Day 2: Dhobi ka kutta — Na ghar ka hai, na ghat ka hai.

India’s ghats, or river banks, are famous for many things, one of which is for their use as a place for washing — oneself and one’s clothes. It’s common to see a dhobi, or washerman, soaking, scrubbing, and beating the clothes against…

Day 1: Reclaiming my story

Do you think reading can be harmful in anyway? That’s a question my friend Ankit once asked me a couple of years back, and at the time, it seemed like an absurd question. In terms of all things “good” and “bad” that I had been taught my whole life, reading was just about as “good”…

Day 4: Nobodies and Somebodies

If you go to middle school, high school, or even college in the U.S. and want to be “cool,” then remember the following trick (and thank me later): if anyone ever asks you “if you studied” for the exam, then always say NO. Depending on what kind of vibe you want to give off…

Day 9: (self) Service

Service. With a capital S.

Where I’m from, when you break down all of the layers and strip away all of the excess, it’s what privileged kids do to economically poor people. I was one of those privileged kids.