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| SOUL-STIRRING STORIES: I’m a great fan of Dan Brown’s books. But Khaled Hosseini’s writing mesmerises me. Having read both the authors’ previous books, it’s a tough choice to make between And The Mountains Echoed and Inferno. A Thousand Splendid Suns and The Kite Runner really touched my soul. I love reading these two books over and over again. Khaled Hosseini’s realistic and socialistic approach and his vivid portrayal of Mariam and Laila in A Thousand Splendid Suns and Hassan and Amir in The Kite Runner left me impressed. So this time, too, I am expecting a heart-warming and enchanting tale from the author in his third book. And The Mountains Echoed is what I will buy first. |
The article on the heart-warming performances by a few braveheart students in ICSE and ISC examinations (Cracked: exam & test of life, May 18) was inspiring. I join Metro in saluting the fave five on their marvellous performance, exemplary guts and determination.
All five of them battled various odds, including financial hardship, to muster the courage and composure to overcome and shine. Their efforts are worthy of emulation.
My message to these bravehearts as a former teacher is to keep up the spirit of not giving in to hurdles but to try to go on taking things in their stride and fighting them with the same measure of will power.
P.B. Saha,
Salt Lake
Mad about anime
I didn’t even realise when I got addicted to anime. Anime is not only about Doraemon, Shin-chan or Pokemon (Why do you like/dislike anime? April 11). I am 16 and many people tell me anime is for kids. What they don’t know is that real anime is not for kids. My friends say I am an otaku (Japanese for a person obsessed with anime and manga). There exist 10 times more anime fans in the world than those of the Twilight saga or even Harry Potter! I myself own seven groups and four pages on Facebook, all of them on anime. The sketching style of anime is unique and that is what attracts me.
Deyasini Sengupta,
GD Birla Centre For Education
I am 18 and proud to be an anime freak. I have been watching anime for 11 years. Usually, I like the action-packed ones more than the comic ones. I don’t like Doraemon and Shin-chan much but I love Beyblade and Naruto. I was introduced to anime through Dragon Ball and Cardcaptor Sakura long before I saw Shin-chan.
Tanusree Sarkar
Anime is special to all those of us who have grown up watching it. Good or bad, it has been a part of our growing up. I have been watching cartoon shows since I was a toddler and even now, when I have just finished Class X, I continue to watch it whenever I get time. These shows are mainly comic but they also impart valuable lessons. Today when workload and the burden of studies are increasing by the day, these shows act as stressbusters and make us laugh. They are definitely better than the daily soap operas with heroines crying 24x7. In young children, it helps trigger their imagination about speaking robots and aliens. My favourite cartoons are Shin-chan and Tom and Jerry.
Ananya Kundu,
Marian Co-educational School
I love anime but not Doraemon or Sergeant Keroro. My favourites are Bleach, a super-hit anime in Japan, and Naruto.
Satwato Dey,
St. Xavier’s Collegiate School
I am 20 years old and a great fan of animation. I love Shin-chan and his family a lot as he seems to be the boy next door. The family is a middle-class one, just like mine. It’s true that some of the animation is unsuitable for children, but they also send out some good messages. Doraemon, Shin-chan, Ninja Hattori teach us to love animals, help people, speak the truth, do good work and respect all. Shows like Captain Planet make us aware of the ills of pollution.
Shreyasi Chakrabarti
I appeared for my Class XII examination this year and I still love Shin-chan and Doraemon because they refresh my mind and help me relax in between studies.
Akshay Rai
I am an otaku (a die-hard anime fan), so I definitely love anime. Anime makes me happy when I’m sad and I turn to it for motivation.
My journey into the world of Japanese anime began, not with Doraemon and Shin-chan, but Pokemon and Cardcaptor Sakura. I am saddened that these were not mentioned in the article. Also worth-mentioning would be Naruto, Bleach and One Piece.
Riha Yashiro
Doraemon and Shin-chan are my all-time favourites but if we are to talk about anime, then I must mention world-class animes like Naruto, Beyblade, Digimon and Fairy Tail as well. These animes have a huge fan base not only in India but in the whole world. The main reason why I like anime is because they reflect various aspects of our lives like friendship, trust and love with striking stories.
Diotima Mondal
I read your article on Japanese anime. I personally feel that the article is one of the many steps towards spreading Japanese culture in the city and the media has been doing a great job at it recently.
But the Shin-chan episodes shown on television kill the very essence of the series. Shinchan derives from seinen, which translates to being aimed at an older audience. Numerous edits and dubbed lines later, it is being shown to children, keeping very little of the original show intact. This is tantamount to turning Tom and Jerry into Rambo. Unfortunately, Animax has been taken off DTH services.
There are a lot of people who enjoy Japanese anime in the city, and there is even a Kolkata Anime Club. Most Japanese language institutes are filled with eager people trying to learn Japanese so that they can watch their favourite anime in the original versions.
Sayantan Bhattacharjee
Action heroes
When it comes to education, my all-time action hero would be Rabindranath Tagore. The truant who created a school of education where knowledge would enrich the soul not by compulsion but by choice.
The endeavour by Mukti Gupta (School that drives to students, February 20) is laudable and praiseworthy, not only because of her thought and initiative but also because it serves as an eye-opener for the government which could do so much just if it took the leap. Her story reminded me of Tagore’s philosophy that true mukti or salvation can be attained by serving humanity. She has done a great job and the cost-effectiveness and innovation of the scheme make it all the more commendable. Kudos to her for your effort. Every citizen of India should lend a helping hand to her project.
Aritrik Dutta Chowdhury
Like van-o (Traffic stopped for illegal vehicles, May 9), motorised country boats, popularly called bhotbhoti, operate on stolen engines and yet both illegal modes of transport are allowed a free run in Bengal, especially in rural areas. What is alarming is that van-os have made inroads into the city’s fringes and ply on Budge Budge Trunk Road. Calcutta High Court’s directive to district administrations to crack down on van-os has not been implemented.
Chameli Pal
Batanagar
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