Am I Anjali from K3G?

I remember watching Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham back in 2001 when it first came out. I remember going there with literally my entire extended family, I think maybe because the movie’s selling line was “it’s all about loving your family“. 19 years later, I’ve memorized the movie that it doesn’t even need to be playing for me to recite the dialogues. So, while Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jaayenge reserves the spot of my favourite movie (and still not on Netflix!), K3G comes somewhere in the top 10 favourite Bollywood classics.

In an effort to raise morale and give us something to watch, Netflix recently uploaded all the KJo classics – including Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham, and no surprise, I found myself watching it when I had a sudden realization (with a little help from my friends) – am I Anjali?

Anjali is clumsy. She breaks gamlas (vases) whenever she goes to the Raichands.

I cannot even begin to tell you of my adventures of clumsiness – but here’s a read about how i consecutively and repeatedly broke both my feet/ankles – https://swatiness.com/2020/03/06/story-time-mulling-over-mules/

I’m not even going to go into the different Givenchy Beauty (or related) events that I have somehow – with no additional help necessary – injured myself in some way or another. I’m talking hitting my head (and getting a mild concussion) 15 minutes before the event begins, burning my foot from the smoke machine (don’t ask), falling flat in the middle of the presentation and more.

Anjali has NO filter.

It’s like the brain and the mouth do no talking sometimes. I’m often biting my tongue – or wishing I did.

I am constantly asked…

Anjali isn’t afraid of telling the truth through poetic sarcasm and pure sass.

Obviously, I’m elaborating when I’m saying the sarcasm is poetic – but it was witty. Especially the Ek ka vadda dil, dusre de vadde vadde bill and aagayi kamini bachi chodhne.  

Anjali is excellent at mocking people.

Oh hello Mrs. Spritely – would you like some tea? Ask my family and friends – I love copying and mocking people, very lovingly of course.

Anjali thinks she’s funny. But, also, she is!

Anjali’s hilarious, and honestly, so am I. I’m not even going to begin to expand on this.

Anjali’s loud as hell

I’m not saying I’m loud, but I can’t whisper to save my life.

Coming back to the real question – am I Anjali from K3G?

Life Lessons I Learnt from Jab We Met

Don’t know if you know, but Netflix loaded my favourite movie- Jab We Met. The movie starring Kareena Kapoor-Khan and Shahid Kapoor is one of the best and most relatable movies ever made. A first by Imtiaz Ali shows India as the perfect tourist location- highlighting Rajasthan and Shimla.

I’m not going to tell you the plot, because if you’ve stumbled here without watching the movie- I strongly advise that you get a pack full of popcorn and bundle yourself in for an amazing 3 hours. The music score of the movie is top notch- with all my favourite songs ever being from the movie.

Here are a few life lessons that I learned from Geet and Adi.

1. Be your own favourite

   

   Loving yourself is so important- because if you are not your own favourite- then how do you expect someone else to make you their favourite. You know what I mean?

2. Make your own decisions and get ready to bear consequences

   

   Whether it was running away, or staying away- Geet stuck to her decisions. Her reasoning behind everything she did was she didn’t want to blame somebody else and would know whatever life is because of her own decisions. She stuck to her decision of running away and bearing the consequences of the rejection that followed. She could have gone back home but decided to stay.

   “Aagey kya hone wala hai, is pe kisi ka control nahin hai. Toh aise mein main wahi karti hoon jo mera dil kehta hai. Meri life jo bhi hogi, mujhe pata hoga ki meri wajeh se aisi hai. Toh I’ll be happy.”

3. Never settle

   

   Decisions bring me to a third lesson- of never settling. We make our own happy ending- and it’s simply by choosing what really makes us happy- and not giving into thinking what we think our hearts want.

4. Childish madness is sometimes a necessity

   

   Sometimes the best way to dealing with things is through the utter childish madness. Whether it’s burning and flushing a picture of your ex, or you know, casually calling them up and screaming every imaginable swear word you know. Trust me- it works.

5. Keep talking

   

   It’s okay to be that person who keeps talking- even when she’s sleeping. You don’t need a special occasion to keep talking endlessly (and filter-free). Although- do add some filters.

