2020: A year which got misinterpreted.

I have seen people saying that 2020 is the worst year.

Is that so?

I used to think the same too, until that point where I realized that it is the other way around.

That  2020 is one of the best years indeed because reality is always harsh and bitter than our imagination. And when reality hits hard in order to ignore the mental trauma of accepting the truth, it's a human instinct to not accept that and remain in our imaginary world by blaming others to be mentally safe. 

That's exactly what seems to be happening here with 2020.

2020 indeed made us all prisoners in our own homes, it even closed all our doors to interact with people and forced us to shut everyone out who was so close to us all of sudden. We were left with little choices to make and more precautions to take, for us and for the collective good of humankind as well.

This was the first time that we were given the chance to sit at home in the comfort of our couches, doing nothing, and still save the world. And we did it too.

But the aftereffect of this was devastating, suddenly taken away from our social life and friend circles impacted so many people and even made them victims of depression.

And that's exactly when we started pointing fingers towards 2020 for being a lame year.

You know why most people become depressed? 

At some point or the other, the truth is that 2020 really showed us who is real and who will remain real forever...

Who actually cared for us and who were pretending it all...

What was actually meant for us and what never was...

It showed us the bitter truth of life that everyone starts forgetting you once we stop meeting them in person. And for most of us, this lesson was a huge one to be accustomed to in such a short span of 8 months and it did break us, every single one of us.

But let's keep our grudges aside and try to bring out the positive in it. It's almost the end of December and we are almost done with 2020. Looking back to this extraordinary year, which we will all remember till the end of our lives, 

I am a little bit more optimistic towards life at this point, 

I am proud that I made it through this hard time even though broken, I am never shattered,

I know whom to trust and whom not to anymore,

I know who loves me for real and who never did,

I know time and distance play a major role in every relationship and I learned to value my parents more for all the things they have done for me and loving me unconditionally regardless of me being anywhere in the world.

Maybe 2020 was harsh, but it surely taught us some serious life lessons indeed.

                 Pic Credits: Google

Bye Bye 2020

Thank you for the lessons, I will always cherish you!

#Cheerachi 

The Subtle Art Of Not Giving a Fuck

Book: The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck

Author: Mark Mansion

Language: English

Pic Credits: Dheera Sasidharan (@itscheerachi)

I was not a fan of non-fiction till the day I pick this one for a read! I was always skeptical about myself being engaged in a non-fiction read this much. I even doubted if I have that power to understand all these. If you can relate to this, then here is your solution to the problem!

💥"A counterintuitive approach to living a good life" as the tagline says is the first thing that struck me!

💥"THE SUBTLE ART OF NOT GIVING A FUCK" was actually a life-changing read for me. A lot of my fellow readers do have extreme opposite thoughts on the book, but I found it enlightening!

💥The first 20 pages are like an "entrance test", if you actually pass that test and move on to the next chapter, then there my friend is where the magic of this wonderful writing resides! Most of the people I have known either get bored somewhere between those 20 pages or just hesitate to pick it up for a read in the first place. Either way you are missing a great read.

💥There is no such thing as "not giving a fuck", we actually give way more fucks than we are meant to. So this book is simply about choosing those important things to give a Fuck about in life! 🤗 This is how I can literally summarize the book.

💥The language and the writing style is so simple that even a beginner can understand it without second thoughts.
The best thing that I found about the book is that it actually improved my general knowledge on certain subjects via stories that I would have never known if I wouldn't have chosen this book. Forever thankful to the author for this great treasure!

#Cheerachi

The Kite Runner

Book: The Kite Runner

Author: Khaled Hosseini

Language: English

After completing "And the Mountains Echoed" I felt the sudden urge of reading this one, as I have heard a lot about this one within that short period.
I kept on searching for it everywhere and finally found this little bundle of joy in Lulu Mall. 💫🤗
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💥As I believed Khalid Hosseini will never disappoint me and that turned out to be true. This is one of the best reads I have ever had so far, the pictures it paints in the readers' mind will keep on haunting them for a while. I could always feel Aamir and Hassan within me. 
The way our little insecurities turn out to be life-changing decisions for others is beautifully portrayed in the book.

💥Eventually, it teaches you every crime in the world is a kind of theft in itself, 
" When you kill a man, you steal a life" 
And if you go on thinking about it further you could find undying examples for it in real life!
And you will agree at last, that every crime is theft in disguise!

💥Like every other Khaled Hosseini book, this one is also a bit emotional, that it will surely let you sigh at times and also remind you that not every story has a happy ending, sometimes the end won't hurt much is the only thing we can hope for.
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"For you a thousand times over"
Is a line that will keep echoing in my mind forever!

