Secret Notes from Iran: Diary of an Undercover Journalist by Nadim Siraj

International affairs is very much run like the mafia. The Godfather does not accept disobedience, even from a small storekeeper who doesn’t pay his protection money. You have to have obedience; otherwise, the idea can spread that you don’t have to listen to the orders, and it can spread to important places. Noam Chomsky’s words […]

Bhaunri by Anukrti Upadhyay

Last week, we talked about Daura. Author Anukrti Upadhyay’s debut work of fiction, published by 4th Estate Books (an imprint of Harper Collins), comes with a companion novel, Bhaunri, set in the villages of Rajasthan, the story of a fierce young woman who loves her man and will go to any extent to make him […]

Daura by Anukrti Upadhyay: A folktale comes alive

The cover itself draws you in. A maroon background, a sand-yellow illustration of a tree (a kalpavriksh, perhaps), and the beautiful typeface, designed by The Typecraft Initiative add to the mystic element that the blurb promises the reader. Daura, author Anukrti Upadhyay’s debut work of English (released together with Bhaunri, about which, in another post), is […]

The Queen’s Last Salute by Moupia Basu

I began reading this novel sceptically, I admit. It seemed to be just another retelling of Jhansi Ki Rani, the warrior queen who splintered the barrier of gender to fight for her kingdom. But I was pleasantly surprised when Moupia Basu‘s Chandraki swept in like a storm cloud and stole the show. The title of […]

The Outcasts: A Thousand Dreams of Redemption by Lidija Stankovikj

To put it simply, The Outcasts by Lidija Stankovikj is one of the most intricate books in recent times. Stankovikj’s writing is almost dreamlike, the narrative fluid yet fluctuating and infused with vivid imagery. Her contemporary, abstract take on India, the land of dichotomies is as refreshing as it is eye-opening. A story of loss, acceptance, […]

In Conversation With Balaji Venkataramanan

Riding on his fame from Flat Truck Bullies (FTB), Balaji Venkataramanan’s Pops! is a refreshing read for children and adults alike. We at Purple Pencil Project loved the story of Pops! (published by Duckbill), told with refreshing authenticity and just the right amount of innocence. So of course, we decided to sit down with him (virtually) […]

Online Courses for Bibliophiles and Wordsmiths

Always wanted to write? Study the classics? Understand culture?  But don’t want to return to college? We feel you. The subjects in the humanities hold our endless fascination and it sucks that liberal studies, and curated curricula are still a faraway dream in India. Which is why these online courses in literature and writing are the […]

Shashi Tharoor’s Riot: A Novel – Much Agitprop About Nothing

My current opinion of Shashi Tharoor, that of him being more of a dilettante than a dignitary, is, of course, solely a lament of his once-astute gifts of polemic and storytelling, which were found in spades in his single notable work of metaphysical fiction-cum-roman a clef, The Great Indian Novel. The topical resonance of that […]

My Story by Kamala Das

As a student of literature or as a feminist, it is hard to escape the influence of Kamala Das aka Madhavikutty aka Kamala Surayya. A pioneer among Indian poets who wrote in English, her extensive literary oeuvre also encompassed short stories, novels, essays, and a memoir. She wrote unabashedly about taboo topics of the time, […]

Temporary People by Deepak Unnikrishnan

Deepak Unnikrishnan’s Temporary People is like a journal with a different pressed flower on every page, each distinctly fragrant and unique, yet still cohesive with the theme of the novel. Divided into three parts (or books) titled Limbs, Tongue, Flesh, and Veed, Temporary People is an anthology of distended stories, of different people all of […]