Udi Udi Jaaye…

By Juhi Bansal

Thank you for the overwhelming response to the open letter I wrote to my 16 year old self. It’s was heartening to see so many of you agreeing with what I had to say, after all everyone goes through that transition. I had a lovely birthday thanks to the husband (who shopped for me and surprised me to no end with his amazing choices- ofcourse he had my sister on Facetime the whole time but it’s the thought that counts right 😉 ) and Iy (for singing out loud, giving me hugs every few minutes and generally being herself) and all of you who called and messaged.

So, coming back to the article, I do believe in everything I said. And while that article was largely me giving advice (when am I not doing it!) to my younger self, I have learnt quite a few things in my life and I thought I’ll share them with you. Let me know if you agree.

Change is inevitable. Everyone and everything changes. I have changed, so have people around me. Circumstances, behaviour, lifestyle, even luck changes. That brings me to my other learning-Nothing lasts Forever! So, enjoy every second of every minute of your life.
Keeping my views to myself is the best thing I’ve started doing. I’ve come to realize that no one needs to know my thoughts just like I don’t need to know theirs. It’s always better to fret in private rather than picking fights on social media.
Haters gonna hate. Love, laugh, enjoy- don’t be apologetic for how you choose to live your life just because someone does not agree with it.
Take care of yourself. Be a little selfish. Your body is the only thing that stays with you till your last breath. Treat it with respect. Care for yourself every day- start today!

It is Navratri time in Ahmedabad and the indomitable spirit of every Amdavadi during these 10 days never ceases to amaze me! Every year I am asked about the trends of the season and what are some styling must dos during the festivities. You know me- I don’t like rules and this year I have only one answer for all such questions- Recycle, Repurpose, Repeat.

Everything that I am wearing in the ensemble is technically old (worn before or owned for some time). While earlier my closet frustrated me- I never had anything to wear, it now surprises me. I can always pull out combinations and mix&matches that seem to work. Take this one for example- floral and stripes? And such non-festive colours for garba? I would like to believe it worked!