Ascertaining future!

Across the oceans
An unknown land
An Island it is.

Amidst mystic beliefs
And harsh realities
I come to ascertain my future

A known stranger-my partner
Faith and commitment
His persona depicts.

Amidst vast differences;
Similarly vast similarities,
Destined to complete togetherness.

As we tour from the shallows
To the abyss of life’s oceans
We hand one another in onerous.

Enormous tides and weeds
Abundant is also the tranquility
Swimming across them we hold on…
To one another, Every breath till death parts us.



Dedicated to my dear husband, Arjun!

Love

Suj

Of Wine and Spaghetti!

Discovery Travel and Living is one amazing channel that we get here. Travel; food; lifestyle...aka everything that is Man Made in nature!!

Talking about travel, it reminds me of our all time favorite show 'Globe Trekker'- Discovery Travel and Living ! Travelling all across the world, its like looking at the world and places that as common people, we cant afford to visit, through their eyes:))

Anyways, with lotsa cookery shows up there, all the authentic European dishes were made with some sort of wine! Hmm...so i wanted to try something too!!

Got spaghetti from the store, luckily for me my dear friend Anu, gifted us a bottle of red wine- Santa Ana-Argentina, while they were over for here for dinner! Thanks to you my dear, Fantastic wine it was!!

Now that we are leaving and the mood of partying and having fun till we leave has set in, farewells are in full swing!

So, it was one of our casual dinners with Dada[Shaumik] and us!

I was looking for recipes of Spaghetti, i found one online, but that was Non-veg and lots of other ingredients.

Hmm....now i didnt have the time to run to the grocery store..so had to manage with something at home! And Italian veggies...hard to find that stock at an Indian home!Running through my fridge i found Eggplant/Brinjal!That struck the 'good-to-go' chord!

My imagination did its rounds and I got into action!

A few parts from Jo Mama’s recipezaar and others from the same site!

Made my own palatal concoctions and here is my secret recipe for you!!

Ingredients-
Spaghetti- use only 300 gms for the below mentioned quantities. Cook according to the instructions on the packet.

Serves 4 people if this is the only dish that you are serving besides the wine!!

In veggies-

1. Capsicum/ Bell pepper - 1










2. Tomatoes- half a kilo- 500 gms










3. Onions- 2 [medium sized] sliced length wise










4. Egg plant/brinjal- 1 long one[ sliced in the pattern shown below]

4.Garlic cloves-2

[Optional are a lot of other veggies like Zucchini, Mushrooms, broccoli,shallots...and other suitably-Italian veggies]

For seasoning-

1. Parsley flakes- I used the dried parsley which I generally stock at home to use instead of coriander leaves as sometimes there is scarcity of it here.

2. Some herbs- Its a general Italian herb packet which I had at home.Ingredients were not mentioned on the packet so i am unable to provide with the details.

3. Chilli tomato sauce

4. Half an ounce of Good Red Wine!!

5. Some cheese-best is Parmesan,but if thats not available. I used cheddar cheese!

5. Olive oil for frying[I used Sunflower oil, which i don't think altered the taste, but if u have olive oil, then nothing like it:)]

Method-

• Take 2 deep bottom pans.




• In one cook the spaghetti and use the other one for preparing the sauce.




• It is the best to make it this way else one will become cold and the efforts will go in vain:)




• Grind the tomatoes with little water and salt,without water is a great choice!




• Heat oil in the other pan and add garlic, onions, capscicum. Once that is slightly cooked, add the egg plants.




• Cook the egg plant half and add the tomato sauce and the ground tomato.




• Let it cook for 5 mins, now add the seasoning. Remember the Wine!!




• Let the veggies cook and get the flavors!




• Now add salt and bring it to a semi-gravy level.




• Switch off the stove.

By now the spaghetti is also done!

Now dish out the spaghetti on the plate and add the curry/gravy/sauce above it as shown below.

Best when served hot!

Its time to Wine and Dine!!!

This is also my entry in to an event called "Vegetarian Thanksgiving Recipes Carnival" by Mansi of Fun and Food Cafe!

Love

Suj

The Penang Morning!!

Yellow, to vibrant orange to Vermilion,
Hues of the sky evolve at dawn.
The sun rises and so does a day…
As glittery sea water relaxes at bay.

Fresh breeze enter the scalps of my hair,
Witnessing all, as I stand opening the window ajar.
A soothing beauty enriches me…
The sight of the sky, sea and green.

A serene life adorns a new morning.
Sparrows & cuckoos chirp the day in.
Melodious is their voice purifying all senses.
Rhythmic to it are the rising sun and motion of trees.

Vast alluring green amidst addictive beauty,
Abandoning all this is an unwelcome reality.

Penang I love you!!

Dedicated to the place i instantly fell in love with!

