented as a crude, offensive, and a hard hearted person who loves to hunt.

Fourthly: Kajol keeps “Karva Chauth” for Shah Rukh Khan with whom she is not even betrothed legally. The truth is that this custom is meant for married women ONLY, and there is a strong logic behind it. The worst part – lot of spinsters started keeping this fast for their anonymous future husbands so that they get a good partner. On discussing this aspect with one of the girls who also kept this fast for her future better half, she mentioned that Kajol as well keeps it in DDLJ. What????

I have met certain people in my life who believe in the notion that reel life is a part of real life. They further believe that if a guy likes some girl and in case she does not agree initially, she will fall for him eventually as always shown in the movies. Believe me or not, it is scary when you see people connecting these movies with their lives.

In short, the above mentioned scenes give wrong message to children especially teenagers that creepiness is absolutely acceptable, and these young minds fall for these traps. Even though, there was nothing obscene or profane in these scenes, the messages are worrisome.

Some people might think that showing only good things in the movies restrict the creativity. Well, not at all. We all understand that every movie gets a rating such as A for sexually offensive and so on which crystal clear means that only 18 and above are eligible to watch that movie. There is no such restriction to the creativity, and the movie makers are free to make any kind of movie; it’s just that the apt rating govern the audience. Look at The Dirty Picture, absolutely stunning with amazing performances, and it is also one of my favourites. Meant for 18 and above, and I concur.

However, is there any such rating for the creepiness shown in the movies? Unfortunately, NO.

FACES – The launch of five international looks

Recently, I came across a video where a fashion blogger raised certain questions about the judgmental aspect of the society when it comes to make-up. Suffering from acne, her dilemma was very evident from her tone, and her valid questions were hard to ignore. She asked: “For obvious reasons, I apply make-up to hide my disease, and people accept me like this; then why, at the same time, they accuse me for displaying something which I am not? And, if I choose not to apply make-up, why the society consider me ugly?” This video also reminds me of a conversation which I had with one of my friends lately where she said: “I feel insecure without make-up, and I apply it to get accepted in the crowd.” I do not use cosmetics, and, unfortunately, I was also a part of the society group whatsoever who dashed into conclusions, but these questions blew my mind, and the epiphany hit my obstructed thoughts where I asked myself: “Why are we so hypocrite?

There are many reasons regarding why people use make-up:

1. They like spending time with themselves which leads to overall satisfaction
2. Make-up further enhances the beauty
3. They feel more confident

Applying make-up is a personal choice, and we have no right to judge anyone. Fortunately, I understood this message during an event organized by FACES cosmetics brand where they introduced their new beauty kits. In all honesty, I felt like a misfit, initially, with no make-up, but the eventful and fun-packed evening showed me various other perspectives of using cosmetics which belie with the narrow approach of judging people. In other words, it was a great event, and it changed my overall orientation towards the cosmetics.

The Event:
FACES cosmetics in collaboration with Ms. Bipasha Basu who is the creative director of The Trunk Label launched a new product known as ‘IT KIT’, which offers a perfect blend of fashion and beauty. This signature IT KIT is available in five eclectic mix of styles where each one of them is meant for a different make-over. With the appealing tagline of “60 second style makeover”, these different styles contain stunning beauty goodies and a statement jewelry by The Trunk Label. These travel friendly IT KITS come in a glamorous gold pouch and can get you ready for any occasion effortlessly.

Floral Darling It Kit:
It contains the Rosa Bracelet and Ring Set from TheTrunkLabel.com while gorgeously complementing these make up essentials from Faces – Ultime Pro Long wear Pretty Me lipstick, Glam On Coral Pink blush, Metal brown eye pencil and Hi Shine True Peach nail enamel.

Scarlet Siren It Kit
It contains the Perlanecklace from TheTrunkLabel.com crafted from decadent pearls and stunningly completes the Scarlet Siren look with these make up essentials from Faces -Ultime Pro Long wear Red Addict Lipstick, Ultime Pro Lip Crème Red Mary, Solid Black eye pencil and the Tinted Red nail enamel.

Azure Mermaid It Kit
Cerulean shades swiped across dreamy eyes translate the calm ocean’s sentiment, while nude pouts and rosy cheeks spell au natural. The Neelam necklace from TheTrunkLabel.com seamlessly completes your Azure Mermaid look along with these make up essentials from Faces – Ultime Pro Nude Mojito Lip Crème, Glam On Perfect Noir black eyeliner, I shine Quartet Blue eye shadow and the Glam On Cocktail Peach blush.

Pop Princess It Kit
The Pop Princess It Kit contains the Madonna Necklace from TheTrunkLabel.com complemented by 5 yummy-as-candy shades for your nails from Faces – Hi Shine Enchanted nail enamel, Fire Stick, Hi Shine envy, Ibiza, Hi shine Lemon Fizz and Invisible Mermaid nail enamel along with a nail enamel remover.

