Critical Review of Movie "Baahubali-The Conclusion"

I received a call from my younger sister that the tickets had been booked and the family would be watching the movie “Baahubali-The Conclusion” in Telugu language on April 29^th, 2017 at Eros Theater in New Delhi. As usual, I was excited and assured her that I will be reaching the theater directly after my working hours or I would take the permission to join them at the theater. However, it was decided that I must reach home and accompany them. Each one of us was excited. However, my sister, who was at the driver’s seat, was proud to announce that she has seen the movie in the Hindi language on April 28^th, 2017. She was hyper about it as though it was a great achievement for her. Moreover, she wanted to compare the movie in both languages. She promised me that she will not share the story with me.

The theater was jam packed and everyone wanted to watch the movie without losing a single scene. Each one of the individual arrived in time and took the possession of their sets. I wish we were so punctual in our classes too! Children demanded their parents for the large pack of popcorn and soft drinks. How could I miss them? I wanted to do two things together-watch and munch! Thanks the movie began on time.

According to the Central Board of Film Certification, the name of the movie was “Baahubali-The Conclusion”. It was in Telugu language. It was colored and was cinemascope one . The date of release was April 24^th, 2017 and under the Universal category (that is meant for both adults and children). However, it was clearly mentioned that the movie must be watched under parental guidance. The name of the applicant to sign was Shri Y.N.Sobhandari for M/s Arka Media Works Entertainment LLP, Hyderabad and other signee was Shri Pahlaj Nihalani, Chairperson, CBFC, Mumbai. The duration of the movie was for 167 minutes and 30 seconds.

Wow! I liked the titles of the movie for following reasons:

a.       Computer graphics and dummies were used for various kinds of animals shown in the movie like horse, elephant, parrot, pig, oxen, birds, ducks, bison, boar, falcon, swan, etc.

b.      The team thanked agencies, digital cinema, travel partners, currency exchange office in Hyderabad, health care partner, social media channels, accommodation partner ,chocolate and confectionery partner, nutrition, mobile, communication, Reliance Fresh to get various goods, multiplex and Jewelry  partner, location and experience partner, stationary, messaging partner "hi", agency partner ,beauty partner to "Lux", fitness partner, Make a Wish Campaign, merchandising and licensing through ICICI Bank, Simba, etc., insurance providers, their bankers were IDBI and Kotak Bank, Hyderabad, their financers, media and radio partners, etc. They did not forget the contribution and participation of single person also. That’s something to be appreciated for the success of the movie.

c.       Very elaborative and distinctive background was shown in the titles. This is must for capturing the attention and focus of the audience. Kudos for their thinking powers.

d.      The movie was a combination of both real shots and multimedia graphical frameworks. Thus, attention of the children was at its maximum level.

e.      Titles were providing, associating and linking the connectivity between Baahubali Part 1 and Baahubali-The Conclusion. The short story of the part One of the movie was showcased in the Titles of the movie (one must have perceived the audience in the theater-I perceived that all of them were dumbstruck and not even a single person was blinking their eyes-I thought movies indeed play a major role in learning and educating ourselves, and there is no need to work hard with the individuals. This will do wonders in the classes of Law, Literature, History, Sociology and Journalism and Mass Media.).

The movie was presented by K.Raghavendra Rao, production of an Arka Mediaworks and creative film by S.S.Rajamouli. The lyrics and dialogues were written by Manoj Muntashir. The music was by M.M.Keeravani. The cinematography by K.K.Senthil Kumar. Vivid colored sketches were introduced at the beginning of the movie with the song at the background. The producers of the movie were Shobu Yarlagadda and Prasad Devineni. The screenplay and Direction was by S.S.Raja Mouli. The main star cast was Prabhas, Rana Daggubati, Anushka Shetty, Sathyaraj, Ramya Krishna, Nassar and Tamannaah.It was distributed by Arka Media Works for Telugu version, K.Productions for Tamil version, Global United Media for Malayalam version and Dharma Productions for Hindi version. It was released in 4K high Definition format.

