Sheila Kumar - Comfortably Numb

Comfortably Numb

Sheila Kumar's Storehouse

Travel: Tracking the Ganga

A river’s avatars In which I undertake a journey to gaze at the Ganga, all the way up to Badrinath. IT is a somewhat surreal situation. I’m sitting in a small room 3,133 metres above sea level, literally in the lap of snow-capped mountains. A voice, speaking in fluent Hindi laced with a hill patois,…

Travel: Taliparamba, Kerala

Where the bells ring The small town of Taliparamba near Kannur is famous for its many temples Even in a state that throws up one fresh tourist spot after another, the small town of Taliparamba, 20 km north of Kannur, lies a little off the beaten track. Basically a spread of about 47 villages, the…

Feature: Likethatonly Restaurant Review

Moregoodstuff The food trio — AD Singh, Chef Manu Chandra and Chetan Rampal —is showering Bangalore with more good stuff. Their new eatery, tucked away in a quiet lane in Whitefield, is all about whimsy, starting with the name: likethatonly. The décor — by designer Anshu Arora, painter Murali Nagapuzha and landscaping artist Rashmi Attavar…

Feature: Olive Beach Restaurant Review

Bountiful brunch This is a reaffirmation rather than a report. Restaurateur A.D. Singh’s brainchild, helmed by Chef Manu Chandra, a long slow lunch at Olive Beach continues to be the top-draw for Bangaloreans on lazy Sunday afternoons. So. What’s the same-old same-old? Why, it’s the Ladies who Lunch in Style, their Louboutins clacking on the…

Travel: Waterford, Ireland

Chasing crystals For all its chequered past, Waterford Crystal still holds all the magic you expect from a legend, writes Sheila Kumar, after a tour of the crystal factory in Ireland. “Why Waterford,” asks Bryan, mine host. “They have fallen on bad times. Most of the products are now made in eastern Europe.” In…

Humour: Travelling with the Paleface

Brownfaces amongst palefaces beside the Tiber Being an Indian in a coach full of foreigners in Italy has its advantages and disadvantages, discovers Sheila Kumar To be fair, we had insisted that we tour foreign parts, as it were, with anyone but Indians. Don’t get me wrong, I am as fond of my fellow Indian…

Feature: That Sugar Rush!

Drowning in a sugar rush at Olive Beach restaurant The strawberry consommé-drenched yogurt sorbet slides down my throat, smooth as honey but with a deliciously gritty undertaste. I take a deep breath of appreciation which coincides with my dinner companion’s rueful comment. “This is splendid. But omg, shouldn’t we be thinking of the damage it…

Feature: When Did I Become That Mom?

When did I become that mom? It’s well past midnight and SK and I are as tense as a pair of wound-up violins. Our daughter, our only child, had called an hour ago to tell us she was setting off homewards … and home is just a 15-minute drive from where she was. We were…

Travel: The Mesquita in Cordoba, Spain

Spain’s secular structure The traveller touring Spain cannot but notice the fact that right across the country, Moorish architecture sits peacefully alongside Roman and Baroque styles. Monuments containing both Islamic and Christian influences are all well maintained and shown off to visitors with much pride. Cordoba, to the south of Spain’s capital Madrid, is…

Travel: Assisi, Italy

A Medieval wonder Assisi, the hometown of St Francis, is the prettiest hill town ever, according to Sheila Kumar. It is a grey day, leaden clouds scudding over dull skies, a threat of rain in the moisture-laden air, the day we visit Assisi, in the Umbrian region of Italy. I refuse to be cowed…