Thursday, September 6, 2018


मैं और मेरी चाय
चाय कोई पदार्थ या पेय नहीं है | चाय एक सोच है – एक मानसिकता है | तूफ़ान हो या संघर्ष चलो एक कप चाय पीते हैं और कुछ न कुछ तो होगा – उत्तर मिलेंगे – स्थिति सुधरेगी | उत्सव है या प्रसन्नता है चलो एक कप चाय पीते हैं और इस दुनिया को और भी बेहतर कर देते हैं | क्यूंकि चाय एक कप नहीं – चाय जीवन है |
कुछ ऐसा ही है स्वाद ओम शुक्ला की पुस्तक “ मैं और मेरी चाय “ का| जब ये किताब हाथ में ई तब ये गुमान भी न था के ये इस तरह मेरे अनुभव का एक हिस्सा बन जाएगी | कहीं न कहीं सिमर और अमन में मैं आजकल के युवाओं का पल पल बदलता प्रेम देख पाऊँगी या फिर काव्या की करुण पुकार में मैं उन हजारों लड्कियों की सिसकियाँ सुन पाउंगी जो कामांध पुरुषों का दिन प्रतिदिन शिकार बनती हैं| क्या राजिव और श्रेया आज के महानगरों में पिसते उन युवाओं का प्रतिनिधित्व नहीं करते जो अर्थ और अनर्थ का भेद भूलते जा रहे हैं? सागर और खुशी की कहानी नहीं कही लेखक ने अपितु अलाहाबाद बसा दिया दिल में |
My chance encounter with Om Shukla’s book is a pleasant surprise which is never to be forgotten experience. Reasons being many including my native place being Allahabad I toured the place through his words. This book is a must read for all those who believe in the charisma of everyday significant and non significant moments of our life. Grab your copies of this ginger flavoured tea and traverse the memory lanes of your yester years. What good it would have been if there was an index pointing out page numbers of different stories ?

Sunday, August 5, 2018

Table for One by Neha Bindal


The conventional mindset is that single women beyond thirty are highly ambitious and career oriented;they are very independent and strongly opinionated and completely sideline the emotion called love. All of this and more is shattered when you read TABLE FOR ONE by Neha Bindal. Here the protagonist Taara Maheshwari is no doubt a single, past thirty, successful lawyer yet she is also a highly emotional and sometimes under confident romantic at heart. Awkward? Hard to digest ? 
Her failed relationships with Tarun and Shivam and some casual flings make her forgo the concept of forever after and bargain a deal with her father before she solemnises her matrimony with Saurabh. What deal? Read it for your own. 
On her solo Europe trip she not only gets to know that people everywhere are alike, usually good yet driven by circumstances; but also gets to reinvent and recreate her self. Paris Venice Switzerland Italy Rome Vatican City ets are not just places of her itinerary but life shaping experiences of a kind. What is the most spectacular thing in the novel is on page 171 where Taara says “ Letting Fred go was very hard, but it was liberating too........... I didn’t want to take that road...... but I chose to live freely over being bounded by love.”
Is she transformed? What makes this Bollywood style diehard romantic take such a detour? Or was it a new journey? A journey to go back to pavilion or towards a new destination? Read out for more in the novel- surely a fantastic read for a debut piece. Not to forget the sprinklers of sarcasm here and there which very subtly open up your eyes to the realities of life. 
The title is not only apt but absolutely meaningful in the context of the plot which keeps on sailing effortlessly uniquely titled chapters( with no index- mind it). Due credit must also be given to the cover page designers as it is both captivating and enticing- a bag full of memories, not of moments in places but of people. 

Congratulations to the author and the publication house

Wednesday, August 1, 2018

Major missing

Thats the thing about memories; you dont get stuck with them rather you are stuck with the person in the memory. Even though you visit the same place, eat the same food or breathe the same air it never is the same experience unless the same person is with you.  All you have is a craving, a longing and prayers for re living those moments
#dedicated

