When R Praggnanandhaa became the first Indian to win the Norway Chess title, the world celebrated the young grandmaster’s brilliance. Certainly, his victory was a pride for India, but, behind the global stage he was standing at, there was his mother, Nagalakshmi, who spent years building the foundation for him. Praggnanandhaa and his sister, Vaishali,…

Homemade pickles carry a kind of old-world promise. They are sharp, salty, spicy and deeply satisfying, the sort of preserve that can brighten a meal with just a spoonful. But they can also turn disappointing fast. One bad jar can mean soft vegetables, a strange smell, cloudy brine or worse, visible mould creeping across the…

Pablo Neruda (Image: Wikipedia) Some quotes explain an idea. Others simply describe a feeling that most people have experienced at some point but never quite managed to put into words. This line from Pablo Neruda falls into that second group. It is not trying to analyse love or define it. It simply points toward something…