Author: Lavanya Sirisha

Front-end developer, Content Writer, Mandala artist An artistically-flavoured minimalist exploring the world one step at a time!

Must Watch Indian Movies

Lootera

Vikramaditya Motwane’s realistic filmography was visibly seen in his first project, ‘Udaan’. Following his own footsteps, he replicated it in ‘Lootera’. The colour-grading, as well as the panning of the camera, opens with a leisurely warmth in the first half. However, it moves to an edgier and colder grading as the sadness overwhelms the narrative in the later part of the movie.


Motwane’s 2013 period drama, ‘Lootera’, follows the love story of an archaeologist and a literary-minded daughter of a wealthy landlord. The director sets the story against the backdrop of the abolition of the zamindari system. The movie is visibly demarcated into two halves set in rural Bengal and Dalhousie, respectively.

The shift in the color palette influences the viewer’s experience to understand and feel the emotions more closely. The sunny days of West Bengal appear overwhelmingly warm and secure when put against the snowy, lifeless and cold snapshots at the end of the film. In an interview, Motwane spoke about the brilliance of the aesthetics of the cinema of the 50s. His attempts to use the atmosphere to convey things is an attempt to achieve a similar feat.

Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara

Zoya Akhtar’s ‘Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara’ is a visual delight with a breathtaking landscape of the Spanish countryside and an equally eye-pleasing cast. Akhtar, quite often, allows the audience to admire and fancy these people and these locations by keeping the camera still at them for long durations. Carlos Catalan, who was the cinematographer for the film, invested a great deal of time to create such sights. The creators have frequently relied upon three of the primary colors, namely red, blue and green, to convey emotions, ambience and thoughts that overwhelm our characters. Akhtar has juxtaposed the pensive and thoughtful moments with the delightful ones.


In contrast, the former are subdued with un-illuminated shades, the latter pop out with blazing colors to signify brighter emotions. At the start of the movie, we see the three protagonists in their natural habitat, away from each other. Each one’s environment is shown to be devoid of colors, especially Arjun and Kabir. Arjun, in particular, is surrounded by dark and gloomy colors. These colors often compliment his formal and detached personality. Kabir, on the other hand, can be seen surrounded by a colorless environment of white and gold that reeks of sophistication and riches.

However, as the movie progresses and we witness them coming to life, many visuals, in the latter half, contain wider shots to incorporate more colors from the environment. Farhan Akhtar, in an interview, talked about the need for shooting in Spain. He said, “the screenplay of Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara called for a vibrant setting” to convey the vibrancy of the trio together.

Bedazzle – Book Review

Introduction

What boosts up your confidence in social media? Apparently, the amount of kindness and appreciation from the wonderful people here on our site boosts my confidence.

‘Bedazzle‘ by Shamoly Khera is an effective self help book that educates the readers about how confidence sprouts inside everyone, the author has given many instances to make the readers understand some crucial topics. The book is well researched and efficacious.

‘Our ‘weirdness’ is actually our uniqueness. Our only job in this world actually is to not be like anyone else, but be the best version of ourselves.

– From ‘Bedazzle’ by Shamoly Khera.

Interpretation

This book explores the idea of adapting yourself to the environment around you, coming out of your comfortable zone and the significance of perspectives. I loved how the author has elucidated about discerning our aspirations and drives, a lot of you would feel reluctant to take up a job/stream of education you really love, Shamoly Khera has given an interesting example of the different dispositions we watch in the ‘Friends’ series, if you’ve watched the show, then the way the author has drawn a parallel line will definitely fascinate you.

The mindset of an individual matters a lot, in order to become successful or achieve something you should have a clear mindset. The information about the ‘Fixed Mindset’ and ‘Growth Mindset’ is one of the best insights I’ve got from this book. I’ve added some of the best insights in my book journal as well.

This book offers you the beneficial information to boost your confidence, the amount of research and the plausible instances the author has given are really convincing. If you are looking for an insightful self help book, you can go for this one.

