At last, God has had some mercy on us and let the monsoon wet our entire nation. Its been a bit late this time but still we welcome the most beautiful season with open arms to get rid of the intolerable summer. The rain deficit has reduced from a whopping 60-65% to a mere 5% as per the latest information from The India Meteorological Department (IMD). The coastal areas were blessed way before however the northern and the western part of the country needed this much awaited monsoon. Famine and price rise are directly proportional to each other so am sure the poor as well as rich farmers must have heaved a sigh of relief along with the newly elected government which will get some respite and reduce the inflation burden on the common man. Monsoon has been my most favourite season because of the life it brings in the plants, trees and animals. Everything seems alive and attractive with rain droplets on them and the petrichor(scent of rain on dry earth) is uncomparable to even the most expensive perfume in the world.

But we in our fast and selfish approach towards life have been insensitive to the needs of nature. Global warming, drying up of rivers, melting of glaciers, increase in the duration of summers, reduction in rains and winter season are all a result of our foul play with nature. It is an apt statement that ' What goes around comes back around'. We gave pollution, dirt, dust, pain and destruction to the Earth and today all that we did is coming back to us in different forms. Even a superpower like China every year goes through earthquake, flood, famine and no matter how much it tries to fight back human loss is inevitable. The Earth does take revenge in some form or the other. Nature gave us beautiful environment, animals, food and endless love by being a provider for us. And we have been so greedy that we could never stop asking and even snatching by force more and more from her. We call it mother nature but is this how we treat our mother? She nurtured us without any discrimination and we failed to live up to her expectations. No matter how much we progress technically or economically we still are and will remain very much dependent on nature and it is our duty to not let the natural resources whither away in vain rather we should make each and every effort in bringing it to the optimum use for the society as a whole. Some tactics that we can use would be solar energy, rain-water harvesting, mix and match in sowing the crops on seasonal basis, interlinking of rivers and most importantly reducing the pollution that we pass on to the rivers including Ganga, Yamuna, Narmada etc.

Let us all pledge to take care of our Mother Earth and stop all this anti-natural wastage. Do not forget, that without nature there will be no planet, no country, no religion and no people. 

Recently, we had an office event organised at the J-One Levels club and lounge. The organisers I must say surprisingly managed to crack a good deal this time. There was endless supply of good food, music and snacks which kept the party goers busy throughout the event. This is a fairly new club in the city and it managed to leave a good impression on me. I am not a party animal and do not enjoy pubs and discotheques to be precise however the service and quality of food in this lounge made me change my view. I was extremely delighted by the quick service and variety of snacks available which left a good taste in my mouth. I tried almost all the snacks from chilli chicken to thin crust pizza to malai tikka and the veggies too. As far as drinks were concerned, the majority of the crowd was enjoying the alcoholic beverages and I fixed myself to the virgin mojito which was perfectly blended with lime juice, mint leaves and ice.

After a bit of munching, the crowd moved to the dance floor with the DJ mixing hollywood and bollywood tracks on the stage. The whole management team from leaders to the analysts all were dancing to the tunes of different songs being played at the club. Few of them even went ahead requesting "Yo Yo Honey Singh" on priority. The club had a red theme with the lights and sitting area glowing in red light. Although it was very dark, but the red color gave a nice feel to the entire affair. I also managed to click a few selfies of mine in red which came out really nice. At around 10:30 pm there was an announcement made that the dinner was being served and I was pleasantly surprised to realise that there was a seperate diner section in the lounge. My stomach was more than full because of the snacks and mojitos I had gulped but I did enjoy the calm and peaceful sumptuous three course meal with my colleagues. My favourites were the thai curry and the chocolate fudge ice-cream. All in all, it was nice first hand evening experience with my co-workers.

I am of the opinion that no matter what the situation, it is important to find something worthwhile and enjoy that moment to the fullest. Wisemen say, If you cannot change the situation, change yourself while keeping your morals and principles intact.

It is wise to flow with the tide, but it is foolish to let your guards down and slide in the wrong direction.~Ankhi Bhattacharya

Deceit, is a strong but apt word in our social life. At times, we complain of being a victim to it and at other times we are the ones preying for the benefit of our filthy interests. We face deceit in every walk of our life whether its personal or professional. We deal in disguise, sometimes to secure ourselves and sometimes to pull others down. This is the bitter and hard fact that we fail to agree to because of our inner guilt and ego. I had spoken about the tricks that we play to make or break a relationship in one of my previous blogs. Our bosses, friends, colleagues, relatives may be the best at face value but could be the exact opposite behind our back. Who knows, they all have their own axe to grind and there is nothing wrong with that. Everyone has the right to grow and yes even at the cost of others since no one asks you or puts you in trial for ditching someone once you succeed. One of my friends told me "Corporate world is ruthless." But which world is not? US is as ruthless as China or Russia, it bred the Al-Qaida, ISIS for its hunger for power and moved away silently, due to which the innocent lives are suffering today. Even family isn't less, a brother, sister would fight till death for property issues. We hear about crimes everyday. A son does not even think twice before killing or throwing his parents out of their house for wealth.

