#only srk home in london | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

brindaneer · 3 years

Text

In our last blog entry, we mentioned how Hrithik Roshan and Kareena Kapur had charmed the audience through their on screen chemistry even in a poorly scripted film like Yaadein. However, it was as Rohan and Poo that they truly sizzled onscreen. Who can forget the heat in 'You are my Sonia'. Unfortunately (again), they did not get a better film to do so. Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham or K3G as it is more popularly known, was at the most, a mediocre film, often bordering on the ridiculous.

It was a predictable story of damaged relationships and their healing in an ultra rich family (Amitabh Bachchan's character talked about buying more helicopters, for God's sake). By the way, did anyone understand what business the Raichands actually did? In that case, please do let us know. Also, wasn’t it just cute that Rahul Raichand (SRK) walked away from home with literally nothing and ended up owning a huge bunglow in London, of all places, ten years later? If only all of us were so fortunate with regards to money!

Also, why would anyone dance on the streets of London to Vande Mataram when they were supposed to be heartbroken at having just found out about the long term estrangement of a beloved brother from the family? Oh wait! Of course, it was Karan Johar's way of showing off just how amazing HRITHIK can look. So, no complaints there! Yes, we accept, we are shallow! NOT ASHAMED!!🤪

Please excuse us for the above paragraphs; K3G did have some genuinely good moments, and most of them involved our man! For instance, the scene where Rahul met the grown up Rohan for the first time was well done, and all credit belonged to the actors. Both Shahrukh and Hrithik were perfect in portraying the inner turmoil that each other felt. Rohan's moments with his DJ (Farida Jalal) were also heartwarming, and far more natural than the over the top Nandini-Rahul scenes. The scene between Rohan and Yashvardhan in which Yash slapped his son is our personal favourite. It must have taken a lot of courage for a young actor like Hrithik to do that scene with someone like Mr. Bachchan! And he was excellent, never once going over the board in it.

The Rohan-Poo moments, however, were the most entertaining bits of the film along with the parts where the two brothers bonded. A special mention for Kareena Kapoor- it was not easy to play someone as irritating as Poo and make her funny and genuinely sweet. So well done Bebo! Hrithik and Kareena's on screen chemistry was truly at its peak in this film. Kareena had never looked so stunning and Hrithik was at his sexiest. They should have been given more screen time and space in K3G. The scene before the prom in which Rohan pointed out that Poo was wearing the wrong shoes was a testimony to the magic these two brought when they came together on screen. It was hot, sexy and hilarious at the same time. We thank Karan Johar for coming up with some great unconventional romantic sequences between them.

On another note, we thought Rohan went to London to persue MBA. At least, that was what he told his father. Instead, we saw him going to college in super luxurious cars (no wonder Rahul asked him to sleep in one), sing, dance, play rugby, confess his love for Poo at the prom night, and finally get married! Of course, he did bring the family together. So, bravo ROHAN! Nevertheless, guess MBA really took a backseat, ha? For God's sake Karan! At least, you should have shown him carry a book! But perhaps, we ought not to expect all this from a Karan Johar movie which usually is all about escapism.

Despite all its flaws, K3G has a special place in our hearts, not just because of Hrithik-Kareena's terrific chemistry, but also because this was the first Hrithik Roshan movie that we, 'Brinda' and 'Neer' went to see together at the theatre! Who knew we would end up becoming soul sisters and writing blogs about him years later. Thank you Hrithik for playing such an important role in our friendship, and hence, our lives. We owe you so much.♥️🤗On that note, bye readers.

Hopefully, you are enjoying reading our blogs as much as we are having fun writing them. We are extremely thankful to the entire Hrithik Roshan fandom for accepting us with open arms and showering us with so much love and warmth in such a short time. Lots of love to all of you. We will be back soon with the next one.

4 notes · View notes

tinwingo · 3 years

Video

youtube

Shahrukh Khan house in London | Shahrukh Khan Home Tour

Shahrukh Khan house in London I visit Shahrukh Khan house in London and sharing with you all so that you all can also get a chance to watch Shahrukh Khan house in London from close.

This is only SRK home in London, I made this video during London walk as I love to explore London.

