Kavya Janani U.'s Blog, page 20

Book Review: Turning Back Time by Shravya Gunipudi

Book Name: Turning Back Time

Author: Shravya Gunipudi

Publisher: Gargi Publishers

Pages: 196

Synopsis:

When people we love pass away, they only take their presence with them. They leave their memories with us. The story revolves around ‘Alia’, an emotionally distant woman, and how the lives of four elderly strangers impact her own very deeply, bringing about a change in the way she treats herself and those around her. As the clock begins to tick and they each start to die, leaving their stories behind for her to learn from, she finds that the depression and trauma caused by their loss have left with her the gift of a lifetime… Realisation. In the tale of life, death and the ride in between, where there are always mistakes and never second chances, there is only one question. Can you make it through without regrets?

Review:

We come across stories everywhere. There are stories which are easily forgotten, while there are stories which leave you with a lingering bittersweet emotion long after you have read or heard them. Turning Back Time, written by Shravya Gunipudi, belongs to the second category. The novel consists of not one, but four emotional tragedies, which end with ‘If I could turn back time, I would….’, and which have the potential to drive you to tears. Above all that, you’ll learn lessons for a lifetime. Each story has a message to take home.

The author concentrates on the central theme – realization. And each story does justice to it. All the elderly characters – Raman, Hema, Girish, and Sita have a bitter past to narrate and each one’s story ends with a realization. These stories have a deep impact on the protagonist Alia, who learns her lessons and imbibes them in her real life. Shravya pens these four stories with a raw flavour and you can instantly feel a connect with them. The stories also throw light upon sensitive issues which prevailed in our grandparents’ generation (a few which still exists) – domestic abuse, forced marriage, forbidden love, sati, and sexual abuse. Apart from all the lessons and messages which the stories teach the readers, what keeps the stories connected is the strong undercurrent of human emotions, which are rarely focused in new-age novels.

I also liked the subplot – a cute love story between Alia and Mayank. Though the mood of the main stories are serious, this lighthearted love story is sure to cheer you up. Another plus point of the novel is that Shravya doesn’t make the stories too preachy. They are philosophical, yet engaging. The narration is deeply engrossing, which will keep you hooked till the end. The cover by Amol Karambe is really excellent and deserves a special mention. Despite the beautiful love story of the lead pair, I felt that their realization of love was rather rushed. Shravya could have added more scenes for them or she could have made them realize their love in a gradual manner. However, that’s my personal opinion.

Overall, Turning Back Time is a thought-provoking novel. Books like this one should be given the highest place in ‘Indian Literature’, instead of encouraging nonsensical campus romances to that position.

Rating: 4.75/5

Click here to buy the book.

Authors can contact me for book reviews here: Review Request

Love,

Kavya Janani.U

First Rays of Sun

She switched on the radio and entered the kitchen to cook something, so that the incessant rumbles in her stomach would stop. She heard ‘Yaad piya ki aane lagi..Haaye bheegi bheegi raathon mein…’ wafting from the radio in the kitchen. She tried to wipe away the memories that were associated with that song, but she could never do it. Every time she tried to ignore the memories while listening to that song, she was pushed into the oblivion even more. She put on the frying pan and started dicing some veggies. Slowly, a drop of tear started making its way down. She wiped it off and continued cutting the vegetables into small shreds. She decided to prepare Panneer fried rice and Gobi Manchurian gravy which was her all time favourite. Soon, tears began to flood her eyes like a broken dam. She stopped cooking and switched to another radio station. She waited till she could completely get over her sobs, ceasing only when the song changed to Sheila Ki Jawani. She went back to work as if nothing had happened.

Aarushi lived a mundane life in her posh deluxe 2 BHK apartment in Mumbai. She was working in Wipro as a senior programming analyst. Her mechanical life was beginning to take a toll on her. She was 26 and all alone. Though she was beautiful and attractive, she had a very low self esteem. She left her parents back in Delhi as they were pestering her to get married. Neither was she interested in commitment nor did she have a boyfriend. She was unreceptive to boys and never welcomed them into her life. She severed off ties with her old friends who were keen on asking unwanted questions about her life and make her feel even more low. She whiled away her days by indulging in painting. She painted whatever she saw. She painted truth, her hidden dreams, and her varying moods. Finally, she painted ‘him’. She painted him as she knew him back during those ‘lovely’ days. She considered that as her masterpiece. She would just sit and look at that painting for long hours. Except that particular painting, she sold the others to an art exhibition. Her paintings were displayed under the pen name ‘Dheeksha’. She loathed publicity, hence, she chose a pseudonym for her paintings.

Once, she was asked by the exhibition manager over the phone, “Which painting do you consider as your masterpiece, Ms. Dheeksha?”

“Well, that’s a painting which stays close to me. I have not displayed it in the exhibition,” she replied, rather bluntly.

“Achcha! Why don’t you make a public appearance? There are many admirers for your paintings. They are eager to meet you and interact with you.”

“Well, I am not eager to publicize myself. I prefer to paint anonymously under the pen name ‘Dheeksha’.”

“So, ‘Dheeksha’ isn’t your real name?”

“It’s not.”

“Well, madam, why aren’t you interested in this chat? You seem to be lost. Even when you visited our office to display your paintings, you were aloof. May I know what’s bothering you?”

“That sounds as a personal question, Mr.Srinivas. You can hang up rather than asking such questions.” She turned all rude.

“I am sorry, madam. I don’t have the rights to interfere in your life. My sincere advice is, be happy always. Have faith in God.”

“But I have got no faith in God for the past ten years.” She hung up abruptly and switched off her mobile in an instant. She turned hysterical, plopped down on her bed, and buried her face in the pillow. There it was, again. Her sudden outbursts for reasons unknown. She had also visited a psychiatrist, but to no avail. Her unendurable pain became almost stagnant in her life.

She cried and cried till her heart ached. Yes, she painted him, finally, and kept him as her masterpiece, but she lost him in her real life. She lost him ten years ago. He was her first love at the sweet age of 16.

The year 2000 held a lot of memories for her. She fell in love with Abhinav, the curly haired guy, who was famous for his Hindi poems. Their love story was sweet, mushy and innocent. They exchanged letters and met up as often as they could. Both were multi-talented, since they shared common interests. It was as if they were made for each other. But there was always a problem of communication between them. Sometimes letters were also not exchanged. Their parents would either be around them or they would be too busy with their exams to pen letters. Their only way to spend time with each other was to meet in school. Technology was not developed in India and mobile phones were really expensive. Calling to your loved one’s land-line number seemed dangerous. And that’s why their love story ended soon.

One fine day, Abhinav was gone. He could not inform Aarushi. There was a miscommunication. When she contacted his friends to know about his whereabouts, they were as lost as she was. Abhinav and his family were nowhere to be seen in that area. Aarushi asked his neighbours whether they could provide any information about his whereabouts. She even tried visiting browsing centers and searching for Abhinav Sharma via Google, but nothing worked out. She started waiting for him, day after day, hoping that he’d call her or send her a letter. Nothing of that sort happened too. And that’s when she lost faith in God and turned into a lifeless being.

She had been waiting for him from that day. She knew that she was turning insane with each passing minute, but she always hoped for the best. All she needed was to see him at least once in her life. She was waiting for that moment. She dreamed about that moment. She delved in those sweet memories. It was those memories that brought a smile on her face. It was those memories that acted as a catalyst in her life. She knew that even if she sees him, he won’t be able to recognize her. ‘Worse, he would have got married already and living a happy life with his partner,’ she thought. She shuddered at the thought of her Abhinav with another girl. She had stopped her tryst with boys as she was not able to forget him. She never allowed herself to fall in love again.

*****

First Rays of Sun was a band formed by Bobby, a few years ago. They churned out albums after albums that went on to become chartbusters. The creator of the band was a most sought after pop singer and music composer. He was the one who brought back the essence of pop music in India, but he had not delivered any performances nor had he made any public appearance. People never knew how he looked like. For most days, he stayed inside his recording studio. If he had to go out, he would be heavily armed with bodyguards, so that unexpected shutterbugs kept out of his way. He also stayed out of social media, asking his band to create a common account page where they could post updates. However, as days passed by, he felt that he should come out in the open. Something prodded him a lot and his public appearance would be the only way to steer clear his enigma. Hence, he was gearing up for a live performance. He had planned it to be a grand musical show.

“So, who is that special person whom you are about to invite?” asked Pranav, a young and talented singer in Bobby’s band, while fine tuning his guitar.

“She is the one who instills music in me,” Bobby said.

