Quarantine Eyes

If eyes could speak .. they would speak of the free expanse of the blue sky they see.
If eyes could speak
They would tell you of the depth of the blue oceans they crave in to be ..
They would tell you about the gaze that follows a bird in flight into the sunset wild.
Of a stray leaf 🍂 flying from the tree to kiss the grass beneath..
They would talk about freedom and captivity ..
They would talk about nature and pretty sights they wish to see.
The longing of a gaze in exchange of one handshake, one hug, of smiling lips which make the heart beat skip.
Of adventures to find, to leave miles behind.
They would tell you of humanity and love of community and family all above.
If eyes could speak they would say a prayer for you and me.
And still .. If they could tell, they would tell you of the grateful heart who is happy and sound. #quarantinediaries .

Bhakti 

Quarantine Sky

Quarantine Diaries 

Get Out of Your Comfort Zone - Face your Fears and Grow | Motivational

Dance like no one is watching 💃
Easier said than done especially when everyone is watching.
All I can think is what others are thinking about me, about the judgements - most of us go through this and I guess that’s the crux of it all. The biggest fear.

What is fear, fear is nothing but a  feeling of being afraid of us getting hurt in some way or the other. Every year I try to overcome at least one of my fear, get out of my comfort zone one step at a time.
(Check it out here)

I love dancing I always have at social gatherings, get togethers, parties, with family, friends but I always need a partner. Its funny but honestly I can't dance alone in front of a crowd or audience. I cannot face the stage alone.
As a child, I was shy, I wouldn't participate in any of the competitions which required me to be on stage alone. So I have been carrying that baggage of stage fright throughout my life, I never let go off that little girl who was happy in her comfort zone of familiarity. That's what most of us do, right?

I wouldn't be doing this if I wouldn't have taken that leap into the unknown out into the uncomfortable and unfamiliar.
The true fear here is not of the stage, it's of being judged, of failure, of messing it up.
Of all those eyes being on you and no one else, taking the onus of your own actions, no one to hide behind, no where to go, true scenario of fight or flight.
This year there was a family wedding and I had to take part in the celebrations, I wanted to wriggle out of this cause I was a nervous wreck not because of practise or anything but the sheer knowledge of facing my demons.
But I couldn't, I had promised, it was now or never.
The knowledge that I was doing this in front of my family and friends was comforting as well as It added more pressure - it was as if I had to prove a point, but there wasn't any point to be proved.
It was just in my head - my fear of being judged and yes eventually that made me freeze at the very beginning- oh yes I goofed up after all, right at the start !
That moment I remembered the Murphy's law - “whatever can go wrong will go wrong” and it so did. What did I have to lose now. I just tried to be calm and go with the flow and give my best shot, it wasn't easy though.
I went on and then I heard cheering from the audience that itself was so comforting and motivating because the audience doesn't want you to really fail in fact they want you to go on . And with a beating heart I went on.
I couldn't stop, I couldn't take a flight so I kept going. I kept looking st one person at a time cause believe me the sheer magnitude of the entire crowd is scary. So one at a time I went on with the audience as well as my steps and before I knew ( not really it seemed really long) the dance was over. I felt liberated and light and yet the feeling of what others thought and of being judged was at the back of my mind. It always is you know. I guess that is the root cause of most of our fears of us being trapped in our comfort zones, not taking that leap of faith.

So has my fear of stage gone? I don't know only time will tell. All I can say is that I took that first step, that leap and I will keep walking out of my comfort zone even if it is baby steps. I will keep moving ahead into the unfamiliar, discovering new unknown possibilities and experiences. It's gratifying, satisfying and really makes me happy to go on and keep learning keep growing. We grow fearless by walking into our fear, by facing it by being strong, not just by thinking about it but acting on it. So don't let this fear of what could happen let nothing happen. Get out of your comfort zone and keep growing from strength to strength.

Let me know if you went through the same ever. I keep going through it, even now when I shared it, I am insecure about being judged but that didn’t stop me from putting it out there from taking my leap out of my comfort zone. I am Facing my fears and letting others know that you are not alone, are you?

Check my dance finally in the video below 👇🏼▶️ At 2:00

Watermelon Mojito | Summer vacation vibes in Quarantine

Join me for a summer vacation at home with cocktail recipes and some dance in tow. Vacation in Quarantine and some Mojito to forget where you really are ;p
After all Every summer has a story to tell.. and the main plot being happiness cos in the end Summer is a state of mind.
So enjoy those summer vibes wherever you are 🌞

xoxo

Bhakti 

Easy Egg Masala Recipe

Egg masala - a quick recipe for some yummy satiated hunger pangs. 

