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6 Exercises That Will Help You Give Birth Naturally

In light of the many complications that arise following a Caesarean-section delivery-such as infections, excessive blood loss, internal scarring –women are increasingly  reverting to natural births. Antenatal exercises help in regaining your confidence to deliver naturally according to your own potential.
Here are a few antenatal exercises recommended by Dr. Mahima Bakshi in her latest book, Birthing Naturally.
Please note: Antenatal exercises should not be learnt from any untrained person as it might harm your baby if not done properly and an expert will know what has to be kept in mind before deciding the exercises that are safe for you. 






Talent Wins: The New Playbook for Putting People First – An Excerpt

Turning conventional views on their heads, talent and leadership experts Ram Charan, Dominic Barton and Dennis Carey provide leaders with a new and different playbook for acquiring, managing and deploying talent–for today’s agile, digital, analytical, technologically driven strategic environment and for creating the HR function that business needs. Filled with examples of forward-thinking companies that have adopted radical new approaches to talent (such as ADP, Amgen, BlackRock, Blackstone, Haier, ING, Marsh, Tata Communications, Telenor and Volvo), as well as the juggernauts and the start-ups of Silicon Valley, this book shows leaders how to bring the rigor that they apply to financial capital to their human capital–elevating HR to the same level as finance in their organizations.
Here’s an excerpt from the book.
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The top of the company also must align behind something else: the story you’re going to tell investors. If you’re leading a talent-driven organization but talking strategy-first to Wall Street, there’s a disconnect between your company’s public and private personae. That’s not good for investors, your company, or your workforce.
Telling investors about talent seems like a risky tactical change. Why would a company in, say, the semiconductor industry want to position itself in a way that seems more suited to a movie studio announcing its latest slate of star-driven features?
There are several answers to this question. For starters, shifting to a story built around talent is a sign of the times. Some companies already include slides about their key talent in their quarterly presentations. Financial analysts know the impact people like Jony Ive, Astro Teller, Sheryl Sandberg, and Andy Rubin can have on a company’s valuation. The phenomenon is hardly limited to tech: the performance or career peregrinations of Wall Street stars, fashion leaders, and even manufacturing pros can affect share prices as well.
But your company’s talent narrative isn’t just a story of stars. In fact, in times of great turbulence it can be a sign of stability. GE has made its deep talent-development efforts part of its narrative for years. GE stock has had its challenges, of course. But the company’s education efforts at its Crotonville, New York, facility and its history of always having great talent at the ready give investors confidence in GE’s management pipeline. Google’s track record of giving great leeway to its talented employees is equally well known. At one point, employees were even encouraged to spend 20 percent of their time working on their own pet projects. Investors have applauded CEO Larry Page’s effort to rein in some of the company’s more outlandish experiments, but they wouldn’t want to see the company reduce its commitment to innovation. Analysts have come to expect the unexpected from companies like Google, Amazon, and Apple, and are apt to forgive the occasional failure, because the companies’ talent-first models have produced one unexpected innovation after another. At these companies, there’s a well established narrative history of the power of talent.


 
 

Get To Know Sehmat Khan- The Unsung Heroine of War

When a young Kashmiri girl, Sehmat, gets to know her dying father’s last wish, she can do little but surrender to his passion and patriotism. This marks the beginning of her transformation from an ordinary girl into a deadly spy. She’s then married off to the son of a well-connected Pakistani general and her mission is to regularly pass information to the Indian intelligence. Something she does with extreme courage and bravado, till she stumbles on information that could destroy the naval might of her beloved country.
Get to know Sehmat Khan– the unsung heroine of war here:




 
 


5 Reasons Why You Must Read Jo Nesbo’s Macbeth

“He’s the best cop they’ve got. He’s also an ex-drug addict with a troubled past.”
Jo Nesbo is one of the world’s leading crime writers. His new book, Macbeth is inspired by Shakespeare’s original, which Nesbo sees as ‘a thriller about the struggle for power, set both in a gloomy, stormy, noir-like setting and in a dark, paranoid human mind.’
In his new thriller, a drug bust turns into a bloodbath and it’s up to Inspector Macbeth and his team to clean up the mess. He’s rewarded for his success – Power, Money and Respect are all within his reach. But a man like him won’t get to the top.
You’ll have to read it to find out why! In the meantime, here are 5 more reasons to pick up this book.