“What?! You haven’t introduced her to me. Who is she?”

“Even I don’t know who she is. I haven’t seen her before.”

“Speak some sense, Bobby. How can you invite someone whom you have not seen or met?”

“I am inviting her to see her,” said Bobby with a wink.

*****

“We cordially invite you to our grand debut musical show Chaahat, on the 16th of October, 2010. The show features the pop sensation Bobby and his team. An evening filled with the true soul of pop music. Please do join us and make the show a grand success. The venue details have been communicated to your manager.

Love,

First Rays of Sun”

The invitation read. Aarushi couldn’t believe her eyes. She read it again and again till she felt exhausted.

“Wowwwww!” She jumped in sheer excitement.

“I…I can’t believe this. I have been invited to Bobby’s show. Oh, my God! Am I imagining things?! I am going to see Bobbyyyyyy.”

Aarushi was a great fan of Bobby and his band First Rays of Sun. She never missed a single album of his. Hum Kab Milenge sang and written by Bobby was her favorite. She felt that she could easily relate herself with his songs. She even thought that she could move on with her life and start loving Bobby. She was such a crazy fan of him. The thought that she was going to see him for the first time made her go nuts. She learnt that the invitation was first sent to her art exhibition. So, she called up the manager, Mr.Srinivas.

“Sorry to disturb you, sir. What was actually addressed in the letter that came along with this invitation? You refused to send that letter to me stating that it should be checked for authenticity, in order to prevent stalkers, blah, blah, blah….”

“Calm down, madam. I’ll read it out to you. It is indeed sent by Bobby himself. He is a polite man. He hadn’t even addressed the letter directly to you. Well, it states ‘Hi, this is Bobby. I am a great fan of Dheeksha’s works. Her paintings are just out of the world. I want to meet her. So, I invite her personally to my debut musical show.’”

Aarushi pinched herself to know whether that was all really happening.

“I have no words to say, sir. I am Bobby’s craziest fan, but I never knew that he would be a fan of my works.”

“This is a miracle, madam. I think you might have a great future with Bobby.”

“What do you mean?”

“Er – I meant that you might work along with him. For example, you could paint his music and he would sing your paintings. Umm..Am I sounding funny?!”

“Oh, cut the crap, Mr.Srinivas!” Aarushi roared at the other end and hung up.

Noooo…I am in love with my Abhinav. I have been in love with him for the past ten years. Nothing can change me. I am just infatuated with Bobby. That’s it. There is nothing more to it. There is no more love in my life. She reassured herself by looking at her masterpiece.

*****

Facebook was a recent phenomenon. Though Aarushi was in Orkut, she could never find Abhinav Sharma. There were lots of Abhinav Sharmas and some even had profile pictures that were gross. She also got in touch with her high school friends whose mutual friend list never had an Abhinav Sharma. Hence, as a last resort, she joined Facebook and searched for him, but she couldn’t find anyone even vaguely resembling to the Abhinav that she was searching for. Losing hope, she was about to log out, when she found ‘First Rays of Sun’ band’s official page. Though she knew that she wouldn’t find Bobby’s photo in it, she just visited the page and listened to their super-hit numbers. All of a sudden, she was flooded with Abhinav’s memories. She could never fathom why Bobby’s songs always brought Abhinav’s thoughts along with them. It was the most inscrutable conundrum.

*****

Bobby adjusted the guitar that hung from his shoulder. He was giving his rehearsal a final shot. He hoped that the audience would love him. More than that, he hoped that Dheeksha would love him. He was going to see her for the first time. He prayed to God that she should turn up for the show. He had waited for this particular day. He just wished that she would acknowledge him. That was enough for him. He could never believe himself that he had fallen in love with a girl just through her paintings. He didn’t even care whether she was married or not. He just wanted to meet her and express his feelings towards her.

Aarushi entered the venue with the invitation card. She acquired a place in the third row, keeping her fingers crossed. She never imagined that she would be invited by Bobby himself. Her heart beats raced higher as she waited for him to appear. She wanted to see his face. She wanted to ask him to reveal the secret behind his soul-stirring songs. ‘If I get a chance to talk to him personally, I would invite him either for coffee at a restaurant or dinner at my home’, she thought. Immediately she regretted her thoughts. She mentally cursed herself for showing too much interest on him. ‘How could I even think about dinner, when I am still clinging on to my first love? Perhaps, Abhinav would be my first and last love. Forever in love, alone.’ She sniffed at her thoughts.

“Dear friends, brothers and sisters….A happy musical evening to you all!” The emcee began his introduction in a sonorous tone.

After a few testimonials about Bobby and his band, the emcee spoke again.

“We are not going to make you wait anymore. It’s high time that you must know who Bobby is. Let’s begin the countdown. 5…4…3…2…1…And here comes Bobbyyyyy…The pop star of India…”

Festoons and fireworks burst up as the spotlight centered on Bobby. The open stage, coupled with the chill breeze enticed Aarushi. She slowly closed her eyes as Bobby began strumming a lilting prelude on his guitar.

“Hum kab milenge jaaneman….” Bobby began and lifted his face to show to the entire world in front of him.

“Ooooooo…” Aarushi began cheering along with the crowd. However, her voice faded away soon. Her heart sank when she saw Bobby. Everything around her came to a halt. The strum of the guitar and the blaring synthesizers were muted. A stony silence prevailed, a silence which only she could feel. Blood gushed throughout her veins. The world ceased to exist as she stared at Bobby. That face, which she had longed to see for the past ten years, was before her, singing a song that could sear only her soul.

“Abhinavvv….” She exploded, but her voice was bogged down by the music.

She wept. Nobody noticed her. She was the only one to weep amidst a crowd of smiling faces.

Soon, the song ended. A serene aura hung over the crowd. They were contented on seeing Bobby, finally.

Then Bobby spoke, “Helloooo my dear friends…..How are you all?”

“Ooooooooooooo…” The crowd roared back.

“As you all know, I am Bobby. Sorry, I think it’s time to reveal myself. My original name is Abhinav. I adopted the name Bobby, because the industry required it..ha ha ha..” He laughed. The crowd cheered along with him.

“This is my first public appearance. And I am here to entertain you with more of my songs. Before that, I have tell you something important. I have been inspired by someone to create such music. Are you all eager to know who my inspiration is?”

“Yessssss….” The crowd chorused in unison.

“Well, it’s a girl.”

Tears flowed from Aarushi’s eyes. ‘So, there was a girl in Abhinav’s life.’

“I had been in love with a girl for a long time. That’s why I named my band as First Rays of Sun, which is the meaning of her name.”

A fake smile appeared on Aarushi’s lips as she knew that he was referring to her.

“But I was blinded by love that I couldn’t understand myself. The girl whom I currently refer is someone else, not the one whom I had been in love with.”

Once again, Aarushi’s face dropped. She knew she had to face the reality one or the other day. The time had come. Abhinav was in love with someone else. He was not hers anymore.

“This girl whom I am talking about inspired me to create music. I could relate myself to all her paintings. I think she painted my whole life. I gave my heart away to her. I have not seen her before or know anything about her. This show was an excuse to see her. I hope that she had turned up. Dheeksha, please come up on the stage wherever you are. I am proud to say that I love you. Please do come, Dheeksha. And forgive me if you’re married. I didn’t even care about that. I just want to express my feelings. Come up, Dheeksha.”

The entire hall stood in awe. Their eyes frantically searched for Dheeksha. Abhinav could hear his thudding heartbeats.

Up went Aarushi. She climbed the steps that led her to the grand stage. All eyes were on her. She walked elegantly and stood in front of Abhinav. She smiled as if there was no going back.

Now, it was the turn of Abhinav’s world to cease.

“Aarushi…” He whispered under his breath.

“I know. Love can be really weird at times. But, if two souls are destined to be together, then that is it.”

Aarushi spoke through choked tears.

“Yes, Aarushi…”

There was no time to speak anymore words, as they hugged each other.

Hope you all enjoyed this story, which I wrote three years ago.

Book Review: Case Files of the Dead by Various Authors

Book Name: Case Files of the Dead

Author(s): Suhail Mathur, Jonali Karmakar, Nikhil Uprety, Surbhi Sareen, Manish Mahajan, Samridhi Sharma, Finan Mohamed, Ruchi Chopra, Anshul Akhoury, Sonal Parmar, Sarika Gautam, Aarushi Ohri, Kumar Vikrant, Hina Choudhary, Sanjeeban Nanda, Mohammed Rumi, Nabeela Rumi, Aashi Dahiya, Jash Dholani, Vivek Banerjee, Biswadeep Ghosh Hazra, Sreelekha Chatterjee, Chandrapal Khasiya, Deepank Kanojia, Akash Shrivastav & Sriramana Muliya.

