Skip to main content

A few blogs that caught my attention


Reviewing another person’s writing is not an easy job especially in a society that promotes the mutual back-scratching policy.  That’s perhaps the reason why the latest Indispire theme [#BlogReview] has not got any takers so far with a singular exception (until this post is being written). I wonder why the theme got the most votes if Indibloggers didn’t want to review blogs.  The answer may lie in the writer’s subconscious longing for adulation from others.  Every writer is a thoroughgoing egoist as George Orwell said.  I’m no exception. However, I have to write this since I’m the one who suggested the Indispire theme.  If I let down my own suggestion, I wouldn’t be egoistic enough to be a writer!

Rajesh Prabhu’s blog carries the charm of India through delightful photographs.  What’s best about the blog is that it is diametrically opposed to mine: it is full of beauty and optimism, elegance and grace.  Rajesh helps me bounce back from the cynicism that overtakes me against my will.  He adds necessary description to the pictures too.

Some of the best photo blogs are:
Indrani Ghose’s Isharethese
Rupam Sharma’s blog

Vinay Nagaraju does with words what Rajesh does with pics.  His inspiring blog is a well-deserved cynosure at Indiblogger because of the sprightliness it carries unfailingly.

Similarly inspiring bloggers:
Sreedhar Bhattaram’s Reflections on Life are sustained by maturity of vision and experience. 

 Vish’s Wisdom Times: Very practical and useful tips on happy living.  The blog site also provides a free e-book of such tips and counsels.

Shweta’s Sunshine and Zephyr lives up to what the title promises.  It’s the sunshine of passions and the zephyr of sensitivity that she carries. 

For books and authors:

Shreesha Divakaran’s Rain and a Book

Archana Singh: the only problem with this blog is that it bombards you with pop-ups.


The best of poetry:

Amit Agarwal’s crisp poems.  I’m sorry that my knowledge of Hindi is insufficient to appreciate the depth of his terse verse.  But he hits the bull’s eye.  Minimum words, maximum effect.

Saru Singhal’s Words.  Saru possesses a unique skill with words.  Her poems carry the elegance of rhythm and the poignancy of drama.

Maniparna Sengupta’s Scattered Thoughts


Two versatile bloggers who are notable for their commitment to blogging:

Shrinidhi Hande is a voluminous blogger who deals mainly with vehicles and travel.

Leena Walawalkar’s Blah-blah which is much more than what it claims to be. It deals with everything from the movies to festivals, politics to travel, and anything under the sun.

Let me also welcome back Kokila Gupta with her haikus and other verses of sunshine and blue clouds.

And there’s one whom I miss these days.  Hope she will be back soon.  And that’s Roohi Bhatnagar who was a source of inspiration for me in more ways than she might understand.

This is by no means an exhaustive list.  It is impossible to make any such list.  Every selection like this is determined by various factors some of which are related to personal likes. 



Comments

  1. Good Morning. Fantastic. Most of the blogs , you have reviewed are my favorites.

    ReplyDelete
  2. That's a really good list to look upon Mr. Matheikal :) I too follow, most among the listed ones, there are a few left and am going to have a look in their zone of blogging. We connect so much on the selective reading part and I am glad to know that. It's hard to find people falling into almost similar taste. Thanks a lot for the prep. :)
    http://www.crimsonapril.com

    ReplyDelete
  3. I feel honoured to be in your esteemed list, Tom sir:) Thank you:)

    ReplyDelete
  4. So humbled Sir to be in your list !! Thank you in Tons for the mention as well as the Welcome :) It IS wonderful to be back :) :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Even I was taken aback by the absence of any posts until yesterday. But I thought people were working on their posts and that it takes time to review a blog. In my own view, to review a blog requires much concentration and since I had been busy for the past three days, I was unable to post anything for the prompt. The way you have put up the list of blogs that you have admired is good though, as you have been able to highlight your likes for the specific blog. I guess I will attempt it on similar lines. You have mentioned many bloggers that I like too.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thank you so much sir...I feel really nice and humbled to be a part of the list... Also motivated to do better :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Though it is you who is a source of inspiration to me, still thank you for including me in the list. I am not sure if I really deserve this place among all these wonderful bloggers whom I too admire. Regarding my absence, umm can't say much right now except that I am going through an important phase in this life once again which is keeping me in a kind of trance. Hope to bounce back again soon with renewed energy and vigor. Till then I am trying to keep my blog alive through contests and assignments! :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. I follow all the other bloggers you've mentioned here, and they are wonderful in every way. Glad to find myself in the list....honoured and humbled...
    Thank you so much.. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Thank you for the post and listing a good collection of blog. I have been following mos of them, all are brilliant and informative. Also, thanks for including my blog there.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I realized I am not following any of these bloggers in this list. So have added them to my feed list :) Thanks

    ReplyDelete
  11. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  12. That is a thorough list and most of them are my favorites too. A great list of favorites :)

    ReplyDelete
  13. Wow! I find myself here!
    A great honor from you Sir!
    Thank you very much! :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Thanks Matheikal for honoring me by appreciating my Blog as inspiring.. I love the good Comment!

    ReplyDelete
  15. You are right about the mutual admiration society. I wrote about it twice, sadly without any effect. I read majority of blogs you've mentioned here. And, I agree with your observation. Thank you so much for the mention, coming from you it means a lot Sir.

