Thought Lantern

Thought Lantern in this series has been supporting and calling forward women's voices and their urge to be heard in our community. Similarly, we present to you one of our writers, Sushama Kasbekar, ma'am, who takes full courage to voice out her opinions on women-related topics.  Do read and support her because our writers have the power to shape the world from their words.  Title - Coming Out of the Box.  By - Sushama Kasbekar Coming out of the box, it was not long ago that subjects like menstrual cramps, sanitary napkins, or uterus removal were not heard from anyone except in whispers. People refused to understand or talk about a woman’s body except in hushed tones. Today, much has changed: there’s even a period of leave for those going through difficult times. The tones are more sympathetic and compassionate.   Similarly, a live-in relationship was looked down upon or even unheard of, especially in small towns and cities. Girls who indulged in such relationshi...

  Title - Voice for Women  Silence is one of the most important characteristics that is often expected of women. It makes women into whatever someone else wants, accepting a particular kind of liability that is often required for women who wish to survive. Silence occurs in many ways for many reasons; each of us has his or her own sea of unspoken words. Words bring us together, silence separates us, leaving us bereft of the help or just communication that speech can solicit or elicit. Being unable to tell your story is a living death and sometimes a literal one. If no one believes you when you say you are in pain, if no one hears you when you say help, if you don't dare say help, if you have been trained not to bother people by saying help. If you are considered to be out of line when you speak up in meetings, are not admitted into an institution of power, and are subject to irrelevant criticism whose subtext is that women should not be here or heard. Stories save your life. A...

 It is with great pleasure that we announce that our poetry community is growing and advancing at the same time. Here are some of the impeccable pieces shared by our winners.  Winners under Poetry Book Categories are -  1. Priyanka Bhandarkar.  2. Manvik Sethi.  3. Durriya Sakarwala.  Only for poetry winners are -  Dr Romila Chitturi.  Poornima Sivaraman.  Shweta Gupta.  Poetry Book Winners Section.  Book Name----WITH LOVE, FROM PINKY.  Author Name: Priyanka Bhandarkar  Genre---Poetry Language----English  Publisher----AL-Lina Publication BOOK  BLURB This book is a collection of poems that highlight the mind of a certain girl, Pinky, who believes in herself and the tough decisions she is forced to take while standing on divergent roads. The road to happiness depends on the right and wrong of life, which goes on. There is always a fight in the journey called life. Poems can cover a wide variety of topics---love, na...

  We congratulate the selected writers on making their place in the Editor's Choice list of 2025 following are the names -  1. Dr. Neha Tekwani.  2. Dr. Romila Chitturi.  3. Dr. Arwa Saifi.  4. Priyanka Bhandarkar.  5. Ayesha Hina.  We present to you a wide range of write-ups from these writers, each of whom has a different style.  1st write-up by Dr. Neha Tekwani.  THE ‘PERFECT’ PUBLISHING JOURNEY: AN OVER-RATED MYTH! By: Dr (Author) Neha Tekwani As an author, wordplay comes naturally—even when you’re not struggling to fill the page with meaningful ideas. Lately, though, you’ve grown weary of the system focusing on the word ‘PERFECT’ for quotes, books, and editing suggestions. Why must every sentence be flawless? Why does every dialogue need to be perfect? Who created the rule demanding ‘perfect’ characters or books? Who decided that unless your manuscript is perfect, publishers won’t accept it? You feel your stomach rumble at the naive hope...