Ruhi Nagral There are places in every city that live a secret life. In Delhi, one such place existed just off the chaos of Netaji Subhash Marg—a crooked alleyway in Daryaganj where noise dissolved into silence and the present seemed to pause. At the end of that alley stood an old haveli, its faded sandstone façade hidden behind tangled bougainvillaea and dusty electric wires. If you looked carefully, you’d find a narrow staircase, half-eaten by time, leading to a pair of heavy wooden doors painted a shade of blue the sky no longer remembered. This was Paperweight, a bookstore that…

Nandini Rao The waves crashed relentlessly against the jagged cliffs of Sundar Island, a speck of land lost in the vastness of the Arabian Sea. For more than a century, the island had been home to the old lighthouse, perched high above the swirling waters — a beacon of hope and warning to the passing ships. Few dared to set foot on this isolated rock, save for the lighthouse keepers who guarded its light, passing the torch from one generation to another. The last storm had been fierce. For days, the skies rumbled, and the sea roared with unnatural fury.…