Dear Life

Dear Zindagi,

I am Amita - your carrier. Yes, I am the person who breathes you and live you.

You must be wondering why I am writing to you when I follow you each and every tiny moment. Well, I must confess that a blog contest prompted me to do so (:P).

Ok, like everyone else, I love you babes. I know there are many who claim that they do not love you. Believe me, they all lie. Some of them even do not realize that they are bluffing. So, don’t mind them.

Through this letter, I officially thank you for everything I have.

You choose me to be the eldest and thus most pampered baby of the family.

You made sure I had the best set of brothers and sisters.

You choose amazing friends for me.

You taught me different hardships of yourself.

You brought smile to me.

You tickled me hard to laugh and cry at the same time.

You exhausted me to cry.

You gifted a piece you yourself to me – my kid.

You did everything you could to make me Live.

I am sure you have many more surprises to be unfold before me. But I can only than you for the chapters you have made me turn. This might sound funny that I am thanking you for all like I had any choice other than accepting your moments.

There have been times and a lot of them when I absolutely hated you. Be it the smallest scolding from mummy/papa, minor & regular health issues, failure in exams, heartbreaks or the moments which changed yourself – I literally abused you numerous times. I got bored of you sometimes. I wanted a change in you every now and then. Still, I love you more than anything else.

I love you because all that I have is because of you. I want you because there are people who love me, want me and most important, need me. Now when I am talking to you, I have an important message for you.

Laugh Always

Nothing beats a smile or a laugh. A genuine smile is always returned with a smile – be it sarcastic or actual. However hard the time may be – one smile is all that’s needed to nail it. So, always keep laughing.

Ignore Dislikes

There have been and would always be people and their feelings with and towards you. Some would like you while many others would try to mould you as per their convenience. Never ever pay a heed to them. Do only what make you smile and eventually lead to a good laugh.

Fear Nothing

You are a little fragile soul. You are frightened at tiny thoughts of loss. Remember that the fear of loss is the greatest strength of all. Never ever let it go away to upset you.

Enlighten yourself

Every time you feel that I am taking you away from laugh, thumbs ups and strength, feel free to hit me hard and get yourself back to the light. Sun or the candle, all sources of light have to burn themselves to shine above others. Those who illuminate with external sources, only glow temporarily.

Your Soul,

Amita,

Note; I am writing a letter to life for the #DearZindagi activity at BlogAdda. Thank you team for the thoughfull opportunity.

When Amitabh Bachchan wrote a letter to his Granddaughters - Aradhya and Navya

First things first - This post was supposed to about my last day's Marathon. But as I saw the news, the already very popular letter by the legend Amitabh Bachchan grabbed my attention. As a hard core lover of letters, I could not help but post about it first.

As expected, there are mixed reactions to the same. While most people like me find it extremely touching and absolutely apt, there are some who find nothing great about it. Then, there are some, who feel that if he really wanted to write it, why do it openly?

Each person has his/her freedom of thoughts and speech. Below are some of the reasons, I loved it:

1. It’s a letter:

I have lost the count of mention about my love for the letters. I accept that one of them is too innocent to intercept the deep meaning through it and the other one is already on her own path of thought process. But imagine the pride and glory in the eyes of little one the day she begins to understand it. Every time, the girls would feel low, i am sure letters like this would help them buck up. It's bitter but their dear grand pa is not going to be with them forever.

2. It's about daughters and women:

The letter is addressed to his grand-daughters. Any deed done straight from the heart - big or small for any woman is a step towards better world.

3. It came from a legend:

When a famous person talks, there are masses who are looking up to them. Each word they speak can influence someone's next course of action. Thus they need (not must) to be more careful with all their deeds. There are people who blindly follow their icons. Therefore, such clear and impartial thoughts expressed on a public platform should only do well for the society. I think, if it changes the mind of even a single person regarding even a single thought to good, his deed to share the same with world is well accomplished.

4. It reflects the mentality required for society:

I so wish all men and women across the world felt this way about their daughters and women in their lives. The so called feminist word would not have taken birth.

5. It's his choice to share it with the world:

To write a personal or an open letter is all his choice. No one has any right to object to the same. As he himself says - Because...

