indian lifestyle blog

Book 2 of 2023 | The Accidental Prime Minister

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So, so many feels while reading this book! I never expected to feel so emotionally charged up at a non-fictional work, and that too a work on politics.

I have so much to say but considering I don’t keep myself up to date with current affairs and these days, its not a safe space to comment about the government anywhere, I’ll only be commenting on what I felt reading the book.

Why I chose this book?

I have been meaning to read this one since a long time. Most Indians have a special, soft corner for Dr Singh ever since he was the PM of India and I being one of them also wanted to know more on this ‘accidental’ PM via this book. If you are clueless about what I am talking about, Dr Singh was part of the Congress Alliance that won the elections in 2004 and since Mrs. Gandhi was/is the Congress party leader, a PM was expected from her familial dynasty. After all, that’s how Congress has functioned over the years. However, due to various reasons, Dr Singh was the chosen Prime Minister, the one we didn’t know we needed.

What is it about?

The book is written by Sanjay Baru, who acted as a media advisor for Dr Singh during his tenure. He was specifically contacted by the erstwhile PM to hold this position that, in his words, the PM created for him. Quoting from the book – “offered him the job with the words, ‘Sitting here, I know I will be isolated from the outside world. I want you to be my eyes and ears. Tell me what you think I should know, without fear or favor.” So, this is an account of Mr Baru’s time with the PM. You can also read more about Mr Baru’s accolades and his background on Google.

What I liked about the book?

I read the book for a reason. I usually find it hard to read non-fiction books and barely read anything on politics, so I had a hard time with this too. However, I would say it was way easier than other non-fictions because this was a topic I wanted to read about. As I moved towards the end, I was invested too much and there were instances where I was overwhelmed with emotion. I have always had respect for Dr Singh, for the way he has conducted himself. However, this book made me way more acquainted with how much of a learned, intellectual man he is and how it is our misfortune that he is not leading the decision making for country. He had served as finance minister in the early 90s government and it is the result of his initiatives that liberalization happened for the Indian economy, which opened a lot of doors for private jobs in India. It is due to those initiatives that many of us from service class background have an amazing lifestyle today. He has always been a growth-enabling, forward-looking person and even in his tenure as the PM, he had many such initiatives in his kitty. The book talks about them during his first tenure (i.e. 2004 – 09) primarily, since that’s when Mr Baru worked with him. He also talks a lot about the challenges he faced because of not being the party leader and the center of party power residing with Mrs. Gandhi and also how he had to navigate the likes of the Left and other parties because this was a coalition government. Despite many hurdles, this was still the highest economic growth rate that the country witnessed (8-9%), even though it was the time of global crisis (2008-09). I loved reading about how much depth Dr Singh had for planning for each of his decisions and policies but what shined throughout the book was how passionate he was about seeing the country grow.

Another thing in the book that I loved knowing was that Dr Singh came from humble beginnings and whatever he is, its because of his academic background and how passionate he is about education being the key to all. It was heart touching and from whatever little peak we got, his family, wife and kids, seemed to have academic backgrounds too.

What I didn’t like?

I wished to read more on his tenure of 2009-14 when he was put in a questionable position due to his cabinet ministers corruption and other scams. However, the book touched upon that very briefly. While I would have thought this to be intentional, its also key to note that Mr Baru only worked with him in the first tenure, so he had an ‘in’ on mostly that.

Overall, I am glad I read this book and I would recommend it to everyone.

Anniversary Letters to Rahul | 4

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My wedding anniversary was on 28th April and per usual I am here to send out a letter days later. 🙂

This year, the letter is very important because few weeks back, I would have again thought that life has been the same, so what new to write. However, as I am writing this to you today, a lot has changed or about to change in our life this year. When I write this, it sounds scary and I don’t know how to tone it down, but I know in my heart that we will sail through new things happening in our life together. I also hope that its all for good, for better and brings immense happiness in our lives.

I would work on being less scared of changes and more reassuring like you. That, by the way, is truly God’s gift. I mean, I am sure you would have scary thoughts about changes too, but you know how to face them and also enable me to be better at facing them. You bring so much joy and calmness to anything that is happening and I hope this continues. I hope our love for each other continues to increase.