Top it up with some butter and comfort food at its max is ready to serve 🥘

Pair it with bread, chapati or Rice - a soul satisfying meal indeed. 

You can substitute the eggs for chicken or make it completely veg by substituting them for Paneer (cottage cheese). Do let me know in the comments below how you liked it.

Is it the Simple food, simpler times or the simplest love?

So I was craving this simple Curd Rice meal one of these days (quarantine life) and as I was making it, I was very happy from within. Curd Rice a most simple and humble preparation; an amalgamation of chilled Yoghurt/curd and soft boiled rice. Changing its avatars throughout the country according to region and taste with a bit of variation. 

Dahi Bhaat a local favorite in a Maharashtrian house hold, also goes by the name of Thayir Saddam in Tamil Nadu  - a must in every meal, to Doi Bhaat in Bengal, khatti kanki in Gujarat, Dahi pakhala in Odisha, Komal Saul in Assam and many more versions and names of curd rice throughout the country. 

What makes it special is the simplicity of chilled Dahi with soft rice and a few other ingredient which are easily found and give it a local taste and flavours which are unique and simplest to find, eat and digest. It’s healthy too, with it’s good bacteria, probiotic property and it’s also good for the immunity. 
No wonder this is a most comforting meal found all over India especially in Summers or hot places. 

But this Marathi mulgis heart belongs to the one cooked in Maharashtra in her mother’s kitchen. 

Dahi Bhaat always takes me back to the more simpler times literally. I am talking about the 90’s when life was a lot simpler less hassled, technology was just setting in and hadn’t taken over lives, social media was newspapers and Doordarshan if anything. Especially for a kid in Kg (as in kindergarten not kilograms)the simplest times you can say without a shred of worry and an ounce of stress ; one only being practising your alphabets in the cutest sing song manner there was. 

So well, in my kg we were allowed only sabzi chapati (bhaji poli ) i.e staple healthy food and one day was reserved for snacks in our tiffin. 

So apart from sabzi chapati we were also allowed curd rice once in a while. I wasn’t a big fan but call it peer pressure, change or just a kg tantrum; I wanted that in my tiffin. So after pestering my mom  for the same, now you may be wondering - what’s their to pester in that. Well I was an asthmatic child and Eating curd got me bouts of cough. So yes, you can imagine my mother’s state but being the sweetheart she always is with me and trying to make me happy (don’t be fooled, she is very strict when she has to) as always. She gave in. So next day I go to school all excited expecting my first ever curd rice in my tiffin. A small kindergartener who couldn’t contain her excitement for eating the most humble meal ever curd rice cos she never had one. So finally when I opened my tiffin and stared at it with the utmost love and began eating the lovely lemon coloured curd rice with so much enthusiasm. Well let’s decrease the enthusiasm over here not in quality but in quantity. You see I am a very slow eater now too so imagine me in kg. I had just barely taken two bites and was enjoying my very own creamy curd rice for the first time when the teacher took away my golden lemony creamy soft rice filled tiffin and gave me a packet of Parle G biscuits to eat. She distributed my golden treasure meal fit for a king amongst my classmates whereas I looked on with fury and confusion and misery and tears. To scared to ask why she did it, I grumpily hardly even touched the biscuits. As if that wasn’t enough she called my mother next day for a meeting. 

After going home and throwing a tiny tantrum and being pacified by mother with the utmost love, loads of play time and yummiest fare, I totally forgot the episode apart from the happy fact that the next day mumma would be picking me up from school after meeting my teacher. 

Decade or two later I find out. The reason behind the creamy lemony colour Dahi Bhaat in my tiffin in kg, the meeting and even decades later I find out the true depth of love in it all. 

Well you see, my mother stuck in dilemma of having an asthmatic child who wanted to eat Dahi Bhaat for the very first time and feel one with the class, peers and not being left out; she made Dahi Bhaat but with a concerned mother’s heart ; with a little Dahi and some varan (dal) to cut down on the potency of Dahi giving me a bout of cough. Rendering that creamy lemon colour to it. You see Dahi Bhaat is like Snow White, no wonder the teacher peeped in my tiffin all right. Well let me tell you it was a yummiest one at it, my classmates finished it in the fastest bit. 

