July was a slow month. Thankfully the great Bangalore weather compensated for it. I spent all the extra time I had in doodling, illustrations, painting, and other artsy-crafty things. Here's how it rolled:
Books:
The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai - A book set in the times of the gorkha uprising in Sikkim. It begins in the peaceful foothills of the Kanchejunga and slowly moves on to describing one of the most violent times witnessed in the mountains of North Bengal and Sikkim. I loved the book and the way the author describes the lives of all the characters that are slowly altered by the situation. Great, enjoyable read.
Toba Tek Singh and other short stories by Saadat Hasan Manto - A collection of beautifully written short stories, mostly around the partition of India. One of the stories (Toba Tek Singh) has been narrated brilliantly by Zia Mohiuddin HERE. Must listen.
Movies:
The Jane Austen Book Club - A lovely movie, more so because I do love Austen and her tales. I might just take up reading all her works once again. A sweet movie I say.
Arthur Newman - A movie about a man who runs away from his old life. I've been on a Emily Blunt marathon. I find her quite gorgeous and she acts well too. Colin Firth has done a good job.
Your Sister's Sister - Another Emily Blunt movie about the relationship between two step sisters. Nice, feel-good movie.
The Royal Tenenbaums - Oh I'm simply in love with Wes Anderson's movie making style. I loved this one; the quirky, eccentric characters and story et al. I'm making it a point to watch all his movie, one by one.
Humpty Sharma ki Dulhaniya - Very miss-able movie, best watched at home on a very dull day to kill boredom. Loud songs, not to my liking at all, except of course the very catchy 'Saturday Saturday'. Saving grace: Alia Bhatt's good looks and the fact that it was a fast paced movie.
Stuck on Love - Oh I really liked this one and it has a lovely soundtrack too, some songs are surely gonna be played on loop for the next few weeks. It's a story about a family and their relationship and about 'love'. One time watch and a very enjoyable chick flick.
Enemy - From the maker's of the really good 'Prisoners' and starring Jake Gyllenhaal, I was expecting a lot but I really did not get the story. It was either really twisted or didn't make any sense at all. The end was completely bizarre. Watch it, if you figure it out, help me do so.
The Squid and the Whale - I thought this was another Wes Anderson movie but turns out he only produced it. It was a queer movie about a family, two brothers whose parents are separated and the emotional changes they face. Quite interesting, though a little strange.
Moonrise Kingdom - Oh Wes Anderson. I really wish he makes many more movies. This is about two misfit kids, who run away together and their little adventure. It is a really wonderful movie.
Admission - Starring Tina Fey (which is why I watched it) this one is a silly feel good type of movie. It is about an admissions officer from an A-league school. Sweet. Also, Paul Rudd is one of my favs.
Wow, I think I watched a record number of movies in July. Yay !
Travel:
We were just back from a really long vacation, almost completely broke and so July was peacefully spent at home, except for one short trip to Pune for our niece's mukhebhaat (first real food) ceremony. Dunno how much she will remember, but we sure ate some delicious food.
We also took a short trip to Chennai. The fella had some work and I tagged along. We had a really good time except for the terrible sunburn I got back.
We reached early morning and after dropping our bags off, headed straight for the beach. It was a lovely, cloudy morning. I took a little walk, dipped my feet in the sea and pulled out my sketchbook. Oh, I really wish to live by the sea someday.
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We were also able to visit my childhood home, 30 kms outside Chennai, Avadi. The place had changed a little but we met a lady who used to live there years ago and she remembered me. It was so overwhelming. She was almost in tears when we spoke about the good old days. I'm so glad we finally made that trip.
This is one of the trees near our home in Avadi.
We also discovered a little hillock near Banerghatta. Not the most ideal spot as there were quite a lot of people around, thanks to the two temples in the vicinity. We managed to find a quite spot and sat there enjoying the lovely breeze and the beautiful sunset.
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Highlights:
The kittens have really grown up now. All except one have been adopted and have gone away. We are left with this tiny little grey furball, who we call Shakira. She's been crying quite a lot ever since her siblings left. She was really terrified of us for some reason, and only recently she has warmed up and allows me to cuddle her. Her favorite place to sleep is the fella's helmet. Oh also, it seems that the mother is pregnant again !
