From a very young age Indian girls are taught to adjust and prioritize others happiness before theirs.  Somewhere that conditioning that “doosro ki khushi mein hi khushi milti hai” gets ingrained in their minds forever. Girls are taught to be submissive and subservient so they can appease their parents, in-laws and husband.  They are told that mothers are always “givers and selfless”.  Due to all this conditioning, women somewhere start living for others more than themselves.  They cannot say No

No matter what we seek in life, our mind chases happiness at the end of it all. Happiness is the key to human existence even though it remains elusive most of the time. It sneaks through the doors of our heart and mind without knocking and leaves without notice most of the time. As with everything else – it is impermanent and momentary unless we learn to hold it longer. Sometimes just soaking in the beautiful sunshine,watching sunsets / sunrises,

Friends are one of the biggest happiness boosters of our life. We can’t imagine our life without our coterie of best friends and friendships go a long way in shaping our personalities and enabling us to become the kind of person we want to be. Unlike family, where we are bound by biological relationships, friends are the ones we choose and they choose us and that is what makes this bond so special. Best friends are the ones with whom

If someone had told me a couple of years back that I was going to be a ‘Happiness Coach’ I would have laughed it off and thanked the person for their wishful thinking. Until two years ago, I was in a leadership role with a reputed Business Process Outsourcing organization, busy climbing the corporate ladder and following hectic schedules as a ‘working mother’ . I loved my job and felt a sense of accomplishment at being financially independent. In spite of the high

Last week when I was writing an article about online libraries in India, I got to speak to some of the individuals who are running them on their own steam. The experience was thoroughly enjoyable and it was refreshing to hear from them that their reader base has been expanding since inception. COVID was a challenge but due to the restrictions, children ended up upgrading their skills and more joined their ilk. In the writer circles that I now move

As our family of three hugged and wish each other a happy new year at midnight, my daughter’s first words were, “Hum bach gaye. We survived. We made it.” Three simple words but they carry the gist of this year in them. This can be interpreted on so many levels. Going by the tone and emotion in her voice, this is what I concluded. There was a huge sigh of relief tinged with a bit of sadness. Was it survivor’s

I’m not an overly ritualistic person and my relationship with God is extremely personal. As I write this, an oddity glares back at me that makes me smile. I talk about my worldly relationships very openly but paradoxically I don’t talk about one that I have with God but that would be a topic for another time. Today I shall not digress and in accordance to my plan, I intend to tell you a little about THAT ONE guiding principle

When cable TV invaded our homes, in the name of content we had conspiracies, murders, shape shifting snakes, reincarnations, one-night stands and promiscuity shoved down our throats- all in the name of TRP. A TV czarina had gone on record saying that she made these serials for masses and that’s what they wanted. I lived in Doordarshan nostalgia when the content was way ahead of its time. It saddened me to see the sharp decline of the Indian television and

Motherhood is a roller coaster ride filled with exuberance,enchantment, trepidation, uneasiness, adventure, turbulence, love…… The wave of happiness started flowing when I got to know that I was expecting. Being the first child, I hardly knew anything about pregnancy. A concoction of moroseness, ebullience, excitement  was wafting through the body. Finally the awaited day came. My water bag burst in the morning and convulsing pains started. A ripple of twinge embarked through the stomach which were totally unbearable. But I was