Column: The Good Life: for Mint Lounge
Swiffer, Karcher vacuum, and microfiber slippers
One of my favorite topics-- cleaning. I happen to be a connoisseur in this area, I might add. Cleaning gizmos do for me what tools do for men. Buying cleaning products is a great way to feel virtuous Every night, after my family is asleep, I go on the computer and indulge in a secret, somewhat shameful activity: I search for the latest cleaning tools, and buy them. I do this not so much because I love to clean – although I do, occasionally – but simply to know that I can, should the need or desire arise. Cleaning supplies [...]
Losing the Calf
Just one more next week. I am about ready to write something else. The cow chronicles: losing the calf There is a reason that Taurus, the sign associated with the bull, is associated with being stubborn Shoba Narayan First Published: Sat, Jun 01 2013. 12 07 AM IST Updated: Sat, Jun 01 2013. 12 20 PM IST The goshala is an hour outside Bangalore. Our auto bounces along over flyovers and underpasses. The calf lies at our feet serenely. We take a turn from the main highway and are on dusty village roads. Soon, we are entering the “Bangalore Gorakshan [...]
Cow Chronicles: headed to hostel
Nice that Mint has added a separate Cow Chronicles link. Go to the end of this article and click. I usually write between 800-900 words per column. After watching Aniruddha, the photographer, shoot for this article, I wish more photos could be included. Maybe I should write fewer words The cow chronicles: headed to the hostel There are two types of people in the world. Some are animal people and others are not Shoba Narayan First Published: Sat, May 25 2013. 12 12 AM IST The goshala where Ananda Lakshmi’s calf is to be kept. Photo: Aniruddha Chowdhury/Mint Updated: Sat, [...]
Men in Power
Hate the headline but what to do, I didn't write it. The National Conversation Comment As women gain power, will female scandals in India rise? Shoba Narayan Jun 3, 2013 Even for those Indians who consider themselves inured to the scandals that dog this country, the last month has been one never-ending “tamasha” – comedy or mockery, depending on how you look at it. On stage left is the former Goldman Sachs director Rajat Gupta whose “lust for zeros” has brought him down from the pinnacle of power. Gupta is appealing for a retrial on charges of insider trading. On [...]
Tone
The reason for misunderstanding-- many times. The National Conversation Comment It's not just what you say that matters, it's how you say it Shoba Narayan May 15, 2013 Save this article My nephew Harsha is a remarkable boy. He is just 12 years old but has figured out an element that is vital to communicating: tone. Related Hollywood's power couples offer twice the envy The left, more logical, side of the brain processes content, experts say, but the right, more instinctive side processes tone. Content is important, but tone perhaps more so. Think about it. Tone is often the reason [...]
Puns. ‘Nuff said.
Thanks to a FB group called The Punnery, I can now make really bad puns even in my sleep. Here's how I became a convert.
Sorry, it’s a boy
Great headline! Sat, May 18 2013. 12 13 AM IST The cow chronicles: sorry, it’s a boy The economics of dairy farming is skewed in favour of the milking cows Shoba Narayan Sarala with Ananda Lakshmi’s newborn calf. Photo: Aniruddha Chowdhury/Mint There is no room for Alfie, the newborn male calf in my milk-lady Sarala’s cowshed. One of the other cows has also given birth—to a female calf, thankfully, which they plan to keep. They cannot handle two calves. A third cow will deliver in a few weeks. “Where is the space, ma?” asks Sarala, pointing around. The urban cowshed [...]
Pregnant Cow
At this rate, Cow Chronicles will become a book. Here is the latest Sat, May 11 2013. 12 48 PM IST The cow chronicles: why mother matters Pregnant women are feted and fussed over; made to feel good. Feeding a pregnant woman is good karma Sarala feeds Ananda Lakshmi bananas. Photo: Aniruddha Chowdhury/Mint My cow is pregnant. Sarala announces this one November morning in the matter-of-fact tone that she uses to ask if I want extra milk. I am delighted. Maybe this will resolve all her health issues; regulate her uterus; make her feel better. Over the next few months, [...]
FT Writer’s interviews
What a great line in FT's writer interviews The person interviewed was Patrick Ness, children's book writer. Now I have to read Sula by Toni Morrison. What book do you wish you’d written? It’s a part of a book. The closing line of Toni Morrison’s Sula: “It was a fine cry – loud and long – but it had no bottom and it had no top, just circles and circles of sorrow.” I’d give my right arm to have written that.
How to define a nation’s aesthetic: for Eat Stay Love
This is one of my favorite pieces and it took a while to write. It appears in a magazine called Eat Stay Love that is the in house magazine of Aman, Four Seasons, and other luxury hotels in India. Some time ago, a lady from a custom publishing group contacted me. They do the magazines for the Oberoi and Taj group. This was for the foreign brands, she said. Would I write a column for them? This article is the result. I am happy with it for several reasons. Defining the Indian aesthetic has become a pastime/obsession for me (and [...]