Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Retail Therapy

Nothing can be befitting than a afternoon siesta ..after a heavenly lunch from nearby Mathura , close to D N road – complete with papad , chapati , rice , two bhajis , dal and to complete a full square meal - gulabjamun ……until shaken by the coffee from Café Coffee day guy – ma’am coffee or tea ?.yeah Coffee but please the Equal sachet ! – mind my calorie intake!!! …….
..The Reuters terminal is just blinking endlessly on the $ movement – distant talks by guys-next-cubicle – “sub prime losses are huge and top it all – it is grossly underreported / waise the inbound tourist traffic is going to take a huge toll – we need to have cover for our earnings .. / chod yaar ! it ni ghata nahi aayega dhandhe pe .. sirf thodi si thanda..”…….eyes are drooling ( coffee is toooooooooo sugary !!) ……pulling out from the “ analysis – gyan – talks” ,..slouching heavily on the swinging chair ….. perfect for a nap !! …
…… Job blues - clueless , mind hung over what the new role is going to offer – money wise . – hike is ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL to sustain my ‘retail therapy’ and role wise – something more challenging than the dull one am doing now ! . ….. thoughts kept on pounding ..Google search isn’t yielding any better picture either ……. Frustration , Desperation and Inclination – all these 3 ‘tions’ ….. are like accompanying tensions !! …. .. Nap seems to be disturbed by this looming ‘danger-cum-worry-cum-anticipation’ , face looks tired on the blank screen of the desktop …mobile playing “ One Headlight” by Wallflowers – and the number flashing – 0224926632…. No not from any prospective employers ..but dear old Farru … “ whazz up ?” voice is down ….. awaaz bilkul neeche with tone of despair …… “ hey listen .. story is same for every one ….chodo !! jab hone ko mangta hai ., will happen on its own !! … me and Sur is coming lets go for some ‘Retail Therapy’ ..U show us the Crawford market ..come join us” !!

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Wikipedia describes the term as “ it is shopping with the primary purpose of improving the buyer’s mood or disposition” . The term “ therapy” by definition implies a treatment for a problem ( here ,depression or stress ), not a problem itself.” …the purchases made during this state of mind are also referred to as “ comfort buys”…….
… Farru has been always been a angel heart – her call , her mischief has been always a trigger to wink a smile , lift the gloomy face from a stupor which is never –ending …..Cudnt resist the “temptation”, logged off PC and left desk an hour before 6 pm……..reasoning sounded to placate the guilt inside- “ faida kya joh kaam pe khush nahi huin main”……. Rest of the evening unfolded with more of the grunts like ‘Awesome’ , ‘lovely texture and C the colour – it would go well with a white kurta’… ‘shit man….I prefer having a brocade piece of that colour..than the one lying there …is toooooooooooo ‘shaadi’ type . cant be a daily wear’….. ‘Bhaiya iski bhau thikse batao …..pehli baar dukan pe aaye hum’….. ‘ wallet bilkul khali hai .. nazdik pe ATM se jake uthana padega’….

…………….Well am not much of a “shopping buff” unlike my two companions ..always bought things that look good on me .. rather I would claim myself as ‘not impulsive but judicious shopalchoholic’….always kept the reminder of the number of the paper notes on the wallet ..and also prefer buying ‘things of utmost necessity’…but cannt excuse, rather resist the ‘temptation’ ‘lustre or the texture’ and …..yes the coveted ‘respite from the looming thought ..tension….clueless..being helplessly hopeless..’..

………….More in support of the term here goes a cliché “ When the going gets tough , the tough go shopping”… I quote Paco Underhill : “Shopping has always been a form of therapy , Women get an enormous amount of pleasure from the act of looking ( Read : Window Shopping ) ,and its an escape” …
…….While settling over a maheshwari cotton based – turquoise green dupatta with golden brocade – planning to stitch it as a kurta though ..and shelling out 550 bucks .. I felt nothing more expensive than myself and my state of mind . …. Comfort factor is I helped the store owner with his business , but dint got addicted to bad habits !! . when frustration level reaches its nadir …. People do adopt route better called “Escape to Paradise”……… need to look for a tailor who will perfectly make the outfit to give a Heavenly pleasure …!!!......