Books:
The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai - A book set in the times of the gorkha uprising in Sikkim. It begins in the peaceful foothills of the Kanchejunga and slowly moves on to describing one of the most violent times witnessed in the mountains of North Bengal and Sikkim. I loved the book and the way the author describes the lives of all the characters that are slowly altered by the situation. Great, enjoyable read.
Toba Tek Singh and other short stories by Saadat Hasan Manto - A collection of beautifully written short stories, mostly around the partition of India. One of the stories (Toba Tek Singh) has been narrated brilliantly by Zia Mohiuddin HERE. Must listen.
Movies:
The Jane Austen Book Club - A lovely movie, more so because I do love Austen and her tales. I might just take up reading all her works once again. A sweet movie I say.
Arthur Newman - A movie about a man who runs away from his old life. I've been on a Emily Blunt marathon. I find her quite gorgeous and she acts well too. Colin Firth has done a good job.
Your Sister's Sister - Another Emily Blunt movie about the relationship between two step sisters. Nice, feel-good movie.
The Royal Tenenbaums - Oh I'm simply in love with Wes Anderson's movie making style. I loved this one; the quirky, eccentric characters and story et al. I'm making it a point to watch all his movie, one by one.
Humpty Sharma ki Dulhaniya - Very miss-able movie, best watched at home on a very dull day to kill boredom. Loud songs, not to my liking at all, except of course the very catchy 'Saturday Saturday'. Saving grace: Alia Bhatt's good looks and the fact that it was a fast paced movie.
Stuck on Love - Oh I really liked this one and it has a lovely soundtrack too, some songs are surely gonna be played on loop for the next few weeks. It's a story about a family and their relationship and about 'love'. One time watch and a very enjoyable chick flick.
Enemy - From the maker's of the really good 'Prisoners' and starring Jake Gyllenhaal, I was expecting a lot but I really did not get the story. It was either really twisted or didn't make any sense at all. The end was completely bizarre. Watch it, if you figure it out, help me do so.
The Squid and the Whale - I thought this was another Wes Anderson movie but turns out he only produced it. It was a queer movie about a family, two brothers whose parents are separated and the emotional changes they face. Quite interesting, though a little strange.
Moonrise Kingdom - Oh Wes Anderson. I really wish he makes many more movies. This is about two misfit kids, who run away together and their little adventure. It is a really wonderful movie.
Admission - Starring Tina Fey (which is why I watched it) this one is a silly feel good type of movie. It is about an admissions officer from an A-league school. Sweet. Also, Paul Rudd is one of my favs.
Wow, I think I watched a record number of movies in July. Yay !
Travel:
We were just back from a really long vacation, almost completely broke and so July was peacefully spent at home, except for one short trip to Pune for our niece's mukhebhaat (first real food) ceremony. Dunno how much she will remember, but we sure ate some delicious food.
We also took a short trip to Chennai. The fella had some work and I tagged along. We had a really good time except for the terrible sunburn I got back.
We reached early morning and after dropping our bags off, headed straight for the beach. It was a lovely, cloudy morning. I took a little walk, dipped my feet in the sea and pulled out my sketchbook. Oh, I really wish to live by the sea someday.
We were also able to visit my childhood home, 30 kms outside Chennai, Avadi. The place had changed a little but we met a lady who used to live there years ago and she remembered me. It was so overwhelming. She was almost in tears when we spoke about the good old days. I'm so glad we finally made that trip.
This is one of the trees near our home in Avadi.
Highlights:
The kittens have really grown up now. All except one have been adopted and have gone away. We are left with this tiny little grey furball, who we call Shakira. She's been crying quite a lot ever since her siblings left. She was really terrified of us for some reason, and only recently she has warmed up and allows me to cuddle her. Her favorite place to sleep is the fella's helmet. Oh also, it seems that the mother is pregnant again !
July is now over and after quite a slow month, work-wise, I now have lots on my plate and stuff that I'm really happy to be involved in. So here's to a busy August !
