The last book that i read was on Chowringhee which had a yellow cover After that, i borrowed another book on short stories whith another bright yellow bind. It attracted me and i thought i could read half of the short stories present in that book. Well, i could. But the events since the past two weeks, have me occupied.

Dasara starts from today. Happy Navaratri and a Happy Dasara!

I read Chowringhee by Sankar over the last few weeks. This was the book that i read to the end after having read a little of the others that i intended to read. It is quite a nice book, will keep one occupied throughout. The first book that i read exclusively on a hotel, it's staff, it's clients, it's operations.

I don't like this. I don't have the penchant to read much these days. Maybe, it's because i have other work to be taken care of.

Currently, i have a book on Urdu short stories which is quite good. And another of which i had heard good things about. Somehow, i can't pull myself to them anymore. Gone are the days when i used to read day in and day out. I don't know, maybe it's that other important activities are to be performed, whereas earlier, i was not required to do those.

I have mentioned here that i like Dan Brown's writing. When i sighted The Last Pope by Luís Miguel Rocha, i assumed that it might include symbology and similar material found in The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons.

I was proved wrong. The Last Pope is not speedy and not nail-biting as i would term the other two. It's just about okay. It's not much to speak of actually. I guess it would not be missed much if one does not read it.

We all know how well-known Malgudi Days was, or rather is. I don't think i've watched the entire series, but i would like to. One of the greatest productions of our time. I'm immediately transported to that world on listening to soundtrack which played at the beginning and at the end of each episode. The ta na na na....

I wish that some channels would air it regularly, otherwise a huge population would miss out a legacy. Today's kids would enjoy it the way we did. Running behind Swami, listening to his grandmother's stories, and eating sweetmeats at Jagan's Stall.

Sam's Story by Elmo Jayawardena is a simple story set in Srilanka, when the northern part of the country was at war.

The story-telling is straight-forward, literally. It made me wonder if certain things could be explained the way it's mentioned in the novel. But, it's just a story, a piece of fiction. Which is told nicely. It's about Sam and how the war affects him.

Another story on war, you might say, but the perspective is different.

Subarnalata by Ashapurna Debi is violent. If i can say. this is the most violent books on women, that i have read. In terms of the protagonist's (who goes by the name of the novel) fight against traditions and male dominance.

Having read the book, i am still wondering if any woman could be that stubborn, fighting against each and everything. Earlier to reading Subarnalata, i read Gulabhi Talkies by Vaidehi. The latter being a collection of short stories. Vaidehi also speaks about the progress of women in her style. And definitely she would have faced many hurdles too, but her stories aren't rough.

I somehow didn't appreciate Subarnalata very much, maybe she was too desperate to notice any positivity around her. Maybe it's so progessionist (i hope i've used the right word) that i fail to comprehend.

I'm currently reading 'Prarambh' by Gangadhar Gadgil. That i haven't read a single page of the book this week is a different matter. I'll talk about the book a little later when i finish reading the whole ofit. But, the language could definitely have been better.

I was told that cliches don't contribute to good reading, and i've come to the same conclusion after the little that i've read of Prarambh.

When i first read Anne Frank, i enjoyed it as a story. I want to read it again and marvel at the boldness and clarity in her writing.

On reading 'The City of Joy', i cried on mother's shoulders; on realising that there are a million things apart from my home. Mother was totally taken aback, and soothed me down. I don't think i'll forget that incident.

The first thought that struck me when i entered the city of Kolkotha was that of abject poverty. I don't know the condition of the city now.

I've read very little of today's Indian literature which is pro-poor and details the life of the poor and the unlucky in India. I did try to read a Salman Rushdie (i don't remember the name of the book) and Aravind Adiga. Somehow, i couldn't go beyond the first few pages. Maybe, i lacked that interest to continue with those books.

That apart, i've read novels by Indian writers on similar themes and i've liked them. Perhaps, why i don't like Adiga or Rushdie and why i prefer Premchand is, i guess their approach towards the subject. I think the former ridicule issues of the poor in their (superficial, if i can add) writing. On the other hand, the likes of Premchand wrote on it with depth maybe because of the fact, that they've been through it. And they treat it with respect, and yes, can empathize with people.

I wonder why one has to celebrate Valmiki by declaring a specific day as a state holiday. We all know Valmiki's work (i don't know about the present day Gen-Y generation), don't we? People who are inclined towards literature will know on this matter. And that should be the end of this. Period.

Why announce a break on that day?

When one observes Indian literature that was written somewhere around the time of Independence (Pre-Independence era according to what i know), proper nouns are spelled in quite a few ways (names of people and places). Of course, the ones i've read are those which were translated into English.

Perhaps, then, each region had a particular pronunciation for a specific word and the same pronunciation has been used to spell the word in English. I also think that, maybe, the localisation of a language in a geographical area could have given rise to this. These days, i don't assume there'd be much difference between two different lets say towns.

