pritam's blog

She Dreams With Her Feet

Published March 27, 2020

I would see her very evening, around 5-30-6:00, while waiting at Sony Signal to catch an auto back home. She would cross the r...

Janta Curfew From My Balcony

Published March 22, 2020

Since the usually crowded streets were empty today, two kids from the neighborhood, probably eight and twelve years old respect...

The Psychology Of Bragging About Having A Big Family - A Conversation

Published March 13, 2020

“Why do your parents keep on bragging about how big your family is?” She asked. This isn’t new. My mom especially, from the ve...

Life & Lies

Published March 4, 2020

“When words become unclear, I shall focus with photographs. When images become inadequate, I shall be content with silence.”...

Gandhi, Feynman, Bajrang Dal, And A Curious Tale Of Power Structures

Published February 16, 2020

Back in the 1930s, it was believed that stuttering was genetic. That is, if you were born a stutterer, nothing could be done ab...

I Am Getting Married & Here's What You Should Know About It - FAQs About My Marriage

Published February 12, 2020

Yes. I am getting married. And ever since I announced it to the few (not necessarily close or important) people I had to, I ha...

Truth Or Dare

Published February 7, 2020

Last month, on my way home, I had a few hours layover in Kolkata before my next flight. Bored, I started reading a book. But I...

I Should Have Been There In The Photo

Published February 2, 2020

I look at the old, fading photograph of my grandpa, Hanging from the wall. He is sitting on a huge chair, His left arm looks...

What's Wrong With Kunal Kamra?

Published January 29, 2020

I thought Kunal Kamra, the comedian known for, among other things, mocking the Modi government, hated the chaddis. Then why wa...

Thinking

Published January 22, 2020

The phone beeped. It was a message on LinkedIn. I barely go to LinkedIn unless prompted like this. I have not even updated my ...

On Customer Support

Published January 18, 2020

My mom once told me a story when I was a kid.

CAA Protests - A Case Of India's Questionable Conscience

Published January 7, 2020

First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out— Because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade ...

Living With OCD

Published December 25, 2019

I guess once you develop OCD, there is no way you are going to get better. There is this part of you that, I believe, will alwa...

An Evening With The Oldest Young Man In My Life

Published September 10, 2019

“Marriage is not for everyone,” he said. It reminded me of what my girl says, that I am an amazing friend but as a life partn...

My Mother Transformed Herself Many A Time In Her Life

Published August 28, 2019

My mother transformed herself many a time in her life. I do not like changes. Changes, I find, are difficult to cope with. ...

The Curious Case Of Learned Social Behaviors

Published August 27, 2019

A certain colleague of mine who is from a different team comes to where our team seats. This lady is extremely jolly and is kno...

A Blurred World And Illegible Scribbles

Published August 26, 2019

Every single day of the last 11 years, Seth Godin published blog posts. Anybody who follows this marketing monk’s blog would k...

The House

Published August 14, 2019

Even with his meagre salary as a clerk in the Public Works Department (PWD), Daa ensured to save a certain amount every year to...

Why You Shouldn't Be Scared Of Disappointing Anyone

Published July 21, 2019

One lazy afternoon during my last semester in college, we were all chilling in the college canteen over samosas and coffee, won...

Is There Any Difference Between Art And Design?

Published July 18, 2019

There has been a lot of debate on this topic and even today opinions are divided. Both are languages, there is no doubt about ...

An Unexpected Turn

Published July 18, 2019

“Why did she say yes to you? Was it because you made those stupid sketches or because you wrote love stories for her?” asked my...

Living A Life Filled With The Excitement Of Losing

Published July 8, 2019

This doesn’t make sense, does it? How can the prospect of losing something, anything, be exciting? Of course, it may sound li...

Tit For Tat

Published June 27, 2019

I usually do not bring in the religion of a person while referring to them in my stories. I don’t even use their names for peop...

Metro

Published June 25, 2019

One of the guys from the next door died a few weeks back. It was an accident. I didn’t know about it until two days later. The...

I Was Never A Sentimental

Published May 18, 2019

I was never sentimental about anything. It was probably because I had had a precarious upbringing. And that killed me in my chi...

