Nescience

Keeping in the spirit of 'A room of her own', I succubmed to the phenomenon of 'A book of her own'. Indian writers are churning out new books every week. Most of the books in the market fall in the IIT/IIM category, popularised by Chetan Bhagat. They contain travails of love and live and offer a commentary on the world from the point of view of today's youth. Nobody can vouch for the language or the content, but one thing is certainly true. These books instill the habit of reading in english in Indian youth. These are the stories of the people themselves. They have the same insights, concerns and ideologies and hence, these books become favourites of the students and young professionals. The 2011 Lokpal Bill movement was, in many ways, a turning point for me. I had begun my FYBA. I was reading classics and books about Indian history. I was writing about the politics in India. I was immersed in a world where the need for change was glaring - I could see that, but ...

Disclaimer: This is a translation of  the Punekar part of the essay, 'Mumbaikar, Punekar and Nagpurkar' by Gaurav Sabnis. This essay was originally written by the celebrated Marathi author Purushottam Laxman Deshpande, popularly known as PuLa. Here is the link to the original post. Kudos to the author for the translation. I love it! http://gauravsabnis.blogspot.in/2006/10/mumbaikar-and-punekar.html Ok, so now... do you want to become a Punekar? Go ahead. We have no objections. But our advice is... think again. Do you really want to? OK, if you insist then your preparation needs to be thorough. And once you are fully prepared, then being a Punekar is as enjoyable an experience as any. Firstly, do not nurse the notion that you are inferior to anyone in any aspect of life. You are not. You are a superior being. Secondly, learn to express dissent on every issue possible. I mean seriously, stop thinking about minor things like who you are, how educated or uneducated you...

After a first disappointing read, I set my sights on Midnight's Children , by Salman Rushdie . What can I say? I was rendered speechless by this stunning novel. The characters leapt out of the pages - these are people I know, people I have seen and those I have heard about. Saleem Sinai, the protagonist is one of the midnight's children... Born on the stroke of midnight on 15th of August 1947, his fate is entwined with that of India. He is affected by all the major events of India, and he is, indirectly and directly, responsible for many events that shape the destiny of the country. The novel spans sixty three years, starting with the grandfather of the protagonist and addresses four generations of the family. The intricacy of the novel leaves one spellbound and Rushdie's singular writing style is just...awesome. I will definitely be re-reading this novel in the future, dwelling on the characters and the events. It makes for a wonderful, wonderful read.

I launched off my reading list for this year with What young India wants by Chetan Bhagat . I led me to the conclusion that India, and Chetan Bhagat both have no idea of what they want. Oh no, I am not criticising the book. It was lucid, had easy language but had none of the perspicuity of thought or the depth that other tomes, like The Argumentative Indian (Amartya Sen)  or We, the People ( Nani Palkhivala ) possess. I do not dislike Chetan Bhagat. Indeed I do not. His books have compelling stories that seem to resonate with the youth. Last year, I was enrolled in an introductory program to the UPSC in one of the coaching institutes in Pune. We were asked to discuss our favourite works of literature and to my horror, half the people had a Chetan Bhagat book as their favourite novel. Makes me wonder if the novel, as a genre has become so stilted, stagnant that the young people read only the literature that has the emotional depth of a rainwater puddle. These books are window...

Though there have been only two screenings, I have come to love the ASFC. I love the short, snazzy films that keep me hooked, provoke me and challenge me. We watched many films this time (2nd may), but these are the ones that appealed to me the most: Glimmer Iran, 2012 Director: Omid Abdollahi Length: 18:30 min Summary: The aged optometrist keeps his shop open every day, hoping for his last customer to come and pick up their spectacles. There is a subtle irony in this film, that runs through it's entire length. The optometrist wants to close his shop because of his weak eyesight. He opens the shop every day, waters a lone plant on a stool, whiles time away, sends away potential customer and generally, spends his time waiting. He then embarks on a journey of sorts, to find the woman who had ordered the spectacles. In a twist, he finds her at a hospital, where she has gone blind. He returns home, to his beautiful oasis of flowers and plants on the terrace. The simplistic ...

The exams are over and done with, and now is the time to read! Seriously, summer for me means long, lazy afternoons spent lying on the cool floor of my room, with the curtains drawn and the fan squeaking above me. So here is my reading list for this vacations (depending on the availability of books) and for the rest of the year: 1. The train to Pakistan - Khushwant Singh 2. Millennium series: The girl with the dragon tattoo - Stieg Larsson 3. Millennium series: The girl who played with fire - Stieg Larsson 4. Millennium series: The girl who kicked the hornets' nest - Stieg Larsson 5. The catcher in the rye - J.D. Salinger 6. Patriots and Partisans - Ramchandra Guha 7. Makers of Modern India - Ramchandra Guha 8. What young India wants - Chetan Bhagat 9. Glimpses of world history - Jawaharlal Nehru 10. Narcopolis - Jeet Thayil 11. Midnight's Children - Salman Rushdie 12. Enchantress of Florence - Salman Rushdie 13. Those pricey Thakur girls - Anuja C...