Once the titles are over, the story begins for us. Our hero-Amarendra Baahubali- achieves his victory in the battlefield. The Queen Mother is proud of this achievement and declares that he will be crowned as the future king of Maahishmati. Her words turned out to be the festival moments for the people in the kingdom. However, her own and real son Bhallaladeva and husband are against her wishes. Her husband starts instigating Bhallaladeva against her. This is the turning point in the movie.

The Queen Mother instructs Amarendra and Katappa to take the tour of their kingdom in order to gain more knowledge of their subjects and well-being. Amarendra meets Devasena and is attracted by her charm and skills. They fall in love with each other. Soon this information reaches to Bhallaladeva and he makes a plan to create the differences between Shivagami and Amarendra. He tells his mother that he has fallen in love with Devasena and expresses his desire to marry her. The proposal is sent to Devasena from the side of Shivagami and is rejected by Devasena. The Queen is enraged at this attitude of Devasena and instructs Amarendra to capture, bind her as prisoner and present her at the court of Maahishmati.

Amarendra helps and protects the kingdom of Kuntala from their enemies called Pindaris. With his excellent skills, Amarendra overpowers Pindaris and saves the kingdom. Devasena was curious to know about the truth and demands to reveal his identity. She comes to know that Amarendra is the future king of Maahishmati and refuses to be the prisoner. He promises to protect her modesty and marries her. Both of them leave for Maahishmati. Shivagami comes to know about the truth and is not happy about it. At this time, she feels guilty for not keeping her promise to Bhallaladeva. This is the first point where the turning point of the story can be observed in the movie.

. The differences between Shivagami and Amarendra kick off from this point. Soon Shivagami asks Amarendra to leave the kingdom with his pregnant wife. With the help of evil ideas, Bijjaladeva is successful in creating more differences between them. In one scenario, he declares that Amarendra is trying to assassinate Bhallaladeva in order to be the King. She orders Katappa to kill Amarendra secretly so that the kingdom is saved from disharmony between the royal family and the subjects. As a result, Amarendra is stabbed to death by Katappa, the queen is informed about the treacherous ideas of Bijjaladeva and Bhallaladeva and her mistake in judging her own people. In the meantime, Devasena gives birth to a baby boy and arrives to the palace after knowing the death of her husband. Shivagami announces that the new borne baby is Mahendra Baahubali and future king of Maahishmati.

Bhallaladeva is surprised and orders his soldiers to capture the Queen, kill the baby and imprison Devasena. The Queen escapes from the palace and dies soon. The baby is rescued by the common people and called as Shivudu. Soon he comes to know about his imprisoned mother Devasena from Katappa and falls in love with Avantika. He fights against the injustice and is victorious in the end.

Positive points of the movie:

a) No animal was hurt or exploited in any scene. They get full marks from all animal lovers, environmentalists and eco-caring philosophers and feminists.

b) This means that creativity was at its highest level in the media laboratories for the team members.

Otherwise they might have missed on the minute details of the particular scene. There is a need to applaud the entire team.

c) The Police Commissioner and his team were specially thanked for allowing the film unit to work on areas of Rachakonda in Andhra Pradesh for the shooting of some of the scenes in the movie.

d) The audience were clapping and enjoying the comic scenes present in the movie.

e) Elaborate efforts were taken to create awesome visual and audio effects in the movie.

.f) Game was also developed on the release of the movie.

g) Care had been taken to portray the realities of the historical era9as this was a historical movie though not filmed on any particular king or queen or kingdom).

h) The Prince had been trained and educated in all the respective skills required for the future king in the movie .For example, the Amarendra Baahubali knew how to take risks, tackle the situations-both intentional and spontaneous one, presence of the leadership qualities, minute observation skills (for example when Prince visits the kingdom of Kuntala, he observes that the villagers were using their strong-built cattle for various purposes and same skill was helpful and used when there was the need of the hour to fight against the powerful army of Pindaris), being alert and helping the army of the other kingdom without delegating the work to others, etc.

i)Sensitivity of the Prince towards his own love, keeping promises, fighting against the evils, nurturing his own subjects, maintaining various kinds of relationships, sacrificing his own life for the sake of the kingdom and mother, protecting weak subjects and women are valuable and learning lessons for all.

