Between Classes and Heartbeats

College.

First day.

Curious spectacled eyes.

Smile tugged at heart-strings.

Crush.

Classes.

With you.

Lab experiments together.

Hidden confession letter found.

Love.

Image Source: Unsplash

(This poem has received a "Special Mention" in Day 10 of NaPoWriMo 2026, hosted by Storyscrapers, Prompt: Double Elfchen on forming a new connection or friendship, Style: Two elfchens, 11 words each, 1-2-3-4-1 structure×2.)

An Altar in Your Name

Your memories remain tucked away

In the quietest corner of my heart,

In my solitary hours, I retrieve them,

And my imagination crafts them into a lover—

Living, breathing, whispering sweet nothings in my ear.

Your eyes are sad, translucent with pain,

I long to hold your face in my palms and to kiss your eyes,

I transform my solitude into love—

Dark grey monsoon clouds, heavy with mourning, hover in the sky,

I ask them to send my love and kisses to you.

Desire rises in me like waves,

And breaks at the shore of my soul,

Bewildered as I am, unsure what to do with them,

I carve an altar with them,

And mark it with your name.

Image Source: Unsplash

(This poem has received a "Special Mention" in Day 3 of NaPoWriMo 2026, hosted by Storyscrapers, Prompt: Sculpted by the Poet, Style: Descriptive.)

The Soul of Verse

Poetry is not just coruscant language

With its ballads, rhythm and rhyme,

It is expression of the soul,

In terms of rasas nine.

It's the connection between the mundane and the universal,

Between the physical and the spiritual,

Reminding us of the beauty of the world

And that all reality is dual.

Impassioned outpourings

Give the poet refuge and solace,

Words touch a soft chord with the reader,

Applause is what greets the poet.

Image Source: Unsplash

(This poem has been a winner in Day 2 of NaPoWriMo 2026, hosted by Storyscrapers, Prompt: Side Effects of Poetry, Style: Free Verse.)

Book Review: Romance In My Coffee

 

Romance In My Coffee by Nisha Susan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Teenage is a phase of life when you're neither innocent nor mature. "Romance In My Coffee" captures the different hues of teenage romance through a few short stories. Among the authors of the stories, there are a few prominent names like Andaleeb Wajid, Jerry Pinto, Nisha Susan, Suniti Namjoshi etc.

The stories portray the teen protagonists with all their quirks. There are stories on myriad themes — same-sex love, an imaginary love interest, jealousy in love, a disabled protagonist yearning for love, one-sided lust, love that doesn't get parental approval, dream of an idyllic life with a loved one, meaning of love for an asexual protagonist. The stories will make you pause and reflect on what love truly means.

Enjoy this book with your coffee!

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Book Review: Parenting Unplugged: The Drama Mama Diaries

 

Parenting Unplugged: The Drama Mama Diaries by Lalitha Ramanathan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"Parenting Unplugged: The Drama Mama Diaries" is not a parenting guide, as Lalitha herself has made clear in the last chapter of the book. Instead, it's a compilation of funny anecdotes about parenting adventures (and misadventures) that every mother will find relatable.

When I started reading the memoir, the opening chapter transported me to my own initial days of motherhood — the trepidation and anxiety of giving birth, the unadulterated joy coursing through my veins after becoming a mother — everything came rushing back like a torrent. From learning to feed and burp the child to having that difficult conversation about "Where do babies come from?" with the child — every major parenting challenge and some minor ones faced along the way, have been discussed.

"Drama Mama" — as Lalitha calls herself — is far from perfect. She is not the epitome of sacrifice. Nor does she claim to be one. She is just a mother with all the follies and foibles that come with being human.

The book is witty, humorous and inherently entertaining. There are many laugh-out-loud moments in the book. There are times when you'll chuckle to yourself, at other times you'll find it hard to control the erupting laughter. There's never a dull moment in the narrative. Instead of sounding preachy, the book makes parenthood sound like a journey full of love and laughter, while growing as a mother along the way.

A must-read book for all the mothers and would-be mothers. Even if you are neither, you'll enjoy this book written by the Queen of Humour, as it'll surely tickle your funny bones.

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Harvest of Hope

I had sown the seeds

Long ago in the monsoon,

Now the golden harvest

Will come home soon.

Seeds mingled with

sweat and blood in the field,

Were planted with the hope

Of a bountiful yield.

They remind me of

Those days of struggle endless

Days of hard labour

Laced with wild hope and madness.

My eyes are moist today

Blurring the golden vision in my front,

I forget how days of hard work

Have made me gaunt.

Now the monsoon clouds

Have taken their leave,

My field is filled with crops

Swaying their heads in the gentle breeze.

A Big Fat Indian Delay

"This isn't what I planned for today.", mumbled Sonia under her breath. But the day had begun as usual. In the morning, she received a message from IndiSlow, "Hi Sonia, get ready for your trip! Your flight IndiSlow 3F 176 to Bengaluru departs today at 11:30 am. We look forward to welcoming you aboard. Safe travels, The IndiSlow Team." 

Though a colleague had warned her that the IndiSlow's schedule was completely haywire, she had no other choice but to go ahead. This trip was urgent. After all, her wedding reception was in Bengaluru the next day. How could she possibly cancel the flight and skip her own reception?

Since childhood, Sonia had dreamt of becoming a bride. She always wanted a big fat Indian wedding - the kind of wedding that Madhuri Dixit had in "Hum Aapke Hain Koun...!" and Kajol had in "Kuch Kuch Hota Hai". Then she grew up, finished her studies, got a job, met Siddharth and fell in love with him. Through it all, that little girl's dream stayed tucked in some quiet corner of her heart. When their marriage was finally fixed, it felt like her long-cherished dream was about to come true. 

Hers was a cross-cultural marriage. Sonia was a Bengali, while Siddharth hailed from Karnataka. The wedding was to take place in Kolkata and the reception was scheduled in Bengaluru. The wedding, in stark contrast to Sonia's expectations, was a tedious affair. The endless rituals, keeping a fast the whole day while watching others wolfing down delicacies, relatives coming out of the woodwork, the chanting of incomprehensible Sanskrit hymns while sitting in front of the fire - it was not fun in the least. At the height of despair, even the thought of divorcing Siddharth crossed her mind. Then realisation dawned that she couldn't possibly divorce him unless and until she married him. She was looking forward to the reception where she would have to do nothing except accepting gifts from the guests with a smiling face. 

She left for the airport in the morning, along with Siddharth, her parents and a handful of close friends and family members who were supposed to attend her reception. The information board displayed that the flight would go ahead as scheduled. But minutes before the scheduled time, a gentleman from IndiSlow informed the passengers that they didn't have a pilot to fly the plane. 

Passengers were furious. The rumour mill was abuzz that the flight might be cancelled. Sonia had no option left but to cancel the flight, her heart sinking.

No alternate travel arrangement was possible at this last hour. Sonia headed home with her entourage, called in the salon girl, decked up in fineries and appeared online for her wedding reception in Bengaluru. With folded hands, she and Siddharth apologised to the guests for not being able to attend their own reception in person and thanked them profusely for their gracious presence. Being a gourmet, Sonia sighed for missing the delectable spread of the reception buffet. 

Image source: Downloaded from Unsplash and edited by AI.