Unlike many people, I prefer to buy my movies legally—which is to say, pay the extra amount for an original VCD or DVD. Which means my movies have that horrible little smudged Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) poster that classifies them as U (universal), U/A (not sure what the technical term is, but I […]
Author: Payal
Batting on a queer pitch
Where there is a way, leave it up to us Indians to find a will—a will to misuse, abuse and exploit! In a country known for its intolerance towards sexual minorities, young people are now grabbing at the homosexuality straw to buy an emigration ticket. According to a story in the Times of India today […]
Look out… I’m experimenting!
For the next few days every now and then you’ll find Writer’s Log looking a bit odd. That’s because I’ll be experimenting with its innards, trying to make it look exactly the same as Writeside.net. Oh, all right… it’ll look very odd and ugly sometimes, but hopefully it’ll all work out in the end. 😉 […]
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The Key of Chaos: A sneak preview
Now that the sequel to A Shadow in Eternity is official, I intend to put in a page about it in the main Writeside.net site. For now, here’s a little glimpse into what’ll happen next. Book two is tentatively called A Shadow in Eternity II: The Key of Chaos, and takes off about two months […]
The great notebook rip-off?
It’s no secret that products often get dumped on the Indian market when they are withdrawn in the West. My sister who recently visited a well-known clothing store in Frankfurt, Germany, was quite shocked at the difference in quality there from the “crap” we get here. Me, I had a rather sinister revelation. On the […]
An unusual wedding
The biggest lie they tell you about your wedding is: “It’s your day.” That’s about as far as you can get from the truth. The last person whose day it is is yours, especially when it comes to Indian weddings. It is an occasion when your family is subjected to an intense scrutiny by relatives—especially […]
Banga Lore: Part II
The worst thing about holidays is that they come to an end. Part of me is relieved—I am sure I’m going to get a record credit card bill. At least you are assured that in 40 hours on a train there is only so much you can spend! Having spent a week in Bangalore, I […]
Banga Lore: Part I
According to a book of quotes, middle age is defined as that time of your life when you eat Death by Chocolate fearing that it might be just that! But no, I’m not bitching about my age—it’s Bangalore I’m referring to. What’s the connection, you ask? The aforementioned Death by Chocolate (DBC in local parlance). […]
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Fictional characters I’d like to meet (updated)
The hallmark of a good book, in my opinion, is when you stop worrying about the plot and are more concerned about the characters. It is no mean task creating engaging characters within the limits of fiction, but plenty of authors have managed it. Here are some fictional characters I’d like to meet (some of […]
The Sims 2: Out of Business
It’s been over a week since the official India release of the latest The Sims 2 expansion pack, Open for Business (OFB). However, the game is nowhere to be seen in the market. The reason, if my contact is to be believed, OFB and a couple of other games are stuck at Customs at Mumbai […]