Three birds of paradise, two funerals and a wedding

Last December, my grandpa passed away a day prior to my wedding reception. Bed-ridden for months, he was in a lot of anguish. The beige color of his skin matched the peeled sections of the bedroom wallpaper. His head, resembling the plucked breast of an owl, bobbed up and down whenever I visited him. It...

A stranger’s things: The art of unpacking

Not many of us can survive the impact of not being loved the way we want to be loved. When someone loves us the way they want to, we find fault in it. However sincere they may be, their love comes undone. At times, it feels worse than not being loved at all. It is...

Mama said there will be days like this

As a child, I was in awe of the role that my mother played in my life. But I was baffled that she had the final say on everything I did. She could take decisions on my behalf. Order me around to do chores. Create arbitrary rules I had to abide by. Even though it...

Goodbye, Mr. and Mrs. T

Excitedly, I woke up at 4:30 AM. It was my first visit to the Thattekad Bird Sanctuary. I was there because of the Malabar Trogon - a brightly-colored creature that looks like the afterbirth of a psychedelic experience. With a spring in my step, I walked out of the cottage - as jolly as I...

How I met my grandfather

Lately, my maternal grandfather - Mr. Clarence Motha - has started to bear a slight resemblance to Spotted Owlets. Especially, the curving slope on his cranium. These days, it looks smooth and swollen, like the skull of an elderly owlet. My grandfather is 91 years old. His health has been deteriorating of late. He has...

Speed dating with Crow Pheasants

Often, we fall in love with the idea of what people may mean to us rather than with the type of person they actually are. You measure the value that they bring to your life instead of being attentive the way that they lead theirs. You yearn to be analyzed by them. Cherished. Destroyed. Rebuilt. Again and...

The laborious bastards

Some choose to break free of their comfort zones late in their lives. Having been on auto-pilot mode, they feel tired and demotivated. The uninteresting routines. The cumbersome responsibilities. Each one saps a part of them dry and leaves them ghosted or shelved. And one stray morning, something happens. The rubber band snaps. They realize that...

Year 1 of birding: This time I went too far

Over the past 11 months, I have spotted and photographed 200+ birds in South India. I have also spent the year working on two documentaries. It means that I was not gainfully employed. So, time was on my side. I got to watch birds every single day. I was on the lookout for bird poop...

I woof you

I had a pet Pomeranian called Terry. We grew up in the same household for 12 years. He came to us when he was two weeks old. Instantly, we became best friends.

Birds of feather balk together

If it weren’t for birds, I wouldn’t have met any of you. This blog is almost two years old. Some of you have been visiting me since the beginning. It’s the second longest relationship I have ever been in. I don’t know how special this has been for you. But, it has meant a lot to...