Publisher: Authors Ink Publication

Pages: 197

Synopsis:

Welcome to an eerie land where ghost, ghouls, and spirits rule. Welcome to a place where haunted houses and evil souls will make a shiver run down your spine. A spooky tale in the scenic hills of Mussoorie awaits you while uncanny happenings in a literary competition are sure to have you intrigued. The case of a mysterious white Maruti has everyone befuddled even as unsuspecting jogger experiences something that he had never bargained for. A group of friends will encounter the worst terror of their lives while young man is racked by nightmares of his own death!

Author’s Ink and The Book Bakers present an eclectic mix of true stories , legends, and fables that have often been a part of India’s folklore. Armed with some of the best Authors in India paranormal literature history. CASE FILES OF THE DEAD; India’s first pure horror public anthology is sure to turn every host into (G)Host!!!

Review:

To begin with, I love horror stories. Especially if they have an unusual setting, intense characterization, mindblowing plot and N number of unpredictable twists, I ensure that I’d straightaway give the book the highest rating that exists in this world. However, there are few horror books which would make you feel bad about the entire genre. Cliched tropes, uninteresting plots, shallow characterization, confusing narrative and bad grammar. Sadly, this book belongs to the second category.

When I received this book for review, I highly anticipated that it’d enthrall me, since it had the tagline ‘India’s first ever pure horror public anthology’. Well, to say frankly, the book didn’t do justice to what it terms as ‘pure horror’. Only a few stories stood out, while the others were either confusing or badly written. The grammar was so poor in few stories, that I felt the editors had published the book just like that, without even skimming through the stories. I felt like reading an amateur work. The tales felt like the ones which we would tell to small children to scare them. Some stories had ideas that were blatantly borrowed from folklores. The narration of a few stories was so confusing, that I couldn’t continue reading them without proper understanding. There was something missing in every story. Especially, there are lots of grammatical mistakes – punctuation, prepositions, adjectives, adverbs and articles.

On the bright side, I really liked a few – The Haunting Tale, The Fragrance, A Secret Diary, Awoke, Beyond Time, The Right Hand and The Trap. Even these stories had grammatical mistakes that were overlooked. But the overall setting of these were pretty good and the narrative was gripping.

And, the negatives don’t end with just grammatical mistakes or confusing storylines. I found a few more cons that acted as a major obstacle for a wholesome reading experience. There was no ‘Table of Contents’, which is of paramount importance in a book. Then, there were no numbers marked against the titles of the stories. ‘About the authors’ section was also not properly edited. Since the stories were not up to the mark, I couldn’t bring myself to read the book at a stretch. This shows that how grammar, strong narration and fascinating characters are important to hold a reader’s interest. I strongly advice the editors to thoroughly edit the book, clear all the grammar errors and come up with a fresh version for the second edition.

I recommend this book, if you like cheap thrills or if you easily get frightened. Not recommended if you’re into some serious reading!

Rating: 1.75/5

Click here to buy this book.

Authors can contact me for book reviews here: Review Request

Love,

Kavya Janani.U

Kashmora’s Bungalow

PART 1:

Saurabh and Kiara stood triumphantly in front of their newly built house, watching it with a sense of ebullience. It was actually a bungalow. Painted elegantly in pristine white, the interiors of the bungalow were a visual delight for them. The huge hall contained plush Victorian furniture. There were two bedrooms, a kitchen and a restroom adjoining the hall, each room carrying its own artistic intricacy. To the left of the hall was a flight of stairs which led to the top floor consisting of another bedroom, a small reading space and the entrance to the terrace. The elegance of the bungalow could not be explained with words. It was spacious, bringing in cool air from outside, as it was situated at the foot of Nilgiris mountain range.

“I know you had loved such artistic bungalows. That’s why I built one for you. Do you like it?” asked Saurabh. Kiara did not reply anything. Instead, she moved closer to him and kissed him on his cheek. It was her way of thanking him.

Kiara began dusting the sofas with a worn-out towel. While doing so, she picked up an old newspaper, which, according to her, wasn’t there when she had started dusting. Creasing her eyebrows, she grabbed at it.

“Saurabh, did you notice this newspaper lying here before?” she asked, flipping through the pages of the newspaper.

“I didn’t observe Kia. It must have flown from the teapoy,” he answered, absentmindedly.

“I can accept your explanation if it was a single paper. But it’s an entire newspaper. How can it fly away from the teapoy? It defies every law in Physics.”

“Never mind. You might have not noticed properly. Why are you blowing this up into a big issue?”

“Maybe you’re right. I might have not noticed properly.” She was about to throw away the newspaper when something caught her eyes. It was a special news article named, ‘The curious case of Kashmora: the girl who was ridiculed for her unusual name’. Flailing the towel away from her shoulder, Kiara plopped down on one of the sofas and skimmed through the article.

‘Kashmora. Have you heard of her? Many people aren’t even aware that such a girl existed. She was a beautiful 19 year old girl wronged for the weirdest reason ever. It was her name that caused trouble for her, driving her to death. Yes, you read it right. She is dead. Or people have assumed her to be dead.

Kashmora was a girl from Calicut who possessed a plethora of talents. She could paint, sing and dance. But she wasn’t able to come out and showcase her talents properly, all because of her name. She was demeaned in the reality shows just because she had a name that was not acceptable by the society.

The meaning of ‘kashmora’ literally translates to an occult practice followed in many parts of India. The girl was named as Kashmora by a witch. The reason was Kashmora’s dad was also a witch who wished to name his daughter after his favorite occult practice. But he died due to brain tumor (which couldn’t be even cured by the so called ‘magic’) and Kashmora’s mother named her ‘Kashmora’. Though the name didn’t make any difference to her initially, it soon turned out to be the hot topic of humiliation. She was ashamed of herself and requested her mom to change her name. But her mom denied it, citing that she must be devoted to her ‘dead’ husband. Soon, Kashmora was diagnosed with depression.

In August 2010, Kashmora had written a letter to her mother stating that she was going to end her life. She had also added that her body would never be found. With that, she disappeared. Even after an extensive search, she was never found. The Internet also could not help in finding her or her body (if she had committed suicide). That was the end of Kashmora, a girl with unsung wishes. It has been three years since her presumed death. It is as if Kashmora had never existed. If the girl had been accepted by the society with her original name, she would have survived by now. She might also have become a celebrity. But we, as human beings, were unfair to her. It was not her name; it was we who drove her to death.

This strangely happens only in India. Ridiculing people with their names. Why can’t we just embrace the fact that people are meant to be weighed by their character and not by their name? Let’s begin to accept people for what they are and for the good qualities they possess. Let’s not degrade or discourage anyone because of their name. I hopefully pray for Kashmora’s soul to find peace in heaven. Ponder upon what I have voiced and send your feedback to maliniranga113@yahoo.com.’

Astonished would be an understatement for what Kiara was experiencing at that moment. Her lemon yellow skin procured a reddish tone. Her doe-shaped eyes and her pink lips contorted into angst, thinking about the plight of poor Kashmora. Tucking some of her curls behind her ears, she placed the newspaper on the teapoy and turned to Saurabh. The broad chinned man looked at his wife with a sense of anticipation. Inquisitiveness was hovering in the space between his bushy eyebrows.

“What’s up Kia? You have turned all sweaty.” He moved closer to her.

“Is this story true?” She pulled him to the teapoy and pointed at the article on the newspaper. He picked it up and read the complete feature.

“Ah! Yes, I have heard about her. I was all agog when I had listened to the story from my mother. I had Googled about her and found the story to be indeed true. Kashmora remains to be one of the mysteries of India. I don’t know where she is or where her body is. Well, it doesn’t matter to us. Even though we sympathize with her, we cannot do anything about it now. We…”

SLAM! The front door of the bungalow slammed violently, frightening both Saurabh and Kiara. They stood still for a few moments. The shocking aspect was that there was no wind blowing outside and even then the door had shut by itself. And what happened the next second will be the most eerie experience they would ever have. The door opened slowly, by itself. It was as if someone was turning the doorknob. As they watched in horror, the door once again slammed shut. Kiara clutched Saurabh’s shoulder and hid her face. Hot stream of tears wetted his t-shirt. Saurabh patted Kiara’s head, reassuring her.

“How did this happen?” She asked teary-eyed.