j) No marginalization of the individuals was observed in the movie. This is the need of the hour in the contemporary society wherein women and children are equally treated and no partiality in giving or sharing of the knowledge. For example, Amarendra observes that Devasena is eager to learn about a special skill in archery and he readily teaches her the skill. This helps both of them to protect and fight against the enemies.

h) The individuals chosen for the respective characters are excellent and they matched with their roles.

i) Elephants were used in the battlefields in the historical times. Out of the 64 branches of learning in the traditional schools of education, it was mandatory for the Princes to learn about the treatment and rearing of certain animals like horses and elephants. This is something observed in the movie and eye-capturing one(one can compare this with the scene in the movie Jodha-Akbar wherein Akbar takes the initiative to control the mad elephant and this will be presented in another article of mine as a comparative study).

j) Medicinal value of turmeric powder and its remedial usage for the mad elephants is brilliantly showcased in the movie.

k) The feelings of the animals especially the elephants are shown in the scenes wherein the prince is equally sympathetic and cares for the royal elephant. Another point secured from the side of the environmental ethicists and philosophers.

l) The attitudes, qualities and characteristic features of the royal family have been very well depicted in the movie.

m) The importance of the non-communicative language has been very well captured in the movie and it is part of the human and animal culture. For example, "the warming" gesture shown by the Prince towards the "calmed down" elephant is very natural one. Elephants love their masters and other individuals caressing their trunks with hands. The different feelings exhibited by Devasena towards Amarendra in various scenes are appreciable from my side.

n) Extraordinary skills and techniques are observed in the movie. For example, while sitting on the elephant, Prince Amarendra pulling and shooting the flame carrying spear to burn the effigy of Raavan;

shooting of three arrows, using natural surroundings to fight against their enemies, etc.

o) Rights of the women and children are shown in the movie.

p) The world wide gross collections for the movie is Rs1725 crores.

Negative points in the movie:

a) Lot of time must have been spent by the individuals on the detailed working on each and every frame of the movie shot wherein the animals were used.

b) Children did not like too much of the fighting scenes in the movie.

c) First of the movie was the flashback and was interesting to watch. However, the second half seemed to be slightly artificial with the fighting skills of the army.

d) Why did not Devasena fight against her enemies as she herself was trained enough with various skills and possessed the leadership qualities? It was surprising.

e) The Queen Mother was very knowledgeable and always took her decisions in an intelligent manner rather than in an emotional way. However, the turning point of the movie was understood immediately when she was emotional for her very own son and unconscious feelings for love of her son soon manifested in the choice of her daughter-in-law.

f) There are many questions raised after watching the movie and they are-

1. Can a husband plot against his own wife in order to become the king?

2. Can a father instigate his own son to be against his mother?

3. Can royal male members speak in an abusive language?

g) Audience is under strong assumption that there will be a third part of the movie.

In the end, I will like to summarize my review in the following way:

1.       No doubt there are spectacular visual effects and they indeed mesmerized the audience throughout the movie.

2.       There was breathtaking suspense created in the movie for the audience. As the movie was running further on, one may feel the real suspense and uttering of the words” Oh! No”.

3.       The mood was of the audience was spell bound and atmosphere was amazing one in the theatre.

4.       There were certain poorly placed scenes in the movie and they were not required at all.

5.       There was no question of unsuccessful attempts in the movie. Otherwise, there could not have been an earning of an amount of Rs 1725 crores collected within 6 days of the release of the movie.

6.        The details of the movie are narrated in a nice and clear manner.

7.       There were exuberant sceneries in the movie.

8.       The overall make up, dresses and Jewellery shown in the movie is simply irresistible.

9.       There were perfect action and team coordination in the entire production of the movie.

10.   One cannot tend to forget certain moments shown in the movie.

11.   The plot was really good and different from the current movies because of which it has been a big hit with the audience.

