Catch me at the following festivals in 2025!
Mathrubhumi International Festivals of Letters (MBIFL) - Thiruvanathapuram, Kerala - February 6-9, 2025.
Goa Arts and Literature Festival (GALF) - International Center, Goa - February 13-15, 2025.
Banaras Lit Fest (BLF) - Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh - March 7-9. 2025.
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Media Coverage / Events
The Wire: Exploring India’s complicated relationship with cannabis: Writer and journalist Karan Madhok’s book 'Ananda' is a deep-dive into the cannabis plant – what it is, what it does, and how Indian society looks at and reacts to it. By Jahnavi Sen - January 28, 2025
The Subjective Space podcast - On cannabis and Bliss: I spoke to Sindhu Rajasekaran about spiritual practices associated with cannabis in India, dependence and addiction, and how THC conspires up that feeling of bliss - January 27, 2025
In-depth study of cannabis - Dumani Mail: “Madhok argues for the reclaimation of cannabis’s rightful place in society, emphasizing its historical medicinal use and cultural significance.” - January 19, 2025
Substance and Style, and Sadhus and Sinners: Author Karan Madhok’s new book is a canon of cannabis, tracing India’s social and historic connection with the drug that’s held as both divine substance and lowly vice… and everything in between - Feature on Esquire India by Lakshmi Sankaran - January 16, 2025
In the land of the lotus eaters - Interview with Manjula Narayan on the ‘Books and Authors’ podcast - HT Smartcast - January 11, 2025.
Karan Madhok sheds light on Cannabis at book signing event - By Ameesha Das Nathaniel for Garhwal Post - January 10, 2025.
Cannabis Expert: How Cannabis Impacts Your Brain and Health: Dostcast w/ Author Karan Madhok - In conversation with Vinamre Kasanaa.
8 Books That Provide A Unique Perspective on Being Indian: India's rich diversity and heritage have inspired many books that explore its culture, history, and identity. These books offer unique insights into what it means to be Indian, covering topics like history, religion, community, and modern-day changes. Here are eight books that provide fascinating perspectives on India and its people. By Pritinanda Behera on Times Now.
December nonfiction: End of the year reading with six books that offer a unique view on being Indian: Trippy tales about cannabis, a portrait of the Gujarati community, a modern take on Kabir’s poetry, how the Hindu identity was made, and more. - On Scroll.
Liminal Subversions: Karan Madhok’s Poetics of Decay: ‘Madhok's narrative thus offers a prescient, sophisticated, and empathetic expose, without capitulating to polemic or sentimentalism, of not only a tale of two cultures but a tale of two hates joined at the hip by the near-cosmic self-replicating propulsion of human fallibility and systemic hubris.’A review of A Beautiful Decay by Paromita Patranobish for gulmohur quarterly.
Five amazing literary gems from India coming out in 2024: Explore the rich history and multifaceted usage of cannabis in India with Karan Madhok's non-fiction work, Ananda. - By Prachi Rijhwani on NewsBytes.
24 reading goals for 2024: Ananda: A Journey into India’s Ancient Complex Relationship with Cannabis (Aleph) by Karan Madhok is about the author’s travels across the country to document the medical and scientific uses of the plant, as well as its history in the country’s counterculture. - By Udhbhav Seth. January 7, 2024.
The 15 most-anticipated Indian books of 2024: Ananda: A Journey into India’s Ancient Complex Relationship with Cannabis by Karan Madhok - In this non-fiction publication… known as the first major biography of ganja, Karan Madhok travels to every corner of the country, delving into the medical and scientific uses of cannabis as well as the central place it occupies in the counter-culture of the subcontinent. - By Saachi Gupta for Vogue India. January 6, 2024.
‘Human artists should create art that has only sparsely existed before’: Writer Karan Madhok: “I think if one’s work is original enough – and resists being derivative as much as possible – then there is no need to fear AI-based software.” An Interview by Saurabh Sharma.
GQ India’s Top 10 Indian fiction books of 2022: “An examination of hate, Madhok shows us the black heart of a journey of a student who dares to dream.” By Arman Khan for GQ India - December 30, 2022.
An Interview with Karan Madhok: “The novel is a meditation of how one can be a majority in one place, and a minority in other. Be the oppressor and the oppressed. Someone whose privileges bring him comfort in one land, and the same comforts bring him catastrophe in another.”. By Fernando Manibog for Cafe MFA - February 17, 2023.
A confident, thoroughly entertaining debut: Karan Madhok’s novel is a stunning commentary on transnationalism, privilege and the politics of hatred - By Aditya Mani Jha for Mint Lounge - December 12, 2022.
A Beautiful Decay by Karan Madhok: A Gut Punch from A Ghost - By Kiran Bhat for The Bangalore Review - December, 2022.
Books & things that matter: Newer authors are bringing to light uncomfortable social truths - By Julio Riberio on The Tribune - December 9, 2022.
What to read in 2023: My forthcoming nonfiction book, ‘Ananda: A Journey into India's Complex Relationship with Cannabis’ is listed among the titles to look forward to in 2023. By Deccan Chronicle - January 1, 2023.
The Federal’s 75 books to look out for in 2023: A selection of some notable works of non-fiction and fiction you can look forward to adding to your shelves and TBR lists in the new year - featuring my next book, tentatively titled ‘Ananda: A Journey into India’s Complex Relationship with Cannabis’ - By Nawaid Anjum on The Federal - January 4, 2023
A Beautiful Decay: In conversation with Author Karan Madhok: A conversation with Sreeja V. for Aleph Book Company’s official Swellcast. - November, 2022
