Five ways in which And We Came Outside and Saw the Stars Again takes inspiration from Dante’s Divine Comedy
In this rich, eye-opening anthology, And We Came Outside and Saw the Stars Again , dozens of esteemed writers, poets, artists and translators from more than thirty countries offer a profound, kaleidoscopic portrait of lives transformed by the coronavirus pandemic.
As COVID-19 has become the defining global experience of our time, writers transcend borders and genres to offer a powerful antidote to the fearful confines of isolation: a window onto corners of the world beyond our own.
The anthology harks back to one of the most famous works of ‘pandemic literature’ Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy, especially the first part, the Inferno. Read on to learn more about the fascinating intertextuality of And We Came Outside and Saw the Stars Again
Just as Virgil in the Divine Comedy is the voice of both compassion, empathy and reason, thinkers, artists and authors are the ones we turn to for guidance and answers in difficult times.
The perspectives of scientists are indispensable, but we must also listen to philosophers, anthropologists, intellectuals, artists, and creators. . . Literature also experiences an inevitable renaissance in these times of collective fear: when we cannot understand what is happening around us, as a society we turn to books to see if they offer any answers.
Pandemics seem to not only inspire creativity, but also a need within readers to seek meaningful insights into the more metaphysical aspects of illness, of death and the afterlife. Just as the first part of the Divine Comedy was written during the Black Death-the bubonic plague that ravaged Europe in the 14th century, it’s the Covid 19 pandemic that serves as the unlikely muse for this anthology.
Or, like religion tells us, is there a mythical divide between heaven for the good and hell for the bad, with our final destination decided by a whimsical god? Perhaps there is a different kind of afterlife altogether, one that remains undiscovered by philosophers, theologists, and scientists? The plague brings these questions to the fore, which in normal times are confined to the depths
of the human psyche, making them essential to the present moment.
Some of the most iconic lines from the Divine Comedy serve to structure the anthology, as the titles of the five parts into which the fifty-two contributions are divided.
Part I, “A Mighty Flame Follows a Tiny Spark,” focuses on the eruption of the plague; Part II, “The Path to Paradise Begins in Hell,” on the need for a road map; Part III, “I’m Not Alone in Misery,” on empathy; Part IV, “Faith Is the Substance of Things Hoped for,” on hope; and Part V, “Love Insists the Loved Loves Back,” is the door through which we might come outside again and see the stars.
The pandemic itself seems to be an evocation of the seven circles of hell described in the Inferno, growing increasingly more frightening with progression
I’m afraid for myself and my family. I see lines in stores and people quarreling over basic goods at the cash registers. I see an administration that’s taking advantage of the opportunity and dismantling democracy even further. And big companies, untouchable in all this, who will soon be able to make all of us even more dependent on them. I see borders closing, the police using excessive force, and cruel looks from people on the streets.
.
With its notes of positivity amidst the turmoil, the title of the anthology is inspired by the last line of Dante’s Inferno, in which the poet and Virgil emerge from their journey through hell to once again view the beauty of the heavens—‘Thence we came forth to rebehold the stars.’
The day after the plague it will be summer, and finally we’ll be able to have a coffee at the corner cafe, go to the beach, and for a brief moment we’ll value our restored liberty.
Among the chief struggles of raising little bundles of joy is making sure that they eat (and enjoy) their daily dose of wholesome and nutritious meals! Bringing the ultimate solution is Uma Raghuraman-aka @Masterchefmom a super- popular food blogger and Instagrammer who has packed My Genius Lunchbox with recipes for creative dishes that are nutrition packed, vibrant and appeal to both the eye and the very discerning palate of fussy little eaters.
Here are eight very useful tips straight from a Masterchef Mom that will help you create healthy and tantalizing treats that guarantee happy, healthy and well-fed children who look forward everyday to their own ‘genius lunchbox’!
Dry fruits make a delicious addition to any meal and are a powerhouse of essential fatty acids and vitamins. Whether powdered or used whole, the possibilities are endless, whether used in the crunchy-munchy Makhana Profiteroles or the Khajoor Rock Buns.
Chole Chimichangas
¬
When you want to switch up cuisines a little, while still using easily available and essentially Indian ingredients—Mexican is a great alternative, as seen in the flavor and protein-packed CholeChimichangas!
¬
Behold the wonderful versatility of Hung curd! With its probiotic properties, and packed with calcium it makes for a great addition as a spread or dip. Check out the lip-smacking Haydari Sandwich.
My Genius Lunch Box || Uma Raghuraman
¬
Go vocal for local! A little ingenuity works for even most tricky ingredients as in the brilliant substitute of muthia for sausages to make the Muthia Hotdogs. Play around a little with traditional ingredients and see what positively genius substitutes you can come up with.
¬
Tired of fat and preservative filled sandwich spreads? Whizz up your own veggie-tastic versions using vegetables and legumes to make the Guacamole Chutney Sandwich or Pakwan Lavash and Dal Hummus instead!
Steamed Rainbow Frushke
¬
Gluten-free can be made tension-free as well. My Genius Lunchbox uses a number of wonderful maida substitutes that are easily available and packed with their own unique nutrients such as singhara, millet flour and cornmeal . We recommend trying the Singhara and Paneer Tarts.
Muthiya Hotdogs
¬
Want to reduce waste while not letting leftovers kill your buzz. My Genius Lunchbox offers us number of super creative ways to turn leftovers into something unrecognizably delicious as seen in the Vermicelli Pancakes.