12.   This movie has been compared to the other popular movies like Sholay.

13.   The movie was wonderful with the characters selected and their presentation in the movie.

14.   There was hilarious momentum created through some scenes in the movie and enjoyed by the audience.

15.   There were indeed some unexpected plot twists present in the movie.

16.   There are certain scenes which are unbelievable and are pure creation of the imagination and hardwork.

17.   It is indeed a phenomenal movie in South India as well as in North India.

18.   Similar kind of hypes was present in the mythological movies of N.T.Rama Rao and Akkineni Nageshwara Rao in the past in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.

19.   The characteristic feature of Raj Mouli’s movies seems to be rotating around suspense in each and every part. There is an assumption that Part III of the movie will be more suspensive by nature and this is confirmed by the film crew members.

20.   The music was not very disappointing one.

21.   There are elements of confusion in the movie. For example, if Bhallaladeva never married anyone, then how come his son was present in the story?

22.   One can conclude that there was some kind of imitation present in the movie (due to the fact that earlier mythological movies were directed in Andhra Pradesh).

23.   It is a typical South Indian movie.

24.   Prabhas-the main hero of the movie-was a very moving portrayal of the character and it suited his personality also.

25.   The quality of the film was awesome and I was impressed by its credible shots and creative ideas in the making of the movie.

26.   This will be one of the classic and captivating movies for the coming years in the Indian history.

Welcome to the WORLD OF REVIEWS.Here one can see the reviews for the following:

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Critical Review for the Book Titled “Zaika-Kashmiri Pandit Cuisine”

I was searching for some good books on Kashmir cuisine. At this time, I came across the book on Kashmiri Hindu Cuisine titled “Zaika-Kashmiri Pandit Cuisine”. I wanted to purchase the book online. However, it was a futile attempt for me. The name of the author for this book is Sonya Atal Sapru. Somehow I got her contact information and placed a call to her. I told her about my interests in Kashmiri Cuisine and my attempts to get a hold of her book. In a very polite manner, she added on to me that she has one copy of the book and she may like to gift it to me. Nothing could prevent me now other than reaching to her place, meeting her and get the copy of the book. Finally she gifted me the book with her blessings. It took me nearly five years to write the review of her book (I was lazy enough). I read it six times till date.

The book is not very thick one. The total number of pages is 70.It was published in the year of 1999.it was published by Harper Collins, India. The ISBN is 81-7223-341-8. The cost of the book is Rs.195. The cover page is a photograph with two frames combined together-one with the photograph of Kashmiri Puloa and fennel seeds and second one is the photograph of a typical Kashmiri Pandit lady wearing a saree with full blouse, typical Kashmiri Jewellery with the characteristic long chained jhumkas and handmade fan in her hands. The back side of the book is the awesome photograph of the author with her child in her lap. The author claims the authenticity of the genuineness of the recipes shared in the book. She thanked her mother-in-law –Smt.Gita Sapru- for her help and guidance.

The book has been divided into six sections and they are the following:

a.       How to plan a Kashmiri Meal(original contribution)-There are in total four ways in which the menu can be set for the day

b.      Kashmiri Garam masala( separately discussed in the entire book)

c.       16 Non-vegetarian recipes

d.      12 Vegetarian recipes

e.      5 Dals and 4 Rice dishes

f.        2 Chutneys,2  Raitas and 4 Desserts

The excellent points in the book are:

1.       There is good number of rare and unique family photographs exhibited in the book. These are well kept and black white in color showing the period during which they were clicked and shared with not only the future family members; however, with each and every reader of the book. They are rich in showcasing the culture of the Kashmiri Pandit families. The author states “portrait of an ancestor and found in an old chest of photographs”.

2.       The author has taken time to mention total number of servings, preparation time and cooking time for each and every recipe in the book.

3.       She has explained every recipe in simple English language.

4.       The manner in which she acknowledges to her family members for their contribution towards the publishing of the book.

5.       The best recipes are: mutton cooked in milk with green almonds, liver cooked in sour curd(khatti kaleji), meat cooked in plums(stuffed passande dum), mutton cooked in coriander powder(dhania ka shufta), jackfruit kababs(kathal kababs),fried pieces of lotus stem( nadru ki kurkuri), colacassia cooked in curds(khatti arvi), sour lentils(khatti arhar dal), mixed vegetable biryani(sarvari) ,baria, kishmish raita, and meethe chawal.

