Zine (noun) \[zeen] - ‘magazine.’

“Most definitions of zines include the fact that they are small-circulation, self-published, and often inexpensive or free. That’s generally true, although these are more guidelines than hard-and-fast rules. The most important aspect of a zine is generally that the publication identifies as one.” ~ Chloe Arnold, Mental Floss

A Brief History of Zines

Zines have roots in sci-fi, punk, and politics.

mentalfloss.com

Welcome to the first ever issue of Bibliotherapy Zine.

In a parallel universe where print is still almighty, this Number 1 would probably be a collector's item a few decades down the line.

But on Planet Earth circa 2020, it's merely the first installment in another attempt at spreading the cheer and helping humanity stay sane, nothing more, nothing less.

Be warned! This compilation is curated by a highly random, mostly harmless bibliophile. Expect nothing... and everything!!

Also, never forget the motto of Sirius Cybernetics Corporation - 'Share and Enjoy'!!

~ Reader-in-Chief

[WANT TO READ MORE IN 2021?

ADD YOURSELF TO THE BIBLIOTHERAPY READERS' LIST]

DNA Appreciation Department

“We don't have to save the world. The world is big enough to look after itself.

What we have to be concerned about is whether or not the world we live in will be capable of sustaining us in it.” ~ Douglas Noel Adams, 'Parrots, the Universe and Everything' (April 5th, 2001 || University of California - Santa Barbara)

This was the last public appearance by one of the more intelligent 'ape-descended life forms' before he tragically passed away a month later.

One hour, twenty-seven minutes of pure wit and intelligence - available a click away for over 12 years, yet still only experienced by a handful of people.

Sigh. We, as humanity, do not deserve Douglas Adams.

“How does Douglas Adams arrive for coffee?

I wanted to see him skip out of a spaceship, materialize or even just walk. This is a guy who wrote The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and has managed to make Life, the Universe and Everything much more entertaining. So, I wondered, how would he arrive?” ~ Brendan Buhler

Interview: Douglas Adams' - Brendan Buhler (The Daily Nexus - April 5th, 2001)

The last ever interview with 'the last of the most rare, amazing, and quite brilliant species on earth.'

“Thursday night, he came to entertain 800 people in a packed Campbell Hall with his talk, “Parrots, the Universe and Everything.”

The talk was based on Adams’s favorite, and least successful, book: Last Chance to See.” ~ Brendan Buhler

'Crowd of 800 Gets ‘Last Chance to See’ Author Douglas Adams' - Brendan Buhler' (The Daily Nexus - April 6th, 2001)

Last Chance to See is an ongoing project which Mark Carwardine first did with Douglas Adams, who wrote The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe | Mark Carwardine

Last Chance to See with Mark Carwardine, Douglas Adams and Stephen Fry, BBC

markcarwardine.com

[ADD TO LIBRARY --> LAST CHANCE TO SEE: A JOURNEY IN SEARCH OF OUR MOST PRECIOUS AND ENDANGERED ANIMALS - DOUGLAS ADAMS & MARK CARWARDINE]

For 42-plus more 'wholly remarkable resources' about DNA and H2G2, hand-picked from the vastness of the web and compiled in one place...

The Bibliophile's Guide to H2G2

Greetings, fellow inhabitants of the Universe.

bibliotherapy.scrollstack.com

pigs in the wood-house Department

“What Wodehouse writes is pure word music.

It matters not one whit that he writes endless variations on a theme of pig kidnappings, lofty butlers, and ludicrous impostures.

He is the greatest musician of the English language, and exploring variations of familiar material is what musicians do all day.” ~ Douglas Adams, Introduction to 'Sunset at Blandings'

Swipe sideways to treat yourself to a bit of pure word music...

[add to library --> Pigs have Wings: A Blandings Story - P.G. Wodehouse]

Department of Tharoorism

“Whereas other English novelists burdened their readers with the specificities of their characters' lives and circumstances, Wodehouse's existed in a never-never land that was almost as unreal to his English readers as to his Indian ones.

Indian readers were able to enjoy Wodehouse free of the anxiety of allegiance; for all its droll particularities, the world he created, from London's Drones Club to the village of Matcham Scratchings, was a world of the imagination, to which Indians required no visa.” ~ Shashi Tharoor

How the Woosters captured Delhi

In Britain, 100 years after PG Wodehouse published his first book, he is regarded as a cult author redolent of a vanished age. But in India, he has never gone out of fashion. Shashi Tharoor explains

theguardian.com

Also, on the occasion of 73 years of freedom from British rule, Indian History 101...

[ADD TO LIBRARY --> AN ERA OF DARKNESS - SHASHI THAROOR]

LASHINGS OF ginger beer DEPARTMENT

“Generations of Indian children grew up craving things they had not the faintest idea about all thanks to [Enid Blyton].

I wanted to have picnics in the woods with hampers filled with potted meat and tongue sandwiches and ginger ale. I wanted tea with clotted cream and crumpets.

I had no idea what any of it tasted like but that I even craved something clotted and something potted shows the extraordinary power of Blyton.