On another note, I believe my FOMO about traveling may peak this year, so we will figure that out together. I definitely look forward to many more fun trips and vacations in near future. ❤

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My 2022 Sunscreen Round-Up

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I think I can keep doing Sunscreen round-ups all the time because I don’t have a holy grail as such and I keep trying new ones. I have actually tried some new ones since I clicked this picture of my 2022 sunscreens and I’ll just share my views on all of them.

If you have a holy grail, do let me know in the comments so that I can try that next. 😀

Just a disclaimer – I don’t do a lot of ingredient-based research for my sunscreens, although that would have helped for sure. I basically try new ones basis hear-say and my skin type. If you do ingredient-based research, then this post may not be actually for you. However, let me try to do some research now, while writing this post.

Aroma Magic Cucumber Sunscreen Lotion: I loved this one quite a lot for quite a lot of reasons: 1) Soothing fragrance, 2) texture suited me, 3) so cheap (its like 3 dollars!), 4) I support an Indian brand. The only reason I didn’t repurchase is because of the low SPF 30, but I just read that its a physical, mineral sunscreen, and I am trying to avoid chemical sunscreens at the moment, so I’ll probably repurchase this if I don’t come across a better, higher SPF option. Read up more about chemical vs mineral sunscreen here.

Earth Rhythm Ultra Defence Mineral Sunscreen (Glass Bottle with Pump): This particular variant is discontinued by Earth Rhythm now but I feel about this sunscreen exactly what I feel about Earth Rhythm as a brand. I wrote about it in detail here. It definitely had a feel good factor but I wouldn’t have bought it simply for that at a high price.

Earth Rhythm Ultra Defence SPF 50 (Tube): This is again one of my top favorites for the feel, but purely due to the texture. Same Earth Rhythm story – their products seem so good and soothing on my skin but seem to do nothing. Hence, I am wary of buying it again, even though I have repurchased this one many times. I can’t seem to find its ingredient list also on Earth Rhythm’s site. 😦

La Shield Mineral Sunscreen Gel: This is a weird one. I didn’t love, love it. However, this is fairly cheap and being a dry skin person, its overtly creamy consistency works fine for me in winters at least. The problem is – it is from a brand whose sunscreens many dermats also recommend in India, but those are the brand’s higher priced sunscreens. Now, it makes me wonder that why is this one not in that list of recommendations. Ingredient list is principally similar for both the sunscreens, hence, I am not able to figure out the logic behind the other one getting more accolades and being priced significantly higher.

Minimalist SPF 50: In case you didn’t know, Minimalist is an Indian brand who copied the brand ethos of the OG – The Ordinary. In the initial days, this brand got a lot of flak for being a copy. However, lately, people have been impressed with their products. This one came highly recommended from my friend and I was excited to try it too. However, I felt this one made my skin look super dull. I didn’t hate the texture but also didn’t love it. I am especially wary of trying this again due to the dullness it imparted my face.

Re’equil Oxybenzone & OMC Free Sunscreen: Not featured in the picture, but I also tried this one and I faced the same dullness issue with this one as Minimalist. I really wished to like this one because its soothing baby-type fragrance was really lovely and I wanted to use it.

Suncoat: Tell me, where have you seen this one? Its pretty commonly available in tourist places like Goa randomly. I bought it because having seen it so many times, I thought why not. Let me tell you – its the worst possible sunscreen out there. It doesn’t spread at all! Like, I have to wring my skin like an industrial tool and it still won’t spread, would leave a ghastly white cast. Also, I despise the smell. I know fragrance is subjective, but I hate it so much that I struggle with using it on my body too. I guess I would have to throw it.

That’s about it. I also want to try all the premium Biore, Isdin etc kind of sunscreens but I am stingy to shell out money for sunscreens, although its the only skincare I religiously follow, so, ideally I should.

More suggestions on sunscreens are welcome! 🙂

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March Update

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It has been such a topsy turvy month. There is so much that has ensued that I don’t have the energy left to do a proper low down of March.

But it deserves a post to go in the history of my life as an important month, so here you go.

The initial part of the month was all okay, and my regular programming. I made a note to share here that I tried a new Greek restaurant, ‘Ryba’, near my place which i liked decent enough. At the time of making that note, I didn’t know it would become a special date for me and my husband, but more on that later.

