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 When rage grips you, when misery hugs you,   the lid of brusqueness breaks apart  and filthy words ooze out.  They travel through your bones scouring  for an opening,  and since kindness doesn't obstruct them, they are easily blurted out.  Vicious words, falling on the ears of people around seem bitter pill to swallow.  Still they devour, slackening the threads of relationships, rendereing your friendship  nothing but hollow. But, when the fury leaves your hand, when your saner part  takes a hold, you cognize your mistake. Beseeching the words  to come back, you realize that words once spoken  cannot be retreated and ties once broken,  cannot be treated.

Twinkle Khanna, who managed to tickle your funny bone with her bestselling book, 'Mrs Funnybones', is back with her new book, 'The Legend of Lakshmi Prasad'. While her debut book gave you fun-filled moments and made you burst into fits of laughter, in her next work, Khanna has delved deep into our system and has jotted down the loopholes very eloquently, convincing us at the same time to rethink on our notions and beliefs. The first story revolves around a young girl, Lakshmi Prasad, who witnessed the burden of two daughters on her parents and came up with a revolutionary idea that made women a blessing, not a curse.  While the second story is a love story of two aged people and how they unite without caring for the society. The third one is about a girl, Elisa struggling to break the notion,"Without marriage, girls are useless" and the last story shows how a determined man, Bablu Kewat despite being ostracized, goes on to manufacture low cost sanita

The sun climbed over the skyline. The rays streaming through the window, fell gently on Amit's face, disturbing him from deep sleep. After much wallowing in bed, he finally got up, already exhausted from the thought of going to a business party.  But, his despair melted down as he saw a huge shelf thrusted with books. His eyes gleamed and a wide smile, symbolising his love for books, flashed on his face, pushing away the sorrow. An hour later, Amit was all decked up, dressed up to the nines, sporting an immaculate black tuxedo, that he had apparently bought from his hard-earned money just to impress everyone. He looked in the mirror. Everything was perfect but, one thing was missing- the mask!  As soon as he put it on, he turned into the Amit of the people. The introvert and 'not a party lover' turned into a gregarious and a party person. The 'book lover' turned into the one who would say, "Books? How boring!". So, there Amit was at the pa

It seems like only a few days ago, when we embraced 2016. And here we are again, at the brink of it, almost ready to fall in 2017, whose waiting with bated breath  to see its victims squandering yet another year,  living in mediocrity, without contemplating their actions and playing everything by ear. Time fleets. And we struggle to match its pace, running fast to win the race. Decisions once taken are never  pondered upon ever again. Life, we lived years ago, as colorless, riskless and dull, is being still lived the same, again and again! The 'fast forward' mode is always on. We never pause to rewind our life and think for just a moment, "Is this the life I always want?" Contemplation is the first baby step towards our aspirations, as it instills in us the power to take resolute decisions. Life whizes by quicker than we think. Before we reach our graves, before it is too late, snatch a minute from it to mull over our existenc

  As I sit in isolation, staring outside at the abstruse world, myriad of thoughts keep twirling inside, endeavouring to come out of the hard shell that I have within. For they too have realised that world is curt. towards me, an introvert.                                                       Pic credits:  Huffington Post  While people are enjoying their camaraderie with every being coming their way, I, a lone wolf, find joy in the smell of books. But, people say, "how drab it is", passing me irksome looks. The trend of being gregarious is surfacing.  While folks out there are busy  competing for followers, and texting to build so called "connections". I often love to delve into myself, talk to myself  not paying heed to their rejections. I have my own secret place for my thoughts, feelings and emotions. But, I seldom try to come out of my zone, And try to transform my thoughts into a speech with the

It was one of the chilly mornings of December, enveloped in tranquillity. It seemed as if the world had come to a standstill. The cool breeze was gushing, almost hitting my warm cheeks and making my long hair blow violently. The fog was thick, blocking my vision while the sun was trying its best to raise the temperature. It was a usual day except for I was heading for the first interview of my life. As I walked down the marooned lane, I sensed that something was following me. With each step, it was coming closer and closer. I turned around only to see nothing. But, I knew, there was something! While giving the interview, I was just physically present there because I could feel the stalker was in the room too, right next to me. I could not concentrate and so my performance was a disaster. I cried. I was depressed. This continued for a long period. Every time I tried to take the bull by its horns, every time I came out of my element, there was my "caring" stalker with me