  1. The story includes a police unit with the new chief commissioner- Duncan, determined to fight against the corrupt system that has ruled the town for the past twenty-five years…
  2. In a town where two drug lords – Sweno and Hecate are fighting for Monopoly.
  3. We meet Inspector Duff, head of the Narco Unit, whose goal is to reach the top…
  4. And Inspector Macbeth, who is good at what he does but his social standing won’t allow him to get a higher management post. As Inspector Lennox, leader of the Anti-Corruption Unit tells Duncan,
  5. The story is fast-paced and gripping and is action packed with enough car chases and crossfire.——————————————————————————————————————————————-

8 Facts About Abu Salem- One Of The Most Dangerous Dons India Has Ever Seen

Abu Salem’s life is a study in paradox. He was unique among the Mumbai mafia in a number of ways. Here are some facts about one of the most dangerous dons our country has ever seen from the bestseller book- My Name is Abu Salem, the third book by Hussain Zaidi’s part of the mafia trilogy, after Dongri to Dubai and Byculla to Bangkok.








Books That Celebrate Mom

On mother’s day or any other day, it is always a great idea to celebrate your mom. So we have compiled a list of perfect reads that honor these unbreakable caregivers and boss ladies. Check them out now!

The Thousand Faces of Night by Githa Hariharan

A subtle and tender tale of women’s lives in India, this award-winning novel is structured with the delicacy and precision of a piece of music. Fusing myth, tale and the real voices of different women, The Thousand Faces of Night brings alive the underworld of Indian women’s lives.

Ladies Coup by Anita Nair

Meet Akhilandeshwari, Akhila for short: forty-five and single, an income tax clerk and a woman who has never been allowed to live her own life—always the daughter, the sister, the aunt, the provider. Until the day she gets herself a one-way ticket to the seaside town of Kanyakumari. This is a story of a woman’s search for strength and independence.

This Wide Night by Sarvat Hasin

The Maliks live a life of relative freedom in 1970s Karachi: four beautiful sisters, Maria, Ayesha, Leila and Beena, are warily watched over by an unconventional mother. Captain Malik is usually away, and so the women forge the rules of their own universe, taking in a few men: Amir, the professor who falls in love with Maria, and Jamal, the neighbour who tells this tale. The curious young man is drawn in by all four sisters, and particularly by rebellious Ayesha. But slowly, it becomes clear he will never completely penetrate their circle—just as they will never completely move with the tide that swirls so potently around them.

Millionaire Housewives by Rinku Paul

Millionaire Housewives tells the stories of twelve enterprising homemakers who, in spite of having no prior experience in business, managed to build successful empires through the single-minded pursuit of their goal, defying all stereotypes. For Ambika Pillai-one of the most well-known names in the world of hair and beauty-it was the need to be financially independent that led her down this path. For celebrity chef Nita Mehta, entrepreneurship was the result of wanting to do something beyond her traditional role as a homemaker. Millionaire Housewives offers valuable lessons for homemakers who want to venture into entrepreneurship.

Legacy: Letters from Eminent Parents by Sudha Menon

Legacy brings forth a rare collection of personal and evocative letters from parents to their daughters. Through their fearless approach to life, love, and overcoming obstacles, these icons from the world of business, arts, films, food, and sports share their experience and wisdom as they pass them on to their daughters. Deeply moving and thought provoking, Legacy is a remarkable collection of life lessons that will delight and inspire at the same time.

The Mother-In-Law by Veena Venugopal

In this witty and often painfully funny book Veena Venugopal follows eleven women through their marriages and explores why the mother-in-law is the dreaded figure she is. Meet Deepa, whose bikini-wearing mother-in-law won’t let her even wear jeans; Rachna who fell in love with her mother-in-law even before she met her fiancé only to find both her romances sour. The Mother-in-Law is a book that will make you laugh and cry and understand better the most important relationship in a married woman’s life.

