2025: Things I Liked This Year

Tuesday. December 30, 2025 - 4 mins

2025 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.

1. Getting Killed, Geese: People who met me last year, old friends, casual acquaintances, or anyone unlucky enough to talk music with me for more than five minutes can confirm this: I would not shut up about one album. Getting Killed by Geese.

   This record hit me sideways. Completely flattened me. It had been a long time since I heard something that sounded this fresh without trying too hard, this strange without being self-conscious. I became an instant fan, the annoying kind who insists you have to listen to it, preferably right now. You can call it art rock or indie if you need a label, but those words barely touch what is going on here. The album exists in an odd sonic space of its own, slightly unhinged, tightly controlled, and full of moments that sneak up on you and stay there. It feels restless, alive, and uninterested in playing nice.

   Give Getting Killed by Geese a shot. Pun fully intended. Chances are, it will get under your skin the same way it got under mine.

2. CASIO AE-1200WHL-5AV: 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.

3. Lotus Saral Halos Special Edition Fountain Pen: I love fountain pens. Possibly more than is healthy. Some people call it an addiction. I disagree. I call it good judgement. I did not buy many pens this year, but of the few that made it into my rotation, this one stood out immediately.

   The carmine acrylic finish is gorgeous without being flashy, the kind of pen you keep picking up just to look at again. The fine nib is smooth, consistent and forgiving. It makes even a rushed note feel deliberate. It writes cleanly, starts without fuss and never reminds you that you are using a tool. It just gets out of the way and lets you write.

   Easy recommendation. A solid 10/10 if you can get one.

4. Coldplay Live, 21 January, DY Patil Stadium, Mumbai: This was one of the best nights of my life. Easily the best live music experience of 2025 and comfortably in my top three of all time. From somehow managing to get tickets to actually standing inside the stadium, watching it all unfold, the entire thing felt unreal in the best possible way.

   Yes, magical is the word. Overused, usually meaningless, but accurate here. The scale, the precision, the crowd moving, singing and jumping as one, the band completely in control without ever feeling distant. I went to several concerts this year, good ones too, but nothing came close to this.

   A full 10/10. I would do it again without hesitation, even if it takes a few years.

This is not an exhaustive list. More items will follow. I will add to it as I remember things.