Middles are more read than articles or editorials, said Khushwant Singh once. I really don’t know about that, but to me middles provided a way to comment on issues that were close to my heart.
It started as a dare. In the early 1990s, I was told by my colleagues that middles were personally approved by the Editor-in-Chief, V K Narayanan, who would often edit them too.
Did I have it in me to write middles? The only way to find out was to submit one, and I was glad that it was accepted. Than started a series. My middles were not light, witty pieces, but satirical comments.
Since Punjab had not reverted to a fully democratic functioning, I found that I could comment on issues like human rights violations and police high-handedness in this fashion.
When Lady Diana Spencer died, her loss was felt all over the world. I wrote a middle on the Princess, which was well received..
Constrained as they are within a context and a time frame, I hope that they still retain something that would be of interest to you. I do look forward to finding out what you feel about these middles.