Comfortably Numb

Sheila Kumar's Storehouse

Book review: Saraswati by Gurnaik Johal

A river runs through it all Simply put, this book is audacious in scope and epic in scale. The resurgence of that ancient mythical river, the Saraswati, is braided here with the individual stories of characters,  all of whom are part of one extended family.  Multiple narratives across different continents deal with varied themes ranging…

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Feature: A Temple for Troubled Minds

Faith Fatale The Chottanikkara temple, near Kochi in Kerala, is a place that attracts the mentally disturbed, who seek solace here when all else fails.  I’m standing with scores of people facing the closed doors of the Shiva shrine, awaiting darshan. Suddenly, without warning, it starts. A handful of women begin moaning. It is an…

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