Glam Goddess It Kit
This Glam Goddess It Kit consists of the Goldie Necklace from TheTrunkLabel.com, and the glittering make up essentials from Faces – Glam On Captivate Color Perfect eye shadow palette, Glam On Color Perfect Bare Again lipstick, Hi Shine Bombay Lights nail enamel and Glam On Gold Dust blush. This was my favorite among all.

My Verdict:
Their distinctive and innovative idea about these kits is worth appreciating. As the catchy tagline of “60 second style makeover” suggests, the products are simple to use, and they make you glamorous within minutes. In other words, you do not have to worry about the mix and match of the colors of various cosmetic products because everything you need for your make-over is in one single gold pouch. For example: the glam goddess IT KIT, my personal favorite, contains a necklace, a nail color, an eye shadow, a brush, and a lip-color. All these products go very well with each other, and their complementary relationship allows you a wonderful make-over without the need of any other product. If this concept becomes successful, gone will be the days where women struggle to match the colors of their various cosmetic products.

The ambient event was very well organized, and the products were demonstrated beautifully. Along with the delicious snacks and mocktails, the hosts were extremely humble in interacting with the bloggers. A fun activity where the bloggers had to do their make-over by selecting any brand new IT KIT was awkward for a no make-up user like me, but it was fun. Without any option to roll out, I had to participate, and finally, I applied the make-up with a rudimentary attempt. Thanks to my partner for choosing the most subtle “Glam goddess” kit which was perfect for people like me. I loved the subtle stroke of make-over, and it gave an appealing touch to my personality. I absolutely marveled at the imperceptibility of the Glam Goddess IT KIT and decided to use it going forward. Fortunately, the invited bloggers were handed over the kits which they used during the fun activity.

I was glad to be a part of this event where I learnt few things and went home with a very different perspective relating to cosmetics.

Book review – Simple Plane Love by Priyanka Luthra

Life is great when you have two things: the love of your life and your dream job. We all envisage about the two aforementioned aspects, and the absence of either of them will leave you unhappy – may be not right now but definitely at a later stage of life. It is great to have your love standing next to you throughout your life; however, without an objective to grow, to succeed, and to achieve something, you might feel in limbo at some point of time. What if you have to choose between the two? What if you need to figure out a way to have both – love and a dream career – in your life?

The book “Simple Plane Love” revolves around the aforementioned questions about love and career. It is a blend of facts and fiction by Captain Priyanka Luthra who is a trained commercial pilot. As I am a part of Team Shivangi Reviews, I was invited to cover the launch of this book which happened a couple of weeks ago at “Title Waves book store” in Bandra. It was a proud moment for the perky and jubilant Priyanka to unleash her first book, and the emotions were absolutely evident. Most of her family members including her mother and husband were a part of the event, and the aura of their tremendous support was spectacular. It was a “Dream come true” moment for her, and the benign support of her family, which is rare these days, set this event apart and made an indelible impression. While giving the speech, she expressed enormous gratitude to her mother and gave her special regards. During my brief colloquy with Priyanka about the book launch event, I asked her the question: “what will you choose – love or a dream career?” Diplomatically, she mentioned “As flying a plane involves balancing lot of things, in a similar manner, you need a balance in managing love and a dream career as both are crucial for life.”

This book is a story about dreams, friendship, and love. It is a journey of Captain Meera Khanna – the protagonist – who is extremely passionate about her career and perhaps has no time for love until she finds THE ONE. Her endearing friend Diana – who does not believe in love – is her best buddy and both share a relationship of soul sisters. Meera stays in Philippines whereas Diana stays in Mumbai, and both of them are engrossed in their careers until an incident forces them to meet with each other. During that time something extraordinary happens, and their lives change forever. Whether the girls make the right choice between their love and careers is something I would like the readers to find out. Of course, the book has a happy ending like a fairy tale, and it does leave you with a smile.

As it is a blend of facts and fiction, at some instances, the book does sound too good to be true; however, there are some moments which I could relate with my life. Some beautiful scenarios does leave the readers in awe. The book is a kind of short story or a happy fairy tale more precisely without any dragons, cruel step moms or any severe tragic incidents. Like any other fairy tale, it does bind you to some extent where you wonder whether the princess will get her prince charming. A very simple written book and avid readers can finish it up in a day or two max.

According to me, it is a happy short story, and if you have lot of time to kill, go ahead and read this one.

A collaboration of coffee and visual art

In all honesty, the heading of an invitation reading “an interactive coffee and art performance” left me in a state of flux, and the ambiguity about this abstract topic kept on bothering me until I reached the venue. However, the first ten minutes of the event gave me an insight about the entire concept and that was just the beginning of my excitement.