We all were singing "Happy birthday to you..!!" in chorus as we busted into my sister's room early morning. We cut the cake and gave her gifts. She loved the surprise and was over the moon. It was her special day and it took off very well. Her phone kept on beeping as everyone sent her good wishes. Later, she called her friends to celebrate but the plan did not work out as most of them refused. She did not sulk as she thought her friends are planning a surprise. She was expecting a high end party and exquisite gifts. Well, the entire day passed and nothing happened. It indeed was a surprise for her. She expected too much and as a result ended her day with a heart full of regrets. Expectations always find a way to reside in our brain. They are our best friends. Oh wait! I should say foes, because every time they pop up in our head, they take away our peace of mind and sometimes we even spoil our relationships because of expectations. After having a fallout, we expect

 (1) Try not to become a man of success, but rather try to become a man of value.  (2) We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.  (3) Once we accept our limits, we go beyond them.  (4) A person who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.  (5) You never fail until you stop trying.  (6) Weak people revenge. Strong people forgive. Intelligent people ignore.  (7) Failure is success in progress.  (8) If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough.  (9) Only those who attempt the absurd can achieve the impossible. (10) If A is success in life, then A equals x plus y plus z. Work is x; y is play; z is keeping your mouth shut. 😊

Cuddled up in the corner of a dark room, she was weeping. Her sweater was almost wet with tears rolling down her cheeks. As her mind went through the last ten minutes of her life, her cries grew louder and louder....Through her watery eyes, she could see her blurred dreams fading away. Pessimism had engulfed her. Her father, after spitting his anger entered the room. The room which had posters of Michael Jackson all over the walls. The room which was full of aspirations of a girl to turn into a prominent dancer. "I am sorry for shouting at you but, you won't be able to do this my angel. You are a little child right now and so your mind is not mature to take big decisions." he said to his eighteen year old daughter. "But, daddy is with you Anna to tell what is right and what is wrong. And I am telling you to focus on your studies. It is the only medium to rise to the top, dear. Once you touch the sky, you can dance as much as you want." With thes

One day, my friend called me and invited me for lunch. I could sense from her voice that she was super excited. So, when I went to meet her, I came to know the reason. After looking for a job for months, she finally received a response from one company. She was over the moon and was ready to live a perfectly settled life with her would be husband. I congratulated her and wished her good luck. After few months she again called. But, this time she sounded depressed as she was sacked by the company for some reason. Moreover, her marriage did not work too. She cried her heart out and I comforted her but she became hopeless and still is in deep depression. We have the tendency of giving instructions to life and telling it our plans and then expecting it to follow the same. But, life has its own plans for you. You can tell life what you want from it but whether it will follow that or not is its own wish. You need to listen to life. Do not just ask for what you want from it. Be patient

Yesterday, my grandmother came to me with an intrigued look on her face and asked me about Instagram and Snapchat. I was taken aback. How did she know about it? Does she too want to check out people's snaps and stories? Even I don't have them installed on my phone! I kept my thoughts aside and explained to her in simple words. Then she insisted me to download them on her phone. As an obedient girl, I followed the orders. Now, her eyes are always glued to her phone screen. Her group of friends discusses WhatsApp jokes all the time when they meet. The other day, I was walking in a park and there were few young ladies sitting in a circle. It seemed they were meeting after a long time. The sound of their laughter was echoing in the entire park. But, that lasted for some time only. It seemed that after chit chatting and catching up on each other's lives, gradually each of them remembered their better halves- their phones. So, about one hour later, the discussion shifted to

Simple yet effective ways to uplift your mood  It is advised not to let one unpleasant moment to ruin your entire day. "Let it go" is what we hear or we read in self-improvement books. But sometimes, it is not a cakewalk to forget everything and just move on. We can know the pain only after stepping into the shoes of the person. But, to be blue all the time is neither a solution. We need to work out some ways to release out the stress and turn our bad day to a better or maybe a best one.  Here are some very simple ways which I am sure will cheer you up in minutes. (1) Laugh it out This might seem silly but, trust me it really works. Just sitting in a corner and weeping about the problem obviously won't help. So, whenever you are feeling sulky, just wipe your tears and start laughing.  I know you will not feel like laughing when your are despondent, but still do it! It will surely change your mood and will make you feel light. Scientifically also, it

