Trials and Tribulations by Fire

I picked up Ravi's   If God Was a Banker   last month. To say I was quite impressed with his story telling abilities would be an understatement.  When I got   The Bankster  as part of a book review program by Blogadda.com I was thrilled.  In this new book, Ravi weaves a plot thick with conspiracy, murders, and money laundering. There are three stories that run parallelly: a CIA agent who smuggles blood diamonds from Africa; a resort owner who loses his son to the Chernobyl disaster is fighting against the opaque ways of the government machinery while setting up the Trikakulam Nuclear Power Plant in Devikulam, Kerala; and the senior management of G2B bank who are up till their necks in corruption and money laundering activities. In the beginning, the three stories seem different from each other and you need to focus a bit to keep in mind the various characters involved in each story. As the story progresses, it picks up break neck speed and converges beautifully. Ravi h

Found some time to write about this finally! Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) is a condition that affect the wrist of people who perform repetitive tasks such as typing, driving, or writing. Most often, computer users are known to suffer from this condition. Last week, I experienced a debilitating pain in both my wrists and thought I was coming down with Arthritis. But, Google threw up some interesting: CTS! Presumably, it had everything to do with the way I was using my wrists and the way I was typing on my keyboard. Well, I surely had not thought of ergonomics while posting on my blog or writing my first book, or even doing my freelance work. Life is tough. So, the only remedy that the website claimed was foolproof was rest, lots of it. I had to keep my wrists stable and as much as possible straight. Is it possible for a writer to keep her wrists straight? Nah! I try my best to use my hands alternately; I even tried driving with my left hand and succeeded. The best experiment

  Never fancied Chinese food. But went along quite happily with the team to eat  not-so-exciting Chinese food at Mainland China's (MC) OMR branch.  I consider myself a foodie and ensure my taste buds do not die off due to lack of different tastes. The husband and I are not exactly connoisseurs of good food, but do eat out often and relish well prepared food. I had half a mind to take hubby out to MC, but after today's fare, I am not too keen to do that.  The food is strictly ok, nothing to write home about. I have had better Chinese food in road-side stalls. I tasted all the starters and trust me, they tasted the same. I am a vegetarian and did not feel it was worth so much money. The buffet costs INR 600/- and the food leaves a lot to crave for.  What I didn't like about the starters: they left a bitter aftertaste of corn flour and Ajinomoto. I was wondering if there was any other spice other than corn flour and MSG. Bah!  If I had a choice, I would not venture

Just finished watching English Vinglish, Sridevi's comeback movie, that released on Oct 5, 2012. The movie was released simultaneously in Hindi and Tamil. A dubbed Telugu version was also released on the same day. The movie stars Sridevi as a protagonist. In all, the movie is a sensitive portrayal of the people who feel less confident because of their inability to speak or follow English properly. Gauri Shinde has captured the trauma a middle class housewife undergoes who is unable to speak or converse well in English. Sridevi plays Shashi Godbole, an entrepreneur who runs a successful catering business, but is not given her due because of her inability to understand and speak English. She feels small and let down by even her teenage daughter. Shashi is married to a suave Satish who feels at home when he is cracking jokes at her expense and does nothing to control the arrogant and snooty Sapna (the daughter). Shashi's on, Sagar, is a cute boy, sensitive for his age. T

The name Ashwin Sanghi didn't ring any bell when I picked up ' Chanakya's Chant ' from a library. I read the synopsis and got hooked on to the book. I got the book home and read the first few pages with a mix of skepticism and mistrust. I finished the book in a few hours. I felt exhausted and exhilarated. I kept pondering about the story, did some research on the author, Shawn Haigins aka Ashwin Sanghi, located his Web profile and left him a note. That was a few months ago. I am a fan of Ashwin's writing now. I located ' The Rozabal Line ' and bought a copy. When I came upon the opportunity to review his next book, ' The Krishna Key ' I was super thrilled and jumped at it. I have the copy with me and loved reading every page. After reading two pages, I put down the book and gathered my thoughts. I was kind of distracted with mundane stuff and I wanted to engage all my faculties while reading the book. I sat down with the book again when I was

September 21, 2011, sometime in the afternoon:  He walked in, in a white and grey striped shirt with grey trousers. He was carrying a black shoulder bag. I failed to notice him the first time. He sat in a corner, quietly, watching, noting. When Naina started talking to the expats, he noticed her way of speaking and the things she had to say. His cold green eyes kept staring at her, amused. He wondered how someone could be so stupid as to trust expats and complain about other expats. He was noting what he must  be careful about in future. The day went by with some more complaints and he kept pondering about Sia. How could such a beautiful woman be so silly? Or was she just a trouble maker? She had avoided eye-contact with him. She certainly had noticed him giving her a once over. He chuckled. This one was certainly a home breaker. He knew what he had to do. He did not sleep well that night or the nights that followed. In another corner of the city, in a cozy bed, Naina tosse

It happens many times. The sharp twinge, a small pull. I ignore it most often. It does not go away, remains stoic and strong. The storm that follows is nothing compared to anything I have seen. It is always like this. A tempest of emotions. I am talking about words. A famous man once sang, 'Its only words, words are all I have, to take your heart away.' When I sit down at my desk to write, I have this feeling of being in the eye of the storm. When I have this urge, I have to succumb to it, give in, write something. This post is also born of that urge, that hunger to see my writing, onscreen or off it. Life comes to a standstill. I cant hear  anything. Last evening, while I was walking, I tried something new. Usually, my mind goes on chattering and keeps churning up ideas in a staccato style. I stopped, took a deep breath and decided to stop it. Do something different. The chattering did not die down immediately. It took a while. But eventually, my mind stopped thin

Life was like a smooth river surface till you came. You came and put a pebble on the surface. The surface got disturbed and the ripples kept forming, and pulled me inside. Inside my heart as well, you created ripples, and I kept whirling. Whirling, whirling, whirling. I know not where I am going. I know not where you want me to go. I know not if you think of me. I know, I think only of you. Night, day, night, day. Days and nights became one when you are there, somewhere. Smile that lights up your eyes, I crave for. For those eyes to look at me, I crave for. For those lips to part and say my name, I yearn for. For those fingers to brush my hand, I dream of. Your smell to linger in my hair, I lust for. You are far, very far. My heart you take, wherever you go. Not so far, I feel from you. I can hear your heartbeat, I am so near. Yet you cannot see me, I am not so clear.

A cry within… I cry and I roll Don’t understand the language of the soul I come out with daylight flashing With the struggle and battle within I whine and cry to welcome life outside Thou I think life was comfortable inside Yet it’s a belief But not a relief That I have been born to live again Not knowing what I shall gain But growing was fun There was so much of sun Strangely there is so much of time in childhood That seems to go amiss in manhood To appreciate life and beauty of nature That seems to disappear with manhood stature Yet we live in hope That we can cope With the vagaries of nature And it will not affect our stature As we are special and different Only to find out that nature is indifferent But childhood is glorious It is so spontaneous Where life can never go wrong Life is always a song We just need to find the rhythm Of what it is to feel freedom When one could do whatever they want With no fear of any taunt When one does not have to hea