The Indian Race

Too much of crime TV has got my brain into a muddled mess. I think of situations where Indians are arrested or bodies of Indians are found and then I start to think of the classification system of humans.
As of today, the world classifies human beings as Caucasians,Blacks,Hispanics and Asians.
For a while I was under the impression that Indians are Asians for the simple reason of us being in Asia.But then I was informed that Asians are people with Mongolian features and we don't come close and the confusion reverted back in me.
A general perception of race is done on the basis of color. The world classifies human beings as reds, whites, yellows and blacks. Many popular literature describes Indians as coffee color people or browns.
I came across another method of classification based on chemical analysis of DNA. An L haplogroup present in varying quantities in different races might prove an effective means. Indians have a large quantity of this as middle eastern people(who bear striking resemblance to us!) have low amount.So maybe a color based classification is not right.
If we trace back our origins to the Aryans, it becomes apparent that we are from the Caucasian race although we fall better into the Hispanic category.
I am still confused.

My Love Affair with Delhi

I admit that I am completely, totally and irrevocably in love with Delhi. The city has grown on me and I simply love it. Delhi has its own characteristics which are so unique, annoying at times and yet endearing.

• The Delhi traffic:You think you are going the right way..? No you are not! The red lights are for decoration purposes or maybe they are an inbuilt accelerators in your cars.You need to rush at top speed to avoid colliding with people coming from the opposite direction(where the hell did they come from?). And if you are on a two wheeler or a rickshaw, then you can drive at your own speed and forget about hearing the many honks and shouts from behind you.You are the king(Queen) of the road.
• Punjabi:It has travelled from the land of sarso and sunflower to enter our very own city. It does not matter whether you are from haryana or kerala.You live in Delhi and as a rule, you should no a little bit of punjabi.From the excessive use of ji at all places to many other words, punjabi is Delhi's own brand of local language.
• Street Food: A foodie's heaven, at every crossroads you can find a small stall selling chaats, chineeeese(spelled that way),momos and kababs.Dig into the delectable cuisine of delhi with its unique flavor because you will never find such momos in China nor such kababs in the best mughlai restaurants.The street food run down by the heat and the atmosphere of delhi has its own taste.
• Shopping;A shopper's delight, delhi paves its way into the best shopping destinations with cheap ripoffs from the markets of Sarojini and Rajouri to high class haute fashion stores of south Delhi and now West delhi. Know style in Delhi, A fashion Capital in its own way.
• Metro: It has become a trademark of delhi, snaking its way in and around the city, The delhi Metro ensures a fun filled, comfortable travel of which we once dreamed. A niche transport system, Delhi owes to.
• Autos: These black and yellow little mixes between a scooter and a car traverse the terrains of Delhi.When you have no other option, they come to your rescue and the package contains a foul mouthed driver interested only in your monetary value and the little scooter which has a knack for hitting every bump on the road.
• Commercial/residential: Is that a house? Is that a shop? No its a house! And the debate goes on with whole shopping complexes opened up in just any place, you will find people living on top of shops and the whole area being converted into one huge shopping complex with vestiges of its residential part remaining still. Tilak nagar anyone?
• People: Delhi is nothing without its people from old aunties in bright coloured suits haggling with shopkeepers to uncles who seem to know the solution to every problem of yours.You have school girls in miniskirts and school boys in low pants.There are teenagers in various apparels and the young adults keen on their job.The corporate types travel around in lavish cars and a group of fun loving people stand and chat away to glory.
• Cars: Delhi cars also have a way about them. You can spot a large SUV bellowing loud music and a sleek sedan with a man reading newspaper in it.And the usual assortment of Santros and Indicas with a family of four in it, small kids jumping in the back and the wife yapping away. Then there are the ones who seem to fit in dozens of people in one car.Talk about space utility.
• Restaurants: The unique blend of five star restaurants and the usual dhaba is another mix.You can shell out thousands on one fine meal and the next day spend a hundred bucks at a dhaba all to your satisfaction:

To Delhi:

Salut!

Gurgaon and Public Transport

Yesterday I had to run an errand in Gurgaon and with no private conveyance(seeing as I am not allowed to drive), I had to resort to the public transport system to reach there.
Knowing as many do, there is no direct connectivity bu public transport system to gurgaon and I had to devise a plan to reach there as soon as possible.
I was snowballed with suggestions from various sources which suggested the metro to Qutub Minar and then an auto.The whole system would take more than hour, which could not be spared.
Then I checked the bus routes to gurgaon.Me being in Janakpuri ensured that I would have to change the bus at least twice to reach Gurgaon, once again spending an hour on commute.
Finally relenting to the situation,I called the cab and drove away, reaching the place in half an hour.
I eagerly wait for the time when metro starts plying on the Gurgaon line as the commute to the millennium city is very difficult. I met no traffic on the way but on weekdays with the rush hour traffic, a mere journey of fifteen minutes gets stretched to an hour. For people without a private vehicle, it is tougher still as they have to negotiate the route in buses, autos and rickshaws.
Hopefully, the connectivity between gurgaon and Delhi improves with time as the city has now become an indispensable hub for party goers, shoppers and office workers.