All said and done, the letter goes as below:

Letter content Source: TOI

Her Resurrection by Soumyadeep Koley

About The Author:

Soumyadeep Koley is a graduate with Chemitry Honours and currently pursuing his Master’s Degree in Psychology. Read more about him and his work at his Good reads profile.

The Blurb:

What is it like to be an unwanted girl-child in India? What is it like to be sexually harassed at a tender age of five? After being tricked and forced into prostitution, can such a woman fight back to emancipate herself from the unyielding shackles of that life, and intermingle with the ‘society?’ Or would she get lost in the sands of time like the ephemeral existence of a sand dune beset by a sandstorm?

So begins Maya’s story in the picturesque countryside of Maharashtra, where she grows up amidst cruelty and domestic violence, being an unwanted girl-child. Yet, like a lonesome beacon beset by sinister wilderness, she pursues her dreams of reaching the stars with her tiny wings. One night, a twist of fate triggers a series of incidents, when she loses everything she had—even her virginity.

Severely traumatized after her father’s death, her mother’s imprisonment, and her own gang-rape, Maya finds herself all alone in the streets of Mumbai, with wolves lurking around for raw flesh. She’s weary, but not wary. She has no sense of the fate that awaits her. What follows, would change her life forever, as also yours, as her heart wrenching, yet inspiring story echoes through time.

Inspired by true stories of survivors and real life events, ‘Her Resurrection’ bravely paints an appalling picture of the society. Heartbreaking, hopeful and immensely healing at the same time, this emotional roller-coaster through dreams, tragedy and triumph is a moving tribute to womankind. Are you ready to embark on a transformational journey with Maya?

The Cover:

The cover page is very colourful and has done full justice to the plot. I would definitely pick it up atleast once if I see it in a bookshelf. 

About The Book:

 It's unfortunate and sad for any part of the world to have a fact that 'we have to fight for the rights of a girl child'. It's actually sad to fight for rights of any child irrespective of it's gender. The book takes the reader to a depressing but real world of cruel fate and tearful facts.

Her Resurrection took me straight inside the heart of a an innocent child, a mother, a teenager, a victim, a survivor and the Winner

Imagine a child telling her dream - "...I want to go to school and speak English like Gavaskar".

I was all smiles on reading this.  Its was such an innocent yet realistic dream. A dream which subsequently led Maya to dream more.

The story is so tragic and Maya is constantly failing with her luck. Yet the human nature to wish and  pray for better is very well visible in the story line.

What I Liked About The Book:

1.    The End: though some parts of book were predictable, yet I so loved the end. It was well constructed and beautifully written.

2.    The little dreams: The small dreams in the eyes of different characters were so real. Dream to speak English, dream to buy a SLR camera, the dream to own a Camera etc.

What I Did Not Like:

Only flaw I found was that some parts were just left behind without any conclusion. For example the so called court case and something which Maya's mother wanted to tell her someday.

Other than this, I was absolutely glued to the book till end.

 There were few gems which can be written anywhere in bold for motivational aura and some for their candid nature:

When a man is here having sex with us, you know, somewhere in a city, a girl is saved from being raped

Every saint has a past and every sinner has a future.

 No matter how much life gets tough, stand up, pick up all your broken pieces and move on as the best is yet to come.

 No matter what else you do, put yourself first, and love yourself more than anyone else.

It’s never too late to realize your dreams.

 If you slap a lion, will it remain silent and un-aggressive? Go and stand at the back of a horse and slap its butt. Try to tickle an alley cat and see what happens. See, nothing in nature remains silent if you constantly hurt it, unless it's created defenceless.

...all problems in life are temporary, but suicide is permanent. It can never be a solution.

...a woman is never alone. When she is born, there is born with her a veritable, indomitable warrior. Together, they see, fight and endure so much—periods, childbirth, abortion, miscarriage, eve-teasing, rape, domestic violence, social stigma, breast cancer, trafficked into prostitution, being forced to renounce her dreams… Still why do we stereotype and say that men are stronger than women?

The book can be brought via following links:

Amazon Paperback                         Amazon Kindle Edition                       Her Resurrection (English)

Note: A PDF copy was sent to be for honest review

Secretly Yours by Vikrant Khanna

Image source

About The Author: Vikrant Khanna  is a caption with merchant Navy. He has the best seller – “Love Lasts Forver” to his credit. Head on to his website to know more about him - http://www.vikrantkhanna.com/

The Blurb:

Everyone has secrets but is hers the most shocking? Orphaned at birth, seventeen-year-old Sahil has always blamed himself for his parents' death. He has little interest in life until he meets the enigmatic Anya in a chance encounter during the Shimla fest. Soon he falls head over heels in love with her, but Anya doesn't reciprocate his feelings.