Unfettered Wings – A Book Review

Introduction

LEXIBLE, STOIC, CALM, UNDERSTANDING and so many glorifying words to teach women how they should behave in relationships, with family members and literally with everyone.

Have you ever physically cringed while encountering stoic women characters in a movie/book, who behave like a rehabilitation centers for emotionally unavailable men? Have you ever felt betrayed when the society normalizes the mansplaining?

I was reading a ridiculous, an absolutely disgusting statement yesterday, ‘Women using mobiles will pave a way for them to elope with men’. The appalling thing is the above statement was made by Women’s Commission Member. When women talk about their broken marriage, abusive relationships, the distressing advice, the society throws in their face is, ‘YOU COULD HAVE BEEN FLEXIBLE, IT WOULD HAVE WORKED’.

The above statement justifies that, if a woman is not stoic, if a woman is not flexible, she deserves the abuse. It’s high time we have to stop glorifying the flexible women.

The Book Analysis

‘Unfettered Wings’ by Sana Munir is an excellent collection of short stories that delineate the lives of ten Pakistani women, ‘Unfettered’, YES, the women you encounter in these stories are uncontrollable, they are unbounded from abusive relationships, moral policing, society’s pejorative stereotypes. This powerful collection of short stories left an indelible impact, agonizing story of Reema who’s sexually abused by her uncle in childhood, story of a young, charming Habiba who’s shot by her brother for helping a man without his knowledge, an appalling story of a sex worker, and so many grisly storylines made my blood run cold. Some stories revolve around the political tensions in the borders alongside the portrayal of harrowing emotions of women.

Sana Munir’s writing style is claustrophobic. It’s still suffocating me. A must read feminist literary work.

LGBT Marriages In The Past

The Reality

Leela Namdeo and Urmila Shrivastava, two policewomen from Madhya Pradesh married to each other in 1987. Leela and Urmila consequently chastised by the police force, discharged of their duties for “inappropriate behavior,” and inundated with media attention.

The incident and its torturous representation in the media was said to be a surreptitious signal to deter lesbians from pursuing relationships and coming out of the closet in India. This coverage coincided with the emergence in the late 1980s of an increasing visibility and organization within the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) community, culminating in the publication of the first queer magazine Bombay Dost in 1990. ‘It was like a renaissance for us along with magical time of affirmation and hope’, says a queer person from Delhi.

The Change

The momentum carried through into the 1990s when a boom in media coverage, television discussions and books by queer activists contributed to a wholesale widening of exposure and acceptance of sexual difference on the subcontinent. The world was changing and this time India was changing with it .

From 1987-1989, lesbians from Delhi Group met for informal gatherings, or “single women’s nights,” in members’ homes to discuss compulsive heterosexuality and to bond over their identification as “women who love women.”

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑷𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑵𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒂𝒍𝒆 – Book Review

𝑨𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒘𝒐 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒘𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒖𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝒋𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒏𝒆𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒄𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒖𝒑 𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒗𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒄𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒕 𝒔𝒉𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒐 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒘𝒂𝒚.’

‘𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑷𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑵𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒂𝒍𝒆’ 𝒃𝒚 𝑨𝒃𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒌 𝑩𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒕

Interpretation

A beautiful book you read recently?

Beautiful song it was! I listened to a beautiful song and then I was wondering, did I just read a book? It’s rhythmical and melodious. The blurb says it’s a ‘tragic tale of two star crossed love’, but it wasn’t. It was balmy and soothing, it uplifted my spirits and delineated a beautiful love story with the aesthetic backdrop of post independence period.

I have read a lot of exhausting and overwritten Indian romance with the backdrop of post independence period, ‘The Prince and the Nightingale‘ is certainly a comfortable read for me, the writing style, character sketch and everything is comforting, reading this book is quite similar to watching a vintage romance movie.

Plotline

The story revolves around Abhimanyu, a prince who has decided to follow his passion after the collapse of princely states in India and Meera, a commoner who struggles to earn a good position in the society, the family roots of Meera intimidate her to follow her passion, when these two different people from different social backgrounds meet, melodious and melancholic song of ‘The Prince and the Nightingale’ commence painstakingly.