“I..I cannot figure out. Maybe the wind…”

“There is no wind. It’s sunny outside.” Kiara’s voice was shaking. Just then, a chill breeze swept past her face. It was jittering cold. She shivered for a second.

“Saurabh..Touch my cheeks!” she screamed.

Saurabh touched her cheeks and found it to be icy cold. Then he touched his own cheeks. They were intact.

“Something swept past me. It was cold..too cold!”

“Cool down Kia!. Nothing. It’s nothing. Don’t worry.” He pulled her into a tight embrace. Soon the chillness from her cheeks dried away. The rest of the day passed by as usual.

*****

NIGHT 1:

2 AM. Kiara shuddered and woke up startled. She was perspiring profusely. She heard someone scream at a high pitch. It almost sounded like a banshee’s scream. Terrified, she opened the door and went to the hall to investigate. Her fingers moved to the switch board. She was terribly afraid of darkness. She switched the chandelier on and examined the hall. There was no one around. She entered the kitchen next, only to be met with silence. She explored the other bedroom too. But she couldn’t find the source of the scream. Maybe someone might have screamed from outside. Thinking so, she unlatched the doorknob and went to the porch. Not even a single person was at sight. The heavily designed metal gate stood strongly, blocking her view to the street. She locked the main door and entered the hall. Reaching the flight of stairs to the left of the hall, she stared at it, contemplating whether to climb up and investigate the upper bedroom. But her conscience decided the better of it. Dismissing the scream as a bad nightmare, she set foot inside ‘their’ bedroom which was right opposite to the staircase.

She tried to wake Saurabh up. But then she thought that he might get annoyed by her experiences which were childish. Slowly, she fell asleep.

The next morning, Kiara decided to speak up to her husband about her horrifying mini adventure the night before. The reason was, she found the same newspaper that carried the ‘Kashmora’ article beside their bed. Picking up the paper with trembling hands, she tugged at Saurabh who was hurriedly brushing his teeth.

“What?” He asked through the foam surrounding his mouth.

“Now what do you say to this?” She held the paper in front of his eyes.

“What about that?”

“I found this beside our bed now. How can a newspaper from the teapoy end up beside our bed?” Her tone was sarcastic.

Though Saurabh was equally horrified to hear that, he pretended to be calm and replied, “Look Kia, I think you are forgetting things. You might have placed it beside our bed.”

“Don’t ridicule my memory. I didn’t place it over there. How can you blame me?”

“See, I don’t have time to argue now. I have to go to work. Prepare the breakfast. We will discuss about this in the evening.”

Glaring at her husband, Kiara moved on to do her chores, forgetting to mention about her midnight escapade.

After having his breakfast, Saurabh noticed Kiara dressing up. “Where are you going?”

“To meet the publisher. I have completed the final draft. The manuscript is ready. I need to see my name in print as soon as possible.” She spoke all those in a single breath.

“Okay baby, go ahead. I am proud that my wife too will become an author soon. Your novel should be a bestseller like my two novels.” He cupped her cheeks as he spoke that.

“Why don’t you leave your hectic bank job and turn into a full-time novelist? It might help you in completing your third novel. We have enough money with us,” she said with genuine concern in her voice.

“I am planning to do that soon!” He assured her and started his car, offering to drop her at the publisher’s house.

Please do that soon Saurabh. I cannot stay alone at home with terrible things happening around me. She thought to herself. For a moment, she looked back at the bungalow and her eyes registered the eerie newspaper on the porch!

*****

NIGHT 2:

The alarm clock went off at 3 AM. Saurabh rubbed his eyes and switched it off. He couldn’t remember setting the alarm. He looked at his wife who was sleeping soundly. All of a sudden, he felt extremely thirsty. He opened the door and entered the hall. As he walked towards the kitchen, he froze on his path. In the streetlight reflection which was strewn across the hall, he saw a shadow of a woman. What terrified him more was, the shadow resembled his own wife. Sweat beads broke on his forehead.  He retraced his steps back to the bedroom. Switching on the light, he noticed his wife untouched, sleeping in a foetal position. Once again he went back to the hall, only to find the shadow at the same place. All the hairs in his body erected in goosebumps. And then it dawned upon him. The shadow wasn’t that of a woman at all. It just appeared to be in the shape of a woman. But it was just the shadow of the curtain at the entrance of the kitchen. The curtain’s shadow resembled like that of a woman, which appeared like Kiara’s shadow.

Saurabh was partly overjoyed. Quenching his thirst, he went back to sleep. What he missed to notice was the shadow of a woman forming in the ray of light from the kitchen, though the curtain was pulled aside!

*****

NIGHT 3:

Kiara felt the urge to throw up. She opened the attached restroom and vomited violently. To her dismay, no water flowed from the tap. She tried all the taps in all the restrooms in the ground floor, but in vain. It was midnight and she didn’t dare to wake her husband.

She switched on the staircase light and confidently climbed up. Though she dreaded the upper floor, she mustered the courage to open the bedroom. As her fingers searched for the switch board, a soft humming emanated from a corner of the room. The staircase light wasn’t enough to light up the bedroom. She made her way through the darkness to find the origin of the humming. She was sweating a lot as she advanced further inside the room. It was a larger bedroom than the others in the ground floor. She tried to speak but no words came out of her mouth.

Suddenly the darkness of the room was shattered by an ear-splitting thunder accompanied by lightning. In that fraction of a second, Kiara’s eyes made out the silhouette of a woman. She gasped in horror as her heart pumped with fear. Her breathing became faster. She tried to dash out but she couldn’t move her legs. She was almost paralyzed. There was no more lightning and the room was once again filled with darkness. Finally, she found her voice, “Who..Who are you?”

“Ha haaaa!” A shrill of devilish laughter filled the entire room.

Kiara adjusted her eyes in the darkness. But the silhouette wasn’t clear enough to reveal itself.

“You are scaring me. What do you want? Who are you?” Her entire body was trembling.

The silhouette began to emanate hushed sobs, sometimes laughing and sometimes groaning.

Kiara’s eyes brimmed with tears and she was ready to collapse at any moment. “Are you a spirit?” She put forward the question carefully.

“YES!” came the reply in a high pitch.

“What?!” Kiara hollered. “Why are you here?”

“This is my place. Get out!” The spirit’s voice was determined. A dim bluish light filled the entire room and the spirit came into display. She was a young girl, beauty personified. Her mascara lined eyes, her beautiful fluffy lips and her soft spotless cheeks were assets to die for. Wearing a black Anarkali salwar-kameez, the spirit looked like a goddess rather than a ghost. Kiara couldn’t believe her own eyes. She never knew that spirits could be ravishing. The spirit moved closer to her and stared hard into her eyes as if hypnotizing her.

“Why do you call this place as yours?” Though her rational mind screamed at her to run away from the place, she faced the ghost with some kind of renewed confidence. Maybe the appearance of the spirit looked deceptive.

“I don’t need to give explanations to you. I just want your husband and you to immediately evacuate this place.” The spirit’s voice sounded sweet.

“But this bungalow is mine! I won’t vacate it.” Kiara was aware of the consequences of behaving rudely with a spirit.

“I said LEAVE! Otherwise both of you will be trapped forever. You will be my slaves. I will take away your souls to my world. Either give me the bungalow or suffer. The choice is yours.”

Kiara fidgeted with her fingers. She turned around to move away. But the staircase was gone. There was only a hollow space behind her. It was as if there was no bungalow and she was in some kind of netherworld.

“You cannot leave this room without answering me.”

“I…I don’t know what to do. Please let me go!” The fear of losing her precious bungalow to a spirit petrified Kiara.

“Are you ready to lose your soul then?” The spirit spoke in a seductive voice as if seeking for fresh blood.

“Nooooo. By the way, who are you?”

“KASHMORA!” The spirit shrieked.

“Kash..Kashmora?! Are you the one about whom I read? Why are you here? Did you make that wretched newspaper to appear in front of me always?”

There was another screeching laugh from the spirit.

“Kia, Kia, where are you?” It was Saurabh’s voice. Kiara was relieved. Her husband was climbing up the staircase to find her. He entered the bedroom and was startled to see Kashmora, with a wicked smile pasted across her face. He had already seen her images on Google.

“This is Kashmora! What are you doing here when the entire world is searching for you?” he asked, unaware of the fact that she was a spirit. He pulled Kiara closer to him as Kashmora was engaged in her thoughts.

“I am the soul of Kashmora. My body is buried inside the ground on which this bungalow has been built. I had ended my life by burying myself. Nobody could even suspect where my body was. I thought this would remain as a wasteland forever. But I secretly hoped that someone would build a house so that my soul can haunt it. And you did it. I have no other way now. I am going to stay here and fulfill my second desire.”

