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Archives: Books

Taatung Tatung and Other Amazing Stories of India’s Diverse Languages

Languages make us human. The ability to communicate and be understood through songs, art,
words, inscriptions, or even gestures is essential because we, as a species, cannot live in isolation.
And each one of these languages has its own journey.

Early humans leaving messages on cave walls; three men on a raft stumbling upon a language they weren’t
looking for; a secret language that evolved to hide a people; the world’s only undeciphered language that is
4000 years old. The stories in this book take you from the northeastern-most tip of our country to the
forests in central India, from indigenous languages that are thousands of years old to those that
have developed recently.

Engrossing, entertaining, and packed with trivia, this book is for non-fiction lovers and students,
who have a keen interest in all things India!

Anthill (Puttu, winner of Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award)

The remote village of Perumpadi, at the border between Kerala and Karnataka, is a unique settlement. Bounded by dense Kodagu forests on the south and west, and raging rivers on the north and east, its very isolation was what drew the first settlers to this unharnessed land.

The first to make his way across this rough terrain was Kunjuvarkey, along with a young woman bearing his child. Kunjuvarkey was fleeing the opprobrium of getting his own daughter pregnant. Those who followed had similar shameful secrets. In a land of sinners, where no one pried into the other’s past, they were able to live and build a community without being tied down by society’s interdictions.

Fifty years later, as the community moves into modernity, they start showing signs of reforming from their beginnings-of a hillbilly and promiscuous existence. With no panchayats to resolve local disputes, following in his father’s footsteps, Jeremias Paul of Reformation House, known by the moniker President, becomes the unchallenged adjudicator of Perumpadi, thanks to his equanimity and sense of fairness.

But Jeremias has his own secrets and, ultimately, may have to answer for his own moral lapse.

Anthill, a robust translation of the award-winning novel Puttu and with a cast of over 200 characters, tells the story of a people who have tried to shed the shackles of family, religion and other restraining institutions, but eventually also struggle to conform to the needs of a cultured society.

Written with disarming honesty and biting humour, Anthill is ultimately a story that questions the veneer
of respectability people try to put up in their lives.

In Pursuit of Peace

No relationship has been as complex and so difficult to manage as India’s relations with Pakistan. Four wars, cross-border terrorism, and Pakistan’s persistent hostility and relentless campaign on “Kashmir issue” have been a source of strategic challenge for every Indian leader. Yet, each has pursued peace in the interest of India’s progress and security with differing strategies, but with the same result.

As a diplomat who served around the world and in Pakistan, the late Satinder Kumar Lambah’s unique position helps tell an insider’s story of the turbulent history between India and Pakistan. He writes of his personal experiences of India-Pakistan relations having served six Indian Prime Ministers, whom he worked directly with and offered counsel. This includes his role as Prime Minister’s Special Envoy for back-channel talks under PM Manmohan Singh and India’s quick diplomatic moves in the post-Taliban Afghanistan. With insight, he also traces the roots of Pakistan’s evolution since its birth and the challenges its army-driven polity poses for India and reflects on the way forward in dealing with Pakistan to secure peace in the region.

Ambapali

Not every courtesan has gone down in the annals of history like Ambapali. She was beautiful, intelligent, talented and, as the nagarvadhu janpad kalyani-the bride of the city-she went on to wield immense power amongst the nobles. Until she renounced all worldly pleasures to embrace Buddhism.
This vivid narrative tells the story of a young woman forced to follow a path because of the machinations of powerful people. Propelled onto the cultural centerstage in the Vajji republic against her wishes, betrayed in love, disappointed by friends, Ambapali’s is yet the story of a strong woman determined to take control over her life. A remarkable, poignant novel about the dazzling glamour, daring romance, and sacrifice that marked Ambapali’s life.

Oblivion and Other Stories

Oblivion and Other Stories is an anthology of twenty short stories by Gopinath Mohanty, the doyen of Oriya (now Odia) literature. The stories, written across a half-century (1935-1988), sample his oeuvre of writings and the variety of his themes-from ‘Dã’ (mid-1930s) to ‘Oblivion’ (1951) to ‘The Upper Crust’ (1967) to ‘Lustre’ (1971) and ‘Festival Day’ (1985).
They capture the forgotten others, the banality of marginal living on life’s edge-of the poor, the tribals and ordinary people-invisible in the feudal landscape of Orissa in the twentieth century.
Originally written in Oriya by the Padma Bhushan awardee, these have now been translated for the first time into English and recreate the social life of mid-twentieth century India.
The embellished past in the stories is not one of nostalgia but a full-toned portrait of society. Marginalization is the running thread: dispossession, disenfranchisement, class/caste social exclusivity and lack of education.

Life Switch

Just imagine.

If you could switch your life with someone else . . .

Would you?

A staid housewife, Nandita, swaps her life with Annie, her doppelgänger. She switches her phone, her home, her husband and her boring family life for the glamorous corporate life that Annie leads in an advertising agency.

Annie looks at this as a social experiment for a new ad campaign she is creating. She hopes that this will help her beat her rival and put her right at the top of the company. Nandita believes this will make her husband fall in love with her.

Their lives begin to get horribly complicated when secrets are revealed. In their bid to have everything, they’ve set the ball rolling on something that has now pitched them against each other.

The question is, who will win? For whom will all the pieces of the puzzle come together?
Life Switch is a passionate, intense, sexy love story that thrills.

Soldier & Spice

For Pia, regular life is a thing of the past. She is now an army wife. From ‘just Pia’ to an aunty, a memsaab . . . and, her favourite words in the whole wide world, Mrs Pia Arjun Mehra.

