In Vauhini Vara’s debut novel, the story of the eponymous King Rao is part of larger questions of human creativity and meaning in a transhumanist world, where life is data-fied, and sentience, thought, emotion and ethics are mere products of automated and arbitrary calculations. By Paromita Patranobish

A poem by Sonali Chanda: ‘‘I ain’t a holy devil; but / a typical weird Eagle / who is about / to take her giant flight’

Contemporary OTT narratives like Panchayat and Nirmal Pathak Ki Ghar Wapsi are revisiting the rural through the lens of an urban outsider, in an evocation of Sri Lal Shukla’s acclaimed 1968 novel Raag Darbari. By Ananya

M. Pravat’s solo exhibit, ‘Concrete Dusk’ showcased a breath-taking collection of burnt brick sculptures and paintings in abstraction, exploring the essence of the cityscape. By Satarupa Bhattacharya

A poem by Kabir Deb: ‘I arrange / myself like a cook – a guide to heaven / where food is cherished with / the people we fall in love / with

Seventy-five years after the subcontinent was lacerated and partitioned, the anthology The Other in The Mirror attempts to bind the fractured reflections of Indians and Pakistanis, using the balm of literature. By Karan Madhok

A poem by Sayani Mukherjee: ‘Experienced insides of adult bones / Dilly dally fall / Over the window / A little trinket of shower’

Spun with compassion and realism, the stories from Varanasi in Vivek Nath Mishra’s collection No One An Outsider ask contrasting questions of belonging, compassion, self-destructiveness, and death. By Dustin Pickering

Aakash Prabhakar—who directed and acted in the Indian reimagining of Mark Bartlett’s play, Cock—speaks to Chintan Girish Modi about the complexities of adaptation, casting, identity politics, and the human discomfort with ambiguities.

Classical musician/composer Vivek Venugopal introduces his latest piece Moods for Violin and Piano, Op. 15, where he finds musical relief to accompany a myriad of life’s temperaments faced during the pandemic.

Poetry by Shivangi Mishra: ‘Forgetful of two lithe directions, that damned street, / Faced and faced not in retreat, / Turning its back on dense civilisation’

What’s The Chakkar? Episode 22: We’re reading books by Shrayana Bhattacharya and Ottessa Moshfegh; listening to music by Blackstratblues; and watching the series Indian Predator. Featuring Shaista Vaishnav, Ady Manral, and Samir Kumar. Hosted by Karan Madhok.