#kutty nila

[thereader-radhika]

The Bride

Nandini opened the jewellery box they brought from Pazhayarai. When Akka got married, she was given her share of ornaments, sarees and Amma's old box. She insisted that the new box be kept at home. When they returned from Pazhayarai, both sisters wanted to throw away the damn thing with its contents in Vaigai. But anger is the privilege of gods and kings! They had no other means but to use the fineries gifted by the two pirattis for akka's wedding. But none of these will be needed for Nandini's marriage.

Akka and Amma stood at the corner of the room and weeped silently. Annan too wore an inexplicable expression on his face. Nandini placed the big maangamaalai on tiny Nila and laughed. The necklace is almost as big as Nila. How long will it take her to grow up! When she grows up, the tiny lolakku will suit her face well and her hands will be big enough for these valayal. The baby took the chutti from her hands and started to bite it with her toothless gums. She cried when Nandini took it from her mouth. She tickled the baby who started to laugh again. Adi! The little girl is already obsessed with jewellery.

Maybe akka herself will start wearing these when she gets over her initial sadness. She wrapped each piece carefully. "Here akka, be careful. Why are you crying? This is a small gift to my vennila kutti. I am giving this to you only because she is too little", Nandini gave the bundle to akka.

She took the silver jewellery she wore regularly. She had washed them and put it on the windowsill to dry them. She gave her earrings to Arulvezhi, a neighbour of akka whom she had invited to their home.

"Do you like the design, kanne?", she pinched the cheek of the girl.

"Akka, when do you want it back?", the girl asked with apprehension.

"It is yours paapa".

"Really? You don't want it? Ever?", the girl asked again and again, as if she couldn't believe it.

She divided her bangles among twin sisters Mullai and Maathu who too looked at her with astonishment and thanked her profusely. She gave her mookuthi to Gnanam akka in the neighbourhood and silver chutti to her sister who had come to visit her. Though they tried to give it back, she insisted that they take it.

Amma and akka kept on crying. Maybe that's why Velvizhi was reluctant to accept the chelas. She was about to get married in a month. Nandini had considered giving her silk sarees too to Nila but she felt that Velvizhi needed it more than baby Nila who won't wear them for at least 12-13 years. No wonder Kundavai and Sembiyan Madevi gave away jewellery and chelas frequently. It feels so good. 

"Don't mind them. Actually you should call me when you drape it. I wish to see you in them. In my opinion, it is the green colour that suits you the best".

Obviously Velvizhi had questions. Nila was too young to understand anything and other girls thought Nandini was just lending them the jewellery, though she insisted that it isn't so. They didn't look convinced. She saw Gnanam giving the mookuthi back to Amma, saying that she can't accept such expensive gifts.

"Akka, why are you giving away all this? Won't you need it for your marriage?"

"I am married", Nandini declared. Amma and akka cried even louder. Baby Nila too started to cry when she saw her mother and grandmother crying. Annan took her out and Amma and akka went with them, unable to accept the madness which was unfolding before their eyes. Velvizhi's eyes looked like they will fall out of their sockets.

That day Velvizhi accompanied Nandini when she went to take a bath and pestered her. When did Nandini get married? Didn't get father die recently? Have they conducted her marriage secretly? Why is she giving away everything as if she has a lot of gold and silk lying around? Most importantly, where is her husband?

"He is here, he is there and he is everywhere".

"Is he a spy, akka?", she whispered excitedly. Velvizhi knew songs about about spies who infiltrate palaces, markets, and temples, collect information and pass it on to authorities. Is that why her marriage was kept a secret? She had heard about the feats of spies but never seen one in real life.

"No, he is a thief. Be careful about your clothes. He has the habit of stealing the clothes of aymagal when they are bathing", Nandini splashed water and wiped off her bright red pottu. Velvizhi got scared. Is this woman mad? She noticed that Nandini didn't wear her usual coloured chela after bath. Is that her father's clothes? It looked white like widow's clothes. Inauspicious!

Poor Velvizhi looked so uncomfortable, like she wanted to run away. Nandini consoled her that she will dip them in turmeric later. It will take some time to dye the clothes. Won't she help her?  The poor girl squeamishly said that she will busy with her wedding preparations. Nandini realised that she scared the girl and didn't trouble her anymore.