I was in a clinic and was waiting for my turn to consult the doctor. Since it was taking too long, I just got into a conversation with the receptionist. She told me one incident that surprised me and I was miffed too. The receptionist had a friend who was slightly healthy. She did not look that awkward, but her close friends teased her and advised her to shed some weight off. Now, that girl took it so seriously that she went on dieting for weeks and ultimately was admitted to a hospital where she died! Just imagine the extent to which people go just to get a letter of approval with the signatures of this society! We all have a bad habit that we want to be loved by all. We don't want our haters to exist and this is the main reason why we don't accept our imperfections. In this struggle of becoming a perfect person, we end up becoming a messy person. If you want the world to love you, there is no need to pretend and be fake. It just requires a simple action: you need to l

The book "Unposted Letter" deserves to be read by all of us. Mahatria, the author has written many beautiful chapters with which everybody can relate. He has touched some basic issues we all need to fix. But, I found one particular chapter interesting as the idea was new and should be understood by parents who are over protective towards their children. As a person grows, his definition of respect also changes. For a seven year old child, if you as a parent will not drop him to school, if you won't buy him toys or if you won't go with him to park, he would feel you are not respecting him. He would feel that he is nothing to you as you are not giving your time, your care to him. But, this same treatment does not apply to a seventeen year old child because now, for him respect means something else. If you as a parent will be there for him wherever he goes or if you will spoon feed him, he would feel you are disrespecting him. You are not giving him enough space and f

There were two students who were studying in the same school and were in the same class. They were good friends too. But, there lifestyles were completely different. One was born with a silver spoon. Living opulently, he almost had everything. The other one was grievously poverty stricken. His father somehow managed to pay his annual fees. But, his will to study and to paint a bright future for him and his family was far more than his hardships. He studied assiduously, focused om what he had, did his best and in the end, life rewarded him and he ended up living lavishly. The rich lad, however, was not content even though he had everything. He kept thinking what others had and he did not, like he had luxurious cars but he wanted a bicycle like others. He kept comparing and ended up living in depression. What is the moral of the story? The grass always looks greener on the other side. No matter how rich you are, your wants are never satisfied. You are not content with what you ha

   Look well to this day, For it and it alone is life. In its brief course Lie all the essence of your existence: The Glory of Growth The Satisfaction of Achievement The Splendor Of Beauty For yesterday is but a dream, And tomorrow is but a vision. But, today well lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness, And every tomorrow a vision of hope.                                                                                    - Kalidasa

You start dying slowly if you do not travel, if you do not read, If you do not listen to the sounds of life, If you do not appreciate yourself. You start dying slowly When you kill your self-esteem; When you do not let others help you. You start dying slowly If you become a slave of your habits, Walking everyday on the same paths.... If you do not change your routine, If you do not wear different colours Or you do not speak to those you don't know. You start dying slowly If you avoid to feel passion And their turbulent emotions; Those which make your eyes glisten And your heartbeat fast. You start dying slowly  If you do not change your life when you are not satisfied with your job, or with your love, If you do not risk what is safe for the uncertain, If you do not go after a dream, If you do not allow yourself, At least once in a lifetime, To run away from a sensible advice....                                        

This is the story of a happy but sad couple. Happy because there was no dearth of money. Sad because there was dearth of communication. The husband, always being over-loaded with work never had the time for his wife, who was suffering from a serious disease. Every day she longed to share a good time with him but, that never happened. Once a week, to compensate for his absence, he used to give expensive gifts to her and that's it! Soon, the wife was living her last days. She still hoped and waited but, still her partner was busy in bringing home the bacon which seemed more important to him. He did not realise what his wife actually wanted was his TIME and his PRESENCE not his gifts which were lying unopened! Now when she is no more, he regrets not spending time with her and lend a listening ear to all those thoughts and feelings that she wanted to share. Do you find this story relatable? We have so busy schedules that we find it difficult to fit "family time" in it. In

We all have ambitious dreams of living life in a comfortable way. Just sitting on a couch, eagerly waiting for THE DAY. But, Ouch! Without struggles, without pain, you won't reach the top of the mountain. Life is all about taking little steps. Each step brings you closer and your goals become clearer. The journey is not easy but rough, having twists and turns. One has to be tough. You will rise, you will stumble and you will fall but, don't you get scared. It is your call, whether you just want to stare at the mountain top, building castles in the air. Or you want to make efforts and change your mentality to transform your dreams into a reality!                                                                                                                                 - Prachi Agrawal