She made even English food sound fabulously exotic.” ~ Sandip Roy

Why India should claim Enid Blyton as her own

The Royal Mint blocked plans to mark the 50th anniversary of the writer’s death with a commemorative coin.Blyton’s influence over Indians is probably more outsized than her influence over British children

livemint.com

Celebrate Ms Blyton's birthday by revisiting some of her choicest quotes below...

[add to library --> Five on a Treasure Island - Enid Blyton]

hundred years of buk-ch*di department

“"The problem with the world is that the intelligent people are full of doubt while the stupid people are full of confidence," wrote Charles Bukowski.

Have you ever heard a better summary of the mess we’re in today?

In his poems and stories, Bukowski described the futility of modern life better than anyone alive, and 16 August 2020 would have been his 100th birthday.” ~William Cook

A century after his birth, what would Charles Bukowski make of the world?

He wrote about the tyranny of menial work, three-day benders and one-night stands. Far from becoming period pieces, the American-German poet’s stories have never been more topical, writes William Cook

independent.co.uk

Public Service Announcement - The Independent offers one premium longread every week for free after registration.

For a glimpse at honest writing...

[add to library --> post office - Charles Bukowski]

finishing off in style department

“While my heart may be beyond Dhoni, because of the age in which he plied his trade, my head is not.

He is not the fantasy of a schoolboy, but an inspiration for an adult, a supremely well-rounded individual who, more than anyone else I can recall, understood what success is, and often more tellingly, what success is not.” ~ Arnab "GreatBong" Ray

What Dhoni Means To Me

I know when someone retires you are supposed to write a post dripping with emotion and nostalgia, but I can’t lie. Dhoni is not a cricketer I feel emotionally attached to, at least not in the…

greatbong.net

Respect, Skipper!! So long and thanks for all the sixes!

Watch MS Dhoni: The Untold Story

A tell-all tale about the life and times of Indian cricketer, Mahendra Singh Dhoni; mapping his journey; from a ticket collector to a celebrated cr...

hotstar.com

major music festival missing department

“I don’t know how to speak to 20 people, much less all of you . . . you are the largest group of people ever assembled in one place at one time . . . we had no idea there would be this many . . . and you have proven something to the world . . . that half a million kids can get together for fun and music and have nothing but fun and music.” ~ Max Yasgur, Woodstock 1969

Woodstock: 'It Was Like Balling for the First Time'

A three-day festival on Max Yasgur’s farm draws half a million and expands the spirit of a generation

rollingstone.com

zoom sessions worth your while department

“Find a rock music fan of any shade and chances are they will be a fan of psychedelic legends Pink Floyd.

At the very basic level, Another Brick In The Wall — 2 & Wish You Were Here is as much part of an engineering college’s curriculum as Thermodynamics is.” ~ Deepak "Chuck" Gopalakrishnan

The story & evolution of Pink Floyd: A playlist

Chuck & Berty bring you a curated playlist to talk about the history of one of rock’s most important bands. Favourites, covers, hidden…

medium.com

Sign up for Listening Sessions with Chuck, Berty and friends below. Brought to you by Headphone Zone.

Next up - Indian Rock and Metal - Part Two on August 22nd, 2020...

Free listening sessions with & Guests

From exploring genres, to deep diving artists, from understanding audiophilia, to quizzes. It’s all here.

headphonezone.in

On the eve of Independence Day, Part One climaxed with this all-time classic headbanger...

polite applause department

“There was this one voice I’d listen to every morning, and he seemed really, really cool. He had a pet ‘male-cow’ called Adam, would make awkward sounds on-air, and he would play a decent amount of rock and ask me to sing out loud.

He made conversation with random strangers and burst into laughter sporadically. If you still don’t know who I’m referring to – you’re either not from Delhi, or you take the metro to work, or you’ve been living under a rock.

Ladies and gentlemen, this voice is the star on HIT Mornings with Sarthak.” ~ Suchita Salwan