“What is that?” asked Saurabh, unperturbed by the fact that he was facing a ghost.

“I wouldn’t tell that to you. I am sure that you would exorcise me if I tell you about it. Now, just leave this bungalow as it is. I am going to haunt this place.”

“Look! We cannot do that. But I can offer a part of this bungalow to you. The entire upper floor is yours. You can haunt it how much ever you want. We’ll seal the entrance of the staircase and we’ll never disturb you. We are writers. Once we finish our work, I assure you, we’ll leave this bungalow immediately. Do you accept to this?” Saurabh put forth his idea. Though his entire body was shaking, he tried to negotiate with the spirit. He couldn’t afford to lose the precious bungalow which was a gift for his wife.

Kiara swayed from his grip and sent a tight slap across his face. “Are you nuts? How can we live along with a spirit in our house?” she yelled.

“Understand me Kia. There is no way out of this mess. We have invited trouble. We shouldn’t have built this bungalow here. While the construction was going on, one of our workers complained of a rusting manhole lid. It was I who told them to ignore it and continue building. But I didn’t even have a faint idea that a girl might have buried herself under it. Trust me Kia, Kashmora is a good spirit. She wouldn’t disturb us. When she lived, she was wronged for her name. Let her at least achieve peace as a wandering soul.” Though Saurabh made sense, Kiara reluctantly nodded her head.

Kashmora held an evil smile. Yes, at least a part of this bungalow is mine now. My first desire is achieved. Right after that, she disappeared. The dim bluish light also vanished. The husband-wife duo found themselves in the hall, surrounded my aromatic candles and a writing on the wall which read, “Thank you”.

As promised, the entrance to the staircase was sealed. Saurabh and Kiara revealed the presence of Kashmora’s spirit to the entire world through press and social media. Though people did not completely believe their tale, they were convinced up to an extent. Once again, Kashmora became viral news in India. People began to feel sympathetic for her. Those who visited the bungalow, stayed away from the staircase. They did not feel the presence of any spirit in the other parts of the house.

Soon, Saurabh and Kiara published their respective novels and vacated the bungalow. A ‘To let’ board was hung with a large paragraph of warning. But for a year, there were no takers for the bungalow. It was deserted and it really resembled a haunted bungalow.

**********

PART 2

“You can stay as long as you want. But make sure that you don’t break the chain and climb the staircase,” warned Kiara, with a three month old baby in her hand.

“I wouldn’t do that! I am also an artist. I am here to find some solitude and paint pictures. I wouldn’t go around exploring for spirits,” replied Shaan, the very first tenant to the bungalow which was unanimously named as ‘Kashmora’s Bungalow’.

“Well, it’s good for you. You’re young and you might be eager to investigate such things. But Kashmora is dangerous. Though she is good, she wants to be left alone. You must not disturb her. This place is popular to be termed as a partly haunted bungalow. Don’t turn it into a completely haunted bungalow. We had invested lots of pain and sweat in constructing this one. But we chose the wrong place. Yet this bungalow is precious to us!” Kiara’s stern remarks registered deeply inside Shaan’s mind. He was a 25 year old professional painting artist. He was handsome, with a creamish skin, well chiseled muscles and perfectly aligned teeth.

“I promise you I’ll take care of your bungalow as my own house.”

With a satisfied smile, Kiara handed a bunch of keys to him and left the place. Shaan picked up his belongings and entered the bungalow. The untroubled part of the house was well maintained and whitewashed. He arranged some needed furniture in the hall and occupied the bedroom opposite to the forbidden staircase. He wasn’t a believer of the paranormal yet he maintained a distance from the staircase. It had acquired cobwebs, providing it an abandoned look.

Soon, the news of Shaan moving in ‘Kashmora’s Bungalow’ went viral. He was constantly questioned about his stay in the bungalow. Many were surprised to find him unscathed. Many were even jealous to see him leading a posh life in an expensive house which was ‘partly’ haunted. His activities were normal. He would buy milk in the morning, visit the nearby park for an exercise regime, prepare breakfast and find a corner in his bedroom to paint. Sometimes he would visit art exhibitions, sell his paintings and earn a lot of money. People admired him for his guts to live in a haunted bungalow.

*****

Saurabh and Kiara were in an astrologer’s house. They had come to inquire about their well being and also about their bungalow. The astrologer consulted some papers, books and drew charts that made no sense. He studied them deeply, his eyes displaying various kinds of expressions. After fifteen minutes, he looked up to face them.

“This is a very good time for both of you. You have given birth to a baby girl. She will surely bring joy and happiness in your family. It would be better that you don’t visit your bungalow often. Though there are no negative energies in the undisturbed part of the bungalow, you might leave your negative thoughts in that part which might attract those energies. Right now, the tenant in the bungalow is leading a happy life. He doesn’t even have a vague idea of visiting the haunted part. So, I am sure that the bungalow would remain serene. As for the spirit Kashmora, my prediction tells that she dwells there still. Her first desire was a house to be constructed upon the soil in which she buried herself. Though the native place of her soul is the netherworld, she prefers the bungalow for time being. She is eagerly waiting for her second wish to be achieved. Do you know about it?”

They feigned ignorance and the astrologer continued, “Well, I cannot speak about the unsettled wishes of spirits. I will write about it in this paper. It’s very dangerous. Kashmora is determined to achieve her second desire. She is eagerly looking for potholes that would lead her to success. You must be careful about it. Warn your new tenant as soon as possible.” Saying so, the astrologer wrote a few sentences on the paper and handed it to them.

After reading what was written, Saurabh and Kiara exchanged anxious glances. They paid the astrologer and left the place.

*****

Shaan gulped down one more glass of vodka. He was already drunk, having had four shots. He was blabbering to a hot chick seated beside him.

“I am gonna do the unwanted today…” he trailed off.

“What’s that?” the blond questioned.

“I am gonna meet her. Her…her…” He seemed to pass out. The blond called an escort and directed him to drop Shaan at his house.

Inside the bungalow, Shaan was lying down in the hall, singing songs. His eyes were red with tears. Never once had he consumed too much alcohol. But that night, it was different. He tapped his feet and clapped his hands. He made funny noises with his voice and even mimicked many actors. He felt that he was his own companion, though the darkness of the bungalow accompanied him. He was too much drunk to even switch on the lights.

All of a sudden, he stood up. He did something which he had dreaded doing for the past six months. He slowly marched towards the chained staircase. He looked up. Though his vision was blurry, his eyes could make out the numerous cobwebs that adorned the once beautiful staircase. He clutched the chain tightly with his right hand and yelled, “Are you there Kashmora?!” His voice echoed throughout the bungalow. There was no reaction.

He started pulling the chain with all his might. He gritted his teeth and kept pulling it. “I won’t believe anything. You are not there Kashmora. I am coming…I am coming…” Turned into a complete drunkard, he forgot about all the promises he had made to Kiara.

After a long struggle, the chain gave away. Shaan was overjoyed. He removed all the cobwebs as he climbed the staircase. Like a child moving towards a candy shop, he was moving towards the bedroom that presumably housed Kashmora’s spirit. He disappeared inside the room.

*****

Police vans surrounded the bungalow. The officers were clicking photos around the dead body. A ‘Do Not Enter. Crime Scene’ tag was tied all around the bungalow. Saurabh and Kiara stood silently as they watched Shaan’s body being taken in an ambulance. His mom was crying inconsolably.

“Move aside madam. We need to take the body for postmortem,” said a police officer.

Kiara joined her husband who was inspecting the bungalow along with an exorcist.

“The postmortem cannot answer anything. There are no injury marks or any signs of struggle in his body. It’s clear that he had an unnatural death,” remarked Saurabh. Kiara nodded her head and rushed to the upper bedroom to investigate its condition. The room seemed to be in good order with no trace of a spirit’s reign. She alighted and met the exorcist who had a toothy grin on his face.

“There’s some good news for both of you. There are no more spirits in this bungalow. You can even use the upper floor. You can completely live a peaceful life here.”

“Thank you!” The couple chorused in unison.

As the exorcist left the house, they were engulfed by sadness. They exchanged glances of remorse. They could have warned Shaan. They could have at least tried to trace his location and warned him in person, if he wouldn’t attend their calls. They had committed a terrible blunder. They could have saved him from Kashmora.