6. Be thoughtful

   

   Be your own favourite, keep talking, make your own decisions but in all that, always be thoughtful about others. The whole plot of Jab We Met revolves around Geet missing her train because she went to get Aditya back to the train. She supports his case in front of the ticket collector in the train and literally stops him from falling to his death.

7. Everything will eventually be okay

   

   This is something this movie teaches me every time I forget, or need hearing it again- that it might take a while till things are better, but they will get better.

23 Rom-Coms You Must Watch

Right, so since we are all thinking and talking about love and romance, and I am a self-acclaimed romance enthusiast, who loves watching romantic movies, there are some favorites that are ALWAYS on my list- and with an obvious reason, they are amazing.

While there is a long list of movies that I can watch again and again, these ones are when I want to feel some love and giggle through my tears.

Tell me some of your favorites!

1. When Harry Met Sally
   

   

   
2. Love Actually
   

   

   
3. Pretty Woman

   

4. Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jaayenge

   

5. Silver Linings Playbook
   

   

   
6. Breakfast at Tiffany’s
   

   

   
7. 50 First Dates

   

8. Sleepless in Seattle

   

9. 13 Going 30
   

   

   
10. How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
    

    
11. Dirty Dancing
    

    

    
12. Pride and Prejudice- Colin Firth one. He is the ONLY Mr. Darcy

    

13. Sweet Home Alabama
    

    

    
14. The Notebook
    

    

    

    
15. Letters to Juliet
    

    

    
16. You’ve Got Mail
    

    

    
17. My Big Fat Greek Wedding
    

    
18. Barfi!
    

    
19. Jab We Met
    

    

    

    
20. Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani
    

    

    
21. Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na

    

22. Hum Tum
    

    

    
23. Hasee Toh Phasee
    

    

    

    

18 Life Lessons from Gilmore Girls

I just binge watched Gilmore Girls and in less than a month- and this is something I’m very proud of- finished the entire series. Yes, that’s right. I watched 7 seasons and the Year in Life Netflix special and I finished it all- in less than a month.

There were several things I enjoyed about the show- Kelly Bishop (Emily Gilmore) being my favorite. There were several moments when all I wanted was to stop watching it, I’m thinking Season 3 between Jess and Dean and Dean and Jess (if you are asking, I was Team Dean all the way- but that Logan fellow was pretty much meant to be). Although, in the revival, I was all about Team Jess. Never thought that would happen- but he’s turned out to be a pretty amazing dude, I would say. Anywhooo. 18 important life lessons I learned from Gilmore Girls:

1. Life is really short, so talk fast.

   As somebody who talks really fast- I really enjoyed watching Lorelei ramble on and on and on.

   

2. When in doubt, or when bored, or when uncertain- drink.

   

3. Dirty jokes are never not funny.

   

4. Sometimes you need to stop planning the future and just live in the moment.

   

5. Look out for silver linings

   

6. Be yourself.

   

7. Never be afraid to voice your feelings

   

8. Take time out for yourself- to discover yourself and to find contentment within you.

   

9. Just because you love him doesn’t mean he is good for you.(Read: Jess, then Dean and then Logan)

   

10. Coffee is everything.

    

    

11. It’s okay to hurt sometimes and cry into ice cream.

    

12. Do not steal a yacht.Repercussions are your mother bailing you out of jail.

    

13. Stop and smell the books!

    

14. And always bring a book – wherever you go!

    

15. Snow makes everything magical.

    

16. Pop-culture references are EVERYTHING!

    

17. You can’t control who you’re attracted to (Read- Jess, then a married Dean, then Logan, then an engaged Logan).

    

18. Make sure your best friend can bake.

    

La La Land- “What If”

What if. 

This has been my favourite phrase for as long as I can remember. With everything that happens, the trail that leads to “what if” always stirs a doubt in my head. It’s good to know I’m not the only one who wonders “what if…”.

La La Land is a movie of dreamers and for dreamers. When I watched the trailer the first time, I knew then that I wouldn’t miss this movie- mostly because it had my favourite, Ryan Gosling in it. And anything that Ryan Gosling does- can’t be bad. I mean come on, I watched that horribly violent movie, “Drive” for his sake. He looked so cute in that horrible violent movie. SOO- I couldn’t have missed this.