A group of people in the city conducted an event - Pustaka Parishe, where books can be exchanged. An idea which sounded novel to me. I proceeded to call them and to enquire about the same. And was told that it was limited to Kannada books only. Disappointed, i asked father to participate. He didn't go for other reasons.

I wish something of the same kind was organized with books in English. I'll certainly benefit.

When i read Childhood i was wondering whether anything was different between Ismat's younger days and ours. Aren't we always told not to do this and that. Not to go near a heap of cleaned rice lest we scatter grains of rice hither. And being a girl, the privileges she carries with her are less. Even with all the modernisation we talk about. I've sensed that most times when in the company of male cousins. Ismat hated it from what i gather.

I never understood if religion could be the way of living at some places. In Kafir the narrator announces that she's switched her religion to be part of Holi celebrations in a Hindu household. She does that often calling her friend a non-believer often when it pleases her. If even during play, children were so ingrained in religious beliefs, how would they grow as adults? Quite surprising

Ismat Chugtai is straight with what she writes.

In my stories, i've put down everything with objectivity. Now, if some people find them obscene, let them got to hell. It's my belief that experiences can never be obscene if they are based on authentic realities of life.

Yes, Ismat was courageous enough to express herself in a very forthright manner. In The Quilt, a neglected wife in her prime, looks upto homosexuality when she's neglected by her husband. Her writings are influenced by characters who were associated with her; perhaps, with people with whom she shared her childhood. Maybe this close observation helped her gain the precision noted in her short stories. Her unfinished autobiography Kaghazi hai Pairahan, gives a more vivid description.

Lifting the veil
Selected Writings of ISMAT CHUGHTAI

the 3 mistakes of my life is much better than the other novels by Chetan Bhagat. Really, I was surprised to see Bhagat talk about 'real' things. Anyways the prologue says that some of the events that occur in the story is real, it happened in somebody's life. So it is isn't Bhagat's entirely so as to say.

Yes, he has sex and frivolity thrown in. He hasn't his former self totally. There is some amount of no-sense. One question. Will Bhagat's next novel also contain amount of sensibilty or will it be meaningless? Hope he improves.

After having seen the film To Kill A Mockingbird, i, as always, favored the book than the film. But yes, the last bit of the movie where Boo Radley saves Jem and Scout was something, i guess, i looked forward to see. And Gregory Peck looks real grand.

There are these small instances in novels which seem insignificant in be included in a one hour and half hour long film. Nevertheless they provide the base for unravelling the latter (perhaps, an important) part of the plot. These are the bits that i enjoy reading. I imagine what they would be like when they are enacted by live characters. Like when Jem cries after the knot hole in a tree is closed. That was where Boo Radley kept small things for him and his sister. Something there is totally missed out. One does not understand if one's not read the novel. Emotions are lost.

One only gets a faint idea of the outline. Perhaps, i'll appreciate a film based on a novel better when i'd not have read the novel beforehand. I think i've never done that.

It's quite a pity when we have eminent authors amidst us who are simply not read. I am talking of people who began their writing careers in the last century. Of course, the country underwent many changes during that period, the British Rule, the Freedom Struggle, the Partition, the formation of states, the Zamindari system to name a few. And these people were very much a part of it.

Is it because they are not popularised as such, or do they not appeal to the younger sections?

It is well known that Premchand's short stories are pro-poor considering the fact that he lived in the pre-Independence era. When social inequality was very much evident in the form of the caste system. Perhaps, the best way to get a glimpse of life during that period is to read literature from that time. And of course, Premchand's name occupies a very prominent position if not the most prominent in this regard.

In the few short stories that i've read, he describes the rich, high caste to be cruel, selfish and egoistic. The poor are stupid and subservient. One main factor that is stressed in most stories is the oppressors are ruined as a consequence to harming the oppressed or the latter face death eventually. Perhaps, the frailty of human existence then, is pointed here.

After reading reviews on books, films in precise terms which criticizes the concerned subject either in an appreciative or derogatory manner, i think that i'm not capable of such a job.

I cannot put down such definite thoughts.

novels by Sudha Murty

I read reviews on books(read novels) by Sudha Murty. Good ones at that. So the next time i went to the library, i picked her books. And after having read three books; Mahashwetha, Dollar Bahu and Gently Falls the Bakula, i don't think i would want to read another.

The three stories are familiar, women-centric of course, except that the protagonist is put through difficulties of different kinds. An unkind mother-in-law, an arrogant sis-in-later and an ignorant husband, they are all common. The jibes passed by the in-laws also are pretty much the same. I know, you and i cannot differ much on the vocabulary we use to rant. Melodramatic, something out of a popular soap. Dollar Bahu tops the list with lots of drama thrown in.

These books, i assume are popular. Perhaps, only because of the larger than life image that the lady carries. I wonder if the original stories (in Kannada) are told in the same manner. The translation is poor.

Try not to spend your time by reading them. They are not worth it.