After this, I embarked on my work trip. If i hadn’t made it clear before, I hate work trips to the core and if you are a long time follower of the blog, you would know that I didn’t used to like them even when as a young, 20 something I got them as a foreign travel opportunity. This one I especially hated because it went on longer than I wanted and expected and without much of a motive. I am still there in Bombay now on my work trip, but since it’s closer to my in-laws family, I did visit them in between which was good.

apart from this, i am missing my place terribly and there are some pretty life-changing things that March brought but I’ll dedicate separate posts to them.

hope you all are doing good, would love to know more!

February Update

/ Srishty / 5 Comments

In the past few days, I created a goal for myself which was to post a Feb update before 28th. 😀 It has been a supremely busy month (spoiler alert: didn’t succeed in the most important task that showed itself this month). However, this month shall be remembered as a month of some good firsts.

I am taking cue from Lyssy’s post here to take stock of my month, she calls it “What’s Up Posts”, it was started by her blogger friend Shay 8 years ago it seems!! Let’s see if I manage to do it every month.

I am going to answer all the questions in the below card for the post then.

What We’re Eating?

This month presented a lot of opportunities of trying new take-outs in big groups. This also made me think about being a bit of a restaurant snob on food delivery apps. What I mean is I always look for food I want to eat when ordering in, but if I don’t have any fixed, well-loved restaurants to order from, it becomes a risky situation when a lot of people come over. It’s a hit and miss. While I used to make fun of people who had designated restaurants to order from on food delivery apps, I am now becoming one for at least big hangouts! I have discovered some gems already. If you are a person reading this from Gurgaon, you might want to order from ‘Punjabi Angithi’ for some good North Indian starters/finger food and ‘Being Chef’ for an all-encompassing good menu – they literally have everything from Thai Curry to Pizza and its all above average!

What I’m Reminiscing about?

I am in general someone who reminisces a lot, so its difficult to keep a track of this. 😀 But, exactly at this moment, nothing.

What I’m Loving?

I loved going to my first ever cricket match in a stadium. I am not into sports, so didn’t expect this. It was definitely fun and now going to watch one in Dharamshala where the stadium is surrounded by mountains is so on my list!

What we’ve been up to?

The best part of this month was the chance to reunite with some of our close friends who don’t live in the same city/country.

What I’m dreading?

Like I mentioned at the beginning, I didn’t succeed in an opportunity that presented itself. What I’m dreading is how it affecting my confidence, honestly dreading is a small word for how I am feeling about it right now.

What I’m working on?

I am going to repeat this from last month: I am trying to work on this. Trying being the keyword, haha!

What I’m Excited about?

Funnily, I am actually excited about March despite it being a loaded month at work, and I have work travel too. However, I am looking forward to the other things – my husband’s birthday (Sometimes we literally do nothing on these ‘special’ days, but I still look forward to these days), the chance of going on another small vacation. Oh, just realized I actually have one more tiny vacation coming up which I totally forgot about!

What I’m Watching/Reading?

For someone not big on watching a lot of new stuff, I did watch a couple this month!

First, I watched ‘The Romantics’ which is like a documentary on Yash Raj Films, one of the biggest movie producers in Bollywood. While it was not what I expected it to be (I thought it was about Bollywood in general and not Yash Raj specifically), it had a lot of nostalgia, which is why I suppose so many people loved it!

I am now watching ‘You’ on Netflix. Frankly, I am quite irritated with this show, because its quite a done and dusted concept of a sociopath trying to control life of his beloved (hint: as my husband says, Shahrukh from Darr :D). However, because of the cliffhangers we are going along for now.

As for reading, I think I am finally becoming that person who reads multiple books together (and takes time to complete even one of them). I am reading ‘The Accidental Prime Minister’ which is my 2nd for this year. I talked about it in my January update as well. It is just about okay. More on that later. Then, I also started ‘Kashi ka Assi’ from my trip to Banaras, a book I stumbled upon in a bookstore there. It is stories from Banaras so I just bought it but its not what I expected at all! I am also reading ‘The Book Thief’ from the beginning of 2022! Its a hard copy at my parents place so I read it when I visit.