Your 15 Minutes Can Change Someone’s Life

Published May 17, 2019

I screwed up royally the first interview I was called for after my Masters. The written exam went well. But I could barely answ...

What Are You Doing With Our Data?

Published May 17, 2019

Back in my final year at journalism school, in early 2017, I remember we were furious at Cambridge Analytica’s role in the US P...

Take The Message, Ignore The Way It Has Been Delivered!

Published May 17, 2019

The last four years of my life have been extremely remarkable in many ways. First, during my Masters and then at work, I feel ...

Life Has Changed

Published May 17, 2019

When I was 6-7 years old, I used to fantasize myself as a Superhero (inspired from all those Cartoon Network shows) , fighting ...

It’s Never Too Late To Start Saying No

Published May 17, 2019

A colleague brought her kid at work. No sooner had he entered the office, then the cacophony of keyboards and printers with th...

Ignorance Or Stubborn Carelessness?

Published May 17, 2019

Running just a blog and running a blog for a business organization that has a product or provides a certain service are not the...

I Wish I Could Be Proud of My Mom Again

Published May 12, 2019

I was so proud of my mom… As a kid, I didn’t like her presence. I loved her the most, true. But she wasn’t someone I wanted ar...

The Most Attractive And Stylish Female Politician In India!

Published May 7, 2019

Spoiler alert! There is none! Politics in India demands one to be unattractive, especially, when it’s a female politician we ...

The Curious Friendship

Published April 8, 2019

When I was growing up, no body was so obsessed with their religious identity. At least, none from my generation. We were not t...

A Self-Written Obituary

Published March 26, 2019

I am dead. And I don’t feel very good about it. There is no fried chicken here, wherever I am now. Nothing about being dead is...

A Not At All Obsessive-Compulsive Love Story

Published July 2, 2018

“I got a crush on someone,” I confessed to my girl. She responded with a non-committal ‘Hummm’… Then added, “What’s new in tha...

Alexa, Who Is Your Master?

Published June 23, 2018

This incident at a certain book shop nearby where an Amazon Echo has been installed made my day 😆😆😆 A certain customer uncle, ...

It's Good To Be Quiet

Published March 19, 2018

Sitting beside me on the rickshaw, my mother Wipes her eyes, “Why are you crying?” I ask. She forces a smile, I am five year...

Insomnia

Published February 2, 2018

I see the girl helping her mother cover the cart with a large sheet of plastic. The mother, our fruit-waali aunty, is having tr...

Jealousy

Published February 2, 2018

I see the girl helping her mother cover the cart with a large sheet of plastic. The mother, our fruit-waali aunty, is having tr...

100 Days Of Sobriety

Published January 14, 2018

So, it has been exactly 100 days since I quit boozing. This was one of my resolutions that I made sometime in the middle of las...

Homecoming

Published December 3, 2017

As I woke up this morning, I remembered a Bengali folk song for no reason: Mon amar pagla ghora re, O amar pagla ghora re, ...

Her Desire To Be Free

Published November 5, 2017

The cacophony of traffic and street vendors woke me up at 10 on this Sunday morning. I had slept at 5:20 and it irritated the s...

That Was All She Wanted To Hear

Published November 4, 2017

My mom never ceases to amaze me… When she and dad came to Bangalore a couple of months back and I saw her for the first time i...

This Halloween, Dress Up Like A Smart, Confident, Well-Read, Politically Aware, Ambitious Woman

Published October 31, 2017

The chatbox beeped. He: Hey, I want to wear the scariest costume ever this Halloween. Give me some ideas. Me: Dress up like a...

Because We Are Selfish

Published October 27, 2017

We were discussing about Communism in India. Then, somehow, we switched to Freudian Theory, then Durga Puja, and lastly, the st...

An Unexpected Small Talk With My Mother

Published October 22, 2017

As I was standing on my balcony today, for some reason, I remembered the man who lived in the flat just opposite to mine a coup...

The Little Girl Who Sells Pen At Brigade Road And Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata

Published October 21, 2017

I had just come out of Blossom Book House at Brigade Road with a bagful of books when this little girl caught hold of me. Bare...

