THE ORIGINS OF YOGA AND TANTRA: Geoffrey Samuel; Cambridge University Press, Cambridge House, 4381/4, Ansari Road, Daryaganj, New Delhi-110002. Rs. 995.
RAJAN GURUKKAL
The book discusses, in a historical perspective, the techniques of mental and physical cultivation known as Yoga, Tantra and Dhyana which are integral to the religious traditions of early India. In the […]

REPRESENTATIONS OF A CULTURE IN INDIAN ENGLISH POETRY: Mita Biswas; Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Rashtrapati Nivas, Shimla-171005. Rs. 470.
M. S. NAGARAJAN
How long can foreign poets Provide the staple of your lines?
Turn inward. Scrape the bottom of your past.
- R. Parthasarathy, Rough Passage
Invariably Indian poetry in English has received a mixed response from […]

VIOLENT GODS: Hindu Nationalism in India’s Present: Angana P Chatterji; Three Essays Collective, B-957, Palam Vihar, Gurgaon-122017. Rs. 500.
PARVATHI MENON
Angana Chatterji’s starting point for her study on the growth of Hindu majoritarianism in the specific context of Gujarat was a visit she made to Orissa in the summer of 2002, soon after the Gujarat riots. […]

It is a call to respect the inalienable right of all to learn their languages and through their languages 

MULTILINGUAL EDUCATION FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE: Edited by Ajit K. Mohanty, Minati Panda, Robert Philipson, Tove Skutnabb-Kangas; Orient Blackswan 1/24, Asaf Ali Road, New Delhi-110002. Rs. 675.
V. VASANTHI DEVI
“Multilingual education is human rights education,” is […]

The lives of artisans and the intricate processes of their craft are well documented.

Paramparik Karigar; published by Paramparik Karigar, price not stated.
SABITA RADHAKRISHNA
Paramparic Karigar, an Association of craftspersons based in Mumbai, committed to promote and preserve traditional Indian Craft recently brought out a book of the same name. The book has been sensitively put together […]

Well into his eighties, artist Serbjeet Singh continues to transmute paints into a transcendental presentation as is evident in his recent Himalayan canvases, says noted travel writer and author

BILL AITKEN
The secret of Serbjeet’s Singh’s ongoing excellence as a painter (he is now in his eighties) lies in the embracing of the four-letter word “life” (or […]

Award-winning author Chimamanda Adichie discusses her fiction and her approach to her writing in an e-mail interview.

 
R. KRITHIKA
Chimamanda Adichie announced her arrival on the world stage with Purple Hibiscus (2003), which won the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize and the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award besides being short-listed for the Orange Prize and the Jo hn Llewellyn Rhys Prize. […]

Actor Factor’s “The Leela Tapes”, mounted in New Delhi the other day, handled a delicate subject with aplomb. 

“The Leela Tapes” is a poignant story of a young widow.
ROMESH CHANDER
The Actor Factor Theatre Company is very young, a little over one year old or so. In its very first year, it produced three outstanding […]

Theatre should engage, engross and entertain, believes director-actor Amir Raza Husain. 

Virat and Amir Raza Husain. Photo: K. Bhagya Prakash
P. ANIMA
Amir Raza Husain is a man of candour and strong views and makes no bones about it. Husain firmly believes the purpose of theatre is entertainment and has strived to win over his audience […]

Kalaikoodam’s silver jubilee ends with a rousing concert by N. Vijay Siva and a Bharatanatyam recital by Komala Varadan. 

Komala Varadan at the event. Photo: Sushil Kumar Verma
Anjana Rajan
Due to delayed start, the Carnatic vocal concert of N. Vijay Siva on the penultimate day of the celebrations could go on for only about two […]