Dove Play Date – IndiBlogger Meet, Mumbai

May 25, 2014
The most important thing is to enjoy your life – to be happy – it’s all that matters.
–Audrey Hepburn


Sitting at work and trying to crack up the mundane life that we all live now, I was just day-dreaming about the days gone by. The days when fun was all that mattered. When we were kids who just liked to have fun and stay HAPPY! Feeling high and nostalgic, I resumed my work..when an email poped up with the subject ‘Dove invites you to play with your hair on 11th May 2014’.
The #DOVEPLAY Invite
De ja vu? Well, everything about this invite seemed exciting except for the part that it was happening in Mumbai; while I put up in Delhi. With disappointment I replied back to the mail saying :
And I told my self “I so wish to have a mini holiday right now.Sigh!”
When I got a reply back saying :
Was I dreaming or what? One simple wish…. and it was granted?
I happily agreed to be a part of this playful meet. At night, I sat down and went through the invite details. One thing that crossed my mind was that this event will be organized in association with Indiblogger. Now Indiblogger meets have always been so much fun. Which is why I was pretty sure that this one is going to be awesome as well. But this event was going to be different. Being a regional meet so far, this one was inviting few female bloggers from other major cities of India as well!
The next level of Indiblogger meets eh?
Image Source
Since my Mumbai itinery was taken care of, my big concern was the dress code: white. I do have a lot of white apparels in my closet, but something absolutely white? Um…nope!
Googled up midi-dress design –> Bought crisp white cloth –> Got it stitched
Tada!
Midi – Dress: Custom Tailored | Belt: Guru Clothing | T-strap flats: Forever21 | Ear Cuff: Colaba (Bought it just a day before the main event)
I was happy with my prep and was super excited about this meet!
I took an early morning flight on 10th May, Saturday; to spend some extra time in Mumbai. My cousin Ila Johari from TFMQ, who puts up in Mumbai was equally excited about the meet. 
Being a blogger, taking photographs throughout your trip is mandatory!
As I shared my travel photographs on facebook, other bloggers commented, telling me that they will be joining me too. Double the enthusiasm, yeah!
I have always been in love with Mumbai. I just need a reason to be there. The moment my plane landed at the Chatrapati Shivaji Terminal, the feeling of being on a mini vacation settled in. I was to meet my cousin at the airport as she too was returning from a work trip to Banglore.
Bloggers love #Selfies! Although we were sleep driven, but wth!
After chilling up for a while, I went out for my Mumbai Darshan. By the end of the day, I literally felt like a zombie, but it was all worth it. Covered the following in just 7-8 hours:
Airport – Powai (Hiranandani) – Colaba – Gateway of India – Marine Drive – Crawford Market – Bandstand – Pheonix Market City (Kurla) – Bandra – Worli Sea Link – Marine Drive – Powai (Cousin’s home)
#DOVEPLAY Indiblogger Meet – 11th May, 2014


My #DOVEPLAY Event Video
I woke up early to prep up perfectly. After all, I had come all the way from Delhi to attend a blogger’s meet. Looking good was a must!
Wore my #OOTD and finished my look with a side – twist hairdo.
On my way to the Dove Event, I met Bhumika from Newlove-makeup and Shanaya from LittleMissSinner. And we 4 girls could not stop anticipating ‘What to Expect’ from #DovePlay event.
Our Venue : JW Marriott, Juhu
Image Source
When we reached the venue, we could see all the beautiful bloggers adorning something white, registering (for the meet – an indiblogger ritual), propping up and getting clicked, taking #DovePlay selfies and munching on some yummy delicacies while chit chatting about what is to come next.
Me and my girls too took up to the shutterbugs and instagrammed et all!
#Instagram #Selfie
To get everybody in the party-playful mood, a large table of props was organized, with a Dove/Indiblogger standee to pose in front of.
 Source : Indiblogger
 Source : Indiblogger
What’s more? They had the facility of getting our photographs instantly printed. Unfortunately, I was so busy catching up with all of my friends and giving interviews that I didn’t get a chance to be a part of this one. Sob Sob!
The entire registration wall was filled with these photographs. We girls could look through the images, spot ours, take it off and keep it with us. How cool is that? |Source : Indiblogger |

Indiblogger Registration Ritual. I have always fancied their way of welcoming the bloggers. Even their registration is so technical. 

