2025: Things I Liked This Year
- 3 mins2025 is winding down, which means it is time for the lists. I have always been suspicious of lists that claim authority, certainty or taste with a capital T. This is not that kind of list. Every year I try to put together a record of the things that stayed with me. Books that lingered longer than expected. Music that crept up quietly and then refused to leave. Objects I used so often they stopped feeling new and started feeling necessary. Films and series that kept me up later than planned, knowing fully well that the alarm would not care.
I used to post these lists on Instagram and Twitter, back when I still had the patience for those places. I do not anymore. So this year, they live here, on my blog, where they can breathe a little and where I can explain myself without shouting into the void.
A small clarification, before anyone sharpens a knife. These are not the best things of the year in any objective sense. They are not flawless, definitive, or universally admirable. They are simply mine. Things I enjoyed reading, watching, listening to, or using. Some of them are uneven. Some of them are deeply unfashionable. A few might even annoy you. That is fine. They worked for me, at that particular moment, and that is the only qualification that matters here.
Making a list like this is harder than it looks. Memory is unreliable. Taste shifts. You forget what once mattered and remember odd, insignificant moments with unreasonable clarity. Still, there is something honest in trying. So consider this an invitation rather than a recommendation. Make your own list. Sit with it. Argue with yourself. You will quickly realise how uncomfortable, revealing, and oddly satisfying the exercise can be.
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CAT S22 Flip: I ditched my Pixel this year, partly out of boredom, partly out of a growing suspicion that my phone knew too much about me and was far too pleased with itself. The aim was simple: less screen time, fewer distractions, and a return to something that did not demand my attention every twelve seconds. A friend visiting from the US smuggled this one in for me, since CAT does not sell it in India anymore. About 120 dollars. Possibly the best decision I made all year. This thing does exactly what a phone is supposed to do. Calls. Messages. A handful of necessary apps. No more, no less. In a world obsessed with the next Android slab or the latest iPhone, turning up with a flip phone feels faintly rebellious, like ordering black coffee at a dessert buffet. The unexpected bonus is the attention. People ask questions. Strangers lean in. “What phone is that?” “Where did you get it?” I did not plan on it becoming a conversation starter, but I am not complaining. Also, there is a deeply satisfying finality in snapping the phone shut. You do not end a call. You terminate it. Highly recommended, if you can get your hands on one.
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CASIO AE-1200WHL-5AV (The Casio Royal): I have wanted this watch for years. The Casio Royal. The sort of watch that looks like it belongs on the wrist of someone who might disappear into an airport lounge and resurface three time zones later with a story and mild jet lag. When it finally showed up on the Casio store, I did not hesitate. Bought it instantly. A late birthday present to myself, justified with the kind of logic that only works when you really want something. It is unapologetically nerdy, stubbornly practical, and refreshingly unconcerned with impressing anyone. It tells the time. It tells several times, actually. It does not pretend to be jewellery. I wear it often. It makes me oddly happy. That is reason enough.
This is not an exhaustive list. More items will follow. I will add to it as I remember things.