Richa Nigam
Gond paintings: Of tribes, traditions and art
March 3, 2021
“Art in India does not wait for a canvas or paint. Rock surfaces and caves, a village wall, the floor, a palm leaf, a piece of wood, or even the palm of a hand is space enough and that is exactly what Gond represents – staying in harmony with nature,” says Gareeba Singh...
Read More
Haunted homes of Rajasthan’s Kuldhara
March 2, 2021
Ghost stories have a very different kind of charm to lure readers with old forts, ruins of castles, deserted alleys, sinister houses and abandoned spirits. Lying 21 km from the Golden City of Jaisalmer in Rajasthan, Kuldhara a large village has a similar story to tell. Straight ...
Read More
Negotiating with patriarchy, one veil at a time
March 1, 2021
Early last month, the world’s largest Muslim country, Indonesia, home to 12.7 pc of global Muslim population, banned public schools from making religious attire compulsory, after the story of a Christian student being pressured to wear a headscarf in the class went viral. Over ...
Read More
Still a long walk to equal rights for LGBTQ in India
February 27, 2021
Armit Puri and Gagan Das’s love story is like anyone else’s. Based in Jaipur, Rajasthan, both engineers met at work, fell in love and have been living together for four years now. But as a same-sex couple in India, their relationship was a crime until a 2018 ruling by the Su...
Read More
Arabic Calligraphy: Art in alphabets
February 26, 2021
As beautiful as pearls, his works attract the attention even of those who are not familiar with the Arabic language. According to him, aesthetics and refinement are the specialities of Islamic art. Arabic calligraphy is ‘worship’ for Muqtar Ahmed, a Bengaluru-based calligraph...
Read More
Kerala Digital University: Towards digital excellence
February 26, 2021
The first digital university in India seems like a huge step towards digital education in India. While the university looks promising for sure, quality digital education still has a long way to go.
Read More
Low budgets & no imagination: Lifeless Indian animation films
February 25, 2021
Much of the painstakingly detailed animation for the global-hit Disney film The Jungle Book (2016) was done in the Bengaluru offices of the Soho-headquartered Moving Picture Company. The film won the Oscar for Best Visual Effects in 2017. A lot of the advanced computer graphics...
Read More
Pink Shirt Day: Battling bullying
February 23, 2021
Twelve-year-old Radha was often patronised by her seniors in the convent school for being a quota student and also manhandled by them. Her worst nightmare turned real when she was cornered in the school bathroom and bullied for being poor and unhygienic. She and her family were c...
Read More
Swati Mohan: From Star Trek to mission Mars
February 22, 2021
As NASA’s Perseverance rover landed on Mars on February 18, after seven months in space, it was Indian-American scientist Swati Mohan who confirmed the mission’s success. “Touchdown confirmed! Perseverance is safely on the surface of Mars, ready to begin seeking the signs o...
Read More
Pretty & plucky but not ‘plus size’ models
February 19, 2021
“What does it even mean when you say plus size? What is ‘plus’ here? Is there a ‘minus’ too? What is the neutral size model? Is there a need to use such terms,” asks 32-year-old Niharika Achalkar, a Delhi-based model and Instagram influencer. “People laughed at me t...
Read More
Supreme Court ruling upsets Shaheen Bagh protestors
February 18, 2021
“The right to protest cannot be any time and everywhere. There may be some spontaneous protests but in case of prolonged dissent or protest, there cannot be continued occupation of public place affecting rights of others,” a three-judge Bench led by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul...
Read More
Dubbing artists: Forgotten voices of Indian cinema
February 17, 2021
“Anthena? Inkem kavali? Veelaithe nalugu maatalu. Kudirithe cup coffee?” (in Tamil) means “That’s it? What else do you want? A small chat if possible? A cup of coffee if feasible?” This dialogue from Telugu film Bommarillu, director Bhaskar’s 2006 blockbuster, was an...
Read More