Tea aka Chai: The elixir of my life

It’s been quite some time I've updated this blog! So today, I thought, let me tell you about one of my favourite drinks -- CHAI.

So what do I think of chai? And what makes it my favourite, you might ask!

Hmmm; fair enough! After all, tea is said to increase acidity and related to constipation!!!

Why would it be someone's favourite drink!

But for me, just as many others, I can’t really fully wakey-wakey (wake-up in normal language) if I don't gulp down one full big nice cup of well-ubaala-hua (well-boiled) kadak (strong) chai... or two cups of roadside cutting chai. Lol.

Well-made tea (which I think is a great art) not only peps up my mornings, but also has tremendous potential of keeping me going strong all throughout the day.

But the sad part is; I am ADDICTED to it. Can't live without it! Garam garam garma-garam chai keeps my senses hopping like a kangaroo (if one can say that) and me roaring like a lion (now I don't wanna say THAT :P … cause I'm already tagged a "narcissist" by many in the media).

Tea tea tea tea tea... No wonder I call it the elixir of my life (amrit as they say it in Hindi).

Chai even gets me to work (sometimes relentlessly) on my so-called "wierd PR strategies" (again, I don’t say that; others do) of building and publicizing some of the most scandalous brands (I say THAT) in the country. [Now now, I hope other PRs don't think of giving me competition by having more chai. Sorry fellas, that just wont work!]

Mini Me

One of my school pals put this pic up on Facebook and tagged me. That's when I realised I was in it. Ah! I know what you are doing now! Nah! Not that easy to spot me, dear! Or is it? Check check.

Ok I'll give you a hint. I'm sitting in the same row as the teachers. Put in your guesses in the comment box below and I'll see if you can give the 'sahi jawab' ;-)

Libran v/s Libran

A file photo of Mr Bachchan and me at his birthday bash at The Leela in 1995.

Mr Bachchan was born on Oct 11. Many years later, I was born on October 2. In 1995, while I was working as Chief Sub-Editor in 'Cine Blitz' magazine, I happened to manage an Exclusive interview with Mr Bachchan almost in the middle of a Press Conference. My editor was super-thrilled with me. (After all, its rare to come back with an Exclusive from a PC, where hundreds of scribes are clamouring for quotes and bytes. ) But the bigger surprise came a week later, when Mr Bachchan invited me to his birthday bash at The Leela in Mumbai. The food was yummy and Big B was very courteous. He also smiled and laughed a lot then (something he needs to do more often now). I vaguely remember a comment he passed, "Librans are flirty till they are 90". Being a Libran myself, I kinda like to agree to that one, though it never created any controversy. Today, the "Jana Gana Mana" song version in Ram Gopal Varma's 'Rann' does. Sadly, Mr Bachchan seems to take his life (and such controversies) very seriously now. I wish he'd chill out a bit. Like the good old days. I still do.