Post registeration, our names got displayed on the Indiblogger wall stating that ‘Apurva has walked in’. How cool, right?

This time, the registeration at Indiblogger was much more than usual sign-in-your-email affair. We were all pre-categorized into 12 different teams. Each consisting of 10 girls max. We were handed over different colored badges. Each team had one golden band holder (I was one of them) who was to be the speaker of their team (For interviews) |Source : Indiblogger |

The coolest event plan I have come across till now. It was like we were gearing up for some kind of Lara Croft adventure.

The divine FOOD SPREAD. Not just some exotic cheese platters, but they served Mumbai and other Indian delicacies too. I so wished to try all of them, but the excitement about the event was too overwhelming.

Jyoti Mehra – Samyukta – Me (L-R) |Source : Indiblogger | 
After warming up with some snacks, poses, selfies and greetings, we all settled in the ballroom. The beautiful paper lamps, powder color shades and everything girly was super cute!

Everyone settled with their maps ready for the #DovePlay | Source: Indiblogger |

My dearest team. Team No. 7 | Source: Indiblogger | 


Usually an indiblogger meet starts with random bloggers taking up initiatives to introduce themselves and their blog. But since this meet was going to be everything *playful*, we were encouraged to participate in a different way of introducing ourselves.

This definitely helped us loosen up a little further and get acquainted with our team mates. Little *playful* activities can lead to some super cute moments to cherish later. | Source: Indiblogger |

We were all handed over a badge and a marker, and were asked to compliment the blogger standing right in front of us in one-two words. Imagine someone you have just met, don’t even know her name yet and she compliments you with this! #HappyDance moment.


On a general note, we have Anoop Johnson take up the stage and get the event rolling. But since this was an all girl’s meet, a female host was but obvious. So we had lovely Freisha play host for the evening. 



She was an absolute darling.Got a chance to catch up with her in person, and she adored my earcuff much. Well, as the social media norm is… we ended up clicking a selfie together.

The #DOVEPLAY ZONE
She briefed us on the activities lined up for the evening. We as teams were going to compete against one more team in a variety of games. In the end, the team with the highest scores was going to win spa vouchers.

But before the actual games, one more serious warm up was lined up…. ZUMBA DANCE

Grooving, free – spirited, happy and chirpy, the girls did not shy away from taking off their heels and heating up the ballroom with their Zumba moves. The play date was officially on! | Source: Indiblogger |

We danced to the tunes of Gangnum Style and some Hip-Hop Zumba special numbers. It was easy peasy and by the end of it a lot of us actually got interested in joining Zumba classes. | Source: Indiblogger |

 Hips Don’t Lie 

This one was probably the most difficult competitions of all. Doing Hula hoop is not a child’s play. Unfortunately, none from our team had ever tried doing it. So we ended up googling up some tricks on how-to-do-hula-hoop.
Although the trick was tough, but the fun was unexpectedly electrifying! We had a hearty laugh everytime the hoop dropped down our waist within seconds. Tee hee!

 Puzzle Mania 

Oh, how much I used to love playing puzzles as a kid!
The game: Finish one part of the puzzle in the least possible time. Me and my cousin, having played this game like a manic as a kid, knew that we will be able to crack this one up with ease. And WE WON THIS ROUND.

 Have a Ball 

This one was my personal favorite (because I was the star of the game. #HappyDanceAgain).
This pool of colorful balls included grey Dove balls that we were supposed to pick and throw in a bin that one of our team mates was supposed to hold up at a distance.

We won this game too by collecting approx. 286 balls. Woo hoo! 


