Perks of Not Belonging

Reading Aubrey Menen convinces you of what might feel paradoxical: freedom does not emerge from belonging to a community, clan, race, nation or even a friends’ group. As Menen remarks in his collection of essays – drawn from his travels and his candidly examined past – “For the young to mistrust one’s friends is the beginning of wisdom.” While the young might like to think of themselves as “bold” and “original”,

… Continue reading “Aubrey Menen: Being Comfortably Out of Place”

The recent worldwide hit, Adolescence, highlights how a new edginess has been layered into an already fraught stage of human development. Given that most internet-connected youth are subjected to a globalized monoculture,

… Continue reading “Parenting Teens in Uncertain Times”

As a teenager, Vipul Redey was clear about his future. Watching cadets emerge from the National Defense Academy near Pune – their muscular bodies, their sharp crew cuts, the swagger with which they strode across the Deccan Gymkhana Club – he yearned to belong to their tribe.

… Continue reading “Shaping Students and Educational Practices”

The oldest national anthem in use today is “The Wilhelmus” of the Netherlands. Though Jana Gana Mana was adopted more recently (in 1950, to be precise), it’s more widely known. It might even feature as the globally most popular national anthem.

… Continue reading “India’s National Anthem: Its History”

Syed Haider Raza was only eight-years-old when he first encountered Mahatma Gandhi. In Mandla, a small town by the River Narmada, a crowd had gathered to listen to the bespectacled, khadi-draped leader. As a child of devout Muslims,

… Continue reading “A Poet’s Lyrical Ode to Raza”

Aspiring novelists might find it heartening or daunting when one of the nation’s more masterful literary writers observes – in a candid, expansive conversation – that his own writing is girded by failure. As someone who constantly labors to find that exact turn of phrase,

… Continue reading “Conversing With a Literary Luminary”

As a child, I remember reading C. Rajagopalachari’s Ramayana, an English retelling of Valmiki’s epic, that was widely circulated with its calendar arty cover. The centrality of the blue-skinned, unassailable Rama – both on the cover and inside its pages – felt like a given.

… Continue reading “Finding Sisterhood in Our Epics”

If you’re a fan of the Japanese thriller writer, Keigo Higashino, I would strongly recommend The Artful Murders. Like some of the standout works of the Japanese master, this depicts a gritty,

… Continue reading “A Crime Thriller That Pierces Delhi’s Pretensions”

Tu Jhoom: A Compassionate Guide Through Cancer Journeys

When Asheema (names changed) was diagnosed with 3rd Stage breast cancer, she felt besieged. She had suffered through a heart-related health issue and a broken relationship.

… Continue reading “Springing from Cancer to Forging a Wellness Enterprise”

Namita Gokhale is unafraid to break story rules. In a fleeting meta moment, she acknowledges her distaste for bow-tied endings: “My quarrel with the short story is precisely that it imposes a false order and symmetry on events,

… Continue reading “Withstanding the Ravages of Love and Life”

It might be a hard sell these days, to convince the old or the young, that the best guide to living a “good” life is an Athenian philosopher who died in 399 B.C. After all,

… Continue reading “Lessons from the OG Greek Philosopher”

Neeraja Ganesh and Sneha Ganesh have carved unique niches for themselves. They are also known popularly as a mother-daughter duo that share a crackling chemistry. Often working together—at events or on projects—they have learned to draw boundaries and diffuse differences.

… Continue reading “A Sparkly Mother-Daughter Duo Who Mentor, Train, and Empower Others”

I stumbled on this book in the manner in which one stumbles on other stuff these days: partly offline, partly online. Perhaps, one could call it “hybrid”, to borrow a word that is typically used in other contexts.

… Continue reading “Re-injecting Anthropology With Fresh Purpose”

Illusions Fostered by Primates

Vivek Nityananda is an entomologist by profession. He studied katydids and their secretive communication methods, the wing rustling among leaves that eluded human ears. Somewhere along the way, his academic curiosity strayed from the natural world into a distinctly human phenomenon: overconfidence.

