Writing Exercise : 2

Write a setting based on the most beautiful place you’ve ever seen.

I've never been there.But it's all in my mind,as clear as day.Maybe I'll go there someday and then there'll be more details to describe but for now,a blurry description of a mirage should work out.I've seen it often in my dreams and I've dreamt about it in waking life too.

 Well,I don't know how you get there but where I'm standing on a tiny hillock with soft grass under my bare feet.Its a bright sunny day with a chance of rain.The clouds are rolling lazily like tiny puffs of cottonballs.The whole landscape is of tiny hillocks covered with that super awesome green soft grass which when you step on has that awesome grass smell.You know what I mean,right?

At a distance,on a hillock stands a lone orange tree in full blossom.The wind blows in my direction and it carries the citrus smell.The splash of orange against sky blue and the plushy green!!

I spring and prance to the orange tree with my long hair trailing behind me.The shade is quiet and cool.The old and gnarly tree trunk has a perfect wedge for me to settle in.Silence envelopes me except for the rustle of the leaves and the infrequent chirp of a happy bird suckling on the sweet fruit of the old tree.

As sleep almost begins to overpower me,I can hear a slight rumble of thunder and the wind whistling even louder.The clouds roll in an angry march while the leaves swoon and dance to the tune of the wind.I can already smell the wet mud and the tree bark smell.It's the weather ten minutes before it rains.But the rains never come.The wind and the leaves just pick up the beat and I lie there smiling with my heart thumping.Anticipating and waiting,while the black angry clouds swirl .....

I've never really gone further than this in my head.I don't want to either.

Writing Exercise : 1

Create a character with personality traits of someone you love, but the physical characteristics of someone you don’t care for.

Based on Anoop's elder brother and Rhitu,my hostel roommate who I love.

They'd always stare at him.The slouch,the swagger ,the ginormously beefy arms and those shifty eyes.Unfortunately he was short and had the likeness of a beard on his oval face(sparse facial hair-maybe he shaved bad the first time or just bad genes,who knows?).The intricate tattoos painfully inked on those huge slug like arms didn't help the image either.The overall picture painted was that of an arrogant ,rude,squatty twerp.You'd hate him,at the very first sight.

I did too.I saw him in the office car park for the first time walking towards me,looking through me like I was air.Looking in every direction except mine,he put his hand forward and muttered ' Gus'.He had just shifted into the apartment next to mine and I had heard him cursinng and yelling at the movers.Ugh,I was sorry for myself already.

But little did I know that the rudeness,brusqueness and the apparent apathy masked a heart so soft and tender,you'd live your entire life in fear of bruising it.We got talking the night the lights went out due to a heavy snowstorm and we had nothing but each other's company.We sat in the dim candle light and talked into the night.It was the beginning of a beautiful friendship and the two of us realised it the moment neither of us wanted to go to bed even though it was wee hours into morning.There were so many things to talk about and not enough time!Food,relationships,bad actors,scandals,books,music and,oh, poetry - life !!!

Gus had an extensive range of emotions .He could appear sour to everyone on the road but  had this hidden side which had uncompromised zeal for life,love and tattoos.He taught me how to smile even when things were at their darkest.There'd be evenings where all I did was roll on the carpet choking back tears of laughter as he'd say the funniest in a dry pan expression.And if he had a bad day,he'd just come pull a book out of my bookshelf and ferociously start reading until his temper blew over.Those evenings we hardly exchanged words.

He was obsessed with hygiene and cleanliness and would get moody if something was out of place.The ablutionary baths where he'd scrub himself raw would be the highpoint of his day.And he could carry a tune,quite well actually.

Gus was smart.He made his way to the top in the ad agency he worked in.Unfortunately he wasn't a sycophant,so top generals stopped his growth,but he kept at it.Working smart,creating and nurturing ideas.He had a series of bad relationships - falling in deep sometimes,sometimes not even scratching the surface.There was no grey for him,only black or white and I loved that he had opinions.Not that he'd shove them down your throat but opinions you'd want to debate on.He'd always lend a sympathetic(sometimes empathetic too)ear to my tiny girlie everyday problems.

Gus is like a books with infinite chapters.  Explosive drama,action,comedy and tragedy snowballed in each of them.I'm still flipping the pages.