That’s right. It is the famous book by Shashi Tharoor I am talking about. I know it’s a bit late to review that book on this blog, but what can I do? I bought myself a copy just a week ago, and finished reading it just a couple of hours ago. But, I can say…
Category: Society and Institutions
Being Feminist…
I came across a rather interesting blog a couple of days ago. In fact, what attracted me in the first place was the URL rather than its content. It is called beingfeminist.blogspot.com. When I read the latest post, the content interested me too. I bookmarked it, making a mental note to go back in a…
Journalism…or is it simply business?
A few days ago, we were told, by television news channels, that one Delhi schoolteacher was selling her students off for prostitution. We were all suitably shocked and outraged at the news. Teachers are supposed to be seconds parents. We were justifiably furious at this teacher whose actions went against all norms of humanity. Then,…
Teachers’ Day
Yesterday was Teachers’ Day in India. For those of my readers who don’t know, it is the birthday of India’s former President Dr. Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan. The man was better known as a fantastic teacher that as a President. I remember looking forward to Teacher’s Day every year when I was in school. To me, it…
I am not an engineer…
I am not an engineer…and no, I am not a doctor either. Nor am I in the IT industry. In fact, I have nothing to do with computers, except when I blog, browse or check my mail. “Then what the hell do you do in life?”, I hear many of you asking. This question has…
Bihari is not a bad word…but Madrasi?
Yesterday, The Hindu published an article on its Open Page titled, “Musings of a Bihari“, in which the author, Mayank Rasu laments the bad name politicians like Laloo have earned for Bihar. So far, so good. What got my attention, and subsequently, made me angry, was the veiled reference to the apparent disloyalty of Tamil…
Temple of gold?
This morning, NDTV, or was it CNN-IBN, ran a news story about the consecration of a new temple in Sripuram near Vellore in Tamil Nadu. So, what’s the fuss, you may ask. The fuss is that the said temple is built using 1.5 tonnes of gold. Yes, you read that right. 1.5 tonnes of gold….
Sex-selective abortion and demographics
I came across an article in NDTV (link expired, I can’t find the article) a short while ago detailing the horrors of sex-selective abortion and its impact on demographics in India. This, coupled with a conversation with my neighbour’s mother a few days ago, set me thinking about why exactly a girl child is such…
Where is the reading habit going?
The latest, and the last, instalment of Harry Potter is out. I am still awaiting the verdict from acclaimed critics and ardent fans, but the hype surrounding the book release has set me thinking. Yesterday, when I went to pick up my copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, I found that I was…
Religious intolerance and fundamentalism
Recently, I came across a website called Challenging Islam. It was interesting from a purely academic perspective and so I bookmarked it, promising myself I would come back to it when I had the time. True to my promise to myself, I returned last night, and took the time to read the contents of the…