Mom in the City by Kausalya Saptharishi

When single working mother, Ira, enrolls her son, Abhi, at Bumblebees, a posh playschool in Lutyens’ Delhi, little does she know what she is getting into. The other moms are everything she is not—impeccably groomed, fashionistas who throw lavish birthday parties for their children and holiday in exotic locales. In her eagerness to befriend these hip moms, Ira inadvertently lets slip a lie about her marriage that could lead to her being ostracized from this clique. Mom in the City is an intimate, humorous, and poignant story about contemporary motherhood, love, and life in India.

The Mother I Never Knew by Sudha Murty

Sudha Murty’s new book comprises two novellas that explore two quests by two different men—both for mothers they never knew they had. Venkatesh, a bank manager, stumbles upon his lookalike one fine day. When he probes further, he discovers his father’s hidden past, which includes an abandoned wife and child. Mukesh, a young man, is shocked to realize after his father’s death that he was actually adopted. He sets out to find his biological mother. The Mother I Never Knew is a poignant, dramatic book that reaches deep into the human heart to reveal what we really feel about those closest to us.

Bijnis Woman by Tanuja Chandra

A masaledaar mix of fact and fiction, action and emotion, drama and passion—these strange, funny, intriguing tales from small-town Uttar Pradesh have been passed orally from one generation to the next.  The bizarre chronicle of a lazy daughter-in-law, the court clerk who loved eating chaat, two cousins inseparable even in death, a blind teacher who fell in love with a woman with beautiful eyes and other wild tales from Bareilly, Lucknow, Hapur, Badaun, Sapnawat and Pilibhit, places big and small, in that fascinating part of India called Uttar Pradesh.

The Mirror of Beauty by Shamsur Rahman Faruqi

The Mirror of Beauty embarks on an epic journey that sweeps through the death-giving deserts of Rajputana, the verdant valley of Kashmir and the glorious cosmopolis of Delhi, the craft of miniature painting and the art of carpet designing, scintillating musical performances and recurring paintings of mysterious, alluring women. Its scope breathtaking, its language beguiling, and its style sumptuous, this is a work of profound beauty, depth and power.

That Long Silence by Shashi Deshpande

Jaya’s life comes apart at the seams when her husband is asked to leave his job while allegations of business malpractice. Differences with her husband, frustrations in their seventeen-year-old marriage, disappointment in her two teenage children, the claustrophia of her childhood-all begin to surface. Shashi Deshpande gives us an exceptionally accomplished portrayal of a woman trying to erase a ‘long silence’ begun in childhood and rooted in herself and in the constraints of her life.

Margot by Reba Som

Among all the disciples of Swami Vivekananda, Sister Nivedita occupies pride of place. Margaret Noble arrived at India’s shores in the late nineteenth century, took the vows of a brahmacharini, and devoted the rest of her life to the cause of India.  In this compelling biography, the author traces the development of Margaret from a loyal Irishwoman into Sister Nivedita, and finally into ‘Lok Mata’ or ‘People’s Mother’—a title bestowed on her by Tagore.

Sita by Devdutt Pattanaik

This book approaches Ram by speculating on Sita—her childhood with her father, Janak, who hosted sages mentioned in the Upanishads; her stay in the forest with her husband who had to be a celibate ascetic while she was in the prime of her youth; her interactions with the women of Lanka, recipes she exchanged, emotions they shared; her connection with the earth, her mother; her role as the Goddess, the untamed Kali as well as the demure Gauri, in transforming the stoic prince of Ayodhya into God.

Devi by Mrinal Pande

Writer and journalist Mrinal Pande sees in strong passionate women who defy the strictures of a male-dominated world, shades of the Goddess. There were many such women in her life, women who succeeded beyond the expectations of men. First, there was her forceful mother, the writer Shivani. Then came Badi Amma, the most colorful woman in this book, her domineering, intellectual aunt. There were friends who silently lived lives of emotional deprivation till they opted out of the world altogether. There were women who made the news and women who preyed on men. In all these women, the writer sees the original Devi.