Shahrukh Khan Home Tour

#bollywood #badshah #kingkhan #khan #walk #kinglondon #srk #srkhome #house #uk #london #mayem #nayem in london #IndianinLondon #Indian #foreigner #Hindi #english #visit #subtitle

0 notes

anupriyasinghal · 4 years

Text

An old girl in a new city

Another year has come & gone & I have to say a lot has happened in 2019 unlike 2018 where literally nothing happened and yet it seemed that life spun on its own axis leading to nothing more than a bit of frenzy & a lot of nausea.

I was on a long flight halfway across the world when I started writing this one. I have an honest question from the larger world. Does it happen that if you are flying closer to home the distance in your head seems shorter than it actually is? Everytime I would fly from India to London or anywhere in Europe I would always find it long & tiresome. But here I was flying to Thailand from London when I started writing it, which is a 12 hour journey & I have been thinking come on that’s not that far. Well, to be honest I don’t think it happens with everyone. I have this weird tendency of layering facts (scientific or otherwise) with emotions & prejudice making it well, a halfway world b/w muggles & wizards. Oh! I am still convinced that there is a magical realm existing somewhere & we have just not found the door to it yet. That was over 6 months ago & then somehow I never got to finish this. So here I am saying bye to 2019, having completed my 1 yr in London, driven far & wide (8000 miles to be precise) in a not so new country any longer, 2 speeding tickets; 1 speed awareness course, 1 failed driving test later finishing what I started & am finishing it now because I realised it would lose all meaning if I don’t finish it before the year ends. .

This post could be about a lot of things & I am still choosing as I am writing. People who know me a little will find it odd that I haven’t decided what I want to write about yet & those who know me very well will know that’s just me. Think & make up the the thinking as you talk - my biggest strength & well my worst pitfall as well. It may do me well to list down what all it could be about & then see where I take it as I move along because while I may choose to elaborate on one of them the reality is that its a story of all of these things in some form & quantity but I don’t know yet what do I feel most strongly about. The options I have are - about loving & losing (well its an exageration but for sake of creative liberty let’s call it that); wide eyed absorption of a new world; growing up (or well growing older I would say); serendipity; seeing the world to be same same but different different or finally being able to find the mirror of erised where one sees just oneself.

I will choose the last one because of two reasons. Firstly, it warranted a Harry Potter reference without having to force fit one & more importantly because that is a feeling I want to remember as I end this year and move from being an old girl in a new city to just a girl in this city.

So it started on 2nd January 2019 when I yet again uprooted my life as I knew it & packed it in boxes of different sizes & shapes & shipped it halfway across the world to London. The new year brought as many “new(s)” as it could - new job, new country, new ways of dealing with goodbyes & most importantly I think a little new me or atleast a much healed & unbroken old me which almost seems a new me now. I think for the longest time I have been a broken mug glued together with 1 or 2 pieces always missing or cracks showing through. Now atleast I am a whole mug fully glued together & slowly I think I am also becoming a piece of china put together through Kintsukuroi. For people who don’t know what it is - its a Japanese form of fixing things where the cracks are filled with gold also called golden joinery. Essentially it means you don’t hide the cracks but you embellish them. I have now chosen to do just that with my broken & sort of healed pieces.

Actually truly this story starts in December 2018 when I started saying my goodbyes in India & if any of you read my Pushkar post there is reference of how I immersed some of the things I wanted to leave behind in the holy waters. So I came to London relatively lighter (I wish I could say that about my weight as well -sadly it was at its worst with all the farewell binging!!!) & relatively equipped to handle the new.

Unlike the last time I lived on foreign soil; I am actually loving the move. It has had many dimensions to it which I have totally fallen in love with. I now know what does cold grey weather mean. It was an alien concept till I spent Jan & Feb in London despite the fact that I have lived in Kashmir for 2 years (India’s coldest region) but nothing back home prepares you for days on end of no sun & miserable sleet (i refuse to call it rain) all around you. The howling winds that threaten to enter your bones & never leave. But to be honest there is a beauty to it all as well. There is something extremely wholesome about entering a warm & toasty home after a long walk from the station or standing under a hot water shower and feeling your skin regain warmth.

