Articles

Why Madhuri Dixit Overshadows Bucket List

In the Marathi film Bucket List, Madhuri Dixit plays the sweet vahini from a regular upper-caste Maharashtrian Puneri neighbourhood. What happens when Bollywood’s most famous diva lands in an industry in the midst of a beautiful churn? Her stardom becomes a stumbling block.

Aparna joshi June 11, 2016

People

He Lived to Die Another Day

You normally hear about farmers like Ramrao Chavan only after they’ve become a statistic. But Chavan’s story of debt and deprivation is different. He failed to die.

Maharudra Mangnale June 11, 2016

Pop Culture

The Falcon and The Winter Soldier: Sam Wilson is Not Steve Rogers’ Substitute. He’s the New Black Captain America

In the tradition of Captain America, Sam Wilson is pure and optimistic. Unlike Steve Rogers, however, his hopefulness is not borne of a rose-tinted view of a better time, when right was right and wrong was wrong. People are complex, he acknowledges, and flawed. But they are also equal.

Kahini Iyer June 11, 2016

Sports

Happy Birthday Virat Kohli, the Man Who Makes Greatness Look Routine

Virat Kohli has made greatness look so routine, so ordinary, that his stature has deliberately eschewed the romance of divinity. He is a human pushing for perfection rather than a deity dabbling in imperfections.

Rahul Desai June 11, 2016

Coronavirus

I’m Done with WFH & Cooking Experiments! Lockdown Fatigue is Real

The first few months of the lockdown weren’t so bad for People Like Us. We didn’t have to meet annoying colleagues, we saved money by not going out with friends. But now, as Lockdown 2021 seems imminent, we may be experiencing “Lockdown Fatigue”. We are trying to find any excuse that allows us to go out.

Mugdha Singh June 11, 2016

Bollywood

Just How Sanskaari is Pahlaj Nihalani’s Julie 2?

Pahlaj Nihalani had touted Julie 2 as a bold exposé with a message for aspiring actors, minus any vulgarity. But it’s proof that the former CBFC chief needs to be gifted a dictionary. The film is neither bold, nor an exposé.

Poulomi Das June 11, 2016

Bollywood

Why Kabir Singh is Proof of How Movies Get Away with Trivialising Women

Every woman watching Kabir Singh isn't just watching a film. They're inevitably imagining a scenario where they are stripped of their agency, only to have a man cross the boundaries of what qualifies as love and what it is never anything but violence. The trouble is, the box-office is applauding.

Poulomi Das June 11, 2016

POV

The Truth in Black & White

Don’t worry, black people! This is how we treat everyone who is not a savarna Indian male.

Bhanuj Kappal June 10, 2016

Culture

The Half-Baked Marijuana Legalisation March & Mumbai’s Missing Stoners

You might have ignored that guy you saw in harem pants one day, but marijuana users are everywhere. So why does no one turn up for the legalisation rallies?

Aditya Bhalla June 10, 2016

POV

Real Men Don’t Cry

To cry is to fall from a position of power that patriarchy bestows on men. My teardrops, then, have probably taken my masculinity score below freezing point.

Anahad Madhav June 10, 2016