Candidate lists are trickling in, and seat-sharing configurations are being hammered out, but you can already smell it, that unmistakable stench of misogyny and sexism. The announcement of actor Kangana Ranaut as the BJP candidate from Mandi did not surprise political watchers. Ranaut is open in her admiration for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the […]
For Ananya Upendran, the pivotal moment came on the opening night of Women’s Premier League (WPL) when Mumbai Indians beat Delhi Capitals with a last ball six by Sajeevan Sajana. The uncapped 29-year-old from Wayanad “had been on the circuit for 10 years, on the verge of letting go,” says Upendran, a former state-level player who now
Ee sala cup namdu: How WPL is a gamechanger for girls and sport Read More »
The brides, veiled and dressed nearly identically in red, have been swapped. And what seems to be the starting premise of a wholesome comedy is actually a portrait of women in search of themselves. The first word of the title Laapataa Ladies translates both as lost and missing, the word chosen by Amartya Sen to talk about
Where have all the women gone? A film offers answers Read More »
In a post AI world, rarely have images mattered as much as they do now. An innocuous-enough photograph of a mother and her three children has created a stir that is bouncing off our planet as if the first bugle of armageddon has been sounded. Kate Middleton, on track to be the future queen of
Laapataa lady: The world has gone bonkers over the ‘disappearance’ of Kate Middleton Read More »
Fill in the blanks:
Why was she wearing ____ ?
Who told her to go to _____ ?
Wasn’t she being too adventurous in ____?
The latest horror story out of Jharkhand has inflamed social media—not so much because of the violence of the crime, but because the woman is a foreign national who has spoken about her ordeal on a now deleted Instagram post, her bruised and battered face for all the world to see.
Here’s what happened. On the night of March 1, the woman travelling on a Spanish passport along with her husband, was attacked in Dumka, Jharkhand. According to the first information report (FIR), the woman has said she was gang-raped by seven men (at the time of writing all seven have been arrested along with one more) and her partner was beaten, assaulted and robbed. They were found by a night police patrol and taken to a hospital where the woman told the doctors she had been raped.
India, we have a rape problem. What are we doing about it? Read More »
Sri Lanka’s first woman architect is , sadly, largely forgotten Truth be told I had not heard of Minnette de Silva. Goeffrey Bawa, Sri Lanka’s lionised and feted architect, yes. His influence can be seen in not just his own former country estate in Lunuganga but in buildings such as the new Parliament house. But
Remembering the life and work of Minnette da Silva Read More »
India is one of 36 countries where it is not a crime to rape your wife. Well, if your wife is younger than 15, then even the law says intercourse with her is rape. But that is the only exception. Now, even this exception is under judicial scrutiny as a two-judge bench of Justices C
Marital rape: Ball’s in the court Read More »
A still from The Great Indian Kitchen The cash really began rolling in after 1983 when Kannaian Naidu got a job in Saudi Arabia. His wife, Kamsala would be staying back with their three children in Neyveli, Tamil Nadu. As a single-parent, she had her work cut out and Kannaian assured her he would send
A home-maker’s worth: Madras high court puts a value Read More »
(Source: UNICEF) India’s improvement by eight places, or 1.4 percentage points, to 127 out of 146 countries is a result mainly of the recognition by the World Economic Forum (WEF), which conducts the annual rankings, of women’s participation in local governance where 33% of seats (50% in some states) are reserved for women. Last year, India had
Iceland still #1 for women. India at 127 Read More »
I am on the phone with the wife of one of my oldest friends, let’s call her ‘A’. It’s April 2020, I remember this because we’re marooned in our homes (and we’re the lucky ones who aren’t trudging back home on foot) just days into the nationwide lockdown that began on March 24. ‘A’ tells
How India’s raja betas are using weaponised incompetence to wriggle out of housework Read More »
The stabbing and bludgeoning to death (I’ll spare you the details) on Sunday night of Sakshi, a 16-year-old girl in Delhi’s Shahbad Dairy, allegedly by 20-year-old Sahil Khan, a man she had earlier been in a relationship with, raises many, many disturbing questions. Chief amongst these is: What could possibly breed this level of rage
Murder in public view: Five questions Read More »
At 60 she learned to cycle. At 62 she became a long distance runner, running 50 km+ distances. And at 64, she took her first solo holiday to Kashmir. Pushpa Bhatt, now 67, says she has a “good 25 years ahead” to go to places she’s never been. In the past, she’s travelled alone on
The irresistible charm of solo travel Read More »