Sonali Kokra, Author at Arré

Radically Honest Confessions: What a Month of Constantly Telling the Truth Taught Me

The concept of Radical Honesty isn’t just about telling the truth – you have to commit to voicing every stupid, bitchy, relationship-ending, career-destroying thought that tumbles through your head. I started my experiment with absolute truth-telling and landed in my own private hell.

Sonali Kokra April 23, 2016

POV

Don’t Show Me the Money: What It Takes To Be an Unambitious Person

On my 30th birthday, I realised that I was exhausted of pretending I enjoyed being in the rat race and I finally admitted that I was unambitious. It was the best investment I’ve made in my mental health.

Sonali Kokra April 14, 2016

Gender

Look Who’s Not Cooking: Why My Children Will Never Eat Maa Ke Haath Ka Khana

When I was growing up, Maa’s kitchen had some manner of grinding, slow cooking going on at all times. But my utter lack of initiative when it comes to feeding people ghar ka khaana has been the cause of great pain to women in my family.

Sonali Kokra April 13, 2016

Pop Culture

Avengers: Endgame Spoiler-Free Review: Carry Along Enough Tissues for an Epic and Emotional Showdown

After the events of Infinity War, the Avengers were broken, beaten down, angry, and drowning in sorrowful memories. After watching Avengers: Endgame, that’s a more accurate description of the fans.

Sonali Kokra April 12, 2016

Fashion

It’s 2020. Can We Please Leave Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Her Neckline Alone?

A few days ago, Priyanka Chopra Jonas wore a Ralph and Russo fringed couture gown for the Grammys. The plunging neckline of the dress immediately broke the outrage internet. You see, the actress is a woman, so every square inch of skin she shows must first be approved by men – and protectors of sanskaar.

Sonali Kokra April 12, 2016

Pop Culture

Big Little Lies and the Truth About Women’s Grief

If season one of Big Little Lies was all about shattering the them-not-us illusion of what a victim of domestic violence looks like, season two tried to capture the hypnotic nature of grief. Poorly written they might be, but between them, Mary Louise and the Monterey Five perfectly encapsulate the messiness of mourning.

Sonali Kokra April 10, 2016

Pop Culture

A Suitable Boy Review: Mira Nair’s Adaptation Will Make You Want to Read (or Re-read) the Book

For those who’ve read and loved the book, watching Mira Nair’s adaptation of Vikram Seth’s wildly popular 1993 novel, A Suitable Boy, is going to be a delicate dance between agony and joy. If you haven’t, you’re in for six hours of impeccable art direction, some mediocrity, and several sparks of pure genius.

Sonali Kokra April 8, 2016

Pop Culture

Tribhanga is that Film Which Makes You Call Your Mum and Say, “I Just Wanted to Hear Your Voice”

Since watching Netflix’s Tribhanga, I’ve recommended it to several close women friends despite its agonising flaws, simply for its arresting central premise. So many of us have travelled the path the three women in the film are walking on. Confident in our abilities to make better, different, more authentic choices than the ones made by our own mothers and then realising we’re a lot more like our mothers than we ever intended to be.

Sonali Kokra April 7, 2016

Pop Culture

Big Little Lies is Back! It Continues to Ask Difficult Questions about Sexual Abuse & Trauma

Big Little Lies came out months before the #MeToo storm, shattering many of our assumptions about what victims and abusers look like. It’s only fitting that with its second season, it helps answer some of the questions left on the shore once the storm receded.

Sonali Kokra March 31, 2016