… Continue reading “Overconfidence Unmasked: An Entomologist Explores Human Self-Deception”

Vishal Vasanthakumar didn’t love school. Later as a teacher, he keenly observed parents’ faces. Whether they wheeled pushcarts or drove Mercedes-Benzes, their expressions radiated a similar mix of yearning and optimism. Formal schooling, they believed,

… Continue reading “The Education Mirage: Unanswered Questions in India’s Schools”

Swimming Against Tradition

Sonam Samat’s father was keen that his daughter pursue an education and acquire new-age like skills like swimming. Rather than hovering over stovetops, stirring dhals and puffing up rotis like most women in his generation.

… Continue reading “Whisking Wisdom: A Journey from Theory to Taste”

From MOOCs to Marigolds

In a marketplace ablaze with the sounds and furies of India’s most cacophonous festival – Ganesha Chaturti – a saree-clad, bespectacled woman briskly strides through. She stops at a stall that packs row upon row of Ganeshas,

… Continue reading “Vasanthi Srinivasan: Shaping the Nation’s Future Leaders”

Bridget Jones broke a certain stereotype. That romcom protagonists must be, by default, somewhat put together. Till then, they were often fiercely intelligent, sparkly with words, discerning, virtuous et al, till Jones swept into our cultural lenses with her endearingly human,

… Continue reading “From Bridget Jones to Eleanor Oliphant: Imperfect Protagonists and Unlikely Friendships”

At this point, planetary problems can feel too staggering to confront. The climate clock seems to be ticking towards an apocalyptic future, wars rage in Ukraine and Gaza, social media lures soporific users into seductive reel-tunnels.

… Continue reading “Growing Up as Grown-Ups: Cultivating Leaders to Navigate Complexity”

Madhu Gupta and Seema Chaudhry have much in common. For one thing, they attend the same college. They live in old Delhi, in shabby apartments, reached by dim stairways. They stem from conservative, working class families.

… Continue reading “Dissolving Boundaries Across a River”

Yadav’s Father: A Creative Tinkerer

Anusha Yadav was raised in a home that prized culture, creativity and hands-on tinkering. Moving across continents, from the UK – where her father studied for his PhD and taught at King’s College,

… Continue reading “Braiding Time: Journeying with Anusha Yadav Across Cultures and Memories”

There have been many attempts to both analyze and historicize the Indian middle class. Works by Pavan Varma (The Great Indian Middle Class, 1998) and Aseem Prakash (The Indian Middle Class,

… Continue reading “Everyday Reading: Uncovering Middle-Class Musings”

Navigating Disparate Worlds

MD Ramaswami, known affectionately as MD among friends and family, learned early that exceptional communication skills could reap extraordinary dividends. Belonging to an era when the nation still suffered from a colonial hangover,

… Continue reading “From Curiosity to Conquests: The Myriad Adventures of MD Ramaswami”

In a House of Few Frills

Giri’s stickiest childhood memories revolve around his grandfather. In an era sans gadgets or even a television, Aaja would teach him this and that.  Even  discuss passages from Shakespeare’s  Merchant of Venice,

… Continue reading “The Man Who Multiplied Value: Giri Giridhar’s Corporate Journey”

From The King’s Table to Street Food, as Pushpesh Pant acknowledges in his Preface, is not just a history of Delhi embedded with recipes and foodies stories. Nor is it a food book,

… Continue reading “Savoring Time: A Taste of Delhi from Royal Kitchens to Street Vendors”

In her previous work, Kaikeyi, Vaishnavi Patel had dwelt on the point of view of a much maligned character in the Ramayana. Unsurprisingly, or perhaps not coincidentally, that character was a woman.

… Continue reading “Ganga Unbound: A Feminist Take on an Ancient Epic”

With the next US election a few days away, you would be hard put to find an expert who can be persuasively certain about the outcome. Despite all the data crunching and AI smarts, uncertainty shadows our lives,

… Continue reading “Exploring the Mathematics of Luck”

Chasing Authenticity In Staged Spaces

Along with other vanishings – of biospecies, languages, cultures – modernity ushers an erasure of authenticity. Tourism, originally fashioned for aristocratic young men from Europe, has morphed into a global ritual that has seeped across classes.

… Continue reading “Tribal Truths and Manufactured Myths”

Like Happiness begins with a New Yorky scene. One that captures the stickiness and muck and strangely alluring grit of its subway rides. But also the forced physical proximity to performers whose music and moves are edged with aggressive asks.

