Book Review : Chakra

'Chakra : Chronicles of the Witch way' by Ritu Lalit is the third book by the author.She has penned two books earlier ....namely 'A bowlful of Butterflies' & 'Hilawi'.The 'Chakra' cover shows two grey eyes of a woman through a slit in some ancient manuscript.The manuscript is shaded in hues of blue,navy blue & green .The manuscript has some Hindu symbols  Om,Trikon & others imprinted on it.The grey eyes are hypnotic...they seem to piercing through as if searching for something .The paper quality is good.The printing is very good .The book is neatly arranged into chapters.There is a prayer to Ma Kundalini, at the beginning ,before the story unfolds.It sets the stage for the saga which is based on yogic power of those who practice & swear by it .

This is the story of Parineeta, who runs a detective agency in Delhi & is caretaker to her nieces & nephew .She also takes care of Mickey ,an orphan. Parineeta searches for baubles of the rich  ladies & also goes after the flirtatious husbands.One day ,just as vacations are about to begin in school,her brother's daughter gets into some act ,which makes heads turn.All hell breaks loose after that .There are  many twists & turns in the book from then onwards, till the very end.Parineeta is frantic as she finds her nephew & niece missing.Will she be able to locate them ? Have the kids gone on a frolic of their own ? Or have they been kidnapped ? As Parineeta begins her search,she has to come to terms with her forgotten legacy.She does not want to have anything to do with it.She has lost so much because of that ,she opines.Yet,it seems, only her past can make the future better for generation next.There is a prophecy which talks of the age of the Japnis. Is Parineeta going to usher in that age ? Will her nieces be also part & parcel of that age of the witches ? And if so ,how ? How far is that day ? For all the answers,Parineeta must connect with her clan & even with rival clans & many others.There is hardly any time left before rivals close in on her nieces & nephew. Parineeta has to act fast.She has to trust those with whom she never wanted to associate.Will others heed her now, when she needs them most ?


Chakra is the story of Japas & Japnis who have a very strong Kundalini which is awake from birth.This is the saga of the clans of Bhoomars,Jalajs,Pallavs,Varunis & others like Koylas.Koylas are those who drain others emotionally.The author talks of people who venerate the elements....air,earth,fire ,water etal. She writes about the serpent ...our inherent Kundalini power which must be awakened to make us what we actually are.Ritu lalit has made the saga so interesting by taking bits & pieces from Indian myths,puranas that Chakra makes for a truly fascinating kahani !

Chakra has its bits of humor .Witness the tee shirts worn by the heroine which say it all ' HIGH MAINTENANCE BUT SO WORTH IT ','HOT n SPICY ','TALK TO MY FACE,TITS CAN'T HEAR 'etc.References to the traffic in Delhi says   that people take pot shots on traffic lights with their guns ! The tale is feminist, in its approach.Witches are going to claim the age.Witches are better at power play.The book also states that many girls are disappearing.....as female infanticide & other crimes are making survival of women difficult.

In a nutshell,this is a very readable story, set in the present age with connections to our heritage of mudras,yoga,kundalini & the power each one of us have .That innate power, which is dormant & sleeping, needs to be awakened to claim our future, from corrupt netas & an ; inefficient bureaucracy.An inspiring read  indeed

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Rags to bags & more !

My dad used to subscribe to India Today magazine a decade back.I read many articles those days & was enriched by the news as also views.One such article was about an entrepreneur who had involved rag pickers into her venture.I was thrilled to read about the green enterprise she had begun.


Image courtesy: Conserve India 

The green warrior is Anita Ahuja, who along with her husband ,Shalabh,educated at  IIT   started Conserve HRP which recycles plastic rags into designer bags,purses,folders ,etal. The idea started in 1998 in Delhi & over the next two years ,Anita tried recycling plastic waste into something useful.She tried to make a thick  material so that it could be used for covering the  jhuggi jhopdis  in Delhi.Next ,she pasted plastic sheets on to card boards. Her home based products were a hit at a  fair in Delhi.Anita knew then, that  her products she had made their mark.

She involved rag pickers into her venture, Conserve HRP .Ragpickers who are at the  the bottom of the social ladder are finding life much better, all thanks to Anita Ahuja .Rag pickers collect & separate the various types of plastic rags.This is then recycled into designer bags,purses,folders,foot wear,etc. The process which makes bags,purses etc from plastic trash is a patented one.

It was begun as a recycling project & it turned into a upcycle project.This was so, as it became clear that plastic waste cannot be composted or recycled locally.Delhi generates 8000 tonnes of waste on a day to day  basis which pollutes the city .This is because only half of the waste is managed by the local authorities.The rest is left behind & chokes the metro.

Hundreds of plastic rags which choke  the land,the air,the water -in fact, the whole of the environment are collected & segregated by ragpickers.Next ,the plastic trash is upcycled by washing ,drying & turned  into plastic sheets.These plastic sheets are Handmade Recycled Plastic ( HRP ).From these plastic  sheets, come  the funky bags,purses,belts,necklaces,shoes etal !
Image courtesy: Conserve India Facebook photos.


HRP is made from discarded & used plastic bags,old truck tyre tubes,used denim jeans material,seat belts,& even old saris ! So nothing gets wasted ! This is  make overs of left overs of the plastic kind !

The technique used for recycling plastic trash into fashion accessories is called upcycle. Wikipedia defines upcycle as transforming waste materials into useful products.Moreover all products by Conserve HRP are  exported ! Hence it earns valuable foreign exchange for the nation !

