Manik Sharma, Author at Arré

Mirzapur 2 Review: Shakespearean Characters, a Macho Town, & a World Unlike Any We’ve Seen Before

Mirzapur’s unprecedented popularity stems from its ability to write Shakespearean characters into the boilerplate premise of a town high on masculinity. A thoroughly engrossing and mature second season cements the show’s place as a world unlike anything else we have seen.

Manik Sharma July 16, 2016

Earth

Greta Thunberg is Proof that No One is Too Small to Make a Difference

In 2018, Greta Thunberg was a lone 15-year-old sitting outside the Swedish parliament, with a “School Strike for Climate” placard. Today she is one of the world's most influential and fearless activists. How has this teen managed to do so much in such little time?

Manik Sharma July 15, 2016

Coronavirus

“Mama I’m Coming Home”: Why We Seek for the Comfort of Our Parents When a Crisis Like Covid Hits

For the longest of time, my family has tried to cajole me into living closer to home. But I’ve always wanted “freedom”, a life away from my parents. Now as the second wave surges and I battle a fever, I long for their care and their reassuring voice, something my social networks just can’t provide.

Manik Sharma July 15, 2016

Pop Culture

Delhi Crime Review: An Unsettling Retelling of the 2012 Delhi Gang-Rape Probe, Minus Any Super Cops

Delhi Crime chronicles the three days of a nationwide manhunt for the six men responsible for the 2012 Delhi gang rape. Much of what happens in the series is well-known, but it is still compelling for it doesn’t glamourise either the police’s job or its capability to do so. This is reality, the series seems to say – deal with it.

Manik Sharma July 14, 2016

Pop Culture

Why Better Call Saul is 5X Greater than Breaking Bad

Better Call Saul is incredibly ambitious – for 5 seasons now, it has operated without the traditional ruse of a finale. On the other hand, it has consistently dangled the far future, the grim monotonous limbo of a wildly colourful man all the while working in the shadow of some of his life displayed in Breaking Bad.

Manik Sharma July 14, 2016

People

Raju Srivastava and The Legacy of ‘Gajodhar Bhaiya’

In his prime Raju Srivastava was a brilliant observer and possibly mainstream cable television’s first brush with the heartland.

Manik Sharma July 12, 2016

Earth

Murder: The Price of Your Hill Station Holiday

The shooting and murder of Shail Bala Sharma, the Kasauli corporator, has exposed the rotten heart of the mountains. And we – who retreat to the hills every chance we get – are responsible for the corruption hill towns are steeped in. The problem is that our relationship with these pieces of paradise, is all take and no give.

Manik Sharma July 12, 2016

Bollywood

40 Years Later, Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Gol Maal is Still the Best Film About Middle Class Indians

There is plenty to be admired about Gol Maal beyond its tomfoolery. Foremost of which is the creation of Ram, a male protagonist who despite being pressed by the familiar requirements of earning a living, has a touch of sophistication.

Manik Sharma July 12, 2016

Coronavirus

In an Unequal World, Coronavirus is a Humbling Equaliser

It has taken an imperceptible virus to remind us that the differences we have spent years identifying in each other are, essentially, irrelevant. Unlike humans, Covid-19 does not discriminate or heed privilege and will therefore, inevitably become a humbling equaliser in an unequal world.

Manik Sharma July 8, 2016

People

India’s Angry Poet and Other Stories

While CP Surendran’s early work could be seen as the walk away, in his new poems he firmly occupies the inside of the fence, and looks prepared to observe and contemplate.

Manik Sharma July 8, 2016