British Airways believes in the magic of warmth and love

“A warm smile is the universal language of kindness” ~ William Arthur Ward

When I saw the heartwarming video “Fuelled by love”, this was the first thought that came to my mind. Two strangers bond so beautifully with a warm smile and kindness in their heart, despite belonging to different nations. The video shows the bond that develops between an old Indian lady and a twenty three year old British Airways crew member. The video is all about getting love and loving back.

The British Airways crew member, Helena Flynn was quite nervous on her first flight to India. She did not have any idea that when she will leave India, her heart will overflow with love and warmth. She helps and comforts an old Indian lady who was going to her family in Hyderabad. The old Indian lady develops a liking and a fondness for Helena in the flight.

When the flight reaches India, she requests Helena to come to her house one day. Though Helena was hesitant initially, she goes to the old lady’s house and meets the warm, loving Indian family. She gets acquainted with Indian food and Indian music. When she was about to leave, the old lady gifts her a hand-made embroidered handkerchief. The loving gesture brings tears to her eyes.

The deep bond between the old lady and Helena, which is based on love and mutual respect, is extremely touching. Spare a few minutes and watch the absolutely heartwarming video that will surely make your eyes moist.

Every British Airways crew member who has experienced India has left the country with an abundance of warmth and love. Since British Airways values the magic of warmth and love, it has customized its service and product to suit the needs of the Indian customers. You can get the taste of home as the meals are customized. You can also watch your favorite entertainment channel and get the homely ambiance.

British Airways has been flying to India for over 90 years. It currently operates 49 flights a week from London Heathrow to New Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bengaluru. British Airways knows well how to connect with the Indian customers. They strongly believe in mutual love and respect, which helps them to form such a deep bond with India. 

“Love and kindness are never wasted. They always make a difference. They bless the one who receives them, and they bless you, the giver.” ~ Barbara De Angelis

Blogging gets better and exciting with Affimity!

Have you ever wished for a social media platform that could drive some enthusiastic readers to your blog? Well, I have. Innumerable times! Facebook is a great platform to stay connected with friends and acquaintances, but it has never been very useful to get authentic readers for my blog.

That’s because most of my Facebook friends do not share my passion. Then, why will they care to check out the latest book review I posted or the App that I reviewed? Twitter and Instagram are better, but even they cannot satisfy the readership that a blogger wants….readers who will share the passion of the blogger.

The even more annoying part is when your news feed gets cluttered with status and links that don’t interest you even a bit. There have been so many times when I felt weary checking out the news feed on my Facebook profile. So I really wished of a social media platform that can drive some enthusiastic readers to my blog as well as inspire me with some great content.

And my wish just came true…with Affimity!

Affimity is an awesome Social Media platform that bloggers can use effectively for Social blogging. I have been hearing recently a lot about Affimity from my blogger friends, but when I checked it out, I was absolutely thrilled with the result.

Affimity consists of channels, based on a single interest such as books, movies, music, travel, food, etc. The channel is like your home where you can go to share your content, to get informed and to make friends with people who share your passion.

I am an author and I have a book blog. Therefore, the channel ‘book club’ got me interested the most. I went to the channel and posted about my new poetry book and the latest book that I reviewed. Within a few hours, I got more than 40 likes and a handful of genuine and eager comments. At that moment, I realized that this is the perfect social media platform that I was wishing for.

You don’t need to be a blogger to enjoy the cool features of Affimity. If you are a movie enthusiast or a food enthusiast, you can have a great time basking in the community buzz of the movie or the food channel.

Joining #Affimity will help you to connect with people who share your interest. So if you are a travel blogger, you will get to interact with people who are passionate about travelling through Affimity. The same applies for book bloggers, movie bloggers, fashion blogger and food bloggers.

Once you explore Affimity, you can’t help admitting that blogging gets better and exciting with Affimity. So, what are you waiting for? Sign up in #Affimity to enjoy #SocialBlogging and don’t forget to follow me (Purba_PC) there. 

You can enjoy #AffimitySocialBlogging in your phone now.

Download the app on your Android and iOS phone.

From this moment on...

(Image Source)

She wept uncontrollably, sitting on the cold floor at 3 am in the morning. Her heart was bedecked with thorns and the pain was unbearable. Her parents were sleeping in the other room. All her friends were sleeping too. She had no one in the world to talk about her maladies. She wanted to scream and yell, but she didn't want to wake anyone up. Tucking her head between her legs, she kept sobbing with those questions that haunted her again and again.