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…Here runs a directory :

.Mumbai is a shopper’s paradise - .Colaba causeway , Bandra linking road are always the most haunted and hunted in my NM days – bole toh “ nukkad ki haar saare dukan pata hai and storeowners also know us .. there comes the brigade to loot my store..”…always has been for a lookout of those stores that are value for money , cheap yet it’s a good deal made !! ..

…If you want Silver jewellery – nothing compared better here in Mumbai to Delhi !! . but some stopovers here are always been Bombay Store , Sangam in Colaba Causeway ..

..When it comes to …kohlapuri jutis – none but the man on the roadside ..beside Metro shop @ Colaba Cause way .. also the shop below the KFC building @ bandra linking road .. besides the numerous brands like Catwalk , City walk , Regal , Scandal , Habit ..etc

When it comes to Pastries – Oustandingly Upright and Deliciously Lip smacking is THEOBROMA ..again @ Colaba Causeway ..wont let down the pastry and bakery shops on the Hill road , Bandra …..

Food palates cannot be left insatiated with out the mention of Bademiyaan ( Colaba causeway) ,Khyber , Toss & Grill( carter Road ) , Dhaba (Oshiwara ..), Tamba Handi., Urban Tadka , Poptate’s , Mughal sarai , Dhuaan ( all at Seven bunglows , Versova) , Kobe , Tawa , Olive , Lemon grass , Thai ban ., Red Box ( bandra ) .. known for their veggie- on-veggie delicacies…

Clothes – well better leave this segment unsaid ……shops are aplenty to cater to the diverse choices ….the ‘un’ branded stores are equally mind boggling and can give run for the money to these branded garment/ accessories museums across the road !!..icing on the cake is perhaps some cheap buy from the boutiques shops @ Lokhandwala ….

Well its an impoverished directory kind sort – compiled from my understanding …..of Mumbai shopping fiesta could be …acknowledgement goes to my batch mates in NM, particularly those from Delhi .where I find designs / tastes of good clothing , attire and food is stylish , chic , suave …as well implicitly sophisticated even from Mumbai …. . I never had a stint with Delhi other than occasional tours to visit my relations there …to explore , to execute such loots , to dabble myself in such shopping extra vanza .Heard the marriage season in Delhi is the busiest and perhaps the most trendiest of all when the fashion / who’s who dons the best and worst as well…………… therefore its an impoverished ode to Mumbai shopping districts from someone hailing from a relatively unkempt ,mundane metro called Kolkata where donning simple ,less jhinchak clothes is what understood to be reflection of austere lifestyles there ! …..

Back at home from Church Gate station , I felt better in the temporary respite ….well nevertheless started extolling my good buy to my mother back @ kolkata ….she has not been that fortunate to be so urbane as like me … courtesy her age …. But she felt better with the change in my tone . …The buy was nothing compared to what for last two days Farru and Sur has been romping around all the stores possible in the town side ( READ : SOUTH MUMBAI !! . its urbane if u say .. Town side .. for .. beyond …. Dadar its suburb …..! ) . ….
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..Experts ( READ : PSYCHOLOGISTS - who treat mental patients ! ) say binge shopping cannot be an emotional cure-all , it might make one feel .. worse ..for they cite on impulse we might end up buying something which we regret wearing later ….. or no more fashionable ……. Excuses may be many …But whether a living a Bridget Jones lifestyle in a city like Mumbai or for women loaded with family …….. Shopping gives the feminine desire the coveted outburst to be herself ! .Discontentment growing with in her from job , family , spouse /fiancé , expectation ..all can get a temporary respite may be in window shopping ….. before she again goes back to her stressful moments . It can be equated with drinking or smoking with men when their super –dumbo ego or aspirations gets bashed either by biwi or boss !!.....More often seen guys hate accompanying ..their fiancée in her shopping .for they(men) term it as ‘boring’ for they are not that discerning as hers choice ……. They escape the bottom line .. may be Shopping is a pretext to her to avoid him , for reasons , known as well unknown ….! .

…Lastly , it has been always a tricky to learn , unlearn women’s mind. Its tooooo complex , yet too simple …. Rest I leave it for the my fellow sisters to comment ……and my fellow brethren to gawk at !!!...........

Monday, November 5, 2007

.......Some Are Better Than None.......

.........Somethings in life never change ,
........Sometimes in life you don't find reasons...
Some moments in life are never forgotten,
Sometimes you loose hope....


When time rolls by you try to forget
What holds you on ....

Some people in life are a part of you,
And when you let them go ,
You never loose them,
Because......
You find them living in you........