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Spark – August 2013 Print Issue

Buy the August 2013 issue themed, ‘India Decoded’ in print.

Spark – August 2013 Issue

At Spark this month, we return to our favourite theme for August, ‘India Decoded’. Despite the fact that this is the fourth time we are featuring this theme, we have a new set of perspectives to showcase in the issue through a fine selection of fiction, non-fiction, poetry and photography. Additionally, we feature Dilip D’Souza, veteran journalist, as our Writer of the Month, through a special interview.

Seeds

In a “transformation poem”, Bakul Banerjee addresses two grave social situations that plague India.

Speaking Hindi

Ammu and her father have a candid conversation as they travel to Shimla, about why he never quite managed – or bothered – to learn Hindi. Vani Viswanathan pens a story that offers a peek into the life of a rebellious student during Madras State’s protests against Hindi as the official language of India.

India – In Search of an Identity

Preeti Madhusudan believes the architecture of Indian hill-stations need a radical revamp. Read on to know why.

Indian Quirks

Hari Krishnan S. captures some uniquely Indian quirks with his camera.

Maid of Honour

Here’s an interesting conversation between a small girl who has been raised abroad and her mother who is from India. She can’t imagine someone else folding her laundry and surprisingly neither can her mother, now! Gauri Trivedi tells her story.

Paradox India

India, as a nation, is often perceived as a bundle of contradictions. Vinita Agrawal’s poem attempts to cite some of them.

Reading India through Foreign Lens

Vibha Sharma lists five books written by non-Indian authors that she thinks come close to capturing the diversity and chaos that is inherent to India.