What is my mistake in this? I try to be good and kind to everyone, then why do some people hurt me so badly? Why is my heart injured and broken for literally no fault of mine? And this is not the first time...it keeps happening again and again. How can some people be so cruel and selfish? 

As she felt lost within the tangled web of questions, her eyes fell on the mirror. She hated the sight. Red, swollen eyes. Runny nose. Dark lines under her eyes. Messy tresses drenched with tears.  

She wiped her tears and looked into the mirror again. She grabbed a rubber hand and tied her hair. Now the sight did not disturb her as much as it did a few minutes back. She touched the dark circles that were accumulated due to loss of sleep for almost a week. Her eyes looked tired due to severe crying. There were marks of nails on her cheeks that she inflicted on herself. When the pain in her heart became too excessive for her to tame, she tried to cause physical pain to herself, in vain.

What have I done to myself? Here, I am crying because some people I loved, have deeply wounded me. But was I kind to myself?

The more she looked at her in the mirror, the more she realized how cruel she had been to herself, for no fault of hers. She took some face wash in her hand and washed her face thoroughly. Instead of sitting on the cold floor, she went to her bed. She covered herself with the blanket and took a deep sigh. 

I can't control people's behavior towards me. Some people can be cruel and selfish. Some people can be insensitive or manipulative. But I promise that from this moment on, I won't be cruel to myself. From this moment on, I won't inflict myself with pain and conflict. From this moment on, it is my first responsibility to take care of myself so that I can battle with the wounds given to me by others. From this moment on, I will treat myself with kindness, care, forgiveness, compassion and love. I will be there for myself as a friend, always. 

P.S. Especially wrote this post because one of my close friends is going through a bad phase. I hope the message reaches out to her and she gets encouraged to love herself with all she has. 

Prompt 97- From this moment on

The Red Gate

(Image Source)

I am the red gate of her house

She makes me feel important

Though I am nothing special;

Every evening,

She looks at my direction

From her balcony

With a coy smile

And impatience tickling her.

As she sees him,

A wide grin appears on her face

I keep looking at her, happily

Till she walks inside her room.

I am the red gate of her house

She makes me feel like a friend

Though I am an inanimate object;

Every evening,

She looks at my direction

From her balcony

There is no sign of him

For months now,

She sobs and wails every day

Confiding in me,

I desperately look forward

To his arrival just to see her smiling again.

-Purba Chakraborty

(11.02.2016)

Linking this poem with Poets United Midweek Motif ~ The Inanimate & The Non-Human

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My poetry book "The Heart Listens to No One" which is a collection of 35 love poems is now available in Amazon Kindle.

Buy the book from Amazon.in

Buy the book from Amazon.com

Playful Shadow of Reality!

(Image Source)

Revealing the truth

In shreds and bits

Some sprinkled here

Some scattered over there;

Revealing the truth

Wearing a mask

So that the readers

Cannot connect all the dots.

Fiction is a playful shadow

Of reality and truth;

Following it loyally

Imitating it in parts.

If the fiction is touching,

Trust that the reality is heart shattering.

-Purba Chakraborty

(8.02.16)

Linking this poem with Prompt Nights – Truth is stranger than Fiction [5] and sharing with Poetry Pantry #288

My 1st poetry book...Releasing on Valentine's

My relationship with poetry began when I was eight years old. I have memories of writing poems on sheets of paper and using my Dad's stapler to make it look like a book. I used to also sketch something on the first page and write "A collection of poems by Purba" on top of it.

So, I guess I had this dream of authoring a poetry book since I was eight. I have authored 2 novels till date Walking in the streets of Love and Destiny (2012) and The Hidden Letters (2014). I have also contributed my poems in various anthologies. However, I was a bit hesitant to release my solo poetry book because of various reasons.

Honestly, my blog played a huge role in making my decision firm to work on a poetry collection. It helped me polish the art of writing poetry and also rekindled my intense feelings for poetry. 

Here, I must also mention the talented poets that I came across Poets United, a community for poets who blog. Their constant encouragement and honest feedback had helped me a lot. Had I not come across Poets United, perhaps I would have been happy being just a contributing poet to anthologies.

