📚 Taste, Are You Stuck in Movie Logic, The Forgotten Text, Anna Wintour’s Unreasonable Standards
Lean Into Your Special, Khar Dhanda, Sarthak Dev’s Magic & More
Hello, this is post #217.
I’m writing this in a bit of a high. Last week was packed with inspiration and the kind of stuff I truly enjoy. My intent and actions were in sync, and the outcome left me genuinely happy.
I’m someone who finds joy in the little things; and last week delivered plenty of those. I also spent some time reflecting on what really gives me energy. It didn’t take much to spot the pattern. I’ll share more on that in the coming weeks.
But for now, here’s what we’re diving into today.
We’ve a lot to cover today, let’s get started.
✍️ Brie Wolfson on Writing, Writing Culture and Taste
Brie Wolfson has written some of the most thoughtful pieces on work, taste, and building culture. Her podcast episode with David Perell is a great example of what happens when two people obsessed with their craft get into flow. They’re both deep in it — nerding out on writing, taste, and the culture around it.
Here are a few highlights I picked from David’s notes:
You cannot do great work without admiring the great work of others. Those who create tasteful things are almost always deep appreciators.
You can't acquire good taste doesn't come by mistake. It requires intention, focus, and care. Taste is a commitment to a state of attention. It’s a process of peeling back layer after layer, turning over rock after rock.
Sports players watch their performance on tape to see where they went wrong. Brie Wolfson records herself reading her essays and then plays them back to notice where she doesn’t sound like herself.
I loved this episode and have bookmarked more from David’s podcast. Expect more picks on writing culture and writing better in the coming weeks.
🪄 The Forgotten Text by Tigerfeathers
One idea Brie often comes back to is: “Reality has a surprising amount of detail.”
Only those willing to dive into the weeds and truly admire the details end up building taste that feels distinct and meaningful.
The folks at Tigerfeathers explored a similar theme in a short (by their standards) post titled The Forgotten Text. Here’s the heart of it:
The Forgotten Text - essentially the clever use of cleverer copywriting in places that are typically ignored by the average brand or company. Not just great copywriting, but great copywriting where you don’t expect great copywriting. Think welcome emails, uniforms, product packaging, push notifications, instruction manuals, guest bathrooms etc. Special brands will recognise these sub-prime pieces of real estate as an opportunity, and use them as instruments of leverage.
I’m a sucker for this kind of detail; the kind that’s designed to surprise.
We used to call it 5/4 experiences — doing something that’s not expected, going that extra bit, even when no one’s watching.
This post is packed with examples from new-age brands that go out of their way to craft those small moments of delight. Thoughtful. Sometimes weird. Always memorable.
From the list, The Whole Truth and Plum are my personal favorites.
It takes deep conviction and endless curiosity to build a voice like theirs — and that’s exactly what makes them stand out.
👠 Anna Wintour’s Unreasonable Standards
Shane Parrish’s profile episode on Anna Wintour is a fascinating listen. In just 70 minutes, he offers a glimpse into someone who’s reshaped the world of fashion, content, and now even events.
I barely knew anything about Anna Wintour or her legacy before this. I’m hooked now.
Here’s one bit that really stood out:
Unreasonable Standards: Anna returned every borrowed item with tissue paper intact. She’d send steaks back three times for being insufficiently rare, then eat two bites. At Vogue, she introduced “The Look”—a daily appearance assessment for every employee. Her “AWOK” system meant nothing, not even a comma, moved without her approval. Excellence is a tyrant you invite in. Once it moves in, mediocrity can’t breathe.
💯 Lean Into Your Special with Suchita Salwan
I admire operators and leaders who go out of their way to capture their learnings and share them with the world. Their writing turns hard-earned wisdom into a playbook for others trying to get better. In the Indian startup space, Arindam’s post on building Atomberg is one of those gold standards.
I’ve followed Suchita Salwan’s updates on LinkedIn but hadn’t gone deep into her writing. This week, I did — and immediately added her Medium page to my list of go-to sources for operator wisdom.
Her frameworks feel honest and hard-won. You can sense the weight of trial, error, and perseverance behind every insight. I’ve worked on some of these areas in earlier stints and had my own early thoughts — but her writing helped me update those with the realities of today’s world.