As I am a part of Team Shivangi Reviews, I was invited to cover this event. It was organised by Tourism Victoria, and it featured a collaboration of aromatic coffee and creative art. Tourism Victoria is a Victorian government lead tourism agency which works to develop the local and global market potential for Victoria’s tourism industry. The occasion was all about the beautiful and interactive coffee and art performance  put together by the multiple world latte art champion St. Ali Barista – Ben Morrow and renowned visual artist Harun Robert where both of them demonstrated their talent and creativity in blending the latte with the visual art. Ben Morrow is a latte art expert, and his finesse has allowed him to be at the forefront for half a decade. On the other hand, Harun Robert a.k.a. Rob is a visual artist from India. At Melbourne, coffee is a passion and an important part of their culture. Melbourne is home to a plethora of cafes, and this culture is growing exponentially. Also, according to the latest survey, Melbourne is the world’s most livable city. In short, it was the occasion to bring a glimpse of Melbourne into India by blending the art of coffee and art.

At this time, you all must be thinking: “What exactly is the meaning of collaboration of coffee and visual art?” The winsome artists – Ben Morrow and Harun Robert – demonstrated their remarkable calibre in preparing the coffee and designing the spectacular paintings respectively, and they combined both the arts by making Latte a part of the masterpieces. In other words, Ben Morrow enthralled the audience by creating different designs on top of the lattes and then Harun Robert took the control to present those lattes on his beautiful coffee canvas as shown in the below images. The marvelous display of blending the coffee with the visual art was the show stopper. The aesthetic masterpieces designed by Rob were amazing, and he also used coffee as a color while creating them. The below image shows Ben Morrow creating a wonderful design on a latte.

Ben Morrow and Harun Robert

This beautiful canvas depicts the culture of Melbourne. Several latte designs on this visual art show cycling, love of cricket, a Yacht, and a parachute where each one of them is symbolic for the city. These things represent or define the spirit of Melbourne, and this was one of the focus points of this event. The images below exhibit the great combination of Latte and the visual art, and every image reflects the charm of Melbourne in it.

The below image reflects the importance of Cricket where Ben Morrow merged his latte designs of wickets and a cricket ball with the canvas.

This image shows the culture of sailing and water balloons in Melbourne.

Melbourne presented on a beautiful canvas where the latte depicts a half moon.

The session was followed by another aspect where Ben morrow gave the audience a chance to experience the Melbourne’s finest coffees. The excitement to experience the aroma of wonderful coffee was very evident. The scent of coffee was omnipresent, and being a fervent fan of it, I enjoyed every aspect of the demonstration.

Overall, it was a very unique event which presented an abstract art. I enjoyed it.

Steve Jobs – The Good Bad and Ugly

The biography of Steve Jobs left me in a state of flux where I forcefully pondered about his two traits: a**hole and visionary. Is it possible to despise and admire the same person? Can a person be both – a ruthless jerk and a genius? May be not, but I believe that Steve Jobs made an exception, and, indeed, he had both the aforementioned traits where people hated him – mostly – and respected him at the same time.

I had an amazing journey with the book where I came to know many traits of Steve Jobs, and also, I learnt so much about running a company. The terms Apple and Steve Jobs are glued with each other. In other words, they are inseparable, and the use of either of them will force you to think about both of these terms. Apple was Steve Jobs’s dream, vision, life and a way to change the world. And yes, he did change the world in terms of technology and gadgets. Apple products are far more than a brand for people. The aesthetic look and feel of the devices make their owners extremely proud for owning something extraordinary which marvels in all the aspects of beauty and design. All my Apple gadgets – iPod, iPhone, and iPad – have become my endearing eccentricities which, of course, is not a sane fact. Through the medium of this article, I would like to share some of his thoughts, good side and bad side.

Abandoned by his biological parents, Steve Jobs directly or indirectly was affected from this trauma. Albeit, he had great foster parents, the thought of forsaken did bother him for most of his life. He was a complex person who suffered from tempestuous mood swings. He believed a lot in innovation, and he knew that it was the key to success. He had a soft corner and an enormous respect for creative people. Perfectionism was not something he learnt from someone; I think he was born with it. He knew that even a tiniest detail makes a difference, and for something to be perfect, all the elements have to come together in an impeccable manner. He was an honest person – and by that I mean brutally honest – where he never refrained from using the most derogatory and obnoxious language in case he does not like something. This was his style, and when he was asked to deal with people in a respectful manner, he said that he does not want to be fake. He would like to stick to his personality rather than being someone who he is not. And this is how Apple products are. All the products reflect his personality where his aim was to make people feel that the products not only have great looks, but they are also great in terms of functionality – no sham. Some people say that give the customers what they want; however, Steve Jobs said that people do not know what they want until you show it to them. And this is what he did. He created gadgets that looked so magical and extraordinary in their appearance that everybody used to dream about their possession. He was a great impresario where his every presentation on the launch of his products is remarkable. He used to leave the audience in awe, and the crowd used to go berserk at his appearance and speech. His amazing aura was beyond measure. He had an emotional touch with his products, and one great thing which he used to mention was “When you are creating something, think that you are creating it for yourself rather than your customers.”