So my mother was called for a meeting and a bit of scolding because dal was not allowed (weird no sometimes). 

So she took a scolding, took double tantrums from me, took all the trouble and in return she only gave me loads of love -isn’t it the simplest of love, all for me, all for my love. 

Yes my heart still yearns and will always yearn for that most comforting best creamy Lemon coloured Dahi Bhaat in the world with my mother’s love. So in this quarantine I don’t know whether I am craving for that simple yum comforting bowl of Dahi Bhaat which makes my heart sing or I am craving for my mother who’s heart sings for me and then I realise they both are one and the same thing. 

So today I sit and relish this simple food thinking about the simpler times and missing and basking at the same time in the simplest love. 

Dahi Bhaat Recipe  

xoxo 

Bhakti 

Best Gifts to gift yourself on your Birthday.

So Birthday is done, Birthday month is done, another year is done and another year of introspection is done. 
I feel quite productive, if I may say so myself (grinning cheekily).
As you guessed from the pic , I had an amazing birthday, I love gifts who doesn’t. 
Talking about gifts I used to invite more friends for my birthday party so I could get more gifts. The feeling of unwrapping pretty colorful presents to find a surprise waiting in there. Some good, some amazing, some OK and some disappointing but nevertheless all are always exciting. 
Honestly,  I use to be eager for my guests to leave so that I could get to my gifts, I still do so (now you know, so urge me to open my gift you always get me, so that I am not wanting you to head over for the door in my head). 

Birthdays always do that to me, I cherish them mine or others and I love that feeling of being special, being cherished. By gestures, love, kindness, gifts. Don’t forget the gifts, I won’t let you (laughing to myself). 

However, as you grow older you need to be are expected to be a bit more mature about your own Birthday. 

Now, that’s one thing about life, when you are a kid, your parents pamper you with gifts, additional love and attention, party with friends- home made Pav Bhaji, or Vadas, chips, pastries and you are made to feel like a star. But as your age increases  and your cuteness decreases along with that - the need to celebrate an individual or is it how they put it, the desire to celebrate your own birthday and all that attention no longer entices one. 

So what they really mean is after enticing you all those years with parties, gifts celebrations they want you to relinquish it all. After tasting self accolade and love the society wants you to give it all away for the bigger picture over here it’s actually you bigger in the picture... 

After years of being celebrated how does one go un - celebratory, if that even makes sense? Why am I supposed to go all monk from monster (monkey would be better) on my birthday ? No offence but I don’t want to be a Monk on my birthday. 

Now I didn’t know that celebrating oneself, my own life was supposed to be a bit immature. 

Well I love to celebrate myself, the day I came in this beautiful universe, the person I am, blessed and loved, I forgot lucky too. 

I am in my 30’s and I still love to celebrate my birthday, I am still far away from being a monk, birthday still entices me and the rate at which I am going, I am sure I would jolly well be enticed by the same even in my ripe old age. 

Celebrations do change, that I will give you. Cute and pretty gifts are always wonderful. 

In the long run though - Love, relationships, family, friendships will definitely hold your fort. 

I definitely love to gift myself more of these things below and then some more for birthday and for life. 

Indulge

Indulge the kid within you, do what you love, have what you love. Go for that big customized chocolate cake, surprise yourself. Have that bucket of fried chicken or cheese and champagne. Gift yourself a lovely candlelight dinner and plush night. 

In short sometimes you can have your cake, cut it and eat it too... 

Love 

Let love in your life, love yourself unconditionally and let others love you. No one can love you more than your own.  Love makes everything worthwhile, it adds meaning to life, to being. 

Cherish 

Cherish your family and loved ones, spend quality time with them, take breaks, go for holidays, talk, eat together, make amends, go that extra mile. It’s these moments, that you will cherish forever, these are the best gifts to give yourself. These are the people who will always matter the most. 

Let go

Let go, life is short; don’t be too hard on yourself. Let go of what you can’t change, what is poisonous, what is unhealthy, what doesn’t give you happiness, that which has served its purpose in your life. Let go off these toxic habits, things, feelings, relations and see yourself soaring higher, lighter, happier. 

(Don’t confuse yourself between cherishing and letting go, I ain’t contradicting myself. There are few things, people, relations which are beloved and which we give our all but which are toxic for our growth, we need to understand the difference. Make a choice for your growth and act on it, without guilt.) 