 An accident leaves him in a coma and when he wakes up he makes a startling discovery-he can read minds! Now he can find out what goes on in Anya's mind and maybe, just maybe, make her fall in love with him. But is Anya all she seems? Or is she hiding something? Deliciously plotted, full of morbid secrets and startling revelations, Secretly Yours will make you question what you see and who you trust."

The Cover:

The cover page has a beautiful girl lost in her own reflection which looks foggy. Would I pick the book from the shelf by looking at the cover? Well, may be yes. But the, wait for the complete review…

The Book:

Secretly Yours is the story of an unfortunate orphan who is in his teenage, has knowledge of music, plays guitar, loves reading and what more – Writing a book. Wait, I am not done yet. It’s also a thrilling murder mystery along with the element of supernatural power. Phew!

Yes, I book has so much to offer and to some extent, It did justice to some of the plots. I so wish, the other plots were also taken good care of.

What I liked about the Book:

1. Teenage - All of us love the time which has passed. Teenage is one of the best times of our lives. I was happy to relive some of my own teenage moments through this book.

2. Short Chapters - Chapters with the range of 5 pages are always a good pick.

3. Drugs, Self Harm – I never understand the concept of self-harm and suicides. I must refrain from stating my views on the topic especially on a public platform. The cutting of own body and delving into alcohol and drugs is depicted quite sensibly in the book from teenage point of perspective.

What I Did Not Like About The Book:

1. Poor Crime Scene Plotting - The depiction of gruesome murders could have been so much better. I have read books where a simple crime scene is written in such a way that they gave me shivers. The author chooses to write about horrible murders with an equally horrible scene explanation. I felt so unfortunate for the author. There was so much scope in those spine chilling plots. I did not think about them even once after reading.

2. Fading Thrill - The moment a murder is described, the context gets lost completely in the very next chapter. I actually waited for the next reference of the crime in true sense. This is definitely not a sign of any thriller.

There were a very few lines which did caught my attention;

"...apologies have an expiry date. If you wait long enough they lose their magic."

“Writing is about pouring your heart and soul onto a paper and feeling light after it.”

If I have to give a final opinion to the book, I would say, ”Secretly Yours does look a promising read by the cover page. The story and plot is an all-time hit. But, I would only prefer reading it on a boing flight or on my iPhone while I try to keep my eyelids open in some meaningless meeting. Go ahead and read it but do not expect any eye-popping thrilling experience.”

The book can be brought from following links:

Amazon Paperback                           Amazon Kindle Edition                                    flipkart Paperback



This review is a part of the biggest Book Review Program  for Indian Bloggers. Participate now to get free books!

The Soft Target by Kalyan Nanda

The Blurb:
Is God good? Or is He a manipulative villain who plays with the lives of his creations in the name of karma? As far as Mohan Mishra is concerned, God is a villain. Mohan is God's soft target, for He 'blesses' him with a strange mental problem and kills his support system when he needed it the most. The Soft Target is the story of a boy's journey into manhood, as he takes on God with his mental prowess, defeating Him at every stage, thus making God his soft target. Supported by great friends and a loving wife, Mohan fights an epic battle against the murderous society, the conniving legal system and ultimately God himself, with remarkable courage and spirit.


The Cover:
Personally, I did not like the cover. The cover image gives the book some technical image. So, for the fiction and plot, i did not find it appropriate.

The Book:
The very first thought which came to my mind once the main three characters were introduces was "another 5 point someone" or 'three idiots"! But to my pleasant surprise, the story and narration did not go in that direction.

The language used is quite simple yet attractive. Author has been successful in keeping the reader glued to the story till the end. The end - Yes, It was the only part which was un-predictable.

