Literature Curry

The Road to Foreverness, a .press , is the debut novel of the writer Roshini Champati Jain.

Set in the 1960s Dhanbad, its several adjoining districts and Calcutta, the ‘trilogy within one volume’ has its center Shardul and Binni’s journey to ‘foreverness’.

I won’t call this novel contemporary in its treatment of setting and characters as it speaks of the bygone era when the internet hadn’t existed. It’s an old school romance novel woven amidst political upheavals, kidnappings and dacoity. Reading the novel felt like reading the script of a classic Bollywood masala love-story straight out of the 70s. I can go as far as calling it an amalgamation of Sholay and Amar, Akbar and Anthony.

Every chapter begins with a quote and what stands out is the scenic illustration of the Santhali village nestled in the Ayodhya Hills.

Nature is supreme and is weaved into the tumultuous journey of the central characters. What you see with the book cover is a Banyan leaf from Vat Savitri Puja-celebrated in the northern and eastern parts of India. Similarly, the depiction and worship of nature in the Santhali village becomes an eco-critical read as well.

Meeting the at at was nostalgic in discussing the moment that defined the plot of the novel.

A few incidents like the kidnappings, train robbery, mining accidents and uranium poisoning are inspired by real events- an outcome of murky politics and rise of Naxals. The massacres, pool of blood, gunfires, bated breath, trauma and longing for loved ones are imbued throughout the novel.

The novel isn’t a complex read but is simple enough to bring back the simpler times, isn’t? I won’t call a spate of crimes unfolding in the novel simple but yes, technology hadn’t taken over all aspects of our lives. Memories couldn’t be digitised then. Imagine reading a novel today in the 21st century where plot twists and turns happen merely on receiving a phone call !

It’s the writer’s debut novel and first impressions matter!

Continued in the comments!

Whenever I look back at this rendition, it feels like a scores of newspapers came together.

In this piece, the originality lies in coalescing all these articles. You might find some overlaps in phrases and references.

But a couple of newspaper articles hit hard to the extent of taking me back to my college days- to the most hurtful and humiliating instances of being an English Graduate.

It’s been a long long battle!

I am not a shirk in not acknowledging the academic accuracy but sometimes want to be a shirk in not carrying the ‘ English burden’ constantly.

Am I opening a can of worms? No, I found a platform to let out my angst and pain .

Thank you and for the milestone!

My first open mic while still being a student, an English Graduate and now a Research Scholar!

P.S- My daughter and my husband followed me here even though my unsuspecting self came to the venue alone.

In the year 2023, came out with hardbound covers of classics.

The deluxe editions were notable for features like; gilded edges, ribboned bookmarks and of course the designs. On searching further and are such platforms to have featured such releases. Please do take a moment to visit these if you have an appetite for such collectables.

‘ The Greatest Short Stories of Anton Chekhov’ is one such collection. The book found its way to me via .

The book cover has an interplay of red and golden with a shot of black. Looking deeper the colour red is imbued with cultural, political and historical significance.

Culturally,red is synonymous with beauty and life which explains the prominent red costumes in Russia; politically, red was the colour of the Bolshevik revolution and historically, the Red Square was one of the most beautiful example of red.

Anton Chekhov against the red backdrop flanked by Saint Basil’s Cathedral speaks volumes about his life and the times. Chekhov was an orthodox Christian and remained so.

There’s more to be dug but I am keeping further research aside to turn the pages of the book, the golden ones! 😁

Amaze! Amaze! Amaze😍

A sweet return after the weekend heavy lifting! ☺️

Yesterday, May the 7th celebrated Tagore’s 165th birthday!

As early as eight, he started writing poetry and published his first collection under the pseudonym ' Bhanusimha'.

The legend has written national anthems for three different nations- India's ' Jana Gana Mana, Bangladesh's ' Amar Sonar Bangla' and Sri Lanka's 'Sri Lanka Mata'.

https://literaturecurry.com/blog-details/1321/all-about-tagore-studies

As news flashed across Instagram of heavy rains inundating , I was aghast as any reader to have witnessed the fury of nature sparing none.

The books drenched in rain weren’t just pages but moments spent fearing a complete wipe out.

I can’t speak of without . It’s through JOMP that I first stepped into this March. It had all just begun. I missed the April meet stuck in traffic and was looking forward to another visit soon but then rain happened.

