KASHISH 2023 to open with Onir’s feature Pine Cone
South Asia's biggest LGBTQ+ Film Festival to close with Canadian film When Time Got Louder The 14th edition of KASHISH Mumbai International Queer Film Festival, South Asia's biggest LGBTQ+ film festival will open on June 7th at Liberty Cinema with filmmaker Onir’s latest film Pine Cone, which will have its World Premiere at the festival. National Award winning filmmaker Onir said,...
Lockdown Diaries: My fight with coronavirus boredom
My name is Ishaan Saxena and I am a student of year 5 in an international school in Hong Kong. My school has been closed since January end amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Home learning is one job to do but once you finish it, it gets boring. So I thought I could use this time to explore my interest and do something...
Equal rights for LGBT+ communities in India and Hong Kong still remains a far-cry
Leading publications in India and Hong Kong have recently reported on the legal challenges against discrimination of LGBT+ people in these countries. The battle for civil rights is far from over in India, where the Supreme Court de-criminalised same-sex relationships and discrimination against the entire Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community, through Article 377 in September last year...
Diwali – a victory of light over dark
Diwali is a Hindu festival of lights, celebrated every year in autumn. One of the most poplar festivals of Hinduism, it spiritually signifies the victory of light over darkness, good over evil and knowledge over ignorance. This will be our first Diwali in Hong Kong, and Diwali this year is around the same time of our term-break, so we hope...
More scholarships for Indian students through LSE’s new India programme
In a positive move for the education sector in the UK, Boris Johnson has reversed the restrictive immigration policy for international students that drastically slashed the time for foreign students to find a job after graduating, from two years to four months. The policy, introduced by May as Home Secretary in 2012, had proved extremely detrimental to Britain’s popularity as...
HCI London celebrates BR Ambedkar’s birth anniversary with reflections on his life and invaluable contributions
The High Commission of India in London paid tribute to Dr Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar on his 130th birth anniversary by garlanding his statue in India House on April 14. The Indian High Commissioner, Gaitri Issar Kumar was present, along with community leaders and other diplomats. Born on 14th April 1891, the father of the Indian Constitution, Babasaheb, as he was popularly known,...
Gray’s Inn in London unveils the Ambedkar Room and a new portrait
Master Ali Malek QC, Master Treasurer, Gray’s Inn, unveiled the Ambedkar Room at Gray’s Inn on 30 June 2021, dedicated to Dr Ambedkar, known internationally as an extraordinary academic, writer, politician, socio-political reformer, economist, and jurist. He also inspired the Buddhist movement in India. As the chief architect of India’s Constitution, he abolished Untouchability, and secured social and fundamental legal rights and equality for its...
Local group helping to save the wildlife of London’s River Thames
The Thames has a long and murky history. It wasn't just the main thoroughfare to move products and raw materials all along its length, but it was also used to dump industrial waste, among other things. In 1957, the Natural History Museum declared that the river was biologically dead. However, over the years there have been many improvements, such as...
The mantra of staying mentally fit
This week is mental health awareness week from 13th -19th May, hosted by the Mental Health Foundation in the UK. The theme is body image and how we think and feel about our bodies and last years theme was about stress. Mental health awareness has definitely played a role in people being able to speak about their mental health...
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...
