Sami the Mindful Scribbler

I saw a woman Wearing a bright-colored Synthetic saree, With machine embroidery. Her Mangalsutra Shining in the dazzling light Of the cinema theatre. She Hesitated, Longed, Seeing others' dresses, Others' lavish spending, Or comfortable spending, Buying without looking at the price. Others' effortless communication, Having popcorn, Again refilling them, Whereas her hands were empty. Her eyes, Which Witnessed the large screen, Witnessed others' lives too, Couldn't rewind the film scenes, But her life scenes did rewind. Maybe her Childhood desires, Aspirations, And a wish— If everything had fallen in place, She would've been them. The eyes which Laughed, Cried, Enjoyed the film, Here Questioned her. Her sight carried a thirst  And no water could fill it. But there was one Her husband, The one who brought her To the theatre. The moment her eyes Looked at him, Sadness turned into A wide smile. Maybe He reminds Her that it's all part of life, To cherish this diff...

  What should I choose? The easiest one—the one you know would be easier, where you are sure of the destination and the result. Or the other path—the one you are curious about, which would feed your knowledge system, but you aren't sure about the result. Yet your inner self says, "You might feel happier and satisfied if you take this choice." Let’s take an example from a question paper. You get two questions. The first question is a very general one. You know the answer as it is—you could even make a carbon copy of it. But even that makes you hesitate to choose it. Because it might sound too obvious, and there’s nothing new you can incorporate. Yes, I agree there are possibilities to bring in your perspective, yet your mind is tired of answering such summary-type questions. Whereas there is another question which intrigues your mind . It makes you feel curious.  You start biting your nails with curiosity as this question challenges you. Yet, the same inner self is scared...

I usually don’t judge a film based on trailers or any other promotional stuff. I try my best to approach any art form without any prejudice or preconceived notions. But at times, something makes me pause for a second and think. One such film was Youth. When the trailer was released, it had fast cuts and felt like a guaranteed fun film. What I found problematic was again the same hero trope—the protagonist going behind multiple girls, stalking them, and at the climax choosing one among many and calling it true love. The trailer had similar moments, which made me take a step back. As an audience, we are honestly tired of this trope—a hero who victimises himself, manipulates the girl, and eventually makes her fall in love. Yet, I decided to watch it, thinking this could just be my perception. Maybe the director could prove me wrong—I really wished for that. Youth is a routine story. The whole film happens from Praveen’s 10th result day to his 12th result day. Since it doesn’t try to be a...

For the last few days, my Instagram feed has been filled with clips from a Hotstar special Hindi series. It is a series titled Chiraiya. I still haven't watched the entire series, but from the trailer and the clips I came across, it's about a 23-year-old woman who is independent, loves being herself, has her voice, and gets married to a man through an arranged marriage happily. But on her wedding day, she feels ill, so in between rituals she keeps taking medication, which the groom also notices. On their wedding night, when she says that she is sick, she tells her husband not to have intercourse that night. But he says, how can she neglect it like that? She keeps saying she feels weak and wants to postpone it, but he forces and manipulates her, saying there is nothing wrong in doing it. At one point, when she firmly says NO, he can't take it. He forces her and makes it happen. He doesn't leave room for her consent and eventually rapes her. And very proudly calls it his ...

  Suddenly you feel— still, yet your legs ache to move when songs are played. Those legs and hands can’t hide anymore. Legs won’t stop moving, and hands, and mind become one, lost in a choreo. It hurts to tie those legs, to cage the heart itself. It’s suffocating, it’s yearning. Is a break fine? Until you don’t put a full stop, until you don’t stop yourself, until you realise you are not 'YOU' without it. When the body moves, you feel lighter— like you could win the entire world with your energy. You could light up yourself and others. Isn’t it magic? It’s the power dance holds. Cracking that missing step, that difficult one— the best satisfaction ever. Sad? Happy? In love? Dance it out with all of yourself. With music, your beautiful self, you change the mood. Decide— whether to prison yourself, or fly.

Just think about this! You’re sick, haven’t slept well, and you wake up with low energy. And in that state, you open your phone and it is flooded with messages from your best friends. Instantly you just feel boosted.  That’s how my morning began. I opened my WhatsApp, and my girls had sent their photos—beautifully dressed up. Since I’m on leave, my friends kept updating me. And today, it was even more special. It’s the farewell for our juniors and seniors. I really wanted to be there. We had planned to go as a group, to contribute to the event’s vibe with a dance performance. Unfortunately,  I couldn’t make it. But omg—the sarees on them… it was just beautiful. The colors, the pictures, the fittings—everything looked perfect on them. And they made sure I didn’t miss it. They made sure I knew how they were dressed up, how everything looked, how I would’ve reacted. These cuties sent me their pictures so I could still be a part of it. These things may seem small, but they actuall...