If you are looking for a good, refined Indian romance novel, I would certainly recommend this book.

The Cuban Struggle Of 2021

INTRODUCTION

In the past few months, the world has been made aware of the atrocities the Cuban people have endured for 62 years at the hands of their government. The content being shared is far from comfortable to view and it has been emotionally and mentally exhausting having to speak out so that the families on the island can have a chance at freedom.

I have the privilege of being able to post freely and criticize both the US and Cuban government without fear of prosecution, the people of Cuba don’t. Myself, and other Cubans as well, have been spreading imagery and stories of what is occurring to amplify their voices on a larger scale to garner international support. They don’t have a way of knowing we’re doing this because internet blackouts keep occurring, but it’s crucial to stand in solidarity with them because it’s been too long and we ask other non-Cuban friends for help.

I’ve found myself having to prove a country’s history and struggle to people who don’t have the full picture of what is going on. Having allies in this moment is crucial, the Cuban people have been screaming for years but now people are finally listening.

HOW CAN YOU HELP?

  1. Spread awareness- share photos, videos, and content about what’s going on social media.
  2. Lend your voice to the fight.
  3. Learn about the situation.
  4. Have conversations with Cubans to provide them emotional support.
  5. Find out and support the team on StudentsforafreeCuba.

Don’t let the movement die down, don’t let them keep suffering at the hands of an oppressive dictatorship.

FREE PALESTINE

Introduction

It’s so frustrating when people accuse us of being anti-Palestinians or they call us fascists, etc. after a post or comment we make in defense of the very misinformed & biased posts painting Israel like the devil while completely leaving out Palestinian militant’s & Hamas’ role in the conflict.

First of all, read a book or 2. Also, research the topic using unbiased sources as much as possible, or at least, differing perspectives.

Secondly, do you realize how sad it is that you associate hating Palestinians with supporting Jewish people’s right to also live peacefully in the land they ARE indigenous to? The two are not mutually exclusive; I support Palestinians freedom(FROM HAMAS) AND Israelis right to live in their land peacefully. That does not mean I agree or condone everything either group’s authorities do, but I don’t have to support everything government officials do in order to support their people and when you look at human rights violations as well as the other ways Palestinians are being oppressed you need to point your fingers at their very own ‘government’. Hamas causes way more damage to Palestinians than Israel does, not to mention, Israel’s actions are in defense of attacks from an organization that wants them all dead. I think that’s a good reason to fight back, don’t you?

Conclusion

To support Israel as Jewish people’s home, as its been from the beginning, & after being kicked out of every other country/land they tried to peacefully settle in plus loosing over 6 million of their ancestors in the Holocaust, seems very reasonable.

It doesn’t mean I don’t also believe Palestinians deserve to live peaceful lives free from oppression.

When did our fellow leftist liberals become so close minded & have you all always gotten your news from social media? Did no one explain that although social media is a good & entertaining place to start, it’s biased (yes, me too, although I at least attempt to be open & fair minded).

Gender Incongruence

Introduction

When you discover your state of gender incongruence, every therapist you meet will ask you the same question – when did you know? How did you know? Now, we know what they want; they’d perhaps like to find some deeply ingrained personal hurt, some evidence of pathos, symptoms and signs pointing toward a diagnosis. But what if you first felt gender incongruent when you discerned that your father was somehow never meant to cry? The realization that the most intense emotion he ever portrayed was rage? What if you felt gender incongruent when you got into classroom fist fights you really didn’t want anything to do with? A lot of transfeminine people/trans women will tell you they feel far more emotionally labile when beginning Oestrogen.