**
Play around with harness the natural sweetness of vitamin packed fruits to make delicious vibrant treats like the Steamed Rainbow Frushke.
Are you finding it tough to fund your start-up? Especially in the post-COVID-19 world, where money is scarce? Well, then, this book is for you.
It not only takes you through stories of early-stage start-ups and how they successfully managed to raise funding, but also culls important lessons from -start-ups that failed to raise funding for various reasons. The authors also interview some of the most accomplished founders in the world of business, such as Deep Kalra of MakeMyTrip, Yashish Dahiya of PolicyBazaar, Dinesh Agarwal of IndiaMART and Sairee Chahal of SHEROES, bringing their stories together in as useful ‘PERSISTENT’ framework, which helps make a start-up investment-ready. Read on to learn about the people who act as ‘angels’ in start-up heaven!
—
Angel investors are the first external investors in your business. Those who do not know you. Why are they willing to invest in your business?Very simply because they want to make money. They have tried fixeddeposits and debt funds, and have learnt that they don’t make morethan 7 per cent or so—and, of course, they pay tax on this interest.Some of them have tried out the stock market and made money, but they have realized that stock markets can at best give you around 15 per cent returns over the long term. That’s it. Real estate is a good option, but the amounts involved are very large and the investments are illiquid. And anyway, real estate seems to be stagnating, at least in the foreseeable future . . . And therefore, investors are constantly on the lookout for new avenues of investment. Something that can potentially get them much higher returns than these traditional investment options. Where they can park a small part of their investments, even if the risks are substantially higher. And what better place for this than start-ups? Look at it this way. What are our unicorns such as Flipkart, Oyo Rooms and Ola Cabs valued at? Over a billion dollars each, isn’t it? And in some cases, several billion dollars—Flipkart, for instance, was valued at $21 billion when Walmart bought it. Now, can you buy shares in any of these companies at this valuation? Unless you are a direct descendant of some royal family and have inherited pots of gold, certainly not. But—and this is a very important but—could you have bought shares in these companies when they were toddlers and just about starting off? Aha! Sure you could have.
Funding Your Start-Up || Dhruv Nath, Sushanto Mitra
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the concept of the angel investor. QED. Angel investors—sometimes simply called angels—are people who are either rich or at least comfortably off, and are looking atinvesting in companies at an early stage. In the hope that they will become the next Flipkart or Naukri.com. And since they have invested at an early stage, they own a large chunk of the company’s shares, whose value could increase dramatically when these companies grow ever so rapidly. So the word ‘angel’ is probably a bit of a misnomer— they are very, very keen to make money. But they are also willing to take a risk. They are, therefore, willing to help you out with funding when your business has not really stabilized and no one else is willing to fund you. And that is how they came to be called ‘angel’ investors. After all, angels are those who help you when you’re in trouble, isn’t it?
It’s that time of the month again when we bring you a fresh list of books to take care of all your reading blues. Whether you’re a fiction fan or a non-fiction nerd, whether you have the hidden skills of a chef or a special inclination towards fitness, there’s something for everyone in our October list.
Make sure you have a pen and paper at the ready before you begin scrolling down!
**
The Cowherd Prince
Krishna Udyashankar
The Cowherd Prince || Krishna Udayasankar
Govinda, son of Nanda-one of the many cowherds in the verdant kingdom of Surasena, in Aryavarta-was content with his tough but wonderful life. That was until the king’s men came looking for him and his brother, Balabadra, spewing death and destruction in their wake. Forced to leave behind those they love in order to save them, the brothers are now on the run—all the while being hunted by the tyrant king, Kans, and his bloodthirsty adviser, Chanuran, who will stop at nothing to kill them. Even as their journey reveals Govinda’s true identity as a prince and the rightful heir to the Surasena crown, it pulls them deeper into the murky secrets surrounding the throne-and its bloody legacy.
What will it take for an ordinary cowherd boy to grow into a master strategist who will always have a plan?
Get Moving!
Shwetambari Shetty
Get Moving! || Shwetambari Shetty
Shwetambari Shetty’s Dance Fitness workouts and training programmes are a phenomenon that’s taken the country by storm. Her philosophy is simple: you have to get moving. She shows you how to incorporate beneficial movements and exercises into your day-to-day activities, without devoting extra time to them. Get Moving! will help you design your own training programme according to your goal-whether it’s weight loss, muscle gain or just better fitness-and show you how to enjoy the exercises you do. This book will help you get results and become the best version of yourself.
Insomnia
Rachna Bisht Rawat
A retired General is haunted by voices of dead men.
Insomnia || Rachna Bisht Rawat
Soldiers from two enemy nations manning posts in freezing Siachen form a strange connection.
A young Lieutenant dying in the jungles of Arunachal is watched over by three men, one of whom would have his destiny changed forever.
What surprise is a train bound for Agra bringing to the all-male bastion of 13 Para?
Who are the invisible people a little girl awaiting brain surgery in the Lansdowne Military Hospital talks to?
Insomnia will take you into the olive-green world of army cantonments, through stories that will delight and disturb in equal measure.
Singing in the Dark
Edited by K. Satchidanandan and Nishi Chawla
Singing in the Dark || K Satchidanandan, Nishi Chawla
Singing in the Dark brings together the finest of poetic responses to the coronavirus pandemic. More than a hundred of the world’s most esteemed poets reflect upon a crisis that has dramatically altered our lives, and laid bare our vulnerabilities. The poems capture all its dimensions: the trauma of solitude, the unexpected transformation in the expression of interpersonal relationships, the even sharper visibility of the class divide, the marvellous revival of nature and the profound realization of the transience of human existence.
