POETRY PATROL: CINQUAIN SEQUENCE

Hello Friends!
This is a conscious decision I have made- to learn writing Poetry. How is it fun to learn something alone... I am sure there are many of you out there who want to learn how to write poetry but don't know how or don't feel motivated enough..


So let's start doing this every week. Every weekend, I will post details about a particular form of poetry. Interested people can write in with their suggestions about which form they wish to learn. Also we can put in our links here after writing a new post with the particular Form of poetry!




Starting this week, we begin with CINQUAINS



Let us begin with the Didactic Cinquain. 


A Cinquain is a 5-line poem.


I shall break the five into a line each explaining how it is constructed..




Line 1- 1 Noun
Line 2- 2 Adjectives related to 1
Line 3- 3 Action Verbs related to 1
Line 4- 4 Feelings-a full sentence
Line 5- 1 Synonym or a word that sums it all up


Example:


Illumination


Opinionated Melanic


Pinched warped twisted


Forms a pseudo illusion


Cyclorama

You think you can write one? Of course you can!! Write a Cinquain and click on the logo below that will lead you to the page where you can fill in your blog link and read the other blog links!
Do leave in a comment so I know you appreciate the effort!
:)

Book Review: WINGS OF SILENCE

BOOK DETAILS
TITLE: WINGS OF SILENCE
FORMAT: PAPERBACK
AUTHOR: SHRIRAM IYER
PUBLISHER: SILVERFISH/WESTLAND
ISBN: 9789381626566
PAGES:244
PRICE: Rs.199
MY RATINGS: 4 out of 5

VIDEO REVIEW OF WINGS OF SILENCE


Have you dreamt of long wide roads and you panting and yet running. Running hard, your eyes focused on to the curve ahead on the road that would again lead to many more milestones ahead that would finally give way to that glistening red line, symbolising the End of the race..The beginning of a new phase of accolades..fame..money and a smile comes across your lips and you give that last shot of adrenalin into your prowess. Just then something rushes past you and it takes a moment or two to actually form a picture- a moving image of something, rather someone running along, no not along, but running ahead. The moving object seems to be huffing too and slows down after some time, as the two of you head past milestones headstrong.You take a leap, determined to overtake and finally you reach to his pace, equalling. And as you look up at his face, the familiarity is striking!The same eyebrows, the energetic smile and the glistening eyes and the limping! Of course, the limping! The guy was limping and yet, he was at par with you and it strikes you- It is your brother. The brother who seemed like a failure within the twenty years of his existence. But how was he running? You were so sure he could not. And you were so sure that you never gave him that opportunity to even try running. He was now out of breath and his eyes weary. His body was thirsty- not to be quenched by water, but by a win.

His foot is bleeding, and he is profusely bleeding, and it is now clear that you can win. What do you do? Do you go ahead and win your success? Or do you encourage that handicapped but able brother of yours to go ahead ad win it for himself?

This is the crux of the story Shriram has beautifully penned for us to read. It is his debut but the finesse with which he has described emotions, and played with them along the characters is sensitive and heart rendering as well as happy, and enlightening. Call it a fiction if you please, but trust me, by the time you are through cover to cover, I can guarantee you'd feel like a "changed man" simply for the warmth the book fills you up with! No, I haven't given out the story yet! No there is no character who limps. But it is about having a differently abled brother. It is about a typical Indian family(though the segregation between the normal and the different is not exclusive of any country) where two brothers are seen differently simply because one is physically "normal" while the other isn't. It is about how that little physical flaw begins to sharpen differences and enters into the psyche of both the person and the people around.  


There were few things that seemed to be unfitting to the plot. Shalini, Saurav's girlfriend flees with him to Aunt Sheela's place and they don't go back even after their parent's insistence. Too much fictional, and contradicting to the sensitivity that Shalini otherwise had. Also the sudden change of heart of the Father, without any such striking incident seems to be surprising. A change of heart for a stubborn man happens after a tumult. But such a point of reference is not provided. Also a person as talented as Saurav was, it is also unfair how he gives away his career. Post the Olympics, Saurav should have ideally continued with his career like Raj had. 

Other than these minute points, I felt the story had a balanced speed and points of momentum. Moments of intimacy, sensitivity and actions.. are added to the book adequately. Too good an attempt for a first-timer. Well done Shriram!


