Tel Maalish/Chumpi is Hindi for an "head oil massage".

It's an Indian tradition to go to your neighborhood barber to get an oil massage, even if you don't need one! Since the last two weeks have been kind of stressful for me I decided to get myself one.

Now usually, I get one with my haircut and since I'm feeling all horrid after a haircut I never really got to enjoy one as I would normally have, but today I realized what it was all really about.

To an outsider it just seems like your paying someone to hit you, but pressure in the right amounts at the right places just does all the right things.

All the stress from my shoulders and neck is gone, my nose hasn't been this open since I was 2. My head feels cool and I pretty much think I can take on the world, that part's not very different from the usual me but hey, this feels nice :-)

My advice to anyone and everyone is, go get yourself a chumpi, for in the words of the man with the smiling face himself.

"Is chumpi mein bade bade gun,
Lakh dukho ki ek dawa hai,
kyu na azmaye,
Kahe ghabraye,
Kahe ghabraye"