Pic Credits: Dheera Sasidharan (@itscheerachi)

#Cheerachi

Extraction

Pic Credits: Google

Today I got to see this Netflix film, Extraction, and that hit me hard...

Like I always wondered why those super quality action scenes and superhero movies never happened to come up in India? Why we always have to settle with Bahubali and Mahabharata? But this movie...I guess it gave me some answers...answers that are hard to digest but are the truth of the Indian Film Industry! I remember those trolls who say If Spiderman was made in India he could have long gone dead due to the electrical wires which go past every nook and corner of the country. And I guess it is the same with the roads as well...and the traffic...and the busy streets! We could have never shot a successful car chase without a man or a stray animal coming in between! That's it...that's the way our cities are molded. Be it the most rural Indian cities or the most urban metro cities like Mumbai! India has this undying love for stay animals.😂 

Coming back to the film, Chris Hemsworth is a brand in himself I must admit! Amidst the fact the story is happening in India and Bangladesh, he gave it an unmatchable quality that most of our native Actors could have failed to deliver at some point or the other ( Yes, he does remind me that Avengers is never gonna be the same without him). Randeep Hooda has been exceptionally well as he always sets his limits high. And if you ever feel the film disturbing then the only thing you gotta remember is the place it is happening! 

The one and the only drawback I felt is the disturbing and noisy backdrop. Then again, this is the way it is. Films are the reflection of the society in which they are being made. So to the people who don't really appreciate this film, it's not the movie, It's the reflection of your own reality you are being distributed of!

  #Cheerachi

For more details visit:

Extraction movie review & film summary (2020) | Roger Ebert

Extraction (2020) - IMDb

Feminism! Oh wait, Fake Feminist Agenda!

 I do identify myself as a feminist.

But let me make it a bit more clear, even if I believe in the core idea of feminism I don't agree with 90% of the claims the so-called "feminism activists" are putting forward nowadays.

I must say the basic idea of feminism has gone wrong in this country. It would be foolish to expect the people who twist and turn almost every ideology even the Democracy and secularism according to their benefits, would spare a sensitive idea such as feminism. 

When I say I believe in feminism,

I said I believe that there should be equality in status and freedom for men and women,

I believe cooking, cleaning, and all the household works should be more of life skills than gender roles,

I believe a child should be the responsibility of his father as much as it is to a mother and there should be paid paternal leaves for taking care of a mother and child along with maternal leaves in almost all jobs,

I believe in equal pay for equal work,

I believe almost every job and vacancies should be identified as gender-neutral,

I strongly support the abolishment of practices like dowry which unconsciously state that girls are a burden to their parents,

I even recommend the removal of phrases such as "You are a girl, be obedient", "This work is not for boys", "Girls can't raise their voices", "A girl is a guest in her own house" and what not??

This is all I ever wanted, equality, in every perspective of life!

Now, let's talk about the pseudo-feminist perspective that I don't agree with,

See, you cant support both equality and reservation at the same time, both are extreme opposites of each other. So, when you are a feminist you can't cry for those privileges you enjoy for just being a woman. 

Let's take the case of Rhea Chakraborty, these feminists say that she has faced unfair media trial and slut-shaming in both media and public domains, they say that she 'is a women' and so she should be treated with respect.

Now, this is confusing? You are the ones who were shouting for equality till yesterday, now all of a sudden you start crying for the gender privileges that you were enjoying. How can that be possible? Can you guys even hear yourself when you blurt out these things? You even won't make sense to yourself!

You can't argue to treat her nicely just for being a woman. The first and foremost thing is that you can't expect people to respect you because you belong to a particular gender, respect should be earned. You cant cry when a woman criminal is treated as the same as a man criminal in this society. Understand that the word Criminal is gender-neutral and it is so for a reason as well. Because in the eyes of law a criminal is a criminal no matter what gender, caste, creed, or religion they belong to. (That's what equality before the law says if I am not wrong?)

This is like you cry for equality for ages, and when you are finally getting the equal treatment you become conscious that you are special and you need special treatment. That is the dumbest logic I have ever heard.

Now, if you are hurt because of humanity, that she has received inhuman treatment, then I must remind you that she isn't alone, her brother too has been harassed and arrested. I haven't seen a single man standing by his side for his rights and other blah blah. I haven't even seen a single one of you fighting for that cause either. And where was your humanity when a pure soul was drugged and murdered? It didn't bleed that day like it is bleeding now? oh! that was a man!! So isn't this clear cut gender division from your side? Now how can you preach gender equality when you, yourself are against its basic norms? 