What Shaan did not know was the second desire of Kashmora. During her days, she was never loved by any guy due to her name. She was rejected by everyone. After she departed from the world, her soul deeply desired for two things: a dwelling place and a male soul to accompany her to the netherworld. Her second desire was so deep that she always wished Shaan to unchain the staircase. And it happened!

*****

Kiara drove the car to the bungalow. She had a few things to be rearranged before moving in completely. She whistled a happy tune to herself, relieved that her lovely bungalow was all hers finally. As she entered the street, she was met with just an abandoned wasteland. The bungalow was…..GONE! It had vanished into thin air. There was no rubble to prove that it had been destroyed. It was as if the bungalow was never constructed in the first place. At that moment, Kiara wished she had never left the bungalow after Shaan’s soul departure. She wished she had a time travel machine along with her. Her eyes filled with tears as she looked around the wasteland. She wished she could find at least a stone that was used to build the bungalow. But she couldn’t find even a single brick. She immediately called up Saurabh and conveyed the news.

As soon as she hung up, her eyes caught something half buried in the soil. It was a paper. She picked it up. A few lines were written on it.

“I loved your bungalow very much. That’s why I have taken it along with me to my world. Now I can live peacefully with Shaan. You know, it was my third desire. To take away the bungalow to my world. And I forgot to tell you something important. If it wasn’t Shaan, it would have been your poor husband Saurabh’s soul. Wondering, eh? It was you who saved him by climbing the staircase first. If it was he who had climbed up, I would have taken away his soul. I had almost fallen in love with him while haunting you with paranormal activities. Though I am happy with Shaan, I wished I had something that reminded me of Saurabh. That’s why I took away your ‘precious’ bungalow, a gift from your husband.  Now live happily. Don’t worry, I won’t come for him. Hope you lead a good life on Earth.

Love, Kashmora.”

THE END

 

Book Review: The Calling – Unleash Your True Self by Priya Kumar

Book Name: The Calling – Unleash Your True Self

Author: Priya Kumar

Publisher: Books That Inspire

Pages: 166

Synopsis:

The Calling is a spiritual adventure. It is an encounter with the truth, the wisdom and the force that is innate to us all. At the brink of a divorce and personal breakdown, Arjun took a trip into the heart of the Himalayas, on the insistence of a sadhu, who predicted that the journey up to Hemkund Sahib would align him to his purpose and change his life forever. At every turn the mountains holds secrets and tests that urge Arjun to evolve into the person he had denied to be – himself. Pretenses, falsities, confusions and untruths fall apart as Arjun is forced to confront the mess he had created in his life. What started off as an opportunity to escape reality, turned out to be an opportunity to escape from the dwindling spiral of self-created misery. Filled with spiritual insights and sprinkled with light humor, this story will help you find your calling, your voice and who knows, even your true self.

Review:

Let me tell you something about this book before I proceed with my review. You would really find your calling, if you go past the first few pages of this book. You’d never really regret reading it till the end. It is a gem – almost a boon – to all those souls who are in desperate need of something motivational to read. But, if you are going to give this book a miss, either you must already be on the right path in your life or you’re just ignorant of something that holds the true power to unleash your inner self. A person from Priya Kumar’s Training Systems personally approached me for a review and so here it is.

This story is about Arjun – a depressed individual whose personal and professional life has taken a tumultuous turn. It is then that he meets with an accident that changes his life forever. An accident that leads him to find himself. He then meets a sadhu who advises him to take a journey to Hemkund Sahib located in The Himalayas. However, Arjun isn’t aware that this journey would provide him with pearls of wisdom, knowledge, truth and finally himself. He finds his lost self among the mountains, in the highest point where every soul’s life is cleansed of their past mistakes and renewed energy flows through. He is accompanied by a witty, humourous and an enlightened individual Chandu, who actually disguises his true self and acts as a transporter. Though Arjun finds him irritating throughout, the revelation about his true identity is a major blow to him at the end. Chandu’s words, ‘These mountains look still, sahib, but they are not. They move, they are alive, they speak, they share your soul’, have deeper meaning and sow the seeds of motivation in Arjun’s mind.

The most interesting part of the story is the various tests which the second sadhu subjects Arjun to. These tests not only awaken Arjun, but also the readers. We get to read wisdom that would never be taught to you, if you hadn’t picked up this book. For example, this is the lesson that we learn from the first test,

‘To sit in your space and your world and do nothing in it is a disgrace to the intelligence that you are bestowed with. It is a disgrace to the spiritual force that is inherent to you. Your role in the world is to take charge, to take responsibility for your role in your environment and of what happens in it.’

Yes, that’s true, right? The space in which you live is your responsibility. You must take care of your own world and prevent it from falling to pieces. Your environment is your responsibility and you must surely do something about it. One more lesson which we learn is,

‘Every person in our world has a significant role in our purpose, especially those who are a part of your journey – your wife, your children, your colleagues. People are in our lives and our path for a contribution by virtue of who they are. When people’s purposes meet, then their paths align and they come together for a common purpose.’

Of all these lessons which we learn, the last one is the most enlightening.

‘Let the world change, but don’t let your state of positivity change. Let the world change, but don’t let your state of certainty change to doubt because you don’t like that change. Let the whole world change, but don’t let your happiness change in accordance with the apparent despair the world projects onto you.’

Well, the book is completely filled with such wisdom. Everyone would find something for them in it. I am sure that you’d truly find your calling as soon as you finish this book. You’d surely feel the mountains calling out to you. The characters are so neatly presented that they never deviate from the essence of the plot. And there are some quotes which I personally liked. For example, Priya Kumar’s precious words on friendship,

‘Friends are supposed to help you restore your belief and confidence so that you can solve your own problems. They are supposed to listen to your problems without interrupting to give you solutions, so you can talk yourself out of them. Friendship means allowance; it means granting you the space if you need it without intruding to give you advice.’

Overall, The Calling – Unleash Your True Self is a book which is on the lines of The Alchemist and The Secret. Some books are meant to be chewed and swallowed. This motivational book by Priya Kumar is one such!

A final quote for all of you,

‘Regret is to life like termite is to wood. It will eat you up. Confusion is to life like a parasite is to its host. It will consume you. Don’t continue selling your life and your soul to the highest bidder. For when you do, with that you sell your family, your dreams and your purpose.’

Highly recommended book for all those who love motivational books (with a touch of fantasy) that can really open your eyes and provide you with rich insights.

Rating: 4.5/5

Click here to buy this book.

Authors can contact me for book reviews here: Review Request

Love,

Kavya Janani.U

30 Yuvan Shankar Raja Songs That Are Close to My Heart

Yuvan Shankar Raja ruled the music industry a few years ago with his rocking chartbusters and mesmerizing melodies. His songs were a rage among the youngsters. Even today, his songs find a place in every playlist. However, after facing a few failures, his albums weren’t enjoyed much and he is yet to make a strong comeback. He has become selective about his films and composes only for a movie or two in a year. So, on the account of his birthday, I am here to list out 30 songs (in decreasing order of likability) composed by him which would always stay close to my heart.

30.Kadhal Aasai (Anjaan)

Yeah, this is a new addition. Yuvan has experimented with qawwali in this number and the end product is something which warms your heart instantly. Furthermore, he himself has sung this song and that makes it even more enjoyable.

29.Idhu Varai (Goa)

You wouldn’t find a Yuvan fan without liking this number. A mellowing western-melody that is instantly addictive. This song climbed the charts as soon as it was launched. Andrea Jeremiah and Ajeesh are simply fantastic in their rendition.

28.Theendi Theendi (Bala)

Unnikrishnan, Sujatha Mohan and a tune to reckon for. What else do you want? This passionate melody is a treat for all the romantics. Yuvan’s mindblowing flute interludes are something to watch out for.

27.Arabu Naade (Thottal Poo Malarum)

I have been in awe with this song right from the first listen. First, it is for the mellifluous Sufi-esque tune. Second, it is for the upbeat rhythm. And third, it is for Haricharan’s honey-dipping voice which oozes with melody.

26.Ariyadha Vayasu (Paruthiveeran)

While many were going ga-ga about Iyyayo song from this movie, I chose to stick to this one. Just for the rawness of the tune and Ilaiyaraaja’s earthy voice. I could never believe that Yuvan had composed this song. And the interludes are just out-of-the-world!

25.Sirugugal Vandhadhu (Sarvam)

When I first listened to this number, I thought that Yuvan had rehashed some Hindi song tune. But, no, he did not. It was an original number. I was so overjoyed. Because the number had in it everything that warmed my heart. Lovely tune, fast paced rhythm, voices of Javed Ali & Madhushree and Pa.Vijay’s poetic lyrics.

