Friends (make)..the greatest gifts

If you're staying abroad one of the best parts is getting to meet new people and making new friends...since I moved to Korea I have had the good fortune of connecting with folks from different countries, different cultures, people with varied interests and hobbies...but the flip side to this is that you do have to live with the physical distance from your old ones ! Somedays you wake up thinking of those individuals who have been with you for as many years that you can think back, who have shared the ups and downs, who have bunked classes with you in college and nursed your hangover after that graduation party... :-) And that's when you look around your home and you realise that they are very much around you, through the beautiful things that adorn your corners that have been thoughtfully selected and gifted to you by them...

And so today's post is dedicated to some of these truly special girls of mine, people who are brilliant and blessed with some of the most loving and giving hearts I know of :-)

By now am sure you know of my love for collecting Buddhas in various forms...this time on my trip back home I carried back with me the first statue from my collection, a birthday present in 2012 from one of my closest friends, Guramrita.

  

She has an amazing sense of style and this totally reflects in this exquisite Buddha that she chose for my home...

It is carved out of wood with dull gold polish on it and mirror work that gleams whenever the sunlight falls upon it. Needless to say, I always have been and continue to be mesmerised by this work of art...a lovely gift from a dear friend who always encouraged me to find the 'buddha' within myself...one of the most beautiful and strong souls I know...counting days to the next time I'll get to share a cup of chai with her again or savour some of her fabulous cooking ! :-)

When we get married our friend circle widens with the beautiful inclusion of those that our better half has grown up with including his or her group of childhood friends and college besties and the next artefact here is a stunner from a very dear friend of my better half...a gorgeous brass Ganesha that occupies pride of place in my home..

If you are wondering what the red border is all about then let me share with you that is a beautiful example of how metal and fabric come together to create something so aesthetically pleasing. This has been set against a subtle cloth vignette in brown and gold and has a gorgeous scarlet fabric border enclosing the idol...

..Beautiful is it not ? And what a lovely gift to give someone who is about to start a new journey in life, in more ways than one ? Thank you for this Rashi, am SO glad we met and we truly treasure this one from our collection ! :-)

There are some people who know us better than we know ourselves, we have spent the formative period of our lives with them, played truant from tuition classes together, shared endless rounds of dessert after exams got over, and even when its been so many years and we don't get to see each other more than once a year perhaps, whenever we meet them it feels like we never parted...and this is a beautiful wedding present from one such friend who goes beyond being loving and being gifted and is extremely dear to me...a set of candle stands that add the classic European touch to our home...

I light them up on Friday evenings when it it just the two of us at home or when we have people over and simply love their understated elegance...

Must mention here, that though Lara could not make it for our big day, she made a special effort to ensure this beautiful expression of her love and good wishes for us reached us before we undertook our journey to Korea, and I am so glad we have these beautiful candle stands here with us, a lovely reminder of her thoughtfulness and warmth that are so inherent in her nature...thanks Lara, love them !

And last but in no way the least, is a mention of a very dear friend...someone I did not grow up with or go to business school with, but someone I met and spoke to for perhaps just ten minutes at work in India and we hit it off like we had known each other all our lives...my friend Jayeeta, the superwoman with wheels on her feet, one foot on the road and the other in an airplane, the tough negotiator at work and the soft-hearted lady who melts at the sight of a puppy...my confidante, sounding board and so much more...here is a lovely gift from her, which was something I had always wanted...a beyond-beautiful 'kantha' bedspread...

She selected this for us on a trip to Kolkatta and the beautiful embroidery and the colours just stole my heart when I set my eyes upon it...it was far more stunning than anything I had imagined in the context of this form of art...

Known for doing things in style and for her attention to detail, she ensured everything was perfect, from the gift itself right to the gorgeous tissue bag that it came in...

I must confess though, to not having used the bedspread yet, simply because (at the risk of sounding a little crazy) I feel it is too gorgeous to use (as a bedcover at least) :-) Someday perhaps when we have enough wall space, I see it going up as wall art in our home...nevertheless, I take it out of its green envelope many a times, and feel the 'kantha' stitch underneath my fingers and can only feel blessed to have friends who spoil me so much  :-) Love it J, thank you !