After reading the book, I realized that everything happened for a reason in his life. Apple was born on April 1, 1976, and Steve Jobs was one of the founders along with his best friend Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne. He was always difficult to deal with, and when his contentious behavior crossed a limit, he was asked to leave the company in 1985. He was devastated, and I believe that was the most difficult and excruciating phase of his life. However, he invented another company known as NeXT, and after sometime, he became the CEO of one of the greatest animation companies known as Pixar. The history was created again when he returned to Apple in 1997 to reclaim his throne, and Apple changed the entire gadget industry since then. They revolutionized the music industry by creating iPod and iTunes store. They introduced the concept of Apple stores where Steve Jobs spent great deal of effort in designing the strategy, but the historic moment came when Apple launched the most remarkable product known as iPhone. That moment completely changed the preferences and tastes of the people where everybody started looking forward to something which just has a screen and a button. Steve Jobs was absolutely correct in mentioning that people do not know what they want until you show it to them.

The Good Guy:
Steve Jobs was a genius and a great visionary. His uttermost passion to make great products was the biggest motivation factor for him. He never cared regarding what others perceive of him. He was so focused in creating great products that his harshness on people never bothered him about his reputation. He used to envisage unfeasible requirements which, at first instance, always looked impossible to the team, and if someone dared enough to say “it’s impossible”, he used to fire that person most of the times. However, he used to motivate his team to such a great extent that those imaginary requirements were achieved most of the times. He started his company at the age of 20, got it registered at the age of 22, and by the age of 25, he was worth $256 million. But his top priority was to build an enduring company where people were motivated to make great products; everything else was secondary. Of course, it was great to make profits because that’s what allowed him to make great products; however, the products, and not the profits, were the motivation for him. He was a perfectionist who believed in making perfect products in terms of their design and usability. And, in order to achieve this perfectionism, his mantra was to simplify things as much as possible. Steve Jobs gave lot of importance to simplicity, and he simplified every product to the tiniest detail. One of his quotes: “Simplicity is the ultimate perfection” is my favourite, and this is something I diligently follow where I keep things very simple in my professional and personal life.

Steve jobs strongly believed in the integration of hardware and software, and that is why, Apple has its own hardware which is very well integrated with the software. Unlike Microsoft where you can install the OS on any vendor’s machine, Steve Jobs never licensed its OS. He had the obsession for control; hence, he always preferred controlling the entire machine from top to bottom rather than licensing a part of it. He knew that Microsoft dominated the world of operating systems because of their open approach, and they were declared the winner in the personal computer realm, but Job’s concern was that if they follow the same approach, the system will be easy to hack which will destroy the simple user experience. In all honesty, I simply love this approach. That is why, it is more easy to hack Android because it is an open platform.

The Bad Guy:
Steve Jobs was never good at keeping good relations, and he did hurt a plethora of people in his life. He impregnated his girlfriend when he was 23, and he did not handle this situation well. He was not ready to accept the child as he did not want to take the responsibility. He took credit of lot of people, for instance, Steve Wozniak was the real brain behind Apple I as he was a technical genius; however, he felt that Jobs was very harsh on people and Woznaik never liked this fact. Lot of differences arose between two Steves, and after sometime, Wozniak moved on with other endeavors. Most importantly, Jobs never invented anything. He took the idea of Graphical User Interface (GUI) from Xerox PARC or you can say stole it; however, it is an irrefutable fact that the aforementioned company could have never achieved something which Steve Jobs did with the GUI. He once said, “Picasso has a saying – ‘good artists copy and great artists steal’ – and we have always been shameless about stealing great ideas.”
He was rude, discourteous, and disrespectful while criticizing people, and he never changed throughout his life. He was diagnosed with Pancreas cancer, and this made him suffer a lot. The excruciating pains made him difficult to survive, and even after coming back from his medical leave where he went through physical and mental trauma, his personality was still the same, and his harshness did not dissipate.

Steve Jobs had a roller-coaster life, and his intense personality of a creative entrepreneur revolutionized six industries: personal computers, animated movies, music, phones, tablet computing, and digital publishing. Of course, he left a great legacy and became one of the greatest business executives, the one most certain to be remembered from a century from now.

CORPCHEF – An Inter Corporate MasterChef Tournament in Mumbai

Being a culinary expert, my relationship with food has always been special, and the immense pleasure which I get from cooking is beyond measure. During my stint in an IT firm, I did not encounter with a single person who liked – or I would say loved – cooking, and I started believing that the art of cooking is losing its charm these days especially in case of the corporate professionals. However, the Inter Corporate MasterChef competition proved me wrong to some extent, and it was a great opportunity for me to witness the finesse of some culinary experts who basically are the modern day corporate professionals.

As I am a part of Team Shivangi Reviews, I was invited to cover this event. Known as CORPCHEF, this event was organised by Party Sharty company, and this programme intended to recognise and reward people – professionals from companies such as J.P. Morgan, Yes bank etc. – exhibiting great cooking skills. Amit Mehta who is the owner of the aforementioned company did a stellar job in managing the entire show. A total of 53 teams, where each team comprised of two people, participated in this corporate battle. The tournament consisted of three rounds, and the elimination of some teams at the end of every round gave three major finalists at the end. The lucrative prizes consisted of Club Mahindra holiday packages and a trophy for all the three major winners. It was a great way for the participants to take a break from their monotonous routine and indulge themselves into a different excursion altogether.

