
In Bhairavi, Shivani’s thundering response to the patriarchy is also a mirror to selective activism
Mrinal Pande talks to Firstpost about how her mother's recently translated novel is an exaggeration of her own struggles.

Firstpost and Jashn-E-Qalam present AfsanaBadosh: Listen to stories by masters of Hindi, Urdu fiction
AfsanaBadosh episodes 1-3 feature the works of Premchand, Rajinder Singh Bedi and Mannu Bhandari.

AfsanaBadosh ep 3: Listen to Mannu Bhandari's 'Alagaav' | Presented by Firstpost and Jashn-E-Qalam
AfsanaBadosh, presented by Firstpost and Jashn-E-Qalam, celebrates the spirit of storytelling through narrations of the greatest Hindi and Urdu stories. This is Episode 3 — Mannu Bhandari's 'Alagaav', as performed by Shashwita Sharma.

AfsanaBadosh ep 2: Listen to Premchand's 'Sawa Ser Gehun' | Presented by Firstpost and Jashn-E-Qalam
AfsanaBadosh, presented by Firstpost and Jashn-E-Qalam, celebrates the spirit of storytelling through narrations of the greatest Hindi and Urdu stories. This is Episode 2 — Premchand's 'Sawa Ser Gehun', as performed by Vicky Ahuja.

AfsanaBadosh ep 1: Listen to Rajinder Singh Bedi's 'Quarantine' | Presented by Firstpost and Jashn-E-Qalam
AfsanaBadosh, presented by Firstpost and Jashn-E-Qalam, celebrates the spirit of storytelling through narrations of the greatest Hindi and Urdu stories. This is Episode 1 — Rajinder Singh Bedi's 'Quarantine', as performed by KC Shankar.

In Bhagwaticharan Verma's 'Atonement', a cat's scheming ways put a young bride on trial
'Atonement' is part of The Greatest Hindi Stories Ever Told, an anthology curated and translated by Poonam Saxena, featuring authors like Premchand, Bhisham Sahni and Usha Priyamvada.

Firstpost and Jashn-E-Qalam present: An enactment of Kamleshwar's Apne Desh Ke Log
On India's 73rd Independence Day, Firstpost and Jashn-E-Qalam present a story about a State that wants to create "smart", "model" citizens by modifying that which it perceives is wrong or faulty with them.

Bhulbhulaiya aur Anya Kahaniyan, Sara Rai's lyrical anthology, fortifies the many possibilities inherent in our surroundings
Many of the characters in Bhulbhulaiya aur Anya Kahaniyan grapple with a homebound existence, isolation, insomnia, anxiety—and even a deadly disease.

Remembering Bharatendu Harishchandra on Hindi Divas, a man whose work fortified the language
Bharatendu Harishchandra, born in 1850, is known as the 'Father of modern day Hindi literature'. And it was in establishing this language that his biggest contribution lay. Much of the prose that Harishchandra wrote to establish the Hindi we know today was done in the Kavivachansudha and Harishchandra Magazine, which he founded in 1873.

Acclaimed Hindi author Namwar Singh dies at 92, cremation to take place at Delhi's Lodi crematorium today
Considered a living legend of Hindi literature, Namvar Singh has authored over a dozen works; prominent among them are Kavita Ke Naye Pratiman, Chhayavaad and Dusari Parampara Ki Khoj, among others.

Thithurta Hua Gantantra: Reading Harishankar Parsai's satirical reflections on our democratic 'climate'
Extreme income inequality, neglected socialist manifestos, communal politics and populist schemes — nothing much has changed for India since 1970, when Harishankar Parsai's satire Thithurta Hua Gantantra was first published. The sun of progress and development is yet to dawn upon India's shivering democracy. Here's a reading of an excerpt from Parsai's much-relevant social commentary.

Krishna Sobti, Jnanpith and Sahitya Akademi award-winning Hindi fiction writer, passes away aged 94
Krishna Sobti was known for experimenting with new writing styles and creating bold and daring characters in her stories who were ready to accept all challenges.

Hindi poet-journalist Vishnu Khare, who translated works of TS Eliot and Goethe, passes away at 78 in Delhi
Vishnu Khare was part of the Hindi Academy and a recipient of the Order of the White Rose of Finland for his translation of Kalevala, the national epic of Finland.

Premchand's Godaan: Priyanka Sethia reads from the novelist's last-finished work
Listen to a reading of Munshi Premchand's Godaan, which tells a story of the pains of being a peasant, the politics of money lending and the desperate longing for a cow