Celebrating Life
Rishi Nitya Pragya
Celebrating Life || Rishi Nityapragya
The universe has bestowed limitless powers and infinite siddhis on the human consciousness. But in our attempt to be effective and successful in the personal and professional spheres, we often forget that the purpose of human life is also to ensure the complete blossoming of the individual consciousness. In Celebrating Life, Rishi Nityapragya shares the secrets that can help you explore your infinite potential. He offers an in-depth understanding of how to identify and be free from negative emotions and harmful tendencies, and how to learn to invoke life’s beautiful flavours—like enthusiasm, love, compassion and truth—whenever and wherever you want.
The Learning Factory
Arun Maira
The Learning Factory || Arun Maira
In The Learning Factory, Arun Maira narrates people-centric episodes that bring alive the values of the Tata Group, standards that combine the high-velocity practices as well as the old-fashioned principles that make the Tata Group the giant it is today. With insightful stories of conduct that are as practically implementable as they are inspiring, this is a blueprint for the individual as well as the business that seeks success through its community of leaders, workers and thinkers.
Preparing for Death
Arun Shourie
Preparing for Death || Arun Shourie
The one certainty in life, the one appointment which each of us will just have to face, is the one for which we do the least to prepare-death. From the lives and last days of the Buddha, Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, Ramana Maharshi, Gandhiji, Vinoba; from our religious texts; from the teachings of great meditation masters; from santhara to sannyas to practices by which we may tame our mind-leavening all these by his personal experiences-Arun Shourie presents clues to ensure that we face our end with equanimity.
How to Read Amartya Sen
Lawrence Hamilton
How to Read Amartya Sen || Lawrence Hamilton
Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen is one of the world’s best-known voices for the poor and the downtrodden, and an inspiration for the proponents of justice across the globe. Lawrence Hamilton provides an excellent, accessible guide to the full range of Sen’s writings, contextualizing his ideas and summarizing the associated debates. In elegant prose, Hamilton reconstructs Sen’s critiques of the major philosophies of his time, assesses his now famous concern for capabilities as an alternative for thinking about poverty, inequality, gender discrimination, development, democracy and justice, and unearths some overlooked gems.
Night of the Restless Spirits
Sarbpreet Singh
Night of the Restless Spirits || Sabrpreet Singh
A young Indian in the USA embraces a cause rooted in his motherland, but one that he doesn’t fully understand. A student’s world is turned upside down when his friend and her family are caught in the crosshairs of volatility and violence. A train burns as it enters Delhi, and the sole Sikh survivor shares with the nation the harrowing tale of his survival.
These and many other stories form this heart-rending collection that evokes the horrors and uncertainties of 1984, through the tales of ordinary people caught in something bigger than themselves. Set during a time of monumental upheaval, Night of the Restless Spirits blurs the lines between the personal and political, and takes the reader on a journey fraught with love and tinged with tragedy, frayed relationships, the breaking down of humanity and resilience in the face of absolute despair.
Off the Beaten Track
Saeeda Bano
Off the Beaten Track || Saeeda Bano
Saeeda Bano was the first woman in India to work as a radio newsreader, known then and still as the doyenne of Urdu broadcasting. Over her unconventional and courageous life, she walked out of a suffocating marriage, witnessed the violence of Partition, lost her son for a night in a refugee camp, ate toast with Nehru and fell in love with a married man who would, in the course of their twenty-five-year relationship, become the Mayor of Delhi. Though she was born into privilege in Bhopal-the only Indian state to be ruled by women for four successive generations-her determination, independence and frankness make this a remarkable memoir and a crucial disruption in India’s understanding of her own past.
Stephen Hawking
Leonard Mlodinow
Stephen Hawking || Leonard Mlodinow
An icon of the last fifty years, Stephen Hawking seems to encapsulate genius: not since Albert Einstein has a scientific figure held such a position in popular consciousness. In this enthralling memoir, writer and physicist Leonard Mlodinow tells the story of his friend and their collaboration, offering an intimate account of this giant of science. By weaving together their shared story with a clear-sighted portrayal of Hawking’s scientific achievements, Mlodinow creates a beautiful portrait of Stephen Hawking as a brilliant, impish and generous man whose life was not only exceptional but also genuinely inspiring.
More than a Woman
Caitlin Moran
More than a Woman || Caitlin Moran
A decade ago, Caitlin Moran thought she had it all figured out. Her instant bestseller How to Be a Woman was a game-changing take on feminism, the patriarchy, and the general ‘hoo-ha’ of becoming a woman. Back then, she firmly believed ‘the difficult bit’ was over, and her forties were going to be a doddle. Now with ageing parents, teenage daughters, a bigger bum and a To-Do list without end, Caitlin Moran is back with More Than A Woman: a guide to growing older, a manifesto for change, and a celebration of all those middle-aged women who keep the world turning.
The Memory Police
Yoko Ogawa, Stephen Snyder (translator)
The Memory Police || Yoko Ogawa, Stephen Snyder(tr.)
To the people on the island, a disappeared thing no longer has any meaning. It can be burned in the garden, thrown in the river or handed over to the Memory Police. Soon enough, the island forgets it ever existed.
When a young novelist discovers that her editor is in danger of being taken away by the Memory Police, she desperately wants to save him. For some reason, he doesn’t forget, and it’s becoming increasingly difficult for him to hide his memories. Who knows what will vanish next?
