Likhnewaala

Who would’ve thought that we’d feel the least connected to one another, in an age where everyone is virtually connected 24X7, 365 days a year! Yet, that is the generational truth that we all have come to accept and an extension of that truth is that our friendships are losing depth. We have shallow, meaningless relationships with so many people that, when we pause every now and then to breath- we realize how far behind we’ve left those we call our own. The Problem At Hand Back when I was in school I had a clear set of friends. There was ‘my gang’ which was obviously made up of the only sensible bunch of people in the entire school and then there were ‘the others’. I never really had enemies but there was always a clear demarcation between those who were part of ‘Us’ and those who made up the ‘Them’. Then came college, where it seemed like I was friends with everybody- I loved everyone and everyone loved me. That was mostly because I knew almost nobody and almost nobody ...

We are often obsessed with finding the purpose of our lives, the meaning of our existence, inner peace and getting spiritual guidance but, despite being told otherwise time and again we look for these things outside our selves. Let’s pretend like I’m a prominent scientist and accept one thing as an undeniable fact: All joy lives within you. Everything else is merely stimuli that you think, brings you happiness. If you look at the traditional objects which a lot of us relate with happiness you’ll find this very fact being reinstated. Take for example my penchant for motorcycles. I’ve owned two wonderful bikes and they have brought me immense joy... or have they? When I first looked at my new motorcycle and smiled from ear to ear, was it this well crafted machine that made me happy or was it something else? It WAS something else. It was the thought of riding it, the thought of watching my friends react to it, the thought of how people’s heads would turn as I zipped pa...

How many times have you heard someone tell you that it’s the little things in life that matter the most? Probably more times than you can count; in fact you’ve probably said the same thing to others several times. So what are these little things? Not surprisingly these little things are different for every person and they have the power to turn anyone’s frown upside down. Image Source: everythingsjustpeachy There is so much negativity in the world around us, so much mistrust, judgement, ego, disgust and willingness to hurt others that the smallest of joys can seem like a silver lining. If you spend a little time figuring out what these little things are you can make everyday a little more cheerful. What Are These Little Things? Like with all great things this too must start from your own self, let me elucidate (This will sound like I’m telling you my daily routine but bear with me) so yes... I like to drink roughly half a litre of water the moment I wake up. I reall...

There are a million things we think each day; some of those thoughts surprise even our own selves. Here are 10 such thoughts which I feel a lot of you will relate to. 1) Kissing 2) Belonging 3) Being There 4) On Youth 5) Wants & Love 6) Love Isn't A Virtue 7) How You'll Know 8) On Touching 9) Validation 10) Unlearning That's all folks! It's a wrap... for now. Please direct all love-hate comments to the comment box below. To personally praise/ abuse me on  Twitter , tweet to  @Likhnewaala . You can also spam my Facebook page and tell me how brilliant or insanely stupid I am at  www.facebook.com/Likhnewaala OTHER STORIES YOU SHOULD READ: 30 Quotes that will change your day! The Male Gaze: How We Stare & Letch 10 Reasons Why Women Are Awesome! How Different Are Mumbai & Delhi?

Allow me to set the tempo before I let the drums roll, I was a freelance writer and life was good. I was making decent money for the hours I put in, procrastinating at coffee shops, reading books that "you must read" and doing things you'd expect a writer to do. That's when I ran into a bit of a dry spell in terms of cash; there were a few projects (not all writing based) which I was expecting would workout but they didn't... none of them. The main project that I was banking on didn't happen, my back up project didn't happen and the back-ups to my back-ups failed as well. Anyway... that's when I applied for a bunch of writing based jobs. I got called for a bunch of interviews too but, this one HR after having gone through my resume and several samples of my work that had been published in national newspapers, magazines, humour websites etc asked me for yet another sample. The topic they gave me for this article was, "If I was king of India....

Break ups are complicated, painful and often get ugly. They are also hurtful and borderline insensitive. The act of getting another person used to you, making them dependant, promising them perennial comfort and then casting them off one fine day is almost an act of rampant sadism. Let’s not sound like we live in an utopian world though- What has to be done, has to be done. When a relationship becomes endemic you must end it; before it causes further harm to both parties. If your better half is being nothing but bitter and turning you into a hateful, spiteful, miserable piece of self-blaming , forever morose piece of shit- it might be time to call it quits. There are several different ways to break up and various means to heal your soul post the conclusion of a long-term relationship. First things first- don’t make any harsh decisions- you’ve already made one that will cause both regret and joy over your lifetime. This is not The Break Up Bible ; it just might be my break up ...

You know, before I wrote this sentence ‘this’ was just a blank page. That’s how it starts... that’s how it always starts. It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been writing, how well you think you write or how well others have told you, you write. A blank page can seem like a writer’s worst enemy and you have to device new methods of making an ally out of it. Our Problem The problem is you just can’t write. A blank page scares you and that’s okay because, it frightens the most renowned poets, authors, scholars, professors, professional writers, idiots, naked people, trained assassins, presidents and everybody else as well. It’s painful, I know. May be you’ve had hours, days and perhaps even months of inexplicably brilliant writing but it always ends. You may have experienced spurts when words marched down your fingers like soldiers and arranged themselves in an orderly fashion like well trained battalions on your computer screen. But, ask any honest professional writer a...