You can get in touch with the author through the Facebook Page here:
                                                                                 https://www.facebook.com/WingsofSilence

You can buy the book from here: 

Hair We Go Again!

I am just another ordinary girl passing by you, walking down the street next to you. So ordinary that you probably wouldn't find anything interesting enough to take notice as you cross the street past her. But the most ordinary thing about most ordinary people is that they are unique in their own ordinary ways.

When I was a child, I heard fables, stories with morals and last lines of "happily ever after"s and I often wandered away into Neverlands, be it witnessing a chocolate house.. a prince charming or long and luscious hair like that of Barbies and Rapunzel.. Only if we felt so beautiful about ourselves in this world where artificial beauty just like artificial intelligence is pre-dominantly significant. So I, your ordinary girl begin to get transfixed in my little world..blogging being my only escapade.

As I grew up I learned that not all stories end well
and that happy endings could also lead to hell
Until that fated day, when I went to the Indiblogger party
attended by the good and the famous, the rich and the haughty
There I used an app called, The Dove Hair Care App
which was like the Magic Mirror my mother spoke of
in the tales of the pretty Snow White
and I danced in glee, as it ascertained that someday I'd look nice
Some questions appeared like magical potions
and each I answered with renewed determination
Soon it appeared that the app knew my hair
it knew how I could take care of it well
and with a flash, a screen popped out
and it showed me solutions, that I had sought

Dove Hair Fall Therapy is what it suggested
and I looked in awe- Would it actually happen
as has been  promised
Too determined, I ran towards the door,
I shall waste no time, to have beautiful hair
But alas! I missed a stair or two and fell down
and I thought I was destined to break a bone or two
Nothing happened, as I was cradled in his arms
The man with brown rusty eyes that held me tight
and I looked into them and they looked back
like a lock, we wouldn't fall apart.
Just then the clock struck two, I knew I had to rush
so I left his embrace as much as I disliked
and ran, I ran for my life.

With a last stealing glance at him,
I exited with a heavy heart
but I knew this dove meet, had had a good start
love would find its way, even though we'd depart.
I bought a pair of the shampoo and conditioner
a beautiful silvery texture, it reflected the glamour
of what my hair would be, in a matter of days
and I waited in anticipation for the next day.
I bathed with utmost care and shampooed and conditioned my hair
regularly, with great precision as I now was Hair Aware
And soon I saw the difference, as my hair fall reduced to one
and with glee I realised the time had come.
I started using another combination of Dove Intense Hair Therapy
Shampoo and conditioner
and in about a month's time, from neck to shoulder length
My hair grew-beautiful and long
strand by strand I measured from the roots till the end.

The next Indiblogger meet was coming soon,
and I was all set to find my Man
who'd mesmerized me with those dark deep eyes
But what if he does not come looking for me
or maybe he has found someone?
And in worry, I begin to twirl my hair
but the moment I touched a strand, it was as if
it instilled in me a faith, that would not be gone.
I felt beautiful, no more a novice
I let my worries fade, this was my moment to rejoice.

I entered the party, and my hair flowing open
men stole glances while women rocked enviously in their chairs
I knew the effect, I knew my pride
And I knew I'd find the man of my dreams, the man I loved.

I searched, looked around and there he was
as magnificent as ever, with his eyes, he scrolled
and he came closer and touched my skin,
his hands stopped at my hair, twirling and playing with it
and I smiled as I hugged him tight,
Thank you Lord for bringing The Dove Indibloggers Meet in my life!

And we danced
Romanced
And we danced, we danced
The perfect beginning?

And that was the end of my hair problems..
And my life
As I realised,
Beauty with grace and love
is the best gift,  we can treasure
throughout our lives!

This post is part of a contest My Beautiful Hair Story on Indiblogger, sponsored by Dove. If you liked it, do leave in a comment! Criticisms accepted too! 

Dreaming the Rains

Photo and Poetry Copyrighted.

I have seen the rain cascading

into abbeys and in sketches drawn

I have seen the brittle in everything

and started off for a new beginning.

After proliferating through many a shores

I have known the joy of flowing past horizons 

Crawling under the dark sky, counting the stars

drop by drop, I inhaled the mist into me.