Flavour
Yotam Ottolenghi, Ixta Belfrage
Flavour || Ottlenghi
In this stunning new cookbook Yotam and co-writer Ixta Belfrage break down the three factors that create flavour and offer innovative vegetable dishes that deliver brand-new ingredient combinations to excite and inspire.
Ottolenghi’s Flavour combines simple recipes for weeknights, low-effort high-impact dishes, and standout meals for the relaxed cook. Packed with signature colourful photography, the book not only inspires us with what to cook, but how flavour is dialled up and why it works.
The Boy from the Woods
Harlan Coben
The Boy from the Woods || Harlan Coben
Thirty years ago, a child was found in the New Jersey backwoods. He had been living a feral existence, with no memory of how he got there or even who he is. Everyone just calls him Wilde. Now a former soldier and security expert, he lives shunned by the community – until they need him.
A child has gone missing. With her family suspecting she’s just playing a disappearing game, nobody seems concerned except for criminal attorney Hester Crimstein. She contacts Wilde, asking him to use his unique skills to find the girl. But even he can find no trace of her. Days pass and on the fourth day, a human finger shows up in the mail.
And now Wilde knows this is no game. It’s a race against time to save the girl’s life – and expose the town’s dark trove of secrets.
The Kingdom
Jo Nesbo
The Kingdom || Jo Nesbo
When Roy and Carl’s parents die suddenly, sixteen-year-old Roy is left as protector to his impulsive younger brother. But when Carl decides to travel the world in search of his fortune, Roy stays behind in their sleepy village, satisfied with his peaceful life as a mechanic. Some years later, Carl returns with his charismatic new wife, Shannon – an architect. They are full of exciting plans to build a spa hotel on their family land. But it’s only a matter of time before what begins as a jubilant homecoming sparks off a series of events that threaten to derail everything Roy holds dear, as long-buried family secrets begin to rise to the surface.
The Kingdom is a simmering and complex thriller full of unexpected twists, devastating family legacies and an ever growing body count.
The Thursday Murder Club
Richard Osman
In a peaceful retirement village, four unlikely friends meet up once a week to investigate unsolved murders. But when a brutal killing takes place on their very doorstep, the Thursday Murder Club find themselves in the middle of their first live case.
The Thursday Murder Club || Richard Osman
Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron might be pushing eighty but they still have a few tricks up their sleeves.
Can our unorthodox but brilliant gang catch the killer before it’s too late?
Another Now
Yanis Varoufakis
Another Now || Yanis Varoufakis
Imagine a world with no banks. No stock market. No tech giants. No billionaires. In Another Now world-famous economist Yanis Varoufakis shows us what such a world would look like. Far from being a fantasy, he describes how it could have come about – and might yet. This boundary-breaking book confounds expectations of what a good society would look like and reveals the uncomfortable truth about our desire for a better world.
Ten Lessons for a Post-Pandemic World
Fareed Zakaria
Ten Lessons for a Post-Pandemic World || Fareed Zakaria
In this urgent and timely book, Fareed Zakaria foresees the nature of a post-pandemic world: the political, social, technological and economic consequences that may take years to unfold. In ten surprising, hopeful ‘lessons’, he writes about the acceleration of natural and biological risks, the obsolescence of the old political categories of right and left, the rise of ‘digital life’, the future of globalization and an emerging world order split between the United States and China. He invites us to think about how we are truly social animals with community embedded in our nature, and, above all, the degree to which nothing is written – the future is truly in our own hands.
The Tyranny of Merit
Michael J. Sandel
The Tyranny of Merit || Michael J. Sandel
These are dangerous times for democracy. We live in an age of winners and losers, where the odds are stacked in favour of the already fortunate. Stalled social mobility and entrenched inequality give the lie to the promise that “you can make it if you try”. In The Tyranny of Merit, Michael J. Sandel argues that to overcome the polarized politics of our time, we must rethink the attitudes toward success and failure that have accompanied globalisation and rising inequality. He offers an alternative way of thinking about success – more attentive to the role of luck in human affairs, more conducive to an ethic of humility, and more hospitable to a politics of the common good.
The Serendipity Mindset
Dr Christian Busch
The Serendipity Mindset || Dr Christian Busch
Modern life is full of chance encounters, changing plans, delayed journeys, human errors and other mishaps. So, what if we use such unpredictability to our advantage? The Serendipity Mindset is a revolutionary, well-researched exploration of a well-researched and essential life skill that we can all develop in a few simple steps. By learning to identify, act on and share serendipity, we can use uncertainty as a pathway to more joyful, purposeful and successful lives.
This Gandhi Jayanti, we bring you a list of books that highlight the nuances of the man who became larger than life in our national and political consciousness. ‘Every man’s life is a fable’, says Raja Rao. These books help us understand the fable of Gandhi a little better.
**
Gandhi: The Years That Changed the World, 1914-1948
Ramchandra Guha
Gandhi || Ramachandra Guha
As one of the most prolific historians of modern India, Ramchandra Guha traces the life of Mahatma Gandhi in the three decades preceding his assassination. Examining archival material, Guha explores the details of Gandhi’s anti-colonial struggle, his take on untouchability, and his desire to strengthen India’s moral compass. This book is a record of not only Gandhi himself but also the people in his life.
An Autobiography or The Story of My Experiments with Truth
M.K. Gandhi
An Autobiography || M.K. Gandhi
Gandhi’s Autobiography is one of the most widely read and translated Indian books of all time, is a classic that allows us to glimpse the transformation of a well-meaning lawyer into a Satyagrahi and an ashramite. In this first-ever Critical Edition, eminent scholar Tridip Suhrud shines new light on Gandhi’s life and thought. The deeply researched notes elucidate the contexts and characters of the Autobiography, while the alternative translations capture the flavour, cadence and quirkiness of the Gujarati.