Coming back to why the particular choices of what I wanted to write about & why they were all viable choices. As it happens with me & some of it very much in my own head things happened that made me go down a rabbit hole without thinking much about the end, believe in Yash uncle’s prophecy of “sabke liye kahin na kahin koi bana hai”, trying to be a better version of myself incessantly, leaning in & then at some point pulling out because that is the only to be.

It sounds like I went through lots of bad things & then came out of it a winner. Nothing like that happened. Things happened - some good, some great, some bad & some ugly. Mostly they were just things that happened - it was my reaction to them that determined what I remember & choose to keep with me from them.

Because I am an ardent Bollywood fan & I love Yash uncle & SRK & everything that comes with their genre of film making I realised that ishq (aka love) is much like autumn. You know before moving to London I had never experienced Autumn in my life & I had only heard about how the colour of fall & autumn have magic in them. In every book that remotely reeked of romance & togetherness, it all always started or fructified in Autumn/fall. And I honestly didn’t know what that meant in its true sense. But I think the last years experiences have been like the colours of fall for me. While everything stayed the same, the colours just deepened to embody the combined & common passion for the good things & experiences in life that can only be measured in their intensity & importance & never in their length or longevity. And the fact that everything comes in a different hue of amber/crimson & some stay that way while others decide to wither & drift away as dead leaves. And not just in terms of people or romantic sorta relationships - just everything in life. The moment we stop measuring significance of events/people/things in longevity of their existence in your life - you can see them for what they really are. Time is a dimension that definitely needs to be measured for quality and not quantity.

And having established this parallel in my head & for a change in my heart, I started my journey of being the lone woman in the mirror of Erised. I decided to pull back & choose to preserve myself without running to season myself & who I am with namak cheeni & masala as preservatives.

I read this in a book and it has sort of stuck with me - “Fear is good. In the right degree it prevents us from making fools of ourselves. But in the wrong measure it prevents us from fully living. Fear is our boon companion but never our master.” My fear of being judged, abandoned or left standing alone (not in a lack of companionship way but rather a beautiful strong solitary soul way) has dictated most of what course of action or discourse of reaction I take. But in truth fear can only be our companion & never our master.

So here I am, bringing in 2020 surrounded by warm fuzzy soft quilt of affection, love, laughter, joy & excitement of family, friends & friends like family. And while this is the quilt that is firmly & securely tucked under me, I also have my head firmly rested on the pillow stuffed with intellect, thoughts, ideologies, ideas, creativity & the right amount of fluidity in all of the above that I have carefully begged, borrowed & stolen from people who have these in abundance.

Here’s an old girl in a not so new city looking at herself in the mirror of Erised with a pair of outrageously fun socks or maybe a big library or a garden full of summer blooms or a round the world air ticket in my hands. I am not looking at a better or different version of myself. I am looking at myself as myself desiring small or big joys of life! Happy 2020 folks!!!!

0 notes

newmonk · 5 years

Text

UK TRIP

Day 1 // 18th July 2019

- Landed at London Gatwick —> Switched two trains to get to Waterloo —> Walked down Webber Street to figure out exactly where it is - 130, Webber Street: My home for the next two weeks! - Went to the supermarket, got basic supplies, beers & a local SIM - Walk around Union Street, found a chill park - Chose to have dinner at Bala Baya, instead of Gordon Ramsay’s Union Street, because I don’t do mainstream stuff. LOL, kidding. I found Bala Baya’s menu & aesthetic more attractive. - Shopped for more supplies from TESCO at Southwark - Walked back home - Didn’t do much, just trying to get a hang of the city & people

Day 2 // 19th July 2019

- Train from Waterloo —> John Wood's - Starts raining as I walk towards the coveted Lord’s Cricket Ground - Met Dudeja outside Lord’s & started our Lord’s tour - Went to the great hall, merchandise store, the dressing rooms - the place where Ganguly took off & flung his jersey during the Natwest 2002 finals - Bus from Lord’s —> Oxford Circus - Walked around Oxford Street, its a shopping freak show. Since I’m averse to shopping, I didn’t like this street, but the kind of consumerism that exists in London is intense - Went for lunch to The Chipping Forecast: Fish & Chips, Avocado salad & Guinness stout was consumed - Followed by desert at Chin Chin - Met Deep in the evening & we went to Soho Theatre to watch comedy show, which I didn’t know would go on to inspire me to such an extent: DEMI LARDNER - Walked around Piccadilly Circle, China Town, Leicester Square, the popular places of London. Too much fan-fare around these places, very commercial, whereas I prefer the quiet, quaint lanes. Anyway, I couldn’t go to London for the first time & not visit these places, they’re too iconic too skip! - Walked around the Soho again, had a very good beer while walking - Dinner at Japes Pizzeria with Simon, Dudeja & Deep. Their pizzas were amazing! - Train from Oxford Circus —> Waterloo —> Walked home

