In Conversation With: Nilima Sinha

An interview of Nilima Sinha, author of Red Blooms in the Forest published by Niyogi Books, where she talks about translations, genres and more.
The Middleman by Mani Sankar Mukherjee

Book review of The Middleman, originally wrriten in Bengali (Jan Aranya), by Mani Sankar Mukherji, translated by Arunava Sinha.
In Conversation With: Translator Krishna Manavalli

Krishna Manavalli is a professor in the department of English at Karnatak University, Dharwad. She is a literary critic and translator who works in both English and Kannada. In her long and brilliant academic career in the US and India, Krishna has worked on multiple areas such as contemporary British literature, South Asian writing, postcolonial […]
In Conversation with: Rashmi Menon

#InsideEdge is a series of interviews with publishing professionals in India. *** Here we speak to Rashmi Menon, Managing Editor of Amaryllis, the English imprint of Manjul Publishing. Why did you want to be in publishing? What are some common myths about the industry? Rashmi Menon: I LOVE books. I’ve been a bookworm since childhood and […]
In Conversation With Rakhshanda Jalil

Rakhshanda Jalil straddles being a writer, a translator and a literary historian and is thus at a vantage to give us an unparalleled view of Urdu literature, Indian writing, and the rise of translation, among several other things. We spoke to her about these and more – her journey as a writer, translator, and Urdu […]
Bombay Balchão by Jane Borges

Undoubtedly the first thing that attracts you to Bombay Balchão is its cover – filled with colour, and people – like the city of Mumbai itself. There was another reason for me. Having lived among Catholics for the first 20 years of my life, and with my convent schooling, I was also curious to read […]
How the Onion got its Layers by Sudha Murty

How the Onion got its Layers is a 45-page children’s book by Sudha Murty, about a princess and her kingdom. It is magical looking, if slightly gendered, traditional and old-timey in its representation – the clothes are saris and blouses, the jewellery all gold, the girls with two chotis (plated hair). Not sure if this […]
Which Indian bookstore can you support right now?

Know an Indian bookstore not included in this? Please email it to us at prakruti@purplepencilproject.com and let us know! Independent bookstores are intergral pieces to not just literary life but to our social communities in general. At a time when the global pandemic has threatened survival of small businesses, they need our support, now more […]
Ba’az of the Bengal Lancers by Uttiyo Bhattacharya

There is a certain romance to historical fiction – an imaginative mind can spend hours on end going from one ‘what if’ scenario to another, to creating heroes and villains who may or may not have lived the lives we write for them. Uttiyo Bhattacharya’s Ba’az of the Bengal Lancers, published by Juggernaut, is set […]
Milk Teeth by Amrita Mahale

Milk Teeth by debut author Amrita Mahale was last year’s runaway hit, a story about friendship, love, family, and society – but above all, a story of and about Mumbai, and how it makes the people, even as it is made by the people. Milk Teeth revolves around the lives of civic beat reporter Ira […]