I would club my favorite pic with my childhood memory. Its not the *only* interesting childhood memory I have. This was 21ish yrs back. There was this photo session at our place, and in those days any such session used to be like a mini-festival with chunnu-munnu-sunita-vinita from neighbourhood assembling and shouting like long-lost siblings in a kumbh ka mela (for the uninitiated, kumbh ka mela is one of the biggest religious gatherings in India where there is a high probability of siblings getting lost). So moving on, I used to be shit-scared of photographers (or for that matter any stranger). Dont know why but very innovatively, I came up with this Hrithik Roshaneque pose. Very randomly. Maybe I was trying to scare away visitors or maybe something to do with the so-called kumbh-esque chaos. Still brings a melancholy smile on my face, a smile that craves for the innocence long lost.

What I am writing here is something that has been on my mind for a while now. This post means no offence to any person on BUF and should be solely treated as my observation and feelings.

When we hear the term ‘investment’, things that come to our mind are mutual funds, flexi bonds, insurance, LIC, ICICI, HDFC, Franklin Templeton and the list is endless now-a-days. Do we ever think in terms of investing in our relationships and friendships so that they reap long term returns as well. Invest in people who always have been standing by us. No matter how sour our between people they continue to invest in their relationship so that they can still be secure emotionally as well. Investments are nothing but fall back plans and I have invested in one such relationship.

We have many photographs together but this one is very close to my heart.

Many of you may have seen this picture in the past also but possible are not aware that we were having one of our worst fights, cold wars, series of misunderstandings and friendship lull during this time. I was also down with cold and fever on this day.

Nobody who looks at this photo would know all this as we do not show it. Of course our photographer Rajiv was aware of it. :)

Ishi and I are absolute different people with very different behavioural patterns, situation handling skills except outlook towards life and people. We seldom disagree on many things in life but we have similar approach towards our relationships. We may not invest so much in mutual funds and bonds but we do not believe in the school of thought which preaches to be practical and detached in friendships. We may be emotional fools to believe in people and expect from them and sit and cry later but yet we do not stop investing in friendships and relationships.

BUF is a place for meeting new friends and forging friendships. Let’s not forget the fact that this is about “between US friends” and not just few of us! For those who are reading this post, I urge you to know the creator/ admin of BUF, Ishita, as a sensitive and intelligent person, instead of stereo typing her. Give her, her due credit for the concept, activities, hours put in, keeping this place full of life and non-political. Have any of us ever received a harsh, rude and insulting email/ comment from her. Then why is she getting it back??? Terms you may think you used in jest also play on her mind. You joke may not be her idea of it! And what do I say to those who claim to know her and be her friend that they did not even know before a volcanic eruption what has been hurting her and why has she been upset for so long. For those who seem confused about special days in her life…her birthday is coming up on June 20, anniversary on 5th July and Vedant’s Birthday on 18th July. These are busy times for her and times in which she feels happy and excited. Pity that has not been the case of late.

Criticism is welcome but follow it up with a suggestion. The slogan is cliché but hey how many of us have actually contributed towards the slogan competition??? Don’t make it so late that one day this space loses her completely.

I really don’t care what you perceive me as but I would not take people walk over Ishi.

Well that just sums up two topics – my favourite picture and talking about my best friend.

when i read this topic..only one picture came in my mind....and that's for all to see above.... this is a beach somewhere in western part of india..in Gujarat..most probably 40 kms from Dwarka(the ruling place of lord krishna). Why this is important to me? For a number of reasons..but the most relevant of all is..when i was there at this beach staring at the sunset listening to waves...i felt free and in that moment i felt that this is life worth living about for such beauty,for such happiness.It is till date the most amazing beautiful sunset i ever have seen.I think i will never ever go there again even if i get the chance coz i simply dont know the location..i was coming back from Dwarka(we had gone there as part of office trip) and as the evening drew to close..we were driving back by the coastal highway..we couldnt even see the sea ..it was just huge sand dune on one side of the road but one of my colleagues just happened to know that there was a sea beach on the other end and just as the sun was about to set he told the driver to race at breakneck speed into the sand dune..we ran like hell up the dunes and into the beach...and the first view i got was this sunset..and it was amazing...and i was stunned out of my wits for a while..just me and the horizon before me and the vast sea....i felt thirlled,happy,scared at the same time...i dont think the picture captures it beauty..but still it is beautiful picture..and for me its a once in a lifetime moment which i will cherish forever.