Day 3 // 20th July 2019

- Walk from home —> BFI IMAX Waterloo —> Walk down to Tate Modern - MIND EXPLODE at Tate Modern, must’ve spent 5 hours easily, just absorbing - Bus to Nando’s ��> Walk to BFI IMAX Waterloo - Watched Lion King at BFI (UK’s largest IMAX screen) - Tried a Ben & Jerry’s ice-cream for the first time. It was nice, normal - Walk back home from BFI - Reached home, then stepped out again - Spotted Andrew Scott outside the Old Vic Theatre! O.M.G. YES - Met Sumit, Sam & Dudeja & The London Eye around midnight, their keys fell into a gutter outside the London Eye & we struggled to get it, Sam & Sumit wrote a note on paper which had their name and contact number & put it through the grill - We went to a supermarket to get magnets since we thought we'll use that to pull out the keys from the gutter, but the shop-owner(from the subcontinent) warned us not to do such stuff, since it would come across as extremely suspicious. - Walked with Dudeja around Union Street - We saw hordes of people line up outside a train bridge, figured there was some underground boxing match happening there. - Walk back home.

Day 4 // 21st July 2019

- Took a train to North Greenwhich, was sent back to Canary Wharf, cozy the observatory is closer from there - SRK’s 'Challa' was shot at Canary Wharf - Heron Qauy-DLR Walk - Got off at Cutty Stark - Walk in Greenwich was amazing, it's a beautiful area - Walked to the observatory, crossing Cafe Rouge, Greenwich theatre & the huge park - Touched and stood on the prime meridian line(EXACT vertical centre of the Earth) & walked around the observatory - Walked down to the National Maritime Museum and saw some cool naval stuff (I didn't know that museums would fascinate me so much!) - Walk through Cutty Stark, bought a couple of vinyl LPs for myself although I don't have a player -_- It's a long term plan, sometimes you get accessories for something that you don't have & that motivates you to get the actual product, right? *I hope it's not just me* - Walked the Thames underground tunnel, it was quite cold down there - Walked across multiple parks to reach Isle of Dogs, (the name of this area inspired Wes Anderson to create a fictional film) which was quite disappointing, since I was expecting some film references, alas, One shouldn't expect too much. I didn't even find a direction symbol or a milestone that read 'Isle of Dogs' - Train back to Canary Wharf --> Switch at Green Park --> Piccadilly Line --> Hyde Park Corner - Met Dudeja, Deep & Simon at Hyde Park - We had a couple of beers, spoke, played catch & frisbee'd - Took a bus to Original Lahore, we were joined by Upmanyu there for dinner - Mediocre food at Original Lahore - Upmanyu walked us around the area, it was the same area where he stayed during his previous visit - Walked to Baker Street & saw Sherlock Holmes house. 221B - Took the bus home.

Day 5 // 22nd July 2019

- Started the day late. Did laundry, dishes, following up with clients regarding work back in Bombay. I was glad I didn’t carry my laptop along! - Walk to Southwark - Train to Victoria Station - Oxford Tube bus from Victoria Coach - Chill bus ride, reached the majestic city of Oxford - Walked around Oxford University, Christ Church College, by the river that flows through the city - I think I ate the best burger that I've ever eaten at Oxford. It was a smoked beef burger at this restaurant 'Head to the River' - The bartender mocked me coz I said 'I want beer beer'. These two guys made a quick gag, and went on to ask me if I wanted any 'Food Food' 'Water Water' & later apologised for their behaviour by saying they're 'Sorry Sorry' and 'Immature Immature'. I liked the dry humor, that’s my thing too. - Long walk by the river - Slept under a tree at the park, saw ducks, kayaks - Walked around the city for about 2-3 hours - Gelato Ice cream at George & Co - Saw a man in a hat & suit entertaining a group of kids - The architecture here was different from London. - Went to Sainsbury, found lactose free milk - Caught the bus back home --> Oxford Tube --> Victoria Coach London --> Bus no #211 from Victoria to Waterloo - Walk home - Made a cheese sandwich & drank that lactose free milk - Spoke to Varun for long & slept.

