2.15: Tara and Michelle - Why We Read What We Read

Our hosts discuss their reading preferences and the Indian literary scene in this season finale.Tara and Michelle bond over their shared love for books and reading - how did they fall in love with books, what kind of stories do they like to read, and how has the pandemic affected their reading habits? Most notably, they finally read Arundhati Roy’s ‘The God of Small Things’ in 2020!They discuss how they decide what to read next - is it based on research, recommendations from friends and writers, or curated lists and prizes like JCB? Tara confesses her newfound love for historical fiction like ‘American Wife’ by Curtis Sittenfield, while Michelle loves stories like ‘A Clockwork Orange’ by Anthony Burgess that challenge her as a reader. Tara shares how she is warming up to audio books during the pandemic. Michelle misses reading books during her daily train rides to work. They chat about the role of book reviews and why everyone should be able to read what they love - a fitting message for a season finale!'Books and Beyond with Bound' is the podcast where Tara Khandelwal and Michelle D'costa of Bound talk to some of the best writers in India and find out what makes them tick.Tara Khandelwal is an editor and the founder of Bound. Check out her latest newsletter - https://tara489.substack.com/p/coming-soon Michelle D’costa’s poetry and prose has been published in over 50 literary journals. Check out her latest published works - https://michellewendydcosta.wordpress.com/writer/ Mentions: Resh Susan aka thebooksatchel on Instagram, Senior Reading Raccoons on FacebookBook Recommendations: ‘Becoming’ by Michelle Obama, ‘The Twentieth Wife’ and ‘A Feast of Roses’ by Indu Sundaresan, ‘Rodham’ by Curtis Sittenfield, ‘The Peculiar Life of a Lonely Postman’ by Denis ThériaultFollow Bound on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter: @boundindiaFollow our podcast on Instagram: @boundpodcastsYou can check out our website at https://www.boundindia.com/podcast/Applications for The Bound Publishing Course 2026 are now open.The Bound Publishing Course is a 3-month intensive course on book, magazine, and digital publishing. Through live sessions, workshops, and industry-facing projects, participants gain practical publishing skills and exposure to careers across the industry.Cohort size: 50 seatsFirst round of acceptances: 15th June 2026Applications are reviewed on a rolling bas‘Books and Beyond with Bound’ is the podcast where Tara Khandelwal and Michelle D’costa uncover how their books reflect the realities of our lives and society today. Find out what drives India’s finest authors: from personal experiences to jugaad research methods, insecurities to publishing journeys. Created by Bound, a storytelling company that helps you grow through stories. Follow us @boundindia on all social media platforms.