The process used in Conserve HRP uses no dyes &  consumes less energy than other established methods.So it is green technique.Saves energy by saving on power bills.The original colour & form of the plastic trash remain the same after the recycling because of this green processing.Since ,no dyes are used ,pollution is non -existent.A highly economizing technique, which saves money which is pumped back into  social welfare projects.

Conserve HRP has employed rag pickers as its green warriors.A ragpicker earns nearly three times more at Conserve HRP.He is trained so that he can operate machinery for upcycling plastic waste This means so much to the ragpickers as they have a stake in the growth of Conserve HRP .Many of the employees continue with Conserve HRP by moving into manufacturing & sales .Conserve HRP has also been instrumental in supporting schools for the children of  ragpickers in the slum colonies.It is also venturing into welfare schemes for ragpickers like clinics & the like.Social responsibility of an employer towards employees is so well defined by the many welfare schemes of Conserve HRP.

Many design colleges are associated with Conserve HRP. Many  students have helped design numerous upcycled products which have become bestsellers !

The fashion accessories of Conserve HRP are a rage abroad in US,Europe,Australia .Conserve HRP felt that Indians may dislike using bags made from discarded plastic waste.As  attitudes are changing,Conserve HRP  is gearing up for selling its products in India.Very soon, it will open its shop in Delhi for desi shoppers.

Conserve HRP will soon move into its own factory premises from the rented areas.This will mean  more employment opportunities for the poorest of the poor that is the rag pickers. It will also help in sustaining a cleaner & pollution free environment.This embodies  that the creative circle  of Anita Ahuja is coming to fruition  !

Anita Ahuja deserves kudos for her NGO which has turned into a profitable venture employing 70 persons ,mostly ragpickers. The number of direct & indirect employees is nearly 300. The revenues for Financial Year 2011 were nearly 3 crores which is profitable .It earns valuable foreign exchange for India by exporting all products to customers in more than 10 countries.Its methods are pollution free & energy conserving ! It upcycles waste trash into designer goods as also upcycles the profits earned, into social welfare schemes ! Conserve HRP is a shining  example of the  grit & spirit of  woman entrepreneur ,Anita Ahuja ! Anita Ahuja's enterprise is  an eco (ecological ) -expo( export oriented ) -socio ( social welfare ) venture ! Hence, Conserve HRP by Anita Ahuja is for the people ,by the people & of the people ...it truly embodies the spirit of  Democracy !

Written for the Indiblogeshwaris Ladies Independence Special Contest in association with http://womenentrepreneursinindia.com/

Book Review :The Price You Pay.

Somanth Batabyal,a young author ( his snap is on the penultimate page ) has authored a racy tale in the novel "The Price You Pay ".The book's cover design shows a night scene with police sirens & a police officer in the shadows stands out.The publisher is Harper Collins .The paper quality is good & printing is very neat.The price is Rs.350 & the novel is of 285 pages.

This is the story of Abhishek Dutta who joins a newspaper,the Express.His stories make heads turn & how ! Is he really good or is lady luck smiling on him ? There is Amir ,his boss who is a very respected name in press circles.Uday Kumar is DCP,Delhi who is from the state cadres & resents cops from the Central Cadres.Uday & Amir are very close.There is Mayank Sharma , a young officer in the police department who reports to Uday Kumar & yet he feels that his boss is not right, many a times.

Delhi is the backdrop of this novel.The crime & politics of Delhi make for this thriller.Press & police are feeding off each other.Press is eager for stories & the police act as if they cannot part with information.Sometimes,it is the police who plant stories which leads to hilarious results.

The daily grind at the press office & the attitudes of the police are captured in the pages of the novel.One feels that one must join the press or the police as they both are full of action....always on the move.There is never a dull moment.Of course ,there are risks and yet one feels the adrenalin rush as we follow the story.

There is a dreaded kidnapper Babloo Shankar & his girlfriend.That he has arrived in India is a rumour or is it true ? Abhishek is unsure & yet he knows, this will make front news.

Abhishek joins television & is soon disillusioned.How does he make up for it ? Will he shine like when he was in the press ? Is Samir Saxena able to pacify Abhishek to continue his tint with television ?

Is Babloo Shankar in India ? If so ,what is on his mind ? Why is the police not doing anything to arrest Babloo Shankar if he is in India ?

The protagonist Abhishek Dutta is vulnerable like all of us & still takes risks .So the reader is with Abhishek & we want him to be the winner.Does Abhishek win though he is a commoner &  without a godfather ? What happens to Babloo ? Does Abhishek return to the Press or  continues with the television  industry with its obsession with TRPs & little else ?

There is some underlying humour in the story like crores of rupees packed in a cheap suitcase which just confirms that Indians only can resort to such ideas...the bag may give away anytime ! Why waste money on a suitcase ...so what if crores are put in it ? The author's statements spoken through his characters makes one think though they  may be politically incorrect.The corruption at the Commonwealth games finds mention in the novel .So also terrorism ,shootouts,shooters,corruption for visas,driving licenses & the like.A novel rooted in present day Bharat. Especailly Delhi,the rajdhani of India.

The saga makes it clear that the press & the television are addicted with stories which  get maximum readership & viewings.So they will go to any  extent  to achieve that.Though sometimes,they are forced to stop or retreat for obvious reasons.

I would recommend this book to all who want to read a good thriller.I was egged on by the writing to read more & more pages of the book.An engrossing read....quite real.

This blog post  is for IndiBlogger  book reviews.