Greek God and the Beach !!

Summer is synonymous to heat, sweat, thirst and sun-burns. This is when the friendly winter sunshine transforms into the cruel hot sun rays.

I’ve always wondered why people go for summer holidays, isn’t it best to stay inside our air conditioned homes and escape the torturous sun altogether? That sounds logical to me, not to my long time roommate, Kyra.

She loves summers.

Her favourite month is May. Her favourite colour is Yellow. Her favourite drink is Vodka with Mango juice. Her favourite fruit is Watermelon. I wonder if she had been a Marmot (large squirrel) in an earlier existence where she hibernated all her life and now seeks revenge!

So here was the cause of my irritation. Kyra had planned a beach holiday for the two of us in mid-May this year. I thought she was plain stupid until I saw her happy as a kid jumping on our couch with the tickets in her hand and changed my perception. Nah, she wasn’t stupid, she was simply out of her mind and needed a shrink! I headed straight to my bedroom.

Shortly after our arrival at the resort that afternoon, we were served our welcome drink - fresh Mango juice in a tall slender glass. Needless to say, the Marmot was ecstatic!

The resort was spread across a large area of land, housing two swimming pools, three multi-cuisine restaurants, two spa centres and a recreation club. It had several small cottages surrounded with well-maintained flower beds.

 

To Kyra’s greatest pleasure and my greatest displeasure, the lunch was to be served under a yellow canopy close to the resort’s private beach. I had begun to feel the undercurrent of a plausible pact between the resort guys and Kyra by now.

They wanted me exposed.

I decided to combat the enemy. So I geared up with a full sleeved cotton kurta teamed with full length slacks, a scarf to cover my hair and a pair of funky sunglasses. I am done, I thought.

From the canopy, I could see the enormous blue sea spread like a sparkling magical carpet across endless land, concealing the infinite depths beneath. I could feel the moist breeze across my face. The sound of the waves rising high and then hitting the shore before gushing and retracting was as soothing to my ears as a chant is to a pious man. In a bid to freeze these eternal memories, I closed my eyes and saw the sea again.

Suddenly, I felt someone’s hand grasp mine and pull it with great force. I was annoyed with the abrupt intrusion into my sweet trance. It had to be Kyra.


Next I was standing before this handsome tall man dressed in a colourful Hawaiian shirt and knee length cotton shorts, smiling at me. My brain did a quick face recognition exercise and suddenly I found myself fumbling for words. I looked at Kyra with absolute bewilderment.

After a brief stint of turning deaf and dumb, I could hear Kyra introduce me to Adityaa, the new brand ambassador for her company. I was utterly shocked to say the least.

This guy was a renowned celebrity, a heart-throb for all young girls across the country and here he stood before me at a lunch party in a beach resort, ready for a conversation. Collecting my thoughts and myself, I greeted him and expressed my pleasure of meeting him in person.  

Kyra was super excited about her new assignment with Adityaa. She spoke about the new product – Lakme Sun Expert at length. Adityaa had few questions:

Adityaa: Why did the company choose a man to advertise what is known to be a woman’s preferred product?

Kyra: The campaign would bring about awareness amongst people that sunscreen is more than a cosmetic product and is a requirement for everyone, not just women. Plus it would make us stand out amongst our competitors, who usually have women endorsing their products.

Adityaa: What is different in your product range?

Kyra: The new Lakme sunscreen range offers broad spectrum sunscreen that gives up to 97% protection from harmful sun rays and deep skin damage. The sunscreen ranging from SPF 24 to 50, includes sunscreens for dry, oily and normal skin.

Adityaa looked satisfied. I was happy to learn about this new sunscreen too and couldn’t wait to try it. Using Lakme sun expert translated to freedom from scarves and full sleeves for me. I would be free as a bird this summer I thought!

After an interesting conversation, we parted and I made my way to the ice cream counter close to the swimming pool. With my Rum-Raisin ice cream in one hand, I was hastily typing a message to my friend describing my encounter with a celebrity.


Suddenly my step felt incomplete, I could sense no ground. Next I found myself plummeting deep into water. I couldn’t configure what had happened and felt badly panicked. Engrossed with messaging, I had misjudged my step and fell straight into the swimming pool.

Unable to shout, I moved my hands and legs frantically in a bid to escape drowning. I didn’t know how to swim and thought I would die. There was movement in the water and I could sense someone swimming towards me with great strides, after which there was a complete blackout.

When I regained consciousness, I found myself in my hotel room surrounded with a lot of people.

My head was reeling and I could hardly open my eyes. Right then I heard a familiar voice. It was Kyra thanking Adityaa profusely for saving my life! I opened my eyes and found Adityaa standing next to Kyra, drenched from head to toe, smiling down at me. He saved my life; Goodness me, the Greek God himself! I felt a spell of unconsciousness engulf me again and I could not resist.

I don’t know how long I remained unconscious. My sleep was finally hindered by the relentless buzzing of my cell phone. With my eyes still closed, I thanked God for saving my phone in spite of dropping into the pool.

Reluctantly I picked up the phone; it was Kyra at the other end. She wanted to know if I was ready for the Goa trip and would reach the airport in time. I went cold and silent, my eyes wide open now. ‘And one other thing’, she said, ‘don’t forget to carry your Lakme Sunscreen!’

The trip is yet to happen. And I eagerly await the tryst with the Greek God ;)

***

This post is part of the Lakme Diva Blogger Contest http://www.indiblogger.in/ /topic.php?topic=55 Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/ilovelakme

Picture credit: twoheartstogether.com; balistarisland.com; apartmentpoolparty.com; naturewallpaper.tk; 123rf.com; zdnet.com