… Continue reading “Like Happiness: The Mirage of Connection in a Post #MeToo Era”

Widows outnumber widowers. The reasons? Many men remarry, and historically, more men have died in wars. Moreover, as Mineke Schipper notes in Widows, 10% of widows today live in extreme poverty, underscoring the vulnerability braided into widowhood.

… Continue reading “Widowhood, Oppression and Acts of Resistance”

Culinary Soul Search

In October 2015, Siddharth Kapila decided to quit his law career. He wanted to travel, find himself, engaging in seemingly care-free acts that only the reasonably well-off can consider. He was aware too of how these choices were girded by privilege.

… Continue reading “Tasting the Divine: Exploring One’s Faith Along The Ganga”

Loneliness Breeds Polarization

Loneliness might not just be an American scourge anymore, but could be seeping into other societies. Teens and aging parents can feel lonely inside families, just as partners might feel adrift inside marriages.

… Continue reading “From Isolation to Illumination: Leveraging Human Connection”

Saikat Majumdar’s novels have a kaleidoscopic quality – you jiggle them this way and that, and you perceive new symmetries, different colours. I had read some of his later works, The Remains of the Body,

… Continue reading “Growing Up Bewildered: Trapped Between The Stage and Reality”

Saunter through the grassy expanses of Cubbon Park on a Saturday morning to encounter the metronomic thump of the BHUKMP runners, their feet synchronized like an acapella group. Zoom in to the blur of faces on those taut bodies to spot the wildly popular Pankaj Rai,

… Continue reading “Running Through Life: The 5 Cs That Define Pankaj Rai’s Journey”

In the throbbing, trafficky heart of our city, history and creativity collide. From ancient sculptures and textiles to modern paintings and pop culture treasures, the Museum of Art and Photography (MAP) has it all. The sleek steel facade with its embossed cross pattern spans six floors.

… Continue reading “Transforming India’s Art Scene: Abhishek Poddar’s Journey to Founding MAP”

Feral Winds, Creeping Despair

In “Dread” and “Hunger”, two stories in A Bouquet of Dead Flowers, the Hindi writer Swadesh Deepak explores the unsettling intertwining of desire and deprivation. And of predatory instincts that simmer in situations marked by unequal power relations.

… Continue reading “Exploring Desire and Despair in Swadesh Deepak’s Stories”

Where Play Fuels Genius

Mitchel Resnick’s book is a critical read for many reasons. But especially because Resnick practices the learning approaches he endorses, and not just at any place, but at one of the meccas of education – MIT.

… Continue reading “Kindergarten Lessons: Mitchel Resnick’s Blueprint for Lifelong Creativity”

Vedic Monism Meets Sufism

Sufism embodies mystical strands in Islam. When large numbers of Sufis swept into India in the 12th Century, their philosophy echoed the Vedic concept of “monism”. With “service to humanity” as their abiding ideal,

… Continue reading “Sufi Mystics, Sacred Paths: Sarmad’s Enduring Legacy”

Curiosity Sparks Cake Making

Anu Sinha was only 11-years-old and in Class Five, when she baked her first cake. Growing up in the early ‘80s in the Bokaro Steel City, she hadn’t thought much about cakes or ovens,

… Continue reading “From Tandoors to Tiered Triumphs: Anu Sinha’s Journey to Cake Artistry”

Assam has a rich history shaped by its indigenous cultures, the Ahom dynasty’s six-century reign, and British colonial rule. The State played a pivotal role in India’s struggle for independence but has since simmered with ethnic conflicts and movements for autonomy.

… Continue reading “Shadows and Scars: Finding Love and Identity in Assam”

In the lush surroundings of Barbari, “a small town with a big population” nestled close to the tea garden of Kalguri, the narrator grows up in a world that feels relatively cushioned.

Barbari,

… Continue reading “Between Tea Leaves and Tensions: Growing Up in Barbari, Assam”

An Encounter with Her Own Fame

Like her books, Agatha Christie’s life contained layers and mysteries. Once while travelling on a train, incognito, she heard two other middle-aged women discussing her. With her books on their laps signifying how widespread her readership was,

… Continue reading “Agatha Christie Unveiled: Hidden Layers of the Queen of Crime”

I’m probably not the first writer to consider how anthropologists and novelists are remarkably similar. Both pay attention to seemingly ordinary stuff – rituals, habits, rumors, gossip, everyday frictions, tiny miracles or small setbacks that stitch up our everydays.

