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Parvati M. Krishnan

@parvatimk

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Traveller, singer, image consultant, writer... 6'2" and very cuckoo… Ever the optimist

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Vrat is the intrepid traveler of the two of us, and the one who usually finds places that no one else knows about. This time, I took him somewhere he’d never heard of, and I watched Mandawa work its slow magic on him.
All the way there, my eyes kept looking out of the window. The little hillocks of the Aravallis rose along the horizon. Camels crossed the scrubland. Shrubs and dust and open sky, and the first hint of the desert. We stopped at a highway dhaba and had the best dal bati churma I’ve ever eaten.
Then came the arches. Above every doorway, a story painted by hands long gone. Kings and processions, women in their finery, men in British hats, ordinary mornings kept safe on a wall for 200 years. Some faded, some restored, all of them still speaking.
I slept in a room that had stood for centuries and felt lucky and a little scared. We ate Ker Sangri, Gatte ki Sabzi and Laal Maas, every plate a celebration. Music and a puppet show found us in the evenings. But the stars of the weekend were the havelis themselves, the doorways, and everything they led us into. The families who still call these havelis home welcomed us so warmly, and I was humbled. To wake up every day inside this beauty, to belong to it. I’ll admit I was envious.
Step through one of these doorways and the noise fades away. Everything that dulls the now disappears, and the present finally shines bright. You walk out lighter, softer, richer than you went in.
Thank you, Mandawa, for a beautiful weekend.

#Mandawa #Shekhawati #Rajasthan #HaveliStories #IncredibleIndia LongWeekend by @parvatimk

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9 days ago

A year ago on my birthday, everything was uncertain. I couldn’t see out of my left eye, and I feared the doctor would tell me I’d never be able to see again, or drive again.
A year later today, I stand here, no longer a critical case, my vision returning, and healing every day. I’m not the same person I was on my birthday last year. I’m stronger. I’m happy. And I have accepted myself. I landed on my feet, and I’m choosing every single thing I do — because it’s mine.
To everyone who showed up for me, I can’t thank you enough. And to those who chose to hit me while I was down, thank you too. You made me unbreakable.
This is my time.

Thank you for all the wishes. 🎂

All pictures by my best friend and the love of my life @vratbaghel

🧿 by @parvatimk

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a month ago

Mum and I were last here for Maiji’s 80th. Whole family together, the Taj, one big loud celebration. Dad was ten when he was here last, sixty years ago. Vrat’s been here so many times he basically knows it like home. And somehow all of that collided into one random weekend.

I called Vrat on Tuesday morning and threw a tantrum. By Friday we were on the road with my parents, who almost never say yes to spontaneous plans. But they did. Happily. Still can’t get over that.

Didn’t see the Taj up close this time, just from Agra Fort, and honestly that was enough. We did go back to the same place we’d had Maiji’s birthday lunch all those years ago. Full circle, completely by accident.

Then Vrat basically took over and showed us his Agra. Parathas at Ram Babu. Bedai, jalebi, sabzi at Deviram — one of the best mornings, hands down. And Itmad-ud-Daulah at sunset, the best part of the whole trip honestly. Just quiet, golden light, and the most intricate stonework I’ve seen in a while. We ate like it was our job. No regrets.

The drive down was old Bollywood, full volume, and yes we sounded good. Two days of just being together. Talking, eating, remembering, no agenda.

Back in Delhi now. Full stomachs, fuller everything. by @parvatimk

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2 months ago

Birthdays, selfies, family, friends, happiness, laughter, love…

🧿 by @parvatimk

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2 months ago

Some time back, I did something I never thought I’d have the guts to do: I quit my job. Nothing lined up, no plan, just the decision to take a break because I needed one, more than I’d ever needed anything.

It started with a trip to Bali. And the moment I got back, I realised something about myself — I can’t function without a goal of some sort, that’s just how I’m wired. So I gave myself a new one: crochet, 6-8 hours a day. I took my dog to his Nani’s house and we spent days just crocheting and chilling with my parents. I bugged @vratbaghel endlessly, threw a few tantrums, rewatched every show on my list twice over.

And somewhere in all that unstructured time, I found exactly what I needed — space to heal, to accept myself, to breathe without anxiety running the show. This week, I went back to work. It feels a little different, in the best way. Let’s see where this chapter takes me… by @parvatimk

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4 months ago

A year-plus of eye surgeries has taught me patience and tested my positivity like never before. No flights. No risks. No bumps to the head, no tripping, nothing that can undo everything my eyes have been through. For a long time, a proper trip felt like it belonged to a version of me that was far away.
But then came Bali.
And Vrat.
He planned this entire trip around what I could and couldn’t do — and I mean every detail — and still made it feel like the fullest, most beautiful experience. We saw so much. We went slowly, carefully, joyfully. I got on a 9-hour flight and felt grateful instead of scared. I stood in places I’d only ever imagined being at — this is what you heal towards. Moments like these.
Bali with the love of my life, after the toughest year of my life. I couldn’t have dreamed it better.

PC @vratbaghel by @parvatimk

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5 months ago

Totoshi turned five this week.

We can only aspire to love him as much as he loves us.

Thank you for everything my sweet potato pumpkin pie. Mumma loves you. And so does Papa (he just doesn’t know how to tell you).

