Page 24 – The Bangalore Review

September, 2022

Sounding

What if they did hear me far away, in France, India, or China? What if they ran around yelling, “Who is making that noise? Where is it coming from? What is it?” Maybe they would think it was an animal and set traps, or the radio and look for a different station.

Poetry

September, 2022

The Misunderstood

“Say sorry Mita, ju leetle sinverguenza, pendeja for estupidez! Her sharp words slice through the pineapples on the tropical wallpaper of her tiny dark kitchen scattering drops of sweet juice on my cheek and on one eyelash that dangles in front of my pupil too afraid to fall off

September, 2022

Panda and Tiger

It is possible that the grandmother forgot the name of the cafe where she and the child were to meet Rose. It is possible she was lost, confused, or maybe dozed off. And, yes, it is possible that she never intended to meet Rose for lunch.

Poetry

September, 2022

35 More Dawns of Winter Someone Said

But this is poem and not hopeful consonance so I write ephemeral which is fleeting and ethereal which is artificial construct of the human brain

September, 2022

The Fleeting Mind

My name is Cecil Alfa Brown. Caroline told me I should write every day to keep my mind sharp. As silly as it sounds, I will do it for her. She may not know it, but she is my best and only friend left in this world, besides Phil.

Poetry

September, 2022

Cambodia Lessons

there is life happening across this world, around it, inside it at the instant tea touches your lips in the morning; you: not alone in your husk, it is happening, right now, you, me, separated by our skins

August, 2022

TBR Recommends – August 2022

Every month, The Bangalore Review recommends a reading list, also mentioning in brief why each book must be read. This month’s list has been compiled by the Indian poet, Sonnet Mondal.

August, 2022

Evolution of Film Publicity Art

Film historian and archivist of vintage film memorabilia, SMM Ausaja, takes us down memory lane of the evolution of Film publicity in the Indian Movie Industry.

Poetry

August, 2022

One Night Stand

He takes me to a bed where there is no rest I rattle with him His moans overpower the sirens of the street and shakes his body in a variety of motions

August, 2022

The Silvian Reset

His brother Dan had noticed these changes in James. Dan noticed James had been visiting the doctor as frequently as someone just diagnosed with cancer. At first, Dan worried something was wrong, and asked if there was anything he should know about.

Poetry

August, 2022

Isle of Caves

Wall after wall, cave after cave, many armed, many legged, many headed desire dances its heart out. Liberated by the im- measurable devotion of anonymous hands.

August, 2022

The Shirt

“Our tailoring needs didn’t go beyond the occasional shirt or a pair of trousers. I got my black bespoke tuxedo with fine stripes stitched there. Paragon, strictly for gents, did not sell clothes, only offered tailoring service. The head tailor himself was the owner.

Poetry

August, 2022

in memory of things that break

the love you feel when a baby is first born the night he left for college (the morning he returned but only because he forgot his hat)

August, 2022

Celestial Harvest

She crosses the front yard, pushes the gate open, reaches the graveled sidewalk, and sits down on the curb. The heat weighs heavily on the street; molten mirages shimmer on the pavement. Stilled air, tampered sounds.Christiane’s kitchen, with its human comforts and knowable scale, seems far now.

Poetry

August, 2022

Unconfession in My Psychoanalyst’s Office

I tremble in a flower’s vocabulary— retract my hands like from a hot sky or suddenness dreams which pass through my body are no different from hands

August, 2022

Just a Shirt

The third time he put on the shirt he didn’t look in the mirror at all, and that almost made it okay, except that he knew that if he looked in the mirror, he would see his frizzy hair and his pasty skin turned blotchy...

Poetry

August, 2022

Driving the Skyway Bridge

You don’t see her, hair like wings ephemeral catching fire from Florida sun, wire fences no match for birds taking flight unnaturally.

August, 2022

In-between Emotions: A Triptych

The author translates, among other things, the relationship she shares with Bombay, the city of her birth; how she has accepted and made peace with the method in its madness.

Poetry

August, 2022

All the Howling

The night locked and cellular, the landscape grows increasingly perplexed at the Color aspects of American democracy,

August, 2022

A Topic Too Distressing to Mention

Janice was scarcely 30 when she came to Claresboro, a newly licensed veterinarian joining Dr. Quigley’s small-animal practice. We knew her family from a long way back–her mother grew up here before moving to the city, and her grandma Paula still owns the flower shop on Minton Street.

Poetry

August, 2022

Rich People

There are plenty of seats on the summit. You can see the dark clouds amassing from miles away. I had a big wedding. I’ve stood beneath a waterfall.

July, 2022

Indie Publishers & Booksellers

Welcome to the first edition of The Bangalore Review Roundtable, where we discuss Indie Publishing & Bookselling in India. This session is moderated by Sucharita Dutta-Asane, Fiction Editor at The Bangalore Review.