Sometimes, I wonder how some people manage to keep their balance, no matter what life throws at them. Indeed, living had become a hectic rigmarole for me, with no sign of respite in between the mad rat race. Every single day, I I assured myself that I would finish all my tasks and projects for the day or week, and then indulge in some much needed “me” time, create space for myself for some much needed self care and self nurturing to happen.
Days whizzed past and I was hardly close to indulging myself in any self care. I loved to read, listen to music, dance but my work and home took up all my time and even weekends jut whizzed past, leaving me drained physically and emotionally .I realized that I was desperately seeking balance in life.
And of course, the secret to life balance is taking a break.
Well, taking a break doesn’t always have to mean going away on vacation. Sometimes, the best way to take a break can be to refocus our efforts on something new, something that you have always been drawn to. I mentally surrendered myself to the Divine and decided to let Him show me the way to regaining balance and focus in life. It was a Friday and I decided to indulge myself in a spree of window shopping. Just traversing through the streets brought me to an exclusive boutique in Chennai, rightly named the Silkworm Boutique.
After an hour of fruitful indulgence in lovely silk saris and kurtis and after having made a sample buy, as I was just making my way out, Hisham, the boutique’s owner, gently slid an invite into my hands. “Mam, this is for you. Every year we host a cultural event exclusively for our clientele, at Spaces, in Besant Nagar. It’s always on Sunday, at 7.30 AM. Please do come, I am sure you would love it’- he smiled disarmingly. Caught unawares, but pleasantly surprised, I pushed it into my handbag. On reaching home, I casually browsed through the invite and was intrigued to find that the noted contemporary pianist Anil Srinivasan was collaborating with noted singer Sikkil Gurucharan and performing the coming Sunday at Spaces in Elliot’s Road, Besant Nagar. And yes, it was to be at 7.30 AM in the morning! I knew I just had to be there. Maybe this was how the Universe was responding to my call for a welcome respite from the hum drum of day to day living. As Sunday dawned, I was in two minds. Do I feel motivated enough to haul myself out of bed and drive down to Spaces to attend a musical concert? Or do I snuggle myself deep into bed for the Sunday morning long snooze? My better instinct won out thankfully and before I knew it, was driving down to the venue. The verdant ambience of the place thrilled me .I knew I had made the right decision in coming. I was also pleasantly surprised to see quite a turn out at the venue, as early as 7 on a Sunday morning!
People milled around in comfortable silence, casually sipping on cups of tea or chatting amicably with their friends. There was peace and quiet and a comfortably amicable camaraderie that prevailed all around. Even though it was my first time there, people warmly welcomed me by greeting me with bright friendly smiles. At 7.30 sharp, the recital commenced with a short introduction by both Anil Srinivasan and Sikkil Gurucharan. I settled down comfortably in my chair and allowed the soft strains of the music to wash all over me, cleansing my soul and rejuvenating my sagging spirits. From the well known ‘ Jagadhodharana, by Purandaradasa, the famous duo proceeded to pay homage to Toscanini by performing the piece titled the Silk Handkerchief, a piano variation of Tanamalika, expertly executed by Anil Srinivasan . It was followed by the popular’ Sitran siru’ by Sikkil Gurucharan, accompanied on the piano by Anil Srinivasan and as a fitting finale to the recital, concluded with a thillana by the musical genius Swati Thirunal. As the soothing strains of music washed over me, I felt energized and renovated from deep within. I felt all the stress and strain of the past few weeks draining out of me completely. The soulful rendering had done wonders to me, and left me feeling awed.
I felt deep gratitude to the hosts of the show, especially to Hisham for having invited me to this musical recital, as early as on a Sunday morning. ‘Energies are high in the morning and music or a dance recital leaves you feeling highly charged, enervated and rejuvenated emotionally and spiritually. It gets you connected to your deep self. Moreover, the whole show goes on for just two hours. By 10, you are back home and the entire Sunday is yours’- clarifies Anil Srinivasan. Wow! That definitely makes sense. A year whizzed past but the early morning musical extravaganza had taught me to delve deep within me and to take time to love and nurture myself on a regular basis. Apart from work, I took time each day to do something exclusively for myself, like reading my favorite novel, listen to music, watch a movie or venture out on long nature strolls. In early January this year, I was thrilled to note an invite on my Face book page for yet another exclusive cultural event at Spaces. This time, it was for a dance recital by the well known dance duo Dhriti Vaidyanathan and Kiran Rajagopalan. The recital was titled the “Roots’, yet another cultural show hosted by Silkworm Boutique. I had no doubts as to whether I would be going. I was back at Spaces, I knew what I was in for and I could hardly contain m y excitement. Dhriti and Kiran transported me back to a timeless era. The mudras and the nimble foot work had me in raptures. The thala, bhava and raga moved me beyond words.
