Every few years, Indian politics reminds us that misogyny is still alive and kicking in Indian politics. The latest controversy involves derogatory, double-meaning remarks allegedly directed at actor Trisha Krishnan, who is Tamil Nadu Chief Minister’s partner. In Indian politics, when a man cannot defeat another man, he attacks the woman associated with him. Our…
The CJP (Cockroach Janta Party) protests and the Government’s response revealed something far bigger than a controversy over a leaked examination paper. They exposed a clash between two generations, each convinced that the other is fundamentally broken. Ask the older generations about Gen Z and you’ll hear familiar complaints such as, they are intellectually lazy, with…
India’s officialdom has a curious talent. It never solves problems. It merely fixes symptoms. Every few months, footpaths are cleared, flex boards are removed and illegal vendors are evicted. A few weeks later, everyone is back. Our Governments perform what doctors would call ‘symptomatic treatment.’ They prescribe painkillers instead of curing the disease. Which is…
Stop cluttering Dasara to make money IN BLACK AND WHITE BY VIKRAM MUTHANNA Every few years, just before Dasara, someone gets a bright idea, which is, “Ah, let’s add one more event to Mysuru Dasara.” This year, it is Kambala, the spectacular buffalo race of Coastal Karnataka. The Kambala is undoubtedly a magnificent tradition and deserves to be celebrated, but… not in Mysuru Dasara. The…
Three days ago, news broke of an Enforcement Directorate (ED) raid on the residence of an Additional Excise Commissioner. Almost at the same time, a bureaucrat’s wife on her Instagram page posted her pics carrying a designer handbag that probably cost half of her husband’s annual salary. For a fleeting moment, I was envious and muttered, “I wish I were a bureaucrat…
India seems to have developed a peculiar relationship with humour. We are confused about what comedy actually is. Every offensive remark is treated as either a national crisis or a Constitutional issue. This confusion is becoming increasingly visible as stand-up comedy explodes across the country. Particularly popular is the newer ‘crowd work’ format, where comedians…
This morning, I took part in a panel discussion on media and tourism at Mysore Travel Mart-2026, organised by the Mysore Travels Association. GRS Fantasy Park was the principal sponsor and NOT the Karnataka Tourism Department. The Department sponsored nothing. That absence said a great deal. It seems the task of promoting Mysuru appears to…
For years, D.K. Shivakumar was the eternal bridesmaid of Karnataka politics. He was always close to power, always indispensable to the Congress party, but never quite the chosen one. Now, at last, he has arrived at the altar and is set to become the Chief Minister of Karnataka. But… The question is not whether Shivakumar…
Indian politics is about personality and not policy. We are a people driven by blind emotion and some of us hope that our heroes can deliver in the real world what they perform in the reel world. Nowhere is this hope more visible than in Tamil Nadu, where cinema and politics have long shared a…
The Karnataka Government has revoked its 2022 school uniform order and permitted ‘religious and traditional symbols’ in schools and colleges. Students may now wear hijabs, turbans, sacred threads, rudraksha beads, etc., provided these ‘complement the uniform’ and do not compromise discipline, safety or identification. It sounds reasonable, even liberal, but it is also quite contradictory….
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