Mirror city By Chitrita Banerji
We speak the same tongue and wear the same cotton sarees, we are fond of rice and fish, and debates over politics. We are Bengalis, yet we belong to two separate countries! Chitrita Banerji in Mirror City manages to beautifully compare the ways of life of Bengalis from India and from Bangladesh, and enlightens the […]
Romance Reads: Trust Me Not by Ankita Verma Datta
In a world where the rich and powerful make underhanded deals with each other and increase their own wealth, young corporate star Reeva falls for the enigmatic and mysterious millionaire Kunaal Kabi. However, when she is drawn into the dirty world of politics, she may learn more about the ‘under-the-table’ deals that run the country […]
The Far Field: A Review
Some books, like people, have ways of finding you. This is what happened with The Far Field. I didn’t find it, it found me. I had seen this book doing the rounds of social media long before it was long-listed for the JCB Prize, but never felt the urge to read it. Then, I came […]
A Patchwork Family by Mukta Sathe
A Patchwork Family would have definitely gone past my radar had it not been long-listed for the JCB Prize for literature. A short yet hard-hitting debut novel by a lawyer, this deserves a far wider reach. It’s a study of character as well as psychology, society as well as ideology on a personal and societal […]
Nineteen Ninety by Sachin Kundalkar
Sachin Kundalkar’s latest Marathi book of essays, titled Nineteen Ninety, evokes nostalgia for the decade that shaped the course of his life. As someone who grew up in the ’90s, it’s easy to recognise the markers of that decade as highlighted in Sachin Kundalkar’s book: the ubiquitous Walkman that symbolised personal space before the advent […]
Litfest with a twist: Twice Read Reader’s Festival
The Twice Read Reader’s Festival, was a literature festival hosted and organised by Readsnet. It took place on 20th October, Sunday at the Fr. Conceicao Rodrigues College of Engineering in Mumbai, Maharashtra. It was a colourful carnival with fun literary games, good food, workshops, panel discussions and of course, book stalls. Rows and rows of […]
Gulzar’s Raavi Paar And Other Stories: A Collection Both Candid And Cathartic
There are hard-boiled writers who put pen to paper or finger to type-writer keys to churn out paperbacks and yet can also write a couplet or two. And then, there are the mellower poets who can write equally enchanting and lyrical lines in their short stories or the occasional novels. Sampooran Singh Kalra, or Gulzar […]
In conversation with: Neelum Saran Gour
Author of the Hindu Prize winner, A Requiem in Raga Janki, Neelum Saran Gour is the voice of North India’s literary community. Born and brought up in Allahabad, her writings reflect the rich cultures and histories of her town, painting a literary landscape steeped in the diversities of religion and imagination. The columnist, novelist and […]
There’s Gunpowder in the Air by Manoranjan Byapari
When I read the blurb of There’s Gunpowder in the Air, I couldn’t help but be reminded of an iconic scene from the popular Hindi film Sholay. The scene where Jai and Veeru are ostentatiously planning a jailbreak in full hearing of the prisoner they know to be a mole planted by the jailer. The […]