24.Vaartha Onnu (Thaamirabharani)

Simplicity is what this song is all about. A laidback tune for a tense moment in the movie! Only Yuvan Shankar Raja can do that. However, it is K.K’s powerful voice that emotes the hero’s pain commendably.

23.En Kadhal Solla (Paiya)

Well, well, there can never be a Yuvan fan who doesn’t like this song. It is THE ULTIMATE Yuvan song that still remains a rage among the youngsters. And what is so special about this song? Actually nothing. It has a simple tune, heartfelt lyrics by late Na.Muthukumar and Yuvan’s fruity vocals. Yet it was a chartbuster only because of Yuvan’s sheer magic.

22.Oru Devathai (Vaamanan)

Reasons for loving this song: 1.Heartrending violin sections 2.Roopkumar Rathod’s mesmerizing voice 3.The overall tune structure. Well, almost everything!

21.Munpaniya (Nanda)

Words defy me if I have to describe the beauty of this melody. It is everything that a person in love need to listen. And….S.P.Balasubrahmanyam!

20.Anukoledenadu (Oye)

I seriously don’t know what I like so much about this number. Whether it’s the upbeat rhythm or Shreya Ghoshal’s mellifluous voice or the overall breeziness, I don’t know. But, it definitely does something to me each time I listen to it.

19.Thottu Thottu (Kadhal Kondein)

Right from the word ‘go’ till the end, this song is a wholesome experience. Be it the dance-able beats or Harish Ragavendra’s strong rendition or late Na.Muthukumar’s lyrics, there is something for everyone in this number.

18.Yaarodu Yaa ro (Yogi)

I do fervently hope that people remember this number as an audio song. Each time I ask someone about this song, they would associate it with the video (of course, it’s awesome, the baby and it’s cuteness). But I wish people pay attention to the heartwrenching lyrics and Yuvan’s well-emoted rendition.

17.Merke Merke (Kanda Naal Mudhal)

Awwww!!! How much I love this song! Perfect listen for lovey-dovey evenings. Shankar Mahadevan and Sadhana Sargam’s voices are the cherries on the cake. A complete package this one.

16.En Anbe En Anbe (Mounam Pesiyadhe)

My list of ‘Songs to listen before you die’ will definitely have this one. Yes, this number is such a sweet melody that it instantly hooks you on from the first listen. I have been, I am and I will be in love with this song forever.

15.Engeyo Partha (Yaradi Nee Mohini)

Only a few can completely understand the intricacies in this melodious number. If I should quote one heartwarming song for a rainy day, then this would be my pick. Udit Narayanan’s ‘flawless’ rendition, coupled with Yuvan’s strings and flutes are definitely a treat!

14.Yedhedho Ennangal (Pattiyal)

Many people have almost forgotten this song. I mean, how could they? How can a beautiful number like this one be forgot? Wasn’t Yuvan’s passionate rendition enough to make it sustain in their playlists? Go on. Listen to this now!

13.Kadhal Valarthen (Manmadhan)

Mindblowing tune, well structured rhythm, K.K’s honey-dipping voice and the lovely interludes. Yes, this number has got everything in it. And it’s still a chartbuster, I must say.

12.Kadhal Mattum (Kadhal Kondein)

This song grew on me as years passed by. And Vijay Yesudhas’s voice is pure magic. No one else could have crooned so well. Though the number has a simple tune, it’s catchy and melodious too.

11.Waiting For You (Oye)

Yet another gem from the film Oye. If Anukoledenadu did something to me, this number seared my soul and still dwells in my veins. I love this one TO THE CORE!

10.Ninaithu Ninaithu (7G Rainbow Colony)

7G Rainbow Colony is the film which established Yuvan Shankar Raja as the numero uno. Every number is a gem in it. And Ninaithu Ninaithu (Shreya Ghoshal’s version) is the most melodious one. The poetic lyrics, the pathos tune and the overall feel is just unmatchable!

9.Venmegam (Yaradi Nee Mohini)

Bliss is listening to Hariharan’s mesmerizing voice on a serene night. Yes, this is such a song which would calm your senses and fill you with tranquility at the end of the day. Just plug on your headphones and revel in its mellifluousness.

8.Kana Kaanum Kalangal (7G Rainbow Colony)

A classical melody that is instantly addictive. And the voices of Harish Ragavendra and Sri Madhumitha are just apt for the tune. Violin sections elevate it to a higher level. One of Yuvan’s finest compositions.

7.Suthudhe Suthudhe (Paiya)

Paiya was a chartbuster album and this was the most underrated song. But every time I listen to this number, it gets on to my nerves. Especially Sunitha Sarathy’s heavenly humming. Of course, Karthik rules the entire number with his mindblowing rendition.

6.Oru Naalil (Pudupettai)

Yeah! This is that number which comforts me and provides me insights of wisdom. Late Na.Muthukumar’s lyrics convey the reality and emphasizes on the thought that everything would finally reach God. Well, I doubt whether this number would have gained such appreciation if Yuvan hadn’t sung it.

5.Para Para Pattampoochi (Katradhu Tamizh)

I am surprised that many don’t even know that this song exists. Well, maybe they wouldn’t have given that much importance to the year 2007 as I did.

10 Reasons Why You Should Date A Book-Lover

Whatever you do or tell, they’d associate that with a book in their mind. Dare you say something wrong about books, then you’ve to face their wrath. Their world revolves around books. Their entire life is almost centered around books. Book collecting is not just a mere hobby for them, it is an art. But book-lovers are beautiful creatures and dating them is something fantastical. Here are 10 reasons why you should date them:

1.They are empathetic

Yes, they can put themselves in your shoes and understand your situation. What’s more! They might also give solutions to your problems or go till the extent of solving it by themselves. You can call them up at any time and pour out what’s troubling you. The world needs such persons, right?

2.They can introduce you to new worlds

They have lived a thousand lives and explored places even without stepping out of their home. They know a tad too much about everything. Tell them the name of any place and they tell you interesting stories about it. So, you needn’t really Google for anything.

3.They can improve your imagination

Imagine weaving stories in your mind? How cool it sounds! Yes, book-lovers can boost your imagination by narrating you lots of stories and tidbits. You can even creatively rethink situations or events that are about to happen. Visualize big and see the good results.

4.They are excellent listeners

They have waited pages and pages to get to know the climax. They simply don’t rush to the end, since they’ve practiced patience with each book. Also, they wouldn’t interrupt you while you talk. Instead, they’d prod you to tell more and they completely concentrate on what you tell.

5.You can easily please them

Argued with them? All you need to calm them down is a book. Want to buy a gift for them? Visit a bookstore, buy a book and gift them. Or get them vouchers to buy books. You’ll be showered with gratitude and affection.

6.They don’t mind you going out without them

Book Review: The DEViant by Shankar S.Padmanaban

Book Name: The DEViant

Author: Shankar S.Padmanaban

Publisher: Leadstart Publishing

Pages: 278

About the author: 

Shankar S.Padmanaban was born in Tiruppur, ‘The Knitwear Capital of India’ and now currently resides in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. He is a Mechanical Engineering graduate, currently working in an Automotive MNC. He’s an avid reader of Indian fiction novels. In college, apart from the hefty engineering assignments he wrote, he discovered his passion for writing short stories and articles. He’s also a fond traveller and an adventure freak and loves exploring new places. Apart from writing and travelling, he collects stamps. His collection of stamps dats way back to 1960’s. He also plays chess and is a die-hard foodie.

Synopsis:

Sam had everything one could ask for:

• A shining board exam result

• Great apartment in Chennai with super cool flatmates

• The most amazing group of friends

• The perfect boy-next-door charm

• And, a magical dream of love to chase

(Re)Enter Jenny: the girl who had unknowingly changed Sam’s life years ago. ‘The Angel’, Sam used to call her when he didn’t know her. Now that Jenny struggles with her doomed destiny, will Sam be able to help her out?

Two steps away from entering the realm of their own ‘happily ever after’, Sam and Jenny’s lives get caught in a conflux of passion and betrayal – otherwise known as Dev Aryan. How many will survive the storm?

Shuttling between Chennai, Tiruppur, Coimbatore and Bengaluru, Sam narrates his story of unlikely and unparalleled friendships. Revisit the classrooms of uncomplicated love and scribble songs of undying companionship in the side margins of notebooks with Sam’s story of engaging vividity that is continually illuminated by the pyrotechnics of curiosity, candour, and wit.

