What's your story?

As I boarded a crowded tram in the peak hours of Thursday evening, all I could think of is to quickly find a seat and read my emails that I was too caught up to check during the day. Luckily, I did find a seat and in about five minutes I skimmed through my emails. I had been working on a computer screen for eight hours straight and there was nothing important to do on the phone that couldn't wait until I got home so I decided to put it away. An elderly man sitting in front of me caught my attention. His eyes were searching aimlessly for something. His shoes were scuffed, he had a band-aid around his thumb and his phone seemed really old. He looked like someone who was physically strong but worked very hard for a living. Our eyes met a couple of times but he probably didn't know how to strike a conversation with a really young girl and neither did I try to start a conversation. I saw him staring at everyone in the tram using their phones, their eyes pinned so firmly to the phone that they had no idea about what's going on around them. He was probably wondering what is it that EVERYONE is doing on their phones. He took out his phone, unlocked it, checked the time, stared at it for a couple of minutes and put it back in his pocket. He was probably wondering why is this girl staring at him because I just couldn't stop. I had this urge of wanting to talk to him, know what he did for a living, where is his family, etc. I didn't do it because I couldn't. I remember how easy it used to be for me talk to random strangers but I can't anymore. It's because I don't know how to. I don't how it would be perceived or responded with. I eventually got down at my stop and walked home wondering I could have used the 20 minutes of my journey in a better way.


We are human beings made to interact with each other but we have turned into nuts and bolts of an inanimate world that merely functions together. When was the last time you expressed yourself to someone without any fear? Stereotyping, judging, trolling or ignoring seems like the most popular response to anyone who expresses their innermost feelings. Are we that incapable as species? The species that has language, superior anatomy and a far superior intellect than other species. Are we really evolving or simply distancing ourselves from each other? The loss of human interactions worries me and makes me feel alone even when I am connected with everyone I know.


I am starting a small social experiment and I need your help for it to be a success. I have decided to put my phone away in public transport, supermarkets and other places where I can have human interactions. Every human being walking on the phase of the earth is a beautiful story. I will collect stories in the city I am living in, for now, Melbourne. With the help of like-minded individuals around the world, I would like to collect and share more stories. I will publish those stories regularly on my blog with credits and we can share them with the world. I am not expecting too many stories but would it be so hard to get one story a week?

Everyone has a story. What's yours?

#whatisyourstory

25 things you should absolutely do before you turn 25 :)

I am back!!!!! After two long years of a writer's block. The last couple of years have been so eventful, stressful, but certainly beautiful!!!! I turned 25 this month (woohoo) and I counted the number of things I would like to write in my 'Awesome things I did before turning 30' diary. Yes, I actually have a diary! I have penned down few things I am particularly proud of (mostly eating) doing before I turned 25. So here's my bucket list of things to do before you turn 25. Even if you are over 25, there are some things on the bucket list that you should do if you haven't done yet :) Read on :)

My journal of 'Awesome things I did before I turned 30'

1. Watch a live Sport...Could be any sport...Sitting in a large packed stadium is truly a thrill!

2. Bake a cake and eat it.

3. Read a good book. 

4. Take a solo trip. Could be anywhere. Travelling solo teaches you a lot of things about yourself.

5. Fall in love.

6. Fail..and then learn from it :)

7. Challenge yourself to achieve something that was not expected of you. Could be anything. 

8. Learn from a heartbreak.

9. Write a note to your 30-year-old self.

10. Step out of your comfort zone and do something insane.

11. Watch a meaningful movie alone or even better, attend a film festival all alone. 

12. Go to a music concert. 

13. Save up and buy one luxurious piece of accessory. Just one :)

14. Volunteer for a cause you care about.

15. Develop a personal style...Something that is comfortable for YOU!

16. Learn to cut off negativity...negative places, people...just CUT OFF! 

17. Let your real friends (usually very few) know what they mean to you :)

18. Watch Shawshank Redemption and The Pursuit of Happyness.

19. Learn to cook one gourmet dish and your comfort food.

20. Find your favorite drink. Could be non-alcoholic. For me, it's mint mocha :)

21. Watch the entire series of Friends, Suits and How I Met Your Mother.

22. Find your calling. That one thing that gives you pure, unadulterated joy.

23. Do a photography walk of your city. 

24. Play with a dog to know what pure affection is. 

25. Learn to be alone and enjoy your company :)

The Thinking Woman's Diary: Being "such a girl"

"She's a typical girl. She loves shoes. She loves going shoe shopping, right in mom's closet."

-Curtis Jackson

"Quit being such a girl, Priyanka". "I am sure you would want it in pink color". "What do you know, your'e a girl". "Do girls really know about stuff?" Sounds similar? These are the annoying questions that every woman comes across in her life pretty much frequently. There is one thing called gender stereotyping which we are not really complaining about. Because the world has stereotyped the stereotyping to such an extent that anything a person says or does is attributed to everything else but his or her individuality. What I personally cannot stand is when being "such a girl" is hurled at us as an accusation or even worse, an insult. I am not talking about men alone here, women also accuse each other of well, being a woman. The fault equally lies in us too since we take offence in being called a girl.Yes, I do understand that being "such a girl" is collectively associated to being unreasonable, vain, naive and well, a pain in the ass, But it's only fair to be called those things instead of attributing bad behavior to our gender, which btw one cannot change unless you win lottery.

