For those perefct happy mornings!

A good sleep is all what is required when we call the day. Whether it’s the all suited-up working professionals, the ever-performing sportsmen, the round-the-clock working our sweet mothers or the cute little kids who fill us with joy with their cute activities, a sound sleep is a must for each one of us. But what adds more value to this sound sleep is the manner in which we are put to this sound sleep. For some, it’s reading a book on the bed, for some it’s listening to music under the fleece, and for some it’s just rewinding the day just gone by. But my bedtime ritual is to narrate stories to my 3-year old nephew. For me, he is the source to all the happiness in this world, and though he does not understand the stories which I narrate to him, for the fact, that he is too young for them, I still maintain my ritual because that allows me ample of time to be spent with him, and that what puts me to rest and satisfaction after a long day at work. That very moment of the day when I make him lie over me with his little and cute hands thumping my chest with all the excitement and sparkle in his eyes, is when I feel relaxed the most. That is the moment when I feel rejuvenated and going back to the nostalgic feeing of my own childhood days. This bedtime ritual helps me refresh myself and become supercharged for the next day in the best of my spirits. But while doing all of this, I make sure that my source of happiness itself shall remain happy, relaxed and pampered; and to make sure that he gets all what he deserves for a proper and sound sleep which shall lead to his healthy development, I trust nothing but the best – Pampers, the most wonderful Baby Dry Pants.

It was one of my friends at office who recently got blessed with a daughter and has been since then being showered with all sorts of parenting advises, and when some time back we were discussing the same, she passed on to me this wonderful advise about Pampers. She explained to me in detail as to how much it is necessary for the infants, newborns and young kids to enjoy a proper disturbance and irritation-free sleep, just like the rest of us, and nothing else but Pampers is undoubtedly the best for the purpose. This interested me a lot and in the pursuit to find the perfect solution for our respective sources of happiness, we went online to learn more and landed at https://www.rewardme.in/tag/Pampers. What we then discovered was an ocean of information, discovering new facts, learning new techniques and yes, a very cute video, which cannot be resisted sharing here with all.

So, give your lovely and cute little ones, only the best because they deserve it as for what they do to us – make us smile.

This blog post is a part of the IndiBlogger's Indi-Happy Hours' Bedtime Rituals campaign.

Experience #UnconditionalLove with the Zenfone

Another year introduced itself a couple of weeks ago, and here I am, standing at the intersection of thoughts, once again, lost in myself, asking the same question: “Why is this Valentine-stuff is so important? What is in it to celebrate love? Is it not that love shall exist forever, and not just for one day?” With all these questions jogging in my mind a their own sweet disturbing pace, I reached my friend’s place who seemed to be eagerly awaiting for me since long, and greeted me in his signature style, “Hey Bugger, what’ up? You know that you are late, again, as usual! And anyways, that’s why you’re buying us drinks tonight!” I looked at his gleaming face, and smiled, and then thought that this guy who seems to be so jovial, was not at all like this a few weeks ago, when the new year introduced itself, for him, it was just a change of date and nothing else, as his long-time girlfriend broke-up with him at the so-called “Happy” New Year Party! For him, it was, in no manner, whatsoever, was a “Happy” new year altogether. And with this I entered into his room where the rest of the gang was waiting for Mr. Late Comer (that’s me), to join the party and set the ball rolling. The actual kickass Valentine’s party was happening right there. With Floyd playing in the background, and Mr. Monk waiting to be explored by us, the mood was set with the ambience playing upon us its perfect charm and seduction to fall in love with it, right then and there!

And by the time, I was done hugging each member of the gang with exchanging all of our style of pleasantries, the moment I turned to him, I was introduced to my Valentine, or let me say “Our Valentine”, because there were two of them! Yes, you read it right, TWO of them!

For a moment, it was literally hard to believe that while I was busy asking myself questions as to the validity of Valentine’s Day just because I did not had a partner (until a short while ago) to celebrate it with, someone was literally planning stuff in and out to make my day in the most perfect manner! My buddy, my friend, had me gifted an ASUS Zenfone 5 – a Black Beauty, which was oozing aura, style, sexiness and seduction, while its inner powers were yet to be put to test, and we, the #BrothersForLife, got it from nowhere else but our all-time favourite Flipkart. And as soon as our Valentines were turned on (don’t all of you get any naughty ideas), they swept us off our feet! Exploring them all, over the next couple of minutes with music and wine, I learnt the five reasons why it was the perfect Valentine partner for me:

1.     Rock solid.

2.     Beauty which you can call “Sexy” too!

3.     Trustworthy, forever.

4.     A partner for life

5.     Gives you #UnconditionalLove

The key to a Happy Home is in being the Pink of health!

