thefeministwriterwhogoesmeh

I don’t know why, but I love to put mehndi on my hands. It looks so graceful, and it helps that my mother is extremely talented at making mehndi designs.

I went over to my favorite uncle’s house to meet some family, for the occasion of raksha bandhan. Raksha bandhan is a sorta festival where the sisters have to tie ‘rakhis’ (bracelets made of yarn, usually red) to the brothers, in exchange for the promise of protection. We don’t think much of the protection part; I think I am adequate for the protection of myself and the people around me, but it’s fun to give and receive gifts.

We all wore vibrant matching dresses (all in reds and pinks) and put on some beautiful jewelry. I think that earrings can do so much for a face (at least for mine). They make one look sophisticated, and classy, not crassy.

I was asked what I wanted beforehand, and I answered everyone with the following word: books. I got six new books, and I squealed with delight (literally), to the disgust of the people around me. That’s how I perceived it at least, I’m quite sure that not too many people squeal over the receival of books, and the people that witness it happen are even fewer.

I got the following:

• Madame Bovary, by Gustave Flaubert
• War and Peace, by Lev Tolstoy
• Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, by Benjamin Alire Saenz
• The Man in the Brown Suit, by Agatha Christie
• The Devil Wears Prada, by Lauren Weisberger
• The Sky is Falling, by Sidney Sheldon

I haven’t got to ‘Madame Bovary’ and ‘War and Peace’ (frankly, I’m afraid of the extremely small print in War and Peace. I shall have to build up the courage to pick it up.), but the rest have been absolutely delightful reads. I may post about them later.

After the gift exchange, we had a delicious lunch consisting of Maharashtrian delicacies such as puran poli (polis/rotis/chapatis stuffed with a sweet stuffing called puran), matar usal (a sort of spicy pea curry), koshimbir (a melee of chopped tomatoes, cucumber and crushed peanuts in curd), puris, and so much more (I had to write ‘and so much more’ because there were way too many different food items that my people had prepared, and I can’t remember them all.)

We took loads of pictures (as you may deduce, I am not a fan of pictures of human beings, and hence haven’t put any of them here) and then it was time to go back home.

It’s nice to hang out with my cousins, but I really enjoyed the conversations with my uncle (the artist that I spoke about here). We talked about putting comfort over style, but to nevertheless try different clothing styles every now and then. I accepted that, because lately, I’ve been obsessing over Gigi Hadid, a supermodel. She’s Zayn Malik’s pardner, and they have a beautiful little baby together named Khai. Gigi Hadid’s walk has so much poise, grace and confidence. I find that, upon impersonating her walk, I too feel more confident in whatever I’m wearing. Generally, I feel weird and insecure whenever I wear fancy clothing, but it’s alright when there are others around me also in fancy attire.

Alright, I must digress. I have wandered far too long in the mire of my unrelated, irrelevant thoughts. I hope y’all had a wonderful week, and in case any of you ever decide to vibe to any old Maroon 5 music, lemme know. I LOVE Maroon 5.