On founding The Caterpillar Club

Photo/ Reshma. Krishnan

There are several reasons to start a club, any club that unites like-minded folk with common interests. In my case it was a book and DVD club called The Caterpillar Club.

Yes, the name of this blog inspired my venture in founding a social scene that doesn’t indulge in coffees that enhance ADD and conversations that don’t last beyond scattered titbits of gossip and distorted facts from current affairs. After all, who has the patience to prolong 40-second conversations or indulge in differentiating pseudo-intellectual banter from rants and raves?

During our first meeting a month ago, I shared this belief with a group of 10 people consisting of close friends, their close friends and those I knew would appreciate being part of something larger than the exasperation of everyday life in a city. At first I thought my reasons for starting this club were too dramatic.

But when the 10 Caterpillars raised their glasses and toasted the end of ADD… well, at least for a period of 4 hours on the first Sunday of every month, I realised that all is not lost. It’s okay to have friends with whom you have little or nothing in common because in time, when you really begin to think about it, these differences only enhance the pleasure of their company.

But in the larger scheme of things, to keep your sanity if nothing else, think of the one thing you really want to have in common with someone else because that’s the club you really want to start.

The Caterpillar Club is currently reading Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Some love it, others want to burn it. Full report after the book club meets on Sunday, July 3, 2011. Love in the Time of Cholera (Vintage International)