Lounge Loves: ‘Halves’, Sleepy by Lush

A Language Lost

Do you remember the Harappan script from your history textbooks? I was particularly intrigued by the animal and bird symbols on seals and pottery, and wondered how the ancient people made sense of their everyday lives through them. At the ongoing Networks of the Past exhibition at the Prince of Wales Museum in Mumbai, I found myself drawn to the many relics and inscriptions, trying to understand how communication shaped ancient society. At the exit, a feedback diary prompted us to write about our experience in our mother tongue. I may have hesitated at first, but then challenged myself to describe those fascinating few hours at the museum in Bangla. It made me think about the Harappans, who built cities, maintained trade networks and mastered in pottery in a language that we are still trying to understand.

—Rituparna Roy

Love in the Moment

Sitting on a Mumbai park bench, Trisha (Kaveri Seth) and Raghu (Keith Antony Sequeira) try and distil their brief connection. They met at a concert the night before, hit it off, went back to his place, and said they love each other. He’s a bit defensive now, but Trisha, who’s been burned before, encourages him to broaden his thinking. “Not everything that lasts long is true,” she says, “and not everything that lasts a few minutes is a lie.” Just before this, Raghu extends his hand to within inches of her arm, then withdraws. This gesture is also in Before Sunset, a wish to provide comfort, then a last-second rethink. It’s only natural to see the Before trilogy in Divyanshu Asopa’s two-character conversation film Halves (streaming on BookMyShow). But there are tons of Linklater-inspired indie shorts out there, and few are this unaffected yet emotionally curious. —Uday Bhatia

The Perfect Brew

Sumita Saroj Manna embodies main character energy. She is the manager and chief barista at the café-cum-art space Haiku in Bandra West, Mumbai. On a hot summer afternoon, I walked in desperately looking for a cold coffee. She saw me and suggested a Vietnamese Coffee. Her exact words were: “Ek baar meri coffee pee ke toh dekhiye, madam (Try my coffee just once)”. Who can say no to that? It came in a glass with a long cinnamon stick. Ever since, I have gone back asking for Manna’s coffee. Regulars tell me they do the same, and some prefer visiting according to her shifts. I’ve noticed the staff sharing their tiffin every afternoon with Manna yapping away about food. Apart from her brewing skills, I imagine she will be a great host. —Jahnabee Borah

Lavender Cooler

My survival guide for the summer months includes drinking gallons of chilled coconut water, feasting on mangoes, and taking cold showers at all hours. As we all wait for the mango season to descend well and truly, I’ve been indulging in the last activity for several weeks now—made sweeter by the multiple body washes I keep on rotation in my bathroom cabinet. My favourite is Sleepy by Lush, which, true to its promise, makes me “drift off to a lavender dreamland with soothing oat milk and sweet-smelling tonka” at the end of a long, hot day. It’s vegan, and exudes the aroma of “a creamy, lavender malted milkshake.” I do wish Lush will consider selling the edible version of this delightful potion one day.

—Somak Ghoshal