The weak points of the book are:

1.       Very few recipes have been shared and presented in the book.

2.       Festive recipes are missing in the book.

On the whole, the book is small and with few pages. It exhibits the recipes and their contributors. The book is a mixture of recipes and culture of Kashmiri Pandits shown via the rich and detailed photographs from the author’s family.

CRITICAL REVIEW FOR THE BOOK TITLED “COOKING DELIGHTS OF THE MAHARAJAS –EXOTIC DISHES FROM THE PRINCELY HOUSE OF SAILANA”

I was reading a book, few years ago, in which it was mentioned that the food was different from one group or class to another one. I did not understand it (though it was not completely described here also) till the time I was indeed reading the book titled “Cooking Delights of the Maharajas –Exotic Dishes from the Princely House of Sailana”. It was written by His Highness Shri Digvijaya Singh-from the palace of Sailana and Sailana is a small city present in Madhya Pradesh. It was published in the year of 1982 in India. It was published by Vakils, Feffer and Simons Pvt.Ltd, Mumbai. The price of the book is Rs.400. The ISBN is 978-81-8462-026-9. The total number of pages is 198.

The moment I read the title of the book, I was really impressed for various reasons:

1.       One may be delighted after reading the book and trying to cook the dishes mentioned in it.

2.       The word “The Maharajas” meant more than one king. I assumed that the recipes were different and handed over from one generation to another.

3.       The dishes are exotic by nature.

4.       The recipes will be from the land of Sailana exclusively.

The cover page was adopted and depicted one of the popular paintings of the Royal family of Sailana (though it is not mentioned anywhere in the book).The backside of the book gives us the details of the author and his qualities and skills. The 15^th edition of the book was published in the year of 2015.The photograph present on the 3^rd page exhibits different kinds of copper vessels utilized for cooking various dishes in the royal kitchens of the city. My attention was towards the beautiful rectangular box meant for keeping all kinds of spices and powders. Now I hardly find one available in our country. I wish I had one of them in my possession and adding beauty to my kitchen also.

The author has dedicated he book to his father-Late Highness Raja Sir Dilip Singhji of Sailana. One may see the stamp of the royal family placed above the photograph of author’s father. I had never seen one in my life! The author acknowledges other royal families present in India like Prince Shivaji Rao Holkar and Princess Shalini Devi Holkar of Indore. The foreword has been written by none other than Late Her Highness Gayatri Devi- Rajmata of Jaipur. According to her, the author is” not only a gourmet but a superb cook”. There is good number of coloured photographs of various dishes cooked and presented for the royal feasts.

The section on the contents is given in detailed manner and these are enlisted in the following manner:

a)      54 recipes prepared by using meat or mutton

b)      9 recipes prepared by using chicken

c)       10 recipes prepared by using fish

d)      8 recipes prepared from the flesh of animals after hunting them

e)      21 recipes using different grains like rice, millets, etc.

f)       50 recipes prepared from various kinds of vegetables

g)      12 varieties of sweet dishes

I liked the section on “Preface” of the book. The secrets of the royal families are given to the readers and the best ones are:

1.       The Maharajas were the connoisseurs of good food (mentioned in the 2^nd paragraph).

2.       Fine kitchens and best cooks are hired (mentioned in the 2^nd paragraph).

3.       There is a separate cook for each and every recipe (again mentioned in the 2^nd paragraph) (I was imagining the total number of cooks present in the royal kitchens. No wonder the royal families of Turkey had dedicated one large palace to the cooks and guides meant for cooking, chopping of the vegetables, tasting, guiding other cooks, measuring the quantities, etc.).

4.       It was the “status symbol” for the kings to display the “the most unusual kind of dishes” to their guests.

5.       The secrets of cooking various recipes were never shared by the cooks and passed on from one generation to the other (usually from father to son only).

6.       Some of the exotic recipes and the process of cooking exotic dishes are lost as they were not passed on from one to another individual.