Advocacy

Pharmacology aside, I hypothesize that much of it is a visceral disinhibition, the opening of a floodgate, a downpour of everything any human being should be able to feel – only, the privilege of being able to feel is restricted in society. Apparent masculinity comes with great privilege in a patriarchy. They try to toughen up, they hide the playground hurt, they hold sorrow in excruciating lumps in our throats, because they’d like some of that privilege, they’d like safety, they’d like not to be harassed, molested, assaulted. Eventually, they realize that the feigning comes at a cost too great, and they go about resolving the incongruence to become our truest selves. The psychiatrist wants to hear about the distress in not being able to wear pink, play with Barbie Dolls. But I think what we don’t want to hear is that we as a society create the incongruence – we disallow the natural and call it anomalous. They will never know what it is like to live in a society that teaches its men that they may feel just as intensely. That they may cry when hurt. That they may be hurt. That they may be sexually assaulted, that they may experience psychological distress. It’s possible that a less stringently gendered world would result in less intense gender dysphoria. Personalities like Laxmi Narayan Tripathi are trying to tell us exactly that. I truly believe that a less stringently gendered world would mean healthier people, families, societies, nations.

TRANSGENDER PERSONS (PROTECTION OF RIGHTS) RULES (2021)

The Introduction

1. The government of India has already pushed and continues to push the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 and Rules, 2020 as an extraordinarily progressive thing. However, that’s not true.

2. The Rules describing how the Act would be implemented were rolled out for consultation in the middle of a nationwide lockdown, when the trans community was extraordinarily vulnerable and continues to be. Draft Rules were published thrice, the third time being on 25th September, 2020.

3. The community has protested the Act ever since it was a Bill in 2016 for several reasons – poor definition of trans people, reduced sentencing for our rape, no horizontal reservation, criminalizing begging (major income source) and most starkly, the complete absence of the right to self determine your own gender as guaranteed by NALSA vs UoI, a Supreme Court Judgement.

4. The 2016 Bill proposed a District Screening Committee that would screen trans bodies (degree of invasiveness not specified) before allowing them to self identify. This committee was done away with in later versions of the Bill, but the spirit of screening via District Magistrate remains even today, just less invasively. ONLY AFTER sex reassignment surgery, regardless, would you be entitled to the markers ‘male’ or ‘female’, completely disregarding that surgery is expensive and inaccessible to most of the community. Further, surgery doesn’t determine gender. Surgery is a personal choice.

Conclusive Points

5. Over the years, the community protested vehemently against all of the above. No one gets to denude and degrade us to “check” or “screen” our genders for us. Gender identity can be determined by no one but yourself.

6. Extensive, tireless feedback from the community has FINALLY been taken seriously to undo a lot of the damage the Act and Rules could have done. You’ll no longer need surgery before being entitled to binary markers, but you’ll have to provide some proof of medical intervention (includes anything from counselling to surgery). Better than before, but still, nothing to celebrate.

Movie Recommendations – Romance/Drama

American Beauty

Sam Mendes’ debut film and eventual Best Picture Winner at the Oscars is an incisive, deliriously funny and profound vision of the American Dream hitting meltdown. “American Beauty” is about mood, not plot. Sadly, the mood is despair, isolation and hopelessness. Lester (Kevin Spacey), who narrates this riveting film, informs viewers at the beginning that he will be dead by the end but the film itself helps understand why this tough decision is made as well as why it seems like a it sadly isn’t the worst option. ⁣


⁣Lester’s life seems like the perfect one, he has a respectable job and a family. But he is slowly but surely falling into a deep depression. This new struggle in life that he is facing leads him to do outrageous things, and becoming infatuated with his daughter’s friend, Angela, seems to be the most impactful thing.⁣

Carol

Mara and Blanchett make for an unforgettable couple in a beautiful film about longing, loss and the confusion and wonder of love. This movie will haunt you with its tale of love denied and forbidden, and a woman’s quest to live authentically while facing social prejudices and bigotry that force her to make a difficult choice. Haynes’ commitment to outcasts, then and now, makes Carol a romantic spellbinder that cuts deep, it is based on Patricia Highsmith’s The Price of Salt, the Oscar-nominated film is a triumph of its lead actors in particular.⁣