I have seen the rain cascading

into abbeys and in sketches drawn

I have seen the brittle in everything

and started off for a new beginning.

Zeus draws the stains of lilac shadows

the stains of rain whelming them

Like members of a family, strewn in an alibi

Again scampering for hope amidst chaos.

I have seen the rain cascading

into abbeys and in sketches drawn

I have seen the brittle in everything

and started off for a new beginning.

Lost in translation, Time

could not defeat me, and my ways.

I knew life is tough but the flow never tensed me,

But to lose you, wasn't planned for, even in my dreams.

I have seen the rain cascading

into abbeys and in sketches drawn

I have seen the brittle in everything

and started off for a new beginning.
Again, I daydream.

Prompt- Daydreams

By PoetryJam

BOOK REVIEW: SUNLIT HEARTS

 BOOK DETAILS

TITLE: SUNLIT HEARTS

AUTHOR: MEENU MEHROTRA

FORMAT: PAPERBACK

PUBLISHER: VITASTA PUBLISHERS

ISBN: 9789380828787

PAGES: 238

PRICE: Rs.295

MY RATINGS: 4 out of 5

 

Have you ever read a book you couldn't take your eyes off from? A book that you read and re-read again after you reached the middle, fearing it would end? The book that makes you think, that you disagree with, that you want to fight with but you just cannot ignore it. My relation to the book simply was this quote a class-mate I could never become friends with had said to me during our farewell- 

You are the kind that can be loved or hated; envied or laughed at, but certainly cannot be ignored.

I had at that point of time, tried gathering what she had meant by it.. And had gradually forgotten about it. But yesterday night, while I was planning to sleep, I saw the book partially hidden by the pillow. I flinched and I felt myself being attracted towards it. "Only a few pages are left.." "You have to read through it" thoughts came into my mind, as if to challenge me.

I picked the book and started reading from where I'd left and I realised I had left the story right where I knew conflicts would start brewing. And yet, despite efforts, I decided to read it, cover to cover.

The first page of the book reads,

For

all the brave & empowered women

who are unafraid to seek their truth

follow their hearts,

&

celebrate their womanhood

Marriage has been a complicated thought for me, I being the observing kinds have seen more of the atrocities of a marriage around me. Personally, I have wonderful parents and everything. But in general, outside my home, I have seen people not being in love and yet are married to each other. Especially in India the whole concept of 

" शादी सिर्फ दो लोगों का मिलन नहीं दो परिवारों का मिलन है " (Marriages in India are not just about the unity of two individuals but the unity of their families as well.)

The togetherness is the sanctity of the marriage, what happens within it is a private affair, but the marriage itself is a matter of public scrutiny. Here is the plot- Medha falls in love with Nikhil while in college. Nikhil does not reciprocate. They move on and eventually get married and settled. Medha however, is not able to surrender to her husband Rishi's love. Things worsen as they shift to Muscat, despite Medha's unwillingness for the same. Also, Medha realises that a workaholic Rishi does not understand her passion for Writing. She feels discouraged and blames him for every misery in her life. Time brings her back to India and it also brings back her ex-flame Nikhil. Nikhil's comeback becomes a watershed in Medha's life as she finds a stronger sense of attraction towards him, considering the misery she was going through in her marriage. She decides to separate from Rishi but the only sense of bonding, their son Yash stops the marriage from falling apart. She starts living in India while Rishi is left all alone in Muscat. Medha gets involved with Nikhil and love blossoms between them.

What does she choose? Love or her Marriage? Whom does she choose- The Man she has fallen in love with or the Man who is the father of her child?

Meenu Mehrotra has wonderfully beaded every chapter, every line in a symphony of emotions, sometimes in clusters of emotions and sometimes in ephemeral descriptions of the Nature around her. Through Medha she addresses a friction that every woman feels at some point of time in her life. It also shows how Sex has a meaning for women, just like it has for men. How physical intimacy is a gateway to her, while her disconnect is clearly visible from the abstinence.  These little things are often ignored when it comes to a man –woman relationship. Medha is not an emotional fool, but is a human with a mind of her own. She is aware of her decisions and the repercussions. She speaks in what she believes and is resistant to her dislikes.

