On my first day in Mumbai I picked out a Bollywood film soundtrack to get myself into the spirit of India. Perhaps its a superficial part of Indian culture, but its one that quickly appealed to me. I picked the soundtrack based purely on the packaging - it was very over-the-top in a Harlequin sort of way, which made me nostalgic. The back cover featured the star, Shah Rukh Khan, and his 8 pack of abs, and well, I was mesmerized. Farah's cousin Zarik informed me that the film it was based on, 'Om Shanti Om', was crap, but that I might like the music. Over the next couple days, I forced Farah to endure the cd non-stop while we were in our hotel room and conscious, and by the end of the week I was singing the title song, 'Om Shanti Om' under my breath as we shopped our way through Mumbai. And my boyfriend, Mr. Khan? It turns out he's India's #1 star, and he makes gobs of money on endorsements, so while we were stuck in traffic in the back of taxis I could admire him from multiple billboards around the city. I'm conflicted however, now that I'm at the ashram. Apparently 'Om' means universal consciousness and 'shanti' means 'peace'. We end yoga class and chanting sessions with the chant 'Om shanti, shanti, shanti'. And while I try to concentrate and be all pure like I'm supposed to be, I'm usually giggling to myself and thinking about Mr. Bollywood's abs. I mean, I could be wrong, but I don't think lusting over abs is going to help me reach another level of consciousness.
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