⁣Therese Belivet (Rooney Mara) works at a department store in Manhattan where she encounters the beautiful Carol (Cate Blanchett). Things take an unexpected turn when Therese develops strong feelings for Carol and is trying to figure out how to deal with these emotions without ruining her entire life.⁣

Movie Recommendations – Thriller Genre

Shutter Island

This neo-noir film marked the 4th collaboration between the great Scorsese and DiCaprio. An enthralling psychological thriller based on a 2003 novel by the same name. Arguably, it runs along the same lines of that of Nolan’s Inception, where we are left with an aching mind as we over-analyze and try to make sense of the reality of these characters. The strongest asset of this film is the character commitment. From DiCaprio, to Ruffalo, to Ben Kingsley – they draw us into this sense of fear and irrationality needed to carry the intrigue the film requires. One that when viewed a second time, you wish you picked up the clues along the way during your first. ⁣


⁣
Two US marshals are sent to an asylum on a rainy, remote island to investigate the disappearance of a patient. The trip uncovers shocking truths about the institution and its newest guests.⁣

The Courier

Based on the true life of Grenville Wynne, this thrilling dramatic, cold-war era spy film does not need to exaggerate to impress. Benedict Cumberbatch’s nervy performance makes him the perfect actor to be casted for this role. His journey from an everyday salesman to a courier for the US Government divides the film into two halves, the latter half darker and more intense. Required however to evoke the trauma and angst the moments deserve.  ⁣


An unassuming British businessman is recruited into one of the greatest international operations in history. Under the organization of the MI-6 and CIA operatives, he forms a covert, dangerous partnership with a Soviet officer in an effort to provide crucial intelligence needed to prevent a nuclear war. ⁣

Movies From The Past – 1

Sense And Sensibility

Unraveling the plight of women in both love and money in the 19th century, this 1996 adaptation of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility ignites the pull between heart and head. Set in the early 1800s, the cinematography of this film is telling of its 1990s production. With that in mind, I watch and re-watch this for the beauty of the set, location and characters. Before Titanic, Winslet captured my heart here with her portrayal of Marianne, providing the perfect balance of naivety and strength. Emma Thompson graces the screen with the elegance she always brings, as Elinor. Although changes have been made from Austen’s first published work of Sense and Sensibility, this film brings the story of romance, sisterly bonds and betrayal to life. ⁣


⁣Mrs. Dashwood and her daughters, Elinor, Marianne and Margaret are cast out from their beloved home and lavish lifestyle after the death of Mr. Dashwood. Marianne falls in love with the wrong suitor and Elinor denies her feelings for another. This film encapsulates the romance, loss, betrayal and realization of finding love in a world built for men.⁣

The Artist

“The Artist” is a movie for people who love movies. It is a touching and mostly silent movie with a musical soundtrack about an aging film idol, a peppy young actress and the passing of the silent-movie era. For a silent movie, this French salute to Hollywood’s transition to talkies in the late ’20s sure has some interesting things to say, it is simply irresistible. More than a skit, this is a lively and lovable comedy that’s full of personality and charm. This glorious film won Best Picture at the Oscars and is enhanced by brilliant performances.⁣


⁣Peppy Miller falls in love with the silent film star George Valentin. Things change when Peppy becomes a famous actor while George’s career goes downhill with the introduction of talkies.⁣

The Beauty Of Gulzar

Parallelism

In his seminal essay, ‘The Defence of Poetry‘, the Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley endeavors to define the function of poetry. Shelley states that “Poetry lifts the veil from the hidden beauty of the world, and makes familiar objects be as if they were not familiar.”

On that account, Shelley would readily claim Gulzar in his breed of poets for the latter’s ability to verbalize and derive poetry out of regular and commonplace things. Over the course of half a century, Gulzar has produced countless verses that have left every listener mesmerized by the extraordinary visuals produced by ordinary words.

How Does He Make The Impact?

The immense power of Gulzar’s pen has found numerous means. He has written dialogues, screenplays and even poetic anthologies. However, the dominion where he reigns supreme is lyricism. Verses produced by him propel any song towards the domain of poetry. His graceful blend of Hindi and Urdu allows him to draw images and sights that could only be a poet’s imagination.

