Friday, September 25, 2015

Delectable Crab Chutney

Bored with the common crab dishes?

Try this different, authentic, yet delectable dish….which is even easy to prepare too!!! I am sure, you will lick your fingers till you finish the last grain of the dish…..





Ingredients:


Crab: 3 mid-sized crabs (300 grams)
Onion: 1 large
Salt : According to taste
Mustard oil :  ½ Table spoon
Ginger:  According to taste
Green Chilli : According to taste
Coriander leaf:  just few leaves
Lemon: Half a lemon





Preparation:
  1. Roast the Crab on a medium flame till it’s well cooked and the skin is burnt completely
  2. Break the crust and take out the meat part and mash it to make smallest grains
  3. Chop the Onion, Ginger, Green Chilli and Coriander leaves into small pieces
  4. Put salt and mustard oil,  and blend all well 
  5. Add lemon juice to get some tangy taste and lovely aroma and it’s ready to serve. 



       NB. Special Thanks to Ashapurna Phukan for preparing this.





Sunday, September 20, 2015

Pushing the Pedal: the rise of cycle style




We had a special occasion that day in our college.

It was 7:30 am already. Lazy us, I and Pooja were a bit late to reach the Sarita Vihar bus stand. Suddenly, I saw our bus no. 33 from a long distance. We were yet to cross the road. The bus did not stop at the bus stand, but just few meters ahead. It was damn crowded too. But could not help, we had to reach college in half an hour. Couldnot take the risk of waiting for the next bus. We both were running fast to catch the Bus…

We crossed the road quickly, but suddenly so many bicycles crossed us….uncountable numbers! We had to brook through them…..I fell down, but got up quickly…’coz we had to catch the bus. Thank God! We could manage to catch the bus somehow.

My knees were slightly bleeding. But, we wondered from where so many bicycles came. I found out, those were laborers, who work in the nearby factories. Hundreds of laborers come to work there from some distant villages at that time.

Yes, cycling was a mode of commuting for the below middle class or people in the poverty line mainly, till just few years back. Once, the income increases, people start buying bikes, cars for commuting to the office or other places, normally.

But, is the same trend still going on?

Nopes! “Pushing the pedals” is back now as a fashion fad.  Yes! It’s in vogue. Now, Bicycle is ridden by the smartest guy in the meeting room.


    



Off lately, people started riding a bicycle to get to office, sometimes for work-out, to keep themselves fit, to bathe in air and sunshine, to go shopping, to travel, to stay sane, for fun. Some people even abandoned their career to pedal around the world.

So, what are the reasons for it’s come back….???

While others are succumbed to traffic congestion, road rage, scratches and bruises on car, you happily traverse the city easily and arrive at your destination unfazed, atop two wheels. Won’t you feel amazing?

Cycling is not only one of the most elegant ways to breeze through the maze of road works and traffic jams, but also, you just need not to worry about double chin. All your muscles work in sync to keep you fit.

It’s the most efficient form of human-powered transportation. You won’t have to spend in petrol, diesel or gas, for which it’s one of the most efficient ways to commute. That way, you are contributing towards environment, by reducing emission of Carbon dioxide.

And above all, it is a machine that blurs the line between sport and art, giving a scope to swim with the fashion trend.

How about just pack your cycle, put in the backseat or carrier of your vehicle, drive to some travel destination from your wish-list and ride freely. And don’t forget the style-statement part too! Get dressed for a long ride, intently try to synchronise shorts, T-shirt, rain jacket, gloves, water bottles, shoes, sunglasses and your helmet with the colour scheme of your cycle.


Yes! Cycling is a great blend of individual style with the practical needs. Agree???



Saturday, September 19, 2015

A NO CROWD Visit to Tirupati Balaji Temple



“Can we plan for Tirupati Balaji Mandir on 17th ?” An unexpected noon phone call from Hubby.

“I may, if you want to go…." I was quick to reply, but, added one "But" to it....

"But I won’t guarantee whether I would go inside the temple or not….if it’s too much of crowd, I may give up half the way too…” I clarified.

