“I get a missed call. I know who it is, it would have been a dream come true in the US but here it has become ritual – that call… I have pondered over it several times. It’s surreal – the annoying convenience that we get used to in India. I remind myself to be grateful and not get irritated by that call. I tell myself it’s the call of duty on a silver platter. I am almost guilty to be receiving it.”

The fireworks still explode in the memory, and the taste of nuts and cream and sugar still linger on the tongue. For immigrants from India, the childhood memories of Diwali are strong, for it is a time when India transforms into one glittering celebration. Public buildings are illuminated with neon lights and every home, no matter how humble, is ablaze with earthen lamps. In fact, entire villages are turned into fairylands, dotted with millions of lamps, glowing in the dark of night.

They spin round and round, going faster and faster, but never breaking the sacred circle, as they clap their hands rhythmically, dancing around the Garba or earthen pot. They smile as they twirl around for in these nine nights they are celebrating the Goddess that is enshrined in all of us.

This hugely empowering dance is called the Garba and it is the centerpiece of the celebration of the Hindu festival of Navratri or Nine Nights.

Great music lives on forever, and great artists are never lost. If you look at the Google doodle today, it’s a tribute to the legendary performer Freddie Mercury who died at the age of 45. The doodle opens out into a wonderful video which captures the essence of Freddie Mercury perfectly – check it out!

Mercury, who has been hailed as Britain’s first Asian Rock Star and one of the greatest singers of all time, would have been 65 today. This charismatic performer has a huge fan following all over the world.

He did it! Floyd Cardoz is the new Top Chef Master and has won $1i0,000 to support his favorite charity, the Young Scientist Cancer Research Fund (YSCRF) at the Tisch Cancer Institute at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine.

This grueling competition on Bravo had 12 award winning chefs competing for the title, participating in elimination style challenges. In each episode, money was at stake, and Cardoz, who is the former executive chef/partner of Tabla, pulled it off.

Meet Dr. Neha Sangwan, a young physician based in San Francisco, CA. She has been on the precipice and seen just how traumatic burnout can be. In fact, Neha Sangwan was her own first patient!

“When Bobby Jindal first exploded onto the national scene in 2007, the Indian community was rightfully proud. A boy genius had become the youngest governor in American history at the jaw-dropping age of 36. The subsequent buzz about him being a potential presidential candidate in 2012 made him into an even bigger star. At least for Indians, he was truly the anointed one. That, however, was then.

Cut to 2009 when he delivered an extremely awkward, meandering, ideologically driven Republican response to President Obama’s State of the Union speech. Even people in his own party were disappointed and suddenly there was doubt about Jindal’s readiness for a larger platform.”

– Guest blogger Sanjay Sanghoee

Have you met Radical – I mean – Radhika Vaz? Known as Rad for short, this stand up comic and sketch artist is the mouthpiece for all that women have been dying to say – but were too afraid to, or perhaps too ladylike. Vaz’s new one woman show ‘Unladylike’ takes on everything one would hesitate to discuss in polite company. It’s all about letting your hair down and speaking your mind.

When you are in your adolescence and twenties, you want to do what the norm is. If everyone around you wants to be more Indian, then so do you. If everyone wants to be more American, then so do you. It depends on where you are living, your social experiences and how much impact your family has in shaping your cultural life.

Lassi with Lavina was featured in Global Glam, a lifestyle magazine