Moin Bhai Dilliwala, a tribute to Moin Akhter

As if the year passed in a stroke. It is hard to come to terms that one year has passed since Moin Akhter left us. A stand up comedian who took the art to a level whose altitude is hard for any other actor  to surmount. As a family friend there are countless small and [...]

Reflections of a little mind !

For years as a little girl I did not know the exact literal meaning of the word ‘socialite’. Having seen pictures in the centre pages of magazines, I knew they were pretty, mostly in full make up which looked so natural, nearly always dressed nicely and almost always wore the most enviable jewellery one could [...]

Leaving your heart prints

Valentine’s Day isn’t just about expensive gifts, teddy bears, chocolates or red roses to girlfriends. It’s about  making any of your loved ones ( whosoever they may be)  feel that they matter. And to make anyone feel  that you care, fortunately does not take loads of money. In fact it does not  cost anything but  a [...]

A just Mullah

A Mullah ji  is fed up of his wife who either forgets or puts more namak(salt) in the khaana( food). One day in a rage he spells: “Talaaq talaaq talaaq.” So that he doesn’t change his mind, he immediately goes to the Qazi to announce and make it final. Qazi: “Okay, are you sure?” Mullah: [...]

Aalu Anday etc.

If you churn the ingredients-adversity, endurance, sense of humour,  imagination and hope into a machine at one end, you will receive Pakistani youth at the other end. Hammered with adverse circumstances one after the other, the hardy rocks of youngsters are  carving themselves into idols of the future. Endurance is not just the ability to [...]

What is politics ?

A little boy goes to his dad and asks, “What is politics?” Dad says, “Well son, let me try to explain it this way: I’m the breadwinner of the family, so let’s call me capitalism. Your Mom, she’s the administrator of the money, so we’ll call her the Government. We’re here to take care of [...]

In love with Ghalib , the witty.

Recently I grabbed a book called Yadgar-e-Ghalib, by Altaf Hussain Haali in Urdu, and read bits from it. This has rekindled my fancy for him all the more. Mirza Ghalib the humourist , is awe inspiring. Leave aside his superb poetry , his wit with which he lived and laughed off the troubles of his [...]

Delhi Diary: Gossip on Wheels –2

Continued from the previous post…. Delhi roads, or for that matter roads on any metropolitan city in the world is so very stressfull. If only these vehicles did not share their light hearted smalltalks or gossiped or flirted on the way, they would be having high rates of ‘heart attacks’ like us humans. Only if [...]

Delhi Diary: Gossip on Wheels–Part 1

Commuting through the streets of Delhi with almost an hour and a half’s drive each side was no less than a Herculean task. The journey back home, in the evening, would result in a bursting headache. The megacity with hundreds of newly built flyovers and underpasses, still gets choked in its veins at the peak [...]

Ghalib’s Mangoes

It is Summers and mango time. Mango is synonimous with Mirza Ghalib. And I am here after ages in the mango season in Delhi, the city of Ghalib. And then Amir Khusrau’s praise for mangoes is not secret either. His soul resides in Delhi too. How could one enjoy Ratols, Chausa, Dussehris in Delhi, consumed [...]