I don’t mind having a reputation as a serious and spiritual person. I think that would be a nice reputation to have. Russell Brand. During my slaving days in an advertising agency in the 70s in Calcutta, we were required to work closely with market research organisations. Some of these research companies were spawned by …
Author Archives: sureshsubrahmanyan
Down among the wines and spirits
I was fiddling with my mobile phone a couple of days ago, since most of us have nothing better to do these days, when I came across one of those short videos that had gone viral, as the expression is, rather like dengue or the Zika virus. The Instagram or Tik-Tok reel was about a …
What’s in a name?
One of the most exciting tasks that a married couple anticipates is the arrival of the proverbial stork with their first born, or for that matter, second or even third born. Rarely in our straitened times do couples go for more than two kids, three being a bit of a stretch, probably accidental. Unless, of …
Bharat, Sanatana Dharma, ONOE et al
India is a fascinating country. Dear me, did I just unknowingly drop an inadvertent brick? Should I have said Bharat is a fascinating country? Or, to hedge my bets and err or the side of caution, should I have said India, that is Bharat, is a fascinating country? Keep both sides happy? Damned if I …
And good luck with the spring cleaning
I have come to grips with one of the great verities of life. It is that your desire to get rid of detritus collected over the years at home, deliberately or inadvertently, grows in inverse proportion to the intention of doing away with it. Like Topsy from Uncle Tom’s Cabin, I think it just ‘grow’d.’ …
Chandrayaan-3 and Praggnanandha over the moon
Two events occurred, serendipitously, over the past week, gazillion miles apart, that had pretty much the whole of India’s 1.4 billion people on the edge of their seats. The Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) pride and joy, Chandrayaan-3, was hurtling towards the south pole or the dark side of the moon, orbiting closer and closer …
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The right to remain silent etc.
There can be little argument that the genre of crime fiction, whether in book or film form, is the most addictive avenue of diversion that most readers and viewers long for. To be curled up in bed on a cold and wet evening, thumbing through a P.D. James or a Dorothy Sayers mystery with a …
Much ado over a flying kiss
The flying kiss, a largely fashionable western affectation (though also fairly common in elite social circles in this country), is suddenly in the news here in India that is Bharat Mata. The airy gesture, also known as an ‘air kiss’, was provided by none other than the tallest leader of the Opposition, Rahul Gandhi earlier …
An orgy of sporting celebration
This week my thoughts turn to an aspect of sport that we do not often talk about. At least, I have not come across much editorial space being devoted to that part of modern sport, details of which I am on the verge of divulging. ‘So why don’t you get on with it, without faffing …
Taylor Swift’s ‘Love Story.’ Where do I begin?
I have a true confession to make. I am ashamed to admit that I have not heard a single song by Taylor Swift. At least, not till I decided to write this column. I blush to disclose that the lady’s name passes by me as the idle wind. Her records have broken all manner of …
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