Latest Articles
For India Currents: on dance
COMMUNITY, CULTURE, DANCE, EVENTS Journeys Of Faith Premieres At Livermore’s Shiva Vishnu Temple Cultural activity is an integral part of religion and along with rituals, said Chitra Mani, cultural chair, Shiva Vishnu temple. by Nirupama V.April 15, 2024 Nirupama Vaidhyanathan performing at the [...]
For SF Gate: temple food
This is my first piece for SF Gate which has some 136 million page views and some 30 million unique visitors each month. My editor, Jessica, was a pleasure to work with because she cared about the piece and pushed me to make the story tighter and better. It is about the Livermore temple and its food. The first time I came to this temple was in 1992, as a newlywed. My husband and I were living in New York City and visiting family in Fremont. Naturally, they wanted to take us to the famous temple, even back then considered grand and what Hindus would call auspicious — as in bringing good things for those who visit. For newlyweds, visiting Hindu temples with relatives is a rite of passage, and so we went along.
Hindustan Times: On ageing
When I read the recently released Lancet study that says we are all going to live longer, my first thought was, “Now what?” Sure, we are trying our best to stave off the ills of ageing, but the point is that there is no guarantee that we will succeed. There is no single blueprint for ageing well. There are whacko schemes like tech entrepreneur Brian Johnson touting his “longevity mix” (also called Blueprint) as being second only to mother’s milk. Nice line, but do you really have the discipline, not to mention the money to take the 100 or so supplements he consumes every day? Maybe I should go back to drinking that Kerala red rice congee my Dad loved.
Is kaali-dal the McDonalds of North Indian food?
o me, the next bastion of North Indian food is to look to the light flavours of U.P vegetarian food
For Smithsonian Journeys magazine on Jaipur
This is an old story. But for some reason, it wasn't uploaded here. So here it is. This post is about the art of applying henna and how I learned how to do it in Jaipur.
Career Transitions and How to Cope
Career transitions happen by choice or compulsion: some that we seek and some that are forced upon us. The trick when you find yourself stumbling is to be prepared to pivot, to change. Most people know how to change in theory. But doing it is terrifyingly difficult.
Fine Italian wines
I am at the festival pavilion at the Fort Mason Center in San Francisco. It is a wet Thursday morning and wine lovers from all across the city are trooping for Tre Bicchieri, arguably the most important Italian wine event in the US.
How Cartier scented a symphony
The House of Cartier has created three scents that will perfume the hall at three key points during the performance—but we are not certain how it will be achieved. The only clues are white vortex-shaped structures along the sides of the auditorium.
Can a reactionary create a revolution?
T.M. Krishna fancies himself as a revolutionary, but he is an inconsistent reactionary whose argument is “anti-whatever the norm is” rather than cogently thinking through the evolution of music.
The trouble with Indian cocktails
The problem with creating cocktails in India is that we have too many ingredients available to us. For an imaginative mixologist, this throws up a dizzying array of choices and not all of them good.
The good life as per Indic thought
Is there an Indic approach to leading a good life? Not Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics which is the western notion of a good life.