What adds spice to the memoirs of Padma Lakshmi, model and celebrity chef whose story stretches from conservative Madras to haute Manhattan, is the portrait of her ex-husband Salman Rushdie, ‘all arched-eyebrows’
16 March 2016What is the lure of the adult colouring book? Is it a sign of boredom and loneliness? Does it alleviate stress? Is it a return to childhood? Or is it a symptom of ‘rage against the machine’?
10 March 2016Vivek Shanbhag has written a finely-woven novel which tells of the machinations of work and money, prosperity and globalisation through the story of a family
08 March 2016Benedikt Taschen has redefined the business of books as an exclusive experience in sensuality and aesthetics. He and his man in India talk to Open as they discover the potential of the Indian market
25 February 2016Harper Lee will always be celebrated for her portrayal of childhood and for showing us that most people are nice, when you finally see them
20 February 2016The Pulitzer-winning author finds a new but unstable address in her latest non-fiction work
10 February 2016Yann Martel handles life’s big mysteries with the lightest of touch. Will he finally emerge from the shadow of his blockbuster fiction? The novelist in conversation with Nandini Nair
03 February 2016Irish author Colm Tóibín is known for his accuracy of detail, whether it is in his descriptions of his walk along the Irish border (Bad Blood) or the emotions of Mary after her son’s crucifixion (The Testament of Mary). He talks to Nandini Nair about the rich solitude that domesticity offers, the genius of Jane Austen and watching his book come alive. Excerpts:
03 February 2016Anchored by dystopias, Margaret Atwood’s prescience has often proved uncanny
03 February 2016Stars, the star-struck and other delights and diversions at literature’s biggest carnival
27 January 2016CELESTIAL HEROISM IS a bestseller, unless it is badly made. In it merges great survivor dramas and the romance of breaching the boundaries of human…
10 April 2019Pratap Bhanu Mehta is one of India’s most influential columnists and public intellectuals
Brahma Chellaney is a geostrategist and the author of two award-winning books on water: Water, Peace, and War and Water: Asia’s New Battleground
MJ Akbar is the author of several books, including Doolally Sahib and the Black Zamindar: Racism and Revenge in the British Raj
Ram Madhav is a member of the National Executive of RSS and Member, Board of Governors, India Foundation
Makarand R Paranjape is professor of English at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. Views are personal.