Another Smile To Remember

Published October 20, 2017

I could probably write an entire book titled “Smiles To Remember”… So, every night, at around 2-2:30, a cab stops by a couple ...

Chains

Published October 16, 2017

She sent me this picture while she was on a trip with her boyfriend and apparently, the view of the setting sun, she said, some...

The Therapist

Published October 14, 2017

“What do you do, Pritam?” She asked, the young counsellor who attended me today. “I write… and make sketches,” I was stammerin...

On Marriage

Published October 6, 2017

So, my mom has finally given up. She said, “Go to a court if you want to and get married… I won’t mind. But get married…” Not...

An Open Letter To Sushma Swaraj

Published September 23, 2017

Dear Sushma Swaraj, While Pakistan created Lashkar and Jaish-e-Mohammad, you created Gau Rakshaks and Anti-Romeo Squad. Not to...

Aroma

Published September 19, 2017

Someway or the other, I have to see things that are disturbing. Last night I was on my balcony as usual, trying to make smoke ...

A Conversation With A Newly Wed Distant Relative

Published September 16, 2017

Relative: When are YOU planning to get married? Me: When I run out of monotonous profile pictures in the same pose and even ba...

Individualism What?

Published September 15, 2017

If you hear words like “Idiot”, “Stupid”, “Useless”, etc., directed at someone else and yet you wonder if they were meant for y...

Damaged People

Published September 13, 2017

Damaged people are beautiful in a way… Or maybe “beautiful” isn’t the right word. It’s just that they have this uncanny talent...

Dr House, Er Pritam, And A Tale Of Two Love Stories

Published September 12, 2017

It was 3 in the morning and I sensed a fart coming up. I knew it would be a stinky one as I had stomach upset. I was at her pla...

The Whining Lady

Published September 8, 2017

It was the last working day of a colleague. Others had arranged for a cake for her to cut - a small fair well gesture. But she ...

I Look Like Those Kids From Flipkart Ads

Published September 8, 2017

From the salon, I rushed to her place, all excited. For a change, I did something fancy; fancy by my standards I mean… I kept ...

The Idea Of India

Published September 2, 2017

Someone knocked at the door. The socially awkward and skeptical person in me wondered who it might be… I don’t have any friend ...

I Will Become A Godman

Published September 2, 2017

So after three long months, today my mom asked me again what I plan to do with my life… As if I know :/ It seemed like she was...

An Unforgettable Smile

Published September 1, 2017

As I was standing on the footpath outside my office today, smoking, I saw a man coming out of the ATM, counting the notes he ha...

Raksha Bandhan

Published August 6, 2017

“I saw your friends today. They had Rakhi tied on their hands till their elbow,” my mom said to me. “So what?” I asked. “You ...

It Doesn’t Make Sense

Published July 22, 2017

When I am drunk Even darkness makes more sense to me… I never take a wrong step, I never ever trip over and fall… I have made...

78 Times The Modi Government Made Headlines For The Wrong Reasons

Published March 14, 2017

There is no denying the fact that we are witnessing a phase when India is rapidly being saffronized. The results of the recentl...

Can Narendra Modi’s Association with Dhruv Saxena, Be Considered as an Act of Waging War against India

Published March 9, 2017

As the wheel-chair bound, 90 percent disabled Delhi University Professor GN Saibaba is convicted under the draconian Unlawful A...

The Curious Case Of The Ramjas College Row

Published March 7, 2017

Amidst all the debates and discussions that followed after the Ramjas College row, what is lost and forgotten is the issue of B...

You Cannot Be A Warrior Of Peace, Especially When Your Father Was A Martyr In A War

Published March 4, 2017

The recent attempts to malign the character of Gurmehar Kaur – by branding her as an anti-national and a brainwashed youngster ...

Banning Lipstick Under My Burkha Is Not Unexpected Under The Manusmriti-Worshipping Government

Published March 1, 2017

The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) is making the headlines again for all the wrong reasons as it refuses to certify...

More Than Just Clicking, Less Than Traditional Activism

Published February 27, 2017

Clicktivism or online activism has come under a lot of fire in the past few years during which we have witnessed a tremendous i...

Does Raees Serve The Hindutva Interest Of Making Muslims The “Other”?

