The Vivekean Times

(A Political Satire as it first appeared on indolink.com and in 'Rose Gardens and Minefields', a literary bhel puri published in 2010) It was a hot flinter aftermoon on the Planet Zrrxy. The God shield had been switched on while the Tellicans discussed a top-secret mission. This shield was used by the inhabitants to ward off the presence of the almighty from the vicinity of their planet. Nothing, no sound, light or matter could penetrate this shield. It was the ultimate invention. The Tellicans were a creative race whose influence had spread throughout the universe. There are many wild rumors about this ambitious race. Some say that they are the aliens who hover over earth in flying saucers with the intention of monitoring the progress of humanity on the planet. Some even say that the Supreme Being was created by this technologically advanced race. These Tellicans were alleged to possess the most dangerous of all inventions viz. The Universe Reverser. This device could re...

I have been picking up and browsing, treading my way carefully through the minefields, yet taking time to smell the fragrance of the roses. I found it to be a delightful collection – a veritable ’bhel puri’, a combination of political, religious, moral values to satisfy all tastes and appetites. I was impressed by your reflections in the poems ‘Philosophy of life’, ’Pleasure’, ’Love’ ’ Dreamer’, Thinking,’ and the touch of humour in, ’Trying to enter Heaven,’ and ‘The Husband’ and the note of sadness in ’Agony’ and ‘Night after Christmas’. The essays ’Sport in India’ gives a good insight into Indian sport and Indian sporting legends past and present. ’Tryst with Destiny’ gives a sweeping view of Indian history and the hopes and expectations of a nation while your ‘Mumbai for all’ reveals a true Maharashtrian-East Indian spirit and love for our culture and heritage….I could go on…however, I will conclude by saying that the book as you so well said in your introduction is a literary col...

I have been picking up and browsing, treading my way carefully through the minefields, yet taking time to smell the fragrance of the roses. I found it to be a delightful collection – a veritable ’bhel puri’, a combination of political, religious, moral values to satisfy all tastes and appetites. I was impressed by your reflections in the poems ‘Philosophy of life’, ’Pleasure’, ’Love’ ’ Dreamer’, Thinking,’ and the touch of humour in, ’Trying to enter Heaven,’ and ‘The Husband’ and the note of sadness in ’Agony’ and ‘Night after Christmas’. The essays ’Sport in India’ gives a good insight into Indian sport and Indian sporting legends past and present. ’Tryst with Destiny’ gives a sweeping view of Indian history and the hopes and expectations of a nation while your ‘Mumbai for all’ reveals a true Maharashtrian-East Indian spirit and love for our culture and heritage….I could go on…however, I will conclude by saying that the book as you so well said in your introduction is a literary col...

My book "Rose Gardens and Minefields" had received critical acclaim from a top book review site, Indian Book Reviews. I had submitted my book for the review over a year ago and hundreds of books were reviewed in that period. Didn't know what it would turn out like, but I was thoroughly pleased with the outcome. Check out this fabulous review at http://www.indianbookreviews.com/2012/07/16/a-little-bit-of-this-and-that/ For the uninitiated, "Rose Gardens and Minefields" is a compilation of poems, short stories and essays that cover a plethora of topics. It was published by Leadstart Publishers under their Frogbooks/Virgin Leaf imprint a couple of years ago. This book can be purchased at a sum below Rs 100 or $2 at various book stores across India including some Landmark outlets, Happy Book Store (Bandra) and Granth (Juhu). You can even purchase it online at Amazon and Flipkart.com. Happy Reading!!!

(A short story I wrote for a contest in 2007. Didn't win though.The Challenge was keeping it below 600 words or so.) The alarm crowed. A lusty king of the farmyard cock-a-doodle-do. He shut the mobile up. One hour and five minutes was all he had before his day began. He would steal five minutes from that. Look the other way, he told that frowning creature in his soul. I do it all the time. A little corruption. A little bribery. I negotiate with the world 24 /7. So why not an extra 5 minutes of sleep? he told himself and buried his head under the pillow. And so began another day in the life of an Indian. When Vijay finally woke up it was well past eight. “Oh, God,” he exclaimed panic-stricken. “What have I done?” This time round he was definitely less philosophical about life and the daily issues that came with it. Almost an hour later, Vijay was scrambling across the street frantically, struggling to reach his office on time. He took a Churchgate-bound train and suffe...

This is just to let you know that my book "Rose Gardens and Minefields" has received critical acclaim from a top book review site, Indian Book Reviews. I had submitted my book for the review over a year ago and hundreds of books were reviewed in this period. Didn't know what it would turn out like, but I'm thoroughly pleased with the outcome. Check out this fabulous review at http://www.indianbookreviews.com/2012/07/16/a-little-bit-of-this-and-that/ For the blissful ones, "Rose Gardens and Minefields" is a compilation of poems, short stories and essays that cover a plethora of topics. It was published by Leadstart Publishers under their Frogbooks/Virgin Leaf imprint a couple of years ago. You can refer to the review and the Wikipedia entry for a better understanding. This book can be purchased at a sum below Rs 100 or $2 at various book stores across India including some Landmark outlets, Happy Book Store (Bandra) and Granth (Juhu). You can even purchase ...

I have been picking up and browsing, treading my way carefully through the minefields, yet taking time to smell the fragrance of the roses. I found it to be a delightful collection – a veritable ’bhel puri’, a combination of political, religious, moral values to satisfy all tastes and appetites. I was impressed by your reflections in the poems ‘Philosophy of life’, ’Pleasure’, ’Love’ ’ Dreamer’, Thinking,’ and the touch of humour in, ’Trying to enter Heaven,’ and ‘The Husband’ and the note of sadness in ’Agony’ and ‘Night after Christmas’. The essays ’Sport in India’ gives a good insight into Indian sport and Indian sporting legends past and present. ’Tryst with Destiny’ gives a sweeping view of Indian history and the hopes and expectations of a nation while your ‘Mumbai for all’ reveals a true Maharashtrian-East Indian spirit and love for our culture and heritage….I could go on…however, I will conclude by saying that the book as you so well said in your introduction is a literary coll...

The demise of Sunil Poolani, the executive director and editorial head of the Fiction division of Leadstart Publishing, is definitely a tremendous blow to the publishing business in Mumbai. It is also a huge loss for writers like myself who had received support and guidance from this extremely helpful person. Despite his busy schedule, Sunil would always find time to talk to us or send an email regarding our queries or reservations. Yes, we will miss him a lot. When I heard the sad news  from Douglas Misquita, the author of Haunted (an amazing novel), I simply could not believe it as Sunil was in his early Forties. Yet he had achieved a lot in this relatively short period of existence. He had transformed the publishing landscape in Mumbai by giving opportunities to aspiring writers of English fiction and non-fiction. Any writer worth his salt in these genres would know how difficult it is to get published in Mumbai where publishers prefer to publish ...