a memoir of etchings and wanderings
Whenever I was asked the casual “So, where are you from?” question, I found myself debating the answer in my head. Should I say Calcutta, where I was born? Or is it Oman, where I spent over two decades? Eventually, I always launch into a lengthy explanation which probably made the person asking the question immediately regret it! Ha. The beautiful, yet relatively undiscovered Sultanate I grew up in is … Continue reading “Ma’salama” →
I hardly ever procrastinate when it comes to travelogues, but I guess this maddening summer and the backlog of television series have collectively contributed to the laziness. This year’s first step out was owed to a work trip to a part of the world that I haven’t been to since I was in my teens. The Indonesian archipelago has 18,307 islands and I was going to visit one of the … Continue reading “Terima Kasih, Bali” →
There used to be a time when I didn’t mind working weekends, lots of consecutive weekends. Late hours. Pizza for all three meals. Doing the work of three people at less than the basic wage rate of a American Mc Donald’s fries maker. Those days are long gone. As have the reasons why I even enjoyed the crazy times. So when I was asked to staff a weekend media event, … Continue reading “Sun ~ Sea ~ Sand” →
One year ago, today I stepped into the minaret shaped door of my current firm, having returned to the city I grew up in. I thought it would be tougher. More trying. I’ve been surprised. But despite the odds, the last year has been a good one, I have to say. I’ve not been the most satisfied on the career front. That remains the only sore point. I spent quality … Continue reading “Already?” →
A usual day in my life is really not much to talk about – just the general work, home routine where one doesn’t even realise how the weeks and then months fly past. So I thought pictures would add a definite zing (as mentioned in the challenge) – but a picture an hour seemed a bit much, so here we go – a condensed version of a day in my … Continue reading “Day 15# Just Another Day.” →
Public Relations. Definitely not the career I dreamed of when I was little – on May 03 this year, I completed four years of being in this profession. What is it I do? I manage reputations for brands. As a Public Relations professional, my job entails maintaining a favorable public image of an organisation, a person or brands or all of these together. I was very lucky to be recruited … Continue reading “Day 6# Communications 101” →
Seems like just the other day that I was writing about my first day at my new job, and today marks six months of me being here. It has been quite the journey, I must say. I’ve written things I thought I was never capable of, learned so much about Oman that surprised me, met some really great people at work, attended the most hilarious meetings and felt like quite a boss. … Continue reading “Time Flies” →
And just when I thought I was getting used to the violently red and yellow walls at my new workplace, we’ve been shifted to a new location. The team has expanded so violently that there seems to be no way to accommodate us in the existing facility. Thus, came into the picture a sprawling villa at Muscat’s sort-of-posh ‘Al-Sarooj’ locale. The enclosure I sit in is in an absolute corner – so … Continue reading “Base Shift.” →
Seems like just the other day that I was packing bags and cartons to send via Gati to Kolkata. Only last week that I walked into the cabin at Edelman India to say goodbye. Just the last weekend that I had such a gloriously drunken time with the girls at home. And just like that I look at the calendar and it’s been a month at Zeenah today. It’s a … Continue reading “Month-old” →
So I finally did make the move. After a very crazy August, where I spent a lot of time in airports and questioned myself repeatedly about the decision that I had taken – I find myself in a new place, surrounded by new people in an absolutely new environment altogether. The comfort zone is a really prized concept. I don’t know how people do this frequently. This wrapping up one life and starting … Continue reading “New Innings” →