Lockdown Diaries: The diary of a boy with an extraordinary disease

Robby Khullar will be writing a series of articles for us on Multiple Sclerosis, a condition that he has been suffering from for 35 years. Robby, with his positivity and wit, has been spreading awareness among the South Asian diasporas in the UK, actively taking part in MS research and helping provide answers that will prove critical for the generations...

Anup Jalota, Ashwini Kane joins hands with Indian artistes in UK to produce patriotic song

Eminent vocalist from India Bhajan Maestro Anup Jalota and renowned Marathi film actors Pushkar Shrotri and Kavita Lad join hands with London based vocalist Ashwini Kane to produce a patriotic song to be digitally launched on the special occasion of India’s 73 Indian Independence Day. Ashwini Kane does not need  an introduction to those who love Hindi film music, semi...

Opinion: Those who do not learn from history end up repeating it with even more dire consequences

Sant Bhindranwale, an unelected and self-appointed leader, promised Sikhs extra rights and benefits in a secular and democratic country, India, where equality for all is enshrined in its constitution. He offered the Sikhs more benefits than the elected Chief Minister of Punjab could give them. He played on the human weakness of wanting to get something for nothing. The result...

KASHISH 2020 to screen India’s first gay film ‘Badnam Basti’, lost and found after 49 years

Register for KASHISH 2020 at http://mumbaiqueerfest.com/attend/ Director Prem Kapoor's 'Badnam Basti', India's first gay film released in 1971, only to be lost to obscurity for around five decades, and found in a Berlin archive, will be screened at KASHISH 2020. Considered as one of first Indian films to explore same-sex relationship, Badnam Basti was made in 1971 and features a...

Bhavna Juneja: US-based entrepreneur, empowering women and revolutionising real estate in India

Being an entrepreneur isn't just something you do, it's something you are. It's not something which everyone could, or indeed should, do. However, some individuals clearly thrive on the challenge and love to change the world for the better. Bhavna Juneja is one of those individuals. Bhavna is Global Vice President-IT Services Life Science & Infrastructure at Infinity, a Stamford...

KASHISH 2020: 52 films compete for a total cash award of Rs 1,80,000

The 11th edition of KASHISH Mumbai International Queer Film Festival, South Asia’s biggest LGBTQIA+ film festival, has decided to go online this year as KASHISH 2020 Virtual from July 22 to July 30. The festival will screen 157 films from 42 countries out of which 52 films compete in the 9 competition categories that includes Best Narrative Feature, Best Screenplay, Best...

The Piano

An eerie hum of silence roamed through the dark room. Dust floated around revealing itself when hit by the light coming through the small window at the end of the large, echoey room. The piano stool squeaked as the man adjusted himself. The man cleared his throat and touched the cold, ivory keys. Thousands of memories flooded back into...

Not Namaste Trump but Phir Milengey: H-1B visas suspended, what now?

It looked like things were getting as close as could be between US President Donald Trump and Narendra Modi but a worldwide pandemic and a scourge of resulting unemployment in the States has put a spanner in the works of ‘Namaste Trump’, as an executive order signed this past week will suspend new visas for foreign workers, including the...

Lockdown Diaries: Bamboo House India supports waste pickers, daily wage earners with continued livelihood and aid

'My Waste, My Responsibility' is the mantra followed by Hyderabad-based social enterprise Bamboo House, India. Prashant Lingam, who co-founded the initiative along with his wife Aruna Kappagantula in 2006, moved from making eco-friendly bamboo homes to recycled eco-friendly plastic homes, plastic paver titles and kiosks for street vendors, using tonnes of used plastic garbage that would otherwise end up...

Rumana Rahman: leading diversity, excellence in British American Tobacco

Striving for success is the way to a fulfilling life, at least that's how Rumana Rahman sees it, and when you hear her life story it's clear that it has certainly worked for her. Rumana is the Regional Director of Human Resources for the Asia Pacific and Middle East (APME) region of the prestigious British American Tobacco (BAT) and one of the youngest...