My latest book is The One Who Swam With The Fishes.

"A mesmerizing account of the well-known story of Matsyagandha ... and her transformation from fisherman’s daughter to Satyavati, Santanu’s royal consort and the Mother/Progenitor of the Kuru clan." - Hindustan Times

"Themes of fate, morality and power overlay a subtle and essential feminism to make this lyrical book a must-read. If this is Madhavan’s first book in the Girls from the Mahabharata series, there is much to look forward to in the months to come." - Open Magazine

"A gleeful dollop of Blytonian magic ... Reddy Madhavan is also able to tackle some fairly sensitive subjects such as identity, the love of and karmic ties with parents, adoption, the first sexual encounter, loneliness, and my favourite, feminist rage." - Scroll



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4 May 2005

If I could fall, into the sky, do you think time would pass me by?

I want someone to sing to me.
I want them to sing with love-infused voices, melodies full of cliches. Like Yellow. Or More Than Words. Or Deep Inside Of You. Or Iris. Or even *blush* Your Body Is A Wonderland.
And they can't just end with singing to me either. They have to really mean what they're saying. They have to think that this song, by this artist, was written just about me, about us and they are the only people to think that way. I want someone to serenade me, and if he has a bad voice, he can settle for just playing the song and turning to me and saying, "I always think of you when I hear this."

I want a Cosmo ad relationship.
I want to be part of the kind of couple who wear fisherman's sweaters and cup each other's faces. The kind that laugh really loudly on a fancy red leather sofa. Or have perfect hands entwined, with diamonds. Or wash each other's hair, our golden retriever looking bemused in the background.

I want someone to go to a party with.
I want to go to the party together, even if we don't spend the entire evening joined at the hip. I want to be able to look across a crowded room and see him and feel happy. I want someone to feel the same way. And at the end of the party, or when I get tired or very drunk, I want someone to put their arm around my waist and say, "Let's go home." And I want it to be one home--mine and his.

I want someone to travel with.
I want to be able to look like intrepid backpackers---tired, but sharing a cigarette, stopping off at small tea stalls on our way up to the hills to drink steaming hot cups of tea. I want to walk with them in the mountains, or dabble toes with them in the sea. I want exotic evenings with candlelight and fancy food and I want a plush hotel room, or a cheap one, with a big bed and I want to be able to cuddle with someone and go to sleep.

I want someone to do the crossword with.
I want to sit across him in a coffee shop and do the crossword. I want for him to always have a pen. I want to get excited about getting the word right. I want to be able to debate fiercely about the clues. And when we do solve the whole thing, I want someone to be happy with, someone to hug or say, "All right!" and I want for us to exit, arm in arm, like shiny happy people.

I want a cliche.

27 comments:

  1. And while you are at it, I guess you can pick up the unicorn and take it home on the magic carpet, along with the pixies and elvish maidens ;)

    Sorry, couldn't help myself.

    'Tis a lovely post, 'tis what I want her to be and it most definitely is what I aspire to provide. If you ever do make it happen, do let me know ;)

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  2. Good luck!! Hope you do find your perfect man :)

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  3. Doesnt "Yellow" have allusions to a cocaine addiction?... "I drew a line for you"... hardly cliched.

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  4. Thats beautiful! I really like reading your blog....and this just has to be my favorite post, seems like I thought of it myself :)

    Wish it comes true!

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  5. Having someone to attend parties with, or go backpacking with, or do the crossword with - all that sounds great. But someone who cups my face and insists that we wash each other's hair... well, that would totally freak me out. I think.

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  6. That, my dear Watson, would be a very nice cliche! I have it. Well, sorta. We don't do crosswords togeher or share bidis - oops! Cigarettes. Neither do we wash each other's hair. Though I do remember, my huband painted my toenails once when I was VERY pregnant and couldn't see, or reach, my own feet....

    Come to think of it - it is a very different cliche :P But all the best to you. May you find yours soon!

    Can I borrow one thing to dream of, from yours? Diamonds!!!(hehehe)

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  8. Oh! And I forgot something - my husband (back then, my best friend) once gave me Lionel Ritchie's "Hello" and told me to listen to it and to call him the moment I was done. When I did, he said "This is what I wanted to say to you". THAT is how he proposed :D Needless to say, that is my favorite song in the www.

    You'll get your song too - good things come to those who wait.

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  9. Beautiful post! Brought back so many happy memories.

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  10. Living in times when all people do is 'kill the cliche'. It was nice reading your post.

    You quite the 'wordsmith lady'!

    Cheers!

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  11. Vignesh: If I had a unicorn, I'd RIDE it, no? :)

    AD: Thanks. I certainly hope so too.

    fingeek:Y'know, I never thought of it that way! Shit, but you're probably right!

    sml:Thanks. I love it when new people comment :)

    Jay: c.l.i.c.h.e. What part of that didn't you get? ;)


    GettingThere:Awwwwwwwww at the 'Hello' part.
    That is SO sweet. Hmph, now I'm jealous :P

    Rohan: Thanks for stopping by, too :) And cliches should totally be embraced!

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  12. I want the exact same things..We should hook up..