Let go off your Guilt 

Letting go of the guilt - that you are/were not good enough. You didn’t do your best. 
You tried- you failed- accept that and let go of the guilt weighing you down. 
Learn your lesson and move on. 

Change is the only constant 

Uncertainty is certain, so brave it on, you will surprise yourself with your capability. 

Keep changing, keep evolving, keep updating yourself in all walks of life - survival of the fittest you see. 

Health

And on that last note, being fit and healthy is akin to survival and a good life. To enjoy the pleasures, you need to sweat it out. Exercise, eat healthy, have a disciplined life in some sense. The fitter you are the more birthdays you will celebrate eating cake your way. 

Meditate 

Cleansing your mind is of utmost importance, mental health is as important as physical. You want to remember your party people and stay sane till your last birthday now, don’t you? 

Kindness 

Be kind to yourself first, be gentle on yourself. 
Don’t blame yourself for everything that goes wrong and don’t be too hard on yourself. 

Be kind to Others, help those in need - a loving gesture goes a long way. Kindness always comes back. 

Believe 

Believe in yourself. If you will then others will. 
Believe and you will do wonders. Believe in the universe, the greater force. Have hope and faith always. 

Attitude 

Have a right attitude cause it’s all about the attitude. 
The glass is half empty or full only you decide, the same way your life is beautiful or no only you decide. 
Look for good in everything and you will see it. 

Friends 

You need your chosen family, the crazy ones to make this ride worthwhile. To throw you that birthday party every year. The people who have your vibe, keep them close. They will always be there for you, they are your tribe.  

Enjoy your own company 

Enjoy your solitude, your own self. 

Get to know yourself, fall in love with yourself, romance yourself. The longest and most stable relationship you will ever have - you - invest in it totally. Invest in yourself. 

Read

Read a lot of books, weave a lot of stories in your mind. 
Books are your best friends, they will take you around in their world. 
They will enrich you like nothing ever will with their treasure troves. 

Podcasts are the new favorite books, not mine really though but as I said you should stay updated. 

Gift Experiences 

The trip you wanted to take, that class you wanted to join, the mountain you always wanted to scale. Do that.

Experiences make you feel better than materialistic pleasures. You will always cherish the memories. 

Learn 

Be a student of life forever. In whatever field, way, thing, experience you want - educate your self. 

Happiness 

Be happy. Happiness is not a destination, it’s the journey. So don't wait for it, make it happen. It’s work in progress, chose to be happy every day and see the joy it brings in life. #smallthingsbigsmiles 

Grateful 

Be grateful for yourself, this life, all that you have, all that you are. Celebrate it aka celebrate yourself- celebrate your  Birthday 🥳🎂🧁🎊🎁🎉 

—- point proved —-  laughing happily, as if I need a reason... 

No pressure but you better celebrate with me cause this one will leave old and with a grand big one. 

xoxo
Bhakti

Beach Picnic With A Traitor Tea, Tantrums And Toxic Beach Bums

I am a 90’s kid, I grew up not on gadgets all together barring the video games and computer games like Prince, age of empire and the likes which came later on. Oh and those hi tech toys we didn’t have so many of them. Childhood meant, playing naturally in the nature, going for picnics with family, reading the likes of Enid Blyton and the perfect picnics and adventures, improvised games. Fast food whipped up wholesomely from mummas kitchen. Childhood was a bliss. So no wonder I am big on nature and outings -Oh I love picnics, being in the natural elements and just enjoying them, feeling the raw emotions. Unfiltered joy, unfiltered surroundings. Of laying down a picnic mat, getting out the goodies and then just lazying around enjoying the bounty of nature. 

So I just did that on one of the weekend, headed to the nearby beach. 

This was my first beach picnic to be arranged on my own (batting the resort ones we all experience and set our standards high) now whenever I picture a beach picnic in my mind, it’s the most romantic set up, with beach umbrella, mat, some nibbles and perfect drinks. Taking leisurely dips in the sea and then lounging on the mat, looking at the sky above, hearing the waves crash, smelling the sea. Reading a book and the day just goes by .. sounds perfect, doesn’t it ? Perfect date, perfect picnic (told you high resort standards).

We being in Chennai, couldn’t do the dip or swim in the sea. Didn’t want to go too far after a tiring busy week. 