What I Liked:
1. Good mix of humour and emotions: I absolutely loved the character of Brij. These must be hardly any scene with him which did not make me smile. The hate love romance was icing on cake.
2. Amazing one liners: The one liners have won over me. I absolutely loved them

What I Did Not Like:
1. Predictability: The book is so much predictable right from the beginning to the end (except the final ending) that it leaves no element of surprise for the reader. But then, it did not stop me from reading further.
2. Unnecessary explanation of emotions and situations: The author has used sentences like - "Dear reader...", to throw more light on various subjects and his own state of mind. I strongly feel this must be done without letting the reader read it.

Below are some one lines which made an entry to my notes:

Sometimes, God gives you a peek into what's going to happen to your life but you never realise it.

The worst performer I have ever seen is God.

Hope brings happiness and pushes even a man with limited resources to try harder.

Sometimes I think we carry burdens that are invented by us, sometimes they are thrust on us by others. But the trig is it's He, the man sitting above, popularly known as God, who makes us all suffer.

Success is my only mother fucking option. Failure is not.

I can select my friend but I can't select my destiny. Destiny decides my action.

Whoever said time heals everything must have led a rather cozy and painless life.

Overall, soft target is an amazing book for anyone who wants to "fell good" despite all odds in life.

The Book can be brought via following Links:
Amazon Paperback                            Amazon Kindle Edition                               Flipkart Paperback
Note: I received a PDF copy of the book for an honest review

Beauty and Makeup - A Dream Career

Career in beauty & makeup is like living your dream every day!

Working in the beauty & makeup industry is like a dream fulfilled every day. You get to work with different people, exploring your creative side in makeover, working tirelessly and still feel excited. Seriously, helping people look more beautiful requires a craftsmanship and its an art where you have no complain as you do what you love. 

When you choose to be a professional in beauty & makeup industry, you choose to be part of ever-growing and ever-fascinating industry. And if you are a continuous learner, innovative and ambitious then there is no limit to explore your potential in this industry.  Beauty & Makeup is the most promising industry which has increasing demand for trained, certified and qualified professionals. 

“The industry has various streams of expertise where trained professionals are required and it includes Hair Styling, Makeup Artistry, Nail Artistry or a Beautician. In pursuing a career in beauty & makeup, you need to ascertain your interest area in terms of what fascinates you most whether you would like to excel in Hair Styling or Makeup or Skin or Nail. Once you have chosen your stream of choice to develop your expertise then choosing a reputed academy or institute is equally important” suggests Hariom Tyagi, Director, BeauPal.com. BeauPal.com is India’s largest platform for beauty salons, spa and makeup artists. There are numerous academies offering courses in beauty & makeup but an institute which provides global standard of education and suits to your budget is rare to find. And we have news here for you, for all of you who are looking for courses in beauty & makeup with a reputed institute and within your budget. IL&FS Institute of Skills-Beauty & Makeup Academy situated in New Delhi is aninstitute which fulfills your dream of becoming a successful artist or stylist in beauty & makeup.  IL&FS Institute of Skills-Beauty & Makeup Academy provides comprehensive training, hands on experience with international trainer and offer certification which is at par with global standards. 

IL&FS Institute of Skills-Beauty & Makeup Academy offers professional program for beautician, hairstylist, and bridalmakeup artist. At IL&FS Institute of Skills-Beauty & Makeup Academy, you can also explore other adjuvant courses like self grooming, saree drapping, juda styles and mehandi application. It provides you an opportunity to acquire skills in all the related streams of beauty & makeup under one roof with an international infrastructure. At IL&FS Institute of Skills-Beauty & Makeup Academy, you not only learn from class trainings by trainers of international repute but also get to work on practical with clients. The institute with world-class infrastructure and course curriculum of global standard equally emphasizes on hands on experience with product knowledge and product applications. 

With the right stream of your choice and training at IL&FS Institute of Skills-Beauty & Makeup Academy you could begin a career in beauty & makeup industry or fashion industry as a hair stylist or makeup artist. As a trained professional in hair, beauty or makeup gives you freedom to start a personal business; like opening your own salon & spa, or freelancing and you may like to opt for a job in the reputed salon chains. The opportunities are limitless. In fact, an appropriate training at right institute like IL&FS Institute of Skills-Beauty & Makeup Academy brings financial independence as you can go beyond the regular beauty & makeup setups and make career in cinema, fashion & stage shows and others. 

The right institute as IL&FS Institute of Skills-Beauty & Makeup Academy helps you acquire skills, dexterity and training that give you potential to change people’s lives by helping them look good and beautiful.    So set yourself in the ever-demanding industry with right training and inspire others. 