I have always said whenever I have had a chance to speak about what makes my home what it is, that cherished gifts from my pals make the corners of our apartment come alive. It is the beauty of the artefacts chosen by them, as much as their great taste, superlative sense of style and love for me that all adds up and lends that special touch to the decor in our home. 

These are things that I shall cherish forever, just as much as I cherish the bond I share with those who thought of these wonderful gifts, treasure the memories we have of all our great times together, and raise a toast to the friendship that keeps us this close...even when we are many miles apart. Thank you for being so immensely thoughtful, and for always being there :-)

From one home to another...

And am back !!!! Back from the big fat Indian holiday and guilty of not saying hello sooner, partially on account of "unpacking obligations" and honestly because there was so much to share with you about the past two months spent in my home country that I wasn't quite sure how to piece this post together :-)
Well, let me start by saying that it has been an overwhelming concoction of time spent with my family and pets, wining and dining with friends, catching up with former colleagues, eating out at my favourite joints and last but not the least, shopping at my favourite haunts :-)

It has also been two months of not stepping into the kitchen, whilst both the mothers ensured they practically camped there to spoil me silly with their signature dishes...can still taste my mother in law's spinach au gratin and aloo tikkis, my sister-in-law's classic 'rui-maacher' jhaal and my mother's rawa idlis, mutton biryani, shaami kebabs and cranberry cake. All of them ensured I was pampered with my favourite food being served from breakfast to dinner and must jointly take the blame for the extra pounds on the weighing scales...how can anyone resist their delicious cooking...have a look ! :-)

After time spent well in the northern part of the country with my in-laws,  I headed home to my parents' home in Central India. Every corner appeared to have puckered up to smile at me, welcoming me, telling me how much I have been missed... :-)

My dogs greeted me with unadulterated love and unconditional joy that nearly bordered on disbelief...'Is it really her ? Is she truly back ? '...so on and so forth :-) No welcome quite compares to one with wet noses and wagging tails and we had a whale of time playing together and enjoying each others company...

...I enjoyed leisurely mornings in the verandah with my chai watching the birds chatter away as my mother's 'bhusawal' bananas ripened and enjoyed fresh vegetables at lunch time plucked from her kitchen garden...the little luxuries of home ! :-)

What does one wish for during a visit back home other than lots of family time, and I was blessed with a special 'Rakshabandhan' this year with my brother joining us at home for the occasion, a rare occurrence since we now live in different parts of the world. I was also in time for my sister-in-law's birthday and we had a wonderful time celebrating it together... :-)

Trinkets and I have had a love affair from college and this time I got down to sorting out my collection and was glad to bequeath some of the treasures from those wonder years to my nieces...it is amazing how many beautiful things one can dig out of old cupboards and trunks, things forgotten, buried in corners, collected over the years, each with a memory associated with it, a tale or an anecdote...I have to thank my mother for preserving them even when am not around to look after them.

And how could I ignore my decor dreams while being in India. While I did the customary rounds of shopping for things for my home in Korea, I had a far more productive time rummaging through the attic at home and I must say, my parents and in-laws have been more than generous :-) I have come back with a few treasures that am absolutely thrilled about and I promise to share them with you as soon as I find places befitting for them in our home in Seoul...

Is it possible to have your fill of a trip back to India, I don't know...for someone like me no amount of time back home is 'enough time' :-) So it was with a heavy heart and of course very heavy bags (like always) that I got onto that plane back to Seoul. But it was a happy heart too for it had a treasure trove of memories created over the past two months, of fond moments spent with parents and siblings, uncles, aunts and friends, a lot of pampering, love and laughter.

And home-coming in Korea has been wonderful, to a home that has been looked after and cared for by my better half...but that's another story that shall reveal itself soon on the blog... :-) For now am just glad that I could share this little snippet of my trip with all of you here...it has given me another chance to reminisce and smile as I recollect the lovely holiday. Thanks for joining me here...see you again soon...take care :-)

Baby steps to a dream, my own home decor label is here !

A big warm hello to my blog family. I am hoping life has been beautiful for you the past few days and that you have been nurturing your decor dreams, because I have certainly been doing so. I have some news to share with you, something that is very close to my heart. I decided it is time for me to take my love for home decor and all things beautiful to the next level and take a plunge into the world of 'decor e-tailing'...Yes, you guessed it right, I have just launched my own home decor label and am thrilled and oh-so-excited to be able to share this piece of news with you.

