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Title - The Chennai Killings Author - Chital Mehta Genre - Suspense/Thriller(Fiction) Publisher - Quignog ISBN - 978-93-87004-21-4 To start with, I liked the cover page which immediately piqued my interest to grab this book. The title kind of gave me as to what content I could expect from this book. Though the story was progressing the way I guessed until the 3/4th of the story, things took a different turn after that. There was an unexpected angle which adds more power to the story. The way Chital handled the story, would make the reader fall in love with the story, instantly. Story begins with a gruesome murder of Sandhya. CID Vikram Rathi gets assigned this case. He tries to untangle the secrecy by connecting each and every clue/evidence he gets from the case but before he could zero in on the murderer, he finds some connect with his deceased sister,Priya. While Sandhya's father almost zeroes in on the murderer, he too gets killed. Who murdered Sandhya? Who ...

This is a must visit if you’re visiting Chennai irrespective of your age. The property is next to the ICF(Integral Coach Factory) in New Avadi Road. It has ample space for parking your 2/4 wheelers. I was there today & witnessed could of school buses & couple of college buses as well. For kids, it was an excursion but for the college students, it was an industrial visit. They charge ₹50 for adults as an entry & ₹15 for kids (per person). For adults, you’re also entitled for a snack(Samosa) or drink(Tea/Coffee) which is prices at ₹10. They have massive halls which exhibits their products and the evolution of Indian railways. They also have a Park where kids can play. Water & Toilet facilities are also available. Do not miss taking the ride on a toy train which is fee of cost. It goes inside a small tunnel as well apart from taking you around the property which will last for 2-3 minutes. There is also a fully air conditioned movie theatre which sh...

Absolute Barbecues   is hosting the #AbsoluteSamayal #ChettinadFoodFestival which will go on till 8th March 2020. They have separate menu for both - Veg & Non-Veg. For the veggies who are skeptical about visiting the outlet, please note that they use separate vessels to store, wash & cook the dishes. Their quality is top class without any doubt & this was the first time I visited their Porur outlet and was quite impressed. The theme was colourful as you could see the interiors. The dishes were very many. We were given the starters - Cutlets, Fried Corn & most importantly the grilled fruits, paneer, prawns, fish & chicken apart from Sheekh. There is a soup and welcome drink as well. Apart from this, they also served the mandatory Chicken Leg Piece, Chettinad Darbar Wings. I had limited quantity as I wanted to taste their main course. There was fried rice apart from Seeraga Samba Chicken Rice. Though the rice looked over cooked, the taste was sur...

HELO is the leading app in Social Media category. At the moment, it has over 50 million active users making it one of the fastest growing brands. They have commenced a channel for 7 Cities in Tamilnadu so far which includes Chennai – they have 2 here namely Chennai Local and Chennai Tech Tamil, Vellore, Trichy, Thoothukudi, Kanyakumari and Coimbatore . The first ever meet up was held on 22 nd Feb 2020 at Sri Vaari Party hall A/C in Kolathur. Around 20 creators took part in the event. The event was hosted by MJF Ln Sarath Babu S, Secretary and VP Designate for HELO Chennai Creators Club (Local).   The special guest for the day was Ms.Janani Senthil of Visag and Thapi Spa, Chetpet. After welcoming all the invitees who were popular YouTube creators like Pakoda Boyz, Nanga Romba Busy, Portent Vlogger, Madras Vlogger etc., the Secretary spoke about his experience and how he developed his profile in HELO. He also encouraged others to share their experience and answered...

If you like going on road trips, there’s one you should consider! It’s a road trip from the city of Bangalore to Thekkady. Bangalore, capital of Karnataka, is a hub for software engineers, a city known for its never-ending traffic jams and breezy weather. On the other hand, Thekkady is a place situated in the district of Idukki in the state of Kerala. It is renowned for its lush green landscape that will make you feel close to nature, calm waters of the lake and scenic beauty. These are three things from a list of endless things that define the beautiful place Thekkady. Not only that, but Thekkady is also known for the Periyar Tiger Reserve. Thekkady shares its borders with two states, namely Kerala and Tamil Nadu. It is known for attracting tourists from all over India and different parts of the world due to its exotic flora and fauna. If you love relishing different kinds of food and pleasing your taste buds, Thekkady will not disappoint you in any manner. You will find eating ...

