The Mathematical Values of Feeling Adrift
Nishant Injam’s debut story collection The Best Possible Experience (2024) features a cast of characters between India and the United States who are often homesick for another world: a world that could be a physical or a metaphorical distance away, a world they aspire to with the burdens of a life unfulfilled. By Karan Madhok
Preparing for Another Life: Four Poems by Ankush Banerjee
Poetry by Ankush Banerjee: ‘Before anaesthesia shatters / the bough of your body, before the / moon overhead is a mouth of darkness, you / pray they fill the space between dislocated hip / & future with what you heard but / could never hold’
In Language, Colonial Kolkata Stays Alive
A city rooted in colonial legend, Nivedita Dey examines the linguistics of place, names, food, and culture that keep the “Calcutta” in Kolkata.
Unspoken Inheritance
Poetry by Mrittika Chatterjee: ‘Windows cradle the world’s weight— / concerns, french braided, / but strands, a newly freed tribe. / Steering wheel clutched, / as if holding an inner child’
A Thousand Cuts: Two Poems by Carol D’Souza
Poetry by Carol D’Souza: ‘An armour is only the skin / that has learned / that there is no such thing /
as face value / The prudent trick / of seeming like a free-flowing ditty / from within’
A ‘Spicy’ Feast of Fantasy
Prashanth Srivatsa’s The Spice Gate as a spectacular debut fantasy, a feast to the readers who slurp on worldbuilding, while also making them wonder if a freer world is possible. By Akankshya Abismruta
Words, rain, Mozart: Three Poems by Sunil Sharma
Poetry by Sunil Sharma: ‘a sign / from the heavens, a sighting / rare, a visitor infrequent, in the / urban jungle.’
A Recoiled Thunderstorm: Three Poems by Kashiana Singh
Poetry by Kashiana Singh: ‘Flushed body of a zombie, burnt silk of raging worms / beholder of lost labyrinths, embroiderer of membranes’
Lost Women and Found Freedoms
Kiran Rao’s Laapataa Ladies (2024) is a film that makes serious societal commentary on the socio-cultural, economic, and governance aspects of women empowerment, wrapped within a multi-layered satire. By Kausik K. Bhadra
The Profound Metaphors of Inner Turmoil in Aparna Sanyal’s INSTRUMENTS OF TORTURE
In Aparna Sanyal’s Instruments of Torture, each tale is a deep dive into the abyss of human suffering, portraying characters who are not just victims of their circumstances but also complex individuals grappling with the aftermath of their traumas. By Namrata
Voices of a Generation: An Interview with A.M. Gautam on INDIAN MILLENNIALS
In a lengthy conversation, A.M. Gautam, the author of Indian Millennials: Who Are They, Really? (2024), speaks about the many anxieties and opportunities of the Indian millennial, themes of romance, employment, politics, and commerce, and discovering his own self while exploring the larger generation. By Karan Madhok
Down to EARTHA: Vinita Agrawal’s Poetic Conversation with Nature
Vinita Agrawal takes the role of a ‘poetic journalist’ in Eartha, in verses that spark with compassion for all living entities on the planet. By Tansy Troy