The sight of corporate people wearing aprons and toques, showing their creative aspect in cooking wonderful dishes at their respective counters, and running with their presentable plates all around the place was hard to miss. Some dishes looked absolutely spectacular in presentation. The energy and liveliness at the event were the irrefutable facts that demonstrated the fun and culinary merriment among the crowd. The programme had some fun activities for the spectators as well where the correct answers to some culinary questions such as: what is the difference between a Biryani and a Pulao, what are the different types of Pasta etc. gave them an opportunity to win some gift hampers. The huge open space was covered, and the absence of air conditioning system resulted in too hot and sultry environment; however, this fact did not seem to bother the cheerful crowd, and everyone at the event- especially the audience cheering their favourite teams – continued to actively participate with great merriment and gusto.

Sodexo which is a hospitality company was the major sponsor of this event. I had the impression that Sodexo only distributes meal coupons to the corporate people; however, after meeting some in-house chefs of Sodexo at the event, I realised that this huge company has a plethora of services to offer, surprisingly. With a presence across 80 countries, Sodexo is the world’s leading provider of Quality of Life services whether in corporate, healthcare, universities, schools, remote sites, sports & leisure environments. Its basic objective is to enhance the health and well-being of employees, students, patients, doctors, through a wide range of services from construction to reception, sterilization of medical equipment, cleaning and food services. For example: if the quality of food in a school does not match the normal standards, Sodexo sends its team of chefs where they give required training to the school staff in order to maintain the quality of food. There are many more examples about how Sodexo plays an important role in providing quality of life services, and I was very glad to know all these details about this company in the event.

Raisa DSouza and Naveen Khadilkar who are the in-house chefs at Sodexo were the judges of the corporate MasterChef competition. Along with judging the competition, Raisa DSouza with her amazing culinary skills gave a live demo of the dish Chicken Mousse tartlet with spicy fig jam. Everybody enjoyed her 30 minutes session, and I took some great tips from it. Raisa Dsouza has been associated with Sodexo from the last three years, and she mentors lot of people in her current role. She uses her culinary knowledge to develop the company’s profile, and her main focus is to position Sodexo on the food segment. It was an immense pleasure to connect with her, and she did enlighten me about all the work – other then meal coupons – taken care by Sodexo.

I had a wonderful time in attending the event where I also got the opportunity to connect with some great people.

 

Dutch food festival in Mumbai

Dutch food festival – The moment I heard about this festival, an epiphany hit me which made me realise that I have not experienced Dutch cuisine till now. Being a food reviewer, where my profession requires me to be well conversant with the different cuisines of food, the aforementioned fact of my unawareness of Dutch cuisine did vex me; however, at the same time, I was thrilled about this opportunity, and I started looking forward to try something very different. In other words, it was the time for me to learn – and write – about a new excursion which I never explored earlier.

As I am a part of Team Shivangi Reviews, I was invited to cover this event. Known as Holland meets Mumbai, this event was launched on June 1 at Foodhall – a  premium lifestyle food superstore – which is located inside the Palladium Mall at Lower Parel, and the objective of this event is to bring its patrons the culinary flavours of Dutch cuisine. This cuisine is traditionally rustic with bread, cheese like Gouda, meat and vegetables such as potatoes and asparagus, and berries which play an important part of the food. The country’s cuisine is shaped by the practice of fishing and farming, including cultivation of the soil for raising crops and the raising of domesticated animals, and the history of the Netherlands.
The Dutch cuisine has gained popularity amongst food connoisseurs across the globe owing to its simple and straightforward flavours. This food festival will take you to the Orange land with some of its most enjoyable savouries such as Stroop Waffle, a waffle made from thin layers of baked dough with a caramel-like syrup filling and world famous cheeses such as Edam and Gouda. This event will continue till June 6.

The food festival was quite an interesting affair where the famous Dutch delicacies –  such as different types of cheese, pancakes, Stamppot, Dutch famous pea soup, waffle cones, apple pie etc. – looked delectable. All the aforementioned food items were for sale ; however, all of them had some trial items – mini or you can say free versions – so that people can taste them before buying. In the juices category, there were four types: grapefruits and mango mix juice, passion fruit ice tea, cucumber aloe vera juice, and jalapeño lemonade where the last one was the most interesting in taste with the pungent flavour of jalapeños. Beautiful pancakes with blueberry compote were tasty; however, while doing the pulse check of the event, a lady mentioned to me that she had much better pancakes in Europe. Of course, and I have no doubt to this fact because every country has different quality and taste in terms of ingredients.

My favorite part of the show  was the demonstration of different categories of Dutch cheese. This section was stunning, and the beautiful sight of different types of cheese – such as Gouda, Edam, smoke cheese with chilly, and Gauda with green pesto – was divine and heavenly. Of course, I tasted all of them, and every type of cheese was delicious.