She smoked her hair with fragrant herbs and spread it so that it'd dry soon. After that she will tie it as a bun on the side, like Andal. Where are the flower garlands she made? There, she took them inside. She took another white cloth and covered her chest. She will make a small thiruman on her forehead later. Don't I look beautiful? She repeated what she told everyone today morning - "Naan kannane manakiren" (I am marrying Kannan) and smiled.

Maangamaalai - Necklace with mango pattern

Lolakku - Earrings

Valayal - Bangles

Chutti - Forehead ornament

Vennila kutti - Moonlight baby

Mookuthi - Nose ring

Paapa - Child

Aymagal - Cowherdesses

Thiruman - Tilak

Notes: I was a wee bit disappointed when I saw Nandini wearing silk and gold jewellery in the movie. I understand that it goes with the movie's story line (living as the ward of VP), but it doesn't portray the anguish of Nandini who was seperated from AK. In the books, when Karikalan meets Nandini after many years, this is her look. Plain look without any ornaments other than some strings of jasmine. She has renounced the world. In Pazhayarai, she wore coloured clothes and jewellery given by Kundavai. People like Nandini wore turmeric dyed clothes.

Anushka in Om Namo Venkatesaya

Nandini's clothes look like these

[missgenny96]

Ayyo Ayyayo Ava Enna Paathada Ayyo Ayyayo Pattunu Sirichaada Ayyo Ayyayo Sattunu Morachada Ayyo Ayyayo Ava Enna KattiPudichaada Vaadi Nee Vaadi Nee Vaadi Nee Vaa Enna Thedi Nee Thedi Nee Odi Nee Vaa

Vaadi Nee Vaadi ft. ‘Kutty Nila’, ‘Kutty Aadhi’, Vivek, Vijayalakshmi and others :)

[sudhanshut-blog]

Diary of a little woman (The first date)

[Young Nila (Changed name) comes to understand the nuances of the adrenalin rush and the dopamine high and the oxytocin hug, after discovering the pure joy of holding someone’s hand after a rough ride.]

Dear Diary,

Sometimes there is so much excitement in your tummy that it gives you an ache. The only way to make the ache disappear is if you calm down. But the excitement is so enjoyable that you don’t want to calm down. You want that fluttery buttery feeling in your tummy to continue forever, even if it means you won’t be eating anymore because your stomach is both full and empty at the same time.

This is not love. It’s definitely something else. Love is not supposed to be such a confusing mixture of things I can’t even describe. It’s supposed to be easy.

Love is what I feel when Najju Paati starts laughing over her own stupid jokes and tickles me if I don’t laugh along. It’s the feeling when she squeezes me a bone-crushing goodbye and I don’t wriggle out because it’s like being tightly wrapped in a soft, wrinkly sweater on a cold winter night. Love is the comforting feeling when Ammu and I sit on the stone bench making up imaginary conversations between the flowers of the pink and white bougenvilllas trees. It’s the feeling when Ammu suddenly nuzzles her wet nose against by neck and begins licking my ears.

This thing with Sandy is different. It’s the rush of riding a giant wheel.

Which is in fact where all this began.

Today was our First Date. Remember the Waterworld tickets we won in that quiz competition? Yup. That’s where we went.

The whole of last night I worried about what to wear. I am not usually like this. And I hate having to fret about these silly things. I don’t think Sandy spent even a microsecond worrying about what to wear. But he looks good in everything — even if it’s just a pair of jeans and a really, really old tshirt with holes in it. Boys are just lucky that way.

I finally picked a pair of black cotton pants and the cream-and-blue top that Najju Paati had gifted me last November. (Just like that she gave the gift, no birthday or festival. “You don’t need an occasion to celebrate love, Nila kutti.” Najju Paati is too cool.) I was actually pretty proud of my outfit — it looked smart but effortless. If Sandy ever comes to know that I’d spent half an hour selecting it, he’ll pull my leg for the next 20 years. He came dressed in predictable black jeans. His t-shirt was new though, parrot-green with a white clown face. (Later leg-pulled Sandy over this.)

I reached Waterworld 5 minutes early but Sandy was already waiting at the gate. Shocking! He’s famous for following a different timezone every month. I had even bought a 3-in-1 Ruskin Bond in case he was on GMT or Spanish Standard Time. (He’s been on a Spanish journey these past few weeks. When we were saying goodbye, I teased him about this new-found punctuality. “Enjoy it while it lasts, Senorita,” he said. Hmmpph!)

