Pens and Places

Have you ever sat beside an old-experienced person and listened to their life story? This book feels the same. I was literally imagining the journey with him, experiencing the whole juggled path in his ways.  “Absolute Khushwant” is not exactly a memoir, but tribute to his own thoughts throughout his life. You can totally feel the real Khushwant Singh, explaining his ideologies, memories, emotions, work ethics and a lot more masala. He started with very subtle topics about his first love, sex, marriage and regrets.  And then continued with broader topics like politics, writing career, partition, communism, his native land Pakistan, religions, and his love for Urdu language. He patiently explained about the taboo topic of death too. I am not saying I agreed with everything he told or believed, but I felt like I was listening to someone's perception of living a grand life. I have not even lived half of what he survived. But I am looking forward to doing so many experiments and a...

  If I were to invite you into the recesses of my mind, where literary treasures are stored, you'd find a special alcove reserved for epic tales that transcend time and culture. It is within this sacred space that "The Ramayana" by R.K. Narayan resides, a gem that brilliantly captures the essence of an age-old Indian epic. Just as Matt Haig is my undisputed favorite in the world of contemporary fiction, R.K. Narayan reigns supreme in the realm of classic Indian literature, and "The Ramayana" is yet another testament to his literary prowess. "The Ramayana" is akin to a celestial constellation, shimmering brightly in the vast expanse of literary constellations. Narayan takes the epic originally composed by the legendary Tamil poet Kamban and breathes new life into it. The story is a magnificent tapestry woven with threads of adventure, love, duty, and the eternal battle between good and evil. Like a seasoned storyteller, Narayan transports us to a mythic...

  I was very young when I discovered about the term “suicide”! My younger siblings and I were very excited about the movie “3 Idiots”, and we were jamming on the song “Sari umr hum mar mar ke jee liye, ek pal to ab humein jeene do” . Freedom to choose the right thing for our career and the intolerable pressure by parents leading to a drastic consequence on someone’s life, we had seen in front of our eyes right then. I clearly remember, my siblings didn’t understand what happened on the tied rope through the spinning-camera-drone, but that night I didn’t sleep. The words “Ye suicide nahi, murder hai” were dancing on my mind, showcasing the harsh realities of upcoming life. How can giving up be so easy? One of my classmates attempted suicide just after the result night. I didn’t know him personally, but joining the dots was easy about why it happened! Our whole school, local news were filled with negative vibes that day. His parents were crying, blaming themselves, for pressurizing ...

Have you ever encountered fictional incidents in your dreams? I know it’s very common and people use to weave unrelated scenarios in their good night REM sleeps. But I wonder how many of you are daydreamers, chatting random talks of life with fictional characters from books/movies/web-series! Strange right?   I am not exaggerating by writing my weird thoughts, while having conversations with so many people in my mind. And that too in between my mundane tasks. Sometimes while switching on the light, I casually say “ Lumos ”. And then imagine Dumbledore clapping, for making him proud by “switching on the light” (hahaha, iykyk).  Sometimes I just stare at the words on the virtual letter, written by Augustus Waters from The faults in our stars . I try to feel the pain Hazel must have come across through her soul. I repeat his dialogues “I’m in love with you, and I’m not in the business of denying myself the simple pleasure of saying true things.” and think of some random lover o...

  There are a ton of blogs by now on the trending topic “Generative AI”. Some will show you the details by taking help from one of them, and some will provide you with the straight facts. I am trying something new this time and will try to write for those who are still scared/naïve of this hard-to-not-notice thing. Let’s start this revolutionary topic with a simple example. Imagine the era when there were no medicines, and people used to die at a very young age because of mere diseases. With the evolution of healthcare facilities, humans started to live longer. At that stage, the main concern was if the population is increasing, how will the survival needs be fulfilled? But with advancement in healthcare, came the technology of automated farming and latest yields. At that point of time, the main fear was how humans will survive and with time it got resolved with better results. Imagine the era when only men used to work and go to offices. Women were meant to take care of family, an...

  There’s no perfect formula for consistent happiness in life, but you must have heard someone saying, either in school or by elders, “Where there is a will, there is a way!”. I am no saint to guide anyone to follow some meditative path or a scientist to  instruct them to go through some major experiments to prove my point. I am just a human, who makes mistakes and learns from them. I am sure every individual has their own perspectives and ideologies to carry, but life becomes easy if we listen other’s views. I believe, if we implement at least 5% of the things that we experience from someone’s lifespan, it's enough.  Though there are plenty of pointers you will encounter while searching for the golden words for science of happiness, but here are my top 5 ways to be happy, which are very personal and fully verified :   People say “Stay Positive”. But how? How can you be positive if there are plenty of pending things to do? How can you be happy when you see your close...

  For the people who don’t love  romance novels and still try to read them, this book is for you. The thing about these novels is that you don’t even know why you are reading. And you won’t believe me, I picked up this book because of its catchy cover. I didn’t even know earlier that this one belongs to a love story. But, will you believe me if I tell you that this one is more than romance. The title “The Sun is also a Star” quickly gives anyone a resemblance of believing in something positive. And that’s what Nicola Yoon has written smoothly by taking an unexpected love story related to her life. Call me cynical or whatever, but I found the chapter for all the supporting characters very diametrical. You will know why and when any incident takes place, causing the entire universe in place. Whole narration revolves around Natasha and Daniel. But every small detail is curated and embossed with circumstantial evidence. A girl who is a non-believer of hope and magic, and a guy who...

  If you are expecting something spicy out of this confession, you will be disappointed, because I am too! I am also carrying my thwarted expectations till grave, only to share my quirky reactions of mind with the neighboring skull about my code-of-conduct with books. So here are my top 9 bookish confessions (NOTE : PLEASE DONT JUDGE ME!) : I looooove to buy books. Books, with crisp white flavorful pages of freshly wrapped ink scents. Books which I can touch and turn to the other side with my hands, not by swiping left or right. Books, which I can hold with a salsa positioned hand. And it’s not over. I love to buy books, even if I have plenty others to read in my TBR! I sometimes wonder what my TBR books must be talking on the shelves and bitching about every new-comer in their neighborhood. I always make a promise with myself after buying books that this should be my last until I wont finish the already-staring-books-at-my-place. And then, with every interesting/wish-list worthy b...