The Importance of Being Sarthak | LBB

When I first started blogging, I made a list of the people I’d like to speak with at some point – the sort of people who epitomize what it is to be a Dilliwaala, who knowingly or unknowingly become a part of our daily lives, in ways either big or small. There was this one voice I’d listen to every morning, and he seemed really, really cool. He had a pet ‘male-cow’ called Adam, would make awkward sounds on-air, and he would play a decent amount of rock and ask me to sing out loud. He made conversation with random strangers and burst into laughter sporadically. If you still don’t know who I’m referring to – you’re either not from Delhi, or you take the metro to work, or you’ve been living under a rock. Ladies and gentlemen, this voice is the star on HIT Mornings with Sarthak. Having heard him possibly every morning, on my way to college and then work, I just had to sit and speak with him. So I wrote him an email, and he didn’t respond. I thought it was because I wasn’t cool enough {turns out I sent it to the wrong email address}! A year later though, I found myself seated across a table and in conversation with the man himself – Sarthak Kaushik. So how does one interview someone whose job is to talk to others, to be funny, and to ask all the right questions? Turns out he’s exactly how he is on air, though slightly somber. He’s very warm, affable, knows his music, loves his job, and as typical as this might sound, he’s a really nice guy. Born and raised in Delhi, Sarthak spent his formative years in Mother’s International School in Delhi, then pursued a Bachelor’s in French, followed by a Master’s in interpretations, and also a course in Fashion Journalism from NIFT. Yes, I’m still talking about the very same RJ you hear first thing in the morning. There’s more to come; he’s worked as an interpreter with embassies, then with Rock Street Journal, he was a part of the launch team for Headlines Today where he headed a 15 minute feature called ‘High Notes’, and then joined Times Now where he covered over 10 Fashion weeks. Back when Sarthak started out, music meant mainstream Bollywood, and- "if it ain’t mainstream, it ain’t going on air." Radio was also fixated on Bollywood – you either had the very punju songs or those from Kishore Kumar’s time blaring from the FM stations. “You grow up with dreams you know. You’re a kid and you want to be an archeologist, a pilot, etc, and you sit down and you shove in these little sticks and you think they’re joysticks and you’re flying a plane. Yeah… I wanted to be an RJ since then.” His friends would bring in recordings of foreign radio stations and he’d listen in and imitate all the British accents. It took a long and winding journey to get there, but 6 years ago, he joined Hit 95 FM and it’s been non-stop ever since. “I started with this show called Dilli da Download, and we’d play two Punjabi songs and then this pop-culture song. It was the 8 pm to midnight slot.”  And today, we hear him from 7 am to noon, where the songs are far from those reminiscent of ‘Dilli Da Download’, and an identity so strong that anyone who’s heard the Radio definitely even knows about Adam. So what’s the allure of Radio; what keeps him coming back and engaging with people through this medium? “Radio’s such an intensely local, personal medium. You’re a passenger in the car, man. That’s the beauty of it. Every time you switch on the mic you have the power to sit next to the driver and give them something to be happy about and that’s a huge responsibility and a huge challenge. In this lonely, cynical world, making someone believe that they’re not alone…” There’s gratification and joy when he talks about radio; this excitement that can only be found when one loves and believes in what they do. “At a certain level, I don’t concern myself too much with the number of people listening. This is what I wanted to do, I’m doing it the way I want to, and this internal fire is a fuel. If you worry yourself with what other people are thinking, you’re done for. That’s where you stunt your growth completely because you’re trying to come up to standards of someone else. While if you set standards for yourself, that’s when you’ll grow.” What I personally enjoy the most on his show is the amount of support offered to local bands. They’ve featured everyone – big or small, and across genres; from Kalpriksh Project to Barefaced Liar, Advaita, Bombino, Them Clones, Thermal and a Quarter and Indus Creed. I was introduced to Delhi’s ‘music scene’ a few years ago, and I can safely say that the talent that exists in our city is mind-blowing. There is breathtaking original music that’s being created and it is phenomenal. “I think taking the yardstick with the kind of bands we have; we have a fusion band, a latino band, a jazz group, we got rocknroll, sufi.. We’ve got every kind of band here, and every kind of band is getting every kind of gig. The acceptance of new music in Delhi is really advanced, and this is not a generalization. This is what I’ve seen. I think there’s no other city that has that kind of acceptance as of now.” I crack a joke about the ‘I Love Sarthak’ page on Facebook, and it’s funny to see him bashful. Everyone knows Sarthak, everyone laughs at his jokes, and everyone tunes in to hear his ‘fart factory’, ‘bhopoo’, ‘oriental gong’ and all the sound effects he has stored. The man himself though, resists any mention of popularity, shunning it almost. “I was rejected by ‘Yuv vani,’ which is a Delhi AM frequency channel. I still have that rejection letter to remind myself when I feel like I’m the king’s uncle. It reminds me of what I wanted to do and how I wanted to start.. That keeps you grounded.” He’s over 6 feet tall, has long hair and a goatee, and wears jeans, a jacket and a cap. If you saw him at a distance, you’d probably stereotype him as ‘that musician looking dude.’ He may not know how to play an instrument or be a part of a band, but the knowledge and enthusiasm he has for music is palpable, infectious even. The love he has for Radio? You can sense that every time you tune into his show on 95 fm. More than that, he’s got plenty wisdom and perspective on things. He can talk about evolution and fashion in the same breath, and I’d listen with equal attention. He’s got belief and steadfastness that could withstand a tide. He’s a happy man, doing his own thing. And as he says, ‘ghamand nahi hai bas!’

lbb.in

Speaking of Sarthak, or rather 'with' him...

nasal acoustics department

An ode to steam from the man who once hogged almost all the radio-waves in the dark days...

An extraordinary quantity of chuckles can be attributed to Him doing things on my feed this week. Warning - Quite contagious!

humans of bibliotherapy department

And finally, a message from a talented artist and one of the earliest supporters of this tiny initiative to chase the blues away, one book at a time...

That's all Folks! Thanks for scrolling!

Till next time, happy reading!!

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