Each time I visit the Sunday Book Market in Daryaganj, I scan through the National Geographics scattered in various stalls to see if something striking catches my eye. This month, I got lucky and landed myself the issue of September 1983 – the month I was born. Flipping through it, I realized that I’m becoming … Continue reading National Geographic – September 1983
How did the idea of the ‘West’ emerge? Naoíse Mac Sweeney, in a sweeping narrative, presents a compelling argument in The West: A New History in Fourteen Lives. The Greek and Roman empires are central to the identity of the ‘West’ today. But how did this narrative arc emerge? Her fascinating arguments: Herodotus, in his … Continue reading The Evolution of the Idea of ‘The West’
My last stop was Switzerland. Traveling through the country, one can’t be faulted for imagining this to be paradise. Panoramic views, lakes that stretch for miles, looming mountains, cows with bells and a train network that is truly an engineering and management marvel can mesmerize anyone. It was only in 1863, when Thomas Cook organized … Continue reading Switzerland Notes
My next stop after Brussels was Paris, which I expected to be overrated. But boy, was I wrong. The city lived up to its reputation and for the history and literature buff that I am, it kept throwing up surprises and delights. Like Delhi, it’s a city that does not reveal itself effortlessly. One needs … Continue reading Paris Notes
I took the train from Amsterdam to Brussels and the change in the economies of the two countries is visible as soon as you reach Belgium. The Brussels metro looked run down and the streets had a sombre, melancholic feel to it. Had it not been for the EU’s decision to have its headquarters here, … Continue reading Belgium Notes
I spent a few days in Amsterdam earlier this month. Being my second visit to the city, I wasn’t overawed. (Awe has diminishing returns which is one of the key criticisms of travel). The Netherlands is proof that sea-level rise due to climate change is not going to be the end of the world. If … Continue reading Amsterdam Notes
In his memoirs, Obama writes about the time when his friends confronted him when they saw him reading Joseph Conrad’s ‘Heart of Darkness’. I tossed the book into my backpack. “Actually, he’s right,” I said. “It is a racist book. The way Conrad sees it, Africa’s the cesspool of the world, black folks are savages, … Continue reading Conrad’s Heart of Darkness
In his latest work ‘The Age of Revolutions’, Fareed Zakaria argues that the world’s first revolution that transformed the relations between the state and its citizens and ushered in the modern ideas of liberalism was not the American, French or the English revolutions. It was instead the Dutch Golden Age. Feudalism never took root in … Continue reading England’s debt to the Dutch
Every ten years, Sight and Sound, under the British Film Institute carries a poll to identify the greatest movies of all time. In the last edition of 2022, the movie that topped the list was ‘Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles’ by the Belgian auteur Chantal Akerman. Akerman was a Jew born to … Continue reading Chantal Akerman
Adrian Tomine is one of my favorite comic writers. His art has a Hopperesque feature. With a minimalist style, his work often focuses on the themes of urban alienation, the complexity of human relationships, identity and heartbreak. His art also frequently appears on the cover of the New Yorker. The French movie Les Olympiades (Paris, … Continue reading Adrian Tomine, Les Olympiades…