Well I am not a man hater to begin with, hence I would really not jot down ways where we can make "such a guy" sound extremely offensive to the menfolk. But it doesn't mean I can't. I choose not to. I repeat. I choose not to. Spending a reasonably significant amount of time with the opposite sex, I can confidently say that yes, I really know them. And honestly speaking not one trait shown by most of the men commonly has offended me or made me say "you're such a guy!". No, I would rather embrace that difference as something inherent and make it seem endearing to me instead of annoying. Yes, it's possible. And there is nothing wrong in expecting the same kind of acceptance as women! Why do we need to be like men and trash our own belief system? In terms of work, relationships or just about anything, women these days are battling a tug inside of wanting to seem like one of the men and in turn losing their individuality. Yes, there are certain things men are really good at and yes we must constantly learn from everyone around us irrespective of their gender, color, ethnicity or just about anything. But we must also not let go or demean what we really are and probably even meant to be!

In no way my post is meant to hurt or attack men.I am blessed for not having to deal with the misogynistic attitude on a regular basis or maybe people know I will screw their happiness. Either ways it doesn't affect me. All I intend to do is urge women to embrace their individuality, don't shy away from what you really feel, express it the way you want to and don't try and be something you are not. At the same time work on your flaws for a better you, not to be like someone else. So to sum everything up I have listed few instances where I have been told to quit being "such a girl" and my mind goes "F%*k you, I am one".

• Pink. Dagnabbit! No, we are not the official mascot of Pink. We like Mauve, Wine Red, Turquoise, Magenta as much as we love Pink. And if a girl is obsessed with Pink, who cares! She likes it, she can pull it off so be it! And yes we are proud of knowing and pulling off every color in the world be it in our clothes, bags, shoes or whatever! And no, Purple and Lavender are not the same colors. 
• Talking way too much. Yes, we are super expressive about everything. We love talking. We can really really talk a lot. But why shouldn't one? You mentally feel lighter and you sleep well when you have spoken where you wanted to. Simple as that. 
• Crying. No, its not a sign of weakness. No, we are not vulnerable. This can be attributed to us being expressive. We can cry out a heartbreak or an emotional movie scene. We don't know how one doesn't cry when you feel sad. It just seems difficult to us but not impossible. But why not express sorrow when you can and be done with it? 
• Being too much into bags, shoes and makeup. Why can't men make their peace with it? We find it extremely cute how guys can take superheroes and football so seriously. Why can't we be left alone the same way? And fyi, I have known men looking down upon women who are not upto the mark in terms of fashion. But women don't really care if a guy is not into any sport so why judge those women who are not interested in reading Vogue like The Bible. Let's call it double standards, shall we?
• Being told how its our job to cook. No, it's really not. The only people whose job is to cook are the ones getting paid for it. We are just way too good in it. That one difference between women and men is yet to go away. We cook with lot of love. You can't take that away from us. We do it because we want to. It's one of our ways of expressing our love and not because our place is in the kitchen. And be thankful to the women who stayed in the kitchen to cook for you making you capable enough to say such things. A man's classy fettuccine with goat cheese and summer vegetables will kick maa ke haath ka dal chawal anyday. Beat that!
• Being picky about everything. We don't like regrets! Simple. I don't wanna go home with an ivory bag and regret when I see the same one in Burgundy carried by someone else. I am not gonna defend us on how we meticulously pick the curtains and sheets for the house because end of the day, the house looks beautiful! What I do is I don't drag impatient people along and then be picky about things. That's just not cool. And I would ask women to quit doing that and shop in peace, 
• Not knowing anything about Gadgets, Cars, Technology, Worldly affairs, Wildlife, Politics and just about anything remotely intellectual. This is the shittiest thing I personally have to deal with. I have kicked ass in terms of leading a conversation in the above mentioned things better than even a group of men. Not because I am out to prove a point but all these things genuinely interests me. And I didn't know how much I enjoyed reading and exploring about these things until I actually did. So I would suggest women to go out there and explore. You never know. The girl with the perfect nail art might end up taking interest in the Stock market equally. And I would suggest men who are sarcastic towards us, to ummm, get a life?
• Not letting go. Yes, we are stubborn. Whether it means letting go something we love that is not good for us or letting go an issue that bothers us. We are bad at doing both inspite of being very well aware of how important it is. It's not because we don't have the willpower or maturity to let go, it's because we always feel there is some room for improvement or a hope of transformation. Period.
• Being bitchy. Men bitch too. We all know that. 
• Remembering every little detail. This collectively benefits both the genders. The men won't admit but we remembering everything about them and for them has helped them massively as much as it has given us ammunition to fight as well. I would suggest, less fight and more help. Cheers!

There are some more serious and regressive accusations Indian women have to deal with. I would venture that zone with a slightly more serious writing. For know, it;s all about the freedom of expression and acceptance. And if someone accuses of being a girl, always say you are proud of being one!!!!