Names of Animals Dwelling Places Ant hill / formicary Badger sett Bat roost, cave Bear den Beaver lodge, beavery Bee beehive/aviary Bird nest Cat cattery, lair, den Chicken coop Cow byre, cattle shed Dog kennel Dolphin dolphinarium Eagle/Hawk/Birds of prey eyrie/aerie/aery Fish aquarium, vivarium Fox earth, den, hole, lair Frog froggery, ranarium Gerbil gerbilarium Goat pen Guinea pig hutch Hare form, hutch Hornet hive Horse paddock, stable,...

On 10 March 2016, the French President M François Hollande was surrounded by Dutch Royalty and dignitaries at the Louvre. Around the President were King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands. The reason for their presence at the Louvre? The display of two paintings by Rembrandt, a portrait of Maerten Soolmans and that of his wife Oopjen Coppit. Rembrandt’s Eyes The first of these was acquired by the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam (which...

What I write about here is nothing new. Every ordinary Indian goes through such experiences. They are part of the trials and tribulations of a commoner’s daily life, as integral to it as the dust and the pollution on the roads. You may feel impatient, irritated or even angry. Or you may quietly accept it as your fate. Yet there are aspects of life that needs to be documented and recorded by many in the hope that finally, some day in the...

Politics in India remains the same for decades and the situation of the common man hardly changes. Politics here means endless discussions and debates, rampant corruption and dynastic politics where power remains in the hands of a few who try to perpetuate their hold over it by helping their family members to find a foothold on the haloed podium of Indian politics. Politics in India may also mean coercion and muscle power. In the few months...

Those afternoon scenes offer an infinite number of recurring images that are food for my visual mind. I stand beside the window and try to remember the streets of north Calcutta as I used to see them in the 70’s. On my way back home, I would watch men — hard working men — rickshaw and cart-pullers, men who did menial jobs, or worked in factories — having that much-needed afternoon bath right on the streets. They used 501...

“Somebody who only reads newspapers and at best books of contemporary authors looks to me like an extremely near-sighted person who scorns eyeglasses. He is completely dependent on the prejudices and fashions of his times, since he never gets to see or hear anything else.” – Albert Einstein Although I had a short stint at the desk of a newspaper over two decades ago, I never felt enamoured of the daily newspaper. There is...