The Man Before the Mahatma
Charles DiSalvo
The Man Before the Mahatma || Charles DiSalvo
As the first biography of Gandhi as a lawyer, DiSalvo’s book traces the change of the man from a reticent 18-year-old who left Gujarat to the titan who became one of the biggest thorns in the British colonial side. The book focuses on Gandhi’s legal work in South Africa and his encounter with the racist policies of white colonialists, which left an inedible mark on him and changed the trajectory of his career.
Gandhi Before India
Ramachandra Guha
Gandhi Before India || Ramachandra Guha
Guha’s book explored the lesser known parts of Mahatma Gandhi’s life, spanning the years from his birth right up to when he returned to India from South Africa after his legal training. The book is a rare insight into the shaping of the Mahatma, the childhood and formative years that chiselled his ideological bent and made him the man he turned out to be.
Mahatma Gandhi: The Great Indian Way
Raja Rao
Mahatma Gandhi: The Great India Way || Raja Rao
Raja Rao experiments with narrative linearity and chronological sequence to brings us this unique work on Gandhi that stands out to this day. Using dialogue and anecdotes, Rao maps the progression of Gandhi’s life in a way that contemporises him, making his work and values relevant to the present as well.
The Death and Afterlife of Mahatma Gandhi
Makarand Paranjape
The Death and Afterlife of Mahatma Gandhi || Makarand R. Paranjape
Paranjape meticulously studies Gandhi’s last six months in Delhi. He analyses the factors that facilitated Gandhi’s assassination, the meaning of his death and what that reveals about the country at large.
As readers, we love that our world is enriched by books from various languages, cultures, and countries. This has only been made possible by the immense contribution of translators from all around the world. To celebrate World Translation Day, which is celebrated on 30th September every year, and honour the work of translators everywhere, we have compiled a special list of works translated from various Indian languages into English.
Happy reading!
**
Chowringhee
Sankar, translated from Bengali by Arunava Sinha
Chowringhee || Sankar
Set in 1950s Calcutta, Chowringhee is a sprawling saga of the intimate lives of managers, employees and guests at one of Calcutta’s largest hotels, the Shahjahan. Shankar, the newest recruit, recounts the stories of several people whose lives come together in the suites, restaurants, bar and backrooms of the hotel. As both observer and participant in the events, he
inadvertently peels off the layers of everyday existence to expose the seamy underbelly of unfulfilled desires, broken dreams, callous manipulation and unbidden tragedy. What unfolds is not just the story of individual lives but also the incredible chronicle of a metropolis.
Raag Darbari
Shrilal Shukla, translated from Hindi by Gillian Wright
Raag Darbari || Shrilal Shukla
Raag Darbari’s plot is set in Shivpalganj, which is a small village located in Uttar Pradesh. The narrator of this novel is Ranganath, who is a research student of History. He comes to visit his uncle, Vaidyaji, who serves as the head of the village and his supporters are placed at key locations in the village. Vaidyaji is a highly corrupt ruler who has defeated every individual who tried to stand against him. The readers are also introduced to Langad, who desires to carry out dealings in an honest manner. Things take a turn for Vaidyaji when some people try to bring him down from his influential position. The novel exposes the helplessness of intellectuals in the face of a strong and corrupt nexus between criminals, businessmen, police and politicians.
Tamas
Bhisham Sahni, translated from Hindi by Daisy Rockwell
Tamas || Bhisham Sahni
In a city in undivided Punjab, Nathu, a tanner, is bribed to kill a pig. When the animal’s carcass is discovered on the steps of the local mosque the next morning, simmering tensions explode into an orgy of bloodlust. But in the midst of the ensuing carnage, despite the darkness of the times, rare moments of unexpected friendship and love also surface.
Winner of the Sahitya Akademi Award, Sahni’s iconic novel about the Partition of India tells the tale of an unfolding riot from different vantage points. In Daisy Rockwell’s definitive translation, this magnificent work comes vividly to life.
One Part Woman
Perumal Murugan, translated from Tamil by Aniruddhan Vasudevan
One Part Woman || Perumal Murugan
Kali and Ponna’s efforts to conceive a child have been in vain. Hounded by the taunts and insinuations of others, all their hopes come to converge on the chariot festival in the temple of Ardhanareeswara, the half-female god. Everything hinges on the one night when rules are relaxed and consensual union between any man and woman is sanctioned. This night could end the couple’s suffering and humiliation. But it will also put their marriage to the ultimate test.
Hangwoman
K.R. Meera, translated from Malayalam by J. Devika
Hangwoman || K.R. Meera
The Grddha Mullick family bursts with marvellous tales of hangmen and hangings in which they figure as eyewitnesses to the momentous events that have shaped the history of the subcontinent. When twenty-two-year-old Chetna Grddha Mullick is appointed the first woman executioner in India, assistant and successor to her father, her life explodes under the harsh lights of television cameras. When the day of the execution arrives, will she bring herself to take a life?