Published February 26, 2017

The recent Bollywood blockbuster Raees has been on the headlines regularly not only because it stars Shah Rukh Khan, but also f...

A Tale Of Hindutva Hypocrisy And Media’s Selective Outbursts

Published February 21, 2017

Just a year ago, India was abuzz with the JNU row, and lessons of nationalism and patriotism were being preached on a daily bas...

Jallikattu - Choosing The Lesser Of Two Evils… For The Sake Of Indigenous Breeds Of Cattle

Published February 20, 2017

The recent debates on the Jallikattu ban have seen an outburst of opinions and justifications, both for and against the ban. Th...

An Unstatesmanly Remark By A Statesman

Published February 13, 2017

Although supporters of BJP and especially the Prime Minister are going gaga over Narendra Modi taking a dig at the former Prime...

She Just Needs A Big Hug from Me

Published January 16, 2017

So yesterday, my mom and I exchanged our recent photos with each other after a long time… Since I do not like the other member...

What Happened When I Made The First Live Nude Sketch Of My Life

Published January 14, 2017

It happened almost four years ago… I got my first model, a girl who was ready to pose nude for me to make a live sketch… Even...

How To Kill Gandhi?

Published January 12, 2017

Question: How to kill Gandhi? Answer: Attempt 1: Kill the man, like in the truest sense of the word… Result: Operation_to ki...

Karan Johar's Coming Out

Published January 9, 2017

No, I am not at all a fan of Karan Johar… And considering the kind of films he makes, I have never expected much from him… To...

Sunny Leone, My Academic Life, And A Tale About Interpretation Of Dreams

Published January 7, 2017

Although sometimes I stumble upon ‘stories’ which are stranger than fiction (which I share on Facebook), on a regular day, my l...

Most Of Us Give Up, Do A 9 To 5 Job, And Pay Taxes

Published January 3, 2017

The charcoal pencil set I want to buy costs almost 1500 bucks… Let’s not talk about colours and brushes. The fictional book I ...

What Have You Done With Your Life, Why Are You So Proud Of Yourself?

Published December 30, 2016

If you ask me, “What have you done with your life, why are you so proud of yourself?” (and someone actually asked me this today...

The Curious Case Of Social Networks

Published December 28, 2016

The chatbox beeped… It was a Facebook friend. She had been expressing her desire to meet this Utopian, wannabe artist and writ...

Found... And Lost Each Other Again

Published December 23, 2016

It was a Grand Alumni Meet programme. I won’t disclose if it was a grand gathering of my “mates” from school or college, for r...

This Is The Best Christmas Present I Ever Received

Published December 22, 2016

As you know, I was going through a phase of depression, because I am lagging behind in my dissertation paper (A 4 credit paper;...

Void

Published September 17, 2016

Dear Maa, That Ruksar would come alive some days isn’t something you liked… You will be happy to know that nowadays she doesn’...

Beauty… In Distance…

Published July 26, 2016

I love women. I fall in love everyday (thanks to Facebook). But I don’t bother them at all. I barely send “Hi-Hello” kind of m...

A Night To Remember

Published June 20, 2016

I can spell her name, but can’t pronounce it, for she was French, and French, the language, is hard to explain… They write some...

I Can Never Forget Her… Because I Never Loved Her…

Published April 25, 2016

Dear Maa, I received your letter this afternoon. And since then I have been laughing out loud every now and then… The way you...

Aur Batao...

Published March 20, 2016

Isn’t it irritating when a conversation reaches the ‘Aur Batao’ point: when you don’t have anything else to say or ask, and you...

When It Comes To Love, The Craziest Women Are The Best

Published March 14, 2016

I have known some crazy women, But Ruksar was the craziest. And the craziest women Are always the best When it comes to lov...

A Conversation On Caste

Published February 29, 2016

The owner of my flat: I am totally against reservation. We don’t need reservations in this 21st century… Me: Says the guy who ...

Sociable People Are Psychotic Bore

Published February 28, 2016

Sociable people are boring. They do not see or feel things beyond what is significant by conventional standards… They dismiss e...

The Outcast

Published February 24, 2016

My entire existence is a condition of hysteria of unfulfilled desires… And yet my shoulders are light, For I do not carry eve...