… Continue reading “The Anthropologists: Crafting Everyday Rituals To Shore Up Identity”

Jamia Millia: Sparked by a Crisis

Jamia Millia Islamia was forged by a crisis. A response to Gandhi’s call for non-cooperation required an abandoning of settings funded or supported by the British. Indian Muslims who withdrew from Aligarh Muslim University had to quickly cobble together a place that would fuse modern lessons with Islamic traditions.

… Continue reading “From Berlin to Jamia Millia: A Woman’s Enduring Legacy”

We are all housed inside our bodies. Yet, many of us may not feel “at home” – perhaps because our identity or sexuality or racial or ethnic origins may compel us to feel like perpetual outsiders.

… Continue reading “The Remains of the Body: Navigating Identity, Desire, and Belonging”

I live in what is called the “startup capital” of the nation. While we have witnessed the voracious swallowing of erstwhile villages into a mushrooming city, many of us peer from the rims into a dizzying vortex of startups founded,

… Continue reading “Sandeep Singhal: Pioneering India’s Venture Capital Revolution”

Growing Together: Childhood with a Twin

As the daughter of an army officer, Tina Mansukhani Garg was accustomed to moving around the country, switching schools, navigating new localities, learning languages, tasting unfamiliar foods.

… Continue reading “From Twinship to Trailblazing: The Journey of a Visionary Founder”

For those of you who have read  A House For Mr. Biswas  by V.S. Naipaul,  The Naipauls of Nepaul Street  feels like a rich ploughing into the soil that birthed the famed novel.

… Continue reading “A Memoir of Literary Roots and Family Legacy”

Kabir is both widely known and cited, but also obscure. Few know about his own life and origins. Some believe he was abandoned by a Brahmin widow and later raised by Muslims. Historians refute this.

… Continue reading “Embrace Paradoxes: Kabir’s Teachings on Unity and Impermanence”

Mumbai is a city that oozes mayhem, murder and mischief. The layered island city is an apt setting for young adult detectives whose summer has been hemmed in by a contagious, pockmarking disease: chicken pox.

… Continue reading “Sleuths in Scabs: The Chicken Pox Club’s Deadly Discovery”

The first compelling graphic novel I read was Persepolis in which a young Iranian girl grows up through the Islamic revolution. Persian Nights by Alaka Rajan Skinner also brings the revolution into our sights,

… Continue reading “Through the Eyes of a Child: Immigrant Dilemmas Amid Revolution”

Given that hordes are already accessing ChatGPT, or AI in some form or the other, Madhumita Murgia’s book on the human consequences of an “intelligence” that is being rapidly unfurled across domains – from buttressing legal arguments to diagnosing medical conditions,

… Continue reading “From Silicon Valley to Remote Villages: Human Consequences of AI”

I hadn’t realized till I encountered this book that at a certain period in the 19th Century, Britain was in fact a Muslim Empire. As John Slight, currently a Senior Lecturer in Imperial and Global History at The Open University puts it in The Hajj and Britain’s Muslim Empire,

… Continue reading “Empire and Pilgrimage: The Hajj in Britain’s Muslim Empire”

Even in 2024, India’s female workforce participation is appallingly lower than it should be for an economy that claims to be zipping ahead of many others. It’s both instructive and salutary to read of forceful women from the nation’s past,

… Continue reading “Trailblazer in a Saree: The Defiant Journey of Anandibai Joshee”

Every once in a while, in our digitally-addled age, it feels both necessary and worthwhile to dip into a Cal Newport book or article. As an MIT-trained scientist who also teaches the subject at Georgetown University,

… Continue reading “From Busy to Fulfilled: The Slow Productivity Revolution”

At business events or even at social to-dos, Shilpa Sharma has often faced a sudden tap on the shoulder, followed by an awestruck: “Omigod, you’re the founder of Jaypore?” Soon enough, women in the room flock to her with fangirl giggles and selfie requests.

