Bombay Reader

Review : An Autobiography K. N. Malik

An Autobiography K. N. Malik

India of that time was trying to find its new identity, which could be understood seeing ambitious people scurrying in and out of the coffee houses.

-K. N Malik

This is An Autobiography of an intrepid and profound veteran journalist K. N Malik. His impressive journey in his own words from the town of Sheikhpura (now in Pakistan), to a youth associated with RSS and aiding refugees during partition, his friendly and close links with eminent personalities, his rise to become the most sought after journalist of his time and his life in London.

Being a reporter for Times Of India and having friendship with important and resourceful people Mr. Malik is one of the few people who have met, interviewed and even written against the people like the Presidents, Prime Ministers, chairperson of Indian Airlines, political and media tycoons of the times. Nevertheless his fearless reporting did get him into a lot of trouble, be it during the time of Emergency or even getting posted to London due to governmental pressure.

As you read the book you get an idea of his buoyant personality. It’s a delight to read his autobiography.

The book is like a plethora of information especially for the millennial generation and the aspiring journalists because the events and incidents discussed by Mr. Malik from his life provides a spectacular insight into aviation journalism, politics and the functioning of newspapers during the 1950s-80s.

Review : When The Wildflowers Bloom

When The Wildflowers Bloom

For love, I guess, is neither a conviction nor an assurance. It is an unquestionable knowledge. No one needs to tell you they love you. You just know it—their love is experienced within you.

– Rupa Bhullar

If I have to describe this book ‘When The Wildflowers Bloom’ in one word I would call it Contemplative.

#readingfatima

It’s one of those books with a very simplistic storyline, with the protagonist Tara making a decision how to upturn her life after facing 17 years of miserable married life with an abusive husband. It’s not a story of glory and unprecedented victory but I’m sure anyone going through domestic abuse or a troubled marriage will find pearls of wisdom and assurance in this book.

I loved the book and I would recommend it to everyone whether you’re married or unmarried. As long as you are a desi and an old soul you will enjoy each page. The morals and moments spread throughout the book would leave you in a pensive mood long after you’ve finished it.

Review : Forgotten Sunnahs

Forgotten Sunnahs

It is common today for most Muslims to verbally express their love for Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, yet when it comes to following his guidance, they often hesitate or make poor excuses. Even worse, many will dismissively say, “It’s just Sunnah!” – which is an abhorrent statement for any member of the Ummah to make.

I’m pretty sure we’ve all made “It’s just Sunnah” statement without understanding the gravity of our ignorance which leads to gradual deviation from Islam. Noting that ‘Islam is a way of life, and that the way of Life is taught through the Sunnah’, the author has put forward myriad of Sunnahs concerned with Ibadah and daily life which are either forgotten or preformed incorrectly by the Ummah.

The book is divided into 12 chapters with each chapter divided into many sub-topics, that makes it easier to read (almost feels like reading Fortress Of The Muslim but this book is particularly concerned with FORGOTTEN sunnah). The language and tone of the book is comprehensible and friendly respectively.

I liked the way each topic is explained in a few words topped with logical explanations. The author has choosen only the authenticated ahadeeth from Bukhari and Muslim (these days most arguments revolve around whether the hadees is sahih or daeef so I guess this problem is sorted).

The first chapter ‘Obligation Of Following The Sunnah’ is the perfect introduction. I also loved the chapters pertaining to the Forgotten Sunnah related to Family, Ibadah and Good Character. ‘Why Sunnah Are Abandoned’ is an insightful chapter.

About The Author: He is the founder of LEARN ISLAM a NPO providing FREE ONLINE ISLAMIC COURSES under the guidance of SHEIKH YASIR AL JABRI, since 2010

These are few of the short courses provided by them

Recommending the book to everyone and please check out their site, choose a course and enroll yourself. Sharing about it with friends and family, might definitely help somebody. INSHAALLAH.

https://learn-islam.org/short-courses

Review : Smart Single Muslimah

Smart Single Muslimah

Single Muslim women don’t live: they wait. Do you feel that way?

And what are Muslim women waiting for?

Are you waiting for marriage so your life can begin?

Waiting for your “Ertugrul” (or Turgut) to sweep you off your feet? Because without a husband, you are incomplete?

-Farhat Amin

If these are the dilemmas of your life or if you are going through the painful phase of multiple rejection or looking for ‘that‘ Islamic way of choosing a groom which the society quotes but doesn’t teach you how; then you must invest and read this book ‘Smart Single Muslimah’.

The book talks briefly about the factual reason why the up holders of feminism look down on marriage and raising kids. I liked the way the author has stated clearly the wrongs in this society whether it’s related to dating culture (beautified by the west) or Halal dating (decked by Muslim twitter).

Alongwith siting the problems faced by Muslimah the author has also given real-time solutions when choosing a partner and templates of expectations, questions and red-flags to keep in mind when searching and talking to a potential proposal within the boundaries of Islam.

The book also talks about accepting rejections and how to prepare yourself to live a life even if marriage is not written in your Qadr. The author appeals to young Muslimah to take advantage of the time in their hand and use it to learn finances, work, study, improve their household skills, stay healthy, bond with family and do all this Only to please ALLAH.

