My Choice..Really!!

So I got up today morning with a mystified overcast in my head. Yes the happenings around me confuse me to the core. Like this Deepika Padukone video on "My Choice". And the first question that I ask myself is - Is she kidding? In a country like India do we really have a choice to follow our choices. And even if some elite class women (I don't necessarily mean the rich one's here) do have this choice then do they need to blow the trumpet of having a choice of engaging in extra marital affairs/ infidelity. I mean they can do so without shouting from the rooftops about their choices. And for the lower class who don't even have a choice in deciding what to eat for the next meal..does this "My choice" anthem really makes sense. 

And then Mr. Director of the video (Homi Adjania..same lad who made Cocktail) confuses me even more. So on one hand,in his movie Cocktail he is depicting that the hero falls for the Sati Savitri/ suit clad Diana Penty instead of a rocker and happy-go-lucky-my choice-theory following Deepika Padukone and here in the "My choice" he is depicting an entirely different theory. Deepika had challenged the equation of beauty*brains=constant and I had better expectations from her but here she completely fell prey to what was being asked her to do rather than using her grey cells. So in plain theory a woman did what a man thought was righteous of his thoughts on woman empowerment. So rather than an empowerment motivation this dude has challenged the choice sanctity of a woman. Because I do not think having a baby can be choice for any woman - "Its a boon that god has showered on us women". Period. But yes it seems unfair to direct all angst against the Dips lady as she is doing what she has been asked to do or acting in the video so to say.

And closer home in this foreign land, these Americans fuddle me to the hilt..more-so in their environment conservation sense. So I am not really sure whether they want to save water or paper. Picture this, a basic apartment infrastructure here is such that they do not use a water jet in their commodes (apparently to save water), instead having zillion rolls of tissue papers to clean up and then they have a big bath tub (taking water conservation for a toss). So neither the paper/trees are being saved nor the water.

If the maiden step to knowledge is confusion...I might become a genius one day!!!

Happiness is...having paranthas in America!!!

Touched the American land late Saturday evening and boy..it was chilly. In the 24 hours of my journey from India till here one thing I was well sure off was that the more dearer the American dream is, the more torturous the journey.

As a first time international traveler I had the privilege to touch two most important countries on the world map..USA and UK. Stranded at airport, some cancelled flights, some curses and then the focus was on the growling stomach and its emptiness. An Indian's  nightmare during international travel occurs when one happens to be a vegetarian. God,With the heart missing the daal chawal to the core and mind focusing on the Starbucks ahead, the vegetarian buds had to be satisfied with hummus with pita bread as every other item on menu had some sort of meat as its ingredient. Cold - uncooked-dollars wasted.

American reality and unheigyne faced us when it was told that sink water can be used for drinking. Back in hotel, the big question again..what to have for dinner?  And then the miracle happened..we were introduced to the big fat world of ready to eat Haldirams stuff. The stuff was existent in India as well but not of this variety. So we had the privilege of paranthas with different filling options/veggies/paneer and the best was the frozen samosas. After the bread butter routine gorging on the paranthas was next to getting a bonus along with a salary hike. So the happiness and excitement of being in a foreign land was subdued by the possibility of Indian home style meals here.

Perhaps we are all looking for happiness but in the wrong places!!!!!