Sandham – Sangam Poetry meets Symphony

This was a rendezvous that was two millennia in the making. What else can you say about this album? Surprising isn’t it, that this mother lode of possibilities stayed untouched for two thousand years? I don’t mean from a research or academic point of view. Plenty on that front. I mean musically.

Words

PC: www.proprofs.com

Sometimes, while reading a book, you come across a line and you can go no further. It doesn’t matter if you were in the thick of things, it doesn’t matter if some great mystery that had you in its clutches since page one is about to be revealed with the turn of a page. Nothing matters. Except that line. You simply cannot turn the page or read a single word further.

Of Slippers, Rings, And Other Such Trinkets

The philosopher Blaise Pascal once remarked, “Cleopatra’s nose, had it been shorter, the whole face of the world would have been changed.” Something tells me it wasn’t just the nose that would have changed the history of the world. A nose ring perhaps.

Just take a gander through history and literature and look at the havoc created by the various accessories women use to adorn themselves. Maybe it wasn’t havoc all the time, but you have to admit that the various trinkets women wear have played significant roles in many tales.

Post 101- Looking Back with Gratitude

WordPress tells me this is my 101st post. Wow! The day I started blogging, way back in November 2006, I never dreamed I would get this far. It all began far, far away in a land called Rediffiland. The Ilanders were a motley crowd of wonderful people. Some of the best blogger friends I made were early dwellers of this mystic place. We all came together, supporting, motivating and being there for each other as we learnt the ropes of blogging. Somewhere along the way, the place unravelled and most of us migrated to WordPress or Blogger. But the friendships that sprouted there haven’t faded away. They merely spilled over to Facebook and continue to thrive.  

2 States and an Appeal to Bollywood

Dear Bollywood,

The next time your big airy head comes up with the idea of a South Indian character, please make sure that he or she says AT LEAST SOME of the words right.

Like Sambar for example.

Sambar courtesy Mohini Sharma. Thank you Mohini, the sambar tastes as delicious as it looks.

Tava Virahe Keshava… Happy Birthday Krishna, Eternal Lover

This was originally published in www.yentha.com on Janmashtami, a few years ago, when I was doing a weekly column named Kochuvarthamanam for them.

Wumps, Wumbus and Other Wacky Words

It was when putting up a Facebook status update about Dr. Seuss on his birthday on March 2^nd, that I realized that I had much more to say about Dr. Seuss than what would justify as a ‘status update’.

Mike Myers hamming it up as one of Dr.Seuss’ most popular characters, The Cat in the Hat

Dr. Seuss was never popular in India – at least not when I was growing up. I had actually seen pictures of his strange characters back home in some old American magazine, but I had no idea about him.