If your heart feels deserted with this entire marriage game and you are questioning your purpose in life this book is for you. It’s not some kind of magical book that will get you a proposal but it’s not like one of those Islamic books where they tell you ‘Sabr‘ is the answer for everything. The book is filled with tips and proper instruction on how to go about this problem.

Jazaak Allahu khayran Farhat for sending me this book. I found it practical and it gave me a sense of tranquility.

#readingfatima

Although the book is written in a manner to suit the Muslimah living in west, I found the book relevant to all the ordeals I’m going through as a person living in India and I’m sure muslimahs living in other countries who’ve never been married before face similar issues in current times. For divorcees and widows I believe a little more and different approach is required which they can find on Farhat Amin page, website or her podcasts.

Review : UnMIND

unMIND

Life happens within you and without you, life happens as per God’s will or a cosmic law. How and why things happen the way they do is beyond the human mind’s comprehension. Acceptance is Peace.

-Siddharth Tripathi

In today’s world we are all walking like a lost person trying to search for our True Calling. Spending days thinking about how to actualize or remake a fulfilling career. Worried about why our dreams and relationships don’t really work out in spite of our earnest attempts. Blaming and finding faults in ourselves.

In this book ‘unMIND a graphic guide to Self-realization’ the author and the illustrator have cleverly crafted a lucid guidebook to make an individual (seeking help*) completely realize their individual personality. The author has incorporated the teachings of Ramana Maharshi and Ramesh Balsekar about Non-duality (or advaita) i.e to stop identifying with the ego-sense or the ‘I‘ as the author repeats, and get in touch with Consciousness.

I loved the stories where the author talked about ‘working mind and thinking mind’ and the one where the spiritual guru instead of giving an enlightened speech tells the person to accept himself as a taxi driver, they were insightful and like a slap on the face…ouch. I recommend reading the book in a regular rhythm/ one part a day (and not one chapter in a day) to gain proper concepts or it might feel confusing (you might even misinterpret).

The author has beautifully assembled spiritual teachings with scientific facts and provided a step by step manual for lasting happiness. The illustrations are above par creative and most importantly; understandable.

If somebody is looking for a one-stop coaching into Self-realization (or self-actualization) it would be worthy to invest in this book. Also I shall be hosting a giveaway for the book so keep an eye out😎.

#readingfatima

Review: Whispering Bricks

Whispering Bricks

He was called the ‘The Brick Whisperer’. And the walls that he created have been witness to countless stories and innumerable whispers.

-Siddhartha Bhasker

‘Whispering Bricks’ is a wonderful book to be read over a cup of coffee or on a lazy journey. Each chapter fills you with nostalgia of the good old university days when life revolved around the next lecture, campus, friends, tea and dreams.

The author being an alumni of IIM Ahmedabad has narrated 15 stories of varied flavors that were once lived by the students of this prestigious institution. If you’ve lived a life in a university in IIMA you would definitely relate to each and every story in the book.

I’ve been fortunate to graduate from one such institution miles away from my hometown so every story about group activities, dorm parties, campus lovebirds, friendship, types of students, job pressure and making the toughest decision of life like attending the last rites of a beloved one, made a thousand pictures run through my mind as if I was seeing the bioscope of my college life.

#readingfatima

Review: The Shadow Of The Past

The Shadow Of The Past

The world swoons when a Lakhnauwala speaks in a language that sounds as if it is dipped in honey. The gift of the gab of even those on the street is such that the presence of a beloved is routinely described as a fragrance…

-Mehru Jaffer

I’ve been reading ‘The Shadow Of The Past’ by Mehru Jaffer which is a short biography of the capital city of the Indian State of Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow has been one of the iconic cities of India famous for its historical monuments, intricate embroidery like Chikankaari, beautiful gardens and art forms. The emblematic Awadh-Lucknowai culture that’s known for its Adab and Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb (manners and hospitality).

The author goes back and forth in the 17th, 18th and 19th century to briefly narrate the historic fountain of the city, it’s emperors, the natives, the colonizers, the Urdu language, the artists and craftsmen born in this beautiful place. The biography reveals the intricacies of the city from the eyes and mind of the people who are/were responsible for it’s fame.

The city is an amalgamation of Indo-Islamic, European, Sikh and Hindu Traditions. It’s a wonder how one particular city has been home to noteworthy freedom fighters, poets, artists belonging to different religions and sects living together. A city having its own unique cuisine, art form and dialect which is famous worldwide.

Within 120 pages the author has beautifully embroidered the Dastan-e-Lucknow breaking down time and again how the Lakhnauwalas have been careless about their heritage and culture. Recommended for those who love to read non-fiction and collect beautiful books…I’m in awe with the beauty of the book.

#readingfatima

Author And Me

To the people who say you must not connect the author to her/his work.

Damn are you kidding!

