Solitude and Books

What is love if not a feeling that changes us, even when it does not stay? As Paulo Coelho says, “Love is not something you find. Love is something that finds you.” When We Were ‘Almost’ explores this side of love through three stories that feel close to real life. They are about young hearts, old memories, missed chances, and the people we become after certain relationships end. Dibakar is at the centre of the first story, set in a small town in Tripura. An unexpected phone call brings him back into contact with old classmates and old emotions.  During the Durga Puja celebrations of 2010, he finds himself caught between feelings for someone from his past and a new connection that slowly enters his life. The story has friendship, attraction, confusion and heartbreak, while also showing how young people often do not know what to do with feelings that are bigger than their understanding. Ganga adds another emotional layer to the story. Years later,...

In a world that is always rushing, offering quick fixes, and obsessed with staying young, this powerful story takes an honest look at the later years of life. Through the carefully organized daily routines of an older couple, Lakshmanan and Chandri, the story shows what it is like to grow old in a fast-paced world. Mixing technical details with deep emotion, the story actually explores the quiet, hard work of holding onto your dignity as your body and health slowly fade. This feels relatable even if we are young but we find older people with similar life circumstances all around us. The story moves back and forth between quiet daily habits and heavy memories of the past. We first meet Lakshmanan and Chandri living a very structured life in a changing city. Lakshmanan keeps a close eye on his health, tracking his weight, blood pressure, and medical logs digitally. When they meet friends like Arvindo at local cafes, they talk about past adventures, old surgeries, and the real...