So, a quick plan was made with two other families, Hubby’s colleagues, Basav and Silky with their families. 

It’s been long time, though I felt like visiting this - one of the richest temples in the world, it was not in my wish-list as I heard it is one of the most crowded temples too. On an average 50,000 to 100,000 devotees visit the Tirupati Balaji temple at Tirumala every day. Sandip, Nabami, Mittal, so many friends of mine shared their experience with me that it’s just for 5 -10 seconds, one get a glimpse of the Idol of Lord Balaji. The pushing crowd and security personals would push you forward automatically.  

On 16th, the day was too hectic for me. Work, dizziness and the tension of facing huge crowd at the temple made me so exhausted that sleeping queen refused to come to my eyes even for a minute, though I tried to bring her in at least for 4 hours.

We started at 1:57 AM from Bangalore on 17th, while I vomited on the way twice, because of my uneasiness. I just recalled my pregnancy time that moment. We reached Tirupati town at 7:30 AM. We already had booked one hotel. This time, sleeping queen attacked me badly and took me to a deep sleep for at least one hour.

Somehow, I managed to get up from Bed at 8:30 AM, quickly took bath and tried my level best to be positive in attitude. We were out from the hotel by 9 AM.

In the first entrance of the Temple campus, we had a proper security check; every individual, the luggage, and the vehicle, all were scanned.

First entry  on the way to hilltop


Beautiful view, cleanliness of the town, stunning curvy roads made us fresh and positive. There was a special instruction on speed limit while driving up the Tirumala hill, 25 kilometer of ascent is to be completed not earlier than 28 minutes. In case, any vehicle reaches there early, it will be penalized for driving fast. 


Beautiful Rock- view

Don't drive fast, soak the scenic beauty and click few memories...

Mailar  family with lovely smiles...

Silky, utilizing all features of iPhone....

Beautiful curvy roads...

No Rush on the way....


Basav shaved his hair, and during that time, rest of us just had some quick breakfast in one of the roadside stalls. I was just amazed to see the cleanliness all around. Some people were sitting in the middle of the road even, to eat food.

Basav after shaving hair.....The Chanakya Look!!! :)



People eating food sitting in the middle of the Road

Yum, Yum Badam Milk


For darshan, the available tickets are free tickets (10-12hrs), Rs. 50 tickets Sudarshan (6-8hrs), Rs. 300 tickets Shegra darshan (3-4hrs). We had booked the Rs. 300 ones online and went to catch the queue at around 11 AM. But, we all were shocked to see that there was no rush, no as such queue, not many people even. We wondered if it was closed, but was not, Thank God! For Basav’s family, it was second visit and their eye-brows rose with a Big question mark. Probably, it was just because of Ganesh Chaturthi, and the start of Brahmoutsav.




We covered the whole queue area in 20 mins. No electronic items are allowed, such as camera, mobile phones, but they allow wallets. Everyone has to wear traditional dresses, for man, dhoti or kurta were mandatory and for woman, Saree, Salwar suit etc. There was a strict security check just before entering the main temple area. There were drinking water tanks in every 100 mtrs distance. And free food items were offered to the people while in the queue.

On the way, we saw many waiting rooms which were locked. Other days, the devotees are released from these rooms slot by slot, to make queues. The most important entrance of the place, where the statue of Lord Balaji is kept, aadat se majbur people were pushing forward for no reason, though there were not lots many people. Basav, from his previous experience suggested us to keep ourselves extreme right so that we could see the statue without any distraction. Luckily, I managed to keep some gap in the last moment, while hubby picked son on his shoulders and the divine moment stayed with me for at least 15 seconds while I kept  my eyes on the most desired statue at sanctum sanctorum.

While coming out from that space, there is another chamber where one can write his/her wish with a coin and drop that coin there itself. When the secret wish accomplishes, the person has to come back to say “Thanks”.
Prasad in the form of Ladoo is available outside the temple premise.  Two free ladoos which are very tasty, prepared with ghee and dry fruits are given per Sheegra darshan ticket. Each extra ladoo costs Rs 25. There is free food service also, but we were so tired that we could not eat it.