My Healthy Burger

Yesterday night I decided to make my version of a burger.a vegetable burger to be more precise.
The nutritional facts about a regular burger are:

Burger bun: 120 calories
Cheese slice: 70
Patties:
fried aloo patty:249
chicken patty:223

So a burger normally adds up to around 400 calories!! Not to mention the soda we take and fries as a side food.

I decided to do away with the fattening options.

My substitutes:

Burger bun:120 (cant help that!!)
dry yoghurt:23( -47)
grilled aloo tikki:128(-121)

And the usual, assort it with tomatoes,onions, lettuce. I liked the guilt free option of having a burger and it was delicious.! And I saved 168 calories.Not much, but then again, a burger is a sinful meal.

The chewing gum lair

I like chewing gum.I love its minty taste in my mouth after a meal and then I resort to playing with it. It twirl it in my fingers, stretch it, make it into a blog and then start imitating spiderman's webs.

As much as it interests me in doing all this stuff, people around me find it gross and disgusting.Ha! I continue to play with my gum, as much the other person is grossed out, i don't care.Me and my gum, the ideal place.

The day before, I was fiddling with my gum as usual when it fell down.Figuring that it must have fallen on the floor, I went to sleep. The next morning was the usual till I couldn't pry my pillow off the bed.

Wonders of wonders..! The gum had stuck to my pillow which was now sticking comfortably to my bed. ignoring the impending danger, i went on to do my morning chores.

During lunchtime, forgetting that my pillow was now the lair of the chewing gum monster I plopped it on my lap and the damn thing stuck to my skirt.So now, i have a soiled pillow cover, a spoilt bedsheet and an extremely sticky skirt.

So much for my gum playing antics.

 

Arranged v/s Love Marriage

I have been contemplating this for a long time now after reading the many historical romances Madz suggested.
The notion of marriage in those books is so romantic and simple and it got me to thinking about how we are changing when it comes to planning our life with someone.
Arranged marriage has many practicalities and as opposed to the general perception, the views of the bride and groom are taken into account(ideal case). This type of arrangement is not done in a fleeting second when you are overpowered by those mind numbing, ecstatic hormones of love. Both people involved are checked for compatibility and similar backgrounds. A financially secure life eliminates many marital disputes and background compatibility is often preferred. Many issues such as the incessant male ego and the female insecurity are hushed when such an alliance forms. On a lighter note,I find the notion of getting to know the person after marriage romantic.The whole concept of newness and intimacy.There are no secrets from family and friends because even if you are not, they know exactly what's going on..;)
Love marriage on the other invokes the concept of love conquers all, stemming from the many Hollywood/Bollywood movies. The wild romance of things, the flurry of heart, the fuzziness in the stomach, that first look and the first kiss. The freedom to chose your mate and the choice to do so whenever you want. All poetic theories which become the foundation of such a marriage.But sadly, love doesn't last and when the muddled up brain wakes up from the slumber, you realise that the small quirks you liked about the person are annoying, the small beach house you bought is disgusting and you don't have security.
Arranged marriages have known to go wrong with the cases of dowry deaths and NRI weddings but so do love marriages.The problem compounds in a love marriage if the two people don't have similar lifestyle before it, adjustment is a problem but then again maybe love does conquer all.
The debate is still on...

Electric Pole and sparking.

Yesterday night was like any other. me and my sister were watching marathon episodes of our latest nemesis, F.R.I.E.N.D.S(me watching the repeats having seen it all twice!). 

It was past midnight and my sister retired to sleep and I took my laptop to start writing when I heard some gunshot like sound coming from outside.assuming some over zealous sports enthusiast burning crackers, I paid little attention to it. But the sound increased in intensity.

Now I allowed my imagination to wander from imagining a bomb blast to a glorified police chase complete with gunshots and gangsters.

And then I saw a flash of light at the window and all the lights in the house started flickering right out of a cheap horror drama.i woke up my sister who was at her irritable best and we peeked out of the window.

what greeted us was much more magnificent than a thousand gunshots! the electricity pole outside my window had a lose wire and the whole thing was aglow in yellow light.There was intense sparking as i saw the loose wire sway dangerously.And then somebody shut the main power supply and all went quit.The whole fell into a deathly silence and we went to the balcony's to inspect the damage.

Much to my dismay there was no damage.And then the whispers grew.Enthusiastic aunties, clad in nightgown said that two cars were electrocuted and should not be touched, all the men came out to check on their cars and ladies screamed at their children to stay away from the wire which still hung loose.

The whole are was blacked out as the electric repair unit(whatever they are called) came to the rescue. Thankfully, the fans still worked and I went back to my work leaving the excitement behind while all the aunties and uncles gathered in a park to discuss it. They have nothing better to do.