Lajja
Taslima Nasrin, translated from Bengali by Achinta Ghatak
Lajja || Taslima Nasrin
The Duttas-Sudhamoy and Kironmoyee, and their children, Suranjan and Maya- have lived in Bangladesh all their lives. Despite being members of a small, vulnerable Hindu community, they refuse to leave their country, unlike most of their friends and relatives. Sudhamoy believes with a naive mix of optimism and idealism that his motherland will not let him down. And then, on 6 December 1992, the Babri Masjid is demolished. The world condemns the incident, but its immediate fallout is felt most acutely in Bangladesh, where Muslim mobs begin to seek out and attack Hindus. The nightmare inevitably arrives at the Duttas’ doorstep, and their world begins to fall apart.
Cobalt Blue
Sachin Kundalkar, translated from Marathi by Jerry Pinto
Cobalt Blue || Sachin Kundalkar
A paying guest seems like a win-win proposition to the Joshi family. He’s ready with the rent, he’s willing to lend a hand when he can and he’s happy to listen to Mrs Joshi on the imminent collapse of our culture. But he’s also a man of mystery. He has no last name. He has no family, no friends, no history and no plans for the future. The siblings Tanay and Anuja are smitten by him. He overturns their lives and when he vanishes, he breaks their hearts. Elegantly wrought and exquisitely spare, Cobalt Blue is a tale of rapturous love and fierce heartbreak told with tenderness and unsparing clarity.
A Gujarat Here, A Gujarat There
Krishna Sobti, translated from Hindi by Daisy Rockwell
A Gujarat Here, A Gujarat There || Krishna Sobti
Delhi, 1947. The city surges with Partition refugees. Eager to escape the welter of pain and confusion that surrounds her, young Krishna applies on a whim to a position at a preschool in the princely state of Sirohi, itself on the cusp of transitioning into the republic of India. She is greeted on arrival with condescension for her refugee status, and treated with sexist disdain by Zutshi Sahib, the man charged with hiring for the position. Undaunted, Krishna fights back. But when an opportunity to become governess to the child maharaja Tej Singh Bahadur presents itself-and with it a chance to make Sirohi her new home once and for all-there is no telling how long this idyll will last.
Part novel, part memoir, part feminist anthem, A Gujarat Here, A Gujarat There is not only a powerful tale of Partition loss and dislocation but also charts the odyssey of a spirited young woman determined to build a new identity for herself on her own terms.
Goat Days
Benyamin, translated from Malayalam by Joseph Koyippally
Goat Days || Benyamin
Najeeb’s dearest wish is to work in the Gulf and earn enough money to send back home. He achieves his dream only to be propelled by a series of incidents, grim and absurd, into a slave-like existence herding goats in the middle of the Saudi desert. Memories of the lush, verdant landscape of his village and of his loving family haunt Najeeb whose only solace is the companionship of goats. In the end, the lonely young man contrives a hazardous scheme to escape his desert prison.
While we are at it, how can we forget our young readers? So here’s a special list just for them!
Timeless Tales from Marwar
Vijaydan Detha, translated by Vishes Kothari
Timeless Tales from Marwar || Vijaydan Detha
For centuries, Rajasthan has been a gold mine of oral traditions and histories with Padma Shri Vijaydan Detha being one of the foremost storytellers of all time. Timeless Tales from Marwar gives a new lease of life to his folk tales. Retold in Detha’s magical narrative style complete with imagery, this selection offers some of the oldest and most popular fables from the Thar Desert region. Discover tales of handsome rajkanwars, evil witches, exploitative thakars, miserly seths, clever insects, benevolent snakes and more. Vishes Kothari’s vivid English translation introduces one of the most venerated figures in Rajasthani folk culture to a wider audience.
Tales from the Kathasaritsagara
Somadeva, translated from Sanskrit by Rohini Chowdhury
Tales from the Kathasaritsagara || Somadeva
Do you know the story of Phalabhuti, who narrowly escaped a grisly fate?
Or of the kind-hearted Jimutavahana, who was willing to give his life to save a snake from death?
Or of young Shringabhuja, who married a rakshasa’s daughter?
These are just some of the many tales that make up Somadeva’s Kathasaritsagara, a classic work of Sanskrit literature that is full of memorable characters. Within the pages of this book, you will encounter demons and demi-gods, faithful guards and foolish villagers, golden swans, magic pots and even automatons made of wood! Adapted and wonderfully retold by Rohini Chowdhury, this is a timeless classic that will entertain and enchant readers everywhere.
The Final Adventures of Professor Shonku
Satyajit Ray, translated from Bengali by Indrani Majumdar
The Final Adventures of Professor Shonku || Satyajit Ray
In this last volume of Professor Shonku’s escapades, the brilliant and benevolent scientist travels around the world once more to face near death situations. Each nerve-wracking experience is faithfully recorded in his diary. We learn of Shonku being outwitted by his own invention, the Tellus computer; his helplessness when his arch-rival in Rome deliberately misplaces his wonder drug, Miracurall; and the thrilling discovery of a three-and-a-half-thousand-year-old sparkling diamond necklace and a papyrus in an ancient tomb in Cairo.
In Deepak Dalal’s latest adventure story, we meet our beloved duo, Vikram and Aditya, on the chilly terrains of Ladakh! Joining them on this super exciting journey is nine-year-old Tibetan boy called Tsering.
Before you head into their world, we are taking you on a quick walk through Ladakh so that you are well-prepared for the adventure coming your way. Read on!
**
Brrr…the summers are cold!
August is the warmest month in Ladakh, and it is still…COLD!
‘Judging from the half-frozen contents of his water bottle, ice must have formed on the lake too. Yet the birds seemed unaffected.
It was August, the warmest time of the year in Ladakh. If this was ‘peak summer’, wondered Vikram, then what could winter possibly be like? He shuddered at the prospect.’
