Twenty- five Seven – Page 27 – Personally speaking

meena bazaars of today

July 31, 2025
The concept of a Meena Bazaar was first introduced to India in the mid-16th Century by Humayun, the Mughal Emperor. Essentially, it was a marketplace that catered to the needs of women, offering accessories, clothes, and jewellery. Of late, they have morphed into seasonal pop-up markets. These markets provide a platform for women entrepreneurs to showcase their wares. They also allow NGOs to generate some income for the charities they support.

I normally avoid such markets mainly because I only shop when I need to shop for something. Besides, most times, these events are a cross between a school fete and a jumble sale ( it’s a jumble of stuff being sold ).

However, yesterday was an exception when I spent a delightful afternoon at RUCHIKA, at the Dome at the NSCI. Yesterday was the first time ever in my life that I went to the NSCI. It’s a club that is literally 3 km away from my house!

Ruchika is a Mumbai-based NGO that sponsors several charities, holds exhibitions to support charities, organises medical camps etc. for the underprivileged

Cars formed a line waiting to drop off ladies dressed in their morning diamonds. Other cars were in line to exit the venue. I wasn’t planning on leaving home and was dressed in my sloppiest loungewear. When S called, I just slipped on my Neemans ( casual slip-on flats made from recycled plastic bottles), splashed some Westside fragrance and stepped out. It was no wonder that the fancy young hostess with bronze eyelids complimented me on my look. She must have mistaken me for a rather well-dressed lady’s maid or companion!

shop till you drop

There was more than just money dropping that afternoon. For starters, my jaw dropped seeing the absolutely HUGE Dome . It gained fame as one of the free quarantine facilities put up by our municipal corporation during COVID. Luckily, I didn’t have to use it. Nor visit anyone in it but I have since associated the DOME at the NSCI with Covid Quarantine.

the stalls

Opposite the eye-catching name display was a kiosk selling exotic flowers., dried flowers and scented candles. 1 Magnolia Lane, which describes itself as a floral atelier has outlets in Gurgaon, Delhi and a manager whom you could call for deliveries in Mumbai.
The first stall that was a stunner had the most exquisite silverware from SR Artefacts. But with silver touching ridiculously unaffordable levels, I preferred to admire the workmanship and designs. They were really worth buying for the discerning buyer

The space was divided into two concentric rings – the outermost where the NGOs were displaying their wares. The inner ring in the dome itslef had a ring of little stalls while the inner core had the rest of the stalls.

Food stalls were at one side of the hall. Apart from the standard South Indian fare, there was a stall from Flurys and a few other caterers who experimented with pan Asian and fusion food.

I couldn’t resist the Baked samosa and had a disappointing Thai curry chaat. S’s option of Jasmine rice and Panang curry was much, much better

There were many stalls selling faux jewellery, handcrafted decorative items one even sold umbrellas. Many home chefs displayed their dips, chocolates and other goodies that they allowed you to sample.

But the majority of the stalls concentrated on clothes – targeting customers looking for the forth coming festive season.

Since I have nowhere to go and too many clothes in my closet, I just glanced through a few just to get an idea of what is in fashion these days. Much to my surprise, that ghastly CoOrd sets, which to my mind are trumped up pyjamas, have become more garish with lace trimmings, cutwork embroidery and blingy embellishments.

Ruchika is just one of the many bazaars that are pouring on our city this monsoon. Various trade organisations have sales and many private clubs too host such events so if you didn’t make it to RUCHIKA this year, do not despair.

So thanks, S, for taking me to this sale/exhibition. It was a delightful way to spend an afternoon.

I’m off now to watch a play (another activity I seldom do).

Have a happy weekend all,

Ciao,
- Framed & Hanged ( framednhanged@gmail.com). For handmade torans and welcome garlands
- K Story Brush Studiio for hand painted crockery, wall platters and clothing ( 9930938780 )
- FAAYA(www.faayagifting.com)
- Island Soiree for sushi, dips $ more (9320046000)
- GONUTS (91 2245168162/41277044)
Listed above are some of the stores I found interesting.
Do self-help books Really help one’s self?

July 29, 2025

My library at home consists of a bookshelf crammed with books, three books deep. And more than half of them are self-help books. The other half comprises of biographies, business biographies, a smattering of cookbooks. and perhaps some fiction ranging from Hubby Dear’s Grandpa’s musty leather-bound first editions to the latest animated novels that escaped the transfer to our memory house. Actually choosing books to send away was harder than throwing away clothes that don’t fit. Which book to keep and which to send away? Because we all know that none of us is going to drive 4 hours to choose a book which may or may not be stored away. Besides, when we packed the books, they were stuffed randomly and without labels identifying the contents of the boxes.