… Continue reading “Crafting Her Destiny: The Unconventional Journey of Shilpa Sharma”

A City of Endless Rebirths

All cities and urban spaces are works in the making.  Perhaps,  some more than others. To read the history of Delhi (or the many histories of many Delhis) is to read the history of a  nation, 

… Continue reading “Delhi Reborn: Unveiling the City Through a Historian’s Lens”

These are the kinds of questions that Hari TN wrestles with on evening walks, or late at night, when shafts of moonlight seep through curtains: Why does the velocity of light stay constant in different frames of reference?

… Continue reading “Journeying With Curiosity: The Life and Lessons of Hari TN”

From 1998 to 2008, Akshaya Bahibala was lighting up joints, swigging beer and rum, then smoking a few more joints, and so on till “[one] day you look at a calendar by mistake. You realize you have lost a lot of years smoking and rolling,

… Continue reading “Tripping Through Time and Uncommon Spaces”

In her Introduction to Heartburn, Nora Ephron, observes how women novelists are often diminished for borrowing stuff from their own lives. Often, with the aspersion that their novels are memoirs, “thinly disguised.” It’s not as if male writers do not rake through the skeletal remains of past marriages or other story-worthy life events.

… Continue reading “Nora Ephron’s Recipe for a Second Marriage (And a Second Breakup)”

Sometimes all it takes to retreat into a forgotten childhood is to pick up a children’s book. The Case of the Missing Turtles brings back the thrilling vibes once evoked by the Five Find-Outers (one of Enid Blyton’s mystery series that had many of us conjuring mysteries in our own humdrum backyards).

… Continue reading “Shelled Secrets: Unraveling Mysteries in Modern India”

Overcoming Obstacles, Charting Paths

Sandra Gail Lambert was only 10 years old when she realized that she would have to forge her own pathway through an unfriendly world. The obstacle she confronted then was a physical one,

… Continue reading “Moxie on Wheels: Voyaging with Sandra Gail Lambert”

Marwari Warmth, A Young Apprentice

Nidhi Nahata grew up in a Mumbai Marwari household, infused with the sounds and smells of rich, homemade foods: “Khaana with a lot of ghee, even the paneer,

… Continue reading “Spreading Vegan Vibes: Nidhi Nahata’s Recipe for Success”

For those who wish to pick up this book, let me start with the ritual “spoiler alert.” I’d also like to add, that to uncover “who’s done it?” is probably not the only reason to read this.

… Continue reading “Shining a Light on Crime and Caste”

Heaving Debt and Doubts

Karthika Annamalai was only two years old when her father died. Stories swirl, to date, about the cause of his death. Relatives on Amma’s side insist he was murdered.

… Continue reading “From Adversity to Advocacy: Karthika Annamalai’s Incredible Journey”

All our lives, however ordinary or otherwise, are imbued with a sense of drama. But it takes a certain kind of eye to observe the humdrum and distill it to a riveting, stage-worthy performance. Vijay Padaki,

… Continue reading “Dramatizing Bangalore’s Social Landscape: Vijay Padaki’s Theatrical Reflections”

Neema Avashia grew up in an America that wasn’t typically inhabited by folks like her. West Virginia wasn’t where most Indian Americans headed. Asians constituted a miniscule 0.5 % of the population in a state that birthed televangelists and country singers.

… Continue reading “Chemicals and Basketball: Navigating Identity in Appalachia”

Those of us who see ourselves as being lifelong learners would do well to read Michael Roth’s dive into the history and makeup of students. Roth, who is currently the President of Wesleyan University and a Professor,

… Continue reading “Dissecting Students: Insights from a Scholar”

A question is often posed of a new friend or potential life partner: are you a beach or mountain person? The answer perhaps is immaterial, but the question might be trying to uncover something else: how do you handle change?

… Continue reading “Peak Revelations: Navigating Life in Never Never Land”

In 1936, Mahatma Gandhi had been besotted by the post-monsoon greens of Sandur in Bellary. And affixed it with a touristy descriptor: “See Sandur in September.” Vasudhendra, the widely feted Kannada author of Mohanaswamy,

… Continue reading “Vasudhendra’s Chronicles: From Sandur’s Greens to Literary Triumphs”

Meraki is a Greek word. It means doing something with passion, attentiveness and care. Yosha Gupta certainly pours herself into the startup she’s created, as does her 17-member team, and the artists they support on  MeMeraki.