7.       The author gives the credit to his father for collecting the recipes from the past 100 years. He collected them from various cooks present across the country and had ancient recipe books in different languages like Sanskrit, Urdu and Persian. He translated some of them.

8.       Cooking is not an art however it is a scientific process.

9.       The differences present in different kinds of spicy powders or masalas is due to the quantity used in their preparation in the kitchens.

10.   The author has taken pain to share some of the recipes only to his readers (I don’t know about the other recipes and the time when those would be shared with us).

In the section on “Helpful Hints”, the author discusses on the following points:

a.       He explicitly denies the usage of stainless steel and aluminium pans for cooking purposes. They were used only for boiling things (Oh! My God; we use these metallic utensils for cooking in the contemporary times).

b.      Different kinds of utensils used are –

dekhchi-pot kind of utensil used for cooking meats

 tapeli-broad utensil used for cooking and boiling rice and curries

kadhai-deep and large pan.

Pressure Cookers-for preparing dishes from lentils, rice and to tenderize hard meats like trotters

c.       Differences between

i)bhunao is the process of cooking ground spices in little amount of oil, at high temperatures and adding small quantities of water after few minutes

ii) Baghar meaning tempering or seasoning

iii) Dhugar means smoking technique

iv) Dum means cooking on low flame and the utensil is covered with lid and sealed with dough

v) Kalia is a curry prepared with water or milk

vi) Korma is a curry prepared with ghee or oil

vii)do pyaza means cooking with some vegetable like cauliflower, green peas,potato, etc.

d) Details had been discussed with respect to the quantities used for preparing pastes, seasoning or for enhancing the taste of a particular dish.

The weak points of the book are:

a)      The recipes are not exclusively from Sailana only.

b)      The author mentions about other recipes from other regions also like Rajasthan, Bhopal, Delhi, Jhabua, Kashmir, Persia, Nepal, Hyderabad, etc. They are 24 in number.

c)       The recipes shared for the dishes prepared from the flesh of hunted animals are confined to rabbits and wild boars. During those days, the hunting of animals was not restricted to these animals only. The recipes for other dishes are not mentioned in the book.

d)      There are other exotic dishes from other royal families across India. Why they were not mentioned? I am wondering about other dishes from the royal kitchens of Lucknow, Gujarat, Jammu, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Bengal which are worth mentioning in the book(may be in the footnotes).

e)      The sections on recipes for the snacks, salads, chutneys, curd preparations, pickles and soups are missing in the book. Apart from this, there are various dishes prepared separately in each and every season. This is not mentioned anywhere in the book.

f)       In the photographs, three to four dishes are placed and clicked together in the book. This was not really good. The colors of the dish depicts haziness and not very appealing to the eyes.

The excellent points to be noticed in the book are:

a)      The sections are divided as per the themes and sub-themes in the book.

b)      Minute details about the preparation of the dish have been pointed out in the recipes.

c)       Meanings of certain words have been given from the side of the author.

d)      Photographs are given in good number in the book (though not upto the mark).

e)      Some of the rare recipes are shared in the book like mutton ke dahi badas, porridge prepared with garlic, etc.

CRITICAL REVIEW OF THE BOOK TITLED “SAL-A FEAST OF KASHMIRI CUISINE”

I wanted to prepare a typical Kashmiri Sherbat at the time of Ramzaan. I was searching for Kashmiri recipes. I was not very fortunate enough to know about it. Luckily I discovered the details of the recipe in the book titled “Sal-A Feast of Kashmiri Cuisine”. It was written by Smt.Neerja Mattoo-a professor in English literature and teaching in the Kashmir University. It was a colorful book with lots of recipes from the valley. It was published in the year of 2008. The name of the publisher was Gulshan Books, Srinagar-Kashmir. The ISBN is 81-8339-063-3.The cost of the book is Rs.495.