Balancing Act by Meera Godbole Krishnamurthy

Balancing Act is a book that is all about the balancing act that Tara Mistri does on a day-to-day basis in her life. Tara Mistri is a stay-at-home mother, who is a frustrated architect as well. She is described as being a baker of biscuits and a maker of bricks. Tara is perplexed by the absolute confusion in her life and is inspired by the Salk Institute, which is in California. Her aim is to bring in the kind of symmetry that exists there, into her own life.  

French Lover: Nilanjana's Road to Self-Discovery

French Lover by Taslima Nasrin is the story of Nilanjana, a young Bengali woman from Kolkata who moves to Paris after getting married to Kishanlal, a restaurant owner. Kishanlal’s luxurious apartment seems to be a gilded cage for Nilanjana, and she feels stifled within its friendless confines. While she looks desperately for a way out of the boredom and depression that threaten to engulf her life, her road to self-discovery begins.
Bold in concept and powerful in execution, this book is a fascinating glimpse into the workings of a woman’s mind as she struggles to come to terms with her identity in a hostile world.
Here are quotes from the book that take us into Nilanjana’s world.









 

The Literary Renegade Whom No Force Dared Stop

Saadat Hasan Manto is the most widely read and controversial short story writer in Urdu. A pre-eminent practitioner of the genre, he produced twenty-two collections of short stories. The prevalent trend is to classify Manto’s work into stories of Partition or stories of prostitutes but neither Partition nor prostitution gave birth to the genius of Saadat Hasan Manto. They only furnished him with an occasion to reveal the truth of the human condition.
On Manto’s birthday, we delve deeper into factors that moulded Manto’s creative world and showcase him as an astonishing writer who truly was unstoppable.


Sources:
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/jun/11/saadat-hasan-manto-short-stories-partition-pakistanhttp://www.academia.edu/35301622/Biography_of_Saadat_Hasan_Manto

The Unseeing Idol of Light by K.R. Meera; Excerpt

K.R. Meera is a multi-award-winning writer and journalist. She has published short stories, novels and essays, and has won some of the most prestigious literary prizes. The Unseeing Idol of Light, K.R. Meera’s latest book is a haunting tale that explores love and loss, blindness and sight, obsession and suffering-and the poignant interconnections between them.
Here’s an excerpt from the book:
Deepti had gone missing one day before the TV centre in Thiruvananthapuram was commissioned. On their last day together, Prakash and Deepti had mostly talked about TV.
‘Considering the state of affairs here, we’ll probably get to watch TV by the time our son goes to college! Though I sometimes wonder whether we will ever really be so lucky.’ Deepti laughed, the rich timbre of her voice reminiscent of a finger knocking softly against a bronze pitcher.
That laughter and her question had resounded so often in Prakash’s ears that he had refused to purchase a TV in his home for a very long time. TV, to Prakash, was inexplicably associated with misfortune. In the shock of losing Deepti, the nerves controlling his vision had separated, making him blind. As it turned out, he never really had the luck to watch TV, just as Deepti had predicted.
Much later, when cable TV came into vogue, Prakash had two unexpected visitors at the town’s government college, where he was employed as the chief librarian. A young woman and a man had dropped in, carrying a camera and a microphone.
‘We would like to interview you since you are a blind librarian.’ The young woman brusquely extended the microphone towards him.
‘Where did you get such pretty lips, my girl?’ Prakash’s brazen query stunned the woman.
‘Ah, you are not blind, are you?’
‘Aren’t we all blind in some way or the other?’
Opening Chekov’s Collected Stories and turning to page 132, Prakash started reading out from ‘The Husband’, the book held close to his nose.
‘It makes me sick to look at her!’ he muttered. ‘Going on for forty and nothing to boast of at any time, she must powder her face and lace herself up!’
The young woman peeked into the book and, seeing that he was perfectly correct, beat a hasty retreat. However, after they had left, Prakash regretted sending them away. Deepti might have seen the TV programme in some corner of the world, recognized him and returned to spread light again in his life. Immersed in this thought, he became extremely frustrated.
Even after so many years he had not been able to reconcile himself to Deepti’s departure. He had been completely prepared to be a father, and eager to play with his little son, when Deepti disappeared. In his mind’s eye, he repeatedly saw how, on that evening, seated in the kitchen, Deepti and he had enjoyed platefuls of ada with their tea.
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