27 Likes and 10 Comments …not good enough! Logged in again after an hour- 60 Likes and 20 Comments….now it seems impressive! My new yellow shoes seem to have finally made an impression- it was worth the price. What next? I visit my Wall. Sweety has adopted a new pug whose name is Tashi, […]
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Month: September 2012
Review: The Lost Flamingoes of Bombay
In Siddharth Dhanvant Shanghvi’s The Lost Flamingoes of Bombay, the protagonist Karan is an outsider who wants to make Bombay his home. How he sees Bombay through his camera lens is what forms the primary plot of the story. The narrative weaves together different characters and incidents which influence Karan’s life. As per the author’s note, the […]
And Then The River..
In the beginning there was the jungle with dark trees grinding the earth with their vengeful roots and sudden fires that even when they were too spent to rage hissed vengefully from ashes. Then a path broke free of the tangled fear and pain and found itself and the light. ** Then there […]
Almost A Thought..
It is just this nebulous, breathy, wispy thought no, not even a thought for thought has contours and edges and a pulse.. this is not even that.. just smoke of Ghalib’s aah Maybe something even more undefined just the beginning of a thought too afraid to know itself or to take a deep breath and say,”I […]
Maybe It Is..
Nothing speaks to me more than a pine tree and its misty breath and a sunflower and its fresh scrubbed face of hope and that moment in time when the evening is a pale rose with its petals around everything even the thought that it is not enough and the thought that maybe it […]
Roopkund: A Walk In The Clouds
They say that if you make the mistake of venturing into the Himalayas even once you are doomed. Because they keep calling you back. Neither pictures, nor words can capture the magnificence of those mesmerising bugyals and towering peaks whose beauty brought tears to my eyes. Hope some of you will read this travelogue and feel […]
Courage Under Fire
Dusk had fallen when short and stocky Lt Col Rajnish Behl, Sena Medal, entered the old stone building with sweeping arches and green ivy climbing up fading brick walls. It used to be a school in British times but was now serving the Army’s need for a Base Hospital. Stepping briskly, he walked down the […]
The Networked..
*** They are everywhere. These new zombie-like creatures, BlackBerrys in hand, earphones in their ears, eyes on the screen and head in the clouds. We have now reached a stage where chalkboards and pens are being replaced with touchscreens and styluses; where iPads are replacing notebooks. Popularity is no longer about how many people know […]
Two Grams Poorer…
Her eyes gleamed brighter than the pretty gold ring shining on her frail finger. She stared at it in shock and awe, examining her finger from different angles and muttering in utter excitement, “This is for me didi? Really! This gold ring is for me?” I nodded with affection, my mind still recoiling from the […]
Heaven On Earth…
There are dozens of places on this planet which stake claim to the coveted appellation ‘Heaven on Earth’. We even have one in the midst of all the so called squalor in India – Kashmir. But this is not a sonnet praising the beauty and serenity of Kashmir; it is a humble offering to […]
Heroine: Unlived And Empty
“Main keh raha hoon, main keh raha hoon, main keh raha hoon!” Everytime I watch a wannabe film on adult relationships..I remember this Kulbhushan Kharbanda (he is on the phone with his neurotic actress girl friend who wants to know if he has broken the news of their affair to his wife) dialogue from […]
Searching For Mubarak Begum
Yes Mubarak Begum is around. And no, she isn’t doing well. I know no one asked but it’s one of those moments in life when a question need not precede the answer. A few years ago, a dusty drive to Behram Baug in Jogeshwari took a colleague and me to the one room tenement […]