    ReplyDelete
  16. I like your intro, blunt and straightforward as always :)
    If I find myself mentioned by a writer such as yourself, it just gives me the confidence that I must be doing something right!
    Truly honoured Sir.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Have been through many of these Blogs & appreciate their effort. Yet to visit some in your list :)

    ReplyDelete
  18. Thanks for the list. Some of them I already follow. Others, I will check out.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Thank you so much for including Rain and a Book :) I am honored!

    ReplyDelete
  20. This article is really fantastic and thanks for sharing the valuable post.
    Trollface Quest 2|Dr Driving|Square Quick

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Prelude to AtoZ

  From Garden of 5 Senses, Delhi [file pic] Hindsight gives an unearthly charm and order to the past. There can be pain too. A lot of things could have been different, much better, if only we possessed the wisdom of our old age back in those days. As a writer put it, Oedipus, Hamlet, Lear and a lot of those guys must have thought, “I wish I had known this some time ago.” Life is a series of errors with intermittent achievements. The only usefulness of the errors may be the lessons they teach us. Probably, that is their purpose too. We are created to err so that we learn, I dare to put it that way. I turn 64 in a month’s time. It’s not inappropriate to look back at some of the people whom life brought into my life so that I would learn certain lessons. No, I don’t mean to say that life has any such purpose or design or anything. Life is absurd. People come into your life as haphazardly as vehicles ply on your road or birds poop on your head. Some of these people change the chemist

Why I won’t vote

From Deshabhimani , Malayalam weekly Exactly a month from today is the Parliamentary election in my state of Kerala. This time, I’m not going to vote. Bernard Shaw defined democracy , with his characteristic cynicism, as “ a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than we deserve .” We elect our government in a democracy. And the government invariably sucks our blood – whichever the party is. The BJP and the Congress are like Tweedledum and Tweedledee though the former makes all sorts of other claims day in and day out. BJP = Congress + the holy cow. The holy cow has turned out to be quite a vampire and that makes a difference, no doubt. In our Prime Minister’s algebra, it is: (a+b) 2 which should be equal to a 2 and b 2 . There is an extra 2ab which is the holy cow. In George Orwell’s Animal Farm , the animals revolt against the human master and set up their own nationalist republic. Soon politics develops in the republic and some pigs become leaders. The porcine

How Arvind Kejriwal can save himself

Narendra Modi and Amit Shah have a clear vision. Eliminate all opposition. Decimate them or absorb them. My previous post [link below] showed a few people decimated by them. Today let’s look at the others: those who are saved by joining the Bharatiya Janata Party [BJP]. 1. Himanta Biswa Sarma  This guy was in Congress and faced serious charges related to the multi-crore Saradha chit fund scam. He also faced corruption charges related to drinking water supply in Guwahati. His house was raided by the Central Bureau of Investigation [CBI]. Then he switched over to BJP and all his crimes just vanished. It’s as simple as taking a dip in the Ganga and all your sins are forgiven. Today he is the chief minister of Assam. Nothing is heard of all the charges that were levelled against him. 2. Amarinder Singh  This former Captain in the Indian Army was a Congressman until Modi’s Enforcement Directorate [ED] started raiding him, his son and his son-in-law. He put an end to all those raid

The Good Old World

Book Review Title: Dukhi Dadiba and irony of fate Author: Dadi Edulji Taraporewala Translators: Aban Mukherji and Tulsi Vatsal Publisher: Ratna Books, Delhi, 2023 Pages: 314 If you want to return to the good old days of the late 19 th century, this is an ideal novel for you. This was published originally in Gujarati in 1913. It appeared as a serial before that from 1898 onwards in a periodical. The conflict between good and evil is the dominant motif though there is romance, betrayal, disappointment, regret, and pretty much of traditional morality. Reading this novel is quite like watching an old Bollywood movie, 1960s style. Ardeshir Bahadurshah, a wealthy Parsi aristocrat in Surat, dies having obligated his son Jehangir to find out his long-lost brother Rustom. Rustom was Bahadurshah’s son in his first marriage. The mother died when the boy was too small and the nurse who looked after the child vanished with it one day. Ratanmai, Bahadurshah’s present wife, takes her

Kejriwal’s Arrest in Modi’s Kurukshetra

For some mysterious reason, Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest reminded me of Haren Pandya. Maybe, because Pandya’s 21 st death anniversary is approaching (26 March). Have you forgotten Haren Pandya? He was the Home Minister of Gujarat before Narendra Modi assumed dictatorial powers in that state. Modi chose to teach humility to Pandya by making him the Minister of State for revenue. Pandya chose not to learn humility from Modi and resigned from that post in Aug 2002. Remember Gujarat of 2002? You should. A fire engulfed a train on 27 Feb 2002 killing 58 Hindu pilgrims who were returning from Ayodhya where they had gone to discover their god, not very unlike Christopher Columbus undertaking a voyage to discover India and messing it all up. What caused the fire in the train? Lord Ram knows probably. The upshot was that there was a riot in Gujarat by Hindus against Muslims. Haren Pandya is one of the BJP leaders who gave statements in many places indicting Modi for the riots. He asser