Masterchef Australia is one of my favourite shows on television. I don't watch the other editions (Masterchef USA or Masterchef India) but the show with chefs and judges Gary Mehigan, George Calombaris, Matt Preston is one I have followed for a few years now. It's not just an entertaining show but also a great source of learning, especially for something completely unrelated to cooking - writing!

Padmavati, also known as Rani Padmini, was a legendary Rajput queen whose tales of valor and beauty have enamoured people and inspired paeans over the centuries. With the upcoming release (now indefinitely deferred) of Sanjay Leela Bansali’s ambitious cinematic project, also titled Padmavati, interest is at...

When I first started this blog, it was only a testing platform for me to gauge my writing skills. I also wanted to use it as a platform to showcase my write-ups as samples, while pitching to prospective clients. I hadn't ever expected the response it got. Neither had I expected the paths it would lead me on. The journey (2 years now) has been incredible and the experiences chronicled in detail. It opened some great avenues for me and has been the runway from where my writing took off. Obviously, I am humbled and thrilled every time I think about how far I have come.

What if you could see the future? What if you really could predict events and changed the course of destiny? Yes, I want you to imagine being that person and how it would change you or the people around you. Would you be able to handle the immense responsibility and power that came with this unique ability? What if the premonitions weren’t just an unshakeable, inexplicable feeling of dread that you couldn’t do anything about but instead a clear vision where you could see the future events unfold and then help prevent them? Can it be called the ‘future’ then, seeing as how you’ve already altered its course? How would it affect the people around you?

“The best place to find God is in a garden. You can dig for him there.”

- George Bernard Shaw

My earliest fondest memories of a garden are from some twenty years ago. This garden, next to a nondescript one-bedroom house in a College staff quarters, was the result of its owner’s relentless hard work, proudly ramped up the aesthetic quotient of its otherwise grey surroundings, and ultimately came to be the neighbour’s pride. Maintaining the garden wasn’t easy, but in fact, painstaking work. Just the act of watering all the plants and trees each day would take at least an hour. In-depth knowledge of the individual growing patterns, flowering seasons, watering and manuring needs were critical and required thorough planning and thought. It needed extensive care and hands-on maintenance that was not just time-consuming but also required the owners, my parents, to be vigilant and attentive.