Articles

50 Shades of Greying: Ladies, Time to Retire the Compliment “You Don’t Look Your Age!”

We are socially conditioned to equate youth with beauty, and beauty as an accomplishment. But why not think of your crows’ feet and greys as sieves that filter out assholes who think women serve only one purpose – to be someone’s eye-candy? Let’s start by retiring “you don’t look your age!” as a compliment.

Purba Ray April 18, 2016

Modern Family

By Sheltering an Inter-Caste Couple, My Conservative Father Discovered His “Wokeness”

My old-fashioned father, who still believes women should do the bulk of cooking and tolerates no criticism of Narendra Modi, suddenly turned liberal when a young couple needed his help. Unlike most people from our generation, who use social media to signal our virtues, my father had become the IRL definition of woke.

Hardik Rajgor April 18, 2016

Sports

Football Shootball Hai Rabba

The FIFA World Cup is upon us and I fear the worst. During the last World Cup, we braced ourselves for “expert comments” from John Abraham. This time it’s going to be Anupam Kher, isn’t it?

Akhil Sood April 18, 2016

Pop Culture

Man vs Wild: The Spectacular Horror of Lijo Jose Pellisery’s Jallikattu

The horror in Lijo Jose Pellissery’s Jallikattu feels potent because it is not posited as a horror film. It’s rooted in a world all too real, where cops are wife-beaters and BJP flags loom the streets and men will literally tear each other apart to assert their superiority.

Mohit Patil April 18, 2016

POV

“Tu Bahar Mil”: Ashish Pandey’s Gun-Waving is Utterly Unsurprising for Delhi, India’s Rage Capital

For a Dilli boy, there was nothing shocking about a politician’s son waving a pistol outside the lobby of a posh hotel. Rather, I was filled with a weird sense of nostalgia, as this incident reminded me of all the Ashish Pandeys I’ve grown up with in my hometown.

Aakash Ahuja April 18, 2016

Pop Culture

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs Review: Whimsical Death Looms Over the Coen Brothers’ Western

Much like any other Coen Brothers’ Western, death in The Ballad of Buster Scruggs doesn’t get its moment. There is no Tarantino-esque blood gushing out from arteries on a severed arm, or a blood-splattered rear-view mirror. There is just the knowledge of an end and its context, just cause and effect.

Ujjainee Roy April 18, 2016

Health

Two Weeks in the Psych Ward

In the common ward of the psychiatric facility, I was certain my condition was worsening because of the atmosphere. In that motley crew of recovering addicts and schizos, I found friendship and the will to go on.

MD April 18, 2016

Love and Sex

How to Date a Married Man: Lessons in Infidelity from My Aunt

My Aunt Astrid had an affair with a married man, who finally picked his wife over her. She showed me that carrying bitterness in your heart is counterproductive, especially when you know what you are in for once you agree to be the “other person” in a relationship.

Damian D'souza April 18, 2016

POV

Birthday Stress: It’s Your B’day So You Know You Want To Cry

Birthdays cease to be celebrations, once the needle goes beyond 25. Instead, they turn into annual reminders of unfulfilled potential, ever-ticking biological clocks, and how everyone your age is doing so much better than you.

Jackie Thakkar April 18, 2016

POV

How to Spot a Launda or Desi Frat Boy

The Desi Frat Boy has a superiority complex. He’s misogynistic, vile, and homophobic. Should we blame him for being a douchebag or our patriarchy?

Bhaskar Chawla April 18, 2016