Everything and everyone Can be your house But only a few At times, just one—can be your home. This home built herself With love, sacrifices, pain, and untold stories. This home carried everyone Stayed strong Despite suffering and happiness. Though it was heavy She never left them halfway. Amidst those so-called people Pointing at what she held Calling it useless She stood for them Because she knew They would bring happiness. As she was the one Who brought them into her Tiny world This home Would never sleep If the people in it Didn’t eat Didn’t sleep Didn’t smile. This home Knows nothing other than Forgiving and welcoming her people Like children again Wrapping them in her arms. But The people in it Who can walk away easily Who can stop calling her home And in her absence Turn everything into just a house And the sad part is— They Never realise it at all. But this home… —our mothers Even in their dreams Can never turn into a house Can never ignore Alienate Or throw away Her people And...

Hey everyone, I’m back after a little break! Did my readers miss my words🥺? Even one reader thinking of my words was enough to get me writing again… despite being ill.. Here is my 50 th blog. Let's celebrate it together. Tried to write something on when 50 is a blessing… even though I’m not 50 yet 😄. But I’ve seen people—and that’s what made me write this.  50 is a blessing! When you... 1. have written 50 blogs 2. still can think 3. are healthy, without diabetes or sugar issues 4. can still see your parents smile 5. are 50 and still rest in your 80-year-old mother's lap 6. have a family that remembers your 50th birthday 7. can still dance to Aluma Doluma 8. can still go for a solo walk 9. are independent 10. don't expect anything from others 11. have money 12. or don't have money-and are still happy 13. still feel your 20-year old self is alive 14. can still hold a pen 15. and write words that create chaos and silence 16. can hear and listen  17. have grown into a bet...

  You feel sad for others More than yourself. You feel guilty For something That happened unintentionally, That couldn't be avoided, That was never out of negative motives, That was never in your control. More than for yourself, You feel bad Knowing Something might Hurt others. Is this empathy  Or selflessness? But I know it's Rare To cry, To feel heavy, To care About others' pain. Isn't being humane Rare nowadays? Maybe That's God.

There is a song titled Kuththum Oosi from the film Garjanai. This song is a cabaret-style dance number within the film. It is performed by the actress Madhavi.  I watched this song a few days back when I was at my grandma's house. The film was running on TV and suddenly this song appeared. Oh my God. I was shocked and disturbed by the visuals of the song. As usual, it was centred around a woman—her body and her expressions. The male gaze is not new to the world, nor to cinema. In the scene, the villains have captured the hero Rajinikanth and two more female leads. I don't really know the entire storyline. But from what I saw, they were caught by the villains and injected with laughing gas. One of the female leads has already started to laugh, whereas Rajinikanth and Geetha are just angry, their eyes filled with tears and anger. The setting looks like a dancing hall where a number of so-called big people in society—maybe industrialists—are sitting in rows waiting for the perform...

Are Mistakes Really Mistakes? All these days we have been made to believe that it is. Many people aren’t able to win because they are scared to make mistakes. They fear that those mistakes would put them at risk and might leave them with nothing. But is it really so? Maybe this belief exists because we were rarely appreciated for making mistakes and were often scolded for them. Remember when you took your first steps. Your parents would have been literally flying in happiness, excited to see your effort. And when you fell, they didn’t laugh at you. Instead, they hugged you and appreciated the effort you made, even though it was just one step. As a child, when you wore your slippers the wrong way, they would cherish that moment and laugh at your innocence. At the same time, with patience and love, they would teach you how to wear them correctly and make sure the mistake was corrected 🩷. But as we grow, does it remain the same? Yes, I’m glad that half of the households still do this, bu...