The book is dedicated to her mother. The contents of the book are:

1.       11 Wazwaan recipes

2.       7 Non-Vegetarian recipes

3.       21 Vegetarian Recipes

4.       8 Mutton and Vegetable

5.       9 recipes prepared from  fish and 1 recipe prepared from duck

6.       2 Dried Vegetables

7.       4 Recipes using rice

8.       4 Desserts

9.       4 Beverages

10.   7 Snacks and Tea-Time Savories

11.   4 Chutneys

12.   1 Pickle

13.   2 Spice Cakes(garlic and asafeotida based)

The excellent points present in the book are:

a.       Different varieties of recipes have been shared by the author.

b.      The author gives a vivid introduction about the Kashmiri cuisine-right from seasonal dishes to festive cuisine.

c.       The authentic recipes shared from her side are Sadre Kaenz, Sheer Chai, bakery products, harisa, girda, etc.

d.      She discusses about the use and prevention of certain spices and vegetables during festivals and seasons as described in traditional books.

e.      Very clear colored photographs for various dishes are showcased in the book (this even includes the traditional copper utensils used for different purposes).

f.        Her major contribution lies in the sharing of recipes using dried vegetables.

g.       This is the only book sharing the recipe for a beverage called Babribyol Sherbet (beverage prepared from chia seeds) and sadr-e-kaenz(fermented rice water).

The weak points of the book are:

a.       The sections on non-vegetarian and mutton and vegetable could have been taken into one category only.

b.      The author was not fair in her contribution towards the discussion and listing of the Wazwaan dishes.

c.       Though the author mentions about various bakery products in the Introduction of her book, however, there is nowhere mentioned or discussed about the manner in which these products are prepared by the Kandarvaan or the baker’s shop.

d.      The author is not shown much attention towards the preparations of various dishes from the dried vegetables.

e.      There are other varieties of pickles prepared in Kashmir. The author misses her points in it too.

To summarize in the end, the book is truly an introduction to the world of Kashmiri cuisine. The author describes the steps in a very lucid manner and one can follow them nicely. I enjoyed cooking some of the recipes from the book.

BOOK REVIEW-“LYF KI RUMLILA”

This was the time when I was attending a workshop at the Marwah Studios. I saw a tall lady draped in a bottle green chiffon saree with sleeveless blouse. She was indeed a charming lady and “first impression is always the last impression” stood true for her. I offered her the seat next to me in the auditorium and she instantly accepted it. Two ladies are like “birds of the same flock”. We didn’t interact much in the Hall. However, we were quite busy munching the peanuts, crispies and snacks placed in front of us on the table.

Once we were out of the Hall, it was like two kids out of classroom. We started interacting with each other. We introduced ourselves and shared our likes and dislikes, common goals, wishes, etc. Suddenly she uttered, “Ramani I want to give you my book titled ‘LYF KI RUMLILA’ also” (she didn’t know that I was an ardent reader and a bookaholic. She said that the book will be releasing soon and offered me to write some stories for her also. I was simply listening and observing her. I perceived that she is full of life and a very positive person.

After I came to know that her book was released and she was marketing it all by herself (and clicking lots of photographs with those individuals who was either buying her book or she was gifting them her book. Moreover, she was uploading the photographs on her Facebook page). This was something which really urged me to purchase her book and read it. I purchased it through her website and next day she was at my college to handover the book to me. I reached home and unwrapped the plastic sheet enclosing the book to read the stories. I was wondering about the reason why she chose such a title for her book.

Thus, the title of the book is “LYF KI RUMLILA-LYF KICKER-LYF INGREDIENTS”. The name of the author is Mrs. Puja Rasne, however, on the book it is Puja “Titli” (which means butterfly in Hindi language). It was published by Pam’s Publications Pvt. Ltd. and printed by Saurabh Printers Pvt. Ltd. This is the first edition of the book released on June 5^th; 2017.The ISBN is 978-81-931108-0-5 for the hard copy of the book. It is also available in the E-book format with ISBN 978-81-931108-1-2. It is dedicated to the memory of her sister Sonia Malhotra. There are 200 pages in total and the cost is Rs.249. The cover page has an image of a Rum bottle, a glass with three ice cubes and a feeding bottle of a child. At the first glance at it, I was pondering at the metaphorical meaning attached to it. What could it stand for?

