History of perfumes
Opinion Comment Great perfumes affix the mind to a specific place and time Shoba Narayan December 16, 2013 Updated: December 16, 2013 18:42:00 No people understand perfumes better than Arabs, who instinctively and unconsciously layer scents using oils and attars. [...]
Delhi’s fetid desire, Mumbai’s petrol fumes: inspired by Mahmoud Darwish
Whose writing I adore. A niche brand of perfume called Carlos Huber makes a scent based on a boutonniere Delhi’s fetid desire, Mumbai’s petrol fumes Can you smell the ‘garam masala’ and greed in Delhi? Photo: Pradeep Gaur/Mint The best [...]
Recovering from Super Typhoon Haiyan for The National Abu Dhabi
This was a daunting piece to write. I didn't think I could interview everyone globally-- and on deadline-- on this topic. Which just goes to show that with the Internet and things like Skype, the world is indeed a small [...]
Cultural Immersion
A while ago, Ravi Bapna, a professor at the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota, asked me to do "cultural immersion" module for his visiting MBA class. I created four PowerPoint presentations but the sessions ended up [...]
Sparkling wine: how does it work: for Mint Lounge
I wanted to meet two sisters in the food and wine business. Their elderflower juice was so aromatic. FIRST PUBLISHED: SAT, DEC 14 2013. 01 18 AM ISTHOME» LEISURE» THE GOOD LIFE Wines, economy and culture preservation What kind of [...]
For The National Abu Dhabi on Kerala
In The National, Abu Dhabi Thiruvananthapuram is India's evergreen destination Shoba Narayan December 5, 2013 Updated: December 5, 2013 16:52:00 With its lush green foliage, balmy weather and quiet streets, Thiruvananthapuram, previously called Trivandrum, provides a genteel and serene counterpoint [...]
The Chennai music season decoded: for Mint Lounge
Chuffed that Ranjani Gayathri posted this piece in their Facebook page (Ra-Ga). Nice acronym. Sat, Dec 07 2013. 12 09 AM IST The Chennai music season decoded A primer to Chennai’s music and dance festival Shoba Narayan Ranjani and Gayathri [...]
Poetry reading.
If any of you are in Bangalore tomorrow, I am moderating a poetry reading by Athena Kashyap. Please come. I am fascinated by poetry: the musicality of it; how to make words sing; how to condense thought. So I thought [...]
Radio New Zealand
Educating Muslim girls for radio here
Storytelling
Telling stories allows us to connect with the wider world Shoba Narayan November 26, 2013 Updated: November 26, 2013 17:32:00 We live to tell stories. We make sense of life by telling them. We connect to people through stories. No [...]
Wine Palate: how to figure it out: for Mint Lounge
Wine wisdom: figure out your palate The problem with wine-talk is that unless you are in the company of oenophiles, no matter what you say, it sounds pretentious. You can blather on about the bouquet of a good Frescobaldi or [...]
Failure and success
I talk about the sandbox, but harder still is to watch your kid shut you out of her college application process and not go crazy. If you let your kids fail, you might be doing them a favour Shoba Narayan [...]