At last, if you are saying about her human rights, let me tell you any person who commits such cold-blooded crimes automatically lose their right as humans in the first place. If they were humans they wouldn't have done all these and what good is a human being without humanity? So stop bragging about the human rights of criminals. That is the most ironic of all claims I have heard so far.  Let them face their karma. 

For God's sake don't say this is what you call feminism. This isn't feminism and this will never be. Don't give that name to your egoistic filthy propagandas!

I hope this helps!

    Pic Credit: ANI

#Cheerachi

  For more details visit:

Death of Sushant Singh Rajput - Wikipedia

Rhea Chakraborty Being Mobbed At NCB Office Is A New Low; Bollywood Reacts - Entertainment (mashable.com)

Rhea Chakraborty arrested in drugs case, in 14-day custody - india news - Hindustan Times

Wakanda Forever!🖤

 

                                   Pic Credits: Marvel Cinematic Universe Facebook Page

From the very first time, he said "Wakanda Forever" I know I was already in love with this man!

He said forever and left like there is no more forever! How can he do this?
I know you are a fighter Chadwick!
You fought for 4 years and gave us movies to remember for a lifetime, you were in pain and still managed to make us smile.
Never been a fan of superhero movies, but after watching avengers the two people who struck me were the Iron Man and Black Panther!
More because of the wonderful humans they are in real life!
King T'challa was a real-life hero too.
One of those videos that I have seen of Chadwick, where he interacted with his fans, mostly the African-Americans, one could see the kind of human he was and the level of inspiration and influence he had on his people!
One among the few people to represent the community in big screens around the globe with a superhero image!
They dearly loved him and thanked him for making them believe that people like them could also be Superheroes, they could stand with their heads high and watch the world around them change for better.
They truly accepted him as their King, not for the delusional role he played but the way it inspired millions of their children to believe that heroes can be among themselves too.
The way the film portrayed their women to be powerful, not because they were in anger or sorrow, but because they were powerful from within.
I believe he will always be remembered as a true king among his people, who made them believe in themselves and made them proud of their identity once again! 

Chadwick Boseman, 2020 has become more of a nightmare than a year! But I am happy that you are away from pain!

Rest in Peace would be too short a line to bid you adieu so I would better say Rest in Power, King!
28 August 2020

Wakanda Forever 🖤

NB: To those who don't know,
Black Panther is the first Marvel film with a predominantly black cast. It became the first comic book and superhero film to be nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards, as well as the first film in the MCU to win an Academy Award.
Beyond his film appearances, though, Boseman is widely known for his community work and being an activist combating racial injustice in America and around the world. 

#Cheerachi

For more details visit:

Chadwick Boseman: Black Panther star dies of cancer aged 43 - BBC News

Remembering the life and legacy of Chadwick Boseman | Charlotte Mecklenburg Library (cmlibrary.org)

MS Dhoni decided to call it a day from International Cricket!

     Pic Credits: 99 Graphics Facebook page

Let's just, keep aside those heavy statistics of match-winning and those innumerable moments that he made us proud!

Today, let's just talk about the kind of human being he is! The kind of aura he possessed that reflected through the kind of relationships he kept on and off-field!

One of the most celebrated duos of Indian Cricket is undoubtedly weaved between Yuvaraj Singh and Mahendra Singh Dhoni. They are arguably the best batsman duo on-field and were best friends off-field too those days. They understood each other better than anyone else and this understanding let the scoreboard moving for India when the openers failed. The duo that won numerous matches just by holding on to each other, those moments of them hugging each other with huge smiles and teary eyes after all the big win just flash before my eyes even today. Stories of their bond resonated from the videos of both having each other's back in dressing rooms, parties, and press conferences! Later something happened and suddenly everything turned upside down! There was clear visibility of changing equations between the two, and I still feel it disheartening to see them 'act like' nothing has happened yet we all know everything has changed! Post their hard twist, both become more reserved, more quiet, and a little more sad every day! 

Like I have read it somewhere "When a friendship ends it's not you who is losing me or me who is losing you, It is us losing us"

And I feel it every time they talk about each other! Hope everything will be back in place one day, and I will be able to see the much happier, much prettier, and the best version of Yuvi-Mahi! ❤️

   Pic credit: Yuvaraj Singh Twitter handle 

Moving on to the second one whom I personally felt, kept a very special bond with Mahi is the present Indian Skipper Virat Kohli. This bond is more of a kind of guide or elder brother more than a friend! Kohli always speaks high about Dhoni whenever he talks about him, he openly admits how he looked up to him being one of the most brilliant cricketing brains of the nation and a successful captain! Unlike others, every insta post Kohli shares about Dhoni clearly reflects the respect he has for him. He often talks about the amount of trust and faith he has on Dhoni that while batting together he won't mind running between the wickets with a blindfold if Dhoni asks him to do so! And this trust can be seen whenever they came up together, like going for a two instead of one if Dhoni urges to do so. The way both communicate with just smiles and nodes on the field is a treat to watch. Kohli says Dhoni is the one person from the team who understands him and helped him pushing his limits during the early days of his career, which he is forever thankful to him. 

