Odisha vs Orissa

The only time when a parliamentary bill gets passed swiftly is to change the names of places from anglo to vernacular.Case in point being, Orissa to Odisha and Oriya to Odia.Though, it has taken an year even to do that.The fastest way to grab some footage in media is to make hullaballoo over the names of cities.Be it Bombay as opposed to mumbai or Bangalore as oppose to Bengaluroo (city of baked beans,apparently).Now, the foreigners won't be 'Bangalored',they'll be 'Bengalurooed'.Not quite the same thing.The other way to get your fifteen minutes of fame is to bash up women wearing jeans and couples holding hands and maybe much more on Valentine's Day.

Yesterday, I made a foray to Landmark to pick up the latest Chetan Bhagat offering.Then, was in two minds between buying a hundred rupee Cosmo/Vogue or 2 States (Aforementioned Chetan Bhagat timepass). Finally, ended up buying a special edition of WEEK featuring long dead Indira Gandhi.Have decided to rent "2 States" and "Cosmo" from the friendly neighbourhood librarian.So, while thinking all this on my really tired feet (as the couch had already been hogged by some unchivalrous people :-/),I chanced upon 'Kama Kahani' books.

Yes, they are the indigenous response to the videshi Mills and Boons (which I still pick up sometimes).One of my relatives had a collection of 150 MB's some years ago.I'm sure it must have grown by now.And my cousin and I were simply awed at the age of 13. (By the way, its perfectly OK to begin a sentence with 'AND' when its not an independent sentence but it refers to an earlier context. So I have learnt during my abysmal GMAT experience.But, I'm digressing from the topic.Back to Kama Kahani)

Its a semi erotic collection launched by Random House, India.
The three books set in the 18th and 19th century are named 'Mistress to the Yuvraaj' ,'The Zamindar's forbidden Passion'and 'Ghazal in the Moonlight'.

So, the moral brigade has already sprung in action.The usual arguments have been given: vulgar stuff , corrupting the young minds and what not.They have even tried to enquire if romantic fiction is legal.Maybe, now the next attack would not be on Archies shops but on shops selling Kama Kahani.M&B's might even get banned and then we'll have to ask people returning from phoren to get them.I better hoard MB's and pick my Kama Kahani copy soon :)