What fascinates about his writing capabilities, even more, is the ubiquitousness of it. These lyrics talk and discuss anything and everything on the face of the earth. A simple look at the body of his work might overwhelm anyone for the number of songs that he has penned in his splendid career. This number, however, feels surprisingly insufficient when you begin to listen to each song. For the more you discover, the more you crave.

Black Friday By James Patterson

Introduction

A wise man once said, if you start reading James Patterson‘s books you will never be able to stop visualizing about the story for weeks!! How exciting and exhilarating the journey was! It’s been a long time since I read his books. After reading a lot of overwhelming reads, I decided to pick Patterson’s book up.

This book was originally published in the year 1986 with the themes of economic warfare and a brainy FBI service cop investigating the terrorists group which caused several bombings in the wall street.

PLOTLINE AND ANALYSIS

James Patterson’s Alex Cross series is my all-time favorite. Archer Caroll reminded me of Alex Cross and his breathtaking investigations. This is a brilliantly written novel with the secret militia group, and deterioration of financial systems of the world.

The storyline is very interesting and some parts are certainly difficult to understand as it vividly concentrates on the American stock markets. A secret militia group called ‘Green Band’ scares the world by collapsing the stockmarkets of wall street. A lawyer Caitlin Dillon tries to solve the chaos with Archer Caroll. The bomb threats, stupendous adventures of Caroll, nostalgic love of Archer Caroll and Nora are the typical, awe inspiring elements in Patterson’s works. Little did I know that I was yearning for an action thriller genre. After reading ‘Black Friday’ I definitely want to read more books from this genre now. I was binge reading this book, it was an engrossing summer read for me! Guess what? I’m gonna add more Patterson’s books in my list now.

Do you love reading American thriller books/series? Comment down below!

A Folklore For My Generation

‘There was something special about the sixties. That seems true now, in retrospect, but even when I was caught up in the whirlwind of it happening I was convinced of it’

Haruki Murakami for A Folklore For My Generation

INTRODUCTION AND ANALYSIS

The story of 1960s, with the blend of magical Beatles and students’ movements, this short story is one of the insightful creations of Murakami‘s. He has delineated the life of the adults in 1960s with the evocative storyline. Moreover, he talks about the boisterous students and their complicated emotions in relationships.

Two high school friends are meeting again in Italy and discussing about their life. The story moves from the outlook of the narrator, he reminisces the story of his friend and parallelly his friend narrates it from another perspective.

‘If you have ever gone to high school, you know the type I mean. There’s somebody like him in every class, the kind that keep things running smoothly’

He introduces the protagonist as a perfectionist, the above lines elucidate the demeanor of the central character, the relationship of the perfectionist and his Miss Clean girlfriend Yoshiko.The girlfriend’s character is as complex as his typical, classic characters, she makes you wince, laugh and cry.

Both friends are talking about their work lives in present, in retrospect, the narrator contemplates about the relationship of his friend and Yoshiko. The emotions are fervent and profound, the story revolves around the deep seated thoughts of Yoshiko and how she panics to marry his friend despite of the excellent wavelength in their relationship, the strong convictions of Yoshiko and how she sets boundaries in the relationship which makes it suffocating for his friend are portrayed in Murakami’s subtle humor narration.

THE ENDING

The ending is the bee’s knees in the storyline!! Although the storyline is moving with the dark portrayal of the complicated emotions, the readers strangely feel satisfied in the end, the slapstick humor wafts discreetly from the grim circumstances.

‘It seems to me that very sad things always contain an element of the comical’

His friend talks about his relationship to the narrator and concludes his story by quoting the above lines with an instance of forgotten fairytale. The story vividly captures the absurdity of human lives and the fragile convictions of the young adults, I guess this is one of the best stories in the collection, the human suffering and depth of emotions are brilliantly ventured in the elusive storyline. The writing style is lucid but certainly elusive. Recommending this short story to everyone, Murakamians this should be your next read!