Saturday, July 28, 2018

I shall always love you by Shilpa Jain

A treat for the seekers of love
This time I shall begin by thanking Richa Saxena for sending me this wonderful book by Shilpa Jain.
A historical thriller which transcends over the boundaries of time and keeps you glued to the book looking for answers. Shiv Sanyal has everything any young man could dream of yet he is restless ? For what ? His twin soul? Arjun defies all definitions of goodness and goes beyond his capacity to see to it that Shiv is at peace even if it means killing his love for Saloni. Nysa is not only the sculpture from Khajuraho personified but also the mystery behind which Shiv is finding his purpose of life.
What is it which connects the events of 11th century khajuraho to these people in quest of love? Read it for your own to find the answers to all the questions along with an understanding of what is love. What it means to be in love.  Specially notable was the depiction of erotica with such subtlety that nowhere did it become obscene. I guess only a woman writer can add this special effect......no offence to my male writer friends. 
An out an out treat could have been even better if a few things were handled differently. To begin with the cover page isnt reflective of what lies within. An image of a sculpture might have been better i feel. The later half of the novel appeared to be a bit rushed up....too much happening in too little space . It appears that either few more pages should have been added to do full justice to the story or the author could have planned a sequel altogether. Am I demanding too much? Last but not the least is my opinion that a couple of illustrations used at certain places would have added more meaning to the piece. Like on page 183 where they are assembling all the clues to fit the zigsaw puzzle to reach the treasure. 

Over all a wonderful piece as a debut novel. Congratulations to the author and the Publishers

Wednesday, July 25, 2018

A multi cuisine platter

What is life? A not so extraordinary question raised by the so called protagonist number 1 of the story, namely the writer Paul. You want to know when? At the end of the novel. This is not all. The answer given by an inebriated protagonist number 2 the hyperbole consultant Hazare is what hits you. The entire philosophy of life in such simple words! 
Also this multicuisine platter gives you a flamboyant Bollywood geek driver and a garage owner Raj, though the name is long enough to be remembered, along with a mystery man turned environmentalist Ben. So what are these four protagonists, mind it four, doing together? They have met by chance and heading towards Gir forests in Gujrat. Why? Because those who do not travel live only little. Go find out why? 
If you are looking for a witty read with humorous conversations, vivid imageries and a journey to transform you as a person then this book is meant for you.
Intrigued I was to have a look at the cover page and the title! Because my baffled mind couldn’t make any sense of either of these.... a typewriter?? The author saved my soul in the last but second paragraph of the book when Hazare told me that the title meant “nothing of everything and everything of nothing “
Shantanu Munshi I would really like to know from you what did you mean by all this? Pun intended 

Congratulations and God bless

Tuesday, July 24, 2018

Let the game begin by Sandeep Sharma

A historical thriller beyond expectations 
Can accidents be this exciting? My picking on reading Sandeep Sharma through his short stories on kindle and this thriller as paperback was an accidental choice but definitely with no regrets. 
A 160 odd pager with 35 chapters having some as small as barely two pages is a one sitting read because you won’t leave it in between. The plot which keeps on moving forward and backwards with lucidity is fast paced, nerve chilling at times and hits you with shocking revelations. 
An engrossing read with a storyline dating as old as 4000 yrs back and the highest security personnels in the current day India. Read on your own to find out who this Vyapi was? Dinesh Gandhi or...? What made Pratham and Surya to come together chasing the Chess killer? Was Priya a player or a pawn? 
As far as I am concerned my most favourite part of the book was the last four lines of the Epilogue 
The story is not over yet
The game is not over yet
The end of part one
To be continued soon

Kudos Sandeep Sharma and give me my second part soon

Sunday, July 1, 2018

Hi
June 30th was a red letter day in my life. कुछ बेहद ही ज़हीन लोगों को सुनने और शायरी को पास से समझने का मौका मिला | इतना ही नहीं इस नाचीज़ को भी कुछ कहने की हैसियत न होने पर भी इतना सम्मान ! Check out the following link
https://www.facebook.com/suchishukla217/videos/10209403329400249/ 

Thursday, June 14, 2018

If there is something called a gripping tale with dark secrets hidden beneath the words then it is this one by the author. While on one hand you sympathise with Noori, you tend to stop and guide Vishwas how to set a boundary between passion and obsession. The vivid language and the pictorial representation of the scene and setting added to the detailing of the narrative. The takeaway was the birth of the baby girl to Noori inspite of the fact that Vishwas deserted her at the wrong time. 
Well done dear and god bless

# That girl on the street by Sandeep Sharma

Monday, June 11, 2018


                                                   Extra-ordinary has ordinary in it!

