Two days ago, my wife and I took a ride on the metro to the city and had our favourite Malabar parottas in a restaurant at Flora Fountain. In the next table a pretty girl, waved her flashy coconut oiled hair, as a guy nearby smiled at her. Since the…
Science, Faith and Language..!
There are times when I wonder how many brilliant minds have been silenced because someone in flowing robes said that science and faith are enemies. I imagine those minds of yore pacing up and down prison floors or waiting for the crackle of flames under their feet, as they were…
Layla the Littlest..!
There is something very special about the littlest one in a family. Today my youngest grandchild Layla celebrates her first birthday, and I can’t help wondering what it means to be the littlest. Is it always an upward journey from here? Will the littlest always be taken lightly, or will…
Welcome Hardships and Challenges..!
How often we long for a life without problems. And what a terrible life that would be in reality. I once read that when people go through depression, psychologists give them activities called problem solving. These tasks may be as simple as untying a knot or solving a small puzzle….
Double-Engined Hypocrisy..!
The last thing I ever want to do is to bring down the name of a film actor who has just passed away. I loved his charisma and admired the powerful screen presence he carried into every role. But admiration does not mean we close our eyes to reality. And…
Start Asking this Question.!
In my soon to be released book Hi Society, which I hope will soon be in your hands, there is a moment that still echoes in my mind. A massive election rally is underway. Loudspeakers scream, banners wave, drums beat with a vengeance, and party workers run around like headless…
Time to Fix the Oil Leak..!
Somewhere in the nineties I bought what I believed was the most elegant machine on the Indian road. It was the Tata Estate and I must say that vehicle looked like a dream. It stood outside my house like royalty. It was long and majestic. It was spacious and comfortable…
The Lost Uncle and Aunty Generation..!
What troubles me today is watching highly educated uncles and aunties forwarding messages with the same enthusiasm with which they once forwarded marriage proposals and birthday greetings for their children. Take for example the recent message doing its grand parade on WhatsApp. It shows our foreign minister apparently shouting at…
Burning Bibles and Crosses..!
Very often we hear the news of some church vandalised, the altar desecrated, pews overturned and maybe Bibles burnt. Immediately there is a hue and a cry and the noise is as if Christ is being crucified again. There is outrage from the pulpit. There are processions on the street….
A Commode Made of Gold..!
At a Sotheby’s auction in New York, a golden commode was sold for twelve point one million dollars. Yes, you read that right. Not a diamond. Not a painting. Not even a sculpture made by a genius who starved for his art. A toilet commode. As I heard the news,…
Robert Clements is a newspaper columnist and writes a daily column, which has graced the pages of over 60 newspapers and magazines, from a daily column in the Khaleej Times, Dubai, the Morning Star, London, and in nearly every state in India, from The Statesman in Kolkata, to the Kashmir Times in Kashmir to the Trinity Mirror in Chennai.