‘Evening Shadows’ to screen in London marking LGBTQ+ History Month
Sridhar Rangayan’s gay drama kicks off series of films as part of London Indian Film Festival (LIFF) The UK and Europe’s largest South Asian film festival, the London Indian Film Festival (LIFF) is kicking off its 2021 series of films and marking LGBT+ History Month with a screening of Sridhar Rangayan’s feature film Evening Shadows, a tender heart-warming story, set in...
Lockdown Diaries: Mira Kaushik OBE spearheads an online platform to celebrate dance through UK’s performing artists
During lockdown, one of the things we art audiences are missing the most is being able to watch live performances. In the generosity of the universe, many top artists have been performing online for free. However, for London-based producer director and performing arts consultant Mira Kaushik, there was still something missing. “While the desire for viewing performances was being satisfied...
Flowers – an environmental poem
I haven’t been able to make much music recently. Processing the news around us has been far from easy. So here’s a different kind of offering, with words and paint, this one is called — Flowers. It rained last night, From a monsoon sky, Soaked my soil, Burrowed its way Deep into my heart, Until I was swollen... Dark earth, Bubbled bright, And it hurt To be brimming with...
Lockdown Diaries: Ankit Bhuptani’s views on self-isolation and how our actions will define a generation
50 or 100 years from today we will not be able to talk about the year 2020 without talking about this COVID-19 pandemic. I wonder, will a teen of that time be able to believe that all the commercial planes of the world were grounded? Businesspersons, film-stars, industry leaders and other powerful people who hardly had time to eat a meal peacefully,...
Rhona Tasmia Rabbani – The bright, young FedEx-pert of the APAC region
People are the core of any business and those who are in charge of driving the people policies, hiring, development and engagement of talents, are the gatekeepers to that resource. Meet Rhona Tasmia Rabbani, the Managing Director of Talent & Learning for FedEx Express in the Asia Pacific region, one of the youngest directors in the region of this...
Lockdown Diaries: Apsara Reddy fights against heightened abuse and vulnerability during curfew in India
Apsara Reddy is the first trans-gender Indian politician, who has led the way and been an inspiration to thousands in the community in India and across the world. The inspirational leader was appointed the National General Secretary of All India Mahila (Women's) Congress, in January 2019 by the Congress President Rahul Gandhi. The lockdown period imposed by the government of...
Kumartuli saga 2020: the hands that shape the Gods
The word ‘unprecedented times’ perhaps has found a new definition, since the Coronavirus pandemic hit different parts of the world since December last year. Among all the turmoil caused, the pandemic has changed the Durga Puja festival, the biggest celebrations for Hindu Bengalis around the world, where they gather for five days to seek the powerful matriarchal blessings of...
Lockdown Diaries: Intolerance against Afghan Sikhs in a time of pandemic damned by Sikhs across the world
The world is reeling from a global coronavirus pandemic. Afghanistan's capital city, Kabul, went into lockdown for three weeks, beginning on 27 March. Residents are supposed to stay at home and avoid all non-essential travel. With bigger problems in the world, you might think that there would be some tolerance and understanding in these times, but clearly not. I am...
Lockdown Diaries: Showing resilience in coping with Covid during the grey years
India has 110 million elderly, projected to become 177 million by 2025. Of this West Bengal has 750,000 senior citizens and Kolkata itself records 550,000 of them. In a recent research study the Calcutta Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology (CMIG), Regional Resource and Training Centre on Ageing, conducted individual case studies to explore how senior citizens were coping during the...
Lockdown Diaries: Teenager Jai Aswani on a mission to feed the hungry in India by collecting 100 tonnes of food grains
Our initiative Mission 100 Tonnes was born out of distress calls we received from old age homes, orphanages, and pet shelters in Chennai, during the government-imposed lockdown in India three weeks back. Since then, there has been no looking back for us. The number of marginalised people requiring help during the unprecedented time of the COVID-19 outbreak has increased...
