Friday Melody - 'Kalyanam'

The start of Tamil month 'Thai' means 'kalyana season'. With poor 'Margazhi' deemed unfit for weddings(or any other function for that matter), the month 'Thai' most of the time is overwhelmed with 'kalyanams'. From Jan 21st - 29th, almost every day a friend or relative of mine celebrates their Wedding Anniversary. So, it is 'kalyana' melody today.

Kalyana then nila - Maunam Sammadham

Kalyana maalai - Pudhu Pudhu Arthangal

Kalyana vaLai oosai - Urimai Kural

Kalyana samayal saadham - Maya Bazaar

Ketti melam kottura kalyanam - Chandrodayam
Though this song does not start with 'kalyanam', I just could not pass it. One Sunday evening my parents had planned to see 'Shaolin Temple' in the theatre leaving me and my brother with our grandparents at home. I was so upset but my mother insisted that the Sunday movie in the TV was even more fun than 'ST' and that movie was Chandrodayam!! I started watching the movie with a frown which changed to a smile and towards the climax, I was jumping up and down with joy!!

Zee.. boom.. baa!!

Happened to watch 'Stepford Wives'(with some high expectations because of the big names) and it barely made it to the time-pass category!! Nicole Kidman, a stressed out career woman, moves with her family to a small town called Stepford where she finds all the men-folk happily enjoying life and their women-folk strangely 'perfect', in all respects! Nicole Kidman gets to find out what is behind the sudden transformation of the women-folk there but for Indian (esp. Bollywood) movie lovers, the transformation of the heroines from howmuchever hippy to absolutely perfect Indian wife will ever be a puzzle!!!!!!

Maggi!!

After a long gap, on my first visit to the Indian grocery after our move, I picked up a few packets(3 to be precise and the owner said, 'why only 3? It's 4 /$1!) of Maggi. While eating it for lunch one day, suddenly it seemed to taste good and made me wonder why I had stopped buying it. It also brought a flood of 'Maggi' memories.

When Maggi was introduced in India, after watching those attractive advertisements on TV, I must have pestered my mother to buy it. The first time she made it, I am not sure if she thought the masala would be too spicy for me that she made it with milk and sugar!!! It so happened that I came down with 'Malaria' the next day and in my young mind it registered that Maggi causes Malaria!! LOL! For a long time after that I never even went near a Maggi packet.

The next encounter with Maggi came at a cousin's place when he said he would cook something for us both! He made Maggi and I was in awe that he could cook!! I am not sure if and when I became a Maggi lover but I realised that all my neighbours thought so from this next incident!

One day, my neighbour's daughter came home and generously gave me a plate of Maggi saying that they didn't like it and that since I liked she brought it for me! I happily put one spoon into my mouth and threw up! I am not sure how many of you remember but a sweet(Chocolate or something) Maggi was introduced in between which didn't quite go well. Anyway, that plate had the sweet Maggi with chilli powder added!! 'Love thy neighbour'!!

Recently, a cousin had come to visit us from Europe and all she ever wanted to do here was shop for Maggi at an Indian grocery store!! Poor thing, because of time constraint, she had to return without her dear Maggi. The next time, she comes to visit, I know what to treat her and gift her!!!

Friday Melody - It's different!

Just thought of some songs where the directors(Music & Movie) have tried to present something different.


Kodi asaindhadhum - Paarthaal pasi theerum
One of MSV-Kannadasan classic combo. "The egg came first or chick came first" kind-of lyrics through out.

Chippi irukkudhu - Varumaiyin niram sivappu
Another of MSV-Kannadasan combo with the addition of KB-Kamal. One of my favourite romantic songs of all time!
'Sindhai irakkudhu sandham irukkudhu kavidhai pada neram illadi rajathi'!!

Manasukkul ukkandhu - Kalyana agadhigal
A very sweet song with most TV programme titles in the lyrics. I still remember the special programme shown on TV about the making of this song. (sorry, no links! Couldn't find the song anywhere on the net!)
"Kanmani poongavinil kaathirundhen, kanne thadangalukku varutham sonnen!"

Nivedha - Nee paadhi naan paadhi
Vasanth inherited that 'special attention to songs' quality from his guru, KB(though he could work on the art of song picturisation a bit more). The camera, the voice of SPB and the music made even Gowthami look pretty!!

Festivals

I have been wanting to write this post since Deepavali somehow it kept delayed. Anyway, the delay added some more points!

During every festival, I wonder why and for what reason I'm still trying to celebrate it. The purpose of the festival is not met in my situation most of the time, i.e. I'm neither in the geographic location nor the time zone to really celebrate it. Atleast back in my younger days, it meant new clothes, special eatables etc. These days that too are not reasons.

Pongal is a harvest festival. I stock up on my grains whenever I visit the grocery store! If it is to thank Mr. Sun, he hardly used to show up in the cold northeast in January!! The 'kannu pidi' used to be the heights, with every single bird gone South and with every inch of the balcony covered in inches of snow, it used to be a pitiable sight. This year atleast I was so happy to step outside to do it and my daughter kept telling me the whole day that no birds came to eat the special food!!

Infact, it feels disheartening to celebrate these festivals when the people for who these festivals are for, the farmers, have nothing to rejoice about. Do festivals really bring happiness? IMO, for the wealthy, it is one more chance to show off their wealth and for the poor, it is another terrible reminder of what they cannot afford/enjoy!

But for one thing, these occasions help: to re-connect with people. An occasion to mail/call to wish friends and family(who are increasingly getting busier with their routines) and let them know of our existence!

Friday Melody - 'Pudhiya'

It's a new year in a new place and even Bhogi signifies 'Pudhiyana pugudhalum, pazhaiyana kazhidhalum', isn't it? So, it is 'Pudhiya' for this first Friday melody of 2006!!!


Pudhiyadhu pirandhadhu - Thevar Magan

Pudhiya poovidhu - Thendrale Ennai Thodu

Pudhiya vaanam - Anbe Vaa

Ooru vittu ooru vandhu!!

Hey, I'm back! Even though the computer was among the first things to be set-up along with the "can't-live-without" list of things, with many other boxes still lying around un-opened/ half opened, I just couldn't 'think outside the box(es)'!!!

So, we have atlast escaped the cold North and are in the process of settling down in the warm(the temperatures have been hitting 60s and even 70s, a bit too warm for this time of the year even for GA Standards, it seems!) South. The move itself was fairly smooth sailing(touch wood!) and with the U S of A being uniform through-out in almost every aspect, it didn't take too long to get back to routine.

The move had been quite something for my daughter as it was her first experience. The first few days, she thought this was another vacation and kept asking when we were going home! After a while, whenever I had to answer, 'we are going home' to her, 'where are we going now?', she would ask, 'which home?'!!! LOL!!

Moving is not new to me. Since my childhood, I have experienced move to different houses, different states etc. I wonder how I managed to adjust to new schools, new languages, new cultures(within the country itself!!) every few years. More bewildering is how my mother managed packing(without u-haul boxes, tapes!!), shifting, unpacking, arranging things etc. with kids & elders!!