Day 6 // 23rd July 2019

- Walk to Southwark --> Train to King's Cross --> Walk across the street to St. Pancras - Train to Brighton with Dudeja - Walk to Brighton Beach through the lanes of the city - Chill at the Brighton Pier - Ate fish & Chips + Calamari on the pier. - Walk down the pebble beach - We’d planned for this, so I was carrying a sheet, we spread it and soaked in the sun for a couple of hours - Took a couple of dips in the water(English Channel) - Beer + Truffle Chips at the beach - Sid played an FKJ playlist & we slept on the beach - Walked ahead to the Naturist Beach Park, saw a beautiful lady there! - Shot 'Otherside' pilot with Dudeja - Started walking to get water & stumbled upon a bunch of boys playing cricket; they were from Afghanistan. We were elated and ended up playing cricket with them for over an hour, made friends with them. One of those boys aped Bumrah’s action to the T, he was a fan! - Walked back on the Brighton promenade, saw the axe throwing booth - Back at Brighton station, we took the train to London - Got off at Southwark & walked home

Day 7 // 24th July 2019

- Walk to Borough Market - Ate pork wrap from Hobbs & gobbled an entire box of strawberries - Walk to London Bridge, walked the tower bridge - Bus to Potter Fields garden/park - Walk at Hay's Galleria (I think the architechture of Hiranandani in Powai is heavily inspired by this place) - London Bridge Underground station --> Train to Camden - Walked around the entirety of Camden - Found 'The World's End' pub and had their house beer 'The World's End Ale', one word: OUTSTANDING! The bartender & I spoke about Edgar Wright and his amazing films! - Bus to Shoreditch - Walked across the Grafiiti streets and reached a fine dine Burmese restaurant: Lahpet (with Dudeja - his reccomendation!) - Pork gravy + Rice with Prawn dim sums on the side - Walking beer from Shoreditch, walked around Shoreditch while sipping on the beer - Went to another restaurant 'Bird' and got Fried chicken parcelled - Bus to Tower Bridge - Walked tower bridge at night - Sat by the Thames and finished that fried chicken with blue cheese sauce! Blue Cheese FTW! - Walked back home through Borough Market.

Day 8 // 25th July 2019

- Saw a priesthood ceremony in a church - Walked to the Imperial War Museum, intensely intrigued by the history behind World War II & The Holocaust. What a museum, must visit! - Walk back home - Lunch at Borough Market (Pork Hot Dog) + Gelato (Pistachio) - Train to West Hampstead - Met Sumit Anand, Sam & Dudeja, we booked our tickets to Cardiff (Wales). I also booked my tickets to Edinburgh (Scotland) - Train back home - Chilled on the terrace, had a couple of drinks - Walked to Tower Bridge & by the Thames with Maitry - Chilling again on the terrace, even Dudeja joined, spoke about Indian politics, because... how could we not!

Day 9 // 26th July 2019

- Leave for London Victoria with Dudeja in the morning - Missed the bus by 2 minutes, had to book the next bus which was after an hour :( - Walked to Victoria Street for breakfast - Beautiful breakfast at Granger & Co. Oh my god, the scrambled egg there is heavenly - Got on to our bus, headed to Cardiff - Checked in to our hostel the Riverside, one of the better ones, recommend it! - We headed out, but the city seemed a bit slow that day - Pizza & Beer at The Gatekeeper - Walked around the city, deserted, empty vibe, we thought we chose wrongly - Went to the Roald Dahl park - Took a bus back to the hotel, played mini pool in the courtyard & then slept like logs