Thank you God!!

Love,

Suj

Pro and con...

A pinch in the heart it gives
Yet a soulful pleasure.
Bizarre are the emoticons
Similar are the strong emotions

This silent, little dwelling
Has filled in me a joyous tinkling
Catering to needs of My, Mine own.
Happy, secluded sense of living.

At times the idle devil works,
Craving to be more occupied
The dependant self wished
To be the ever-independent one.

Then arrives a craving to turn to home.
Sensible it is for kith and kin
But here I am, witnessing
Repercussions and constraints.

What God wills shall occur,
Immaterial of what I prefer.
Unstable thoughts disregarded
In chaos, cosmos shall be attained!

Thank you for visiting!!

Cheers,

Suj

Anxious palpitations...

For a moment my heart stopped as the clock struck two
The sky dimmed and shed waters one and two
I wondered what it had to say,
Was it God’s message or a simple rain any way?

Felt like a wave of shock crossed me
Something untoward had happened
Shine and Fierce rain and Shine again
Is it some sort of a game?

Don’t know where the sun went away…
Don’t know where all the thick clouds came from…
Again the sun shines bright
after it rained with all might

Sitting I am with an untitled unrest
A mysterious fear engulfs my chest
Praying with every crossable crossed,
Hope is my final resort!!!

This is a long past story now,which was written in utterly inexplicable anxiety!

Now its all solved and mind is at peace!!

Love

Suj

1947- top notch!!

Sri. Jawaharlal Nehru welcomes you at the ground floor as you enter to take the lift to this excellent restaurant “1947”!! There is a rustic door on the right when you disembark the lift. A welcoming sign to this place is a cannon surrounded by pebbles, that is placed on your right as you enter in!
The fragrance of the food attacks your nose as you are still enjoying this ‘old times’ feeling of the venue!
Very intricately done interiors, gives a sense of being to one of the aristocratic houses of yesteryears!
Every detail is carefully taken care of to present to you the feeling of the REAL India during 1947!
The switches on the switch boards reminded me of the place I grew up, my Grand mom’s place! The chairs are coir ones that I still have in my house as a reverence to our grand-parents!

The food too, is as welcoming as the ambience. A wholly vegetarian, non-alcoholic restaurant is a treat to the family and a good outing with friends, new and old alike !!

The arrays of dishes are also fantastic. You might want to omit Missi Roti as I didn’t find it great. The rest of the things on the menu are great to go with! Biryani is something that we [my cousin and myself ] relished, hot and fragrant and lip-smacking !!!

“Always at your service”, seems to be the motto of the staff there as they respect their patrons enormously well!!

If you are looking at prices…then one might be a little disappointed when compared to the prices of that of the Sagar food chains across Bangalore.
But for the ambience and the quality of food and the service I think it’s nominal.

Hmm… after tempting you all to this place…let me tell you where is it…Its on the Devegowda Petrol bunk ring road, BSK 2nd stage, Bangalore.
When you are coming from the petrol bunk side, there is an Ashwa TVS showroom on your left , a little ahead there is a bath ware showroom [I can’t recollect the name of that store though. It’s quite a unique name].
1947, is right above that! Happy eating!! I went there on the 10th day of its opening, so didn’t need reservation. You might want to book your table now, especially on the weekends!
Take care and I hope you enjoy this!!
Love

Suj

A Golden Age

Bangladesh, East Pakistan in 1971, freedom struggles, young and old alike are scrapped off their lands and homes...Desolated civilians; tons of refugees; brave mother's and their children; wounded soldiers; martyrs; service- oriented, all time working medicos; bloodshed; gruesome warfare effects; guns; bombs; fire..indescribable struggle symbols.

Well, this book is not about just that. Its not only a gruesome reflection of war, its the story of a woman, a widowed young mother of two children, amidst her trivias and her complexities.

"Shona" their small dwelling where this story of emotion swells into a scintillating abode of sensitive humane reality!
Rehana,has lost her husband and is desolated. She then loses her children to her brother-in-law[from Lahore] in the court of law, as she does not have the means to provide for either her children or pay for the lawyer.
Then a suspense filled miracle happens and she brings her children back and builds a house atop hers and rents it out.[ This is the suspense element that aided me in finishing the book asap]. Her children are in the university now and are busy with the their studies and their revolutionary activities. They want freedom...they want to have their own government, instead of being ruled by the Pakistani's.