Ladakh Adventure || Deepak Dalal
¬
Bird-watching
In India, black-necked cranes are found only in Ladakh.
‘Vikram was aware that the spectacle he beheld was a rare one. In India, black-necked cranes are found only in Ladakh. Just fifteen pairs nest in the far-flung corners of the Changthang plateau. Local people treasure the birds, never harming them.’
¬
Hilly Desert
Ladakh is a desert, with sandy and barren slopes.
‘Although it had been obvious all along, it struck [Aditya] only now that there was not a single tree on its great expanse. There was absolutely no cover on the plain; no place to hide, or for that matter, no spot to shelter behind and plot an ambush. The lack of cover wasn’t confined to the lake basin alone. It extended to the mountains. The slope on which Aditya rode was sandy and barren. Ladakh, as everyone had said, was indeed a desert.’
¬
View from up above
In the high-altitude landscape of Ladakh, it is possible to see for miles on end.
‘Vikram was visible in the distance, trotting along on his horse. He was in plain sight of the jeep driver, and Aditya was sure that the man was tracking his movements. […] Up there the intense clarity of vision overcomes the distortion of distances.’
—
So now that we have got you invested in just a few of the most fascinating facts about Ladakh, we look forward to you joining Aditya, Vikram and Tsering on the journey of a lifetime!
India has a relationship of great adulation with cricket, marked by unbridled excitement. The game has shaped our national consciousness in many different ways, and is the lynchpin of patriotism and camaraderie in the country – even if we have nothing in common, there will always be cricket. A colonial inheritance, cricket exists at all the coordinates of our culture, from advertisements of soft drinks with cricketers smiling through the screen to entire feature films like Ashutosh Gowariker’s Lagaan. But we cannot talk about cricket without talking about Sachin Tendulkar. And we cannot talk about Sachin Tendulkar without talking about Vasoo Paranjape.
Ramakant Achrekar is the name we tend to associate with Sachin Tendulkar, but Vasoo Paranjape was the quiet pillar of influence who shaped the journey of the legendary batsman. Paranjape never laid any claims on his relationship with Tendulkar, and this is perhaps what makes Paranjape stand out as a mentor. There was no impulse of self-gratification in his interactions with the players, and at no point did he invest time and energy in them hoping for fame in return. This relationship was not unreciprocated; Cricket Drona tells us that Paranjape was the second person Tendulkar called when he had decided to announce his retirement from international cricket. Paranjape was bewildered about the call; he felt that he had played no significant part in Tendulkar’s life. But Tendulkar didn’t agree. ‘Sir, I know what you have done for me’, he said.
In his segment in Cricket Dhoni, Tendulkar recalls how Paranjape’s recommendation was instrumental in getting him selected for the West Indies tour. He knows Paranjape always had his best interests at heart, and from the chronicles of their interactions, this becomes amply clear. Paranjape had an eye for talent which he had carefully cultivated and which proved his words time and again. But the impact Paranjape had on Tendulkar was not limited to the pitch. There was a deep emotional influence as well, which is natural to any solid mentor-mentee relationship. In a part of his essay on Paranjape, Tendulkar discusses such an event:
“Vasoo Sir was watching this Irani Trophy match with my father. My father would never watch me play—he had this superstition that if he watched me play, I would get out early. But apparently, Vasoo Sir had convinced him to come to this game. Sir took out his 1955 Fiat and drove my father to the venue, telling him, ‘Don’t worry, he won’t get out… If your presence was reason enough for him to get out, all the schools in Mumbai would want to hire you as their principal.’ My father simply laughed and got into the car. I am forever indebted to Sir for this. My father watched me play live only on two occasions, and this was one of them. The memory makes me very emotional.”
Paranjape worked with players as individuals with their unique propensities and characteristics. “I had a very unorthodox batting grip, with both hands way down the bat’s handle”, writes Sachin. But Paranjape did not try to change this. Instead, he focused on the strategies of the game, studying the opposition, playing a good stretch at an innings, things that opened up the beauty of the game for Tendulkar. “[W]hen I worked a little more closely with him, I understood that Sachin had another great power: the power to forget. He was able to erase the memory of the previous ball or the previous innings from his immediate focus. This is the factor that separates the greats from the non-greats: the ability to shut out what’s happened in the past and stay in the present. This, to me, is one of his biggest strengths”, writes Paranjape about Tendukar, revealing how nuanced his reading of the player was. He was able to notice every detail of what makes a player stand out.
Behind every person who is outstanding in their field is the work and influence of mentors, coaches and teachers, people who shape and modulate individual talent into a set of redoubtable skills. These skills become indispensable, and become the characteristic element of people who are larger than life, whose lives and performances are scintillating to a degree where they become more than human. In more ways than one, Vasoo Paranjape drove Tendulkar to become what he is. Cricket Drona is an homage to the man who became the strength and support of many cricket legends.
[To read more about Vasoo Paranjape, order you copy of Cricket Drona here!]
A rich, eye-opening anthology, And We Came Outside and Saw the Stars Again , dozens of esteemed writers, poets, artists and translators from more than thirty countries offer a profound, kaleidoscopic portrait of lives transformed by the coronavirus pandemic.
As COVID-19 has become the defining global experience of our time, writers transcend borders and genres to offer a powerful antidote to the fearful confines of isolation: a window onto corners of the world beyond our own.