Day 10 // 27th July 2019 - Breakfast at the hostel, our locker with passports got locked, so we had to break the lock to get our stuff out! With the hostel’s permission of course, they only got us a bolt cutter - Checkout & walk to Bute Park - Experienced one of the fun-nest event ever, that too randomly, we stumbled upon it! The Homeless Football World Cup & loved the vibe of it! Saw the opening ceremony + 1st match Denmark beat Wales (Penalty Tie Breaker) The Homeless World Cup is a sporting event organised by Homeless World Cup Foundation, a social organization which advocates the end of homelessness through the sport of association football - Walk out to the castle short walk, went to Joke store, comic store, etc. - Walk through various arcades - Loved walking in the arcades - Cardiff Market - Local market walk. Had Cannabis lollipop, slightly buzzed - Walk in arcades, quick lunch at Gregs. - Very cool stores, vintage video game parlor, skateboarding shops, fun toy shops, our perception of Cardiff as compared to the previous day had completely changed, it was such a fun place! - Dinner + Red Beer at Corner House - Walk to Sophia Garden, board the bus to London Victoria

Day 11 // 28th July 2019 - Reached home late at night, ate basic stuff - Morning, wasn't feeling too well (bunch of things mentally + homesick). - Chilled at home, cleaned everything, kitchen, laundry, etc. - Went to the park near Webber St. for a walk - Ate a fruit, video called Akshita, she looked cute, was watching Kapoor & Sons - I went back home, packed my stuff for Scotland, spoke to Akshita again, we had an emotional moment. - I took the bus to Victoria & left for Edinburgh, that was a tough ride, I was very uncomfortable through the journey, won't forget that night for sometime man! Phewww!

Day 12 // 29th July 2019

- Reached Edinburgh early in the morning. Walked down to the hostel. - Crashed in the hostel's (Baxter's Hostel) cafeteria since my check-in was 6 hours later. The people running that place were v sweet! 10/10 would recommend. - Got to my bed at 2 PM. Slept immediately. - Woke up at 5 PM, met Nimesh (Indian connect ftw, he was from Canada), he was gracious enough to lend me his hop on/hop off bus ticket, that was valid for the next day as well - Walked around Waverley Mall, ate a quick Chinese meal. Booked my ghost tour for 9 PM the same night, but reached the incorrect meeting point - Walked around the city & went back to the hostel by 10:30 PM, not a lonely walk, since the fringe setup/arrangements were on, Edinburgh was buzzing!

Day 13 // 30th July 2019 - Woke up late, fresh finally! Quick shower & out. - Bright sunny day (Thank god for that!). - Grabbed a subway & took the hop on - hop off bus - Reached the entry point to Arthur's seat. Trekked Arthur's seat. Beautiful. Spent an hour there, ate fruits while I chilled with myself. - Went to the Scottish Parliament - Took rounds of the city on the bus, got to know about the significance of Edinburgh in J.K.Rowling's life & the world of Harry freaking Potter. (Trivia: Rowling incepted Harry Potter in Edinburgh. She wrote The Sorcerer's Stone at a cafe 'The Elephant House' & the Deathly Hallows in suite 501 @ The Balmoral (Bang opposite Baxter Hostel)) - Walked the lovely Victoria Street, ate a heavy meal @ Nando's - Finally went for my Murder & Mystery walk at Victoria Street, too much fun! - Walk to the hostel, slept.

Day 14 // 31st July 2019 - Woke up late, breakfast @ McDonald's - Bus to Glasgow [ Wanted to visit another part of Scotland, since I hadn’t pre-booked my Highland’s tour :( ] - Wrote a couple of Thumb-stopper scripts on the way, kept me engaged & distracted - Reached Glasgow, walked around - Went to a Gurudwara, needed to visit an Indian place of worship, felt extreme comfort - Visited the Botanic Garden - Walked across the city, found the film+book+music store - Went to the riverside : Clyde River - Continued walking around the riverside, long walk, its a lonely city, it started drizzling, no one around - Didn't find anything interesting in Glasgow, quite low. Maybe I didn't go there on a good day, went back to Bus Station, phone got spoilt in the rain. Got a bus back to Edinburgh & bunked at the hostel

