I am not a reader or writer of poetry. But I scribbled a bunch of lines (on demand!) on our 25th Wedding Anniversary. I chanced upon it today and thought it might also pass off as a decent Valentine Day Poem. Here it goes: Love at 25 is the oxygen around you, Love is the … Read more
After the vow, Shantanu and Satyavati’s marriage culminated, and as we know, they had two sons, Chitrangada and Vichitravirya. Chitrangada was a fierce warrior and extremely proud of it, which turned out to be the reason for his early death. As the name of the brave king Chitranganda spread far and wide, it turned out … Read more
Here are my notes from Life’s Amazing Secrets: How to Find Balance and Purpose in Your Life by Gaur Gopal Das. WHEEL 1: PERSONAL LIFE I have found that we as a people have got busier over time. We tend to exclude parts of our lives which are not directly related to hard work and … Read more
Recently read a book by Ruskin Bond titled ‘The India I love’. Within that, there was a chapter called ‘Joyfully I write’. As an author, some of what he wrote resonated strongly with me. I am sure as readers and writers, you will find it equally delightful. Here are a few excerpts from that chapter … Read more
Right from creation starting with Brahma, the first king in the Sun dynasty was Vivasvin and subsequently there was a lunar branch to it in which Bharat was the most successful emperor. In that dynasty, which is the earliest descendent of the Kurus, was a king named Mahabheesha. Mahabheesha was a very righteous king and … Read more
As I approach fifty, I thought it might be apt to put out an extract from a book by one of my favorite writers – Ruskin Bond. Of course, one must bear in mind that there is a difference – for many, lot of it – between turning fifty and turning seventy. And biologically, there … Read more
I recently read this collection of Bengali short stories translated from the original by Arunava Sinha. It is simply outstanding – to put it in short. Verily a collection of carefully curated masterpieces by some of the most well-known as well as not so famous writers from Bengal that provide the reader with the cultural, … Read more
Two book recommendations for the yearend. Both by Ruskin Bond. I read both of these one after the other almost a year back and was just going through my Kindle to check them out again. Unhurried Tales is a collection of the longer, well-known stories by Ruskin Bond. Time Stops at Shamli is one of … Read more
I recently read a novel called ‘Firebird’ which is the English translation of the original Tamil book by Perumal Murugan. I had heard an interview of the author at the Bangalore Lit Fest and got interested in the book. It is translated into English by Janani Kannan. The novel is steeped in the world of … Read more