To showers of biscuits, chicken and bonu. Not to forget dozens of lizards and birdies to chase.

My sweet Totsie Pie ❤️❤️❤️

God bless you. by @parvatimk

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6 months ago

Every once in a while, we have a performance in which the crowd and the artists thrive off each other’s energy. Yesterday was one such evening. People who were there for the love of the music - chatty and interactive, yet respectful and non-intrusive. We started slow; But then the music flowed, and then it flew, and then it soared. The instrumentalists and the vocalist were in their element - wandering off into impromptu explorations. It was sometimes rough around the edges, but never not fun!
@adityaddutt finally decided to show off with an edgy solo; every crash of the cymbal a story in itself.
@shubh.vai ‘went off’ and tugged at quite a few heartstrings too in the process.
@vatsal.bakhda was into lab experiments, thrashing out funky sounds on the fly.
@tanishabhatnagar tied it all together with her restrained brilliance, sprinkling stardust all over.
@parvatimk , as she always does, ate and left no crumbs - dropped jaws all across the room.

We performed Jazz, Pop, Rock and a combination of all three; Bollywood made a guest appearance too for good measure. Three hours, four languages, five musicians and a whole lot of fun.

We are so back 🙂

#parvatilacantante #jazz #soul #music independentmusic taken in The Piano Man Jazz Club by @parvatimk

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6 months ago

I didn’t realise I had stopped looking at my face in the mirror. That’s how quietly it happens - you just stop.
After the surgeries, I have just focussed on surviving each day. My left eye sees the world differently now, and somewhere along the way, I decided it was easier not to look too closely. At mirrors. At cameras. At photographs of myself.
Vrat has been patient with me in ways I don’t always have words for. He photographs me when we travel, says things that are too specific to be flattery, and has gently, stubbornly refused to let me disappear from my own life. The last few months have involved a lot of quiet introspection on my part too - some uncomfortable, some surprisingly tender.
We’re in Jaipur this long weekend. Today, he took these as we explored Nila House.
When he sent them to me, I just looked at them. I didn’t zoom in. I didn’t start cataloguing. I just thought - I look great.
I’m not sure I fully understand yet how significant that is. But I’m writing it down anyway, so I don’t forget that today, it felt a little easier to be myself. taken in NILAHouse by @parvatimk

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6 months ago

Two weeks ago, @vratbaghel invited his friend @sandhyaasuri - a retired naval officer and one of the warmest people I’ve met - for dinner. Over the meal, she mentioned a friend of hers in Delhi. Amit. A sound engineer and curator. She thought we should meet.
So when Sandhya came back to Delhi, she invited Vrat, Totoshi and me for dinner at Amit’s home. It was Totoshi’s first dinner outing and I’ll admit I was a little nervous - about how he’d feel, how he’d behave in a new place with new people. But the moment we walked in, something about the home - and about Amit himself - put us all at ease. Warm, beautiful space. Older gentleman. He had a familiar quality about him. Reminded me of my Mama’s friends somehow. I asked him if he’d ever worked at Jazz Yatra.
He had. Years ago. And he knew my Mama and Uncle very well. Hadn’t seen them in years. I put them on the phone at once, and listened to them swap old memories and laugh. When the phone came back to me, Mama mentioned there was a tea connection as well. So I called my mother @indianchaistories
Nothing could have prepared me for what she told me.
When I was one month old - one month - Amit and his brother had travelled down to the tea estates for a holiday, to visit a friend who shared a bungalow with my parents. While they were there, my grandfather in Delhi passed away suddenly. My parents needed to fly back immediately for the last rites. Amit and his brother gave up their own flight tickets so my parents could go.
I had heard this story my whole life. About the two kind men who gave up their seats. I never knew their names.
I was sitting across from one of them.
We both had tears in our eyes. Thirty-eight years had passed. Totoshi, blissfully unaware of all of it, had been an absolute sweetheart all evening - charming everyone, perfectly at ease, as if he too somehow knew this was a home worth trusting.
Some evenings just hold more than they were supposed to.

All photos by Sandhya, none with her unfortunately :( by @parvatimk

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6 months ago

January was meant to be the beginning of healing — a fresh start after all the ups and downs of the previous year. I began the year wanting to rebuild my confidence, to venture beyond the safe haven I’ve built with Vrat and Totoshi, to discover who I am in this new reality: the way I look now, the way I see, the way I’m perceived, and how I carry the insecurities that come with my health.
When the monthly checkup brought news that my good eye — the one I depend on — also needed surgery, everything could have unraveled. But I chose differently. I stuck to my intentions. I went out. I met friends, made new ones, spent precious time with family. And somewhere between the fear and the living, I realized something beautiful: Vrat, Totoshi, and I, we’re truly a family now. We’ve found our rhythm.
January taught me that healing isn’t about waiting for everything to be perfect. It’s about showing up anyway, holding onto hope, and discovering that even in uncertainty, love creates a home that holds you steady.
Here’s to the year ahead. 🤍

#aboutme by @parvatimk

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8 months ago

🧿 🧿 🧿

Almost two years together, several more to go…

#nomush #love #longdistancerelationship #instatravel #anniversaries #nonazarplease🧿🪬❤️ #loveofmylife by @parvatimk

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a year ago