• 10 Feb 2019
• 197 views
• Ayushi Astha

Ayushi Astha was in conversation with journalist and author Ashwini Devare, in Kolkata when she visited the city for the Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival. Born in Moscow, Ashwini Devare spent her childhood in many different places – from Switzerland to Sikkim — due to her father’s job in the Indian Foreign Service. Her latest book, … Continue reading “Being in a constant state of flux and the wish to fit in is a strong influence in author Ashwini Devare’s works”

• 01 Feb 2019
• 1,364 views
• Srajana Kaikini

Jayant Kaikini is a renowned Kannada poet, author, essayist, lyricist whose book No Presents Please translated into English by Tejaswini Niranjana, recently won the DSC Prize for South Asian Literature 2018. Srajana Kaikini, daughter of the writer, interviews him for The Bengal Story. Srajana Kaikini pursues philosophy and art through her practices of writing, creating … Continue reading “Art, literature, science are our efforts to make sense of things around us: writer Jayant Kaikini”

• 30 Jan 2019
• 336 views
• Ayushi Astha

Paro Anand has been honoured with the Sahitya Akademi Bal Sahitya Puraskar Award, 2017 for her book Wild Child, now published as Like Smoke with additional content. Her book, No Guns at My Son’s Funeral was on the IBBY Honor List and has been translated into German and Spanish. Her latest book The Other, is … Continue reading “Paro Anand’s session at AKLF: an author who knows how to cast magic spell on her audience”

• 20 Jan 2019
• 384 views
• Ayushi Astha

Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s new book, The Forest of Enchantments (published by HarperCollins India), is a retelling of The Ramayana, one of the world’s greatest epics. Here, the author places Sita at the centre of the novel: it is her version. The Forest of Enchantments is also a human story of some other women in the epic … Continue reading “I hope my Sita goes beyond labels to become a dynamic, strong-minded woman who doesn’t give up: author Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni”

• 10 Jan 2019
• 228 views
• Aritra Paul

On September 6, 2018, the Supreme Court of India had decriminalised Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, which prompted millions to show support and thousands to come out of the closet without the fear of prosecution. Section 377 referred to as “unnatural offences” and said that whoever voluntarily had carnal intercourse against the order … Continue reading “Queer Literary Festival in Kolkata focused on the long history of queer narratives and its bright future”

• 01 Jan 2019
• 150 views
• Swati Sengupta

Siddhartha Sarma’s Year of the Weeds is one of the best books of 2018. Set in a village called Deogan in Balangir area of Odisha, the place is inhabited by Gond adivasis. The story is reminiscent of Odisha’s Niyamgiri movement, where the people fought against Vedanta group’s attempts to use tribal land for industry. Year … Continue reading “Young people have a lot of empathy and willingness to consider other perspectives than most grown-ups do: author Siddhartha Sarma”

• 18 Dec 2018
• 308 views
• Aritra Paul

The Indie Comix Fest came to Kolkata last week after a long wait – it was an initiative to promote independent comics from individuals from around the country. It first began at Mumbai in 2017 as a volunteer-run fest where comics’ creators booked a table and displayed their comics for sale. The fest was first … Continue reading “Kolkata’s Indie Comix Fest: uninterrupted interface between comics-makers and comics crazy readers”

• 25 Nov 2018
• 404 views
• Ananya Dasgupta

The smell of the first drops of rain on parched earth. Summer holidays in Calcutta. My earliest memories seem to be woven around that divine smell. Of Nor’westers. The sudden ominous dark clouds after days of relentless heat and spotless blue skies. The thunder and finally the downpour. Someone somewhere would call out, ‘the clothes, … Continue reading “Short story: Rain”

• 11 Nov 2018
• 240 views
• Sumanto Chattopadhyay

“I accept this on behalf of those women who wish they were nameless. For their names are called only when their labour is required. Labour that is soul-destroying. Labour that gets no respect in return. Labour that dehumanizes.” Tehmeena’s eyes glistened as she practised her speech. Her heart beat a little faster. Doing good felt … Continue reading “Nameless: a short story”

• 09 Nov 2018
• 88 views
• Meera H. Sanyal

Excerpt from a new book, The Big Reverse: How Demonetisation Knocked India Out, by Meera H. Sanyal.