Being a student who had records to his credit of hundred percent attendance (of the times when I used to be in school), I knew what it takes to be all hale and hearty to achieve this year-after-year, and also that it is not an easy task to be at. And when the family legacy continued by my nephew joining the same school, I made sure that he does get only the best and that nothing shall ever come in between him and his dreams, his future, his zeal to excel and his motivation, which shall drive him towards his goals. And for all this to be happening it is necessary by all sorts that he always remains healthy. His tales from everyday at the school, is what all the family members wait for, and I always remember the words of my Grandmother, “Tu jaldi theek ho ja, Beta. Teri shaitani ke bina Ghar soona-soona lagta hai. (Son, get well soon. The Home does not feel the same without your chirp around it.)” I did not understand what she meant back then, but I now feel it around me when I see my nephew going through bruises every other day while he learns to skate. It definitely takes a lot to build a champion but I understand that I have to make him strong and immune enough to fight back and then rise and shine. I know that his warmth and energy is what fills up my heart and turns our house into Home. With these thoughts in mind, I was browsing through parenting techniques on the internet and deciding upon the various activities that shall get in sync with the curriculum of the Play School where my Bhabhi use to teach, when I came across this amazing web portal which was about Dabur Chyawanprash and immunity in kids, which talked about helping in making the generation and the nation healthier. I found the article really interesting and I started browsing through the pages of the web portal, and the more I read, the more it kept getting interesting. After a couple of minutes of reading and then later some research about the new and improved Dabur Chyawanprash, I was assured that this is item which I was actually looking for, that one thing which shall keep all my worries at bay, my nephew, healthy and immune from the daily attacks of such stuff about which we all remain worried. We could now be worry-free as what we have been looking for was right there in our mind. We were free from second thoughts about the how to manage to keep Yash fit and fine so that he emerges as a champion in whatever he does. Because when he smiles, we all smile automatically, as he is our life, our pride and our joy. And with this happy thought within me, the next I was doing was walking down the street to our local departmental store to buy a jar of Happiness – a jar of Dabur Chyawanprash! J

This blog post is a part of the IndiBlgger's Indi-Happy Hours "A healthy child makes a happy home" campaign.

Because there’s no Diwali like a Diwali with Family! :)

09:25 A.M.: I am running late for office; got to attend a meeting with Boss and few other departments at 10:00 A.M. in the Conference Room, and I am still 15 minutes away from office with a traffic jam which looks to be purposely there to play spoilsport to all my efforts of making it to the office in time and in shape. And here rings my phone! Amidst the hustle and bustle of the traffic I pick up the call bringing the traditional Desk Phone ringtone to an end to hear Maa at the other, asking “Tum Diwali pe Ghar aa rahe ho na? (You are coming Home for Diwali na?)” And I answered, “Maa, I am running late for office, will call you later.” She didn’t repeat her question but her voice shifted to a lower tone, I chose to ignore, and she made out that I am feeling uncomfortable. She immediately shifted back to normal pitch, pretending to be all fine, and all she said was “Nashta toh kiya nahi hoga toone par khana time se kha lena. (You must not have had breakfast but do have lunch on time.)” I did feel awkward but thought that I could not help much in the issue as what was taking over my mind was the meeting which was about to kick-start in another thirty-two minutes, precisely.

Around one and a half hours later, the meeting got over and took a sigh of relief, as this was something I have been preparing for the last three weeks and we managed to have it done successfully. All the attendees congratulated me for the presentation I made therein and with all the nobility within me I accepted the wishes of all of them while getting to hake hands with the likes of the Senior Vice Presidents of the Company. With a grin on my face, I walked towards the cafeteria and ordered a Club Sandwich and a Cold Coffee, and just then I received from a friend, a link on WhatsApp, of a video on YouTube with a message – “Bro, what we are earning for?!” I was both, surprised and confused. Surprised because I have not been in touch with this friend from pretty much a long time, though we went to the same school, and college, till our jobs did us apart; and surprised because of the content of his message. With curiosity in heart and mind, I opened the link that he shared, which led me to the video below.