Neither could I take some fancy drinks nor could I be on the beach the entire day in the crazy sun and humid weather. 

So well equipped with all this knowledge I prepared myself with a small picnic basket - containing a cute colourful mat, hot thermos of tea (hubby’s drink of choice) some cookies, chips, water and other small paraphernalia and bingo we were ready to roll. A picnic at sun down sounded the best and practical given the weather conditions. 

We decided to head to a far off beach, less crowded and less known. 

All happy and satisfied with the pre picnic work we reached the sight and our first observation was aren’t the vendors increased in number at the entrance (there were just two stalls on bicycles run by home ladies). Were we right not only had the vendors increased the beach visitors had too, it was really crowded. Too late to turn back or go anywhere else.

We started walking towards a place which was a bit less crowded and settled there with our mat and laid down all the works. There were quite a few couples.

As soon as we settled, a family with a group of kids came and decided they wanted to be our neighbours, their picnic paraphernalia was fancier than ours as it had loads of sand toys and works. 

As we sat taking in the sea and the beach activities, the beach was dirtier owing to the crowd (when will people realise ) nevertheless beautiful and so peaceful. 

The peace part quickly shattered to pieces as we were still discussing it amongst ourself - a shrill scream which doubled and then went on in a full bout of tantrums on our right. 

A little time into their play and half built castles the kids had decided to wreck havoc on the serenity and others calm whilst their parents ignored them and continued with their own little banter happily or should I say calmly to the chagrin of others. 

As I was cribbing about the parents and their lack of enthusiasm of minding their kids to my hubby another group of localite gentlemen without any gentle demeanour or clothing sense parked themselves on our left a little distance further away. They ran in the sea as if their whole being was on fire and then crash landed in the massive waves. 

Such outrageous behaviour by these aged men who were sloshed and had boys with them fit to be their kids equally sloshed. 

I don’t understand how they insult them selves, their upbringing, their culture. Without even giving it a second thought that people who come their as guests or travellers take this behaviour as to be the mannerism and culture of that place. Due to such people who cause inconvenience to others and show lack of etiquette, the entire place gets bad named. This sad state exists in all pockets of our country which we need to be ashamed of and changed. Be it the hooligans or the uncaring parents. Don’t let your manners, lack of them or enjoyment disrupt others joy. We need to take this into consideration while having a good time in public places. 

One of the kids out of nowhere landed near this group of men and that was the time when the parents shouted for the girl finally. In her plight to run towards her parents she showered us with all the sand. 

Some romantic date - reminded me of a song- jaana tha Japan pahunch gaye Chin (had to visit Japan but we landed in China ) samajh gaye na.

Oh well, didn’t need another cue we got up as fast as we could, collected the neatly laid picnic and ran for our life further away. 

Found another spot next to an old couple which we deemed safe in all attributes and settled nicely. Oh, the comfort of the old (pun very much intended ).

Happily we gazed at the sea again and I decided it was time for some tea to relax and lay back after that experience. 

I poured in some tea and sat with my feet digging deep in the cool sand. 

Took a sip and well the tea was tasteless, yeah I made it, the same way as usual but god knew what went wrong. Alas, Tea - the traitor, it also decided to act funny in the literal words. Well I was not going to give up so easily. 

We just took a few sips and enjoyed the sea and each other’s company. 

That moment was perfect inspite of all imperfections - just gazing at the setting sunset and waves crashing, a cool wind caressing our face and hands intertwined leaving the tea and everything else aside. It was still a perfect romantic picnic. 

There were the crashing waves, the sky with its magical hues, the calming music of the sea, the soothing sand, us hand in hand, there were couples, families with children and elders, friends, there were dogs playing on the beach, few crows flying down to pick up some dead fish, crabs scuttling in their holes, a gentle breeze bringing with it the sea smells.

We just sat there taking it all in and our hearts joined in all this din. 

We didn’t get our sea swim but nevertheless how could we let go off playing in the waves and that’s what we did. 

I love to run away from the waves and then eventually one naughty wave catches up with me. The water lapping on the feet leaving foot prints behind for the waves again to erase it.. 

As the sun set and it got dark we packed our picnic with a joyous heart. 

Walking in the sand, hand in hand - happy hearts singing to the tune of some young romantic band... 

it’s not about perfect moments or romance it’s about finding love in all the moments, it’s about making the most of what you have. It’s all about romanticising the simple life. 

