Ink And Insights

I never accept follow requests from strangers. But that day, I did. Maybe it was the Valentine air, the scent of flowers in full bloom, or just an impulsive desire that made me not only accept but also reply to a stranger’s Instagram message. His profile wasn’t the usual shady Delhi boy aesthetic—no forced gym selfies, no flashy cars. Instead, he had a staggering 11k followers, the title of a lawyer, and the look of someone from a well-off family. Two days into our conversations—smooth, effortless, almost like we’d known each other before—he asked me to meet. Of course. Now, you must be thinking, how was this a blind date if we had already seen each other’s pictures? Not just one, but many—carefully curated Instagram posts, giving us a fair idea of what the other looked like. But I’ll tell you why it was still blind. Because here came the obstacle —my disability. Online dating and blind dates are not for the faint-hearted, that’s true. But when it comes to someone with a disa...

The clock strikes 1 AM. Here I sit, staring at my laptop, fueled by the belief that discipline is the key to greatness. But earlier today, someone casually dropped this gem: the best time to write is at 5 or 6 AM because the mind is freshest. Now, I can’t help but wonder—am I on the path to greatness, or just chronically misaligned with the universe’s schedule? Indian culture holds Brahma Muhurta—or Amrit Vela , if you prefer—in high regard, urging us to rise with the sun. The early hours are said to bring clarity, focus, and a divine sense of purpose. But ever since I was a child, I’ve always found my focus sharpest in the silence of the night. Because let’s be honest, no matter how early I wake up in an Indian household, even at 5 AM, I’ll still bump into a family member who’s already up at 4:30, ready with 10 questions. As I grew older, and the pressure around me grew—how I was wasting away my life—I tried to become a morning person. Spoiler alert: I failed miserably every single ti...

I leaned against the window of JP Tea Stall, nestled under the shade of an old tree in D School, and called out my usual order—"Ek kadak chai". Raju Bhaiya, a lean, dark-skinned man with a warm smile, nodded in acknowledgement. He had a way of making everyone feel at home—students, faculty, admin staff—serving them steaming hot tea like clockwork.   If you ask me, making tea for people is one of the kindest jobs - to offer them a warm hug in a mug while they struggle to keep up with the …chaos of life. Deadlines, heartbreaks, existential crises—everything feels a little more bearable when there’s a steaming cup of chai in hand.   At exactly 10:15, the bell of a cycle rang, announcing the arrival of an elderly man in a white kurta and boat-shaped white topi. He parked in front of the stall, handed over a packet of freshly baked aloo patties wrapped in brown paper, and went on his way without a word.    I smiled, as Raju Bhaiya slid me one of those warm, flak...

Who doesn’t love an underdog story? If you’ve seen Kartik Aryan’s Chandu Champion , you know what I mean. If not, here’s the gist: it’s about Murlikant Petkar, who dreamed of representing India at the Olympics and winning a gold medal ever since he was a child. He began training in boxing, but fate had other plans. After sustaining a spinal injury during the war that left him paralyzed from the waist down, he refused to let his dream die. He pivoted to swimming, trained like a man possessed, and brought home the gold at the Paralympics. It’s a story of unwavering determination and resilience. This instantly reminded me of someone whose journey I’ve witnessed firsthand— Pranav Soorma , who, my dear readers, has now won—*drumroll, please*— the silver medal at the Paralympics Paris 2024 as I write this.  Now that the games have concluded, I can finally shout it from the rooftops: Pranav participated in the Paralympics this year, smashed it, and brought home the silver in the Club Thr...

Imagine a world where the difference between glory and defeat is about the weight of a bar of soap. Now, imagine that world is the 2024 Paris Olympics, and the protagonist is none other than Vinesh Phogat, India’s wrestling champion. This isn’t a fictional plot; it’s the story of a woman who had to battle not only her opponents but also the weighing scales, and in a cruel twist of fate, lost to the latter. She had already conquered World No. 1 Yui Susaki in a nail-biting bout, marking a historic moment as the first Indian woman to reach an Olympic wrestling final. You could almost hear the collective cheer of a billion voices back home, fueled by the hope that a gold medal was definitely coming. But then, like a Shakespearean tragedy, came the twist—Vinesh was disqualified for weighing in 100 grams over the limit on the day of the final. Let’s put this into perspective. One hundred grams is about the weight of a bar of soap or two eggs. That’s all it took to shatter her Olympic dream. ...

Remember the days when we didn’t know anything about love languages? Some of you might still be in the dark, so let me enlighten you! Think back to when you had a crush in school. Remember giving them a missed call on their landline? Or sharing your lunch even though it meant you'd be hungry all day? Or saving them the window seat on the bus and feeling like you’d just won a gold medal? Then in high school, trying to figure out if your crush liked Dairy Milk chocolate or an Archie’s card more on Valentine’s Day? Channeling your inner Sherlock Holmes, you were practically decoding their love language. According to experts, there are five main love languages: Quality Time, Words of Affirmation, Acts of Service, Physical Touch, and Receiving Gifts. But it seems Gen Z is determined to add a sixth—Memes. I always thought originality never fades, and Gen Z just tweaks things a bit to make them their own. But recently, I discovered “Pebbling” —a concept I hadn’t heard of. The hopeless rom...