I came across this blog a few months ago and dreamed if I could ever be a part of such a creative thing. To be honest, I was quite jealous of the people who were a part of this, obviously because I assumed they are much better and smarter than what I am. This was because of the fact that I was not aware then that anyone could join it as long as he/she sticks to the rules, etc.

Someone rightly said "jealously is nothing but the fear of abandonment" and to overcome this fear I joined the most "in" thing - Between Us Friends.

I ended up creating my blog in June 2005 because I wanted to thank someone who had wished me on my birthday on his blog and he did not allow anonymous comments. And since then I have been blogging pretty regularly venting my pent up anger, discussing issues when I was depressed, sharing my joys, random tags, etc

I have always had problems with word limits and even for my English exam I used to lose marks for I always exceeded the specified word limit. This was mentioned here to suggest that I'll try to keep the post crisp but am not quite sure if it'll be short :-S

About me:

* I am a typical Gemini ... dual-personality, witty, restless, impulsive, loud-mouth, hyperactive and hot-tempered.

* Very honest and clear-hearted.
Ironically, if I must, I can look into a person's eye and lie!

* I get bored easily and am quick enough to ditch people who do not match my mental magnetism.

* A good observer. Day dreaming is one my passions.

* I think am pretty warm and a sort of person you can talk to ... n talk to ... n talk to n TALK!

* I absolutely love food (esp food made by mom) and mocktails made with Blue Curaçao Syrup. In favour of a healthy lifestyle.

* Am fat and geeky looking but friends say I look very cute :D :D

* Am doing BSc(hons) Information Systems, completing my 2nd year from City University of London.
I have always managed to be in good books of my teachers and at the same time managed to be the only girl in the notorious boy-gang of my class.

* Am a fun-loving person, who loves to break rules but in limits, who loves dating and clubbing but is scared of her parents, who thinks her religion is more of a culture than anything else, who is not scared of putting up her ideas in front of people even though they might sound crazy, who gets friendly with people easily and quickly ( even on the trains & bus stops), who loves showing-off, who loves travelling, who is a cleanliness freak, who is close to being self-obsessed, who can sing well, who prefers her shower more than rains, who hates pretentious people, who loves shopping and who can be really really caring.

P.S Do listen to my voicemail on the side :D

The current topic: Why is this picture important to me

This is the Ugliest Dog I've ever seen.

I had clicked this pic because I found this dog terribly ugly. I was in India for a vacation then and was waiting outside a bank for my parents and fell asleep. When I woke up I was almost shocked to see a dog like this sitting right next to me. Instead of shoo'ing him away I thought I'd take a pic first.
After coming back to London I realised that dogs ( or any animal for that matter) in this country are given almost same treatment as humans are. The laws stating animal rights, etc protect these animals here from any sort of cruelty and ill-treatment. The dog in the pic doesn't only suggest the poor condition of animals in India but also shows how far we Indians still are from development. I felt ashamed of myself sitting and enjoying in this country while most people out there suffer from various diseases just because they are poor and can not afford to be treated. And since then I have decided to do something from my country when I'm on my own :)

Thats right.These two nutcases in the picture are the craziest, whackiest, funniest, weirdest people in the world.They are also my best friends :-)

I love this picture for two reasons-

1.I clicked it

2.It actually defines them.

It really shows how crazy and fun they are.All three of us have one common hobby-We're big posers.We love being in pictures, we love clicking crazy pictures, bascially, we love capturing every memory spent with eachother.

Its been almost 15 years we've been friends and we've seen eachother through all aspects of life.We've supported eachother through different phases of our lives and I have noticed one thing that we've never changed.We've always been ourselves whenever we're with eachother.

I really can't imagine my life without these two.I look at old videos of us where we're acting completely barbaric, totally oblivious to the existence of others around us and I can't help reminiscing and smiling.

From crazy dares to gossips to tears to laughing till I pee.I have shared most of my memories with them.They are my girls and I love them to death =)

Yeah, Ignorance is Bliss, That is all I would say. No rhetoric, just that.

The picture above was taken in Nov last. We were on a family vacation in Goa at Cidade de Goa. This was taken from our room patio one early morning by Ishi who loved to wake up to the sound of the waves. It’s a reminder of a wonderful vacation, of tranquil days and some of the best family times we’ve had. Goa by far remains our fav place to holiday at :-) ...

To view our Goa pics slide show visit My Pics