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Some thoughts after my uncle passed away
Photos: Joseph Vadakel with his wife Rani, daughter Reena, son-in-law Monis and grandchildren Joseph and Rosina; the house in Muvattupuzha where my my mother and uncle grew up; interstellar space By...
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When a community dies
Photos: Queenie Hallegua at her home in Fort Kochi; David Hallegua with his mother; David and his sister Flory with Queenie; David with his wife Cici and daughter Eliana On August 11, Queenie Hallegua...
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After the darkness comes the light
Psychotherapist Sonali Gupta’s book, ‘You Will Be All Right - A Guide to Navigating Grief,’ will help you understand what death does to you when a loved one passes away. It provides ways to cope with...
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It’s all about going green
Former banker Ajay Gopinath runs Grow Greens, a firm that sells multigreens. Ajay says that they are the one-stop answer for all vitaminsBy Shevlin Sebastian One day, in 2006, Ajay Gopinath went to a...
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The Burnt House
By Shevlin Sebastian At 7 am, the day after the burial of his wife and two daughters, Nasir Khan stood outside his house. The tiled roof had caved in, while the walls had dark stains on them. The floor...
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Hindi audio version of 'The Stolen Necklace' can be heard on Kuku FM
Happy to state that the Hindi audio version of 'The Stolen Necklace' titled 'Do Chehre Ek Ilzaam' can now be heard on Kuku FM. There are 33 chapters of a few minutes each. So far, over 14,000 people...
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The India of Today and Yesterday
Author Pradeep Damodaran travelled to many cities and towns associated with the freedom movement. He wanted to get a feel of whether the history still resonates. He also focused on the daily life of...
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People I don’t know
By Shevlin SebastianOn Sunday morning, I set out on a jog in a lane behind my house in Kochi. The lane is usually deserted. There are trees on either side. There are many houses with gardens in front....
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Thoughts after attending a funeral
By Shevlin Sebastian As the mourners descended the steps of the St. Augustine’s Forane Church in Ramapuram (60 kms from Kochi), they veered to the right. On a cart, there were steel canisters of tea...
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Where the old is still gold
Sujit G Ponoth has a vinyl record space in his home at Kochi. He has a collection of over 6000 recordsBy Shevlin Sebastian One day, a 21-year-old boy named Rahul Nair (name changed) came to JD’s...
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Bestselling author Anand Neelakantan tells the story of the Ramayana in its...
Captions: The book cover; author Anand Neelakantan; author ValmikiOne of India’s epic poems decoded By Shevlin Sebastian In the foreword of ‘Many Ramayanas, Many Lessons’, author Anand Neelakantan...
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The story of 'The Stolen Necklace' on YouTube
Happy to know that the story of VK Thajudheen's wrongful incarceration continues to be discussed at length in the Malayalam media. Many thanks to The Time Media for doing the story. And thanks to...
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The Blockbuster King
Last Photo: Co-Author Suveen SinhaIn this absorbing memoir, ‘Karma’s Child’, preeminent Bollywood director Subhash Ghai, reflects on his life and career. By Shevlin Sebastian In the foreword of...
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When the credits stopped rolling -- a short story
By Shevlin Sebastian Muzaffar Ali stared at the face of his dead wife.He had stared at this face for 25 years. The face had remained smooth. A tiny crease where the nose touched the forehead. But the...
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A bit of Tamil Nadu in New York
Photos: Chef Vijaya Kumar; with customer Vishwanathan Anand; Valiya Chemmeen Moilee - lobster tail. Photo by Paul McDonoughChef Vijaya Kumar, who won his third Michelin Award recently, talks about the...
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The 2006 bomb blasts on the Railway network in Mumbai: A Flashback
Captions: The bomb blast on the railway network at Mumbai in 2006. Meeta (centre) with her daughter Esha and husband Tushit A few days ago, I had put a review of a Subhash Ghai book on LinkedIn. Meeta...
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Going Dutch
Sarah Lisa, from Holland, runs the Zera Noya bakery in Kochi. She talks about the reasons behind its success By Shevlin Sebastian On a Monday afternoon, the rain is pelting down. Outside the Zera Noya...
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Spouses of diplomats talk about their experiences in different countries...
Captions: The cover; President John F Kennedy; Hope Cooke with her husband, the Chogyal, ruler of Sikkim Delhi-based journalist Reshmi Ray Dasgupta wrote that when her mother Gayatri was posted to...
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Meeta Shah’s Journey After the 2006 Mumbai Bombings
Photo: Meeta Shah (right) with EshaOn July 11, 2006, Meeta Shah’s husband, Tushit, 44, died in the Mumbai rail blasts.In Part 1, published in ‘The Hindustan Times’ on July 16, 2006, Meeta spoke about...
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A write-up on my great grandfather, Ninan Xavier
By Shevlin Sebastian Last week, I had gone to pay condolences at the home of my cousin Thomas Job, who passed away at the age of 73 in Nadeckepadam, near Changanacherry. High up on the wall of the...
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A session on true crime
Happy to do an interview on the Harper Broadcast Channel on World Book Day last month with Rasheed Kidwai and Prakash Patra, authors of the book, 'The Scam That Shook A Nation -- The Nagarwala...
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A Sardarji who speaks fluent Malayalam
Captions: Mohinder Singh; The outside of the restaurant; Maharaja's Chicken dishMohinder Singh, part-owner of the ‘Sethi Da Dhaba’, put out a reel in Malayalam celebrating the 10th anniversary of the...
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A photo with Guneet Monga
With the effervescent film producer Guneet Monga at the Dhanam Business Summit at Kochi. At age 21, Guneet went from Delhi to Mumbai to try her luck in films. In less than 20 years, she is an Oscar...
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A Shining Star
Captions: Published by Penguin India; Author Sanghamitra Chakraborty; Soumitra Chatterjee as Apu; the memory card scene in Aranyer Din RatriIn this absorbing biography, Sanghamitra Chakraborty traces...
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