Hindi Cinema and Feminism
By Neha Basnet
These ‘feminist women’ encourage and spread ideas that women can be liberated and will be considered equal only if they participate in every sphere of life that men have been part of.
Korlai Alibaugh, the surviving Portuguese Creole
By Sameer Khan
Father Francis offered me a local Kokum juice and explained that the tiny Catholic village of Korlai actually consists of the descendants of Portuguese, which ruled Korlai and Chaul (Alibaug) from 1510 to 1740.
The mythical child at the center of Smriti Irani’s concerns about schooling
By Mary Ann Chacko
Children are not insular, innocent beings who are clueless about religious prejudices. Rather, they are socialized into our prejudices at a very young age. Ignoring this implies an indifference to children, their everyday realities, as well as their anxieties and curiosities.
Three Poems
By Arunima Paul
in the 5th month
feeling the withdrawal
I check your Facebook
videos
captions
tricolored filter
you are, as always
valiantly ridiculing
the misguided.
Photo-Essay: Alone in the Blue Vikram
By Ronak Singh Bhasin
You get a good view through the agarbatti smoke haze. If you wonder why they burn agarbattis, it is to mask the smell of the ganja. Maal/weed smoke has a quite distinctive smell but mixed with incense smoke, even trained noses can’t differentiate it that easily.
Counter View: Who Decides? The Clarion Call to Left Liberal Hypocrisy!
By Soumya Sundar Chowdhury
I got involved in a brawl regularly with students of rival political organizations, from my own university as well as other colleges. As an involved member, I even indulged in a scuffle with the police. It was neither pretty, nor romantic.
Religious sermons to resist the Islamic State threat to humanity
By Ashraf Thachar
Sheikh Zainudheen Makhdoom, one of most famous Sufi saints in Kerala, who lived in the 16th century AD, stood with the Hindu King against the exploitative rule of Portuguese colonialism. The important thing we could learn in this context is that it was beyond the Islamic Fiqhi (jurisprudential) instructions, because the Fiqh never made a provision of being with an infidel to fight against an army.
Caste among Indian Muslims
By Kouser Fathima
The benefit of reservation has made Muslims declare their caste openly. Since most in these categories are still economically backward, many Indian Muslims stick to caste markers to avail the benefits of reservation.
What counts for patriotism or nationalism?
By Raj Shekhar Sen
According to the National Crime Bureau for the year 2000, at least two Dalits were assaulted each hour in India. From 2006-11 in North-East India, about 7,000 rape case accusations and more than 11,000 kidnapping cases accusations were made against the Indian Army. But this is where we draw the line for our patriotism.
Book Review: Sunjeev Sahota’s ‘The Year of the Runaways’
By Rashida Murphy
Sahota delves deep into the tradition of religious Sikhs and conveys those traditions with a light touch. Granthis, kirtans, kandhas and kesris all become accessible when their symbolism is conveyed through the actions of young Punjabi men and women – so far from home – and so cold, miserable, hungry, desolate.
Pseudo-Nationalists
By Rashmi Sawhney
Your nationalism,
Made for abuse and murder
Manufactures history at will
You’re not welcome here, leave.
Short Story: When Yusuf Died
By Ajay Raina
That night, he had soaked his being in the unexpected rare gift of a strangely beautiful silence. He had not slept all night, that night.
Cafe Dissensus Everyday 