Pia finds herself having to suddenly be more ‘lady-like’, focus on themed ladies’ meets, high teas and welfare functions, and deal with long (unexpected) spells of separation from her husband. She faces extraordinary challenges, a little heartache and, well, army-life lessons. In the mysterious and grand world of army wives, Pia learns that walking in high heels is okay as long as you don’t trip on combat boots. She learns that ‘civil’ is also a noun, that JCO and GOC are (very) different from each other, that snacks are ‘shown’ and ‘WTF’ is better explained as Whiskey Tango Foxtrot. Yes, it really is a new world.

This quirky, hilarious story of the first year of Pia’s life as an army wife will show you that the spice to a soldier’s life is most definitely his better, very strong, extremely elegant, never-cussing, witty, warm and passionate half-his army wife.

Sivakami’s Vow: Paranjyothi’s Journey

A young man trudges from a tiny Chola village to Kanchi, the great city of art and learning, hoping to discover his destiny. A bikshu wanders around the Pallava empire, befriending lonely souls. Spies lurk in the shadows, and even statues of the Lord Buddha conceal secrets. Emperor Mahendra Pallava, connoisseur beyond compare, rules with compassion and justice, while his son, Kumara Chakravarthy Narasimhar, falls deeply in love with the greatest dancer of the empire, Sivakami.
Somewhere in the distance can be heard the drums of war. The fearsome Chalukyas are planning an invasion: their war elephants, horses and infantry sweep towards the Pallava empire. Emperor Pulikesi eyes Kanchi as the crowning glory to his martial achievements.
Paranjyothi’s Journey, the first in the four-volume Sivakami’s Vow series, is a riveting tale of war, betrayal, secret passages, guarded forts, passions and a Pallava emperor who will do anything to save his kingdom. It was written by Kalki, a master storyteller who raised Tamil literature and history to new heights almost single-handedly.

Hanuman: Anjani’s Mighty Son (Read and Colour)

Devdutt Pattanaik introduces the story of Hanuman, the much-loved Hindu deity, to a new generation of readers. Hanuman, Anjani’s Mighty Son is perfect as a read-aloud to acquaint young readers with the qualities of valour, selflessness, loyalty and humility that Hanuman embodied.

Curated with fascinating bite-sized stories–from how young Hanuman almost ate the sun to how he helped Ram rescue Sita from Lanka–it features over forty playful artworks along with dedicated colouring pages.

One-of-a-kind, this book is a must-have for every curious mythology enthusiast and budding artist!

A companion to Shyam, Our Little Krishna, also by Devdutt Pattanaik, this book has fun and quirky illustrations and is written as short, easy-to-read episodes.

This unique, interactive format is perfect for young readers, especially for bedtime reading!

The Complete Vikram–Aditya Stories

The Complete Vikram–Aditya Stories boxset is India’s answer to the Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew and Famous Five mystery novels. For the first time ever, this collector’s edition boxset brings together all eight books. The dynamic duo, Vikram and Aditya, and their motley group of friends embark on thrilling adventures as they face desperate criminals, dangerous wild animals, isolated indigenous tribes, and several other perilous encounters. A perfect present for 13+ readers, each gift box includes:

Lakshadweep Adventure: Far out in the Arabian Sea, lies a chain of bewitching coral atolls-the Lakshadweep Islands. In their first adventure together, Vikram and Aditya arrive here only to stumble upon a devious kidnapping plot, turning their idyllic holiday into a desperate struggle for survival. Journey through these breathtaking islands with a tale of scuba diving and sabotage, set in one of India’s most unspoilt destinations.

Ranthambore Adventure: Vikram, Aditya their friend Aarti go on a thrilling chase when they attempt to lay their hands on a diary that belongs to a ruthless tiger poacher. This takes them deep into the magnificent game park of Ranthambore. Journey through the wilderness, brimming with tiger lore, with a tale set in one of India’s most popular destinations.

Ladakh Adventure: The first adventure in which Vikram and Aditya travel to the Changthang plateau of Ladakh. They find themselves on the run along with a Tibetan boy Tsering, while camping there. Journey to the roof of the world with an enthralling tale set in one of India’s most splendid destinations.

Snow Leopard Adventure: Vikram and Aditya are back in magnificent Ladakh. The duo joins a team of ecologists and explorers to track down the grey ghost of the Himalayas. Journey in search of the elusive snow leopard with an enthralling tale set in one of India’s most glorious locations.

Andaman Adventure–The Jarawa: The Andaman coast is untamed and only partly explored. Its magnificent forests are the home of a proud and ancient people known as the Jarawa. Vikram and Aditya, accompanied by the free-spirited Chitra, embark on exhilarating voyage here. Journey to the Andamans in the first part of this riveting tale of adventure and mystery, set in India’s far-flung islands.

Andaman Adventure–Barren Island: In a remote corner of the Andaman Sea lies a forgotten and uninhabited island called Barren. Here, Vikram has to pit his wits against a band of desperate men as well as primal forces of nature. His friends Aditya and Chitra also embark on their own trajectories of this roller-coaster adventure. Journey to the Andamans in the concluding part of this riveting tale of adventure and mystery, set in India’s far-flung islands.

Sahyadri Adventure–Anirudh’s Dream: Once upon a time, there were fields in the city of Mumbai, where stood a fort guarded by cannons. One day, in a cave on a windswept Sahyadri mountain, Vikram’s friend, Anirudh, had a strange dream. Journey to the Sahyadris in the first part of this riveting tale where history meets adventure in one of India’s most beautiful locales.

Sahyadri Adventure–Koleshwar’s Secret: Far out in the Sahyadri rises a mountain known as Koleshwar. Fascinated by Anirudh’s revelations, Vikram explores Mumbai with him and stumbles upon a forgotten legacy that leads to this mountain. Journey to the Sahyadris in the concluding part of this riveting tale where history meets adventure in one of India’s most beautiful locales.

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