From the top of a double decker train, I watch the Riviera go by. The word, Riviera, conjures up a sepia colored village in my mind, straight out of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca. So, on my way from a writers’ … Continue reading
When I applied to a writers’ residency in Otranto, Italy, I did not even know where the town was. I filled out the paperwork half-heartedly, not sure if I wanted to go. So, when I got the letter of acceptance, … Continue reading
Watching Particle Fever, a documentary, I experienced a visceral reaction. I was jumping out of my seat; I was animated and exhilarated. I could not wait to find out how it all came out, even as a part of me … Continue reading
Buried deep inside my mind is a sepia colored scene from early childhood, its hues taken from the films we used to see on the streets during festival time. In the scene, I am sitting beside my father Dada on … Continue reading
In 1971, V.S. Naipaul published a short story collection titled In a Free State. The first story is about an Indian domestic servant who accompanies his diplomat master to Washington, D.C. The man bundles up his belongings in a piece … Continue reading
Judging by the anglophilia that America is currently in the grips of, it is hard to imagine that we are well into the twenty-first century and Britain’s finest hour has long passed. Take the recent celebration of the fiftieth anniversary … Continue reading
Go to any new-age retreat in California, and you will find young people preparing their breakfasts, not with spatulas and skillets, but with blenders. If you are eating your meal instead of drinking it, you are in danger of dating … Continue reading
“I thought of you,” a friend called to say. “Oh yeah?” “When I heard the news about Alice Munro.” A strange stirring went across my body. It was not elation, but something deeper; a sense of being known. For, if … Continue reading
The best TV show ever—and I mean EVER—ended on September 29th. And now I am experiencing withdrawal symptoms. So much so that I have decided to watch Breaking Bad from beginning to end, all over again. The story of the … Continue reading
As a child, Ganesh was my favorite God. I wanted, then, to have a God in my life. Most children have no such desire because they are born into families with Gods. God and religion are passed on to them. … Continue reading