BENGALURU : Good morning, Bangalore!
I’m going to resist the temptation of saying, ‘I’m back’ like good old Arnold Schwarzenegger, with his flagging muscles, hanging jowls and jiggling stomach. Although I’m not really that far behind looks wise, after standing in queue with all the other geriatrics to get my Covid vaccine, my morale is a wee bit higher.
I’m close to being a senior myself and for the first time my diabetic condition was an asset rather than a deficit because I was fortunate enough to be vaccinated. I honestly feel that in spite of what the doomsday pundits are saying, most of us are spending far too much time on this planet. The irony is that most wheelchair-bound seniors that I saw waiting to get inoculated, had children who were senior citizens themselves!
The vaccination has brought about some serious problems in ‘namma-ooru’. All the beautiful people who wear tight, short and ill-fitting clothes and who have been around since kingdom came (read from the advent of Adam and Eve) are in a quandary whether to take the vaccine or not, as it will reveal their senior-citizen statuses! OMG! That will not do.
They will suffer with the virus, infecting themselves and everyone else with no masks, share hookahs and party till the cows come home but will not disclose their ages and get vaccinated! I think we have to wait till the vaccine is implemented for the younger lot before these uncles and aunties go take their shots. Vanity thy name is ‘venerable’! We are still reeling under newer strains of the virus and even after being vaccinated, safety protocols like masks and sanitizers are mandatory. Is the urge to ‘stay relevant’ so important that we must throw caution to the winds by crowding together like catfish in a mud pond? Tch tch! Haven’t we heard of smaller more intimate numbers, people… really?
So Women’s Day has rolled around again and once again token gestures abound. Clubs and restaurants are giving away hand-creams and cheap cocktails more to fill their own coffers than celebrate women. One restaurant had the bright idea of having bare-chested men serve the women, assuming that the sight of pigeon-chested and emaciated men will titillate our senses. We see enough of unkempt and out-of-shape men of our own at home, so we definitely don’t need to pay and see them outside! But if we ignore all the extraneous hoop-la, it is really empowering and heartening to see how women (not only the young ‘uns) have made huge strides in their life and choice of careers.
I met Nevidita Prasad at a good friend’s home a couple of years ago. In between bouts of laughter, she admitted that she was a big fan, and while I gloated, she shyly told me how she had started a chocolate making business of her own. I mentally dismissed her, thinking, ‘another housewife with chocolaty dreams.’ Recently, I received a hamper of chocolates from ‘Chocolate Philosophy’ as a gift from a friend. I was blown away by the sheer quality and taste.
There was no hint of an amateurish kitchen-cabinet enterprise… this was a savvy lady who built her brand competing with the best in the business worldwide!Ditto, with two young ladies, Jyothsna Venkatesh and Sonali Swami, who will put Arnie’s bulging biceps to shame. Both of them are small town girls with conservative backgrounds, who have metamorphosed into savvy, beautiful, sexy and inspirational women body builders. They have represented our country numerous times, exercise and post pictures with their beautiful manicures and have the courage to shine. They are adequately represented by their ‘teams’ and agents. No more sad stories like the PT Ushas of yore. Kudos to them and to all the women who strive to rise from the mundane to shine like diamonds. More power and happy day all women… and men!