So, finally, after 2 months of hard work, I am ready with my 1st poetry book. It's titled ~

The Heart Listens To No One

...it hums its own song...

It is a collection of 35 love poems. The poetry collection is divided into the following 5 sections, representing the 5 aspects of love~

Unconditional Love

Longing

Romance

Fond Reminisces

Separation

The Kindle Edition of the book will be available for download on Valentine's. I am also looking forward to release the book in paperback. If things go right, then may be the print version will be available by April. 

Will soon share the ordering links.

And here is the cover of my 1st poetry book. Hope you all like it.

Cup of Nostalgia!

(Image Source)

She sits by the window

With an old letter

And a cup of nostalgia;

As she savors them,

Voices and laughter become audible

The addictive smell of cologne, prominent.

She closes her eyes

To feel the softness of roses

And the enticing warmth of his breath.

Once she revels in the cup of nostalgia,

Nothing seems subtle and distant

Every smell, sound and touch

Is vivid and pronounced.

She has done this every year

On their anniversary

It has been a decade now

She has learned to find

His esoteric presence in his absence.

The cup of nostalgia slowly engulfs her

As she gazes at his last letter,

She can feel his soul

Caressing her and holding her frail hand.

She hums their favorite song

To celebrate their togetherness;

Time stays, people go

Soulmates are never apart

Be it death or worldly separation.

-Purba Chakraborty

(31.01.2016)

Linking this poem with Prompt Nights – A Cup of Nostalgia [4] and Poetry Pantry #287

She finally got a lifetime friend!

She started sobbing as her mother asked her how her day at school was.

“I won’t go to school from tomorrow, Mom.” Pari said between her sobs.

Her mom took her in her lap and cajoled her to say what’s troubling her. She was afraid that some teacher must have punished Pari.

“Puja is not talking to me. Ever since our class teacher changed our seating arrangement, she has stopped talking to me. Now, she talks with Seema the whole day. She doesn’t even bother to share her tiffin with me. She was my best friend, but now I think Seema is her best friend.” Pari explained with glistening eyes that made her innocent face clammy.

Her mom listened to the whole incident with empathy. Although she had to manage so many difficult problems in life, Pari’s simple problem started bothering her.

For a ten year old, this is not a simple thing. Their minds are so tender that things like this have a huge impact on them.

“Puja shouldn’t have behaved like this. But why do you want to stop going to school, my dear?” Her mom asked, wiping her tears.

“I feel lonely, Mom. I don’t have any other good friend other than Puja and now she is also not talking to me. Everyone has their own groups and I belong to nowhere. I have to eat my tiffin alone.” Pari continued.

“What if I introduce you to a new friend today who will always be there for you?” Her mom said.

“Really? That will be great.” Pari said with a twinkle in her eye.

Her mom told her to close her eyes for a minute. She felt some object in her lap and instantly opened her eyes.

“What’s this? You told you will introduce me to a new friend.” Pari said, feeling dejected on seeing a book. It was written on the cover Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.

“This is the friend I was talking about. It will never leave you. It will never start preferring someone else. And It will always give you company.” Her mom said with a smile. Pari however, looked more disappointed than ever.

“I don’t want to read it. A mute book can never be my friend.” Pari said, keeping the book beside her.

“Alright. Let me put it this way. Once you start reading this book, you will meet a lovely friend who will enchant you with his adventures. In fact, he will take you along with him to the land of his adventures. Just give him a chance to do so.” Her mom continued with a smile. 

(Image Source)

Pari never thought that her mom’s words were so true. Of course, she was so right. Not only one, but she got 3 wonderful friends inside the book: Harry, Ron and Hermione. She never feels bad now when Puja doesn’t talk to her. She has her book to give her company.

Books and the characters in the books had a tremendous impact on young Pari’s mind. They made her a wiser and a calmer person. She never felt desperate to grab someone’s attention because she always had a friend by her side. 

As Pari grew older, she often questioned her. Who is a better friend: Books or the characters inside the books?

Now, she knows the answer to her question. Books are friends for a lifetime. They are not only reliable, but they also introduce you to many more friends i.e. the characters living inside them.

She knew she would never feel lonely in life as long as she has a book with her. She is lucky to have a friend for lifetime. 

This blog post is inspired by the blogging marathon hosted on IndiBlogger for the launch of the #Fantastico Zica from Tata Motors. You can apply for a test drive of the hatchback Zica today.

