The Whimsy Bookworm: A Book Blog from India

 Happy Ray Day to everyone who celebrates.  Satyajit Ray is hands down my favourite Filmmaker, Writer and Bengali 😎 There will never be another quite like him.  So every year on his birth anniversary I re-read some of his stories and re-watch some of his incredible films.

 Hello April. Hello Nobo Borsho. Hello reading Bengali Books all month. Here’s what my first day of the month looked like… Made a TBR.  Read a little.  Drank coffee out of a spooky mug. Felt happy.  All good things. 

 Hello Loves!  Still recovering from my swollen gums and pain. Finding a lot of solace in my planners and re-watching some Byomkesh films and starting my first book of the year.  Simple joys.  I am having so much fun with my planners.  Goopy and Bagha to kick start my yearly reading. 📖 

 Hello Loves!  This month has been brutal and I have taken a sort of break from the Blog.  It's too hot to do anything and I for one am eagerly waiting for the rains and to return to my normal life.  ❤ I have been seeing these old times digi cams all over IG.  A basic point and shoot and girls decorating them to their hearts content.  I wanted in on the action and I didn't even have to go out and buy a camera. I had one. From back in 2012.  I used it for years. From 2012 to 2018 and I loved it. I upgraded my camera in 2018 and now it is time to upgrade it again but I don't see myself doing that anytime soon. I don't really need to do it and I honestly don't see myself getting a very bulky camera.  So I was happy to reunite with my trusty and tinyyyyy Canon IXUS. I had forgotten how tiny and compact she was and honestly, if I do end up getting a new camera at some point this year or in 2025, I might just get a point and shoot. Something I can carry...

  Happy Birthday Mr. Ray 📽📖📽  I am pretty Ray obsessed, everything from his magnificent films to his stories, his creations bring me so much joy.  I plan on reading this book, The Cinema of Satyajit Ray by Bhaskar Chattopaadhyay, through the month and watch, well re-watch some of my favourite Ray films. May is already looks promising ❤

 Subho Nobo Borsho my Loves.  Today is Poila Boishak, aka Bengali New Year.  And it was a quiet day of celebrating.  It was too hot to wear something fancy, but we are supposed to wear something new so I wore a new tee-shirt.  Started a new book.  And ate a ton of fruits to cool down.  I don't know about you but I cannot with this heat 🔥 Here's what my day looked like today..  Cozy Frog 🐸 Babies.  Current Read 🕵‍♀️🕵🕵‍♀️🕵 Ray on New Years 🥰 Warm Wishes from her and me.  New tee 😍  Dobby forever 🥰 Blooms 🌺

This has been a good year for Bangla/ Bengali content on OTT platforms. We have had a mix of thrillers, historical, horror and even drama series, which made it a very interesting year for Bangla content.  Let's get into our top Bangla web series for 2023!  Shikarpur is a thriller series on Zee5. It is a serial killer series set in a small town in North Bengal and is really, really nicely done. The pacing, story, suspense are all very good! Highly recommend!  Shwetkali is a thriller-horror series on Zee5. It is spooky, full of religious symbolism and menace. The pace, narrative and suspense are top notch! Highly recommend!  Buker Moddhey Agun is a cold case police investigative series on Hoichoi. It is a Bangladeshi series inspired by true events from the 90s. Very interesting and nicely done.  Indubalar Bhater Hotel is a historical drama series on Hoichoi, which touches upon themes such as women's rights, their struggles to cope in pre and post-Independent India...

 Hello, hello, It is Friday and in just a few hours, another weekend starts! WeeHee!  If you plan on staying in and being a couch potato, then we have some binge-worthy OTT show and movie recommendations for you!  1. Shabash Feluda (Zee5): Another new reboot/ new franchise for our favourite Bengali detective! This one stars Parambrata Chattopadhaya as Feluda and brings to life one of the many Feluda stories that have not hitherto been made for TV or film! This is a convoluted, fast-paced thriller and is definitely worth watching!  2. The Last Thing He Told Me (AppleTV): Based on the eponymous book, this is a fast-paced thriller about whether we really know the ones we love! When Hannah Hall's husband goes missing, she has no idea the kinds of things she would end up finding out about his past and the sacrifices they would need to make to keep his daughter- Bailey- safe. If you liked the book, you'll also like the series.  3. Kathal (Netflix): A sharp and well-ma...

Hello, hello! A new month has rolled around and, like every year, it leaves us wondering, how the heck did we go through 7 months of this year already!? Where is time flying by?!  August is one of my favourite reading months because this is when, for the past several years, I've exclusively been reading books written by Indian (includes the entire subcontinent) authors and also those written about the Indian subcontinent by our diaspora authors.  You can check all my previous reads and recommendations of 'Indian Books in August' by clicking HERE . Some really lovely books have been read and recommended!  Starting off the month by reading a book based in Bengal translated from the original in Bengali- Chronicles of the Lost Daughters by Debarati Mukhopadhyay. The premise sounds lovely and I am very excited to get into it!  Also, did a spot of planning and journaling. A beloved activity that has taken a hit since my left wrist tenosynovitis has gotten worse! Sigh....

 Hello Loves!  I am a little bit of a flaky TBR maker. I make one at the start of every month and I stick to quite half-halfheartedly. I read a few books from the list and then I usually pick whatever my heart desires. I like my reading to be a little driven by my plans and a lot driven by my heart.  But I do see the merit in having a TBR list ready and raring to go. I start my month by pulling out a few books from my shelves and keeping them aside to pick up as the month goes on.  This month I am reading All Bengali Books in April.  Well, mostly all Bengali books.  So I spent some time, a delightful amount of time, picking out my Bengali books for this month. I am so happy with these beautiful books and I hope I end up reading most of these!  :)  Here are my hopefuls for April.  1. Cat People Edited by Devapriya Roy: Stories about cats and people who love cats. What's not to love?! There are pictures and poems and I am hoping this is one fu...

 Hello, hello, February 21st is celebrated as International Mother Language Day .   a day to celebrate and honour diversity in languages.  Bengali is my mother language.  The language of love and lullabies and my first stories.  And not to be biased but man my people have written some of the best stories in the world. I mean I am proud of being a Bengali for multiple reasons and it's outstanding literature is pretty much at the tippy top of this list.  Sadly, I can't read Bengali (the fallout of growing up outside Bengal) but I have, over the years, made a concentrated effort to read some our best works and it's been some of my favourite things I have ever read.  Here are my Top 10 Books Originally Written in Bengali.  Books I 100% Recommend with my whole heart.  TOP 10 BENGALI BOOKS:  1. The Adventure of Feluda Vol I and II by Satyajit Ray: Mysteries. Crimes. And a Bengali Super Sleuth! Feluda is the kind of cousin we'd all like t...

 Hello Loves!  How is this weekend treating you?  I hope you are home, safe and don't have a fever.  :(  It's awful starting this new year under the cloud of another wave coming at us.  I just want all this nonsense to be over and some version of our normal lives to come back, but till that magical days happens we got just hunker down and do what we can.  Me, I am journaling like no one's business and reading...not as much as I'd like you but enough.  Here are my current reads.  One is a re-read of a favourite author and the other is a beloved children's classic.  Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri: Needed some Lahiri magic in my life this month and begin the year with her words and writing. Picked this one up, I don't think I've read it more than twice in my life and some bits of it initially felt a little new but as I am reading it and making my way through the stories, so much of it is coming back. I am currently about 38% through a...