Marathon Graduation: From Couch to Coffee Runs
Somewhere in my forties—right between my boss’s emails, kids’ homework meltdowns, missing lunchboxes, and the ever-growing laundry mountain—I had an existential crisis. Not the…
Marriage – No Longer the Default Setting
Once, being “settled” in India meant a steady job, marriage, and children—plus the kettle whistling every morning. Today – financial stability, passport stamps, solo…
Old Age: Longer Lives, New Scripts
There was a time when, if someone you called said, “I was just thinking of you. You will live for a hundred years!” it…
Grow Gently This New Year
January 1st: when normal people become suspiciously sincere. We sit down—sometimes with a notebook, sometimes just a cup of tea—and make lists. This year,…
New Year Resolutions: Same Hype, Different Year
Every late December, people everywhere start believing that life will suddenly get better the moment the clock strikes midnight on January 1st. From Delhi…
A Gentle Life, Perfectly Lived
In memory of my father, Mr. M. K. Kaw …
The Circle of Diwali Gifts
The Sweet Simplicity The smell of ghee and cardamom still takes me back to my childhood Diwalis in Pamposh Colony, Delhi. Back then, gifts…
The Gen X Balancing Act
Midlife isn’t a crisis for Gen X — it’s a circus act. We juggle parents, kids, careers, and credit cards, all while pretending not…
Navratri’s Light and Ravana’s Shadow
When I lived in an independent house in a small city like Shimla in the 70s, festivals often passed quietly. Navratri, for example, slipped…
The Mosaic of My Inheritance
Every year, Shraddh invites us to pause—not only to honour our ancestors, but to reflect on the lives that shaped us. For me, these…