Features - Comfortably Numb

Comfortably Numb

Sheila Kumar's Storehouse

Feature: Weber : Licensed to grill!

Licensed to grill! When Manu Chandra cooks, the world (happily) eats. And now it transpires that when Manu Chandra talks, the world eagerly listens. And so it was that Weber Grills hit upon a brilliant idea: of having this uber-chef tell people all about the finer points of grilling. Which was how people gathered at…

Feature: Privacy in a Marriage: Walking That Thin Line

Marriage: Walking that thin line If marriage is a sacred bond between two people, then just how much of it should leak into what can be termed the public space? Stripped of its inessentials, marriage really is a relationship between two people. They choose each other as life partners; vow to see each other through…

Feature: Go Get A New Face!

Go get a new face! In an extension of the look good, feel good, reap good philosophy, young men and women are going under the plastic surgeon’s knife quite heedlessly. One almost wishes this could be dismissed as some crazy one-off fad. But it isn’t. Reports from at least two of India’s metros, Mumbai and…

Feature: The Treasure That is Tai Chi

People the world over are turning to Tai Chi, an ancient Chinese martial art form, because of its immense health benefits. Let me confess at the very outset: I had always considered Tai Chi to be an exercise for those who had crossed the silver threshold. As I hovered around that very threshold, I joined a…

Feature: There Are Army Wives and Then There Are Army Wives

Throwing a bad fit There is an awkward silence. The small group of women gathered for a coffee morning is staring at one woman. It is her turn and she is refusing to play the game. The game involves peering hard at a set of white powders (from heaps of powdered sugar, cornflour and maida to…

Feature: When Does Indulgence Run out of a Relationship?

It’s a thin line between tolerance and indulgence. Sheila Kumar parses the issue at hand. A successful relationship often has less to do with the number of things we have in common than with the number of quirks we can tolerate — Okay, the quote is from Cathy Thorne’s cartoon, but, it’s no less pertinent!…

Feature : A Gym in Your Garden

A gym in your garden! Take it from one who has learnt the benefits of gardening in the best way possible: me. Some years ago, I moved into a house up in the Nilgiris that was 102 years old and came with more than a half-acre of garden. There were lawns, flower beds, a…

Feature: Making Love Work for You

Making love work A liberal dose of give and take is what will help a relationship last. Okay, you saw each other across a crowded room, you met, dated, fell in love, not necessarily in that order. And now, the two of you get along superbly. You share ideas, emotions, insights. Except colour-coordinating your clothes,…

Feature: Lift That Chin Up! Shore up Your Self-esteem!

Chin up and stay happy! The key to maintaining healthy self-esteem is the ability to distinguish between a basic sense of one’s worth and one’s reactions to external forces. YOU ARE SPECIAL. Be aware that you have many good things going for you. It doesn’t take much to bring an already fragile sense of self…

Feature: A Temple for Troubled Minds

Faith Fatale The Chottanikkara temple, near Kochi in Kerala, is a place that attracts the mentally disturbed, who seek solace here when all else fails. I’m standing with scores of people facing the closed doors of the Shiva shrine, awaiting darshan. Suddenly, without warning, it starts. A handful of women begin moaning. It is an…