After around seven minutes, I realized that I did not notice when the cafeteria guy came and placed the sandwich and the coffee on my table and left, and that the grin on my face from the success of the just-concluded meeting has almost vanished and being replaced with moist eyes.

My heart knew what I was up to in the next moment. On the other end of the call, Maa was sounding astonished with my call in the office hours, as that does not happen, usually, and may be more specifically happily surprised with my question – “Maa, ‘Gud Ke Makhaane’ bana rahi ho na Diwali par? ;)” And all she replied was, “Haan, bus tu aaja. (Yes, you just come)” There’s one more thing which I had to do next, message that friend of mine who sent me the link to that amazing and nostalgic video, “Bro, you too get extra holidays sanctioned, I’ll be home for a week because there’s no Diwali like a Diwali with Family J.”

This blog post is a part of the IndiBlgger's Indi-Happy Hours "There's No Diwali Like A Diwali With Family" campaign.

The High Five That Zests LIfe

The dictionary reads ZEST as “great enthusiasm and energy”, but to me the word describes a million feelings of the world within it. To me, ZEST is a feeling of awesomeness, a kind of pump within which gives you an instant kick, a blow of happiness, excitement or sheer pleasure which brings that smile on my lips, a wind of peace to my hair and a feeling of satisfaction to my heart – a kind of an altogether different emotion in itself which just cannot be explained enough but could only be felt by oneself.

This feeling which adds Zest to my life has been felt a lot of times earlier in life but it was only when Blogadda and Tata Zest came together and asked what are those 5 things which makes this happen, that made me sit down and list down the top 5!

1. The People, who make me what I am:

Like it’s said that “Charity begins at home”, it’s equally true to say that “Happiness is where Home is”. When I look around to figure out what all adds Zest to my life, the first that comes to my mind is the people who make me what I am – Maa, Paa, my younger brother and the Love of My Life. These Fantastic Four feature on the top spot of those amazing five things which adds Zest to my life.

2. The Rhythm, that keeps me alive:

It’s no understatement that “Music is a universal drug”. Let it be those days when I am super-charged and all pepped up to hit my office desk before time, or those stupid Mondays after a great weekend, or just those lazy days when it rains enough for me to have a private Pacific Ocean in front of my house or just any other day and any mood, music is something that keeps me alive even on the darkest-silent-dead night. And I being a patron of every single genre of music enjoy the freedom of pampering myself like a bird of all skies. Music is my blood, my oxygen, my life support system.

3. The Nectar, Papa ke haath ki Chai:

Whatever be the situation and no matter what is that which is running in my head or heart, Papa ke haath ki Chai serves the purpose of nectar, anytime, anywhere. It’s one typical connect me and Paa share with each-other, and over numerous rounds of this heavenly drink, the Zest, quietly walks in life and settles there.

 Image Cortsey: @Parsahiya

4. The Mighty Gift, My Sword, My Tongue – My Pen:

The day I graduated as a lawyer and stepped into “The Real World”, all I had in my kitty were some thoughts, some more random thoughts and a lot more different kinds of thoughts. What to do, where to go, how to lead a life, how to earn a living, a relationship of love nurtured for a decade, parents with dreams in their eyes, friends who were waving a goodbye without a definite promise as to when we will meet, and a lot lot lot more. There was a Katrina of thoughts flooding my mind, and my soul was feeling to break free, from the chains of these thoughts, it felt the need to express, and express it loud and clear, which is when I gifted myself with this writing instrument which never leaves my side, no matter what happens, and acts like all – my sword, my tounge. And adds Zest to my life in its own unique way, with each passing second.

5. The Second Skin – My Denims:

Sometimes, there is an urge to see ourselves from the other side of the line, and here a mirror does not work. That is when I pull myself into my second skin – my denims. However lazy I get to give it a bath, it never leaves its fragrance – the smell of Me, and that’s where I find where I belong to. With it, I can walk, run, lay down, roam like a nomad, be fun, eccentric, soulful and even dance on the streets as if no one is watching, and when I am back home, can sleep with it being on, and yet it never even asks for a bit in life, not even the tiniest one.

And this is how the High Five adds up that Zest to my life and keep me alive. Period. ‘Coz it’s time to Zest!

Go, Zest.

*This post is a part of the #ZestUpYourLife activity in association with TATA Zest and Blogadda.com