Sheila Kumar - Comfortably Numb

Comfortably Numb

Sheila Kumar's Storehouse

Book review: Whisper in the Wind by Venita Coelho

This book is a cracker of a Gothic tale even as the actual nature of the story comes wrapped in gauze. Is it a (tender) ghost story? Is it a (macabre) murder mystery? Is it a (richly) atmospheric thriller? Well, simply put, it`s all of these and some. Love, betrayal, heartbreak, revenge, intrigue; chatelaines and…

Book review: Postscript by Cecilia Ahern

A measured journey of picking up the pieces and carrying on Cecilia Ahern debuted with PS I Love You in 2004, which went on to be No 1 on the bestseller lists in Ireland, the UK and across the pond, in the US too; win awards and get adapted into a movie with Hollywood stars…

Guest column: Millennials and their Morals

The morals of the millennial Y`know what? The millennials are doing well. Where there are millennials, there must be Baby Boomers. In fact, a congregation of Baby Boomers, shaking their head censoriously, waggling disparaging fingers, muttering sibilantly and not always below their breath. Just what is bothering all these Boomer uncles and aunties? Many things,…

Book review: In Search of Heer by Manjul Bajaj

Having decided on a retelling of the fable of Heer and Ranjha, writer Manjul Bajaj has dipped her pen verily in a lyrical stream. Lushly packed with evocative descriptions of young men and old, of nubile girls and timorous old women, of men with evil on their mind, a swiftly flowing river, cattle both fine…

Photo Feature: My session at the Times Lit Fest, Bangalore, Feb 2020

So, it was mighty fun, the session on Sex, Marriage & Morality at the Times Lit Fest. Despite the fact that I had to live down the descriptor `renowned` which the PR people handling the fest chose for me. Which was rather like saying `SK-world-famous- in- east-Bangalore!` We managed to draw a full house, an…

Book review: A Step Away From Paradise by Thomas Shor

A Step Away From Paradise by Thomas Shor (Penguin Ananda Books) We have been taught from the earliest age to separate fact from fiction. We can read Alice in Wonderland, marvel at it yet know Wonderland doesn’t really exist. We suspend the line between fact and fiction, and we assume that is what Lewis Carroll…

Book review: The Swap by Shuma Raha

Love, sex and dhokha ‘Soon to be a major web series,’ a blurb announces on the cover of The Swap by Shuma Raha. Within a couple of chapters into the story, which deals with two couples whose lives get remarkably intertwined, the reader sees that the book would translate very well onto celluloid, offering an…

Book review: The Sixth Finger by Malayatoor Ramakrishnan

You would imagine that the origin story of a nascent godman would make for a compelling read. This, unfortunately, is not entirely the case here. Malayatoor Ramakrishnan`s protagonist Vedaraman is introduced to the reader as an urli thief, when the young man is caught stealing the bronze vessel from a temple of all places. We…

Travel: SwaSwara in Gokarna

Meanwhile at the SwaSwara Ayurvedic Resort in Gokarna…… This is Woman Central and I sense it the moment I arrive. The place has that vibe exclusive to spots where women congregate. A couple of women in white yoga gear are walking down a tree-laden path. There are women doing languid lengths in the…

Book review: Panjab by Amandeep Sandhu

I open my New Year account of book reviews with a book I read slowly, attentively, absorbing everything it had to give. Amandeep Sandhu`s PANJAB is many things to many readers. There are those like me, who was once familiar with the pinds and the jind of what Sandhu calls the outlier state (and you…