For my mother in Kashmir

Disclaimer: The following article is a work of literary fiction based on the political, social realities of present-day Kashmir. My mother has been trying to reach me for the last 70 days. She didn’t hear my voice or my tantrums for so long that it seems like years. Every time I call her, there’s a …

When Roohi From Kashmir Dials Up Democracy In Delhi

(My column in Youth Ki Awaaz, November 3, 2019) Disclaimer: The following article is a work of literary fiction based on the political, social realities of present-day Kashmir. “Can you hear my voice from Delhi?” asks Roohi from her postpaid connection. “Go ahead. Delhi isn’t far away” says Democracy. “Is Humanity lost in that thick smog that you can’t …

A Letter To My Sister In Kashmir: When Will I Hear Your Voice?

(My column in Youth Ki Awaaz, November 4, 2019) Dear Roohi, It has been days that I heard your voice, and it seems like months that I have seen my messages getting blue ticked. I have been waiting from August 5 for the postman to carry my letters back to your home but unfortunately, hope kills …

Can AAP deliver the Delhi surprise in Karnataka?

Written by Ratnadeep Chakraborty and Hibah Bhat This article first appeared on March 25, 2018 and was written in the context of the upcoming Karnataka Assembly elections. Releasing its first list of 18 candidates on Tuesday 20 March 2018 at the Press meet in Bengaluru Hotel, AAP has finally made a debut in Karnataka Assembly …

The Martha Farrell Award Honoured Valuable Contributions In Women’s Empowerment

(My column in Youth Ki Awaaz, April 27, 2018)   “A gender-equal society would be one where the word ‘gender’ does not exist: where everyone can be themselves.” — Gloria Steinem Martha Farrell Award for excellence in women’s Empowerment has been instituted to honour Dr Martha Farrell and her ideals of gender equality, feminism and women empowerment …

Banning Student Politics Can Never Be A Solution To Campus Violence In India

(My column in Youth Ki Awaaz, June 10, 2018) The NSUI-led Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) came into power after two years with two promises: 1. Restoring free speech, critical thinking, and academic autonomy. 2. Defining the democratic role of student unions in the governance of universities. While Delhi University students celebrated their democracy over a huge decision, Karnataka students …

Why Can’t An Institute That Teaches Social Justice Provide Aid For Students That Need It?

(My column in Youth Ki Awaz, February 23, 2018) The student’s union at the Mumbai campus of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) called for a uniform strike across all campuses of the Institute on February 21, 2018. The students across the four campuses (Mumbai, Hyderabad, Guwahati, and Tuljapur) are protesting against the administration’s decision …

The Legacy Of Diverse Experiences: Freedom

(My column in Youth Ki Awaz, May 15 2018) Co-authored by Ananya Pande: [SPOILER ALERT] Gurmehar Kaur has a story to tell. But this time, she has written a book about it. Nineteen-year-old GurMehar was in the news last year because she joined a peaceful campaign after violent clashes at Delhi University’s Ramjas College. She was made a …

More than Section 377, we need to drop our hypocrisy on homosexuality-An Interview with Nico J. Genes

One thing we Indians are extremely good at is not discussing any problems that have a sexual angle. This is the reason why we still don’t have reasoned, nuanced and rational debates on crimes against women and why many of us think sex education is a terrible thing. In all this denial and hypocrisy we …

Are Pothole Pada-Yatras the new solution to increase the work efficiency of BBMP?

Bengaluru’s traffic hold-ups have grown worse with potholes, but the city’s residents are not at their wits’ end when it comes to protesting. It was the purview of the neighborhood Resident Welfare Association (RWA) member (usually a retired old man) to raise civic complaints, from water pipe leaking to potholes. He would trudge down to …