Her liitle girl, Maya, is a beautiful young lass whose stern-self is as strong as the strength of her beauty and her long lustrous hair!
Sohail, her son is a handsome young man also very much of his dad's calibre!
There are other characters that are equally well-portrayed, Mr&Mrs. Sengupta,their son Mithun[her tenants], Mrs. Choudhary[her neighbours], Mrs. Rahman and Mrs. Akram[the gin rummy ladies]. These are the people Rehana's life revolves around!
There are other characters that you get introduced to during the course of the novel.You have to read it to find out :))))

Tahmima's style is colloquial and she reaches into the depths of every character!
The print of the whole novel is very inviting and is easy to read, atleast that's one more thing personally that was very inviting about this book.

For a first time novelist, she has done an excellent job!Her descriptions about an irregular or a regular event are vivid!
You can feel the emotions of the characters and will totally get involved in the characters, more so with the protagonist, Rehana. As a mother, Rehana's character is sketched out to flawlessly. She pains to keep things calm around her, despite her own discomforts. She struggles to keep her family knit together at all odds.
She at one point measures the amounts of food stock at home to keep her family fed. I loved that part, as it shows how as mothers and as home makers, women measure each and everything and live life brilliantly well whilst giving their best to their families even during hard times!!!

Rehana emerges from her motherly emotions to a mother of children of the nation.She gives herself into the struggles of war and refugee camps. She lets her heart out to a stranger, who she almost falls in love with, despite being aware of the fact that its a futile effort.

Sohail and Maya are teenagers who evolve during the course of the story and emerge into revolutionaries who live for the freedom of their home.
Also, intricately portrayed are the subtleties of friendship, love and life of the characters.
I refrain to reveal more about this book as it will spoil the zeal to read it!!

In all a brilliant book recommended for readers of all ages and groups!
Happy reading!!
Awaiting your enthusiastic reciprocation!
Love
Suj

Over her Dead Body!

A horror movie I presumed it was, but still went ahead to watch with the spine, my dear husband and friends!
It didnt seem deadening or anything at the beginning. Although my co-watchers, did scare me a bit!Finally, the movie commenced!

Starring-

1. Eva Longoria Parker- Kate


2. Paul Rudd- Henry


3. Lake Bell-Ashley


4. Jason Biggs-Dan


5. Lindsay Sloane-Chloe


6. Stephen Root-Sculptor

Ok...now that you have got an intro[introduction] of the cast, it makes my job easier to tell you what happens in the movie!Kate and Henry are getting married.
The wedding in the evening and they are making the last minute preparations.

Kate reminds me of Monica from Friends. She is so obsessed with order and doing it the right way, i.e 'her' way!

She dies without getting married. How???you would have to watch the movie!

Then she meets an angel, whom Kate doesnt believe as you see, like us, she too has the conception that angels always have wings and well this one doesnt :).

So before listening to what the angel has to say, Kate goes on and on like a whiny woman who has no, absolutley no patience whatsoever.
The Angel disappears without telling her, what her future seems like.So, she is sent back to the Earth.

Henry's sister, Chloe coerces him to a psychic [ Ashley ], to remove him from his depression and guessing that the Psychic can talk to Kate and make Henry believe that he has to move on!

Ashley--- she is a part time Psychic and a part time Chef. Her assistant,best friend,a gay, is Dan. During the course of time,[now, how that happens, you would have to watch the movie for it ;)] Ashley and Henry, begin to see each other.
Thats when the trouble and comic relief Kate pops in!! Its fun to watch the real and unreal women fight over the man.

Hillarious array of scenes follow, which will keep tickling your funny bone!!

There is a twist in the movie, which obviously, I will not reveal as it will spoil the fun of watching it!
There are love, emotional and faith battles that the characters fight during the course of the movie. The method in which all the above emotions are treated is a treat to watch.

Finally what wins is for you to watch.

Performance-

Actors have done a neat job, but may be they should have chosen some one slightly more prettier than Lake Bell for Ashley.

Eva, doesnt look great either. But then, the characters are well played.

Its a movie that has to be watched keeping your head outside the theatre, just carry your light heart and a smile, you will return with laughter that will jingle in your mind:))

Have a lovely time!!
Take care
Love
Suj

What happens in Vegas!!

Hey all!

Las Vegas like you know is a place where a lot of movies are based...and so is this...hmm... not really...but the main plot is in the 'Sin city' as it is called!

Directed by- Tom Vaughan
Starring -

1. Cameron Diaz[ the whole reason why i saw the movie:)))] as Joy Mc Nally.


2. Ashton Kutcher- Jack Fuller.


3. Rob Corddry- Hater [Jack's friend].


4. Lake bell- Tipper [ Joy's friend].


5. Jason Sudeikis- Mason.

The movie begins with the break-up of Joy and Mason and on the other hand Jack being fired from his Dad's firm.And they unknowingly decide to go Vegas for rejuvenation.
Then they meet, in a manner somehow similar to Bollywood i felt!

There is the whole climax...they actually get married following a night of frolic and debauchery and to top it all they win a lottery of $3millon as a jackpot.