" 'Today' is that precious gift that you either get from Him, or it just means that you have already lived your last day. Not everyone who went to sleep last night woke up this morning. The very fact you did, some force above still thinks you are worthy of another 'Today'. Recognise the heart of the divine behind this 24-hour material. Know, 'Today' is a providential gift. Realise, abusing the gift is abusing the giver. Wasting a day of your life will amount to abusing the giver of this gift. Only when you know the value of a gift, you will value the gift. Value 'Today' and make it valuable."                                                                                       - Mahatria ( Unposted Letter) God showers his blessings on us by adding a day to our lives. Each day is his blessing in disguise. It is his gift to us.But, what do you mostly do with this precious gift? You either fret over your past mistakes or you procrastinate as

" I will do it tomorrow." He said. Tomorrow came. " I will do it tomorrow." He said again. But, tomorrow never came and his reply remained same, until, he reached his deathbed his eyes all wet his heart full of regret          desperately wishing a retake of his life. But, alas! He didn't have a second chance to add to his life more joy, love and romance. Procrastination is the biggest obstacle   which won't let you reach the pinnacle. What has to be done should be done today because tick, tock, tick ,tock, tick, tock strikes the clock In the blink of an eye on your deathbed, you will lie shattered! to have lived your life dull and dry.                                                                                                   - Prachi Agrawal

Yesterday, I found The Secret, written by Rhonda Byrne and I just happen to read that book, though it was lying in my shelf for quiet some time. As I flipped through the pages, I was completely blown away and could not resist myself to share the mind boggling idea with you all. There might be many people who are already acquainted with this Secret, but there are few who still don't know it.So, read on if you want to change your life!  The Secret is the Law of Attraction.This Law introduces us to the power of our thoughts.It says "what you think is what you attract".Whatever is happening in your life is because you have attracted it through your thoughts.If you are thinking negative thoughts, you will face only negativity in life. You will come across more and more negative circumstances in life.If you are thinking positive, it will flow in your life and you will see more positivity around you.You can take charge of your life with your thoughts.You can create your li

Often your tasks will be many,  And more than you think you can do.  Often the road will be rugged And the hills insurmountable, too.  But always remember,  The hills ahead Are never as steep as they seem,  And with Faith in your heart Start upward And climb 'til you reach your dream.  For nothing in life that is worthy Is ever too hard to achieve If you have the courage to try it,  And you have the faith to believe.  For faith is a force that is greater Than knowledge or power or skill,  And many defeats turn to triumph If you trust in God's wisdom and will.  For faith is a mover of mountains,  There's nothing that God cannot do,  So, start out today with faith in your heart,  And climb 'til your dream comes true!                                                                                                       - Helen Steiner Rice

When i was in my last year of school, i was highly tenacious about my goal- to get a stupendous score. But, there were so many distractions in the form of people. They all were party people and liked hanging out, just whiling away their time.But,i marched on a different drumbeat. I liked devoting my entire time to studies.Maybe, i was over meticulous about my goal but, that's how i was. And so, there were times when i was invited to join these gatherings almost everyday. It was very hard for me to say 'yes', as it would distract me but, saying 'no' was even more difficult as my friends were already cheesed-off with my behavior.I used to be between devil and deep sea. At those times, i asked myself a question repeatedly- was pleasing my friends more imperative for me than chasing my goal? Each time, my heart and my mind were against each other.But,i was gutsy enough to listen what my heart was saying- 'NO'. For your life, nothing is more important tha

When things go wrong, As they sometimes will, When the road you're trudging seems all uphill, When the funds are low and debts are high, And you want to smile,but you have to sign, When care is pressing you down a bit-Rest if you  must, but don't you quit. Life is queer with its twists and turns, As every one of us sometimes learns, And many a failure turns about When he might have won had he stuck it out. Don't give up though the pace seems slow- You may  succeed with another blow. Success is failure turned inside out- The silver tint of the clouds of doubt, And never can tell how close you are, It may be near when it seems so far; So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit. It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.                                                                                           - Anonymous

A new trend is settling in our society in which building a social image has become more important than building the reservoir of knowledge.People are not content unless they are socially accepted. And in the quest of becoming so called "social", they show false image of themselves to the society. Texting back to a friend,uploading latest pictures on social media or updating their status seems to be more imperative than to read and learn.A book seems to be more heavy to carry than a mobile.They always look for admirers, they always want approval from people, unaware of the fact that their knowledge is becoming obsolete.They want to be accepted by everybody and don't want to be criticised even by one. Such people of low self-esteem end up having nothing in their heads, and are totally dumb. They are always lamented, not satisfied with their lives. Read deep books because they have the power to lift you up and to change your perspective towards life. They sometimes ac

 Check out this wonderful video of Robin Sharma and learn how to dissolve your fears.