I’m taking the liberty of quoting this bit from her post On Careers: Lean Into Your Special because it stayed with me. These aren’t easy questions to answer, but when you do, they unlock serious clarity and focus for everything else in your career.
Thanks, Suchita — for what you do and share.
🎞️ Are You Stuck in Movie Logic with Cate Hall
Have you ever noticed just how much of the drama in movies is generated by an unspoken rule that the characters aren’t allowed to communicate well? Instead of naming the problem, they’re forced to skirt around it until the plot makes it impossible to ignore. It’s the cheapest way to build effective drama, but if you don’t fully dissolve yourself in the movie logic, the whole time you want to scream, “can’t anyone just talk about what’s happening directly?!”
That’s the kind of opening that pulls you right in. Cate Hall’s intro to “Are you stuck in movie logic?” is one I won’t forget anytime soon.
The post digs into something surprisingly real — the struggle to clearly name the problem. And it does so with practical, no-nonsense advice.
It’s a sharp, thought-provoking read. Definitely worth a chat if you're up for it.
🐟 Visiting Khar Danda with Mumbai Paused
Politicians, conquerors, settlers, and those in power often rename places to leave a mark: a way of saying, We were here; we have pissed; we have marked this territory. One can only wonder how many names a place, trampled by many feet, has worn through the ages, through different waves of change, sudden or gradual.
But have you noticed that people who seek to get closer to nature often do the opposite?
Instead of renaming, they try to learn the names already given. They listen. They trace etymologies. They pay attention to what the land and its people have long known.
That’s strike two this week for essays with brilliant opening acts. I’ve been lucky to stumble upon pieces that start strong and keep getting better.
Mumbai Paused’s photo essay on Khar Danda blends history, stories, and tiny details that might seem irrelevant to anyone but the author — and yet, it works. It delivers exactly what it promises.
I really admire creators who can pack so much into small stories and transport us to places and moments far from our own.
🏏 In Frames: South Africa Cricket by Sarthak Dev
I don’t follow sports much (except cricket — and even that, mostly IPL or India matches). But Sarthak Dev’s writing keeps me in the loop on the biggest stories from the sports world.
He doesn’t write about matches. He writes about people. Emotions. History. And he does it in a way that instantly takes you to a different time and place.
In his recent photo essay “South Africa’s Long Walk Home,” he tells the story of South African cricket across three decades — through just ten photographs. And like all good sports stories, this one isn’t really about the game. It’s about people, places, culture, events. Cricket is just the thread holding it all together.
I can’t do justice by picking just one snippet — but I don’t want you to miss this gem either. So here’s one that, for me, captures the essence of his craft.
Beautifully written, as always. Hats off Sarthak!
✨ Everything else
George Orwell once shared his 11 rules for making the perfect cup of tea. I loved Animal Farm and found 1984 both fascinating and eye-opening — but I never imagined the same author had such specific (and quirky) tea opinions, written with surprising honesty. He’s not talking about ‘chai’ (or chai tea, as some of you may call it), so I’ll stay out of the debate and let his rules be.
You don’t just see Sujan Khadgi’s portfolio — you listen to it! It’s a refreshing attempt to use new tech in a way that actually feels novel. I’ve been playing around with Notebook LLM myself (thanks for the nudge, Biru Panda), but I haven’t yet found the right voice or narration that clicks. Still at it though — hoping to land on something that feels exciting and carries the same vibe.
ICYMI…
Michael Pollan’s “Unhappy Meals”, Brian Belfour’s “Next Great Distribution Shift” & Kurt Vonnegut’s “Three types of specialists” are my favorite picks from the last week. Click below to know more.
That's all for this week, folks!
I hope I've earned the privilege of your time.
If this piece sparked something for you, I’d love to hear what stood out—leave a comment and let’s keep the conversation alive. And if you know someone who’s always asking "why?" or "how come?", pass this along to them. The world gets more interesting every time a curious mind shares what they’ve found.
I haven’t gone through any of the articles in this week’s newsletter yet, Pritesh, but I know I am in for a treat just looking at the topics. My reading/listening list for the week is set! Keep them coming.