EVERY CREATURE HAS A STORY
A soap opera editor turned-documentary filmmaker-turned writer, Janaki Lenin is a self-proclaimed idealist by day, and anarchist by night. a wildlife enthusiast with years of experience in conservation under her belt, Lenin strives to bring the wild to the masses with fun and lively stories. She was a columnist for Firstpost, The Hindu and The Wire, and has two collections of essays from her My Husband and Other Animals column.
How has the lockdown been treating you?
My family and I are lucky to live in the middle of nowhere, on a farm adjoining a forest. My regular way of life is one of self-quarantine. So the lockdown wasn’t radically different although it required a few adjustments. The only fear was that my elderly father shouldn’t come down with any major medical issues that required seeing a doctor or visiting a hospital. But on the plus side, the lack of traffic noise was wonderful, and we hear the dawn chorus of birdsong in full stereophonic glory.
What is your new book all about?
Every Creature Has A Story is about some of the most amazing, bizarre, and charming things that animals do, whether it be navigating by smell, showing compassion to others, or pretending to be dead rather than have sex. We’ve seen viral videos of the antics of dogs and cats splashed all over the internet. But members of entire species out in the wild are doing crazy stuff that deserves to be in the spotlight, and I hope the book will bring these stories to life.
You’re privy to a lot of weird animal facts. your Top 3?
This is a tough one but I'll do my best (not in any specific order):
Denne historien er fra August 2020-utgaven av Outlook Traveller.
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Denne historien er fra August 2020-utgaven av Outlook Traveller.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Chutneys For Every Season
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BADGE OF HONOUR
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WHEELS OF TIME
IN 1947, TRAINS CARRYING REFUGEES ACROSS THE BORDER WERE SYMBOLIC OF THE TUMULT OF THE PARTITION.
RAILS OF THE Raj
FROM ITS CONCEPTION TO ITS ROLE IN THE NATION'S HISTORY, THE BRITISH INDIAN RAILWAYS IS A PHENOMENON MARKED AS MUCH BY MARVEL AS AVARICE
THE RHYTHM OF BOLLYWOOD
FROM THE RAILROAD THRILLER MISS FRONTIER MAIL 1936) TO SHAH RUKH KHAN DANCING ON A TRAIN IN DIL SE' 1998), TRAINS HAVE GIVEN UNFORGETTABLE SONG SEQUENCES TO MANY HINDI FILMS
MEMORY'S OASIS
REMEMBRANCES OF GROWING UP IN SEALDAH RAILWAY OFFICERS COLONY IN KOLKATA
A FAREWELL × TO FLAVOURS
FROM CUTLETS AND RAILWAY MUTTON CURRY IN DINING CARS TO THE UNREMARKABLE FARE AVAILABLE TODAY, THE JOURNEY OF FOOD ON THE INDIAN RAILWAY IS FASCINATING
HERITAGE ON THE TRACKS
THE ICONIC DARJEELING HIMALAYAN RAILWAY, FONDLY CALLED THE TOY TRAIN,' HAS HELD ITS UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE STATUS SINCE 1999
HIDDEN LIVES
SPANNING 65,000 KILOMETRES THROUGH DENSELY POPULATED INDIA, THE RAILWAYS ARE A BACKDROP TO COUNTLESS STORIES. 'THE UNRESERVED' BY FILMMAKER SAMARTH MAHAJAN CAPTURES A FEW
JOURNEYS WITHIN AND WITHOUT
FOR IMTIAZ ALI, TRAIN JOURNEYS ARE TRANSFORMATIVE, OFFERING GLIMPSES OF INDIA'S DIVERSE SOCIETY AND ITS MANY CULTURES AND RELIGIONS
