Books read in 2025

“It is our choices, which show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.” - J K Rowling

"The day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." - Anaïs Nin

~Highly Recommended~

  • Mera Dagistan - Gamzatov, Rasul
  • Indias War - Raghavan, Srinath

~Worth a Look~
  • Full Spectrum: India's Wars, 1972-2020 - Subramaniam, Arjun
  • Sanskar -Ananthamurthy, U.R.
~Pleasure Reading~
  • A Bend in the River - Naipaul, V.S.
    शिकायत मुझे भी है - Parsai, Harishankar
  • Nine Lives: In Search of the Sacred in Modern India - Dalrymple, William
  • Days at the Morisaki Bookshop (Days at the Morisaki Bookshop, #1) - Yagisawa, Satoshi
  • The Seventh Scroll (Ancient Egypt, #2) - Smith, Wilbur
  • Eskimo boy - Freuchen, Pipaluk
~Avoid~
  • Escape from Pakistan: A War Hero's Chronicle - Chinoy, Dara Phiroze

Comments

Post a Comment

What are people reading?

Kanpur Coaching Gurus

Image
Memories of coaching days at Kanpur are inseparable from me. I have done a separate post on Kanpur coaching mandi only. The most remembered image of my coaching days was the advertisement of Ankush Bhatia by Pran classes, and it was pasted on each wall of Kanpur. His photo was spread at distant corners of the city, showing All India Rank 51. Never seen any local marketing campaign like this. Sometimes, I recall the rush of students from one coaching center to another for seat capture, xerox copying of assignments, and 'out-of-course' study material. The JEE course was never completed on time in the Kanpur coaching mandi. At the end of March, the mad rush to complete the course began with various test series taking place simultaneously. I could not forget that pressure till now. I will never forgive Anish, Pankaj, and Vishnoi sir for combining their individual treats into 1 party for JEE-qualified students. For information on the pre-2000 AD days of coaching mandi, check this l...
Read more

Lyrics of Title Song from Bharat Ek Khoj

सृष्टी से पहले सत्य नहीं था, असत्य भी नहीं अंतरिक्ष भी नहीं, आकाश भीं नहीं था छिपा था क्या कहाँ, किसने देखा था उस पल तो अगम, अटल जल भी कहाँ था सृष्टी का कौन हैं कर्ता कर्ता हैं यह वा अकर्ता ऊंचे आसमान में रहता सदा अध्यक्ष बना रहता वोहीं सच मुच में जानता. या नहीं भी जानता हैं किसी को नहीं पता नहीं पता नहीं है पता, नहीं है पता........... वोह था हिरान्य गर्भ सृष्टी से पहले विद्यमान वोही तो सारे भूत जात का स्वामी महान जो है अस्तित्वमाना धरती आसमान धारण कर ऐसे किस देवता कि उपासना करे हम अवि देकर जिस के बल पर तेजोमय है अम्बर पृथ्वी हरी भरी स्थापित स्थिर स्वर्ग ओर सूरज भी स्थिर ऐसे किस देवता कि उपासना करे हम अवि देकर गर्भ में अपने अग्नी धारण कर पैदा कर्व्यपा था जल इधर उधर नीचे ऊपर जगह चुके वो का एकमेव प्रान बंकर ऐसे किस देवता कि उपासना करे हम अवि देकर ॐ ! सृष्टी निर्माता स्वर्ग रचायता पूर्वज रख्सा कर सत्य धर्मं पलक अतुल जल नियामक रक्षा कर फैली हैं दिशाएं बहु जैसी उसकी सब में सब पर ऐसी ही देवता कि उपासना करे हम अवि देकर ऐसी ही देवता कि उपासना करे हम अवि देकर......
Read more

Kanpur Coaching Days

Image
Within a radius of one kilometer, Kakadeo is the hub of the coaching mandi for JEE, MBA, Medical, etc having at least 20-30 coaching institutes. The classes are run by individuals teaching a single subject with a completely one-man show. Few people object to the name ' mandi ' but it's like a fish market only. Coaching Mandi is the perfect name for it because the teachers are earning the butter, not bread for them. When you go for admissions, people try to admit you to their institute with false advertisements and lucrative trial offers. It's altogether a mandi in which every teacher just wants students' admission, not in JEE, but in their institute. It was an urban legend that girls were used to seduce boys for admission in a few coaching centers. I and my friends tried in vain to find such lethal hunting beauties. My encounter with coaching mandi begins with JEE preparation. Nalanda Hotel, Pamela Restaurant, Agra sweet house were my favorite places there. For othe...
Read more

An off beat Post about Me

Life is chaotically complex series of events, so beautifully woven into a coherent whole. And I am writing most about worldly affairs, Today, I present an off beat weblog about me. Writing : First and most important, I like blogging. When I found the power to express what was in his heart, I found the love of a lifetime. A rare habit that is even continued today with full enthusiasm and pleasure. Also, there is dire need of educated persons who can not only perform better but also express better. Writing skills help one to present himself/herself before others, and also enables to think. Hence, I always encourage people to write and read. Blog : I speak and write a bit harsh and with irreverence in the blog. Anything and anyone is subjected to scrutiny and there should be no sacred cow in the society or nation. I uphold the fact that if an individual spends writing in praise of the authority because of the benefits this brings — as opposed to objective assessment — then t...
Read more

Kanpur Coaching Mandi

Image
For previous article on Kanpur coaching mandi, go through this label of Kanpur Series . Hot News:  IIT Entrance Examination (JEE) of the seven teachers together to prepare a joint platform sigma - IIT JEE is made. Students will get a place to preparing for the three subjects without straying around and meet all the facilities. In addition, due to the joint will reduce the fees too. Sigma of the joint forum of the physics teacher Anish Srivastava and Raj Kushwaha, Ashish Bishnoi and Anurag Bishnoi of mathematics and chemistry of Pankaj Agarwal, Nirmal Singh and Sanjay Chauhan's. Small - small batch (one hundred to two hundred) in the three subjects under the same roof will get a chance to prepare for. Three different subjects to students before a total of 51,300 rupees to pay the fees now total 45,000 fees will be charged. Sigma's head office 117 / N / 581 Raniganj (Kakadev) will be. Old Time:  Even after paying Rs 8,000 for each of the three different JEE subjects, most of the...
Read more