After years of going through books like Rujuta Divekar’s books about Losing your Weight and not Your Mind, , Dr. Atkins’ Diet, Steven Covey’s’ 7 Habits of Successful People’, Lance Armstrong’s inspiring biography, ‘It’s not about the bike’ , Jeanne Dixon’s ‘Yesterday, Today & Forever’ and ‘Coffee Can Investing‘ by , Saurabh Mukherjea et al, I have neither become healthier, wealthier nor wiser.

Book Reviews

Looking for a book to read?

Look no further.

So I still don’t know why I chose to read Mel Robbin’s ‘Let Them’. Perhaps it was the brevity of the title or the bright green cover that induced me to pick it up and glance through yet another book on how to improve one’s life.

I’m glad I succumbed to the temptation because this book really turned out to be a game changer – especially for home makers like me who have no one to mould save their families. And we all know how frustrating that is because no matter how many times we take the horse to water, it refuses to drink. And what this does is increase you stress levels. So let them is a wonderful book on how to deal with stress and the people that cause you stress.

Though this book was highly recommended by Kini, I sadly gave it up within the first few pages. Apart from the cover, there was nothing really catching about it and frankly, I’m quite tired of World War 2 stories which seem to have been done to death.

‘Hurry up and return it fast’ said Kini as I borrowed this book. ‘There’s a long waitlist’.

I couldn’t believe this book had people falling over this book, which, I found totally ridiculous and bordering on the juvenile

I had no sympathy at all for the two drunk strangers who went off to a houseboat that each mistakenly thought ‘belonged’ to them, for a one night stand and find themselves adrift. After 12 days of the most unbelievable adventures, they are rescued ( Obviously) and eventually live together as man and wife ( even more obviously). Highly avoidable.

Being a book lover, I thought this book would explore the joys of reading but honestly it was a boring compilation of the books Cathy Rentzbrink had read all her life.

Another totally avoidable book unless you want some book recommendations

I

I had read snippets of Sheila Dhar’s book in an earlier book of hers but couldn’t resist reading this one during my recent trip to Pune.

Truly a magical life led by an extraordinary ‘ordinary’woman with a passion for Indian classical music, who managed both the modern and traditional worlds with ease.

So, July was once again a disappointing month for books .

Ciao,
A temple called Bhuleshwar

July 18, 2025

The temple of Bhuleshwar

It was a long, hot summer. The Little People are now getting ready for school. Even though my holidays weren’t tied to theirs, I felt I really needed a change. So, I decided to go to Pune for a short break. Luckily, Hubby Dear also wanted to come along, so we drove up to Pune on Saturday morning. Despite being a weekend, the traffic was reasonable and we made it to Pune in good time.

Long before our visit, my sister in law, who is a history and heritage buff, had been on a Heritage walk to Bhuleshwar and couldn’t stop raving about it. So this was one of the things we had to do-

The temple is about an hour away from Pune and off the Pune-Solapur highway. It is built on a hillock and from afar can be mistaken for a mosque. Apparently, this is no coincidence; it was a deliberate attempt at protecting it from marauding invaders. You can see the remains of the ramparts of a fort (Mangal Gad or DaulatMangal) which was built at the behest of Adil Shah of Bijapur.

Once you get past the archway marking the entrance to the temple you have the option of climbing up the steps or driving right up to the temple complex. We of course preferred the car because once up on the hill, there are several steep staircases still to contend with.

the Shivling

The larger images depict the major characcters Ram and Laxman while on the left is the Monkey Army

Unlike the temples at Jejuri, Theur and Morgaon, this temple remains a hidden gem. It is just as well in a way because I can slowly see the crowds coming to see it and it won’t be long before it joins the rest of the temples on the temple tour and is flooded with tourists and pilgrims.

For truly, this temple is unique, and standing on top of the hill, one can sense a calm and peace that is hard to describe. This stone temple of Lord Shiva built in black basalt in the 12th Century in the Hemadpanti style, has the most exquisite carvings, many of which have been vandalised. This temple was attacked and rebuilt three times.

Around the inner temple complex which has a giant Nandi looking at its master, there are several small ‘rooms’ which may have served as rooms for monks to meditate or stay. Beautifully crafted stone trellises allow the breezes to blow in.

For a more detailed account of the temple, please visit DISCOVERING TEMPLES.

back to reality

Outside the temple were some village folk selling their home made sweets which are really quite irresistible. Made from milk and local grown sugarcane jaggery, they should be part of your temple tour.

But we went beyond that and I had for the first time ever a dish that my father used to scoff at, Misal Pav, which I wanted to try since recently I read on a social media post that it was voted as an iconic breakfast dish.

I must admit, the misal was good, but not something I would go for again.

The rest of my stay consisted of meeting an old friend, catching up with family gossip, and exploring the unexplored parts of the old city.

Pune, with its light drizzle and cool monsoon breezes is always a good place to visit in the monsoon.

Do give it a shot.

Ciao

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