Kohli always keeps stressing the line "He will forever be my Captain" as a token of respect and admiration. 

 Pic Credit: Suresh Raina Instagram handle

The third and most important person, I would choose is Suresh Raina. 

Minutes after MS Dhoni announced his retirement from international cricket, Raina joined him. 

"We had already made up our minds to retire on Saturday. Dhoni's jersey number is 7 and mine is 3 - put it together and it makes 73. And on August  15, India completed 73 years of Independence, so there couldn't have been a better day. After announcing our retirement, we hugged and cried a lot." these were Raina's words after retirement.

   Pic Credit: Chennai Super Kings Instagram handle

The whole cricketing world was left in shock and tears, yet I just wish everybody deserves a friend who backs them up like Suresh Raina backs up MS Dhoni. He just defined a new dimension for friendship. There will always be a lot of people who promise to be there for you but a few who actually prove it through their deeds. I would say, Dhoni-Raina is friendship goals! This southpaw never failed to be there for Dhoni ever since they met. From being bachelor friends to married ones and finally to be father's, they did it all together. Whether it is the pics of Gracia and Ziva enjoying each other's company or Priyanka and Sakshi cheering for them on galleries, they set a once in a blue moon kind of friendship goal!

I wish everybody deserves a Raina in their lives actually, the world needs more of Raina's to be a happier place! To celebrate his friend's success than himself, to back you up in every twist and turns of life, to lend a hand in testing times, and at last to sustain.

    Pic Credits: Google

They say "Indian cricket enjoyed one of its most successful phases when MS Dhoni was the captain of the side" but I would rather choose to say MS Dhoni enjoyed the best of friendships when he played for the Indian side ❤️ ✨

#Cheerachi

For more details Visit:

MS Dhoni announces retirement from International Cricket - Cricket News - Sportstar - Sportstar (thehindu.com)

MS Dhoni retires from all international cricket (icc-cricket.com)

Suresh Raina reveals reason behind him and MS Dhoni choosing 15 August to announce retirement - Firstcricket News, Firstpost

Suresh Raina announces retirement - Sportstar (thehindu.com)

Kerala: An inhumane state full of Humanity!

 Pic Credits: Facebook

You could call this a clear breach of COVID protocol, 

You could say that we are the dumbest group of people,

You could say that literacy doesn't mean intelligence,

You could...

But we would still choose to do it a thousand times over and again,

For us, 7th August 2020 is the darkest day in ages! But still, it is the greatest reminder that why Kerala is called "God's Own Country".

Amidst this corona and heavy rain, people who rushed for the rescue operation earlier today in the landslide affected areas of Rajamala, Idukki, and later to the plane crash scenes in Karipur, Malappuram is a symbol that nothing comes between Keralites and their humanity in the time of atrocities like this!

Those people, I wish to call them heroes, they could have chosen to remain in their own homes, watch the live telecast of the disasters on TV screens thinking "why would they put their lives in risk for people whom they don't even know", and sigh for what has happened!

But they didn't...

They choose to fight back, as we have always had! 

They rushed to the disaster scenes quickly and in large numbers, they made work unimaginably easier for the NDRF, Fire Force, and police officials, because they know that it was their duty to do so.

Just a reminder that this is the same Malappuram which you guys accused 2 months back for being inhumane! 

The people who ditched our State for "feeding" crackers to a pregnant elephant even when that was an accident, couldn't even imagine the risk these people have taken today! So refrain from preaching humanity to us in future.

In Rajamala, they could have lost their lives during rescue operations, as the area is prone to another landslide anytime!

In Kondotty, the place being a containment zone, there is a high-risk for COVID 19 social spread!

From the long queues for blood donation in hospitals that started from the time of disaster and extended to early morning in Malappuram to the people who wholeheartedly came forward to give food in the late hours to the passengers of the planes which were diverted to land in Kannur International Airport post the plane crash in Karipur, they are the actual face of Kerala.

Because for us, humanity comes first, even before religion, even before our own life and comforts!