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  13. Wow! I do a lot of these with my wife. :)) We do crosswords together, though I can never compete with her. We drink coffee every morning before she leaves for office. We drink together in evenings, just the two of us, while we watch TV (she likes vodka, I prefer beer). We travelled a lot together too. Cool, I think we are a swell couple. :)))))))

    You'll find someone when the time comes. Soon.

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  14. The sad thing is when you get USED to all the coffee and crosswords and cuddling on sofas. Ewwwwwww now I feel like a killjoy! :-)

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  15. first of all i'm a huge fan of your writing, so i'll join the club and get in line i suppose, and secondly its really odd that you chose to write about this because i just finished a book called "he's just not that into you" and all the things men do wrong, and i want this fantasy (i'll be a fluff ball and not call it a cliche !)more than ever.
    inshallah, i hope you get yours

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  16. Isn't this what anyone would wish for?
    Top on my list would probably be:
    I want to be able to look across a crowded room and see him and feel happy. I want someone to feel the same way.


    Nice post.. :-) .. And hope ur wishes come true..

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  17. hey! u need somebody to celebrate randomness with? ;-)

    read ur last post on randomness. was pretty much convinced that therez nothing more to life than randomness. :-))

    and hey! u want a cliche? well, here's one of the best truisms i've ever heard/read. its by our beloved Gabo (Gabriel Garcia Marquez) - "Fuck nature, twice over"... profound, isn't it? think abt it.

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  18. Very nice. Would your cliche include someone to
    (a) rub your feet at the end of a hard day
    (b) always know where the cheque-book / keyring / invitation card to tonight's dinner is
    (c) put your book and glasses away and turn out the light because you're always the one who falls asleep first
    (d) wake you with a cup of tea when the maid's on leave
    (e) sort out the hassles with the credit card call centre even though it takes all 600 of them for a Mensa IQ
    (f) remind you of your mother's birthday and parents' anniversary so you do NOT get a guilt trip for the next 11 years
    (g) call you in office at 2 p.m. just to say the baby's fine and "I'm missing you"

    Or maybe you'll find THIS cliche a few years down the line.

    J.A.P.

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  19. Well

    1. One does not ride a unicorn. One pats it gently and uses it to perform feats of great magical prowess. At worst, one rides it on a featherbed.

    2. And even if you were cruel enough to consider riding the unicorn, one look at the zippy little magic carpet, embossed with nice pinks and blues would change your mind.

    But we digress... looks whos getting fans by the flockful... the next time you even start about comment counting...

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  20. Babe, I don't even know if you'll see this in your avalanche of feedback.

    I want the cliche too.

    When I find it, I'll post it on my blog. And I'll remember that you believed it too.

    (Hugs)

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  21. Loved your post! :)

    And if it sounds cliched, I want my cliche too! :)

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  22. Goodness what a lovely, lovely lot of people :) Yay!

    Manish: Thanks. I hope so too

    Addict: Hmmm.. that sounds like an interesting story! Tell more :)

    Satya: Fine then :) But I can still hope can't I?

    Anurag: What can I say? You're probably one of those lucky, lucky people who HAS their cliche.

    motheater: Rub it in, why don't you? :P

    Ashanka: Thanks! And I LOVED that book, I think I blogged about it way back in December, if you're interested :)

    Arun: That was my favourite part too. I hope you find your cliches as well :)

    Mandat: Hmm.. not exactly sure what the Marquez quote's relevancy was in this context, but okay! :)

    J.A.P: Can I call you Al? ;) Anyway, those are pretty good cliches too, but tea in bed and maidservant type fantasies aren't really where I'm at right now! The massages sound good though... hmmm.. you write as if form experience, do you have all this?

    Vignesh: All I'm going to say to you is :P

    The Box: Thanks! And I wish you had enabled access to your profile so I could check out your blog too :)

    Primalsoup: Thank you, thank you :) I hope we ALL find our cliches, or the closest we can get anyway!

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  23. My husband is a Beatles/Paul McCartney fan and he (my husband) also happens to be a great guitar and piano player. He wanted to play "Baby I'm Amazed" at our wedding and, not having ever having listened to the song, I nixed the idea. It wasn't until I read the lyrics that I realized what a sweetheart he was for even suggesting it.

    I love your post because it shows that it doesn't take the grand gestures to melt your heart (and mine).

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  24. Hey even I want a Cosmo add relationship.

    Call me!

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  25. Ok. Then what?
    Sorry, one of the been there, done that types. Hence, now what?

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  26. Mint: Thanks for that story. Grand gestures are NOTHING compared to the small things.

    fazli: If you're still reading this, hello! Ooh, Kosova! Yay! (This makes me so much more exotic than the US, though I'm deeply ashamed to say, I'm not very sure where Kosova is!) (Geography never was my strong point)

    Jugular: Hehehehe.. I would if you lived in Delhi ;) Do you?

    Anumita: Happily ever after I guess. Since I'm NOT a been-there-done-that person, I can't tell you what happily ever after is.

    Ooh, I think this is a comment RECORD! I'm sooooo excited!

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