I think of myself as Pac-man collecting pointless dots on its way to certain death. — Hi. Nice to meet you, what’s your name? (Also, n2mywyn is my current ear-worm. Feel free to let it play in the BG while you read further.) Will this bite me in the backside when I’m famous? I’ve recently established a foolproof benchmark of self-evaluation. I ask myself this: “Will this bite me in the backside when I’m famous?”. …

It’s been eight years since I moved to Germany. I’m officially German now. As time passes I am beginning to realize the possibility that I might need to move there for my elderly parents, knowing it isn’t going to be one bit easy — I look around for examples of people who have moved back. I only know those who talk about it. Few have the courage, means, and most importantly, both. Why does anybody want to move back?

Leaving your country for a good life is not fun. — In one gut-wrenching moment in the documentary “Cuba with a Cameraman” a four-year-old girl in New York gets to go to see her grandmother in Cuba for the first time in her life. The girl’s mother breaks down in tears of joy on reuniting with her mother. They were Cuban…

Available on Netflix — There are many war movies — Schindler’s List, Saving Private Ryan, Dunkirk, and The Pianist to name a few iconic ones. WW2 is a topic that is never exhausted of perspectives. Many horrifying, and some incredibly inspiring stories came out of that era. The following documentaries from the wartime, pre…

A disruptive Peer-to-Peer mentorship platform in Hyderabad — It started as a side hustle and turned into a booming business with a million-dollar revenue. Gradvine’s story is nothing short of inspiring. I had a chance to interview Suraj, the co-founder, to spill his story on how to build a successful business. He, along with founder Sreekar, started Gradvine…

Bike, hike, or chill How would you spend them if you had just 4 or 5 days of vacation — too little to go far, too much to stay home! Such are long weekends. …

One of the few well-made movies this season — Death is an uncomfortable topic. To tell the story of a death with humor, and yet to bring you to tears multiple times through the plot is genius. Balagam, by director Venu Yaldandi, was genius. The plot without spoilers The plot plays in a small village in Telangana. It follows the death of a…

Is it about a bar? politics? cricket match? love? friendship? Revenge? — Dasara came into theatres this year on the 30th of March. It performed reasonably well at the box office, now already set for streaming on Netflix. I had the chance to watch this movie after a month of its release on the big screen. Was it worth it? Dasara opened…

In the summer holidays of my 7th Standard, I remember this picture vividly. I had put Ruskin Bond’s Short Stories face-down beside me to laugh at my cousin, while we all sat in the antique living room of my mother’s ancestral home. The stories in that book reminded me of…