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At the time, it seemed very large and it was quite heavy. It was a hand me down, from someone who obviously didn't live or breathe to read. It was a very old edition of the 1001 Arabian Nights.  The book was unforgettable in so many ways.  It was so heavy that my two little hands would ache just by carrying it around.   It was perhaps as old as the Arabian Night stories. The pages were yellowed and frayed at the edges, the spine was almost coming off and the book had an 'old book' smell to it, if you know what I mean. Most book lovers will recognise the musty odour of an old book.  But even inspite of its sad condition, it was the most beautiful book to me. A sky-blue hard bound cover, approximately a foot long and two inches thick, the book had the most beautiful hand drawn illustrations.  I must have been five or six when my mother gave me the book. At the time, I was just about beginning to decipher the alphabet. My mother would read parts ...

Everyone deserves to have their story told. But sadly, a very few characters get a chance. Kavita Kane’s Lanka’s Princess is about one such character who proves to be the pivot to one of the most important epics of our country. But she has only been depicted in shades of black in our Ramayana. Lanka’s Princess is a saga of how Shurpanakha, the evil one, became what she eventually did and throws light on those stepping stones which made her what we eventually got to know about in the epic Ramayana. As they all say, no one is born bad, but it is the circumstances which make people what they are. Shurpanakha, tough as the nails she was ironically known for, was a woman with a wild and free mind of her own and perhaps that became the reason for her ignominy, in the largely patriarchal times that she was born in. Putting her actions in context of her situation and her times, the author has painted a heartening biography of this much hated character in Indian mythology. Succ...

There has been plenty written about the Peshwa in books, novels and even movies. Therefore writing another novel on the subject is certainly a brave move because comparisons with earlier works are inevitable. The writer needn't worry about the earlier works because with his beautiful narration, he brings to life, yet again, this wonderful story of the brave Maratha warriors and their families, which has been told to generations all down the ages. I quite enjoyed the author's narration and his vivid description which brought the story alive front of my eyes like I was watching it on television. The beauty of the book likes in its ability to transport the reader into the world of the characters and people it speaks about and the author has managed to do it with aplomb. Enjoyable read especially for those who enjoy a walk back into time, especially with royalty. This book was sent to me by Writer's Melon for review.

In sum, this is an easy, breezy read. I've understood one thing about reading books. They can inspire you, give you solutions, educate you or then, they can be read simply for entertainment, just to live inside a different head, for some part of time. Kanchana's book falls into the last category. It's a glimpse into the life of a woman who has a dark secret, and because of an accident, she has forgotten her past. But then the point here is...that is her regular life any less dangerous than her secret? What will happen when her past comes back to collide with her present? I'll be honest. Not a lot of Indian writers, some of which are being self-published, are worth wasting much time on. They are clearly novices who are fulfilling their dreams of being writers without working upon their craft. Kanchana is from the field of writing and clearly, her craft is quite well honed, as it shows in the lucidity of her writing. With not many flaws to pick on, the story f...

So I started this book a few days ago via a review program on writers melon. So here is my honest feedback on the book. I've tried to make it as constructive as possible. Story: 2/5 The story is about a bunch of people whose lives are intricately linked to one another through circumstances. The story could have perhaps been a bit more thrilling in terms of scenes and sequences. There wasn't anything new in the story and I couldn't relate to the characters at all. They seemed a bit convoluted. Editing: 1/5 There is too much of unnecessary text and long drawn explanations which do nothing to take the story ahead. Because these unnecessary descriptions do nothing to take the story ahead. I found myself skipping pages just to get on with it. Could have been a lot more succinct and crisper. Editing for this book needs to be vastly improved. Dialogues: 1/5 I could not connect with the conversations because I felt that mo...

Dissent, the collection of short stories written by Deepak Kaul, was a part of the Write India campaign which was run by Times of India, last year. The collection begins well with the first story challenge, the titular story. I quite enjoyed reading the first three stories which connected well with the story prompts. Well written and a definitive beginning and end. Perhaps in an effort to make it to the deadline of the competition, I feel that the writer lost the plot after that. The stories seem hurried, though written well, but then from there on, the ends are confusing, stories seem convoluted rather than written from the heart. They are breezy enough to make you read but sadly, the ends leave you very dissatisfied. If the writer had put in a similar effort as he did in the earlier stories, this would have been a crisp. quick and breezy collection of short stories perfect for a quick flight or a short journey, enough to keep you entertained. Writer's Melon sent m...

So recently, I purchased this set of coloured pencils online at amazon.in. I've never purchased cosmetics online and I've never even tried on coloured kajals. But since I was getting a great deal on the pencils, I wanted to experiment with a different look. At about 350 bucks for a set of 6 pencils, this is a great deal. As shown here, I've tried it on the hand before putting it in my eyes. The consistency is like the regular kajal and honestly, I've been using it for over a month in my eyes and there hasn't been any irritation. It's so much more cost effective than the expensive brands which cost at least four times the amount and are not even that smooth. I bought this brand only and only after seeing and reading the reviews online as well as on amazon.in. It's a great way to experiment with your looks instead of spending it conservatively only on one colour and then regretting it. CAUTION: Please buy cosmetics online only after you thoroughly read ...

Some days, you wake up with a lot of optimism and excitement and you believe that something great is going to happen to you today. And then you wait for it to happen. Day turns into afternoon, and afternoon into night and you keep waiting. Nothing happens till the end of the day and you go to sleep, terribly let down. P.K. is something like that. You wait for those moments to come. And you wait and then you wait some more. But that spine tingling moment in the movie never comes. I'm a great fan of Raju  Hirani's movies and with no exception, all his movies up until now have repeat value. (I watched 3 Idiots three times in three days back to back in the movie theater). I won't give you a comprehensive review because it will mean that I will give away some plot points. So I'll just tell you about the movie in a nutshell. You can decide if you want to watch it or not. A slow start The first 20 minutes of the movie are so slow, I thought it would never pick up...