Every reader is differently hit but to me it felt my hopes getting drowned as well; of it struggling to reach ashore. Books and bookstores aren’t just a passerby’s curiosity but a sense of belonging for people from different walks of life. Bookstores-the most secular place on earth have recorded experiences of all sorts of existence that are less than palatable or incomprehensible to the outside world.

Book lovers flocking to to help reminds me of instances from history books where pupil in ancient times ran away with books when some war broke out. The aim to restore and revive reminds me of a poem from Harishvanshrai Bacchan- which I am looking forward to purchase when I am there next. The poem loosely translated as ‘ Rebuilding the Nest’ speaks of human resilience at the face of crisis.

Bookworm, my first stop in Bengaluru; we will march ashore soon.

Gaze’ had never been more powerful until glamor was introduced to us, in particular, by the fashion industry.

Desire entwined with passion, capitalism, power and beauty are what drives us to the store or brands.

We, readers, are no different!

In fact, a connoisseur of any art is the same everywhere.

My life as a reader and these encompasses my entire life: book covers, book stores, authors, publishers, new-releases, vintage collection, author meet, books to movie adaptation, book signings, book meets and people who love books not ‘deign’ to love it.

Nigel read the magazine under a torch light and so did you.

Holding a book and being Andy Sachs in a pub in Bengaluru or just not the perfect dress but always an on point book in hand.

You wait for Met Gala and I for Booker. My heart leaps with joy looking at a book cafe or a book store and yours a designer store.

Your needs are as valid as mine. Your world is no less than important than mine. This is what ‘ The Devil Wears Prada’ was all about!

It’s all about realising what makes your eyes shine.

This post is to celebrate us readers and valuing us as we are! ♥️

Swipe to see more! 👉

Read the complete review here! 👇🏻

https://literaturecurry.com/blog-details/1319/deewar-me-ek-khidki-rehti-thi-a-window-lived

Now, every window is special! 🪟

A genre of literature, pastoral represents a shepherd’s lifestyle- an idealised living, herding livestock in the open areas. This genre is also known as bucolic. The Eclogues, also known as the Bucolics, by the Latin poet Virgil, were modelled after the Greek bucolic poetry of Theocritus.

Vinod Kumar Shukla’s ‘Deewar Me Ek Khidki Rehti Thi’ is reminiscent of the idyllic rural life bordering on the genre of pastoral, although the protagonist, Raghuvar Das, isn’t a shepherd but a teacher in a local high school. Born to parents having a farming background, Raghuvar Prasad stays away from his village home in a small rented room. Raghuvar has recently been married. His wife is staying in his village home, but is soon going to come to stay with Raghuvar. The introductory first chapter takes the readers on a journey that’s about to begin- Raghuvar’s married life with Sonsi and his school tours from the bus-stand on an elephant with its mahout, Sadhu.

The window in Raghuvar Prasad’s room opens to a beautiful landscape of a river flowing. There is something magical about the rural setting. The description at once was C.S Lewis’s “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’ where the cupboard opened to a different land. Similarly, the window in Raghuvar’s room was a portal to a fictional realm. It even had overtones of magic realism. Raghuvar and Sonsi’s love blossoms. The writer’s penmanship is remarkable in depicting the love that’s growing each day. The lyrical prose is accentuated by the beautiful description of nature- lotus, moonlit nights, glow in the dark fireflies and the flying caricatures from the rangoli. The inside world is as alive as the outside. Raghuvar’s parents, his younger brother, neighbours, the old woman by the river, the boy in the tree and a colleague from high school are interconnected in Raghuvar and Sonsi’s marital life. It’s a small world yet a fuller one.

I was in a rural wedding, the shy bride in Ghooghat reminded me of Sonsi. While taking a tour of the bangle store, the bangles that Raghuvar promised Sonsi emerged.

Continued in my blog! 🌸

Ah! April!

Before , it was always April Fool’s Day and a few birthdays.

April isn’t the cruelest month, but a month of expressions!

Presenting it to you a cute bunch of tenacity! 🤭

Read the full review here!

Psychology has always had my interest, and the book has brought to the surface the ideas of Alfred Adler, one of the lesser-known giants of the triumvirate: Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung and Alfred Adler. The philosophical ideas, psychological inquiries and teachings are presented in a dialogue form between a philosopher and a young man. The narration is divided into Five Nights with a theme and a list of sub-themes.

THE COURAGE TO BE DISLIKED Blog Details