Anyway, as I covered the distance between us, I wondered how to say hello. Should I just wave, shake hands maybe? Or smile? Before I could decide, he walked up and hugged me. Not the bone-breaking Najju-Paati kind of hug. But a hug that felt like a kiss. Does that make any sense to you, Diary? I guess you just have to feel it. Find yourself a Diary Boyfriend and you’ll know what I mean. :)

As we walked around Waterworld, Sandy asked random questions — What my favourite mountain range was, what I thought of the tomato festival in Spain, which tree I liked to climb and whether I had names for the plates and spoons I used at home. He looked at me with a slightly starry expression while I answered. And when he spoke, I swear it was a very different Sandy. A mellow fellow Sandy.

Honestly, neither of us felt like going on any of the rides. We just wanted to munch popcorn under the Banyan tree and talk and talk. But for the sake of the free tickets we decided to go on 8 of the 45 rides. Why 8? Because when 8 goes to bed, it becomes infinity. And then it’ll be as if we went on infinite rides. (Sandy’s mind is a medical marvel.)

Most of the rides were either solo like the water slides or in groups of four. Our sixth ride was the best. A train with 15 two-seater compartments that went in gigantic loops and loops all over Waterworld. I wanted to sit in the middle but stupid Sandy pulled me to the first compartment. Oh My God! What a ride it was. Only three minutes long but it felt like infinity. I am surprised our intestines didn’t pop out of our mouths.

When the loopy train finally stopped, my head was still buzzing. Sandy got off first and reached out his hand for me. I climbed out and held on tight until my body stopped trembling (which took a good five minutes). When I began to let go, he squeezed my hand and held it tighter. It was as if our hands were hugging. And for the next three hours we walked that way, hand-in-hand.

Diary, I am smiling widely as I write this entry. So imagine how I must have felt when it was actually happening. I’m pretty sure Sandy had plotted the ‘loopy train’ thing because until then, I didn’t hold his hands for a single ride even though he kept offering. But after ‘THE’ ride, I didn’t let go off his hand at all.

Like I said earlier, I don’t think this is love. My tummy is in too much of a rush. We’ll have to come up with a new name for it. Or maybe I’ll just call this feeling ‘Sandy’. Because I pretty sure won’t feel this way about anyone else.

Diary, go find your own Sandy. Soon! It’s the amazing-est ride in the world.

With a fluttery buttery tummy,

Nila (Name Changed)

P.S. I like how he says my name. Soooo dreamy, it sounds.

[todaybharatnews]

via Today Bharat nbsp; '2.O' has collected over Rs 600 crores in its 12-day run at the theatres. The Rajinikanth starrer 2.O released to packed houses on November 29 in three languages ndash; Tamil, Telugu and Hindi. The film took a grand opening and is having a good run at the box office. According to the production house, 2.O has collected over Rs 600 crores in its 12-day run at the theatres. While the Tamil and Hindi versions are a smash hit, the Telugu version is yet to surpass the collections of the Ram Charan Teja starrer Rangasthalam which released earlier this year. According to trade reports, the film has collected Rs 94 crore in Andhra and Telangana states and in the Nizam area it collected Rs 28.75 crore. 2.O is yet to reach this figures, state sources in the trade. Written and directed by Shankar, the film stars Rajinikanth and Amy Jackson as the lead pair with Bollywood star Akshay Kumar playing the baddie. Those in the supporting roles include Sudhanshu Pandey, Adil Hussain, Kalabhavan Shajohn, and Riyaz Khan. Produced by Subaskaran Allirajah under his banner Lyca Productions, 2.O is made on a massive budget of Rs 543 crore. It is the most expensive film to be made in India till date. The filmrsquo;s technical crew comprises AR Rahman for songs, Qutub-E-Kripa, Nirav Shah for camera and Anthony for editing. 2.O is a sci-fi thriller that has Rajinikanth as Dr. Vaseegaran / Chitti and Kutty Chitti and Amy Jackson as Nila. The main antagonist in the film is the Bollywood star Akshay Kumar who appears as Pakshi Rajan. It may be noted here that 2.O is a sequel to the 2010 hit movie Endhiran which had Rajini and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in the lead roles. The film is breaking some box office records in terms of collections and the final figures are sure to be mind-boggling.