Gifts... truly fantastico!

Who doesn’t like receiving gifts? They have been one of the oldest ways for us to express our affection for each other. Gifts are a fantastico means of conveying what we really feel for the ones who are close to us.

I have been fortunate enough to receive quite a lot of gifts from many people over the past few years. Each kind of a gift has its own value – gifts from relatives are generally stuff like clothes, chocolates or watches – they show how much they care for us. Books have been one of my favourite gifts of all time. Clothes get worn out after a while, chocolates are eaten up soon but there is no feeling equal to reading and rereading a really fantastico book!

There’s one gift that really stands out among all others that I’ve received from my friends, and that is something which my best friend had given me on my nineteenth birthday. It was a video 3 minutes and 17 seconds long in which she had written about various stuff and gathered sketches describing me and our friendship over the past two and a half years. It was a very heartfelt video which had evidently required a lot of time and effort to make; and the result had simply left me speechless. I still do not know how to thank her for that, and the video is something which I watch every once in a while and am going to keep with me forever. Every time I watch it, it uplifts my mood and reminds me of how lucky I am to have a fantastico friend like that.

There is another gift also which I deeply cherish. It’s a craftwork that a friend of mine had given to me on my birthday, and it is composed of over a hundred ice-cream sticks placed together to spell the words “HAPPY BIRTHDAY”. The structure of ice-cream sticks also forms a base over which many stickers have been placed. Most people would probably look at it and ask me, “what’s so great about it?”. But then, to me, the craftwork is one of the most special things that anyone has ever done for me – it showcases how painstakingly she had toiled to make that for me, and to have a friend like that who is willing to set aside so much of her time and patience in order to make something for me is one of the greatest rewards that anyone can wish for, in my opinion.

Often, the most fantastico gifts, the ones which are the closest to our heart are those which are exclusive; those which money can’t buy. Indeed, the custom of tearing out the price tag before we gift an item to someone bears testimony to the fact that the price of the gift item is so irrelevant!

This blog post is inspired by the blogging marathon hosted on IndiBlogger for the launch of the #Fantastico Zica from Tata Motors. You can apply for a test drive of the hatchback Zica today.

A fantastico friend

How many people have someone in their lives that they can tell something to, and be assured that it's actually being understood, one hundred percent? That would be simply fantastico, wouldn't it?

For me, many people don't understand the things I think; most people like to keep it simple. But she isn't like that. She likes the deepest of everything. I can text her all day, and then give up sleep to talk till morning, only to be interrupted by WhatsApp's daily message backing up. Our interests are so common, and thoughts so alike that there is never a dearth of things to speak about.

There's a particular connection when we talk, we complete each other's sentences and know what's in each other's minds; it's simply fantastico! How often do you find people to complete your sentences?

She never shuts off her brain to things which others would think aren't needed. And somehow, she connects all of this with reason; she's extremely logical and practical! After all, everyone needs someone to fall back on; a constant. But more often than not, you need some tough love, to lift you up and get you back on your feet, and she is my perfect source of all those things! She is patient, caring, always ready to hear me out and yet knows when to tell me to get my act straight. Isn't that fantastico?

According to me, a friend isn't a friend if she only comes to you for entertainment. A friend has to be someone that you can depend on, especially when you need help. What's a friend if she isn't a well-wishing helper? She ranks first in that department; there has not been an instance when she has denied help or advice in personal or academic matters! She breaks it to me when I'm going out of line and does everything to inspire me to be better at whatever I try to do.

She is a fantastico example of what strength of character can make of someone. She's hard on the outside and soft on the inside, like an egg. It's the perfect combination to see in a person. No drama, no tears; no unnecessary emotion, but she has all the feeling that's needed to make her human, obscured by her guards which are always up. She doesn't open up much to anyone, despite being interesting enough to speak for hours together with. So many guys find her mysterious aloofness attractive. She manages to keep his own life private, so when she does share her details with someone, it's pretty obvious that they're privileged, and that they've earned it. Earning her trust is definitely a mark of quality!

She's a friend that we all need. But to me, she's more than just a friend - I don't know what to call her. A "best friend" isn't descriptive enough. What I have with her is simply fantastico!

This blog post is inspired by the blogging marathon hosted on IndiBlogger for the launch of the #Fantastico Zica from Tata Motors. You can apply for a test drive of the hatchback Zica today.