There are regular features present at the beginning of the book like acknowledgement, preface and foreword. In the Preface part, I realized that it was a book meant for both children and adults. This justified the design present on the cover page. It is a work wherein the author is trying to share some “heart-warming experiences” from her life. She was trying to understand the emotional and intelligence levels from a child’s perspective. She is very sensitive to gain the knowledge from the world of the children. The way they are sensitive, intelligence, more matured than their age, supportive to their parents and who understood the life.

There are 40 stories present in the book. Each story is unique in its own way. For example, in the first story titled “CAN SURVIVE”, there is a beautiful meaning given to the word “CANCER”. The girl in the story presents a creative understanding and more serious meaning to the word- CANCER, CANSUR to CAN-SUR-VIVE.As a child psychologist and a senior faculty of English Communication, I was amazed at the NEW DISCOVERY level of the child and processing of her mental schemata. It was a very positive and opportunistic approach towards life. Similarly, the story titled “SCHOOL BUS” was equally eye-opener for me. I wish other grown up individuals grab a copy of this book and read it. It is a simple conversation between two children who find they are spending their best time in the school bus. I was wondering what might be the reasons for this. I continued reading further to realize that they learn lot of lessons in the bus rather than in their classes. No wonder why parents are so much concerned with the school transportation. I understood it for the first time in my life. One must read the Chapter.

I am not going to share my views on each and every Chapter of the book. Nevertheless, I will highly recommend every individual to buy and read other stories also. I myself was touched by the stories –

a)      BAGS OF LIFE- In this story, the little girl celebrates her mother’s birthday and gifts her SEVEN DIFFERENT COLORED PAPER BAGS to her mother. She tells her mother, “…these are bags of life…blue paper bag contains happiness, red one contains sympathy, green bag contains sadness, orange bag contains emotions, purple bag contains sensitivity, white bag contains sorrow and 7^TH BAG IS GOLD IN COLOR …CONTAINS ALL THESE EMOTIONS MIXED…THIS IS THE BAG OF LIFE”. This is a story of a divorced mother and her daughter. The daughter observes that her mother is really sad and is working hard to take care of her. She celebrates the birthday and gifts the seven bags to her mother. This was something at which I was totally zapped up. How great some of our life’s lessons are! They are very harsh; however, they teach us a good lesson.

b)      FORMULA 5PBE-This is a story about Aditya with a single mother. He is not good at the subject Mathematics. His mother teaches him mathematics so that he is good at it. However, there is a turning point in the real life itself. He gives her the “MAGIC FORMULA OF 5PBE”.Next question for me was-“what is it?”

To my amazement, “5P’s” stood for “politeness in her approach, playful with him, perseverance in her life, be more prudent and improve her thought ’process’, ’B’ for beautiful mother and ‘E” for unlimited quantities of energy ”. I had to believe this from a small child. I loved this formula of 5PBE and will be presenting to others also. I need to thank Aditya for this amazing formula of life.

One thing that I will like to share with everyone is that each one of us comes across with some kind of learning in one’s life. The question is for all-“How many of us highlight it and share it with other?” We are leading a life of EGOISM. We are happy with ourselves and least interested in what we are gaining and sharing the life with others. However, Puja Rasne has not restricted her life of egoism. She is indeed a “TITLI” who is carrying her share of experiences from one person to another through her book. It is full of “kickers” from the domain of adulthood and “a boomerang kick” can be felt through the intelligence of the small children-who are the TRUE INGREDIENTS for their parents. Finally, in this book, there is a RUM BOTTLE belonging and meant exclusively for the adults; there is a glass with exactly THREE ICE CUBES-one representing the person who has suffered in her/his life, second is PUJA herself witnessing and experiencing both sides of life and third one is the life in-itself which cannot be ignored (all three cubes are present in the glass to relish the RUM) and the FEEDING BOTTLE representing the child in each and every story. The BOTTLE OF RUM facing the FEEDING BOTTLE with a glass with three ice cubes. It is indeed LYF KI RUMLILA for each one of us. Do read the book for other stories. In the end, I would love to tell Puja,” Please do not let the butterfly stop fluttering and let it move further”.