I’m the person who, while reading a good book, doesn’t fantasize about the characters or is lost in the world created by the author. I’m that loony reader who’s been seduced by her/his words and now the only thing I wish for is date him/her (somehow wish I had telepathic abilities like Edward Cullen) and read all their thoughts…i just wanna know how do they write what they have written and what made them write those spells.

I don’t believe in an ideology that goes like a book is a child of the author so you disconnect the two reasoning, it just has their genes but it’s a separate entity.

No, that’s wrong.

A book is a tiny part of the author’s soul and brain, their very essence. It’s a part of his/her that got printed.

Yep so I love the author as much as I love their book and if I hate the book…you got it right😉

But I’ve never got the opportunity to do what I intend to do after reading a good book and the despair of my life is perfectly quoted by J.D. Salinger

What really knocks me out is a book that, when you’re all done reading it, you wish the author that wrote it was a terrific friend of yours and you could call him up on the phone whenever you felt like it. That doesn’t happen much, though.

Review: The Bookshop

The Bookshop

Morality is seldom a safe guide for human conduct.

-Penelope Fitzgerald

‘The Bookshop’ is a story of a middle-aged warm-hearted widow Mrs Florence Green living in a quaint seaside town of Hardborough in the 1950. After living a lonely life for too long and having seen a weird dream multiple times Florence decides to risk her little inheritance to open a Bookshop in the uninhabited Old House of the town.

Just like any small town the news spreads like wildfire and Florence receives mixed reactions to her decision including a party invite to the art enthusiast and influential Mrs. Gamart’s house who encourages Florence to rather buy another vacant shop than the Old House to run a bookshop.

She also decides to run a lending library on her friends advice but it turns into a disaster every time yet after employing 11yr old Christine she sees great improvement in her business. After making a bold decision to sell a book like ‘Lolita’ Mrs. Greens makes a good business which invites jealousy of her neighbor. Nevertheless Mrs. Gamart uses every tactic in her books to force Florence to leave the Old House .

In less than 120 pages Penelope Fitzgerald narrates the story of courage, trial and despondency. What I liked about the author is that unlike classic English authors, Penelope doesn’t waste her words on flowery descriptions. Instead she gives you fair details about her character and landscape so one can paint their own picture. I loved the book although some might wonder what’s so unique about it that it was shortlisted for Booker Prize.

I completed the book last night and felt defeated. So I just closed my eyes and slept over it, calling it a fictional story in a fictional world where the courage of a woman to run a bookshop was unwelcomed.

But today morning as I finished my work in a government office and walked past the old buildings to catch a ride my legs freezed in front of the exuberant empty Public Library of my town and I wondered, if ever a cunning rich business person or a corrupt official decides to bring down this library to build a theater/mall how many citizens will object to the brutal murder of reading culture. Or would anyone of us ever support those who do?

The book written in 1978 made me look into the soul of the city and its people. It’s not that my city lacks book shops or libraries, it has many but their plight is similar to the book shop of Hardborough.

Review : An Ordinary Man’s Guide To Radicalism

An Ordinary Man’s Guide To Radicalism

The police responded that….the Terrorists had disguised themselves as Normal Human Beings – as students, as working men.

Normal Human Beings.

Of all the claims that the police made, this was the scariest. In one stroke, it brought every youth in Jamia Nagar under the scanner of suspicion. How was a truly normal person expected to behave?

-Neyaz Farooquee

‘An Ordinary Man’s Guide To Radicalism’ is a memoir of the author and the reflection of many ordinary Muslim youth of India who arrive in big cities from their poor homes to achieve good education and jobs but are inadvertently radicalized or forced to have such thoughts as they reside in ghettos or study in universities stereotyped as Sensitive Area (as in hub for terrorism), and living in constant paranoia of false accusations, arrest, landing in jails or being killed in encounter.

The book is more of a personal essay where the author recounts how his life and ideologies changed following the Batla House Encounter a few minutes from his house in Jamia Nagar simultaneously talking about his life as a child in Bihar (his hometown), teachings of his grandfather, arrival in Delhi, his admission in Jamia School, friends and roommates, wayward adolescence, Jamia Nagar locality, localites, studying Bsc Bioscience in Jamia University and ultimately choosing journalism as career.

This book’s unique as the author, albeit a journalist, has narrated unrefined views, outlook, behavior of the local public and students towards the police, media and government. Overnight the students of a university and people of a locality are denoted as potential threat by the media and as per the author young men arrested from the streets. The professors of a revered university are left to investigate, defend and protect Young Minds and the reputation of a University all by themselves

Through this book Neyaz Farooquee has made a valiant effort to showcase the world about the untold fear or I must say horror haunting the Muslim community and it’s youth for the fault of identity.

The tone and language of the book is nowhere extreme or professing radicalism instead the life of the author is a blueprint of the life of thousands of Muslim boys who come from poor/middle class family and live in Delhi alone for studies.

I felt most parts about Islamic teachings, poetries, details about friends, family and city irrelevant and unnecessary. I wished they were avoided.

Recommended for people who love to read non-fiction related to such subjects.

The infusion of Hindustani language and numerous shocks and shayaris might be a disappointment for some but if you like such writing you would be charmed.