The impact of WhatsApp

Before the year 2011 or 2012, texting was how we used to stay in touch with most of our friends. Remember how we used to run behind the free SMS packs? And then out of the blue, there came a rule saying that we couldn’t send more than 200 messages per day. For some of us, it was like a bombshell. It clipped our wings; how could we ever stay in touch with all of our friends again? Little did we know that one particular app was going to make such a huge impact that it would revolutionize the way we communicated with our near and dear ones.

More and more people gradually began to talk about WhatsApp, a new app meant for sending unlimited messages over the internet. It sounded attractive – one could send images for free too (remember the high costs we had to pay for MMS, just for one photo?) And the best part – it was free for the first year! SMS packs slowly started giving way to data packs; also, the fact that broadband internet and Wi-Fi were spreading rapidly in India at that stage only served to accelerate the success of WhatsApp.

The impact that WhatsApp has on our lives now is astounding. It’s practically the first thing we check after waking up and the last thing we do before closing our eyes at night. Sharing dozens of images – which was a real headache not more than just four years ago – has turned into a breeze now. Our friendships are now determined by whether the other person has WhatsApp or not. Not just images, even sharing videos has become so easy! Indeed, it was starting to encroach upon Facebook’s space so much that Mark Zuckerberg pulled a masterstroke – he decided to buy WhatsApp and make it his own.

With an active user base of over a billion now – which means approximately one out of every seven persons in the world now is on WhatsApp, it has carved a niche for itself. People don’t just say “send me this”, they say “whatsapp it to me”. It’s the first app we download whenever we buy a new phone. Not just the youngsters, people of all generations have taken to WhatsApp with ease. My WhatsApp contact list also includes my 12 year-old cousin sister and my 90 year-old grandfather! Such has been its impact. The groups on WhatsApp keep buzzing all day with new tidbits from someone or the other – it helps us to stay tuned with a lot of happenings from college, the workplace, within the family and even across the world. Though it is said that technology separates us farther apart, things like these have brought long-lost friends in contact and definitely helped us come closer to each other. The fine line that WhatsApp has between enriching our lives and distracting us from our work is one that has to be carefully trodden, and its impact, if channelized well, is definitely a boon to us.

This blog post is inspired by the blogging marathon hosted on IndiBlogger for the launch of the #Fantastico Zica from Tata Motors. You can apply for a test drive of the hatchback Zica today.

Friendship... truly fantastico

"I've never had an ideal best friend," Payal told Kajal. "Me neither," Kajal said, drawing on the wooden plank placed in front of her on her chair. She was sketching a pair of heels; the prettiest heels she could ever imagine. They were pretty high, with a strap below the toes, and another band at the ankle. At the corner of her mind, she wondered what she was doing pouring her heart out to a girl she'd met hardly three weeks ago. "You keep drawing the same pair of heels," Payal said. "Yeah well they're pretty," Kajal said, before she changed the topic back to the old one. "My old best friend stopped speaking to me because I said her sister had dandruff." Payal burst out laughing. "What a reason to break up with your bestie! I wonder if there are actually people out there who are mature enough to last forever." "I doubt it. I've tried enough, I'm not doing it anymore," Kajal laughed, dusting her perfect sketch and beginning another one; the same pair of heels, this time with a pretty pair of feet in them. "I've lost faith in the concept of best friends," Payal declared. "Me too," Kajal agreed wholeheartedly.

...

Four years later, Kajal and Payal went to college in different states, but they stayed in touch, and ironically, they were best friends. It was Kajal's 21st birthday. It was smack in the middle of exams, though, so it was a pretty dull birthday. There wasn't much going on, and it was kind of depressing. Around noon, Kajal heard the doorbell ring. She was sure it was the postman with Payal's courier; it was an unsaid custom between the two to post each other letters on birthdays. Kajal raced to the door and signed for her courier. It wasn't a letter though; it was a box. She wondered what it could be. Ripping off the wrapping while she walked back to her room, Kajal uncovered a white box with "CARLTON LONDON" printed over the front of it. She gasped, and fiddled with the box till it opened up.

There lay the most beautiful pair of stilettos she'd ever seen in her life. They were sparkling silver five inch heels, with a strap below the toes, and another band at the ankle. Kajal was awestruck. They looked a little familiar, but she didn't remember where she'd seen them. She found a letter folded neatly underneath, and opened it. "Kajal, Here's something to remind you of the day that we embarked on the journey of this friendship. You used to draw them on benches throughout the year; I hope you like them! Happy 21st, bestie. -P" Kajal was blown away by the gift. No one had ever done anything so amazing for her. To save up and buy something that expensive for a friend, that was simply fantastico! The feeling of being loved so earnestly by someone that she loved back was absolutely fantastico.