Anywhoo, after a month of the movie’s release, I found myself standing outside the cinemas, with my bottle of sparkling water and a big bucket of popcorn.

A musical- La La Land is a definite see. Especially, if you love Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, Jazz, LA and just old school retro romance.

My favourite part was when they are sitting in the cinema- their romance just beginning- and they’re slowly trying to touch each other’s hands. It was so cute and reminded me of how love and romance starts in most relationships- in the cinema, holding hands in the dark and grinning like fools. Although, not many first kisses get interrupted by a burning film roll.

If you don’t want jumbled and confusing spoilers- do not read ahead.

It doesn’t have your regular happy ending- it doesn’t end with Mia and Sebastian together. But, it isn’t sad. I’m not going to explain the plot of the movie- because I am going to press on the point where I’d rather you watch the movie than just read about it.

It’s about regular people, who meet, fall in love, and move away- metaphorically and literally. But, years later, when they see each other again- what if haunts them. That haunting might have been only the last 5 minutes of the movie, but it was enough to make me watch it all over again.

I might be the only person, but the idea of haunting what ifs is quite poetic to me. To me, this movie ended on that note. It made me wonder, why do we spend so much time pondering over what if when we could have done that in the first place. Is it always too late to do anything? Or is it relative to what is being discussed?

With the girlfriends dancing in sync in the beginning (where did they go in latter half- is still a mystery!).

Or the running in giddy realization- and hoping it’s not too late.

And it’s not too late…

Or the first kiss all over again…

Oh wait- did I tell you there’s John Legend in it? John Legend singing and acting?

For the first time, even without the happy ending, I walked out of the theatre with the biggest smile on my face- it could have something to do with Ryan Gosling- or just to do with a really good movie.

Okay, watch the trailer again here: La La Land Trailer

Adulthood: Nightmare dressed like a Daydream

When Taylor Swift wrote ‘Blank Space’ (I got a blank space, baa-by, and I’d write your name),  she was really writing about adulthood. Well, technically, she was writing about how relationships have become. Well, most relationships. Relationships have had some altering with their meaning. I’m speaking of romantic relationships and real ones here. But, my 7 year old neighbour just informed me that his relationship is very serious and his 7 year old girlfriend is very pretty and gets him lots of candies and gives him a sticker everyday.

But, this whimsical chatter isn’t about 7 year olds and their relationships. It’s about how adulthood has framed out. As a child, I’ve always fantasized about growing up and becoming an adult. As an adult of some kind, I still fantasize about the same. I keep waiting for the light of adulthood to shine my way to walk into. Almost like being Jennifer Garner’s character from 13 going 30. That I’m a 22 year old child who will magically one bright morning transform into a 22 year old adult. In all my fantasies, my mind and wise-ness ages, but never me.

However, I have been informed, adulthood as arrived. Nobody threw me a party to tell me. It just creeps into your life and one day you wake up an adult. Like 13 going 30. Except maybe it would be more like 29 going 30. Hasn’t happened yet, folks.

Oh, so what got me starting with this chatter? I was doing the dishes while my earphones blared with some Taylor Swift (among other songs) and ‘Blank Space’ came on. So, obviously, I decided to sing along and dance a little. When the lyrics ‘Baby, I’m a Nightmare dressed like a Daydream’ came on, GROWING UP came to my mind. (And then I sang- ‘I Wish I Neveeeeeeeer Grew Up’, also Tay-Tay). Then I realized, all our lives we keep waiting for the future, when I have that, when I do that, when I go there. There is always a longing for the future. Similarly, there is a longing for the adulthood, whatever that pie is.

Things were much different when we were children (some 15 years ago).  Adults, at that time, didn’t do what we do. Oh, they were just as messed up as us, but it was just different. But, change is the only constant, and with our adulthood, change indeed has come. Adulthood, today, is much different. Maybe because the dream and the reality didn’t collide it raised a conflict of another kind.

Adulthood, in the simplest of definitions, is a nightmare dressed like a day-dream. (Although, smashing a vintage car or a tree repeatedly would be very excellent stress buster.