• English - Young Adult

    Colors of Kumartuli

    September 19, 2025 - By 

    Pritam Sarkar Chapter 1 – The Arrival at Kumartuli unfolds with the vivid sensory chaos of Kolkata’s legendary artisan quarter. Seventeen-year-old Tanya steps into the narrow, winding lanes of Kumartuli, her senses immediately overwhelmed by the vibrant intensity of the place. The air is thick with the earthy scent of wet clay, mingling with turpentine, oil paints, and the faint tang of incense from nearby shrines. The rhythmic tapping and molding of hands on clay create a hypnotic symphony, broken intermittently by the calls of vendors and the chatter of apprentices. Towering idols of Durga, in various stages of completion,…

  • Crime - English

    Blood Moon over Varanasi

    September 19, 2025 - By 

    Punam Sharma 1 The night over Varanasi shimmered with an eerie luminescence as the blood moon climbed steadily above the Ganga, bathing the ancient ghats in a copper-red glow. The river, usually alive with chants, bells, and the flicker of oil lamps, seemed to hold its breath, its surface glinting like molten brass. Amid this uneasy stillness, a young boatman named Ravi rowed silently across the slow-moving waters, his oar slicing through the moonlit current. He had ferried pilgrims across these sacred waters countless times, but tonight felt different—thicker, heavier. As he neared Dashashwamedh Ghat, a dark silhouette caught the…

  • English - Science Fiction

    Mumbai Skydwellers

    September 18, 2025 - By 

    Chayanika Gupta I The year is 2150, and Mumbai is no longer the bustling coastal metropolis that once defined India’s economic ambition. Rising seas have claimed its foundations, swallowing roads, train lines, and neighborhoods in a relentless tide that never recedes. Above the endless gray waters, colossal towers known as Sky-Havens pierce the storm-heavy clouds, their glass spires shimmering like distant stars. These vertical cities are reserved for the rich and powerful—politicians, tech magnates, and corporate dynasties who have sealed themselves away from the chaos below. Beneath their hovering luxury lies the drowned city, a maze of rusting ferries, floating…

  • English - Romance

    City of Lights

    September 18, 2025 - By 

    Hrittik Ghosh 1 Kolkata had transformed into a city of shimmering lights and rhythmic chaos, where every street seemed to pulse with life. The air was thick with the fragrance of incense mingling with the irresistible aroma of steaming puchkas, kathi rolls, and mishti from the countless food stalls lining the thoroughfares. The cacophony of dhak drums, laughter, and devotional chants blended into a symphony unique to Durga Puja, drawing both locals and visitors into its vibrant rhythm. Neon lights bounced off the wet pavements from an occasional monsoon drizzle, adding a glimmering sheen to the city. Ornate pandals, each…

  • English - Travel

    The Red Silk Trail

    September 18, 2025 - By 

    Ira Sen Part 1 – Arrival in Assam The plane dipped low over the wide, lazy sweep of the Brahmaputra, and Devika pressed her face against the oval window. The river spread like a sheet of molten steel under the September sun, streaked with islands and sandbars, its surface broken now and then by the speck of a ferry or a line of fishing boats straining against the current. She had read about it countless times—this river that carried myths and nations on its back—but nothing prepared her for its vastness. It looked less like water and more like time…

  • Comedy - English

    The Fake Yoga Guru

    September 18, 2025 - By 

    Rohit Sharma Part 1: Lights, Camera… No Action Rajiv Malhotra sat on the creaky plastic chair in the audition hall, clutching his dog-eared script like it was the last lifeline of his career. Around him, twenty other “aspiring actors” waited, all with the same tired eyes, fake smiles, and desperate hopes. The casting assistant shouted names like a schoolteacher calling attendance. Every time the door opened, Rajiv prayed it would be him who got picked, and every time it wasn’t, he sank deeper into his chair. When his turn finally came, he stood before three people who didn’t even look…

  • English - Suspense

    The Missing Idol

    September 18, 2025 - By 

    Debayan Roy Part 1 – The Festival Begins The Chatterjee bari stood like an aging sentinel in the heart of north Kolkata, its moss-streaked pillars and wrought-iron balconies bearing the weight of two centuries. On any other day, it was a decaying mansion where pigeons nested in broken cornices and the smell of damp walls clung to the air like an old cough. But now, in the first week of autumn, the house seemed to breathe again. Lights hung from balconies, drums beat in the courtyard, and relatives filled the old rooms with chatter and anticipation. Durga Puja had arrived.…

  • English - Science Fiction

    The Pulse Between Stars

    September 18, 2025 - By 

    Aarya Menon Part 1: The Resonance The ship woke before the people did. That was how Mira always felt it—an undercurrent tremor rippling through the decks, like the Ark was stretching after a night’s dream. Then the alarms chimed soft and steady, a metronome for the morning ritual. Mira sat up on her cot in the medic quarters, pressing two fingers to the side of her neck. Her pulse stuttered, uneven, refusing the calm rhythm that the ship demanded. She swallowed hard, wiped her face, and stood. Outside the narrow corridor, hundreds were already moving in silence toward the Grand…

  • English - Romance

    Raindrops on Marine Drive

    September 18, 2025 - By 

    Anaya Kapoor Part 1: Return in the Rain The plane touched down in Mumbai just as the first spell of the monsoon had begun to break across the city, the tarmac glistening with that familiar shimmer of water and oil mixing into tiny rainbow puddles. Aditi pressed her forehead against the cool oval window, watching the drizzle streak across the glass, and for a moment she was sixteen again, rushing home from school in a wet uniform, her shoes squelching, her mother scolding her to change quickly before she caught a cold. Ten years had passed since she had left…

  • Crime - English

    The Widow’s Ledger

    September 18, 2025 - By 

    Tanima Basak Chapter 1 – Tide at Dusk The sea was already pulling back when Inspector Arjun Sen reached Chandipur. It was late evening, and the tide had begun its quiet retreat across the flat beach, leaving behind long glistening stretches of sand that shone like dark mirrors in the fading light. Fishing nets lay sprawled across wooden boats like the skins of dead creatures, their salt-stiff ropes twisting under the weak lanterns that dotted the shore. A smell of brine and rotting kelp hung in the air, sharp enough to make his throat sting. The police jeep jolted over…