So, coming out from the main temple, there is another temple of Hanumanji. One can break a coconut and devote there. One thing, I noticed is that, you won’t hesitate to sit on the floor anywhere inside the campus, as it was very clean.

There are many food stalls, and lines of shops, where the stuff were not so costly, be it home décor, idols, devotional items or cloth.

Lovely experience it was…..Lucky was me as I did not have to give up half the way, not had to face crowd, and above all, had a longer glimpse of Lord Balaji!


Beautiful View while coming down from the hill....


While coming back, we had a great family time inside the vehicle, tired, but satisfied minds and souls.



Kids.....Tired but fresh....

Grabbed Tasty food in the Dhaba on our Way back...






At last, posing for a pic......









Friday, September 11, 2015

Bindaas Girl transformed to Mamma



"আই  à¦²ৈ  à¦¯েই  à¦¹াত  à¦¬াই লৈ  à¦“  à¦¹েই  à¦¹াত "




Do you remember any incident while you and your friends went to someone’s home from hostel to grab some homely food and before serving you food, the host entertained you with their kidoo’s performance….? I have many....such as.....



“Beta sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star in front of Didi!”

The little sings ‘Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star’ with different lovely poses…and the mom’s face gradually keeps glowing with happiness and charm.

Once the Twinkle finishes twinkling, the mom again asks the kidoo to sing “Baa, Baa, Black Sheep….” And he starts singing….. And the list goes on…….

…..And your jaws are wide open, trying to show your artificial smile….in the core of your heart, you are thinking, “Arre enough yaar! All babies look cute while singing or dancing…what a big issue! Stop making me bored plzzzz!!!”

I bet, if you did not face or come across this kind situation and feeling in your life, before you become parents, may be in your college days, university days or when u never planned for a kid…

Some more common incidents infact…:

If you see some kids playing with a mobile, you will think what kind of irresponsible parents they are, to allow kids to play with gadget. And you tell your hubby that you would never give a gadget to your kid at such a small age…



“What kind of people they are….keeping the home sooo dirty!! Can’t even manage the kid…” Hope, you never think or thought like this unlike me, when I used to see a messy house and the kid was uncontrollably running here and there continuously.

I even thought to some great heights….When some moms used to discuss with me about the school fee and shared her worries about the admission, education system….I used to say with determination that I would never ever give my child’s admission in such costly schools….I even planned to opt for Municipality school.

But, what!  When I became Mom…..I became different…I feel like asking my Kidoo to recite some rhymes in front of others…My son learnt some Shloka recently, I did the videos and now I feel like sharing those with my friends, colleagues, family members. My home becomes messy when he and his friends play with toys, cars, puzzles…..I feel sooo happy to see the messy house.

My son now has expertise in opening Youtube, Games, Browsers to see cartoons or games…..Infact, when I am busy in a call, or talking with others in some important matters, I willingly give my mobile phone to play or watch videos…..And above all, I never even thought of Municipality school in the time of admission…..

Gosh!!! What’s happening with Meeh!!!! What a transformation!!!


The other day, one of my cousins who is doing his graduation here, came home for a day. And proudy Mommy in me compelled me to ask my son to sing 10 lines of Hanuman Chalisa in front of him…..But looking at my cousin’s face and expression, I recalled those incidents when I faced the same long back and could not gather courage to ask my son to recite some more. :) 

Recently, my another young cousin met a bike accident. He is too young to ride a bike….he has just passed matriculation. Another young cousin is carrying a mobile phone worth Rs. 30k in his early age. I was furious and angry on my uncle and aunt and just thought of asking them why they have given them whatever they demanded; I just told my hubby, that I would never give a bike and costly mobile phone till he completes his graduation…… But, then, I thought/ wondered……..what will I have to face when my child will be of their age…..

So, that’s why guys…I started loving and following the saying of T.S Eliot :

“Time present and time past
Are both perhaps present in time future

And time future contained in time past.




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