Rukhsat The Departure by Sujit Banerjee

About The Author: Sujit Banerjee has travelled across India and world since his birth.  Head to his Good reads profile as Sujit talk more about himself.

About The Book:

The Blurb:

Twenty six stories flow - some into each other, some crossing one another and few charting their own path. Each breathe independently and fade away after reflecting on their own existence. Each story explore an independent emotion leaving you to make our own conclusion.

If Farzana tries to deal with her own masochism then Hemakshi deals with her empty womb. If Gustav reflects on his two night stand then Palash comes face to face with his past lover only to realize he no longer loves him. Siraj's decision to sell his his child body comes to a clash with Manu's trial by God. Last but not the least - Zayan reminiscences on his life an hour before being hanged.

Let them rain on you, soak you and take you on a roller coaster ride

The Cover:

Vintage themed tree with falling leaves has done good amount of justice to the book and it's stories.

What I Felt About The Book:

Short stories are always a gem and a delight to read on. The best part of short stories is that they take me to a different world and I come back in no time.

‘Rukhsat The Departure’, a collection of short stories titled on their main character name starting from A to Z took me to the real world. All the stories depict a life lesson which might be bitter or sweet - but at the end I realize that it does happens.

The author has narrated different human emotions in the way they must have been felt. There are some stories which end without a note ad it’s absolutely fine – because those emotions cannot be explained. Some things can/might just be felt by putting yourself in the person’s shoe.

What I Liked:

The little graphics with each title were an icing on the cake. I wanted to share some, but then I hate spoilers.

The first story ‘Abhimanyu’ truly mesmerised me.

I loved admiring one and hating other letter in ‘Bhusan’ and ‘Palash’.

Stories ‘Karan’ and ‘Yasmin Bibi’ shook me from inside and I could not do anything about it except frowning on the bitter truth of society.

What I Did Not Like:

The writing in one or two stories is so intense and author has created so much suspense that at the end, I honestly could not infer the zest of it. May be I lost track somewhere.

Story ‘Chitra’ would have been my favourite one if it had at least some lines, if not complete of poetry written by the lead.

To conclude I enjoyed reading each story and they are going to stay with me for some time.  Congratulations to Sujit Banerjee for his debut.
The Book can be brought via following Links:

Amazon Paperback               Amazon Kindle Edition            Flipkart Paperback

Note: I received a PDF copy of the book for an honest review

The Claim by Sanjat Bordia

About The Author:

Charted Accountant by profession and a book lover by heart, Sanjay Bordia is making his dream of writing come true with this debut book. He can be reached via his official website - http://www.sanjaybordia.com/

About The Book:

The Blurb:

The recent foray of ‘3M Chandani Group’ in the life insurance sector is besieged with a large insurance claim.  All evidences and documents are in order but there is an eerie feeling that something is not right.  The case lands on the table of ‘Mohan Mohanty’ the ace internal auditor of the group.
Will Mohan be able to unearth the truth?  Laila and Iceberg, two trusted assistants of Mohan are confident that with Mohan at the helm of affairs truth does not need to worry.
And the investigation begins, which takes Mohan and his team to a village hospital where Compounder Tara Nath fixes the posting of Doctors. The team of auditors meets Madan Prasad, a sculptor who creates wax statutes which can chase London’s Madam Tussaud out of business.  The team has to find out whether branch manager, Sunil Shinde, is a victim or a culprit.
Time is running out since Mehra family, the parents and brother of the deceased, are threatening to go to media and courts, if the settlement of insurance claim is delayed further.
Mohan has to act fast and come out with clinching evidences or pay the insurance claim of Rs. 10 Crore.

The Cover:

Having received the pdf copy for review, I looked for the cover at Sanjay's site. The cover page is quite normal and may or may not prompt the reader to pick it up from the book shelf. Also, although, it does depicts some puzzle, but could have been much better - may be some hint to the clue without revealing it before its mention in the book.

What I Felt About The Book:

I would not lie that my thoughts of initial two chapters were not very motivating for the author. As the story proceeded and the turn of events were unfolded, I gradually got hooked to it.

What I Liked About The Book:

1. I was in love with Laila. Her immediate urge to eat anytime, anywhere added the required little amount of humour to the narration. Other characters were also plotted nicely.