The entire event was good; however, I felt that some things were not properly organised. The team – or whoever was responsible – did not replenish the trial versions of Dutch delicacies constantly, and as a result, people had to wait to try them. I waited too long to try two very special Dutch delicacies; however, I gave up at the end because the trial items did not come at all. I wish they could have organised this in a better way.

I was fortunate enough to meet the Consulate of the General Kingdom of the Netherlands, and he was extremely kind to answer some of my questions regarding this food festival. He mentioned that food is a great way to bring people together, and he understands that Indians love food and good flavours. He further mentioned that Indians love to experiment, and he and his team would like to bring something new to them; hence, they launched this food festival. I also inquired about Dutch cuisine, and he very graciously stated that Dutch is a very cold country; hence, the food is heavy and sweet. A majority of the population is non-vegetarian, but Dutch has great deal of vegetarian food as well. Lastly, he mentioned that through this initiative, their intention is to bring the two nations together.

At the end, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the organizers of the event as it gave me – and to lot of other people – a huge opportunity to experience and understand the Dutch cuisine. It is a great platform for the food reviewers and bloggers to expand their horizon in terms of food and its knowledge.

DIVA’NI store’s first anniversary celebration in Mumbai

No matter in which era we are, most of us have grown up watching Yashraj movies where Yash Chopra showcased his finesse in converting beautiful actresses into stunning divas. He was definitely an exception in this process where he transformed many heroines into fabulous and gorgeous characters. The costumes and dress designs in YashRaj movies – where people were said to be so enamoured with the leading ladies – have always inspired many cinema lovers and have brought new trends in the movie industry. My recent visit to a DIVA’NI store in Mumbai, where we were invited to cover the launch, gave me a little flashback of all my childhood memories from Yash Chopra movies where I got a chance: to see the store’s new collection known as The Midsummer Dream, to meet some celebrities, and to see a glimpse of the photographs of ravishing leading ladies of YashRaj films. I was invited to this event as a part of Team Shivangi Reviews and India Fashion Club.

Before I begin with my experience at the DIVA’NI store, I would like to introduce this brand to all my readers.

DIVA’NI is India’s first cinema-inspired brand brought to you by YashRaj Films and KBSH Private Limited where the latter is a textiles and apparels industry. DiVA’NI draws its inspiration from the legendary Yash Chopra, who put as much effort into draping his heroines, as he did in painting beautiful visual imageries on reel, his memorable cinematic artistry and costumes have catapulted many heroines to diva and enamored a generation of cinema lovers. In the same essence DIVA’NI brings out the diva in every woman, giving her the freedom to wear her mind, expressing her innermost feelings. DIVA’NI is freedom, inspired by fashion, film and femininity.

On May 29, 2015, DIVA’NI completed its one year in the city of Mumbai, and on this occasion, the brand unveiled its prêt-a-porter collection: The Midsummer Dream – a collection that wraps vibrant flora’s and bold colors in romantic breezy silhouettes. The minimalist embroidery takes the front seat, as colors play in this Diva’ni’s celebratory collection. A complete silhouette makeover from the house of Diva’ni, this aims to add a youthful charm to everyone’s wardrobe. This beautiful store with a monochromatic white décor was a reflection of sophistication and magnificence. It looked like a gorgeous film set with impeccable lighting and brightness. The first floor demonstrated the beautiful new collection, and the same floor also had a separate wedding couture section where the sight of fabulous bridal dresses was breathtaking. The section reminded me of the grandeur weddings at Yash Chopra’s movies. The various photographs of him with the gentry of Bollywood: Amitabh Bachan, Rishi Kapoor, Dilip Kumar etc. were hard to miss, and I spent a considerable amount of time by looking at all these legends under one roof. However, I was amazed to see a section known as “Wall of Fame” – a wall – which showed the photographs of the leading ladies – along with a picture of Shah Rukh Khan – of the YashRaj films demonstrating DIVA’NI’s haute couture. On this occasion, the entrance of the store was filled with photographers from the media. The event was not a big fashion fiesta; however, it was a delightful small affair which also saw the presence of some celebrities, who came to support the brand. The non-stop flash lights were always an indication of the arrival of some celebrity, and the lights flashed limitlessly when Pamela Chopra who is the wife of Yash Chopra arrived. She looked elegant and graceful in a green salwaar kameej, and her humbleness impressed me a lot. Bhumi Pednekar and Rhea Chakraborty were also a part of the store’s one year celebrations, and they did review the collection as well.

The Midsummer Dream collection at the store was very appealing. It consisted of Indian, western, and Indo-Western dresses. A part of the collection had the bohemian style with metal ornaments. Some dresses were hand painted, some had tea dip colors, and some were a voluminous melange of floral patterns. The avant-garde collection was beautiful, and I loved the vibrancy in the colors. They were absolutely stellar, and I liked all of them. It was hard for me to take my eyes off the beautiful dresses.

