In search of lost time. At a height of 1,938m, giddy tourists gratify themselves by boating on the lake, riding the ropeway trolley and shopping on Mall Road. That’s Nainital, the hill station in Uttarakhand’s Kumaon region, 330 km north of Delhi. The sensitive traveller goes back...
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The middle-class Delhi’s Switzerland. Mussoorie, the Himalayan town in Uttarakhand that is a six-hour drive from Delhi, is a resort in name only. The Mall Road, the city’s touristy stretch, is littered with chips packets. Hotels have taken over the trees of the hill-slopes. The mossy rocks...
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It’s not about books. High heels, Prada bags, Charles & Keith ankle boots, Sula wine, exposed cleavages and a private jet. Lit events are the new cool for the beautiful people, if the 6th Jaipur Literature Festival is an indicator. It was the place to see and...
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Saluting the lit lovers. It’s the people. In the 6th Jaipur Literature Festival, The Delhi Walla liked the readers more than the authors. I was moved by the earnestness of Delhi University students who came at their own expenses. I was struck by the long queue that...
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The tea in the earthen cup. One of the many good things about the 6th Jaipur Literature Festival was the free chai served daily in the two chai breaks – at morning and at evening. Stationed at four places in Diggi Palace, the festival venue, the turbaned...
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On porn, aging and writing. Writing fiction in the eighties was a loner’s job. “No profiles, no photo sessions, no book tours,” said London-based author Martin Amis in the session ‘Writing the 1980s’, which he participated with New York based novelist Jay McInerney. The Delhi Walla was...
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Irvine Welsh’s ‘fuck’ fixation. His was the last and the shortest session in the Jaipur Literature Festival. His was also the only session in which questions ran out before the stipulated one-hour time. That’s no indicator of the cult status of Irvine Welsh, the author of Trainspotting....
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Listening to Sex & the City writer Candice Bushnell. She came, laughed, growled, flailed her arms, groped for words and gave relationship tips. The high-heeled and perfectly manicured Candice Bushnell, the author of Sex & The City, was a hit on the penultimate day of the Jaipur...
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The great historical romance. It was pulp romance meeting the Partition. History was sexed up at the session in Mughal Tent, in which TV host Karan Thapar chatted with Alex von Tunzelmann, the author of Indian Summer. The book was a page-turner that tells three stories: of...
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The surprise package. The surprise winner of the Jaipur marathon was a plump woman. At 10 am, Mughal tent in Diggi Palace hotel was slotted for authors William Dalrymple and Mahmood Farooqui. The duo was supposed to discuss their books, both of which dealt with the native...
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