My dream to share beautiful things, a 'treasure trove' as I have always called it, will now have another medium to connect with you at www.kedgree.com. I am elated to be able to share Kedgree's mission and vision with you on the blog. I know am surrounded by like minded souls here who have gorgeous homes, an eye for beautiful things and for whom decor goes beyond being a passion, and I truly could not think of a more befitting or encouraging audience to share this happiness with. The loot shall be unveiled soon at Kedgree and the products will be up for grabs...I simply cannot wait to see you there. My little dream and I are looking forward to getting some more love from you, and I know I can count on you to be a part of this journey and make it beautiful and fulfilling.

Kedgeree, the British name for Indian 'Khichdi', a delicate blend of grains and colourful spices that come together to deliver the perfect flavour, one that satisfies the palette and satiates the soul....

We at Kedgree believe that the best in home decor comes out when you blend curios and collectibles from across the world and infuse vibrance and colour into your home from different cultures to deliver the perfect fusion, a beautiful mix.

We are individuals who eat, sleep, think, dream, breathe and 'live' decor. Our mission is to bring to your doorstep, decor treasures from across the globe, a unique combination of hand-picked gems that will make your home even more exquisite than it already is.

So if your passion is to keep a beautiful home and to adorn it with gorgeous art, antiques and handcrafted products that speak of the country of their origin, the skill and talent of their craftswomen, the culture, the folklore and the history behind them, we strongly recommend that you watch this space. See your decor fantasies come alive with us. Beautiful things for beautiful homes...only at 'Kedgree'.

Looking forward to your feedback on the blog as always.
You can now also connect with me at hello@kedgree.com :-) See you next time, take care.

The Glory of the Indian Monsoon

Hello everyone, I am lucky to be in India during the beautiful monsoon season when the rain bearing clouds change not just the landscape of the country, but the moods and emotions of everyone staying here. There is a special connect between the monsoon season and the camera, they just 'click' ! And so while some of us run for cover when it starts to rain or prefer to watch it from a comfortable distance, my camera and I love to become one with the downpour and immortalise as many raindrops as we can through its lens...
You know that feeling when you have been observing the skies oscillate between shades of pale blue and deep indigo, very nearly turning charcoal and then holding back, unwilling to part with those precious pearls from heaven ? And just when you've given up hope and and also stopped gambling on those evasive showers, you hear the deep rumble from up above, lightening flashes across the dark clouds and it starts to rain ! Wait, let me rephrase that one, it doesn't just 'rain', it 'pelts' !! Large, fat drops kiss the ground at your feet and you and the world around you start to rejoice, for the great Indian monsoon is here, finally ! :-)

The neighbourhood reverberates with the shrieks of children splashing and playing around in the puddles, bikers throw caution to the winds and enjoy the feeling of the rain against their face, their clothes clinging to the skin, laughing, singing aloud, enjoying the ride and the relief from the harsh summer that they now see themselves finally bidding adieu to !

You lose count of the number of shades of green your garden is now sporting...all the new variants humbling your knowledge of the colour palette, and you are happy to try and distinguish between 'light', 'dark', darker'...so on and so forth :-)

Human beings, flowers, fruits, birds...all chime their favourite monsoon melodies...you wake up to a morning after a night of rainfall and feel as though someone spent the last eight hours scrubbing the world clean....everything looks pure, crisp and fresh...

The rooftop has served as the dance floor for the rain to conduct its pitter-patter tap-dance on it all night long, and I just love the early morning gleam on the terracotta tiles here...

The flowers are content to let the water droplets rest on their velvety surface...

The leaves too...love how the raindrops manage to pull off the perfect balancing act, not gliding off from the slick surface :-)

The birds decide it is a morning that is too beautiful to waste huddled up inside their bird house, and they flit from one branch to the other, twittering...chirping...hallelujah, the monsoon is here !

When the Indian Robin above is at play, why should the 'Bulbul' be left behind, it perches itself on the mango tree and looks at the lush green view...bird's eye view :-)

The cloudburst from the night before has scattered mangoes from the branches on the grass beneath the tree...

