AS I WRITE this piece, my mind wanders to the strife at Westgate Mall in Nairobi. My prayers for the 10 hostages reportedly stuck in the centre of a gun battle between Kenyan Army and (allegedly) al-Shabab militants. I cannot pretend to imagine what the 10 stuck hostages must be going through, just as I can only imagine the anxiety of their family members. As a news addict I have frequently regretted picking up the newspaper too early in the day, however, as my parents daughter, I have inherited an attitude that helps me to seize the positive out of the negative. I hope by the time this magazine reaches you, dear readers, Nairobi shootings would be a crucial albeit tragic lesson that will help the country to take a step forward in strengthening its security. And the men, women and children who went through the most harrowing time of their life, I can only hope they derive strength from their family, friends and faith, to make their way to emotional recovery.

But not all of this world is dark. There are citizens of this world who dedicate their lives to uplift others—the Kenyan army and Red Cross are merely two examples. Then there are those who’s existence must have made language specialists add adjectives such as “exciting, dynamic, interesting” to the English dictionary. We spoke to one such person for this month’s cover. He is one of the fastest Indians in the world—literally. We expected Narain Karthikeyan to be brave, 2013precise and focused—because a driver needs to be all that when laps fly by. However, we got a bit more—we spoke to a professional who was humble and tuned in to the demands of his unique life. A long Q&A with the man left us a little breathless—and his hopes to put India on the circuit map also made a lot of sense.

Read on to get to know the F1 Master just a bit better. As for the usual; we introduce yet another travel expert to our kitty—the more, the merrier we say!

Also read about the unique Lokatma initiative to boost rural Madhubani arts and of the unique Bambike. As I wrote earlier, some people refuse to bow down to negativity and strive to make the world a better place. We feel blessed when the magazine gives us the opportunity to put our focus on them. Do write to us and let us know of the magazine, the articles, and also of India’s entry to the Oscars—The Good Road. Do you think The Lunchbox would have been a better choice?