This August, we return to one of our favourite topics on Spark – Indianness. A wonderful mix of poetry, fiction and non-fiction that touches upon the various colours, emotions and characteristics of India awaits you! And when we talk India and its ambitions, how can we miss the wonderful Dr. Kalam – read our tribute to the man who shaped thoughts and ignited the minds of thousands of India’s children. We hope you enjoy the eclectic mix of thoughts and stories that this issue holds.
Shanti is unhappy because a poetic note that he writes questioning a certain police action is met with indifference. M. Mohankumar writes a poem on the bureaucracy in India.
Bhargavi Chandrasekharan pays a tribute to the man who led by example, to the President who listened to his conscience and to a visionary who inspired a generation of Indians to dream beyond the skies.
A young boy and his mother are mesmerised by the new Ambassador their neighbour has purchased. Set at a time when cars were still an unaffordable luxury for many, Himangshu’s story recounts the average hypocritical Indian.
Selvi lives in a slum and works as a cleaner in a posh-looking construction company. Preeti Madhusudhan captures a day in the life of Selvi in a story that throws light on the dark corners of a booming India, where shiny, glass buildings stand in sharp contrast to heart-wrenching poverty. A work of fiction that brings two contradictory shades of Indianness to the fore.
Saranyan’s poem is about a man, a loner seeking company. He is unable to connect with anyone except objects. In verse that captures the mood and settings of an Indian dhaba, we get a glimpse of a darker side to Indianness.
Shantamma, the house help, dreams of a good Diwali bonus from the houses that she works at, and through a stroke of serendipity, she gets extra lucky this year.
It’s not an uncommon sight to see an Indian parent running behind her child in a bid to feed the kid a few morsels of food. Parth Pandya offers a humourous take on this amusing aspect of Indian parenting.
Nandagopal’s poem offers a peek into the life of an Indian citizen, Muthu, a straight talker who believes that as far as his life is concerned, he has done well by Indian standards.