What I’m Listening to?

I have nothing here, the podcast thing I mentioned in my January Update also hasn’t caught up yet.

What I’m Wearing?

First of all, I am glad I wore some of my office clothes when I went to office once! Shouldn’t be too happy, as I do have a lot of work from office days happening in March what with my work travel.

Secondly, I am glad for the opportunity of getting to wear Indian wedding stuff at the wedding that I attended.

didn’t have a picture, so took a screenshot from a video

Thirdly, its about time for a spring clean-up and my wardrobe really needs a clean-up because for someone who doesn’t impulse buy, its a huge red flag to think ‘I can’t find anything good to wear’.

What I’m doing this weekend?

I am looking forward to it, will share later. However, I did go to the World Book Fair happening in Delhi until 5th March, and it was so good to be back at it again!

What I’m looking forward to next month?

I already covered that above.

What else is new?

  1. I bought some new makeup, so I look forward to sharing about them soon!
  2. There’s this Pizza chain where I live called Fat Lulus. We went to their Khan Market outlet after the cricket match and I loved everything we tried, albeit it was expensive than what I expected.
  3. Despite Google offices having family days where people can bring in their their near & dear ones, I had been to my husband’s office only once until February and it was a very stressful visit because I really cannot be okay going anywhere on my workday. However, this month I went one day when I was on leave and it was so good to try all the amazing food in peace. I really want to go again!
  4. Grateful for the Google layoffs being over in India, I hope there’s no second wave of this, really.

Life Changing Finds of 2022

/ Srishty / 6 Comments

I am seriously going to dive right into it at this point. This one day I was using one of the below mentioned things and realised how much I am thankful to have discovered these things. Hence, this post.

Facial Razors: Of course, I’ve known about these since forever. However, I was scared to try them, just like i am scared to try eyelash curlers. Let me tell you – facial razors are a breeze to use, and as far as I am concerned, the perfect way to get rid of some facial hair (provided you care about them). Prior to this, I have not gotten my facial hair removed ever, except forehead, eyebrows and upper lips but I always knew that I’ll kind of enjoy doing some removal from my cheeks too. I definitely like that, now I am not going to compare it to the likes of LASER because I haven’t got that done and I don’t have a lot of facial hair to begin with.

Brown Rice: Late find but good. I like everything in a nuttier texture. So, I wasn’t surprised when I discovered that i like it’s taste. I don’t know why i took so long to try it though, i actually only tried it on a friend’s recommendation. My only concern with brown rice is that i have yet not figured how to make it separated (like biryani) and retain its structure without being undercooked.

Rolled Oats & Quinoa: One thing led to another and I tried multiple recipes for these two as well. I have had oats in the past, but they were mostly ready to eat. I really like building my own recipes of oats with loads of veggies now and I am still experimenting with Quinoa. I am fond of the taste of both of these, hence, very happy to include them in my meals. The only sad bit is that Quinoa is not a local ingredient.

Cracking Walnuts: I love all dry fruits and it’s quite common in my family to give each other dry fruits during visits. I used to get irritated when people gave me whole walnuts, as I always used to go to a door hinge to crack them up. It used to be messy and I got lazy to do it. However, I took the plunge and tried cracking them with my teeth for the first time ever. Remember those toothpaste ads where healthy gums and teeth are proven by people’s ability to crack walnuts with their teeth? 😃 I used to feel so intimidated by these ads. Finally, i can say it’s not at all difficult, it only looks intimidating from afar. Also, it makes eating walnuts 100 times easier!😃

The importance of Tupperware 😃: For those of you who don’t know India’s obsession with Tupperware, you are definitely in a bubble. It’s basically a kitchen storage boxes solution made of plastic that got widely popular in India in the early 2000s I would say. Most of us millennials never got the deal with it – it was so expensive in those days for a mere lunch box and that too made of plastic. Eventually, sustainable and stylish lunch boxes started coming back and Tupperware had started losing its sheen. But recently I got to know that if you store kneaded dough in a Tupperware box, it stays fresh for longer. I have tested this and this was quite a revelation to me. I totally sound like a middle aged woman now, but it is what it is. 😃

Tell me some of your life changing finds!