Book Review: The Illicit Happiness of Other People

The Illicit Happiness of Other People, in all its luxurious complexity, is a book that defies labels or genre. ‘In this world you cannot escape happiness’, says 17-year old Unni Chacko, a rebel-of-sorts in stifling surroundings, up against the limited, quotidian world around him. With a flair for befriending eccentric outcasts while cutting a swathe …

Parasite (2019) – A Review

  What do I say about a film about which so much has been said already? I'd like to try anyways, so here goes. Two families in South Korea. The Parks are super rich, living in a grand mansion.The Kim family, on the other hand, are unemployed, living in poverty. So, this is a family …

Honey, I was wrong!

Aparna took off her sunglasses and squinted as she looked up the sorry looking building, scanning the maze of peeling signboards until she spotted the one  she was looking for. ‘Mastermind Detective Agency – Mr. Govindan Nair, Investigative Detective.’, the board read, followed by a ridiculously long list of educational qualifications of questionable authenticity. The …

Asuran (2019)

Asuran - A typical, done-to- death revenge story transformed by some solid writing, brilliant acting and a wee bit of magic from the Vetrimaran-Dhanush combo, into a gritty, riveting survival drama. The movie undoubtably is Dhanush's best performance so far. He's backed by a team of terrific actors - Manju Warrier, Pasupathy, Prakash Raj, Adukalam …

Goodfellas (1990)

There’s this profanity-laden scene in Goodfellas where Joe Pesci, as Tommy De Vito, a nutso gangster shoots a local kid who works for the mob and goes, ‘All right so he got shot in the foot, what is it? A big fuckin' deal?’. You can’t but grit your teeth and despise his depravity at that …

The Pool of Lost Dreams.

The jarring ring of the bedside alarm woke Kavitha up.  She fumbled around in the darkness to turn it off lest it wake her sleeping husband. The dull clanging of vessels in the kitchen meant that amma was already up and about. Groggily, she stumbled into the bathroom. A quick bath in mugfuls of tepid …

Hope Whispers

She was Radhika Harish. Radhika ‘oh-so-tired-of-life’ Harish. Her car was the first one in line at the railway crossing. The guy operating the levers that brought down the rickety crossing gates, puffed on his beedi and ogled at her; for, at forty-one, she was still beautiful. In fact, she looked way better a woman now …

A Little More of Music

“Where are my keys?” I called out to no one in particular. Meera had barricaded herself up in her room for the past hour and a half, getting ready for our visit to my mother’s place. I rummaged around the overflowing cabinets in our cluttered living room in vain, muttering under my breath. “How hard …

To My Sister, With Love.

I wouldn’t call my sister my best friend. Nope. We’ve constantly fought all through our teens. We’d be at each other’s throats over the silliest of things and stay mad at each other for days. I’ve seen my parents fret and despair, wondering if we’d ever bond as siblings. Surprisingly, all those silly wars did …

Under the Gulmohars.

  Mohan pedalled the rickety bicycle harder. It was almost six and he still had a dozen homes to deliver the milk to. The pleasant early morning breeze wouldn’t last much longer. With the Sun climbing up steadily, it would be unbearably hot, pretty soon. Babu, the newspaper guy hurtled past Mohan on his moped …