… Continue reading “Yosha Gupta: Founding An Enterprise With Soul”

In Notes on a Marriage, Carvalho observes that it’s not just weddings, but even marriages that are performative. Anju and Freddo have been married for (gasp!) twenty years, but she still acts out in his presence.

… Continue reading “Performing Love: The Inner Workings of a Marriage”

Uncles, Aunties and Banter on Buses

In If It’s Monday It Must Be Madurai, Srinath Perur subverts the common trope of a travel writer. Instead of traveling alone, or to rarely explored,

… Continue reading “Translating Worlds: Srinath Perur’s Journey from Bytes to Books”

Reading this book by Upamanyu Chatterjee at a time when the world is rocked by wars, the ever-throbbing threats of climate change and new pandemics feels like an entry into a mindfulness retreat. A zone where small changes feel as significant,

… Continue reading “Journeying from Silence To Life’s Bustle”

What Prompted Dear Men

Prachi Gangwani had an unusual insider’s take on Indian relationships. As a “sex and relationships” columnist for an online women’s lifestyle magazine, she probably read a barrage of comments.

… Continue reading “Unmasking Men: Insights Into Indian Relationships”

Dosa Debates with Paati

Vidya Madhavan’s  Paati  (grandmom) was a fierce and opinionated woman. Growing up in a joint family in Bombay (now Mumbai), in a typically cramped household, Vidya recognizes that many of her thoughts and values were shaped by her grandparents.

… Continue reading “A Founder’s Journey to Creating Meme Magic”

Nena is allergic to water. So she has an annual bath. By first embalming herself in petroleum, then dunking a cold water bucket over her head. To survive this yearly ordeal, she wraps herself in layers of cotton,

… Continue reading “Can’t: An Original Take on Contemporary Womanhood”

One of my favorite poems about aging with a cheerful insouciance starts like this:

“When I am an old woman, I shall wear purple
With a red hat which doesn’t go, and doesn’t suit me.”

Meenakshi Menon,

… Continue reading “Golden Age to Platinum Years: Crafting a Spectacular 60+”

Plumbing into her own family’s ancestral past, Jael Silliman revives snippets of the rich and little-known history of Baghdadi Jews in Shalome Rides a Royal Elephant. Though targeted at young readers, and narrated by a sprightly,

… Continue reading “Exploring Baghdadi Jewish Heritage”

We are awash with news and commentary about AI. The huge boons and concomitant scares, the soft and perilous blurring between human cleverness and machined ingenuity. We’re inundated to a degree where we might feel surprisingly lured by natural stupidity.

… Continue reading “Navigating AI’s Fakery”

The Yellow Sparrow, translated from the Manipuri by Rubani Yumkhaibam, has a poignant genesis. As a transgender woman or Nupi Maanbi in Manipur, the author, Santa Khurai had always struggled to belong.

… Continue reading “Fragile Wings, Bold Spirit: Santa Khurai’s Inspiring Odyssey”

Chronicling an Artist’s Quest

I recall learning “The Owl and the Pussycat” for an elocution contest. And encountering the nonsensical, memorable “Piggy-wig”, which had merrily enough for us chuckling readers, “a ring at the end of his nose.” The author of this well-known poem,

… Continue reading “Between Peaks and Poetry: Journeying with Edward Lear”

Ravi CA had resolved at a fairly early stage that time mattered more than the accumulation of stuff. After working for twenty years in an IT career, he quit the well-paying, beaten path to pursue an interest that many would fence into after hours.

… Continue reading “Striking Chords, Composing a Life”

Of late, I have become rather fascinated and even slightly obsessed with endurance athletes. For instance, I recently stumbled on the Netflix movie on Diana Nyad, a woman who swam from Cuba to Florida at the age of 60.

… Continue reading “Of An Indian Woman Who Crossed the English Channel”

We live in an age in which there seems to be a surfeit of extraordinary people. Superstar founders, sportspersons, writers, singers and stand-up comedians. Even failures in various fields have acquired an aura of extraordinariness.

… Continue reading “Extraordinary Undercurrents in Ordinary Bengaluru Lives”

From Boardrooms to Backstreets

Arun Maira has been in the trenches. Of business and government. Despite occupying some of the highest positions – as Chairman of the Boston Consulting Group, as a Member of the Planning Commission under Manmohan Singh or currently as Chairman of HelpAge International – he has never lost sight of those at the lowest rungs of the ladder.