2. The small inclusive suspense plots added every now and then solved the purpose of giving a new short story to the reader and soon the reader is back to main story line with a fresh mind. I liked the idea and enjoyed it thoroughly.

What I Did Not Like About The Book:

Predictability - Yes, any regular reader irrespective of his or her interest in thrillers would be able to predict the turn of some events. But this did not stop me from reading further.

To conclude, I found the book a major candidate for big Television programs like crime patrol series. Had the author been able to make it unpredictable, it would have been a big screen blockbuster.

Congratulations for a decent debut and best wishes to Sanjay Bordia for his future writing projects.

The Book can by purchased by following links

Amazon-Paperback    Amazon-Kindle Edition      Flipkart

Note: I received a PDF copy of the book for an honest review

Why Pay Tax?

“Hey, have you filed your returns for the year? Last date is in a few days.”

“Leave it buddy. It does not matter. Moreover, It’s we the salaried citizens who pay tax and suffer on top of it.”

“Yeah, that’s true. The business class people do not even think about it or pay bare minimum.”

“Moreover, tax has already been deducted from my salary each month. Who wants to get into filling up those useless long forms and submitting them?”

I am sure everyone must have seen/heard/participated in some conversation similar to this. ‘Why should I pay the tax and on top of it, file a return for the same?’ is one question all of us ponder over sometime or the other.  Below are some of the reasons which encourage us to pay the income tax:

1. Standard Proof for most complicated facilities
1. Want a Loan? ITR  - Income Tax Return is the first document any legitimate organisation asks for. Producing the valid document completed more than half of the process.
2. Want a VISA? Again, all embassies around the world ensure that the person they are granting permission to enter their territory is safe to land there. The ITR document again helps a lot in proving your credibility and ensures that you are financially sound.
2. Want your money back? Our eyes open up wide enough with curiosity on getting the money back. Filling the ITR can also earn us some money. When I filed my ITR for the first time, I got a check of Rs. 180 from Income Tax office as I had paid that tax extra as per my claims and savings. It was a small amount, but the salary was also small that time!
3. Want a better future for you kids? All of us want the best future for our children. We work day and night to ensure that they get the best of education and life. We cut on our own expenses, give up some luxuries and save for their future needs. During all this, we subconsciously fail to realise that the economy they would be living in should also be insured. We would definitely want them to live in a much better environment then today. We must know that the tax we pay is the money government use for basic amenities like-
1. Safety – We would never ever want ourselves to be bombarded with weapons and bombs. Government uses the money we pay in tax to strengthen various means of defense.
2. Infrastructure – We are still far behind when it comes to roads, buildings, bridges and the most talked about – public transport.
3. Money – India as a nation can take loan itself from international organisations like the World Bank etc. Please be informed that they are not a charity organisations and they bear their own terms of interest and serve a defined tenure failing which further have penalties.
4. Nature – Floods, earthquakes, Landslides, Tsunami, Thunder Storms – Name any major natural calamity and there would be at least one place in India which is prone to it. So, while we enjoy and be proud of our varied land, water and air every few kilo meters, we must accept the benefits as well as the disasters these climatic conditions throw upon us. The better the government is equipped with resources quicker would be the response time and relief during such situations. Pay the tax on time and do your bit!

So, next time whenever you need an inspiration to pay tax, think twice about these small yet big enough reasons.

 I’m taking the #TaxPledge to file IT returns with the easy Income Tax efiling option from H&R Block at BlogAdda.

Reflections A to Z Challenge April 2016

This is not a typical reflections post. I took a deep breath and wrote this post which looks more like a letter to myself. Finally, rather than hosting it on my own blog, I took a much deeper breath and sent it to A to Z team so that I can share the lessons learnt.

To Succeed I MUST recognise my Failures.

~Amita

Here goes my reflection to A to Z Challenge and first Guest Post –

Lessons from the Failure

1. Plan - Plan, draft and schedule your posts
2. Open Up - Seel Help
3. Be Confident - Do not take success for granted

Hop on to the link to read the complete confession.

Did you survive the challenge? Have you also felt the same anytime when you thought of your commitments?

Please be kind and pardon any silly mistakes. I am all ready to improve.

Do leave your valuable comments. I love them – all of them.