And just like that it was a perfect picnic .... 

Finding perfection in all the imperfections you have..

one snap does not tell the whole story of what goes behind, that’s what happens on social media these days. So don’t judge a picture on its face value. Don’t have the pressure of living big dreams and perfect bucket lists. Just go with the flow, life happens in the small moments .. Happiness is not a destination it’s this random journey through crazy sloshed gentlemen, tantrum throwing kids and old people ... you just need to hold on to each other, your sanity and find those moments in between and live them - that’s happiness ..

xoxo
Bhakti 

Starting The New Year With Acceptance

A bit late but nevertheless, I meant to post this in the first week, better late than never though. 

So as I bid Good Bye to 2019, in a quiet way with my family wanted to end the year on a good note and start the new year with a smile like everybody else. 

A good movie and then some lovely food was the laid back plan to bid farewell to 2019. 

I, myself wanted to watch a light, happy movie but my sister wanted to go for Mardani. 

Honestly till the time the movie started I was skeptical of not wanting to watch a serious movie. I wanted to end the previous one and start the new year on high spirits with a gay heart. Absolutely understandable, nothing wrong in it, right ? 

However, After watching the movie which is based on the true story in our country - a story of A rapist, about sick mentality, about the society we live in - A gruesome truth, a grotesque reality ; (An outstanding movie and performance by Rani Mukherjee, must watch)I was forced to think and the first thought that came to me was - we are just living in our bubble, our own happy bubble. Again nothing wrong in that; we need to protect ourself, our happiness.  But We also need on a larger scale to accept the fact, the scary truth, to accept reality, the society that we live in. Things will change only after we acknowledge that yes we do have a problem as a nation, as a society. We need to embrace this truth, this bitter poison which isn’t happy but which is reality in the new year. Because the first step towards change is only through acceptance. Only with acceptance can we strive to change what is wrong. We cannot overlook the reality under any pretext. We are entering 2020 with things to be proud of,  achievements, happiness on one hand and on the other we are entering another decade with some barbarian acts, heinous crimes, narrow mindset, inequality in all aspects, crumbling environment and we need to bring the change as a society. We need to raise our voice for humanity. 

Let’s burst the bubble, let’s face fear, let’s stand together and welcome this decade not only on a happy note but on the right note, with a right mindset. 

Happy New Year 2020 !

xoxo

Bhakti 

One Of My Mane(y) Stories

As I was posting my latest hair cut and colour today on Instagram another picture popped up in the memories of a year ago in another hair cut and colour. Amidst my morning rituals and chores, my haircuts kept popping in my head throughout the years like some yester year's baal baal dekho film and that my friends started an afternoon of obsessing over my hair, trying to rumage through my old pictures, posting them and my favourite hairstyle and stylists and so on. I love my hair, I really do, its funny to go to think about it cause while growing up I never had any hair by choice. Till grade 7 I sported a short boy cut not quite common in those days. It wasn't considered a social norm especially for a Maharashtrian girl. My teachers in school used to actually call me in private and enquire as to why my hair was so short, they used to point out, its as short as the boys if not more and I would happily reply "I like it that way".Then came a time where it was made compulsory to me to grow my hair to fit in some beauty box of societal norms and I had to succumb to the pressure unwillingly a child in 7th grade could only throw so many tantrums. So started my man(e)y grooming days. I grew my hair nice and long, I loved my hair and so did people all around. It gave me confidence and liked myself generally but yet the girl with short hair never did forget. Till date I love to maintain a short crop than a flowing mane. Years passed by, I never cut my hair really short but I always coloured them wild - all shades of blonds and blood reds, their was this rebel streak I would never leave. Then for my wedding I did something drastic I did go for blond highlights and cut them shorter a move just before your wedding which was considered bold and stupid but again that was me comfortable in my skin and comforting myself that my life and my choices were still within me, belonged to me. It was my way of coping with change or adjusting to a new lifestyle. I got quite a lot of fume and love both for my action but I rocked my ethnic bridal look in my bold blonde streak, my way. That I guess started this ritual of experimenting with my hair- so every birthday I do something very different with my hair. Its like a new me on every birthday. I am still that rebel because with ever haircut I do, I get a lot of flax my way but its like my hair, it will grow back, it will be fine. Its a different me but still me. Its like my haircut is in my hand like my life decisions is in my hand. There are so many women even today who are not even allowed to cut their hair their way. Its like even this tiniest of decision plays such a gender role in our society. There are still people I meet who say I have to take permission of my family before I do a haircut or I am not allowed to go short even if I want to. There are women who are judged on the length of the hair they sport or the colour they chose. The hair cut still decides what cut you make in the societal norms. I still wonder, and so does the little girl with short hair. 

