My look alike

My look alike

At the family get-together we had last Sunday, Ramya had arranged for an interesting programme. She had invited three young artists to do pencil sketch portrait of family members. In groups of three, people were getting their portraits done. After it was done they showed them around. The children were thrilled of course. They had no expectations from the event or no fear of the outcome.

The adults viewed it differently. Some were happy the way they had been portrayed young looking, few were disappointed when they came out with their features distorted so badly.

I noticed that most of these portraits had at least some resemblance to the actual person, even though some were most uncomplimentary. What surprised me was the way some people accepted their portrait as their true self even though they didn’t have that close a resemblance.

When it was my turn, I went to have my portrait done with some trepidation. I am often reluctant to pose for photographs during weddings and avoid being in somebody’s wedding album permanently, as I feel I don’t turn out that good / I am not photogenic. (I believe that the feeling ‘I don’t turn out good’ and the belief that ‘I am not photogenic’ are very closely related). Sometimes in photos when I look harsh, gaunt, witchy, stern, angry or bitter, I don’t like it all. I like the photos in which I look soft, at peace with myself, kind and serene. Those are only a few.
I have saved only those photos in which I feel I look good (like my profile photo). When I feel I look good in a picture, it means it matches the image of myself I have in my head.

Every day when I look in the mirror at least a couple of times, sometimes I am happy about the way I look, sometimes not at all, but I really can’t visualize how I really look.

Sitting down to pose for the artist to do my portrait I was very conscious of this aspect of myself. I tried to compose myself, and have only positive thoughts flow into my mind. I thought of happy events, and experiences. I let happiness bubble in me thinking about people with whom I have had good times. I smiled thinking of some funny events while looking straight at the artist.

During the entire process which took about 15 minutes, I had my attention focused on how I present myself to the artist. When I thought the artist was sketching my eyes I tried to make it kind and when I thought he was doing my mouth I let a faint smile creep into my lips. And all the time I was sitting well composed the way I have seen ‘ladies’ pose for paintings.

At last when the artist finished and presented the portrait to me I felt so happy looking at myself. It had all the features I wanted in my portrait. When I proudly showed it around, people didn’t think it looked anything like me, except Indira who said it looks like my maternal grandmother. Long time ago Indira had seen a photo of my grandmother in my uncle’s house and commented that I look like her except that she looks more serene.

What does this experience reveal? The face is really a mirror of the mind. அகத்தின் அழகு முகத்தில் தெரியும். When I have the positive thoughts, my face reflects it so beautifully.
I plan to have this portrait placed in a place where I can look at it everyday to compose myself.

A great business idea for bath-soap manufacturers

A great business idea for bath-soap manufacturers

I remember when I was a little girl (a long long time ago) we have used only Hamam soap in our family. The fragrance used to be so good. (The good old days when the orange sugar candy had a great orange flavor, the Parle extra-strong peppermint that tasted really extra-strong with a great mint taste, that felt cool in the mouth and the Britania Ginger biscuits for which I haven’t found an equal around the world.)

In those days we never worried about / we were not told what is in the soap or what it is good for. To us it was just a soap that felt smooth to touch, lathered well and smelt good. Now I hear the Hamam soap advertised as containing extracts of Neem, Aloe vera and the tulsi herb.

The Lux soap is recommended by beauties like Hema Malini and Aishwarya Rai as good to have soft skin and also by the macho actor like Sharukh Khan to make it appeal to men too. The latest Hamam soap ads, promote the soap as anti- perspirant (aimed at teenage boys), as protection against pimples, even if you eat lots of oily fried food (aimed at teenage girls).

(For a short time, there was a soap named Ganga which was supposed to have been made with ganga water, to make it appeal to pious / old folks. The Lifebouy soap, a very old brand, was aimed at tough big men who got very dirty - like a sardharji lorry driver or an automobile mechanic - i don't know why my grandfather used it though he didn’t fit into any of these categories. Recently Detol came out with a bath-soap trying to capitalize on their brand image as anti-bacterial.)

This morning I had an idea. It was an ‘eureka’ moment. Why not make the soap appeal to a wider section of the people? Why not cover the entire population of India in one go - appealing to the rich and the poor equally, irrespective of age or gender? I know most of the new products come into the market with one such flash of an idea.

