1. Writing is my way to live the life of the mind: learning for the sake of learning and seeking truth. I want to find my own answers to humanity’s eternal questions—to understand our universe and origins, to grasp the human condition, to make sense of suffering.
2. I’m most interested in understanding the chaos of modernity: how we got where we are, how fast-changing macro forces and power structures shape our everyday lives, how they push (or halt) the long arc of human progress, and what levers drive—and could drive—greater individual freedom.
3. I strongly advocate for writers and artists to push our imagination, reminding us that the societies we live in represent just one of many possible ways things are and could be. We must not fall for false narratives of inevitability, which mostly exist to serve the interests of the powerful.
In this sense, writing is an act of vigilance against conformity, hope against despair—and that’s how I like to think about the purpose of my work.
4. I specialise in reporting ‘how’ things work across a wide range of fields that interest me, while consistently pushing deeper into the ‘why’ questions—the causal understanding that offers the greatest lever for long-term change. Figuring out causality is epistemologically hard, and I enjoy thinking through it.
5. My worldview is influenced by the Existentialists, who taught me to make peace with an initially haunting but ultimately liberating idea: life has no inherent meaning, and we get to create our own.
As Sartre says, existence precedes essence. The universe operates according to its own laws and forces, without any inherent concern for human life or well-being. We are fundamentally free—and responsible—for our choices and actions.
6. I find people—us, humans—endlessly fascinating. Our complexities, our contradictions, our common dignity. I believe each life has inherent worth, defined by existence itself rather than status or accomplishments.
Learning to truly see and respect each other as fellow human beings—this feels precious to me.
7. In my late twenties, I realised joy lives in the small things—the ones that truly matter: Cooking for my mother when she visits my home. Sharing a special meal and watching TV with a friend. Making coffee (and yes, obsessing over it). Trading stories with strangers. Staring at a tree, lost in thought. Watching kids play cricket. Noticing a couple holding hands. Finding myself in music and literature. Feeling seen through someone else’s words. Cinema trips with popcorn. Hiking. Dancing.
8. I believe in principled pragmatism: never compromising values while learning to navigate systems that resist them.
9. I am an optimist. I believe a better world is possible—for everyone—and I want to do my part in building it.