Along with Kiran and Dhriti, even the verdant greenery and all our hearts swayed gently and rhythmically to the music and dance. These early morning recitals have helped transport all of us to a space deep within ourselves, that lies untouched, unexplored and most importantly, untainted by the rigors of time.
I had learnt to strike a balance in life.
Well, taking a break doesn’t always have to mean going away on vacation. Sometimes, the best way to take a break can be to refocus our efforts on something new, something that you have always been drawn to. I mentally surrendered myself to the Divine and decided to let Him show me the way to regaining balance and focus in life. It was a Friday and I decided to indulge myself in a spree of window shopping. Just traversing through the streets brought me to an exclusive boutique in Chennai, rightly named the Silkworm Boutique.
After an hour of fruitful indulgence in lovely silk saris and kurtis and after having made a sample buy, as I was just making my way out, Hisham, the boutique’s owner, gently slid an invite into my hands. “Mam, this is for you. Every year we host a cultural event exclusively for our clientele, at Spaces, in Besant Nagar. It’s always on Sunday, at 7.30 AM. Please do come, I am sure you would love it’- he smiled disarmingly. Caught unawares, but pleasantly surprised, I pushed it into my handbag. On reaching home, I casually browsed through the invite and was intrigued to find that the noted contemporary pianist Anil Srinivasan was collaborating with noted singer Sikkil Gurucharan and performing the coming Sunday at Spaces in Elliot’s Road, Besant Nagar. And yes, it was to be at 7.30 AM in the morning! I knew I just had to be there. Maybe this was how the Universe was responding to my call for a welcome respite from the hum drum of day to day living. As Sunday dawned, I was in two minds. Do I feel motivated enough to haul myself out of bed and drive down to Spaces to attend a musical concert? Or do I snuggle myself deep into bed for the Sunday morning long snooze? My better instinct won out thankfully and before I knew it, was driving down to the venue. The verdant ambience of the place thrilled me .I knew I had made the right decision in coming. I was also pleasantly surprised to see quite a turn out at the venue, as early as 7 on a Sunday morning!
People milled around in comfortable silence, casually sipping on cups of tea or chatting amicably with their friends. There was peace and quiet and a comfortably amicable camaraderie that prevailed all around. Even though it was my first time there, people warmly welcomed me by greeting me with bright friendly smiles. At 7.30 sharp, the recital commenced with a short introduction by both Anil Srinivasan and Sikkil Gurucharan. I settled down comfortably in my chair and allowed the soft strains of the music to wash all over me, cleansing my soul and rejuvenating my sagging spirits. From the well known ‘ Jagadhodharana, by Purandaradasa, the famous duo proceeded to pay homage to Toscanini by performing the piece titled the Silk Handkerchief, a piano variation of Tanamalika, expertly executed by Anil Srinivasan . It was followed by the popular’ Sitran siru’ by Sikkil Gurucharan, accompanied on the piano by Anil Srinivasan and as a fitting finale to the recital, concluded with a thillana by the musical genius Swati Thirunal. As the soothing strains of music washed over me, I felt energized and renovated from deep within. I felt all the stress and strain of the past few weeks draining out of me completely. The soulful rendering had done wonders to me, and left me feeling awed.
I felt deep gratitude to the hosts of the show, especially to Hisham for having invited me to this musical recital, as early as on a Sunday morning. ‘Energies are high in the morning and music or a dance recital leaves you feeling highly charged, enervated and rejuvenated emotionally and spiritually. It gets you connected to your deep self. Moreover, the whole show goes on for just two hours. By 10, you are back home and the entire Sunday is yours’- clarifies Anil Srinivasan. Wow! That definitely makes sense. A year whizzed past but the early morning musical extravaganza had taught me to delve deep within me and to take time to love and nurture myself on a regular basis. Apart from work, I took time each day to do something exclusively for myself, like reading my favorite novel, listen to music, watch a movie or venture out on long nature strolls. In early January this year, I was thrilled to note an invite on my Face book page for yet another exclusive cultural event at Spaces. This time, it was for a dance recital by the well known dance duo Dhriti Vaidyanathan and Kiran Rajagopalan. The recital was titled the “Roots’, yet another cultural show hosted by Silkworm Boutique. I had no doubts as to whether I would be going. I was back at Spaces, I knew what I was in for and I could hardly contain m y excitement. Dhriti and Kiran transported me back to a timeless era. The mudras and the nimble foot work had me in raptures. The thala, bhava and raga moved me beyond words.
Along with Kiran and Dhriti, even the verdant greenery and all our hearts swayed gently and rhythmically to the music and dance. These early morning recitals have helped transport all of us to a space deep within ourselves, that lies untouched, unexplored and most importantly, untainted by the rigors of time.
I had learnt to strike a balance in life.
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