Happy Women’s Day, To all the women out there to all the girls who are yet to become women yet carry all the warmth, pain, and happiness of women To the women who are strong who are weak and vulnerable who cry yet show up and win who lose yet still show up and smile. To the women who are mothers, sisters, and daughters But again, is it only limited to biological conditions “தாயான பின்பு தான் நீ பெண்மணி?” At least now half of the audience can understand what is wrong with this idea Only when she becomes a mother she is called a woman? No, Never. Motherly feeling isn't restricted to biological conditions alone. As I mentioned in my previous blog, even a five-year-old girl can be a mother to her two-year-old brother. I'm happy to see that nowadays men also take up roles that reflect motherly care. Though we often say a man can never replace a woman, their efforts to feel and express motherly affection, care, and love should be appreciated. Someone who has never given birth to...

 Some of us aren't really good at saying no to anyone, and a few of us are choosy enough🙂. Within your friends' , workspace you can say no, but not to the outside world, in day-to-day places. And today, such an incident happened. Today, my friend and I went to a hotel. Our initial plan was to go to a snacks corner, as we both had very little time. We both had another important work, so within that short time we wanted to have something that would be filling. But we were quite hesitant to pick that snack corner because we already had one bad food experience there. Still, that was the only option we had in that place. Also, it would take very little time to prepare, so we could eat and get back to the work we had. Near that spot there was a hotel. But as we all know, hotels do take some time to prepare the food. We had just half an hour. We were standing near the hotel wondering whether we should go in or no. Then there was a server who was wearing their brand T-shirt, insistin...

 Today it's going to be double the words. I mean, you could find two blogs for today, as I wanted to write about two important events that happened. One made me think, and another made me realise and decide to act accordingly hereafter. We have been dealing with Preface to Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth for the last few days. I must say, all the classes on this have been very interesting, and time just flies away quickly when we are engaged in it. With his works, the era saw a paradigm shift. Earlier, poetry was something sophisticated, complicated, and rich enough to be understood only by a few. But he promoted a shift:  From thought to feelings, From complexity to simplicity, From imitation to originality. The last point deserves special attention. While talking about originality, we were discussing different domains and how originality functions within them. Then the conversation moved to the education system, and we said, “ The education system takes away originality.” O...

 Today I'm going to write about something I observed and realised when I went to my hometown, which is in Tuticorin. This time we got to go to two to three villages where we had a family function. I kept documenting the place, and suddenly I saw a few windmills. I thought to capture that as well. Those windmills were standing in between and at the end of the agricultural fields. So automatically the fields too came into the frame. While recording it, my mother said,  "Ellam kanji poi iruku, ethum green ah ila video la."  (Everything looks dried up… there’s nothing green in the video).  At that moment I was hit by the reality. Though I could glorify village life in a 1-minute video, at the end this is the reality. It is no longer the greenery-filled vision we often see in films. We come to villages with certain expectations, to take pictures, and post them on social media. But the reality in most places looks very different. Maybe with AI one could add greenery to the...

 Thai Kizhavi is a Tamil comedy drama written and directed by debutant Sivakumar Murugesan and produced by Sivakarthikeyan .  With Radhika Sarathkumar , the other actors — Singam Puli, Arul Doss, Bala Saravanan, Munishkanth, Ilavarasu, George Maryan, Muthukumar, and Raichal Rabecca — play pivotal roles, along with several supporting actors, some of them from the very village itself. The casting itself is a big plus for this film, adding rural depth perfectly. Music is by Nivas K. Prasanna , and it is beautifully blended with the film’s subject. To put the story in short it’s about an old lady, Pavunuthayi , who is a strong and independent woman in a rural village. She is tough, rigid, and often intimidating. As a moneylender, she strictly collects her dues, which makes the villagers fear her. She has three sons and one daughter. Suddenly, one day she falls sick, becomes paralyzed, and is on her deathbed. Except for her daughter, no one in the family really takes any effort...

 I had been continuously unwell, then we went to our hometown, and after coming back home, I fell sick again. Today, I finally stepped into the kitchen. Since my mom wasn’t feeling well, I thought I would do something special. The initial plan was to buy idly from the shop while the rest of us had dosa. I wanted to make tomato chutney because I’m good at making it — and honestly, I’m not a great fan of coconut chutney. The moment I stepped into the kitchen, my mom said, “I kneaded some chapati dough in the evening, maybe we can make poori.” I was like, let me prepare poori. But tomato chutney isn’t really a good combo (jodi😁) with poori. So, not through a matrimony service but through Samitha’s mind, I matched tomato egg thokku with poori. Omg, it’s a deadly combo — everyone should try it! I myself cut the onions, tomatoes, and green chilies. If anyone wants the recipe, here it is 🤍😄: First, depending on the number of family members, chop the vegetables mentioned above. Then tak...