I have often wondered why I never get a simple, great business idea. I realize that we all do get flashes of bright ideas, but we brush it aside without giving it a second thought, as it would require too much of an effort to make it into a viable business.

But I felt, as a service to people of India, I can give this idea free to the makers of Hamam. Of course, publishing it in my blog, I have made it available to anybody who can take it up as a challenge and produce such a bath- soap.

Please make a bath-soap that is ‘mosquito repellent’.

I know it is a great idea. Did anybody think ‘Good Night’ mosquito coil would become such a big business? Combining two very essential every-day needs of the people into one product, the soap would appeal to a whole lot more people, will be easy to use and work out to be economical for the user too.

I am sure the Research and Development wing of the soap manufacturer can use a similar formula to make the anti-mosquito as effective as the anti- perspirant in the soap that lasts for the whole day.

மனதில் பூ பூத்தது

மனதில் பூ பூத்தது

இன்று காலை வேளுக்குடி கிருஷ்ணன் 'பாரதத்தில் தர்மம்' நிகழ்ச்சியில் மஹாபாரதத்தில் இருந்து ஒரு சம்பவத்தை விவரித்தார்.

'பாண்டவர்கள் வனவாசம் செய்து கொண்டிருந்த போது ஒருநாள் ஒரு ரிஷி அவர்கள் குடிலுக்கு வந்தார். பாஞ்சாலி அவரை மரியாதையுடன் வரவேற்று உபசரித்தாள். பசியாக வந்திருப்பவற்கு அமுது படைக்கவேண்டும் என்பது தெரிந்தவளே. ஆனால் பஞ்சபாண்டவர்கள் எல்லோரும் சாப்பிட்டு முடித்து திரௌபதி பாத்திரங்களை கூட அலம்பி வைத்துவிட்டாள். வந்தவருக்கு கொடுக்க எதுவுமே இல்லை. என்ன செய்வது என்று தெரியாமல் கண்ணனை நினைத்தாள். ஆபத்பாந்தவனான கண்ணன் உடனே தோன்றினார். திரௌபதி பாத்திரங்கள் அலம்பி வைத்திருக்கும் இடத்துக்கு போய் பார்த்தார். சாதம் வடித்த பானையில் இரண்டு பருக்கை சாதம் ஒட்டிக்கொண்டிருந்தது. அதை வாயில் போட்டுக்கொண்டார். கீரை மசித்த பாத்திரத்தில் கொஞ்சம் கீரை ஒட்டிக்கொண்டிருந்தது. அதையும் எடுத்து வாயில் போட்டுக்கொண்டார்'.

வேளுக்குடி இப்படி சொல்லும் போதே என் மனதில் 'இப்படியா பாத்திரம் அலம்புவது?', என்ற எண்ணம் தோன்றியது. அதே நேரத்தில் வெளுக்குடியும் 'இப்படி பாத்திரம் அலம்ப கூடாது நன்றாக பத்துபோக தான் சுத்தம் செய்யவேண்டும். ஆனால் பாஞ்சாலி ராணி அவளுக்கு பழக்கம் போதாது', என்று சொன்னார்.

அவர் சொன்னது எனக்கு பதில் சொன்னார் போல இருந்தது. அவருக்கும் அதே எண்ணம் எழுந்திருக்கிறது என்ற உணர்வும் எனக்கு சந்தோஷமாக இருந்தது.

அதற்கு மேல் கதையை தொடர்ந்து - 'அதை சாப்பிட்டதும் கிருஷ்ணனுக்கு வயிறு நிறைந்துவிட்டது. அவனுக்கு வயிறு நிறைந்தால் உலகில் யாருக்குமே பசிக்காதே. ரிஷி வயிறார உண்ட திருப்தியுடம் வாழ்த்திவிட்டு போனார்', என்று கதையை முடித்தார்.

என் quality standard ஒன்றும் அபரிதமானது இல்லை, அதுதான் norm என்ற எண்ணம் சந்தோஷத்தை அளித்தது. வெகு நேரம் மனதில் பூ பூத்தது.

தினமும் கேட்கும் புராண கதைகள் மூலம் என்னால் என்னையே எடைபோட முடிகிறது.

AIM and fire

AIM and fire

I have often derived disproportionately greater pleasure from simple things in life.

Here is an example of a very small thing that makes a great impact in my life at least 4 times during the day. It is the match I strike to light the stove or the lamp.