On a lighter note to know more about each haircut and hairstylist check out my insta stories - highlights hair and if you do visit any of my hair stylist please do mention me.
You can follow me at my insta handle Bhakti_diaries

xoxo
Bhakti 

My First Night In Dhikala

I love wild life and Nature, so after visiting couple of national parks Jim Corbett was always the topmost on my list. India's oldest and most prestigious national park which was established in 1936 A.D. the first National park where Project Tiger was launched. This park derives its name from Jim Corbett the famous hunter who later turned nature conservationist.  Situated in the serene Nainital district of Uttaranchal, this jungle is like a holy grail for the wild life lovers all over the world. When we talk about Corbett then its Dhikala zone, is the ultimate cherry on the cake. The heart of the jungle or in the wild life lingo Core area for animal activity. The lifeline of this forest river Ramganga flows through this largest zone making it one of the most spectacular and magnificent area of the forest, rich with exotic flora, fauna and wild life. By now you must have got the gist of how mesmerised I am with this place and how very excited for a special wild vacation with the family (pun very much intended). So staying in Dhikala is a big thing because its one of the only core areas in the country which allows to stay right inside the jungle amidst all activities. It is definitely a special stay and with limited number of cottages you really need to book in advance and get lucky to be here. We certainly were. Dhikala forest lodge is run and administered by the forest department of Corbett National Park. One finds here a lot of forest officials, professionals, wild life enthusiasts, photographers, researchers with all their gear and its quite fascinating to watch them at work. The lodge is about 1 hour inside the forest gate and the drive is a safari in itself starting your crazy wild life adventure without any delay. The guest house is 100 years old built by the British. Though the property is basic in nature from some olden era with huge rooms having massive French windows and the highest of ceilings; its the entire experience which leaves one spell bound. Living amidst the jungle with dense foliage and animal cries and calls it definitely can't get more exciting and magical than this.

As I said the options and rooms are limited due to the high demand so we had no choice but to share the bed between three. Husband, brother and me. So after we explored the beautiful but spooky scary property what with the dense canopy of trees, monkeys lurking everywhere and more of jungle and animal noises for company than humans. The truly beautiful machan overlooking the valley - jungle below with its water body where you could see animals playing by it or just lapping up some water, bathing or gazing intently ( i wondered were they human watching us in return ). The never ending electric fence recently fixed to keep the elephants and animals out of the property which we were told again wasn't 100% effective (so much for some reassurance).The sky was eerie and we had some folk tales and jungle stories narrated with full enthusiasm during our hot simple veg meal in the restaurant. All excited for our safari early morning we decided to call it a day having travelled far and being really tired. So everyone bid farewell for the night and crashed to their rooms. To our dismay we three realized that the fan in our room with the highest of ceiling worked only on 1 speed ( the lowest ). The air was hardly circulated till the bed where we three lay cramped, squashed on the bed (in the peak summer season). After tossing and turning hubby decided to take things in his hands and opened the windows (mind you these were the big, massive big French windows ) it instantly became pleasant as gentle breeze filtered in through the mosquito nets. It was a little later after that when I was woken up by something else filtering in. The night had begun in the jungle it was vibrating and echoing with animal calls and activity. Elephant trumpets, Barking Deer, Tiger Roars, in live form as if they were there outside the room and they were actually there in the valley below may be some where around too. Now all those amazing stories at dinner - of tiger kills at the property, sightings, all of them started reverberating in my head. The property being right amidst the jungle so much so that non veg wasn't served due to animal presence and danger.  I started imagining a tiger outside the window or worst an angry elephant,  now the charm of the charming French window was diminished down to zero as I lay awake I cursed the ever so high, wide and open windows. Imagining what a flimsy mosquito net would do between me and a tiger or a leopard. After having laid awake for what seemed like eons scared as hell I looked at the two blissfully unaware sleeping forms by my side and not wanting to awaken them for the fear of being deemed as a coward throughout life; I gathered every ounce of courage and walked to the window, stood there for a couple of hell longest of minutes expecting some animal to leap in air at me or some eerie ghost to catch up with.  Scared out of my wits with my own thoughts I ran to the bed only to scamper back to the window to half shut it, as if that barrier was enough for those predators. Well that was only so much I could do and as I lay tossing and barely turning into the limited space I had and thinking about someone pouncing in through the window. Even the sound of the house lizard was magnified in the eerie space as if played on loop on a speaker and finally after some time I was lulled to sleep by the jungle sounds, beautiful yet scary. An hour or so into my well earned jungle sleep, the alarm rang in the wee hours of the morning. As I dragged my tired body to get ready for my first safari in Dhikala which I had waited  for a very very long time. In all excitement as I sat in the cold metal jeep sleep deprived, eyes tired, puffy and paining waiting for my safari adventure; only to have a blink and miss sighting of the first tiger of my life. Yes but that's another story now..