Review:

When I began reading this book, I had this feeling of nostalgia clinging to me right from the word ‘go’. The story is set closer to home, which made me familiar with everything written in it. Shankar weaves a beautiful concoction of friendship and love that would enthrall you till the end. You can easily reminisce to your school and college days, as the narration is thoroughly captivating.

The story is all about a character named Sam S.Prathik. He narrates from his perspective of his friendships, love, happiness, failure, rejection and heartbreaks. Though the title of the book is The DEViant (which pertains to another character named Dev Aryan), it is Sam’s life which takes up almost 200 pages of the book. But the ultimate impact is left by Dev Aryan, who with his minimal page presence finds himself a place in every reader’s heart. The female character Jenny is portrayed as a bold & independent woman. She actually turns out to be a role-model and an angel in the lives of the two protagonists. Shankar has depicted her as the catalyst of the story. She drives the plot with her deferential presence. The other characters of the story – Shalyn, Nihal, Varun, Abhay, Vignesh, Madav and Athrika are given equal importance and each of their characterization has depth in them.

Above all the characters, it is Shankar’s narration that makes the story endearing to read. He vividly explains each and every scene, almost paints a picture of it. His approach of showing, rather than telling, works to a great extent. Although the entire story is an emotional drama in itself, you can never miss the tongue-in-cheek dialogues and some tense moments. Just when you think that the plot is about to turn routine, Shankar introduces a major twist and an unexpected setback for the character Sam. And, another aspect which I loved is, there were no mushy scenes or overload of booze (as seen in most of the young adult fiction out there). The plot was clean & fresh, even the romantic scenes were natural. The climax was mindblowing, I must say. It wasn’t cliched and had a touch of reality to it.

There were no visible flaws in the book. Being a debut novel, it is surprising that the book has come out with utmost perfection. The diction of the author is appreciable, though some words might need a dictionary for the casual reader.[image error]

Summing up, The DEViant is a must-read for those who think that Indian young adult fiction is nothing but crap. Here comes a book with such finesse that would make you feel along with it!

Rating: 4.5/5

Click here to get this book.

Authors can contact me for book reviews here: Review Request

Love,

Kavya Janani.U

 

Book Review: Three Girls And A Crime (The Beach House Affair) by Balakarthiga.M

Book Name: Three Girls And A Crime (The Beach House Affair)

Author: Balakarthiga.M

Publisher: Kindle Direct Publishing

Pages: 66

About the author:

Balakarthiga.M is a 22 year old blogger turned author, who has loved birthing books ever since she was 19. She is a caffeine addict who enjoys binge writing, people watching, and is a proud Gryffindor. Currently pursuing her masters at National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli, she is strongly passionate about storytelling and intends to make a living off of her pen someday.

To read her blog click here.

Follow her on Facebook: Balakarthiga

Follow her on Twitter: Balakarthiga

Email: balakarthiga@gmail.com

Synopsis:

Review:

Apart from being a brilliant author, I am proud to tell that Balakarthiga is my best friend and soul sister. I have already talked a lot about her in this post: Downright Magic. So, let me not go into introductions. I will plunge straight into the story and what it is all about.

To begin with, Bala hasn’t written any mystery story previously. This is her first attempt at thriller and I must say, she has done a commendable job. More than being an out and out murder mystery, this story focuses on friendship, family, compassion and forbidden love. You get to read a deep character study of the murder victim Marilyn. I liked how Bala had portrayed her to be a strong woman, yet vulnerable. However, there is a breaking point in every human’s life. And it comes for Marilyn too. This is where emotions play a major role in the story. I loved the conversations between Marilyn and her dad at the hospital. There are some valuable lessons for everyone in those exchanges. Also, Bala has ever mellowly touched the topic of feminism, which serves as a refreshment.[image error]

Moving on to the protagonists, there are three girls – Evita, Zeba and Tanya. Though these girls come across as budding collegians, they turn inquisitive once they encounter a mystery that is closer to home. They don the caps of detectives and persuade Tanya’s brother Maaran (another handsomely written character) to let them meet Dr.Madhan (a deftly portrayed suspect). The knots are disentangled one by one and result in an unexpected climax. Well, apart from mystery, there is love too! While Bala depicts Evita to be heartbroken, there is also a shimmer of hope when she meets Maaran. That leaves a lot of scope for their love to develop, if Bala has planned to write a sequel. ;-) My only complaint is that the story is too short and it would leave you wanting for more.  Hope Bala publishes the other installments of this mystery series soon!

Overall, Three Girls And A Crime is a quick mystery read while you travel in trains or buses. You would surely be hooked to the story right from the beginning. Don’t miss this shortie![image error]

Rating: 3.5/5

Click here to get this book.

Authors can contact me for book reviews here: Review Request

Love,

Kavya Janani.U

 

 

Book Review: Destiny of Shattered Dreams by Nilesh Rathod

Book Name: Destiny of Shattered Dreams

Author: Nilesh Rathod

Publisher: Rupa Publications

Pages: 254

About the author:

Nilesh Rathod is a businessperson, writer and poet. Co-founder of Ensemble Infrastructure India Limited, Nilesh’s company currently employs over 2000 people.

Destiny of Shattered Dreams is his debut novel. Nilesh is currently working on his second novel. He lives in Mumbai, you may email him at nilesh@nileshrathod.in or visit his webpagehttp://www.nileshrathod.in You may also follow him on twitter @authornilesh or athttp://facebook.com/authornilesh

Synopsis:

An insider’s view into what goes on behind the glittering facade of corporate stardom, DESTINY of SHATTERED DREAMS is a fast-paced
tale of a brilliant young man’s meteoric rise. It is also a moving portrayal of the fallibility of love.

Ambition, passion
and raw courage are Atul Malhotra’s key aides to realizing his dreams as he learns the art of gambling for high stakes. What follows is a game of treachery, infidelity and murder.

The book lays bare the sordid corporate-politico nexus that compels this once middle-class boy to deftly learn the ropes and negotiate a world where dirty deals and power plays can make or break lives, where one wrong choice could be fatal.

A tale of yachts and hidden Swiss accounts, sordid affairs of lust, intrigue and exhilarating highs, Nilesh Rathod’s Destiny of Shattered Dreams is also the story of innocence forever lost.

Review:

As claimed in the synopsis, Destiny of Shattered Dreams is indeed a fast-paced thriller set in the business world with some politics peppered here and there. The rich undertone of business and its complex web of accounts, finance, equity shares, money laundering, illicit affairs & murders is what sets this book apart from the rest of the thrillers in this genre. The protagonist Atul’s enigmatic state of mind has been well portrayed by Nilesh. The various stages of his downfall have been explained in depth which provides a wholesome experience to the readers. Just when you think that Indian authors know nothing than producing mushy candyfloss books or rehash of mythology, here comes an author who pens a brilliant & gripping storyline of a corporate world with political nexus.

The book also emphasizes on another strong aspect – relationships. If you think that the book would be completely filled with business nomenclature and nothing else, you’re definitely wrong. Nilesh deftly explores the intricacies of relationships and how they would stand the test of time. He promptly answers this question, does love fade away from a relationship down the line? This is further supported by the sub-plot which makes the protagonist Atul vulnerable to an extra-marital affair. The female lead Roshni comes around as a strong woman yet endangered in love. The other female lead Aarti believes in pure & undying love, despite the baggage that Atul carries from his past. Also, Nilesh throws light upon how relationships are fragile and tend to end up in a mess if not treated properly.

The other characters Prem, Anil, Rakesh and Qazi serve as pillars for Atul. I liked Qazi especially. His pearls of wisdom on relationships and other things were really enriching. The political characters were also strongly written. The story was more into showing than telling, with Nilesh elaborately explaining every scene and its surroundings. I also loved the poems which come at crucial moments in the story. Like this one,

“To make my own the stars,

I search for the radiance of the lanterns,

I keep gazing over the avenue,

In search of silhouettes of the stars in the pathways.

Search for meaning of life in your embrace.

Search for my karma in your hands,

I know I am an outsider but

Search for my likeness in your eyes….”

On the flip side, the length of the book was a tad long. Nilesh could have brought out a crisper product by chopping off some unnecessary scenes and dialogues. Also, some of the business terms might be understood only by a few. For the casual reader, it might seem like Greek & Latin. Nevertheless, you can enjoy the story as it can keep you at the edge of your seat.

Overall, Destiny of Shattered Dreams is a nail-biting and racy read packed with tense moments. Go for it if you love corporate thrillers!

Rating: 4/5

Click here to buy this book.

Authors can contact me for book reviews here: Review Request

Love,

Kavya Janani.U