You all must have heard about the seven deadly sins, which we should stay away from:

• Pride: Also known as vanity, is the excessive belief in one's own potential. It can lead to arrogance, over-confidence and failure in the end.
• Envy: Jealousy is one of the most common sins we all fall prey to. It brings in the other evil traits like planning, plotting, hatred which leads to crime.
• Gluttony: is the want of consuming more than what is needed. Like desire for money is never-ending. You would go to any extent for it.
• Lust: It is the inordinate craving for bodily pleasure, which is also a reason for the rise in crimes these days.
• Anger: We all fall prey to rage, anger without realising that anger becomes your master and makes you do the deadliest of the things.
• Greed: is the never ending want of materialistic things like money, property etc. Greed makes a person gamble, kill, steal and what not.
• Sloth: is being lazy, not wanting to do physical or mental labour.

The only idea, I had in writing this blog, was to highlight the fact that no one can be singled-out as victim but everyone can be in someway or the other. None of us are great sages, who can be untouched by any of the deadly sins. We are humans, we are bound to make mistakes. But till the time we keep learning and improving, we are making ourselves better everyday. Vices are easy to fall prey to and despair is the easiest that comes across in hard times.

Winner is not the one who wins in daylight, but is the one who battles darkness and comes out a victor at dawn.~ Ankhi Bhattacharya

No one realizes the real value of something or someone until one loses it. This is the truth of life. You behave the best and go a mile ahead not for your own people but for someone else for short term gains. There is nothing new about it. It happens in every relationship, chosen ones too. The past no matter how old will haunt you forever in your later life asking what if you had behaved or done something differently. And believe me you hurt the maximum who cares for you the most. What if that person stops caring, forgets emotions for you, things will be better for him/ her since you would not be able to hurt them anymore. But can that happen? Can a mother, a wife, a father stop caring and loving?

It is already 44 and the hottest day of the year is yet to come. This year the temperature reached the highest in 5 years in Delhi. With each passing year the global warming has been giving us a warning to go green and take care of the Mother Earth. Yesterday we celebrated the world environment day but how many of us remembered? Very few or none I would say. Also there is very less education and awareness among people on this crucial situation which is deteriorating our planet's condition every day. The most affected are the birds, animals and trees. Unlike humans they do not have the artificial means of changing the weather and climate around them. Today we try and fight the sun with AC's etc but can we actually fight nature? The nature if you compare has become more severe towards us whether you recall the spine chilling winters and the untimely rains or the scorching heat of summer. All this is our doing. We are the root cause. Cutting trees, killing animals for their skin, ever increasing population, decline in natural resources, dumping the sea and rivers with chemicals. All this is done by us for the sake of money and our comfort without realising that we will be terribly affected if we keep ruining our own environment.

Finally we are out. These were the words used by my colleague on our way to Lemon Tree Premier, a hotel located in the heart of the city. We planned a dinner buffet for the ten of us tonight. The buffet consisted of unlimited 5 course meal with unlimited mock tails at a reasonable price of 499/- and that included taxes. In my previous blog "tax fury", I had explained the impact of indirect taxes on us which are almost 25-30% of the bill especially in a big hotel or restaurant. However this deal from groupon, suggested to me by Lemon tree staff was excellent as far as value for money is concerned.

Shopping as we all know is our favourite pass time. Well, at least for the majority of us. Yesterday I was chatting with one of my friends, and she sent me an image of her new mobile cover she ordered online. It was beautiful and costed a lot less than the usual covers available in the market.

Online shopping is becoming the most preferred shopping destination these days. You have loads of websites and varieties to choose from with ample of discount throughout the year.  Shopping sites like Myntra, Jabong, Fashion and You etc have become the most trusted sites due to their good quality and service. Few good things about online shopping is that it saves time and money both. You do not need to go to a mall or shop and spend money on parking, window shopping is free of cost, you can spend ample time and energy shopping, sitting with your laptop or mobile anywhere and anytime. On top of it these fashion sites give you the cash on delivery option which is by far the safest and most chosen payment option by the buyers.

Although, online shopping has many advantages, still it cannot be compared with the happiness and satisfaction you get when you actually shop in a store. You have the option of seeing the material, colours with your own eyes and choosing the best after stepping out of the trial room. You have a reason to step out of the walls of your home and pamper yourself with your friends and family rather than sitting in one corner of your room and waiting for delivery.

The online fashion websites are definitely beneficial in our extremely busy schedule, however you must always take out time to go out and enjoy the old shopping style.