He worked by day And toiled by night. He gave up play And some delight. Dry books he read, New thongs to learn. And forged ahead, Success to earn. He plodded on with Faith and pluck; And when he won, Men called it luck.                                                                   - Anonymous

We all have a purpose to live. We all have goals but the difference lies in how we approach them. There are some who spend their entire life just gazing at dreams, giving excuses and looking for scapegoats, afraid to take even small steps. There are some who are extremely passionate about their purpose of life. They dream big, but start small, practice daily and don't know how to give up and finally end up becoming victorious. To reach the top of a building, we need to climb the stairs.We need to take the steps one by one, to take us closer to where we want to reach.Same goes with the life. We have set many ambitious goals in life but, there is a huge gap between us and our goals.To come closer and to finally embrace success, we need to take small efforts daily.As very well said by Robin Sharma- "Daily ripples of superior performance add up overtime to a tidal wave of outrageous success." We are completely oblivious that these efforts are actually pushing us towar

If you think you are beaten,you are. If you think you dare not,you don't! If you like to win,but think you can't, It's almost a cinch you won't, If you think you will lose,you are lost; For out in the world we find Success begins with a fellow's will; It's all in the state of mind. If you think you are outclassed,you are, You have got to think high to rise, You have got to be sure of yourself before You can ever win a prize. Life's battles don't always go To the stronger and faster man, But sooner or later the man who wins Is the man who thinks he can.                                                                   -Walter D. Wintle

When all athletes were falling down one by one and when India's probability of coming back empty handed rose to a next level, there came the two shining stars, Pusarla V.S. and Sakshi Malik, both women, reviving hopes and opening India's account of Olympic medals. The "never say die" attitude has definitely paid off. Facing insurmountable difficulties, they emerged as victorious and gave every Indian a reason to celebrate. Sakshi Malik was given a second chance and she turned the tables in her favor only in the last few seconds. The 23 year old girl from Haryana began her journey of wrestling when she was just 12 and can you imagine the reason? She wanted to sit on a plane and fly to different countries.Little did she knew that her naive desire would make her an up and coming personality. While, she gifted a bronze medal to India, Sindhu was also on a roll.Success didn't just come knocking at her door. She has definitely swept every Indian off his feet. In a

To laugh is to risk appearing the fool. To weep is to risk appearing sentimental. To reach out for another is to risk involvement. To expose feelings is to risk exposing your true self. To place your ideas, your dreams, before a crowd is to risk their loss. To love is to risk not being loved in return. To live is to risk dying. To hope is to risk despair. To try is to risk failure. But risks must be taken, because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing.                                                                     The person who risks nothing, does nothing,  has                                                                                       n othing,  and is nothing.😊

If you will ask me what is the biggest challenge in this world, I would say being honest, to have a candor behavior and to be authentic.We meet people having different genes, aspirations, expectations from you and so it is hard to be original because we want to be loved by everyone and have a great fear inside of being left alone. So, we start wearing masks one after the other hiding our true colors. If you meet someone today, he can have exactly contradictory behavior from the one you just met yesterday. Now, how much and to what extent you will mould yourself just to please everybody around you. And at the end of the day, when you ask yourself "who you really are?", trust me, you will discover that you are a FAKE person because whatever qualities you have are just because you wanted to be obsequious. Those are not your real qualities and you are not a real YOU. That behavior of you is borrowed one, not the real one. Now, why is there a need to be so servile and u

You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift. You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong. You cannot enrich the poor by impoverishing the rich. You cannot establish sound security on borrowed money. You cannot help the wage earner by pulling down the wage payer. You cannot build character and courage by taking away man's initiative and independence. You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred. You cannot keep out of trouble by spending more than you earn. You cannot help men permanently by doing for them what they could and should do for themselves.

You rise, you fall, you stumble, you experience change,you face hardships and this is called as LIFE. Life is unpredictable. When your life seems to be smooth and you are enjoying your perfect life, it can take one of its unkind cuts anytime and anywhere and when this happens,you are exposed to CHANGE. Its very easy to be brave during comfortable times, but what makes you stand out from the crowd is when you show that same level of audacity in times of change.Its not that only ordinary people encounter change, but those who remain undaunted and accept change valiantly becomes extraordinary. There comes a time in everybody's life and at every stage when they have to open their wings and fly to a new environment.But,the difference lies in the perspective and attitude towards this transition. There are people who are complacent with themselves and their life even though they are amongst average ones and so,change to them is unacceptable.They are contented with what they have a