Posts

Showing posts from June, 2013

Jack of all trades...?

By -
Image
People tend to look down upon those who are a jack of all trades and a master of none. Even parents stress upon their children to excel in the one field that they choose. They say hobbies are ok but the one thing that should drive your future should be the one that you excel in. But my heart yearns to learn almost everything that I come across, be it a great photography or a painting or an awesome novel.

For example, whenever I read about someone’s pottery experience, that they have described very vividly, I want to feel that experience. The way they are surrounded with colors, tools for pottery, pots, bowls of different shapes, brushes, and grind natural objects for colors; the way the wet clay on their hands fills them with life; and the way they feel the thrill of creating something new and artful from sheer mud—I really want to feel so, at least once in a lifetime. I want to do pottery. (One of the members of F4 in ‘Boys over Flowers’ did pottery and sold his masterpieces at the …
Post a Comment
Read more

Growing up and Change..

By -
Image
When I think of 11 year olds, especially, boys of age 11, a particular kid’s face comes to my mind. We used to go to school together in the auto with three others from our colony, and I was in 11th grade. He was one of the cherubic kids who’d talk easily with every stranger, and gossip incessantly on any topic he got. I remember how we all played ‘Rock Paper Scissors’ back home from school and how he would wave at every stranger and passersby on the road and say “hello bhaiya”( or didi or uncle or aunty or bacchha). He would exchange pleasantries while the auto is on the go, and the strangers would be looking dumbly at him wondering, “Who is this boy? Do I know him?”. Some of them, rather, most of them were charmed by this kid’s cherubic happy attitude, and they would wave him back.





This routine of him waving at and talking to random strangers was something I really liked. Another incident comes to my mind. It was perhaps my third day at the new school, and we were waiting for the au…
Post a Comment
Read more

"Perks of being a wallflower"

By -
Image
Perks of being a wallflower-- Stephen Chbosky



“the struggle between passivity and passion- a wild and poignant tale of ‘growing up’- high school life.”
It has been a while since i read the book, pdf file actually. And i had jotted down some of my favorite quotes in my diary, and some i got from the net. Charlie's character is so likable. He writes down whatever he thinks, sees or wonders, in form of letters to an unknown imaginary friend, each ending with "Love always, Charlie." It's the mind and innocence of a shy, high school boy that hooks the readers to the story. It's an easy read, but thought provoking. i have watched the movie recently too. it's nice, but the book is much better...

Some of my favorite quotes from the book:

"Do you always think this much, Charlie?"
"Is that bad?"I just wanted someone to tell me the truth.
"Not necessarily. It's just that sometimes people use thought to not participate in life."
"Is that …
Post a Comment
Read more

Popular posts from this blog

Remnants of a Separation - A Review

By -
Image
As I read through the book, chapter after chapter of poignant memoirs, juggling between the text and the endnotes or references section, I am overcome with such powerful emotions of longing and loss. I am witness to a series of nostalgia, suffering, migration, and pain of so many people through this 400-page book, author Aanchal Malhotra’s careful, sensitive and emotional archiving of oral histories around The Partition of the Indian Subcontinent in 1947 through material memory. I belong to the third generation of those who lived during this Great Divide, an event that saw the largest mass migration in human history. And what meager knowledge I had of the partition through history books, this work of non-fiction added greatly to my perspectives, through its tales from real people who had to migrate- from there place of belonging, their homeland, to a land that was considered safe according to their and was assigned to them.

I wonder, is independence even worth celebrating, considering …
Read more

Empress Ki : A story of an epic scale

By -
Image
Empress Ki is the most elaborate, gripping, and thrilling series I have watched this year. And at 51 episodes, it is the longest Korean drama series I have ever watched. Even though the number seems daunting and too much, it’s worth it all. If you like period dramas, you won’t want to give this one a miss.

It was in 2016 that I first read about Empress Ki, the historical drama that had garnered much praise and accolades from the audience and critics alike. Most Korean dramas are just 16 or 20 episodes long. So 51 seemed never-ending to me then. It wasn’t until 2017 that I decided to at least try the first episode. And I was hooked. But owing to the various circumstances I didn’t continue watching it. It was just last month that I remembered this epic story and watched it to completion within just a few days. Believe it or not, midway through it, I was almost literally pulling my hair out, in anticipation of what would happen next.

I would have given this magnum opus 10/10 had it stopp…
Read more

Horse Riding Lessons #WriteBravely

By -
Image
Horse riding was no cake walk for me.
I feigned ignorance for months about the rule for Princesses to learn to tackle a beast like that. For weeks I would hide somewhere innocently when it was time for the lessons. The experts appointed for this task left their posts within weeks. Hah! I would make each one leave. It’s a war now, between my father - The King and me.
One morning I spotted a rather young man near the stables. The maids were gossiping how handsome he was. Some whispered he was a year or two senior to me. Huh! He must have just graduated then. Father is appointing amateurs now, I see. Had I not been home-schooled, I would have known school life for myself.
I chose the haystacks in the courtyard of the servants’ quarters to hide that day, much pleased with my choice. The sky was beautiful and so were the house-sparrows. Just as I admired my surroundings, a head popped in front of me from nowhere.
“So here you are. You’re late for your classes. Let’s go now,” he pulled …
Read more

E[x]ploring Odia Literature Through 'Punyatoya'

By -
Image
Odia is my mother tongue but I had never really focussed on Odia novels, given that I love reading. Of late I realised that I should explore the culture and language of my native land, and see for myself whether it suits my reading sensibilities. I read “Jagyaseni” by Pratibha Ray a few years back, over a span of several months. It is a retelling of Mahabharata from Draupadi’s perspective, which brings about her inner turmoils, confusions, decisions, desires and dreams, really well. It was the first Odia novel I ever read. Three days back, I completed reading my second novel in Odia, coincidentally it is by the same author. “Punyatoya” - literally it means the river, or ‘as pure as the river’. It is also the name of a revered river in Indian mythology.
The book has been translated into Hindi with the same title, with the tagline “the story of a village girl Meghi”. Other translated versions are in Marathi and Malayalam.
The story follows a young girl named Barsha, dearly called Meghi at…
Read more

A Reddish Orange Crown #ThursdayTreeLove

By -
Image
I have been waiting to post a picture of a tree and take part in this linky since forever. Most often than not I would forget clicking a pic when I come across one, and sometimes the photos came hazy and blurred. I am mildly satisfied with this one now. If you have been to Bhubaneswar in summer, you must be very acquainted with these pictures. You might also be having one right in front of your balcony, if you happen to live here.


The linky can be found here.
Read more

Autumn In My Heart

By -
Image
‘Autumn in my heart’ is a tragic love story. It has tears in almost every episode. It is one of the four ‘Endless love’ season themed dramas- Spring Waltz, Autumn Tale, Winter Sonata, and Summer Scent.

Two babies are born on the same day- Eun suh and Shin ae. By mistake, they are exchanged by their families. While Eun suh’s childhood is a happy one spent with the parents and the brother Joon suh, Shin ae’s is a tiring one spent working in the restaurant and dealing with a thug of a brother. After 14 years due to an accident to Eun suh, the parents come to know that their blood types don’t match and that Eun suh is not their daughter.  After huge emotional turmoil and numerous heart breaks, the children are switched back again, disregarding what will become of Eun suh and Joon suh. Both are never used to living without each other, and miss the childhood days immensely. Joon suh’s family leaves for the US for 8 years. The separation is heart wrenching. After 8 years, Joon suh comes bac…
Read more