Last few days saw me reading through a nonfiction ‘ Legends Over Generations’ by Ashraf Haggag, which incidentally had such a gripping treatment of the content which does not let you abandon the book out of boredom.
All the facts were chronicled in a journalistic way as the need was but the technique of arranging and segregating the data made all the difference and easy to assimilate. The book very clearly highlights the skills, personal traits and real efforts put in by the people of diverse areas to rise above all and be legends shaping our lives.
The author took pains to categorize such stalwarts from the fields of Human rights, Science, Politics over History, Art and Literature. Not only that the units of legends were further divided into sub parts like – early life and education, early career, legacy etc. The units started with initials/signatures of each legend and ended with their world-famous quotes. However, what irked me a little was the absence of their profile picture in the beginning which could have helped us in visualizing the person we were reading.
The canvas of the book spread over centuries across the globe with, on one hand, veterans like A G Bell, Napoleon Bonaparte, William Shakespeare etc, and the contemporaries like Nikola Tesla, Malala Yousafzai, Marlon Brando on the other. The USP, no doubt, was the conclusion or the unit 10 of the book which summarised the key features and traits across all legends which must be followed by all those who strive to be something in life.
The author vehemently professed that passion, hard work, focussed goals, intuitive and ingenious ideas, willingness to shed the comfort zone, dynamic and not static attitude, perseverance and providing value to others, is what can make a human a legend!
This book is duly recommended for all those who love to be informed about facts, what goes into the writing of these facts; people who think that their goals are beyond them and most importantly for all of us who think that it takes to be ‘ destined’ or ‘special’ to be a class apart. The book teaches all humans are super humans if they decide to be.
The book is available on
English Version Amazon.in:

Flipkart
Waterstones;
Powells;
Link to “Book of the Month” awarded by tredition.co.uk in April


tredition.co.uk (Book of the Month):



Ashraf Haggag is a senior executive with nearly three decades of experience in close proximity to the corporate market. His more recent experience has also taken him to every facet of the hospitality industry.  
Haggag has direct experience in many different aspects of business, including sales, marketing, revenue management, and administration. Having worked in Germany, the United States, Turkey, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia, his global experiences have helped him realize that companies must target new market zones in order to grow and prosper in the international marketplace. He is eager to bring enhanced cross-cultural awareness to today’s business leaders.  



Sunday, June 3, 2018

A New Lease of Life: Stories of Reunion by Sarmita Dey

Everyone has a story to tell but few are lucky to tell the stories of others too; its when they narrate you feel as if every word uttered is actually what you wanted to say. One such is the Author who narrated the tales of reunion of yours, mine and all such others.<br />What I found captivating was the way prologue was handled, where all the characters were introduced and questioned to give an inlet to their psyche and adding to the curiosity of the reader.<br />Be it Pranav and Gina re uniting mid-air, or the anxious, confused or apprehensive bond between Ritesh and Pauli- which saw a tumultuous phase- all seemed so relatable. Though I find it hard to assimilate the sudden realisation of Vipin towards the end and overpowering his demons demanding to have Mili at all cost-even at the sacrifice of their marital relationships. His decision to forget his desire and remain as faithful friends was hard to digest at the end.<br />To cut the long story short if I go by analysing each story, my document itself will become a novella to read! All I can say is that hardly ever had I been so astounded by the maiden book of a writer. Id shows tat she is a seasoned writer who knows how to balance with agonies, cravings, and sensibilities of a human heart!<br />Congratulations and looking forward to more from your desk.

Monday, May 28, 2018

Saturday, May 5, 2018

आखिर क्यूँ

आखिर क्यूँ सो रही है हमारी आत्मा , क्यूँ सुप्त है हमारा दिमाग !
जागते क्यूँ नहीं हैं हम देख कर भी चारों तरफ नफरत की आग !
खेल रहें है कुछ लोग हमसे बना कर हमें ही कठपुतलियां
कातर त्रस्त है जनता  और नेता गण मना रहे  है रंगरलियाँ
सहमा सिहरा सिमटा है बचपन और त्रासदी में घिरी है जवानी
नवजात हो या हो वो नवयौवना सबके डर की एक ही कहानी
रोटी कपडा और मकान की अब बात करते नहीं है पालनहार
धर्म जाति के नाम पर बस सब  कर रहे एक दूजे पर प्रहार
उन्नति प्रगति उद्योग धंधे इन सबकी अब नहीं होती कोई बात
भ्रष्टाचार व्याभिचार में लिप्त कुशासक करते हम पर ही घात
सन सत्तावन की फिर आज जरूरत आ पड़ी है अपनी माता को
किसी विदेशी से नहीं अब संहारना है हमें अपने ही भीतर घातों को .