The usage of quotes and anecdotes before every chapter, in itself provide introduction to what lies ahead. They swell the emotions in a reader, as if the reader in his/her subconscious mind already knows what is to happen and yet, cannot stop reading it, devouring the emotional escalations he/she goes through as the plot deepens.

My favourites are-

“There are times when we must sink to the bottom of our misery to understand the truth, just as we must descend to the bottom of the well to see the stars in broad daylight.”- Vaclav Havel

“I have spread my dreams under your feet;

Tread softly for you tread on my dreams.”- W.B. Yeats

And the last one is,

“Never cut what you can untie.”- Joseph Joubert

These lines hit your guts and you begin to question your own convictions. The definitions we have been taught and told, and seeking, “what it takes to be happy”

A wonderful transformation is what I acknowledged in myself after I finished this book. I have always been ashamed of what I feel for someone. I care too easily and I love even more. I love some of my friends and people do have a problem with it. They say, “Love” has to be defined. This book further solidifies my belief that Love is what one feels and it never has to be defined- Never.

If you liked this review, do leave in a comment! And do buy the book here at discounted rates!

Meenu is a wonderful person and a prolific writer. I recommend this book to anyone who wishes to give Love a second chance!

Also, you may wish to contact the author, give her your feedback, etc. Her website is www.meenuthewriter.com

The Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/SunlitHeartsByMeenuMehrotra

World Population Day: The Indian Aam Junta

On this World Population Day (July 11, 2012), promise a few things to yourself.

~Educate your maid and her sons and daughters.

~Adopt a child if possible. And please! Stop having choices regarding child birth. Child is a God's gift to you. there are hundreds and thousands who don't have this privilege. So make sure, be it a son or a daughter that you give him/her the best possible education and well-being. It is Cruelty and absolutely inhumane of those who leave their daughters in a adoption home or an orphanage or even the hospital right after their birth!

~If not adopt, then at least Sponsor a child's education and well-being.

~I am sure each one of us have our roots in our villages. Visit there once and see for yourself, how you can help in developing it by teaching there part-time, educating the men regarding farming and women about handicrafts. Start a small-scale business for them if possible.

~Try and adopt and preach the concept of "Hum Do, Humaare Do"

~Write a letter to the nearest MCD asking them to construct Sulabh Sauchalayas(toilets) for women and men alike in every district and also appoint cleaners for the same. They may charge a nominal Re.1 per usage for the same. Simply writing a letter won't suffice. Ask for a reply. If not responded upon, file an RTI.


All I wish to say is, what we have with us, can be our biggest weakness or our greatest strength. How we make use of it, how we nurture it and empower it, is up to us. Why wait for someone else to react? Why wait for the government to do soemthing about it? This Nation is ours. Remember, it is WE who got our Independence, a single Gandhi or Nehru without our support would not have been able to achieve the independence.  To blame others is very easy but to actually do something about it, is hard. Very Hard.


But is Zindagi me kuch aisa na kiya, toh kya kiya mere dost? (What's the use of this life, if we cannot make constructive changes such as these!)

India has the second largest population in the world and is soon expected to become the largest in the future, considering the largest producer, China is quite adamant in restricting the population growth by any measure.(For more information, read this. Wikipedia )
We have the largest pool of labour with us but a large section of this population is un/under-employed. This is a cleavage that exposes the truth of our system. The haves keep on reaching higher while the have-nots keep going down under with the pressure.

I am not taking sides, I am in no position to do so. But all that I am insisting upon is that the problem is not that we have a large population. The problem is that we are not utilising the system to empower them. And inn order to raise our economy to that of the first worlds we would HAVE to help the downtrodden to escalate upwards. Little efforts on our behalf, as individuals can go on to make greater impacts. only if we care to believe in ourselves. Only if, we care to believe in ourselves as a Nation. It is high time that we did so.

Nine is Mine is a campaign that began in October, 2006 through which children and women are encouraged to come and meet their leaders and share their experiences of atrocities and urge the ministers to take actions to help them. It is a campaign that was initiated by the Wada Na Todo Abhiyan, to meet the Millenium Development Goals as postulated by the Make Poverty History program of the United Nations. It is also an initiative to instil within the children from the backward areas, a sense of equality and righteousness. A self-belief which would help them shun the malice in society and boost them a determined upward mobility with the availability of good health and education.