 Dove Hairstyle 

The last but the most creative games of all was Dove Hairstyle. We were given a set of 7-8 hairstyles that we had to do on each other in 20 minutes. The catch: Easy Hairstyle twists that we can do on our own.
Having long hair becomes boring if you end up making braids, bun or just a pony-tail. But this activity actually made me realize how easy it is to create fabulous hairdos in less than 5 minutes. Learnt the art of hairstyling and how! | Source: Indiblogger | 
We were told that if we spot a Dove team member and click a photographer with him/her, the entire team will receive some bonus points.
So after all the hard work PLAYING, we were all taken to this grand hall that had giant dressing-table setups and Dove experts waiting to do magic on our hair. 
OH MY GOD! I was absolutely lovestruck with what Nivedita (my stylist) did with my hair. 

A party at thebeach side (JW Marriott, Juhu) is incomplete without cool breeze, drinks and BARTENDING.
 Be The Bartender 
The cocktail expert, explained the essence of mixing up a cocktail the right way. He was also going to judge this last competition.
The game: Create your own signature cocktail with a wide palette of ingredients to choose from. Our team mate created Berry Flirtation. It was a concoction of berry juice, apple juice, vodka and syrup.
Before the winner was announced, the judge showed us some of his bartending skills and mixed up a cocktail drink which was given complimentary to the winner.
Freishia and the judge announcing the winner. The entire team of the winner won gift vouchers worth Rs. 1000/-. Although we did not win this game, but the fun that we had was priceless!

After this beach side bartending – affair, we were taken back to the ball room for the final activity of the evening. Food, Drinks, Dance, Winner declaration and a surprise activity.

 THE PLAY DATE CLIMAX 

Lovely Dove divas performed on the numbers like Happy – Pharell Williams to get everybody in the party mood. There were unlimited drinks, inter-continental food, yummy desserts and lots of frolicking as the event was coming to an end.


Soon, the winning team for the entire series of competitions was announced. Since out of 12 teams only 1 was declared a winner, we were a little disappointment. But Indiblogger is good at keeping the party niche high, which is when they introduced one more competition for the evening.

The Glass Cylinder. The game: Collect as many Dove parchments in the given slotted time as possible. This glass installation reminded me of Marilyn Monroe. Unfortunately I could not volunteer for this game as it was limited to girls who were wearing trousers. But watching the entire game was equally worth it.

This evening turned out to be one of my life’s most cherished moments. Everything about this day will always bring a smile on my face.

You deserve the things you wanted, because you deserve to be happy! – Unknown



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Dove was not yet done making us feel happy. We were all gifted a bag full of goodies to take home and carry on… #DovePlay

Dove Hair Treatment Shampoo + Condition | Philips – Hair Straightener |


As a conclusion, being happy is all about keeping that child in you alive. Stay playful, stay happy; because even keeping your hair healthy & stylish is just a child’s game!


Thank you DOVE & Indiblogger for making all of us feel special and worth it. Now we know… THAT WE CAN PLAY AND KEEP LOOKING BEAUTIFUL!


For those who would like to live up my experience, go ahead and check out Dove Hair Therapy.
Visit the link and learn more about it – http://www.dove.in/en/Products/Hair-Care/Shampoo/Intense-Repair-Shampoo.aspx

Check out how you can love, experiment and play with your hair; the #DOVEPLAY style.

My Experience with Dove Products
Being a blogger, I get exposed to trying out plenty of hair care products. But there is a reason why I end up going to back to DOVE products. Everytime I use Dove Shampoo- Conditioner combo, my hair feels so soft, light, silky and smells heavenly. I have tried a couple of other hair products as well, but none of them give me these type of results.

My favorite Dove Products



Currently Loving from the #Dove campaigns
 The following two initiatives by Dove has simply changed my perspective towards looking at life, actually myself!

A very simple message for all the women across the globe, with a very basic (but genius) concept.

This one bought tears in my eyes. How negative we think about ourselves. We always look upto the beautiful celebrities of the screen and dislike how we look. The way we look at ourselves is actually worth a pity.
After watching this campaign I changed my way of looking at myself.

5 ways to be HAPPY.
1. Free your HEART from HATRED.
2. Free your MIND from WORRIES.
3. Live Simply.
4. Expect Less.
5. Have a deep RELATIONSHIP with GOD & DOVE.
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My #DOVEPLAY Journey in a video. (Click the image or follow this LINK)

This blog post is a part of Dove Play event experience with Indiblogger.