Of recipes and G-spots: On India's 'magazine era'

Long before Google became our go-to for everything, we had a handful of not-so-glossy magazines. Women treated these bound periodicals as trusted and treasured friends, for these pages gave them recipes for that coveted mince pie, homemade remedies for dark spots and even personal health tips.

Many like Femina (first published in July, 1959) spelt 'sassy' for us with a capital S. With their annual beauty contests and Sharmila Tagore and Zeenat Aman covers, Femina, along with Gladrags (which also came out in 1959) broke the mould and paved the way for English glossies like Verve, Cosmopolitan, Elle India, Vogue, Grazia, etc. Incidentally, Femina and Cosmopolitan were patronised by a substantial chunk of male readers. In the pre-internet age, their articles and agony aunt columns were the ones to introduce us to G-spots and were therefore eye-openers not just for women, but men too.

I recall how next door's Seema aunty would traipse into our kitchen to discuss what she'd read in Grihalakshmi. I'm not too sure if my mom agreed, but Seema aunty was sure these magazines were the best 'timepass'. She would often spare a 'tip' or two on homemade solutions for everything from pomegranate stains to extra salt in a dish.

On her part, my mother loved curling up with a Durga Puja special issue of the Bengali Sananda. I would see her with the magazine every evening throughout the month until a new issue came along. Literary greats like Mahasweta Devi, Satyajit Ray and Indira Goswami would contribute to Sananda's special issues.

For many, Women's Era (1973) was the go-to. Their personal columns, racy fiction series, recipes and centre spreads were a hit. Women's Era would come to our house too, but sporadically. Special mention must go to Manushi, which had women-centric features. And Women's Feature Service, a women's news wire, launched in 1973 by Inter Press Service with help from UNESCO, which churned out women's features for publications in the subcontinent.

Regional
Sarita (Hindi - 1945)
Vanitha (Malayalam - 1975)
Grihashobha (Hindi - 1979)
Grihalakshmi (Malayalam - 1979)
Sananda (Bengali - 1986)
Meri Saheli (Hindi - 1987)

English
Femina (July 1959)
Gladrags (July 1959)
Woman's Era (1973)
Manushi (1978)
Verve (1995)
Elle India (Dec 1996)
New Woman (Dec 1996)
Vogue (2007)
JFW (2007)
Grazia (April 2008)