This blog post is inspired by the blogging marathon hosted on IndiBlogger for the launch of the #Fantastico Zica from Tata Motors. You can apply for a test drive of the hatchback Zica today.

Fantastico F.R.I.E.N.D.S

F.R.I.E.N.D.S. I can't think of anyone who wouldn't agree with me when I say that it is the best sitcom ever. (The ones who have watched it, at least!) This show tells the story of six friends, all trying to run after their dreams in the bustling city of New York, while simultaneously trying to find the one they're meant to be with, all the while realising that their friends are their constants. Each of the characters has a special bond with the other five, which I think sets this show apart from some others which ran along the same lines. All six of them have got their quirks, though they're each lovable and dear to me in their own way.

I can relate to small parts of each one's character; Monica's paranoia, Ross' tendency to mess up, Joey's loving, sweet nature, Rachel's love for shopping, Phoebe's extremeness, and of course, Chandler's awkwardness. I don't think I could choose a particular character as my favorite, but the one that i can actually write an entire book about is Phoebe. Phoebe is my inspiration for so many things! She's so innocent, yet so diverse. She is so open minded and courageous; brave enough to unapologetically be herself with pride, no matter how crazy other people tell her she is. And yet she's so humble; always open to the idea that she may be wrong, yet so fixed to her own morals. When it's established that something is 99.999% true, Phoebe never forgets the 0.001 percent. She chooses to believe whatever excites her the most, because hey, why not? She doesn't feel the need to prove herself to anyone at all. Each of the six friends' passion for their jobs has inspired me beyond words.

They have all made me realise that the world is your playground, and you're allowed to do whatever moves your heart. So, why not? Why give up if it's just a little hard? I love stories like this; which stay fixed on the ground, with things happening that you can relate to or what you know might actually happen to you someday. They have the charm of making the little things in life come into focus. Those things that you would have maybe never given much thought, and just worked through, like a routine procedure. The show makes you realise how lucky you are to simply be normal and be able to relate to it. It isn't a thriller; it doesn't have much action, adventure or mystery, either, but it's still manages to be phenomenal, though so many of the other shows have ample amounts of all those things. Even though it's as old as me (born in the same year), people still watch Friends. New names are added to the list of fans every day, even now. And that's what makes it one hundred percent fantastico!

This blog post is inspired by the blogging marathon hosted on IndiBlogger for the launch of the #Fantastico Zica from Tata Motors. You can apply for a test drive of the hatchback Zica today.

The impact of company

Human beings are social animals. In the course of our lives, we are inevitably brought in contact with a large number of people. The impact of company on what kind of people we turn out to be is indeed stunning.

A person who has identified himself with a particular characteristic will be satisfied being just that among his peers. But the difference between the standards of his peers and the rest of the world is a matter of great uncertainty. For example, a girl who identifies herself as "obedient" may still feel she is obedient even if she is not in actuality, if she is surrounded by a lot of people who are far less obedient than her. She may find comfort in that image. But if and when she enters the outside world, where there are people who are much more obedient, she will find it much harder to live up to the standards of the adjective 'obedient' with regard to others.


So it's very important to surround yourself with people who have the same goal or who are headed in the same direction as you are, especially when you are on a serious mission to achieve something.
Like the man in the famous story who sat under a Toddy tree drinking a glass of water, in the wrong kind of company, we will be mistaken to be wrong as well, and slowly drift off from our original righteousness.

After all, each person is determined by all the opposite forces in his life, so it depends on how far opposite your forces are, to decide the middle point where you rest at. No matter how less of it you think you have, every person has a competitive spirit embedded within their character. It is the driving force of our existence. And when it's exposed to the right kind of atmosphere, it is bound to yield positive results.

Just like each friend of ours is a tiny representation of a particular direction that is determined by their family, each person in a group of friends is a tiny representation of that group and everything that it stands for.

It's very simple to find people who will tell you to relax, sit back and enjoy your life; it's hard to find people who will unfalteringly push you towards your goal. People who don't mind being named as the bad guy in your story to push you to your success, people who don't mind hurting you once to make you proud of yourself, people who will have faith in you even when you don't have any in yourself; that's the kind of people you want around you. And it is these people who ultimately end up making the biggest impact on our lives.

This blog post is inspired by the blogging marathon hosted on IndiBlogger for the launch of the #Fantastico Zica from Tata Motors. You can apply for a test drive of the hatchback Zica today.