#148 - Notes on Apricots, Logos and Writing

Education Coffee is a 2xWeekly Newsletter on People, Ideas and Culture.

In each edition of this newsletter, I share five inspiring web resources that I have curated after hours of research to ensure that you have the best education coffee in your inbox. In upcoming editions, I will focus on sharing insights, notes and realizations that I gather from people, ideas, books, films and podcasts.

1. Learning from People

On Episode 65 of #LearningStories we chat with Abhishek Singh on writing, humour and the Indian dream. Abhishek is a product manager and writer. He was born and raised in Ghaziabad. He followed the sacred Indian life path of school, then engineering and then MBA. Thankfully somewhere along the way he also stumbled upon writing. He has been writing for over 10 years, sometimes regularly, sometimes like a surprise cameo in a sitcom. But since joining Substack in August 2024 he has been more consistent by sharing humorous pieces that make people chuckle, nod and occasionally short laugh. His newsletter 'anotherblog' captures light hearted, non productive and gluten free thoughts on just about everything life throws at him. You can find Abhishek on Instagram, Linkedin and Substack. You can read and explore his work on anotherblog.

2. Learning from Ideas and Questions

3. Learning from Books, Websites and Blog

I recently read, For the Love of Apricots by Madhulika Liddle. It was published on January 6 2025 by Speaking Tiger Books. This book was like a warm hug. It is about the friendship of a 32 year old apricot orchard owner and a 40 year old pickle making cooperative owner. Their relationship starts of on the wrong note because of unfortunate social situations and events. But they start spending more time with each other and slowly start to appreciate each other's world and world views. Along the way you also learn about the hill station they call home and the people that are part of their extended circle in that place.

It has the most delicious food descriptions and reminded me of the food descriptions I loved reading as a child in the Famous Five series. I read the acknowledgement note at the end and the author said that the jam she described in the book was also made by her mom and that is why she was able to describe it so well. This was a book that captured my attention because of the beautiful cover and book description. Here is the description from the book jacket,

A bottle of pickle, a jar of apricot jam, and a clump of stinging nettle—perfect ingredients for romance in sleepy Mukteshwar.

Forty-year-old divorcee Nandini is something of an oddity in the Himalayan small town of Mukteshwar where she has come to settle with her absent-minded birdwatcher father. Fiercely independent, strong-willed—she’s a woman you can’t take for a ride, which is how she has turned a homegrown pickle-making business into a successful women’s co-operative.

When she encounters the newcomer Vikas Joshi, who has recently acquired an apricot orchard, sparks being to fly as a series of mishaps bring them together. It doesn’t look like this shy, gentle widower and the feisty pickle producer are made for each other. But destiny deems otherwise, with a little help from the villagers—and a mysterious jar of apricot jam.

Played out against the backdrop of the Kumaon Hills, across wooded mountains and apricot orchards, For the Love of Apricots is a quietly romantic, humorous story about a seemingly headstrong yet vulnerable heroine and a lonely man who realize, before it’s too late, that love deserves a second chance.

It also shows you romance in a new light because it isn't always about the physical connection. Sometimes it also about the values you stand for and the company you seek at a particular point in your life. Would highly recommend this for a light read by an indian author about food, love and second chances. She spoke about this book in a video interview linked below.

4. Learning from Films, Videos and Shows

In the heartwarming live action adventure Disney’s “Christopher Robin,” the young boy who shared countless adventures with his band of lovable stuffed animals in the Hundred Acre Wood is now grown up and living in London but he has lost his way. Now it is up to his childhood friends to venture into our world and help Christopher Robin rediscover the joys of family life, the value of friendship and to appreciate the simple pleasures in life once again.

This film made me think about how we delay finding wonder in life because of our professional and personal goals. Our ability to find joy in the little moments and little things takes a back seat when we get consumed by our drive to acquire and build more wealth. Sometimes a gentle reminder by an early friend can help us find our inner child again. We slowly learn to find happiness in the busy moments too. My favourite quote from this film was from from a conversation Winnie the Pooh had with Christopher Robin

You are still the same person looking out.

5. Learning from Podcasts and Music

Varun Grover is a lyricist, writer, stand-up comedian and filmmaker. He won the award for Best Lyricist at the 63rd National Film Awards in 2015. He co-created the political satire group Aisi Taisi Democracy, and his debut film, All India Rank, closed the 52nd Rotterdam International Film Festival, in 2023. In this podcast episode with the team at Chalchitra Talks, he talks about the books, movies and comedians that shaped him as an artist over time. He has written lyrics for movies like Jigra (2024), Sonchiriya (2019), Udta Punjab (2016) and Masaan (2015).

Thank you for reading this edition of #EducationCoffee. I look forward to writing weekly editions of this newsletter this year. I hope to continue to share resources that will add value to your life. You can also review the archive of Education Coffee for free at this link (100+ newsletters here). You can email thoughts, feedback or recommendations to abhishekashokshetty@gmail.com. I love connecting with other writers and learners on the Internet.

Abhishek