Now is where the story actually gets its actually twists and turns. They are running up for a divorce as they dislike each other and yet want the money.I am leaving you all with this suspense for you figure out what happens next!!

Tom Vaughan [ director] and Dana Fox [writer] have both done justice to the movie. The timing of events and dialogues were good and apt.


Performance -

• Cameron Diaz- is as usual good and very natural. But there she is old now and has to quit doing such young roles....or may be should put on a bit more make-up. Her age is reflected through out the movie. She looks like an elder sister to Ashton..who is in real 6 yrs younger than her.From the times of 'In Her Shoes' in 2005 to now...she looks like a Mom.


• Cameron...head-up to your green room please!


• Ashton Kutcher- Looks fantastic and has performed well too!! A full 10/10 to him!!


• Rob Corddry- Has performed well...no qualms about him. He should have been a little less jumpy i felt and may be a little more like a man.


• Lake Bell- never liked her for her looks...but does her part well.

Everyone else have done a neat job. A good, 'keep your brain out of the cinema hall and come with a heart' kind of movie. Hillarious besides teaching us some essential lessons for life!! Somethings that are usually missing in the western lifestyles.It is about bonding and caring and most of all Love!! Background score is good.

In all a nice enjoyable movie that you want to watch as a break from other monotonous daily dramas!!

Have fun watching and let me know how it was.
Take care
Love
Suj

Kadai Bhindi!

Bhindi is something that people across the world love!! More so with the Indians!
Far away here, i had till date never got really good Bhindi- Ladies finger-Okra-Bendekayi!
I have eaten Bhindi fries at the restaurants here, but strangely never found it good anywhere.

Finally my search ended at Little India , I found the best bhindi!














Back home, i wanted to make something different from what is usually made at home.
Hmm... so a no-no to sambar, gojju and roasted dry sabzi[palya].
I tried this innovative method and made a delicious concoction :)))) !!




In a kadai it is..So I am going to call it Kadai Bhindi!!
Tip- before chopping the Bhindi, keep it for drying under the fan for a while[say for about a couple of hours], so u can chop it directly and you dont need to wipe every bhindi to remove excess water!

Ingredients-

1. Bhindi- 500 grams or half a kilo [fine chopped]



2. Tomato- 2[finely chopped]



3. Onion- 1 [finely chopped]

For Tempering-

1. Jeera- 1 tablespoon



2. Oil- 3 tablespoons

For spice-

1. Garam Masala- 3 table spoons



2. Chilli powder- 2 table spoons

Quarter glass of water.
Salt to taste. And not to forget Coriander for garnishing!

Method-

• Heat oil and add Jeera. Then add onions and fry till raw smell goes.


• Now add the chopped Bhindi. Fry a little and then add salt.


• Cover and keep for it to slowly fry in its own water while stirring occassionally to avoid it from burning.
  
• After about 5 mins, add the tomatoes. Mix it well. Cover and keep stirring in between.
  
• Add the water after you see that the tomato is well cooked and is soft.
  
• Cover and let it cook. After 5 mins check and add the spices.
  
• Mix well and let it cook.
  
• After the water evaporates, it will become semi-dry and now...Garnish with coriander leaves!

Its ready to be served!!!

Best eaten with Chapathi/ Phulka!

Happy eating!

Love

Suj

Pep up!

The day before yesterday, I was in my "feeling low" phase of my stay in Penang.
As loneliness striked more so due to physically being alone, disinterest in everything became apparent.
Worry about the future engulfed my thoughts and left me paranoid. I tried talking to my friends, but didn't do me good, cos may be deep down inside i knew that i was the cause for what was happening to me.
That day i couldn't think of eating as aversion for food had strongly set in. Yet, hunger pangs drew me to coerce myself to push something down the esophagus.
I realised may be I should cook something delicious looking and tasting to pep me up!
And so i did, and i wanted to try some other style of cooking, so i picked up 'engai' recipe from Veds , and started cooking!
It was different from the engai i usually make, so that was a good break!
Cutting the long story short, here's what happened next...
I was satiated with the food and was happy!
Although the 'not feeling good' mood set in the moment i was alone again the next day, i decided to fight it out!
Change...that was what was required to brake the monotony of daily humdrums.
So, inconsiderate of my age, i actually went ahead and watched "The Lion King - II!!"
Trust me it helped to such an extent that i actually learnt my lessons to pep up from the movie!!
It's all in the mind!
What we think is what makes us and our days!! Self- pepping is a great way to remain happy!
And no matter how many maxims we read about happiness, it is what we learn from our experiences that finally comes to our aid!
If you have had a bad day, fight it out, cos its your thought that is telling you its bad, where as there might have been something good cos of that!
So cheer up and have a great and peppy day!!

Loadsa love

Suj