The Hyper-religious

Published February 22, 2016

Being hyper-religious is always associated with insecurity… You are always in the fear of being proved wrong. And hence hyper-...

Selflessly Straightforward And Honest

Published February 20, 2016

15 minutes back I was talking to my mom. I asked her, “Mom, you never supported me when I wanted to join this journalism cours...

Bharat Maata Is Not a Hindu Goddess.Period.

Published February 19, 2016

For your information, Bharat Mata is not a Hindu goddess. She is the goddess of all Indians irrespective of which religion you ...

Patriarchal Government. Patriarchal Voters.

Published February 16, 2016

Why does the cost per student of any institute run by the government matter? Does it mean that if they spend crores of rupees o...

The Idea Of India Is Just An Idea

Published February 15, 2016

I am anti ‘so called India’, for it was never united in the truest sense of the word. Just because our history books have glori...

Being Alice In A Fucked Up, Homophobic Country

Published February 11, 2016

The phone rang. It was an unknown number, and yet I picked it up for some unknown reason. “Is it Pritam?” “Yes…” “I am Reema...

Feeding My Creative Inspirations

Published February 6, 2016

When it comes to feeding my creative aspirations, I like to see how much I can push myself, up to what extent I can leave behin...

Smiling Like An Idiot Doesn't Help At All

Published February 5, 2016

Whoever says ‘don’t complain, just do your work and keep smiling, everything will be alright’ is a dumb fuck idiot… Everything...

A Conversation With An Orthodox Person

Published January 30, 2016

Having a conversation with an orthodox person is so much fun sometimes… Me: Marriage is stupid. The burden of unnecessary asso...

Hallucination

Published January 29, 2016

What if my whole life has been a hallucination? What if one morning I wake up to see that I am on my way to my government job ...

People Are Boring. But Not You.

Published January 28, 2016

“You have gone absolutely bonkers…” “Why?” “The minimum of sweetness in you is gone…” “I don’t get you…I am sweet to you.” ...

I Hope I Don't Get Bored Of Myself

Published January 26, 2016

One of the craziest things about me is that I am absolutely comfortable contemplating the most uncomfortable moments of my life...

Those Sleepless Nights Were A Blessing

Published January 24, 2016

When I was 20 years old, I was diagnosed with a neurological problem, something to do with my spinal cord. The pain, which was ...

Late Night Conversation

Published January 23, 2016

Me: Do you remember that movie ‘English Vinglish’? She: Yes. Me: Do you remember the scene where Sridevi drops an entire plat...

I Love Being An Asshole To Most Of The People

Published January 21, 2016

I love being an asshole to most of the people. For example, if a girl asks me, “How is my new hair cut?” I will probably say, ...

Brothers

Published January 15, 2016

The old woman, Before she died, Never asked for anything, Like they show in those black and white movies. She never asked for ...

The Sabarimala Hypocrisy

Published January 13, 2016

The Sabarimala Ayyappa temple’s chief priest said, “The chief deity in the temple is a celibate. So allowing women to worship i...

Dear Maa, I haven't Moved On

Published January 12, 2016

Dear Maa, No,I haven’t moved on. Nor do I want to. And even though I never tell you this, there is no denying the fact that I ...

India

Published December 20, 2015

The jet from Kolkata to Agartala was less crowded. It made it easier for me to glance through the passengers, looking for famil...

Just Another Relationship

Published December 17, 2015

Dear dad, Every evening, I see this man from my balcony, walking his German Shepherd down the street. He looks rich, healthy a...

I Am Not A Goldfish Circling Around In A Fish Bowl... And I Refuse To Live Like One...

Published September 2, 2015

When I was three, I saw my dad rushing towards my mom in a murderous rage while I was playing with my toys beside her. They had...

I Wish We Could Loot Them

Published July 26, 2015

The incident happened when I was 17 years old. It was in that year, as far as I remember, I had at last given up religion and ...

A Beautiful Woman

Published April 16, 2015

So I was watching “Mahanagar” by the acclaimed film director,Satyajit Ray this afternoon. Set in the 1950s, the movie revolves ...