xoxo

Bhakti

Continued here 

Our Modern Day Fairy Tale Romance at Bangalore Palace

So we were in Bangalore visiting our friends. Now we both have been to Bangalore when we were kids with our respective parents. Honestly, I as you all know am a history buff more for the royal palaces, forts and castles, what can I say I am a 90's biproduct so blame it all on the Fairy tales and Disney princesses but yeah I am a complete romantic by heart, well if you at it better add royal romantic at heart.

So the Bangalore palace was definitely on my list and all of them (hubby and friends) had no choice but to partake reluctantly in my sojourn to the Bengaluru royalty.

It was a beautiful day and we arrived with aplomb at our destination with clear blue skies and beautiful hues. 

Modern Day Princess 👸 - As soon as I got the first glimpse of this dreamy palace right from some fairy tale with its green climber clinging all over it romanticising the whole aura like that of Beauty and the Beast, Sleeping Beauty or Rapunzel .. and as I stood there dreamily fantasizing about my prince charming and our dreamy tale he broke the charm not with a kiss but with - "do you remember this baby ?" As many thoughts raced through my mind, many made up fairy tales about us and lot more left to imagination. ahem .. I tried to think ahhh for the first time is he in tandem of what I am thinking ? or perhaps am I dreaming actually and we are having some telepathy ? I just managed to get myself together saying to myself get back from riding your high horses to reality and was actually happy thinking he remembered my childhood snaps I had shown him of the trip with my parents. As I got happy and said yes baby! I do and was thinking how attentive he is towards me and was glowing in my own fairy tale glory. He goes like - " ya baby this was the palace AAMIR KHAN says to be his home in JO JEETA WAHI SIKANDER " - Sure it was, sure his kind of Bollywood fairy-tale.. There I stood jaw dropped in my head and managed with ughhh yes baby, with a loop sided smile while he glowed with his Casanova Aamir Khan movie ( some movie it really was ) Well that was our fairy tale to be precise modern day fairy tale at Bengalure Palace, well the Palace was really beautiful and was I drawn to its interior in my favorite colour yellow. We enjoyed the stories of the palace and gushed over the royalty, sat in the beautiful garden on a sunny day hand in hand chatting with our friends for a bit and like the best of fairy tales and romance be it vintage or modern day we got a light drizzle out of no where in November on a bright sunny day just to complete this crazy romance, 

Now that's what I call - Our Modern Day Crazy Fairy Tale

First time ever I saw a place dressed in my favourite colour Yellow. So bright and cheerful and so pretty all at the same time. it was like a breathe of fresh air and so vintage all at once.

I am a Vintage soul trapped in this modern world. 

xoxo

Bhakti

Check out the whole vlog on my YouTube channel  https://youtu.be/btkCZ5pUbc0

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How to have a Pastel Summer

No hard rules that pastels are only there for Spring. Rock them this Summer with panache. 

Scorching heat and parched throat craves for soothing chilled ice cream and we all love it. Same way the scorched summer is made lighter and more fresh with sorbet and ice cream colours in the wardrobe. 

Wear the pastels in pretty dresses or floral prints or pair them as jackets or scarves with basics solids. You can also include them in the form of accessories, bags, footwear. 

Chill those summer vibes with mint green, lemon yellow, peach, baby pink, lovely lavender, powder blue, beige and more..

So bring some ice cream not only in your refrigerator but also your cupboards  😋😉

I am sorted, what do you think? 

Outfit Details 

Dress - 109 degrees

Shoes - Metro 

Happy Pastel Summer 💗

xoxo

Bhakti