Bengali Archives

The Great Bong Love Affair With Boroline

An indispensable asset of every Bengali, whether they are probashi, bheto, nyaka, or ghoti is their absolute dependency on the wide-ranging powers of the handy Boroline. For us, it’s not just an ointment, but a way of life; just like aloor chop on a Sunday evening or a KKR match at Eden Gardens.

Poulomi Das July 27, 2016

First Person

World Post Day: How My Mother Lost Her Voice as Emails Replaced Letters

Sometimes, when I miss my mother’s younger, healthier, happier self, all I need to do is close my eyes and think of the beautiful letters she wrote me – letters as distinct as the way she drapes her saree. But the realisation that my life was going to be forever lacking in the salt of her written words dawned on me when her memory began to fade.

Chandrima Pal July 24, 2016

POV

Why Do We Inherit the Worst Traits of Our Parents?

Growing up, I wanted to be nothing like my parents. I spent a significant part of my teenage years defining myself in opposition to my parents. Yet, over time, the very traits that I disliked about them slowly became my own – and that’s when I truly understood them.

Poulomi Das July 24, 2016

POV

Kolkata’s Durga Pujo: The Best of Times, The Worst of Times

I am back in Kolkata, caught in the centre of the rotating carousel in the great carnival of Durga puja. I hate it and love it in equal measure.

Runa Mukherjee June 23, 2016

People

Of Sandesh and Sangeet: How I Learnt to Embrace My Bengaliness

I tried to steer clear of all things Bengali as a child. But Ma ensured we visited Shantiniketan a couple of times a year for heritage-related indoctrination.

Katyani Gupta June 10, 2016

POV

“What Do JNU Students Do All Day?” Ask Economics Nobel Winner Abhijit Banerjee

Surprisingly, rather than celebrating Abhijit Banerjee’s achievement of winning the Nobel Prize for Economics, some have been deriding him for his “anti-national” credentials. What must sting these critics most is that Banerjee happens to be an alumnus of the most hated-on educational institute in right-wing intellectual circles: Jawaharlal Nehru University.

#VALUE! June 3, 2016

Culture

Much Before Halloween There Was Bhoot Chaturdashi

Halloween is too in-your-face. Bhoot Chaturdashi, which falls on the night before Diwali, has the kind of suspense that plays with your mind. I remember peering into the dark fearfully, thinking twice about making that trip to the bathroom on my own, lest a spirit held my body hostage.

Chandrima Pal May 19, 2016

POV

A Tomb of One’s Own: Why It is Important for Indian Women to Own Public Spaces

Women need public spaces – not just to occupy thoroughfare but even as private spaces. A space for quiet reflection, for celebration, for contemplation, for cooling down from a fight. Public spaces can help shape our most private selves. Just ask my mother.

Swati Bhattacharya May 10, 2016

Bollywood

10 Years of Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!: A Sympathetic Portrait of a Dysfunctional Superchor

In an era when multiple governments con us into playing “statue-statue” and companies pile on unpayable debts that go into so many zeroes that Aryabhatta would get anxiety attacks, what’s a thief who steals everything from luxury sedans to pet dogs?

Anahad Madhav April 1, 2016

Animals

Dogorrhea: The Deadly Disease that Plagues Doggy Moms

Dogorrhea is a medical condition that affects one in every twenty humans on the planet. If you are a dog owner, you are most likely already infected. Dogorrhea makes people believe that anyone who isn’t besotted with canines is an asshole. And anyone who isn’t a canine is an idiot.

Purba Ray March 5, 2016