The Good Indians Pray For Their Country, The BEST Of Indians Get Violent, And I Am An Anti National

Published March 26, 2015

Seeing my indifference towards today’s match between India and Australia, a facebook friend accused me of being a ‘gaddar’, a t...

The Matrimonial Malice

Published March 14, 2015

“Pritam, it’s high time you took life seriously”, advised a relative. It was 2013. I had just started working as an engineer f...

The Whimsical Weed Philosophy

Published March 7, 2015

It was night shift. And I ran out of cigarettes. I was then working at a call centre, before my engineering results were out.T...

Cricket, Cigarettewala & A Little Malice

Published February 22, 2015

Nothing makes the Indian crowd happier than a cricket match on a Sunday morning. I am so happy that I am far away from my famil...

I Have Got Thirty Bucks In My Pocket Right Now

Published February 20, 2015

I have got thirty bucks in my pocket right now. I am the poor guy who goes to salon once in two months to save money, and when...

And This Holds Good For People Outside Facebook As Well

Published February 15, 2015

It’s true that I have a family in facebook. And that includes many people I haven’t seen in person. I haven’t even talked for o...

Goodbye, Bangalore

Published February 7, 2015

Every time I go back home with an intention of never coming back, the heart-wrenching pain of parting with this place makes me ...

Budding Pseudo-Intellectuals

Published December 22, 2014

Budding pseudo-intellectuals are the people I disrespect most. These guys follow a certain idea or a person just because they ...

My Christmas

Published December 21, 2014

I am an atheist. But like any other kid,I too was ‘taught’ to be religious as a kid.And I was a religious kid. I still remember...

Someday I Will Write A Book Worth Reading

Published December 20, 2014

As a kid,everytime I would finish reading a book,an inexplicably happy feeling of accomplishment would overcome me. I would wri...

Hope

Published December 19, 2014

He wanted to stay alone But kept the windows open And as night crawled in He felt better and thought It was because he had ...

It snows Only Once In Our Dreams

Published December 12, 2014

I have read it somewhere That “It snows only once in our dreams.” What about real life? I say it snows twice, And that’s in...

God Is Like A Spoilt, Insensitive, Selfish Brat Of A Rich Dad

Published November 29, 2014

Seven reasons why God is like a spoilt, insensitive, selfish brat of a rich dad: If things do not go his way, he gets ...

The Bedsheet

Published March 13, 2014

He spends his days there Standing in the balcony With his crutch, Watching the busy street down, Watching people with legs ...

The Servant

Published March 7, 2014

If you ask me To tell you a story tonight, I would tell you The one about his past And present And what lies in between. ...

My Father Should Have Come With Us

Published March 4, 2014

When I was a kid And we were poor And we had nothing to eat at night, On the terrace of our small house, We would sit, Me ...

A Prolonged Intrusion

Published February 8, 2014

Sometimes, When the dusk falls And you, standing at your window, With a coffee mug in hand, Look at the crowded street belo...

Nightmares

Published January 25, 2014

You have eyes And you close them To drift into another land, A land, they say, where Everything comes true, The good and t...

Love Child

Published January 15, 2014

It’s not every day that you get a message from someone you least expected, someone you have almost forgotten, not because that ...

She Is So Worth It

Published December 2, 2013

I have always believed in this Bob Marley quote- “ If she’s amazing, she won’t be easy. If she’s easy, she won’t be amazing. If...

A Nameless Relationship

Published October 22, 2013

The beauty of any relationship lies in knowing each other. Whether it’s a relationship of friends or enemies, I guess these are...

Picture Quality Back In Those Days Was Not Good

Published July 30, 2012

Well, back again after an embarassing day.. I was watching porn in the morning. I was feeling chiggy wiggy. And since I am at ...

And Then You Stop Feeling Everything

Published July 8, 2012

We all come across a certain phase of life when even the best teacher can’t teach us the simplest of all things… Still 16-19 y...

Me With Her... And She With Someone Else

Published July 5, 2012

As I look at the extinguished past and violated privacies of today, I see there floats in between them the debris of two souls,...

Cheers To Life... Cheers To Change...

Published December 21, 2011

I still remember those days when I was not allowed to watch English movies, when censor board (my parents) used to put a bann o...