Nithya K's Blog

October 12, 2025

Book Review: Parenting Unplugged

Book name: Parenting Unplugged

Publisher: Om Books International

Author: Lalitha Ramanathan

Pages: 264

Buy link: Order your copy

Blurb

A witty and honest dive into modern parenting, one hilarious, heartfelt anecdote at a time, Parenting Unplugged: The Drama Mama Diaries is a parenting manual like no other. Lalitha Ramanathan shares stories of the comical conversations she has had with her young daughter, reminding parents that the journey is messy and magical but also...

 •  0 comments  •  flag
Share on Twitter
Published on October 12, 2025 03:01

October 10, 2025

Book Review: 12 Years: My Messed-up Love Story

Book: 12 Years: My Messed-up Love Story
Author: Chetan Bhagat
Publisher: ‎ Harper Fiction India
Language: ‎ English
Paperback: ‎ 432 pages
Buy link: Order

Blurb

He’s 33. She’s 21.

He’s a struggling stand-up comic. She’s a rising star in private equity.

He’s divorced. She’s never had a boyfriend.

He’s Punjabi. She’s from a conservative Jain family.

They shouldn’t be together. But they can’t stay apart.

Welcome to 12 Years: My Messed-Up Love Story.

Saket and Payal couldn...

 •  0 comments  •  flag
Share on Twitter
Published on October 10, 2025 03:06

May 31, 2025

Book Review: The Tiger’s Share

Title: The Tiger’s Share

Author: Keshava Guha

Publisher:

Hardback:

Buy Here: Amazon

Keshava Guha’s The Tiger’s Share arrives like an uncomfortable truth—necessary, unsettling, and impossible to ignore. Set against the backdrop of contemporary Delhi, this novel transforms a family’s private upheaval into a meditation on responsibility, decay, and the price of caring too much in a world that seems to care too little.

The story begins with an act of abandonment that ...

 •  0 comments  •  flag
Share on Twitter
Published on May 31, 2025 05:09

Book Review: A Temple of No Gods

Book Title‏: ‎ A Temple of No Gods

Author: ‎ Manav Kaul (Originally in Hindi: Shirt Ka Teesra Button)

Translator: Sayari Debnath (Hindi to English)

Publisher: ‎ Penguin

Language: ‎ English

Paperback: ‎ 277 pages

Buy here: ‎Amazon 

Review:

There are books that you read, and then there are books that consume you. Manav Kaul’s A Temple of No Gods belongs firmly to the latter category—a quiet, devastating exploration of childhood’s end that left me staring at my ...

 •  0 comments  •  flag
Share on Twitter
Published on May 31, 2025 03:36

May 13, 2025

Trip to Leh

My brother-in-law and co-sister love to travel. Over the years, DH and I have tagged along with them and visited many lovely places. Bhutan, Tamil Nadu, Coonoor, and recently, Leh.

Leh is a tough terrain. It takes immense courage to drive over those rocky roads, maneuvering through the treacherous roads.

Before we started, many people, including the travel coordinator, gave us helpful tips to cope with the rough climatic conditions and return safely.

The most important ones include: ...

 •  0 comments  •  flag
Share on Twitter
Published on May 13, 2025 06:52

April 29, 2025

Zoo

Last year, I took Tara (and my parents) to the Vandalur Zoo. My mum kept asking me to plan a trip. She wanted to show Tara the different animals. We took along her animal toys so that she could identify them as we walked through the enclosures.

The zoo is huge! After an hour of walking, carrying a nearly tired toddler, we decided to stop for snacks and drinks. Tara seemed to enjoy the snack court also. She played merrily with the other kids.

For me, it was a different experience. All kin...

 •  0 comments  •  flag
Share on Twitter
Published on April 29, 2025 22:18

You’re Scrolling Again, Aren’t You?

You pick up your phone just for a second. Maybe to check the time. Maybe to reply to that one message. But before you know it, ten minutes have vanished. Then twenty. You’re deep into a reel about a dog that can skateboard or a recipe you’ll never cook. Sound familiar?

This is not a guilt trip. We all do it. The scroll is designed to be endless, the dopamine hits small but consistent. Our brains, ever so hungry for novelty, fall for it every time. And while it feels harmless in the moment...

 •  0 comments  •  flag
Share on Twitter
Published on April 29, 2025 09:15

April 28, 2025

Xeroxed Fears

Ramcharan returned from school at 5 p.m. daily. His elder sister, Kamla, would sit with him, going over his homework patiently before they both joined their younger siblings, Jaya, Meena, Som, and Bhawani, for a game outside. Ram was studying to be an engineer, the future breadwinner of the family.

His father, Narayan, worked in the Army, while Kamla served as a nurse. Her leave would soon end, and once she returned to her base, Ram would be left to manage the little battalion of siblings...

 •  0 comments  •  flag
Share on Twitter
Published on April 28, 2025 04:26

April 26, 2025

Why I Should Never Be Left Alone with a Toolbox

It started innocently enough. One quiet Sunday afternoon, I decided to fix a “minor” problem in my apartment: the kitchen cabinet door was hanging a little loose. A small wobble, barely noticeable — unless, of course, you’re me and possess the blessed combination of excessive confidence and absolutely no mechanical skill.

I had recently bought myself a toolbox from Amazon. A gift to myself. A reward, if you will, for surviving an intense week of work, social obligations, and the existential c...

 •  0 comments  •  flag
Share on Twitter
Published on April 26, 2025 01:16

April 24, 2025

Varanasi

I have been in awe of Benaras. I have gone there once when I was a little girl. Mum and I sat on the ghats and ate kulfi. Mum also bought pan and said I wasn’t allowed to have it just yet. I waited to grow up to eat pan. I am yet to revisit as an adult. Here’s a short story.

——————————————————————————

Ramesh hadn’t planned on going to Varanasi. It was one of those detours life throws at you—unplanned, uninvited, but oddly insistent. My father’s friend, Uncle Suresh, had passed away, and th...

 •  0 comments  •  flag
Share on Twitter
Published on April 24, 2025 22:22