The colors were perfect and soothing for this sultry and hot weather. Mostly, every color had a separate section which was a nice way to present different styles and shades in the same color. The combination of great designs and wonderful colors made the entire collection absolutely stunning. My personal favorite was the Turquoise collection in which some dresses had the lovely Bohemian style. The bridal collection in and of itself was spectacular. The beautiful, stylish, and super heavy bridal dresses were prominent in the entire store where great designs and patterns were hard to miss.

Overall, I had a nice time, and it was great to be a part of DIVA’NI’s one year celebrations. I wish the team all the best for this endeavor.

Making fitness a HABIT

I am no fitness expert; hence, please do not think this post as any kind of fitness advice. My focus in the next few paragraphs will be on the importance of having an exercise routine in our lives, and it completely depends on you regarding what kind of exercise you would like to perform. In other words, I am going to share some tips and tricks which I follow in my life to be fit.

Everybody understands that fitness is very important. In other words, everyone wants to be fit and healthy. However, most of the times people complain that they cannot wake up early, they do not get time to do exercise, they get bored after sometime etc. etc. When people know and understand that fitness is very important then why is that the last priority? Everybody loves to eat but when it comes to exercise, why most of the people are hesitant. Valid questions. Right? Through the medium of my post, I would like to share few things with my readers regarding how we can make fitness a habit in our lives, and how I manage a fitness regime in my life.

What is a HABIT?

I have taken this concept of habit from one of my favorite books known as “The Power of Habit”. This was an eye opener for me, and I recommend this book to everyone.

If you really want to do something on a continuous basis then you have to make it a HABIT. What is a habit? In very simple terms, a habit is something in which your brain behaves in an automatic manner. While performing a habit, our brain does not think much because the entire process has been automated through n number of occurrences.

For example: when you wake up in the morning, you know that you have to brush your teeth, and you perform that step automatically. In this case, your brain does not think much because you perform this step everyday, and your brain has automated it. I still remember that some times my sister used to start brushing her teeth in the evening after the afternoon nap because her brain has created a habit where you wake up and brush your teeth. This is a perfect example of a Habit.

Interestingly, there is something known as a HABIT LOOP. If you want to create a habit in your life then you need to create this habit loop which is as follows:

1. Cue: A Cue is a stimulus and a reminder to do something; hence, it is very important for you to find something which will trigger your habit. In the above example, the habit of brushing your teeth triggers whenever you wake up in the morning; hence, this is a cue.
   Another example: If you would like to trigger your habit of running every morning then you can do any of the following:
   Keep your alarm clock really far from your bed so that you have to walk in order to switch it off. Most of the times when you are out of your bed, the chances are that you will not sleep again and will go for the exercise.
   You can also keep your shoes next to your alarm clock so that once you walk to switch it off, you know that you have to do the exercise.
2. Routine:  Once you have triggered your habit, you need to identify that what are you going to do in this process. For example: You can go for running, can do Yoga, can go for a walk etc. These are known as routines. In the example of brushing teeth, your routine is applying the toothpaste on your toothbrush and then you brush your teeth.
3. Reward: Finally, you need to tell your brain that what will be the reward from your habit. This is very important as this step acts as one of the biggest motivation factors. For example: you can make a deal with yourself that if you exercise regularly then you can allow yourself to indulge in a Pizza or a burger where you can enjoy your meal without any guilt. Also, you can imagine yourself to be very fit in the near future which will definitely make you feel very happy.
   In the example of brushing teeth, the reward is the feeling of the freshness, and the routine will also protect you from any cavity.

This is how we create habits with the help of habit loop.

Making fitness a HABIT

In a similar manner, if you want to include fitness regime in your life, you have to make it a habit by creating a habit loop. You can pick any fitness regime like walking, running, yoga, aerobics etc. So let’s see how we can create a habit loop for a fitness habit.

The cue for your exercise will be keeping your alarm clock quite far from your bed so that you need to walk in order to switch it off. As already mentioned, in the aforementioned case, most of the times people do not go back to sleep again, and they do go for exercise. Also, keep your exercise clothes and shoes next to the alarm clock so that your brain knows that you need to do exercise.
The routine of your exercise can be anything. You are free to choose from running, walking, yoga, aerobics, gym, swimming etc. It completely depends on you. A very important point to note that please choose a routine which you really like doing. For example: if running is fun for you then go for it. As you are just starting your fitness regime, it is very important for you to select something which is fun for you.
Again, you are free to think about the reward which you will get from your exercise. Do think of a reward as it will be the biggest motivating factor for you everyday. Whenever you wake up and wear your shoes, think about this reward which will help you in performing your fitness routine.