...but the 'Bulbul' choses a ripe one from those that still occupy their place on the tree and tucks into it for breakfast. Proof of the fact that the love for mangoes runs across the family :-)

When the flowers and the birds are celebrating the rains, why should the rest of the flora and fauna be any different...love how beautifully the rain bejewels the grapefruit and the guavas...all washed and cleansed by the drops from heaven above...

...And the delicate love affair between the butterfly and the rain-drenched plants...:-)

...everyone has a song to hum, the world around you smiles...

Now is also the time to pull out that umbrella that has been sitting quietly all these months, lying unnoticed in its umbrella stand...

...Open it, twirl it around and dance with it in the rain...nothing quite like these lovely accessories to brighten a rainy day...the more colourful the better ! :-)

By now am sure you are all familiar with my love for 'chai' :-) But there is something extra special about having a cup of tea when it rains, one that has been brewed with 'tulsi' (holy basil), plucked from the garden...

 And if this cuppa is accompanied by 'mom-made' samosas that are stuffed with spinach and mozzarella cheese and you can view the rain from your chair in the verandah as you gorge on them, you know you are in 'monsoon bliss' ! :-)

Speaking of tea, I wanted to share with you that I chanced upon a 'chai-stall' on my way to the market yesterday and got into a casual conversation with the owner about her livelihood... 

She said she feels blessed not just because she is able to provide tea to passers by, but also because her tiny little tea stall's asbestos sheets provide them shelter when they are stranded during a heavy downpour...her contentment shows on her face, does it not ? 

You don't always need big chances in life to feel happy and experience self-fulfilment...do you ? It is a good idea to grab those small opportunities that come your way to serve someone else, to make their day ! :-)

And with this beautiful encounter at the back of my mind, I moved onto the market place and saw how it was full of 'thelas' selling monsoon fruit. My Nana always advocated the countless benefits of eating seasonal fruit and I picked up fresh jamuns to carry home...my nutrient and anti-oxidant dose for the day :-)

The roads nowadays are flanked by 'bhutta-walas' and there is nothing like the taste of a hot 'bhutta' off the 'angeethi' on a rainy day...

I love mine with lots of 'nimbu-namak' masala and I grabbed one on my drive back home and savoured every delicious chomp, every juicy bite...lip smacking stuff !

There are many other dimensions to the monsoons in India...such as the 'moongphalli-wala' as he roasts fresh groundnut on his 'thela' and serves them to you in tiny scraps of newspaper...

..and the rain-shy cows that seek shelter under the nearest grove of trees as they see dark clouds gathering in the sky...

...or how the goats are tethered to safety at a spot that protects them from torrential rain...

..or the way onions, garlic pods and potatoes are put away in a 'wind-proof' corner to keep them from growing moulds...

..and ingenious solutions such as this one to harvest water from leaking roofs... :-)

All of them contribute to the magic of the season, to the mesmerising aura of the monsoon, wouldn't you agree?

And then there is the flip side to the rain...rain that 'fulfils' and 'uplifts' has the power to 'uproot' and 'afflict' too ! Life in so many parts of the country gets washed away by fury of floods...

...homes of the not-so-fortunate get destroyed and scattered like leaves from a tree during a storm...

And so it is also a time for you and me to be grateful, that we are in a part of the country where the rain is relatively moderate or just adequate, and that we can choose to watch the raindrops rolling off the banana leaf from the safe comfort of our verandahs and balconies...thankful that we have a roof above our heads during such weather...

Rain in India...you cannot help but fall in love with the drama, the romance, the theatrics and histrionics, the son-et-lumière...what I love about it is that there is nothing 'tutored or engineered' about it..it is raw emotion, rustic and wild...and I would strongly urge you to go ahead and be more than just a 'passive observer' (if that is who you have been thus far) and make the rain 'yours'. Fall in love with the rumble, embrace those rain drops, quench your thirst and flood your senses...let your soul soak it all in !

And as I sign off here, I want to make a special mention of my readers abroad and fellow expats who are not in India to experience this joyous weather first-hand...I am sending some rain-laden winds your way. Remember me the next time you feel a gentle breeze caress your face and if you breathe in deeply am sure you will get a whiff of the rain soaked soil from our home country... :-)

Until next time, I am off to appreciate, relish, reflect upon and soak in the beauty of this season...the unparalleled glory of the great Indian Monsoon...I hope you enjoyed the small glimpse I shared here.. :-)