I am someone who abhors anything loud, as my family would corroborate. I don’t like anything noisy. Even the parties I go to must not have ear-shattering music. I like to have my eardrums intact, thank you very much. But, have you noticed how noise, in general, has increase a lot in our public spaces Read More →

bindi tales

Bindi that tiny dot that Hindu women put on their forehead, intrigues a lot of people When I visited Amsterdam many years back, my Dutch friend’s girlfriend kept quizzing me about a tiny blue bindi that I wore with a kurta. I saw firsthand how foreigners are so in awe of our traditional dress and Read More →

I took off my footwear in the car and walked the stony path to the temple carefully. As I stepped into the huge courtyard that the large, ornately carved doors led to, I bent down to touch the threshold with my hand and touched it to my forehead in obeisance. My younger son who was Read More →

wistful musings

The other day, I stood in my tiny lawn looking up at the avocado tree. It has managed to stay put and grounded in such a narrow space. The trunk lengthening and going to obscene heights so that it can get its share of sunlight. The leaves, they renew completely every year, and the tree Read More →

snorkeling north bay andaman

Have you seen the movie Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara? Yes, the same one that shows three males taking a trip of a lifetime together. I loved the movie, the tiny tales it told and the lilting songs. The close friendships, the silly pranks and the challenges that help each one overcome a fear for life Read More →

When I shared my last post on tidying clothes, I got an overwhelming response with many sharing how they struggle with arranging clothes, problem of plenty, holding on to clothes that do not fit in the hope that they will fit one day and loving the technique of folding that frees up space. As promised Read More →

It’s almost been a month-long break here on Rachna says I have been very sluggish on this blog, and my kids are complaining. I promise to post more here in this year, starting with this post. I can’t step into the New Year without reflecting on the past year. I do that pretty often, BTW Read More →

death is sobering

The only thing certain about life is death. Yet we are hit with a ferocity when it actually stares us in the face. It shakes us in a way nothing else in our lives does. My two clearest memories of seeing death up, close and personal were that of  my maternal grandmother’s (nani) when I Read More →