UNPRECEDENTED was the ubiquitous term first used to describe the COVID-19 pandemic that swept the world in 2020, as if the event were unlike any other. The truth is that it has been rather routine in its procedure, part of the eternal cycles of nature. Even in the Bible, similar disasters—earthquakes, deluges, famines, plagues of insects, pestilence of livestock, boils, thunderstorms of hail and fire—are recurrent visitors in the theater of human affairs. Which doesn’t mean, of course, that newcalamities such as this one aren’t extraordinary.
It isn’t surprising that the official approach to the pandemic was initially forensic, with an insistence on numbers: how many deaths and infections per day in a given hospital of a given city in a given country, how long a possible vaccine could take to bring us all out of purgatory, and so on, as if suffering could be quantified, ignoring that each and every person lost was unique and irreplaceable. The Talmud says that death is a kind of sleep and that one person’s sleep is unknowable to others. Although the misfortune arrived at a time when the essential tenets of globalism were being questioned—tariffs imposed, borders closed,immigrants seen with suspicion—the pandemic was planetary, hitting wherever people did what people do. It preyed with distinct fury on the poor and vulnerable, as natural catastrophes always do, especially in countries ruled by tyrants responding with disdain and hubris. Inevitably, the lockdown also forced a new method to everything everywhere. The sound of the kitchen clock suddenly felt new, the warmth of a handshake, the taste of fresh soup. As an antidote to numbers, it was once again left to writers to notice those changes, to chronicle them by interweaving words. That’s what literature does well: it champions nuance while resisting the easy tricks of generalization. This international anthology includes over fifty of those writers representing thirty-five countries and arriving in about a dozen languages. Cumulatively, their accounts are proof of the degree to which COVID-19 brought about the collapse of a hierarchy of principles we had all embraced until then. Call it the end of an era Shenaz Patel, from Mauritius, for instance, realizes that “suddenly, like an octopus disturbed in its sleep, everything kept hidden under the placid surface latched onto us with its many arms and spit its ink into our faces.” She adds: “We are faced with a true ‘civil war’ of speech, echoing through radios and social media, between those who respect the lockdown and those who don’t; those who understand and the ‘cocovids,’ the empty heads who go out anyway; between the ‘true patriots’ and the selfish few who knowingly put others in danger.”
In 1994, twenty-year-old Gunjan Saxena appeared for the selection process of the fourth Short Service Commission (for women) pilot course. Seventy-four weeks of back-breaking training later, she passed out of the Air Force Academy in Dundigal as Pilot Officer Gunjan Saxena.
In 1999, The Indian Air Force launched Operation Safed Sagar, when local shepherds reported a Pakistani intrusion in Kargil. While female pilots were yet to be employed in a war zone, they were called in for medical evacuation, dropping off supplies and reconnaissance.
It was then that Gunjan Saxena proved her mettle. From airdropping vital supplies to Indian troops in the Dras and Batalik regions and casualty evacuation from the midst of the ongoing battle, to meticulously informing her seniors of enemy positions and even narrowly escaping a Pakistani rocket missile during one of her sorties, Saxena fearlessly discharges her duties, earning herself the moniker ‘The Kargil Girl’.
This book is her inspiring story and it’s co-authored by Kiran Nirvan, the pseudonym used by authors Kirandeep Singh and Nirvan Singh. Kirandeep Singh is the former head of the department of management studies, Global Institutes, Amritsar, and is currently pursuing his doctorate in the discipline. Nirvan Singh is a serving officer in the Indian Army, while also being an avid artist, writer and adventurer.
We interviewed Kiran Nirvan about the motivation behind writing The Kargil Girl, the first readers of their finished draft, and more. Read on to find out what they had to say.
Question: What propelled you to co-write The Kargil Girl?
Answer: It has always been our endeavour to write stories of grit and determination, wisdom and valour, of men and women from the Indian Armed Forces and other exemplary men and women of this nation and Flt Lt Gunjan Saxena (Retd) is a pathbreaker who broke stereotypes to achieve her dreams, paving way for future generations of women to do wonders. This book had to be written to celebrate Gunjan Saxena’s achievements, with an aim to inspire others.
Question: Were there any parts in the book that you found more difficult to write about as compared to the others?
Answer: Writing the entire book was challenging. We wanted the narrative to not be jingoistic but measured, sticking to the facts and wanted to educate and entertain the reader at the same time. So, the difficult part was writing about Gunjan ma’am’s SSB process where we had to relate each test to one of the memories from her childhood which ingrained in her the qualities for becoming an airforce officer.
Question: Which is your favourite section in the book and why?
Answer: Our personal favourite part in the book is where we have written about Gunjan ma’am’s training days in the academy. It was simply amazing to learn about the challenges she faced, from following a strict training schedule to getting regular punishments by senior cadets, from being nominated for test sortie with lesser training than others and still being able to clear it to emerging as the best performing flying cadet among her peers at the end of the training, it only shows us what it takes to become a winner. Gunjan Saxena is not the best for no reason.
Question: Who were the first readers of the finished draft of your book?
Answer: A couple of chapters were read by Air Chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa, 25th Chief of Air Staff of The Indian Air Force. The finished draft was read by Pragya Narain, daughter of Flt Lt Gunjan Saxena (Retd), Arushi (Nirvan’s fiancée at the time), management students of Kirandeep, Suhail Mathur, our literary agent and of course, our most talented commissioning editor Gurveen Chadha.
Question: If you could give one message to the youth of the country, what would it be?
Answer: Our message to the youth of the country- discipline, determination and perseverance help achieve all dreams, but you must work harder than the previous day.