Proud to be one among these people, proud to have born and brought up here amidst them, proud to get inflicted upon these moral values of humanity before anything else! 💖

For the ones who are praising us today, please don't take the pain, we don't need support from people who praise us for time being and ditch us when something unfortunate happens! Keep your appreciation to yourself! Kerala really doesn't care!

Do you know what Kerala is going through these days?

• Corona

• Landslides

• Heavy Rain

• Flood

• A major plane crash

Still, we are fighting! United! 

You may think that we will perish due to this stupidity, one day maybe, but till that day we will stay united and shall perish United! 💖

Yes, we do eat beef!

Yes, we are more secular than you will ever be!

Yes, we are communists and congressmen but will never support BJP!

Yes, we do exist!

PS: Sorry if I have ever been arrogant, but this is just a frustrated Keralite fighting against the hypocritic society!

#Cheerachi

For more details visit:

Air India Express praises people of Malappuram who rushed to help Kozhikode air crash victims- The New Indian Express

Kozhikode air tragedy: Air India Express thanks Mallapuram residents for kindness, humanity (livemint.com)

View: Kerala plane crash response shows how locals play key role in disaster management - The Economic Times (indiatimes.com)

4 August 2020

Dear "don't know who",

Was thinking about the irony of life, how life differs from place to place or even from point to point!

Gone through the videos on Lebanese blast that took place just an hour before. A large blast that hit the port city of Lebanese capital, Beirut is reported to have caused widespread damage and injury. What a perfect news to end your day with? Sigh!!

Then again, in other news, India all set to lay the foundation stone for the much celebrated Ram Mandir in Ayodhya tomorrow!

Like, seriously??

Even during the time of such a pandemic, where at many places people are dying due to lack of medication and treatment facilities, it is a shame that the government still don't feel the need for building a hospital over a Mandir?

Not to mention the Kashmir Curfew that will complete 365 days tomorrow!

It hurts!

Two different places, two different stories to wrap up 4th August!

#Cheerachi

3 August 2020

Dear "don't know who",

It's Rakshabandhan tody! 

For the first time in my life, I send a Rakhi to my brother, even though he is far away from me, I want him to know that I love him and miss him so much!

But each time I see something related to Sushant, the posts of his sister's, it stings!

I couldn't handle the pain!

Being a sister myself, imagining the pain of losing your only brother is a horrible thing in itself!

Then how can I?

Then again, he was the only lil brother of four sisters! I mean, Good loooooord!!!

What are they supposed to do now?

The pleasure of tying Rakhi that they enjoyed for the last 34 years has just been snatched away from them! Not just for today, but for the rest of their lives! I feel sad that all the prayers that they did for him all these years couldn't keep him safe! 

That sounds scary! Really really Scarryyyy! 

Di's may you have all the power in the world to cope with this loss!

Let that sink in! Sushant...you are loved!💖✨🦋

#Cheerachi

               

                         

Pic Credits: Twitter Pages @divinemitz, @shwetasinghkirti and @withoutthemind

For more details visit:

Bollywood stars join social media campaign demanding CBI probe into Sushant's case (thehimalayantimes.com)

What Harry and Hermione taught me!

I have been a Potterhead for a long time now...

Not because the imaginary world and magic fascinates me, but because of the way it teaches us the value of relationships be it that of friendship, love or even enmity, it says about them all!

Harry and Hermione being my treasured lesson!

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They taught me that a girl and boy can be together their whole life and still remain friends...

They taught me whatever the hell happens if you hold on to your friends, then you could have all the power to change the world!

They taught me even though how weird and hopeless you are to the rest of the world, you will always have your best friend's  back...

They taught me to trust each other and have faith in each other even while doing the dumbest of things...

They taught me how best friends stand up for each other in  demanding times...

They taught me if you are the "better than the best" kind of friends, how  you understand each other even without saying a word...

They taught me to cope up with mood swings of your bestfriend and forgive each time they do something wrong out of a bad mood...

They taught me that it is possible to find a home in someone away from your real home...

Hermione taught me to choose your friendship over love when he needed her the most...

Every time when Harry hides something Hermione comes up with a "What is it Harry?"

Every time he takes a step to go all alone she comes up with a "I'll go with you"

Harry taught me how a boy can make his friend smile even when she is going through hell...

How a boy understand the slightest change in her behaviour when she is sad...

How he will go miles to keep her safe and fight for what she deserves...

At last they taught me how much every Hermione needs a Harry to be complete and vice versa!😍

Can't deny the fact that it is a wonderful feeling to know that you have someone who will stand by your side through all the ups and downs, through all those stupid decisions you have took so far and will take in the years to come, through all the smiles you will ever have and all those tears you will ever endure!

After all Friendship is its own brand of a powerful magic!✨

#Cheerachi