Laugh, ponder and pat a cat

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Make Happy – Bo Burnham

This 26-year-old comedian’s latest Netflix special show has his trademark acerbic and in-your-face humour that’s always entertaining and will surely make you laugh out loud. (I should know: I’ve watched his show on YouTube multiple times, and it never ceases to be funny.) In

Make Happy , he “tackles life, death, sexuality, hypocrisy, mental illness and Pringles cans”, apart from country music, political correctness and the travesty of the lip-sync battle on television. He doesn’t spare the live audience either, heckling them and involving them in the show.

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Rekha: The Untold Story by Yasser Usman

The enigmatic actress has led a tumultuous life in the limelight, but has managed to keep some aspects to herself. Yasser Usman’s recently-released book claims to reveal this untold story. From an unknown 14-year-old to being one of the best-known faces of Bollywood, the book chronicles her journey through interviews and conversations with people close to her. Apart from her professional life, it also delves into her relationship with Amitabh Bachchan and her tragic marriage to Mukesh Aggarwal. While most of it recaps what we already know, it does make a compelling read.

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‘Ae Dil Hai Mushkil’ by Pritam and Arijit Singh

You know how a typical Karan Johar movie goes, and it’s no surprise that the title track of his latest directorial venture is a romantic one. Ae Dil Hai Mushkil stars Ranbir Kapoor, Fawad Khan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Anushka Sharma, and tries to make sense of modern relationships. The song, composed by Pritam and sung by Arijit Singh, has a haunting melody, and will keep you listening to it on loop.

Do

September – Happy Cat Month

James Herriot, author of Cat Stories , quite rightly said, “Cats are connoisseurs of comfort.” So, celebrate your fuzzy friend (unless you have a Sphynx cat) by giving it a tasty treat or buying it a new toy or bed.

Yes, cats might prefer the cardboard box over what you actually spent good money on, but that’s part of their charm, one could say. Or, adopt one of the many homeless kittens that are looking for homes in your city. They probably won’t fetch your morning paper or alert you loudly when there’s an intruder, but they can be just as social as dogs.