A plug for Pooja Nair’s book of stories, ‘I Was With You’ . Death, or rather the fear of it, struck Vasant Rao with unexpected suddenness, when he turned eighty-four. A celebration would be organised with friends and relatives who would come with good wishes on this occasion, called Sathabhishekam in Sanskrit. A day, when […]
October 11, 2021
(by G Waugh) 2000 நான் அதுவரை பார்த்த குழந்தைகளில் மிகவும் வித்தியாசமானவன் நித்தின். எங்கள் 1BHK அபார்ட்மெண்டின் கீழே கட்டப்பட்ட வேறொரு 1BHK அபார்ட்மெண்டில் புதிதாக தன் தந்தை தாயுடன் குடியேறினான். அப்போது அவனுக்கு ஒரு வயது கூட இருக்காது. நான் அது வரை வாழ்ந்த வீடுகள் அனைத்துமே இது போன்ற காம்ப்ளெக்ஸ்களில் அமைந்தவை தான். ஒவ்வொரு வீட்டிலும் ஒரு குழந்தையோ ஒரு சிறுபிள்ளையோ இருக்கும். ஒவ்வொரு வீட்டுத்தலைவரோ தலைவியோ மற்றவீட்டுக்காரர்களோடு உரையாட முதல் அடித்தளம் […]
September 21, 2021
(by Deepika Santhanakrishnan) During 2005, there lived a little girl doing class X by the name Deepika in St. Stephen’s School in Trichy. To describe this character, we have to travel back in time. She was the happiest of all kids who attended the first day in school. She gave out the loudest cry when […]
August 22, 2021
(by G Waugh) “It is not that every battle in the world must occur between the good and the bad. Sometimes battles occur even between the good and the good. And those battles can be glorious and in fact even more brutal than the ones between the good and the bad” I read the above […]
August 22, 2021
(by R Kailasham) I know that I shall meet my fate*Somewhere among the clouds above;Those that I fight I do not hateThose that I guard I do not love Somewhere in Tokyo, atop a chrome-and-glass building, is nestled an open-air bar that seems bigger than it ought to be. Two strangers, seated by themselves at […]
June 5, 2021
QUOTE: “But what songwriter could have predicted thirty years ago that the future would lose its sense of humour, its sense of playfulness, its sense of context, nuance and irony, and fall into the hands of a perpetually pissed off coterie of pearl-clutchers? How were we to know?” The original article is here: https://www.brooklynvegan.com/nick-cave-talks-about-whether-he-feels-the-need-to-change-problematic-lyrics-live/ Nick […]
May 22, 2021
(by Vikram M N) Me:Excuse me. She: Yes. Me: Can I sit here? She:Ya one sec let me remove my bag. Me:Hmm. Thank ya. She: It’s ok. Me: What’s that you’re watching? She: Movie. Me: Yea I know that. What movie? She: Before Sunrise. Me: Oh wow!My favorite. She: Is it? Was it good? Me: […]
May 1, 2021
Vikram M N, who has published film articles and short stories in this blog has come up with his second novel ‘Summer Camp’. The first draft written close to ten years before and even before his first novel ‘Neha – Yet Another Love Story’ Summer Camp started out as a novel about a young boy […]
April 30, 2021
(by art_beats_life) We stopped at a roadside shop to hydrate ourselves on some sweet tender coconuts. After we had our fill, Arjun gave the old shopkeeper a twenty rupee note. The Shop keeper smiled and waved at me as we got into the convertible. I smiled back, Arjun started the engine and we were back […]
April 30, 2021
(by art_beats_life) Dear Karthik, I watched your new film today. I just wanted to say that I am falling deeper in love with the way you write and breathe life into your characters on the silver screen with every film you make. I just don’t know what to expect in your next film, […]
January 29, 2021
(by Kannan Baskar) Author’s note: I have been working on a story, a short story, during these COVID times. It is just amateur attempt at an art form that has largely managed to define me (the stories I have read and seen have influenced my own narrative—from ‘Charulata’ to ‘Mouna Ragam’ to ‘Metamorphosis’ to ‘Lolita’ to ‘The Great Gatsby’. PS: This post has been removed […]
January 10, 2021
(by Sanjay NM) They say that time heals. As the days trickled, some earthly beings and a few loved ones, who had both mind and body, moved on after my death. I, having only a mind by now, had to follow them. I wasn’t complaining though. The place that awaited me was filled with wonders; […]
October 20, 2020
(by Iniya, the 15-year-old daughter of Aravindan R, a regular reader of this blog) Author’s note: I wrote this in 40 minutes in my English exam for the question: Write a short short story titled “The Meeting” It started when I was three. At first, it was hushed whispers behind locked doors, growing louder in […]
September 26, 2020
(by Vikram MN) Yesterday I got down from my cab around 1.45 AM and smiled back at the driver after closing the door. Because it was an auspicious day, CMBT was crowded. I crossed the road to go to my house which is at the opposite side of the bus stand. I have the habit […]
September 25, 2020
(by CV Nitin) ‘Gautam.’ ‘Hmm.’ ‘Gautam!’ ‘Yeah, what.’ ‘What are you thinking?’ asks Mira. ‘You don’t want to know. It is stupid,’ Gautam replies. ‘Just tell me. I’ll decide if it is stupid or not,’ Mira says. Gautam is lying down on a pale blue blanket with his right arm over his eyes. There’s a […]
September 10, 2020
(by Amit Joki) Chapter 1: Not just another morning Jon had gotten up early. The calendar showed July 28, 2199. Last night had been hectic. He was having a virtual get-together with his friends. There were holograms all over his room. Joey got him a bracelet with “Best Bud” engraved on it and was very smug […]
September 10, 2020
(by G Waugh) This piece shall be in response to a question that has been put to me numerous times by my group of friends that predominantly consist of people who have not been bitten by the reading bug yet. “Why do I have to read? When there is a glut of content that the […]
September 9, 2020
(by CV Nitin) This short story will be put up in Chapters, over the next few days. Chapter One 08 Nikhil stares hard at the number but it does not change. It sits smugly on the display panel and stares back at him. He presses a button. Nothing happens. What is going on in the […]
August 19, 2020
A plug for Madan Mohan’s “long story” (as he calls it)… I have written a long story (coming to over 30 pages) entitled “Democracy” for the Kindle UK contest. The e-book is available for purchase here: You can read a small excerpt here: ” After some small talk, he got to the crux. “Ever wondered […]
August 17, 2020
(by Mysore Vivek) (This story is set in a fictitious world) It’s the early 1980s and teacher Mani Ratnam (MR) has taken a big decision. Excited to announce his life’s next major step, he walks into a packed and vociferous class of Inner Voices (let’s call them IVs). IVs in chorus: GOOD MORNING, SIR! MR: […]
May 23, 2022
16