Day 15 // 1st August 2019 - Woke up early, had to meet Aditi & film The Otherside episode with her! There was a kick in my walk finally, after the last couple of days of gloom and Aditi's energy was so positive & happy, it just pulled me out of where my mind was looming. - Met & shot the episode with her at Assembly @ George Square, we ate some lovely crepes later. - Walked around Edinburgh, visited The Scottish Art Gallery, saw my favorite painter: Rembrandt’s original, authentic work!!! Saw his mentor Pieter Lastman’s work as well. Oh man! (I know I left Edinburgh the same day when the Fringe was beginning, it was mistimed... my trip there, didn’t plan it that way, so please don’t remind me that :( & anyway I had fun there) - Bus to airport ---> Flight to London Stansted ---> Train to Tottenham ---> Underground switch - Reached Southwark, picked up basic groceries from the supermarket - Home: Started packing, cleaning up, laundry stuff

Day 16 // 2nd August 2019

- It was a sunny day, had to do final packing, shopping & visit the places that were on the check list, all in the limited number of hours & considering that I wake up late, anyway, I think I managed to do a great job! - Kept all my bags ready & headed out after cooking myself a quick meal at home - Went straight up to Green Park, chilled for a while - Walked around Buckingham Palace - Went to Harrod’s, that’s a mind-boggling shopping space. Crazy! - Had to visit the iconic Abbey Road and click a picture of that street. There’s too much artistic history in London! What to do. - And I cannot thank Kunal Rao enough for recommending Hampstead Heath, it is the BEST park ever. What diverse experience. Yoga, silent open air disco, writers sitting in isolation & writing, young couples chilling, boys playing football, people having wine, some men fishing, while some swam, it was all happening there. Perfect example of Mutual Co-existence. Spent a couple of hours there, ate fruit, absorbed the air, my trip was coming to an end, what a bummer :( - Ran to Oxford Street, had to do all the shopping, then & there. - I shopped from LUSH, Sports Direct, Primark, Adidas, Marks & Spencer. You’d want to spend all your money on that street, it’s peak capitalism, but too attractive to not spend. Such dilemma for an existential person yaar. (Notice the change in me from day 2 to day 16?) - Reached home late in the night, bid adieu to this beautiful house in the heart of London, very grateful! - Picked luggage & left for Harsha Di’s place, saw a film shoot happening on the street when I left, now the person I am, I found that symbolic like: chalo beta it’s time to go back to films (Bombay), haha! - Got on a train to Wembley, met Harsha Di & jiju, went to their place, she’d made fresh indian food! Tasted a roti after 17 days, oh man, that is unmatchable, the hype is true! - Chilled with the two of them & crashed, had an early morning flight.

Day 17 // 3rd August 2019

- Woke up early, Harsha di & Alok jiju drove me to the Heathrow & the trip came to an end! What an experience man. Wow! I was amazed.

SPECIAL THANKS TO HRISHIT, SIDDHARTH & HARSHITA DI FOR THE MAKING SURE I HAD THE BEST TIME! AND TO KUNAL, ASHISH, VASANI & AKHIL FOR THE RECOMMENDATIONS AND AS ALWAYS, MOM (FOR EVERYTHING)

I also realised that I quite enjoy my own company & thoughts, so was able to spend almost 20 days by myself, of course I met friends, comics & stuff, but for the most time, I was alone & I think I did well. Took care of everything, from food, travel, laundry, mopping, grocery shopping, managing expenses while on a budget trip along with having an absolutely kickass time and enormous learnings.

Special Mention & MUST HAVE: ‘Citymapper’ App (It sorted my life from day 1. No other App is required if you have this App)

OVERALL TRIP AFTERTHOUGHT: I absolutely loved my time in U.K. It’s the culture, the architecture, the people who make the place, all of which were very good & the best part is that they have preserved and maintained their history, they hold it so dearly (even though most of the wealth is a result of imperialism & looted from other nations, they have cultivated a culture & market out of it) and that’s something that I think we lack as a nation. I recently read an article that said RK Studios in Chembur has been demolished since they were running losses and the land has been sold to a big real estate company for apartments to be made. All the memorabilia, the emotions, the films which were shot in that iconic studio gone! All at once. Somehow I feel, that in another country perhaps, it would have been valued more, art would be given much more respect.

0 notes