I have been using a tried and tested well-known old brand of matches. Last month I was disappointed with its performance. May be due to the continuous damp weather or being the last box from a pack of 10 boxes, only every 3rd or 4th match stick got ignited. It was frustrating.

When I asked my friendly neighbourhood grocer for a pack of match boxes, the one he handed over to me was an unheard of brand. (I realized that the matches are not advertised as much as agarbathies.) I did look at him questioningly and asked him, ‘Is it good?’ Even with his assurance that it is, I was skeptical. But trusting his words I bought it.

I was pleasantly surprised. The box was of smaller size than I am used to. It contained cute little smooth, perfectly shaped wax sticks generously tipped. With one gentle strike by the side of the box it instantly caught on.

I can’t believe the happiness I get from its quality and performance every time I use it. It is not an exaggeration to say it really energises me. I want to share with everybody that I have found a great product.

If my last month’s experience wasn’t so bad would I have noticed the change so dramatically, would I be talking about the new brand's performance as so remarkable or would I be so elated so disproportionately?

The brand I am talking about it AIM*, manufactured by Sathishkumar Match Industries, Satur and marketed by ITC. Is being marketed by ITC an endorsement of the product quality?

I realize that I take lots of things for granted and expect it to just work. I wonder whether to appreciate something - a facility, a perk or an advantage – it should be withdrawn from us for a while.

There is a great lesson and a philosophy for life.

*Isn’t it amazing that a pack of 10 match boxes each with 50 sticks in it still only costs ten rupees?

Is God everywhere?

Is God everywhere?

When I visited Ramraj last week he showed me a very nice calendar put out by the Thirupathi Devasathanam, with excellent pictures of God in HIS various forms. The full-size calendar produced so well was a work of art. It was printed in fine art paper, each page in a different bright colour, with idols decorated in exquisite costumes and ornaments and decked up with flowers.

When I said it is very nice, he said, “If you like, it is yours”.

I said, “No thank you, I don’t want it Ramraj”. I was not rude or impolite. I am not an atheist. I just avoided a conflict and a dilemma.

Of course I had to tell him ‘why not’, though I appreciated the calendar and his loving gesture of offering it to me.

I have this conflict going on in my mind.

Are the pictures printed in these calendars and wedding invitations, Brahmaotsavam announcements are Gods?

What do I do with wedding invitations I receive with excellent pictures of the Lord Srinivasar or Ganapathi or any other deity printed on it?

Does only a God picture framed and put in the Gods’ room become worship worthy? Or do you worship the God in the calendar with the same reverence?

Why do I feel uncomfortable watching religious discourses when temples and Gods are shown on TV, with my legs stretched out in front of it?

When people bring back little God pictures from the temples they visit and give it to me, wishing me well, respecting their sentiments why do I use them as bookmarks with the excuse that I atleast get to see them while I read the books?

IS GOD REALLY EVERYWHERE? Vellukkudi Krishanan says HE is. Do I believe it?

I don't know. I am yet to resolve this issue.

Couple of years ago when I visited an old friend of ours Dr. Kanthan, I appreciated such a calendar hanging on the wall of his house. He immediately took it down and presented it to me. Even though I protested I couldn’t refuse as he gave it to me as a gift and also because I liked it very much.

When I brought it home, I couldn’t bring myself to hang it on the wall, as the walls were wet due to incessant rain and I felt it may spoil the calendar. And also I felt it is too good to hang it and then tear off the pages each month or turn it back to save it and discard it at the end of the year. Not wanting to discard right away I even reuse these types of God calendars as lining for the shelves in my cupboard and throw it away after they are really used up.

This time I got a bright idea. I decided to frame these pictures and donate it to a local temple we visit occasionally. Without delay I took action and took the twelve framed pictures to the temple and gave it in the temple office. While I was still at the temple going around praying at various shrines one of the temple priests came to me and said the pictures belong to the other sub-sect of vaishanavism and they can’t hang these in this temple. I was disappointed and said I would take it back. But the priest said ones given to the temple I can’t take it back either. I left it at that.

It was a lesson for me. I learnt that God is not just God. People (the real believers) don’t even believe in the Gods of other sub-sects leave alone other religion.

This time not wanting to go through any conflict I took the easy way out and said NO without any qualms.