… Continue reading “Shaping Sustainable Tomorrows”

Rajasthan is often framed in touristy stereotypes: of forts, palaces, erstwhile maharajas, sparkling sands of the Thar Desert, and camels no doubt, offering a discomfiting, double-humped ride through arid lands. Only a few would be acquainted with the complex ecology surrounding traditional camel breeders,

… Continue reading “Camel Karma: Transforming Desert Lives”

It’s fortunate for us that Indian cities are spawning enthusiastic guides whose knowledge about these spaces can deepen our own engagement as inhabitants or visitors. Swapna Liddle is the kind of expert you would be fortunate to walk around with in Delhi.

… Continue reading “Walking Through Delhi’s Heritage With A Historian”

I have often wondered about the lives of street vendors. Not just about how much they make or what they sell, but about the makeup of their everyday lives – displaying a kind of toughness or resilience,

… Continue reading “Bazaars and Backstories in Delhi’s Electronic Trade”

Teaching history has perhaps always been fraught. Given the contemporary recognition of subjectivity embedded in any account of the past or present, lingering questions about whose story or version approaches the ‘truth’ makes the content of any prescribed textbook iffy.

… Continue reading “The Tangles of a History Teacher”

On a Saturday in January 2023, Shruti Sah and Harsh Snehanshu had what felt like a whimsical idea. To carry a mat, a few books and cycle over to Cubbon Park to read. Both craved a book club that didn’t center around discussions – after all,

… Continue reading “Cubbon Reads: A Silent Reading Revolution Spreads Across Parks”

Sebastien Tutenges, currently an Associate Professor of Sociology at Lund University, had been planning to embark on a study at a Buddhist monastery. Instead, by somewhat serendipitous means, he became curious about why so many young people seek intoxicating escapes.

… Continue reading “Journeying Into Intoxicating Experiences”

Carolyn Chen was surprised by Silicon Valley. She expected it to be one of the least religious places. Instead, she found that among the tech executives she interviewed, that “it is one of the most religious places in America.” She argues in Work Pray Code that the “Gods” have merely been supplanted.

… Continue reading “Tech Gods: Work as the New Religion”

Tejo Tungabhadra, written originally in Kannada by the versatile Vasudhendra, and translated deftly by Maithreyi Karnoor, brings to life a glittering panoply of 15th and 16th Century characters. Yanking readers into times when Sati was not just thrust upon Indian widows but fiercely celebrated,

… Continue reading “Reimagining Riverine Histories”

Surviving India with Imodium

India hardly feels like a nation that would be easy for anyone, inbred veteran or fleeting visitor, to digest. So it’s apt that a book titled Digesting India starts with the author recounting experiences of the opposite: of loose motions,

… Continue reading “Feasting, Writing and Roaming Across India”

A Teen’s Bold Charter School Support

Vivek Ramakrishnan was only 16 years old, and a high-school student at West High School, in Madison, Wisconsin, when the school board held a televised meeting. To discuss a proposal for a new charter school.

… Continue reading “Bridging Literacy Gaps with AI: A Young Founder’s Journey”

Russian Writers Probe Existential Depths

In  Wonder Confronts Certainty, Gary Saul Morson, one of the most eminent Slavic scholars in the US, suggests that Russian writers were a distinct breed.

… Continue reading “Celebrating the Wonders of Russian Literature”

Amma’s Daughters: Evoking Nostalgia

Reading Amma’s Daughters by Meenal Shrivastava evokes the bittersweetness of listening to Kishore Kumar’s hit songs. It’s a book that yanks you – like the legendary singer’s tenor and baritone – into earlier times,

… Continue reading “Struggles, Choices and Wisdom Across Generations”

Flipping Pans and Pages

Suraj Moraje cooks every day. Sometimes, pasta made from scratch, the flour and salt combined with eggs, the dough kneaded and patted aside, partitioned, thinned out, and scissored into strips.

… Continue reading “Cooking, Consulting and Change-Making: A Life Story”

Remember Shankar Mahadevan’s Breathless? The Booker-winning Girl, Woman, Other has that quality of indefatigability to it. It’s like the author has all these tales packed into her, and she narrates them in a gush,

… Continue reading “Contemporary Britain Through the Lens of Twelve Black Women”