Open up a free shop on ezebee.com!

Did you ever wish to have a free online shop where you can sell your products and services? Is there an entrepreneur concealed inside you who keeps nagging you to start your business? Do you want to make quick money online?

If your answers to the above three questions is yes, then ezebee.com is the ideal destination for you. It is the perfect place that will allow you to sell anything to people around the globe. It is a great network and a free online marketplace for people who want to promote their small business.

Your showroom on ezebee.com

The best thing about ezebee.com is that its basic version is free. You can open as many showrooms as you want and add innumerable products in them. Ezebee.com does not charge any commission for transactions. Therefore, you can be assured that all the profits will go directly to you. 

A showroom on ezebee.com is like your personal website that would contain your shop, blog and other contact details. You can easily display your services and products in your showroom and sell them worldwide.

Facebook Shop

You must get the cool Facebook Shop App if you desire to attract more customers. Your showroom can get more exposure with a free Facebook shop. Your fans and customers can buy from Facebook directly which would be much easier for them. It would only take a few seconds to add the app.

Similarly, you can also add the blog shop app to obtain more exposure for your ezebee showroom. It is also absolutely free and will let the visitors of your blog, buy directly from your website.

Products that you can offer

You can sell anything and everything in ezebee.com as long as it is legal. It can include professional services, individual travel offers, restaurants, fashion, furniture and handmade products. You can add unlimited products in your showroom. The payment can be made by bank transfers, PayPal or EZBs. 

Anyone can sell online now with the help of ezebee.com. If you are an entrepreneur owning a small business, you can share your products globally. If you are a freelancer, you can offer your freelancing services to the huge community in ezebee.com. You don’t need to be an entrepreneur or a freelancer to make money online. You can also sell your used items in the classified ads section of ezebee.com. 

So, what are you waiting for? Create an online shop on ezebee.com and sell online. Opening a free online shop has never been easier than this. 

Kolkata Literary Meet: The impact of today’s Hindi film heroes!

Yesterday, I attended an amazing literary session in Kolkata Literary Meet at the Victoria Memorial. In the session, two filmmakers, Imtiaz Ali and Aditya Vikram Sengupta discussed why the Hindi film hero of today talks more and fights less. It was an extensive discussion on the impact that today’s Hindi film heroes make on the audience.

In the earlier days, the Bollywood hero always had a larger than life character, which the audience aspired to become, but could hardly relate to. On the other hand, now with movies such as Wake up Sid and Tamasha, the audience connects to the hero on an emotional level because the things that are shown in the movies happen in our lives too.

Therefore, when we see Hindi film heroes on the big screen today, it is more like seeing ourselves. We see the hero fighting demons that we also fight on a regular basis. Earlier, when we used to see a hero beating up ten goons alone to save his lady love, it was something that we loved watching, but could never connect to. On the other hand, now when we watch our heroes fighting their inner demons and turmoil, we can relate to them instantly.

Now about the question why the heroes of today fight less and talk more, Imtiaz Ali asks the host, Devapriya Roy when was the last time she had hit someone out of rage. He states that in any crisis or in any turmoil, we try to speak out, instead of hitting someone. Therefore, the heroes of today talk more to make sense out of a situation.

Moreover, in today’s day, when we are always busy, a long, meaningful conversation with someone helps us to sort our conflicts and issues in a systematic manner. Unlike the earlier days, when the hero had to fight with the world in large, nowadays the fight is often within.

Therefore, the impact that today’s Hindi film heroes have on the audience is large. It is not confined to the three hours of watching the movie, but the impact lingers long after the movie has ended. The Hindi film hero is much more human today, with his vulnerabilities and weakness. 

It was a sheer treat to hear Imtiaz Ali speak and answer the questions asked by the audience with patience. He is not only eloquent and intelligent with a charismatic personality, but is also very humble. His humility and amiability makes him so charming. When asked by someone from the audience how he writes and directs his movies that they always manage to have the Sufi touch, he smiles and says “I honestly don’t know.”

I feel privileged to have attended this session and see the impact that today’s Hindi film heroes make on the audience in a new light. And yes, I feel super lucky that I could take a selfie with my favorite director, Imtiaz Ali.

This blog post is inspired by the blogging marathon hosted on IndiBlogger for the launch of the #Fantastico Zica from Tata Motors. You can apply for a test drive of the hatchback Zica today.