It is a cause I believe in and I urge all my readers, friends to please go to the site and register. Each registration entails us Rs.9 which would help the movement in providing education and health programmes to women and children of the rural areas in India.

Pepsi-Footy-Finale!

Some events are meant to become historic. While some others make sure the event rocks every other memorable event in history. Delhi witnessed one such magnanimous event, in the heart of the city at the Thyagraja Stadium.

Photo Credits- Arvind Passey

As truly written by a fan:

Such a day never comes often ! #pepsifootyfinale
— Ankul Barar (@ankulbarar) June 17, 2012

And as you may have guessed.. The Pepsi Footy Finale was all over twitter, trending in for hours together. While most of the men were dumbfounded by the presence of Drogba a football player who is considered to be one of the Gods in the game, women were giggling and chattering away, passing smiles to the handsome hunks of the Indian cricket team such as Virat Kohli and Dhoni.

A hilarious tweet was seen..

#pepsifootyfinale virat kohli busy signing autographs... Girls at d fence letching at him hahah
— Disha Gaur (@GaurDisha) June 17, 2012

Our very own Tikku Jee wouldn't be left behind, would he?

#pepsifootyfinale This format of Game has been kept like KISS. Kept it Short and Sweet.
— Gurpreet Singh Tikku (@gurujee13) June 17, 2012

June 17th, 2012 shall be written with sweaty hands and excited glances in the book of Delhi's recent history. Celebrities are usually sought after like stars. They are visible but too out of reach. Thus events such as these, shorten the gap between the "khaas" and the "aam" junta.

Crowd, Chaos and Charisma-all three were judiciously sprawled all over the stadium as the show began with Nikhil Chinappa hosting the event with his awesome enthusiasm that is strangely contagious. Virat Kohli, Ranbir Kapoor and M.S. Dhoni were clearly the show-stoppers at the event as the crowd went mad, each time they crossed their sight! The craziness only superseded with Drogba.

This event was the finale. Before this, football matches had been played between eight teams, namely Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Punjab, Lucknow and Goa. The semi-finalists were Delhi and Punjab who engrossed in a battle to win, and Delhi finally won with a score of 12-08 respectively.

The theme of this event was the tag of Pepsi- Change the Game
So in accordance to that, two teams were formed- One under Drogba and the other under Dhoni.
Team Drogba consisted of Drogba himself along with Ranbir Kapoor and other Delhi members while the Team Dhoni consisted of Dhoni himself along with Bhaichung Bhutia, Virat Kohli, Harbhajan Singh and others.

This form, called the T-20 Cage Football is truly special encompassing the spirit of  Pepsi's "Change the Game".

The fun ceased to end, and each one took back some of the excitement and fun back into their lives. Nikhil Chinappa ended it graciously..tweeting..

And thank you Delhi for the amazing turnout and energy through 7 hours of madness, fun + football at #pepsifootyfinale @PepsiIndia
— Nikhil Chinapa (@nikhilchinapa) June 18, 2012

Book Review: I am Heartless- Vinit K Bansal

BOOK DETAILS


TITLE: I'm Heartless- A Real Confession
AUTHOR: Vinit K. Bansal
FORMAT: Paperback
ISBN: 8183520960
PUBLICATION:  Mahaveer Publishing House
PRICE: Rs.125
MY RATINGS: 3 out of 5








I am Heartless is a rendition of a man who loved and yet failed to
love. It is a story that flaunts the cleavage between reality and
fantasy. What happens when a person fails to realise what constitutes
fantasy- beauty, love, perfection while he goes farther from the
realities-friendship, emotions, flaws and the imperfections. This is
the story of such a man who fantasised, loved, lost and was loved but
he let go of that love, for his infatuation with his fantasy of that
perfect woman-Pari- someone who liked him but could never love him.
Viren felt cheated, misled and miserably attached to his fantasy,
someone who would never become his reality. On the other hand, Mansi,
a friend from his hometown had always been there for him, loved him
selflessly and simply wished for love in return. When heartbreak
followed his day-dreaming, Viren could not take the rejection easily
and he  was determined to never take Love seriously. He adhered to
what his male friend had said to him in college- Love is never for real, for ever.
It is fictitious and as imaginary as fantasy. But it wasn't so for
Mansi. She had always loved him, and the love grew more and real as
time passed. Mansi stood by Viren through his heartbreak. They soon
got into a relationship which was one-sided. Viren used Mansi's love
and kept hurting her, to seek his revenge, not love her in return.
Soon things got entwined. What happened to their relation? Did Viren
realise how much Mansi loved him? Or did Rashi realise how much Viren
loved her? Whose love won? Did love win eventually?







