Many years ago while reading the book, Silas Marner by George Eliot, I remember the way one of the characters, Molly dies in a snow storm. She trudges through the falling snow and finding it increasingly difficult to walk, stumbles, falls, then takes the last bit of opium she carries…
Mouse and Motherboard..!
India may be tops in IT, but for those who have not mastered mouse and motherboard, the changeover is a nightmare! A few years ago a writer friend of mine who was a diehard typewriter faithful finally was persuaded to change over to a computer. He had his first problem…
Truth and Justice Chandrachud..!
‘..truth is both a sword and a shield in a democracy…” Justice Chandrachud “Impossible!” we shake our heads and say in disbelief. “That there’s actually someone who believes in the truth!” we whisper. With lies, fake news, manipulation of data and tweaking of facts becoming a way of life, and…
Ban Lifts and Bridges..!
Three years ago Mumbai woke up to the scary news that a portion of a bridge in Andheri had collapsed. Soon all bridges were hurriedly scrutinized and the next morning’s paper mentioned three bridges had been closed to the public and people banned from using them. A few years ago,…
God’s Garlands for Us..!
The old man looked out of his window. He saw his neighbour very surreptitiously placing a ladder on his side of the wall, then as he watched, the man very quietly climbed up, put his hand onto the other side which was the old man’s side of the wall, and…
Woman Thrown Off Train..!
‘WOMAN RESISTS ROBBER ON TRAIN,” read the headlines, ‘AND FALLS ON TRACKS!’ A few years ago I read about fifty-eight old Pratibha Tripathi, on a train to Bangalore, when a robber tries to snatch her handbag. She holds on to it, is dragged bleeding to the door, where she falls…
Choral Music and the Sound Man..!
Since I love choral music every once in a while I’m asked to come as a judge to hear choirs perform. Before the pandemic an event turned out to be quite an interesting day for me. I sat with two other judges and listened to nine choirs rendering beautiful choral…
Stop, just Stop!
This happened last year when the lockdown was first imposed. Everybody stayed at home, and many lost their jobs. But one day I had to drive to the electricity department because of a lost bill, and this was when it happened. It’s something that even now makes me feel terrible…
Four Penniless Rich Men Meet A Billionaire..!
Ah well dear folks this be an imaginary story I tell, where them three billionaires Mukesh, Anil, Adani and we’ll even throw in Bill Gates as the fourth for good measure or just to give it an international flavour, got together one day to decide who be the richest of…
Let’s Sting Ourselves..!
Was watching a video clip of a policeman caught taking a bribe and realized today is the age of sting operations, when we quietly film each other’s misdeeds! No minister, policeman or public official is safe as cameras come in all shape and sizes. But what about turning those cameras…
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.