In order to make exercise a fun activity, you can take someone with you whenever you go for exercise in the morning. I agree that it is difficult to start this routine all alone, but when you have a company, things become easy. I go for running with my husband, and it is so much fun. I never go alone because I know that it will not be fun for me. We humans look for social interaction in everything and this is something which is in our DNA. We like to have a social connection with someone in whatever we do. I would like to share one example here which is one of my favorites. A person started a gym for both men and women. He also hired very good staff; however, in spite of being very efficient, the staff was not warm enough in making the connections with the people. When people come to Gym, they like interacting with the staff so that they can motivate their customers and give them proper fitness advise; however, this was not the case over here.  As a result, there were hardly any new customers, and the existing ones also started leaving. After some research, the owner understood the problem and gave a training to his staff where they understood the importance of making social interactions. And boom!!! The customers doubled.

The gist is that we definitely like a company in whatever we do; hence, try to take someone along with you whenever you go for exercise.

My routine

Yes, I have made running a habit because I simply love doing it. I am following an exercise routine from the last two years, and now I can very proudly say that it has become a part of me. I wake up at 5:00 AM in the morning five times a week and go for running on the beach. Your body needs some rest as well; hence, I take a break for two days in a week.

I do not want to give any advice on the nutrition aspect as I am not a nutrition expert. I would just like to mention few things which I follow at my end. I do not follow any diet because I do not believe in dieting; however, I always keep a check on my oil intake. I am a vegetarian, and I do eat foods which have fat. For example: I eat desi ghee, lot of Paneer, butter, paranthas five times a week etc. I do not like to refrain myself from food because I am a big foodie.

However, I do follow some healthy practices: I use Mustard oil instead of refined oil for cooking; I do not eat rice much as I do not like them, but I eat lot of wheat; I simply hate burgers; I do eat unhealthy Pizzas but once or twice a month; I dine out a lot, but I am always careful regarding what I order.

Conclusion

Most of the people start with the goal of reducing weight, and that is their primary reason for exercise. Please do not do that. It is more important to be fit, and you need to build up your strength first. If you focus on fitness and build up strength, your weight will automatically come down. Also, please be patient as it takes time to be fit. Do not lose your morale in between in case you see your weigh machine showing the same weight again and again.

Choose any exercise routine which is fun for you because your goal should be to make your body active as far as the fitness is concerned.

So what are you waiting for…… Pick some exercise, make it a habit and start your exercise routine from tomorrow. There is never too late for anything 🙂

Woman – A beautiful creation and inspiration

A woman is god’s one of the most beautiful creations, and they make this world a much better place to live for. International women’s day is a celebration of respect, appreciation, and love towards women. To be honest, women don’t need a special day to celebrate their greatness and versatility; however, there is a strong reason behind the celebrations of international women’s day. I understand that we don’t say it every day, but we do value and respect every woman for her contributions in all the aspects of her life.

Over the past three decades, there is a significant improvement in the ratio of men and women in the workforce. Women have started working on their dreams and career, and they have expanded their horizons. They have understood that their role is not only limited to care, compassion, love, upbringing etc., but they also have huge caliber to demonstrate their skills in other domains. It is so amazing to see a woman playing different roles and characters in her life. I would like to mention few examples where the role of women has made me feel extremely proud.

Near my locality, there is a big sugarcane juice shop which is entirely controlled and managed by women and all of them work diligently throughout the day. They manage everything in such a great manner that all the orders are on time, customers are happy with the service, and the place is absolutely clean and hygienic. They share a great camaraderie and work in a collaborative manner; however, the most astonishing fact is that the owner is a man, and I was always under the impression that the shop is owned by one of these women. When I met with that person, he shared great thoughts about women, and he mentioned that he completely trust all these women over here and has given them the complete authority of the shop. 

The other example is women bus conductors in Hyderabad. In 2008, I left Delhi and came to Hyderabad for work, and I was shocked to see women bus conductors over here. I could never imagine a woman playing the role of bus conductor, and honestly, it was a great feeling. This was a perfect example of women working in horizons which society says are meant for men.

These days, many organizations are committed to force gender inclusivity where they try their best to have an equal ratio for both the genders. I work for Deloitte, and I am so proud to say that it is one of those organizations which constantly work through several leadership sessions and programs to make Inclusion a part of our DNA where women are also given equal opportunities as compared to men. However, we all still need to work a lot to improve the conditions for women. There are many places in our country where women are not allowed to do lot of things. They stay in a very restricted environment which hampers their thinking, growth, development, and life.

A woman’s success depends a lot on the support and assistance of her family. She cannot pursue her dreams and career unless she gets a support from her loved ones. Her growth and development depends a lot on the love, assistance, and support which she gets from her family and without their support, she can never grow and pursue her dreams. In simple words, a woman’s family plays a very important role in her advancement towards her career and dreams. One of my mentors told me once that the most important decision in a women’s career is choosing a right partner. I was astonished to hear this statement as it was absolutely true, and I never thought about it. The family needs to support women in pursuing her dreams and career; hence, I request everyone to support women wherever you can.

I would also like to wish women’s international day to all the men who have shown great respect and have always supported women. There are many great men who have helped women to the pinnacle of success; hence, I would like to acknowledge the support of those great men as well. I wish that these gestures become a part of our culture which will help every woman to grow and pursue her dreams.

Wish you all a very wonderful and happy women’s day.