Vinit Bansal has written this book, not to please the literarati or
those looking for professional novel writing skills. What he presents
a story, which he himself experienced around him, and that motivated
him to bring this real-life story to the world. Love seems to be a
clear-cut affair-either a Yes or a No. But he brings out the finer
things in this emotion, that changes life-for good or worse.

I liked the effort of Vinit as a beginner, though this is simply a step forward into the world of writing. There is a long way to go and mere confessions about lost love would have to gradually move on to finer depths of live, the world around us and so much more.

You can get in touch with him and know more about the book here: Facebook

You can buy the book here: 

3. What inspired you to pen this book? What message do you wish to give to your readers?

Actually I always believe that we are living in a world where every human being is double faced. What we observe in a person is actually his/her external existence but internally everyone has some hidden desires, fears, dilemmas, fragility and sometime few untold confessions which he/she fears to accept in public. “I am Heartless…” is such a confession. When I came to know about it I decided to share it with all, so that no one repeats the same mistake which the protagonist did. In short, the story itself inspired me.

4. This book has easy language. Do you think that affects the quality of the language?

No, not at all!! Being a voracious reader I certainly feel that every book should be written in simple and lucid language. It doesn’t make sense to have a book in one hand and a dictionary in the other. Even in our daily lives, we do not feel comfortable using complex words or ornamental language. For me, language is what comes from the heart and has the ability to touch the heart of the readers.

An excerpt of an interview with him.. You can ask for a copy of the print magazine of Verse and Verbs Magazine which has the complete interview. Please mail us at verseandverbsmagazine@gmail.com to order a copy.

**Only for Indian residents.**

Sony Xperia NXT Series U- Review

A day ceases to be epic especially when you have a Sony phone in your hand. I turned on the media player in my Sony Live Walkman phone and rested the phone with the charger onto my table. Strums of the guitar were heard as I guessed the song that had begun to play- A bengali number titled Brishti by Anjan Dutta..

Just then dad entered into my room with a box in his hand. I opened the box and out it came.. A beauty!

SONY EXPERIA NXT Series U

Charger, USB and Headphones along with the battery and handset

Call me a Lady, but I simply adore the Pink! :D

It has a 5MP camera with flash.

It has a superb front lens camera too which is  of much better quality than most I have seen.

 

The neon colors keep changing according to the themes or the pictures  on our display screen.

With such an amazing phone any one is going to go crazy!! :D

But yes there are some handicaps I do not like.

For instance, it has an internal storage of a meagre 3.7GB, which in today's time seems nothing! But then in the times of social networking sites, we hardly store our photos and videos in our phones any more.

Also, it has no socket for a memory card. So we're quite stuck with the storage limit.

But all in all, it is a stylish phone and I like Xperia for its grandeur. Though the internal memory is a BIG BIG turnoff! :D

Cheers to a new phone though! :D

Birdie teaches you to go Round and Round!

Hello Friends.

I was strolling in a park, enjoying the afternoon as monsoon decided to finally fall upon us. I knew it would rain and what better than to sit amidst the grass, both of us seeking the first drops of rain onto us!

So I chose Jantar Mantar to be the perfect location, History, Beauty and Nature all waiting for the rains.

It was this bird, absolutely enjoying the weather. I am sure I need not explain what it is up to! So go ahead and shake a leg with it!

Birdie looks around, calculating the amount of risk involved in dancing in there.

There she moves her "best foot forward" deciding that no one really cares! :)

There, she swirls like vanilla in a cone, and swat! Falls on to her beak!

Embarrassed she raises her head, praying no one has seen her! Oh! I was hiding!!
We all have the right to have our privacy, after all!

Triumphant, she looks at the sky and cooes, I Did It!

The first drops of the rain start pricking into my skin as I run to hide my camera and birdie flies away a little, noticing my movement. But we both look at each other, and then at the sky and I know for sure, that our hearts pitter patter pitter patter with glee!