Title - Assalamualaikum Watan Author - Sanjay Khan Genre - Non-Fiction(True Accounts) Publisher - FingerPrint Publishing ISBN - 978-9389717-334 The title Assalamualaikum Watan by Sanjay Khan is certainly a catchy one. Firstly, I loved the cover since it had his picture with the Indian flag in the background. I had a hint of what the contents of the books with the title and the author. I was not wrong. The book talks in great detail about the Muslim community and their contribution to India and the World. If you ever had any wrong perception/notion about them, it would change for sure, after reading this book. I have always lived with Muslim neighbors, friends and tenants in my surrounding and hence they were an integral part in my life. Author is very clear with his intentions. He wanted to be a messenger of Social, Moral and Ethical ideals. He shows the stark reality about the meagre representation of Muslims in the Lok Sabha which is pegged at 4.95% in 2019. I ...

Title - Our Love Story Author - Rohit Sharma Genre - Fiction(Romance) Publisher - Finger Print Publishing ISBN - 978-9389717-433 The book is nothing short of a pure love story which is weaved with emotions and emotions alone.The writing style was so lucid and the flow was flawless. I initially thought about mentioning couple of pages - Pg no 64 and 65 as I found it appealing but the pages that followed later were equally good. Hence there is no specific mention about any pages, whatsoever. The story has a great potential to be made into a movie. The start was a bit slow but yes, you cannot expect anything from a romantic story which usually take its time to gather pace and momentum. After the first few pages, you would feel like getting grabbed into the book by the two major characters - Aditya Bakshi aka Adi and Veronica Johnson aka VJ. They meet at an unusual place and an instant spark happens. Adi was from an affluent family whereas VJ has come to Mumbai to join th...

Below are some of the places you may consider visiting. Ooty bus stand: This is the place you need to be, if you wanted to travel to Coonoor,Kothagiri or to other parts of Tamilnadu. The bus stand is very neatly maintained. There is a shade with enough number of chairs which you can use to take rest until your bus arrives. This is a no litter zone. Usage of plastic is also banned in Ooty. So, please be aware as it attracts fine. Toy train: Traveling from Ooty to Mettupalayam or Coonoor to  Mettupalayam is something you shouldn’t miss it. It costs just ₹100 + taxes for Reserved compartment. 2 people can sit in a row. There are two rows. You can get a nice view on either sides.  Travel time is close to 2.5 hours. You would enjoy the scenic beauty of the hills & valleys coupled with tunnels & falls.  The train will stop in one place for the water to be filled up since it’s a Steam Engine.  Kids will thoro...

Day 3 was more adventurous since we visited the highest peak in South India.Do I need to say the name? Doddabetta The highest peak in South India. This is located in Ooty. It is accessible only through Share Auto/Auto/Car/Jeep/2 Wheeler. Govt bus which goes to Kothagiri drops you in the bottom of the hill. You are not allowed to trek since it is a Reserve Forest. It is 2.5kms from the bottom. Share jeeps are available there who would charge you ₹70 per person. They take upto 10 people at a time.  They have a telescope on the top through which you can view the city. Entrance fee of ₹20 per person is charged (for adults). On the entrance, you could also see few shops which sells fruits & vegetables. The vegetable salad cup is surely something you wouldn’t want to miss. Govt Rose Garden: A must visit if you’re going to Ooty. Season to visit is between April to May. Otherwise the blooms are scarce. I went during the off season but I was not d...

This is Day 2 of my visit to Ooty. Pine Forest: Pine Forest is one of the tourist spot attractions in Ooty. An entrance fee of ₹10 is charged per person. Many of the movies were shot here. You could get to see some beautiful sceneries here. There is a lake in the end. You can Siena a good hour or two here as it gives fresh breeze and you could click pics in various angles. Wenlock Den 9th mile: This is one of the points you shouldn’t miss when you visit Ooty. It is a shooting spot which has been featured in many Kollywood movies. It can be accessed via a car. You can also travel by 2 wheeler. I have not seen a Govt operated bus plying in this area. The entry fee is ₹20 for the adults(per person). Pykara waterfalls: A must visit place when you visit Ooty. This is located outside Ooty. There is no direct bus to this place. Usually tourists take a cab/bus. You would get to see this place as a part of the tour - It starts with golf tour and is complete w...

I decided to go on a short trip to get myself rejuvenated and hence zeroed in on Ooty. I had stayed in the defence quarters in Aruvankadu. Here is the recap of my Day 1 memories. I have kept it simple for easy understanding. Lambs Rock: It gives some perfect view around Ooty from the top of the hills.  This is one of the main attraction which is located close to Dolphin Nose point. Entrance fee of ₹10 is charged per person. There are 4 places in this which you need to see. The place needs some trekking skills. If you have a heart condition, kindly avoid. Sims park: This is one of the major centre of attraction, if you’re in Coonoor. If you go in the off-season, you may not get to see the variety of flowers. You still wouldn’t regret because the pics I clicked were during the off season. Don’t  they look great?  Entrance fee of ₹10 per person is charged. Dolphin nose: This is a must visit place if you’re visiting Ooty/Coonoor. Y...