Manto and Chugtai: Smell, Dog, Quilt and so much more
“Two or three years after Partition, the governments of India and Pakistan decided that just as there had been a cordial exchange of prisoners, there should now be a similar…
“Two or three years after Partition, the governments of India and Pakistan decided that just as there had been a cordial exchange of prisoners, there should now be a similar…
come to me hereyour eyes widelike the bride of morning i have pitched my tabernacle tentneither near nor faron the routes of passage where dust of travelersfills my nostrilsand the…
The Tata theatre of NCPA in Mumbai was packed to capacity on April 4 by music lovers providing a fitting finale to the birth centenary celebrations of Kumar Ganharva, the…
We, a few comrades of Delhi, used to organize an annual program in the memory of Allah Baksh under the auspices of Samajwadi Manch. On the suggestion of Anil Nauria,…
(Based on true and almost true events) the weeping is an immense angel,the weeping is an immense violin,the tears muzzle the wind,nothing else is heard but the weeping. From "Casida…
For the sake of Godhe saidhis voice in tremor. For sake of the Earth and moon.For wind over trees.For the sake of mirror-wateron a moonlit lake. He shaped his heartinto…
Children eating grass, innocent, hungry and lostMothers soaked in red, wombs tremble in terror Searching for words I may write of the pain withinSearching for words I may speak of…
Films are a very powerful medium which create a social understanding in various ways. Till decades ago we had films which reflected social realities and promoted progressive values. The films like ‘Mother…
Art and culture in society are so interlinked that it is impossible to understand one wholly without considering or alluding to the other. Art influences culture and vice versa, and…
I sit still, lethargicAnd add new wordsTo the great tapestryOf female sorrows From a distant cityOver the ruinsOf a war he never foughtA boy cries, there is no wayBack to…
It's all about the gold.Hasn't it always been?The allure, the beauty of goldin whatever form it takes —wealth, power, fame, ironclad security. In Gaza the rush is on.Tanks, bombs, missiles,…
Here’s a film about the 1950s – “The World As It Was” – that will tell you a great deal about life in the U.S.A. today, while disabusing anyone of…
In the human worldwe have heroesand villainsand cowards. Those who defend lifetaking risks aboveand beyond self interestthose who destroy lifeand those we do not carewho play games ofselfish detachment and…
by Thomas Klikauer and Danny Antonelli Zone of Interest is a film that every German child should be shown at the age of 15. Yes, they will not understand why…
The technology behind generative AI has created a big splash in the content-addicted world of the internet. Its ability to churn out hundreds of synthetic images and text at industrial…
Where I live, I only keep one piece of a broken mirror. I put this poor thing in a tightly locked locker. I hate seeing my reflection in the mirror.…
The comprehensive success of Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer at the Academy Awards has genuine and far-reaching significance. The biographical drama about the life and career of theoretical physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer (1904-1967), known…
An exhibition on the architects and architecture firms which built some of the best buildings in Mumbai ended at the Asiatic society on March 10. A laudable venture . Sadly, …
Yorgos Lanthimos’ latest film Poor Things has just been released on digital and Blu-Ray, and this is a film I had been waiting to watch for a very long time,…
Introduction In mainstream International Relations, there is a clear binary of hard and soft power; hard power is perceived by states to be more impactful, while soft power is more…
The world is full.Filled with hardships.Filled with courage.Filled with suffering. EverywhereThere are human faces.Everywhere the pathosOf conscious mortality.Everywhere the pathosOf human faces. The world is full. Filled with struggles and…
Established in 1948, under the patronage of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the Films Division stands as one of the pioneering institutions in post-independent India that played a crucial…
If it were me in Palestineand I found you on a stretcherin a shell-shocked hospital,I would kneel beside youand take your hand in mine,wipe the blood from your faceand pray…
Palestine is a painA constant pain in our necksLike every Muslim is born with the Pain of Palestine in his her heart.Barring UAEians, House of Suads, etcYou fools, allGo and…
It was hardTo lift PoetryOut of the grave It was so veryHeavy It was difficult to findUnderneath the rubbleUnderneath the lies Its lips of ironIts hair of plutonium So stillIn…
RespectNo one SpitIn the judge'sFace Give the fingerTo the police SlapThe president MistrustThe doctor Tell the lawyerTo shut up And the priestTo stop lying No figureOf authorityIs what they seem…
Pay attentionTo what you see You see a peopleBeing murdered You see a landBeing blotted You see a dreamBeing slaughtered You see thisAnd you believe In your presidentsAnd your chancellorsAnd…
What were you thinking? Opening up your heartTo the Monster in the TowerOpening up your heartTo a people without power Could you fill the DemonWith fear? Could you fight the…
There is a paradoxIn the heart of the world There are two beastsThat contend for dominion One is ferocious and bloodyAnd knows no pityOnly vengeance The other is magicalOf infinite…
It is good to joinwhat should be joinedand it is good to partwhat should be parted. It is evil to joinwhat should not be joinedand to partwhat should not be…
If EvilHas carefully stolen youFrom the World If EvilHas gripped your heartAnd will never let go If EvilHas imprisoned youIn deepest Hell If EvilHolds you mockingly in its armsWhispering its…
I have a sad secret to tell you:Love does not conquer all Only Power can do that Love is:That much is true But it can breakAnd be stolenMuch more easilyThan…
the urge to beautify one’s surroundings is widespread and profoundly beneficial — particularly so in the harrowing circumstances of loss, displacement, and danger. — From an article by Stephanie Acker…
"I'm so scared, please come"--Hind Rajab What have you done What have you done? I would askAnother time But I knowThat you know A little girlSix years old Pleading on…
You want to seeThe empty faceOf God? Come to Gaza You want to seeThe true RulerOf the world? Come to Gaza You want to seeThe filthy lieOf Freedom Come to…
The movie on Caste Discrimination in Cricket gives a bigger lesson on Republic Day as it brought the message of Babasaheb for the citizens of this country where Ram Mandir…
AngelsWill not touchThis land God will notWave His hand Over this landHe will not point Or give direction Silence is this land The men prayThe women screechAnd the children quickly…
Exploring Aristotle's virtue ethics and Marx and Engels's communist individual through the 1993 movie, Groundhog Day. Groundhog Day (1993) is a classic of philosophical cinema. I was first asked to watch…
I've seen the ugliness I've felt the pain I've lived the rage I've watched the mothers I've counted the children I've mourned the men Evil has heated my bloodEvil has…
My countryIs of pain My countryIs of sorrow My countryIs a chorusOf wildness My countryIs the songOf tribulations My countryHas been whippedBy torture My countryHas been deniedThe light My countryWeeps…
Gaza may be in the news, but it's not on most folks' minds — at least those folks within my own circle of friends and colleagues. I don't know what…
Perhaps a little more nuanced look was needed into the life and work of Gieve Patel than was offered at the NCPA recently when poets, theatre practitioners, painters converged to…
Make this poemInto fire Mould itInto a bomb Launch itOver theHigh wallOf murdering lies Make each lineA bullet of justiceA jab of the Divine Sing itIn front of torture Sing…
The 2023 German film Paradise went virtually unnoticed by commentators on the socialist left. Yet, it is amongst the best dystopian anti-capitalist films produced in the decade. The film follows the life…
Do you see Do you see, my friend? The dead want to kiss you They want to breathe through you They want to dance with your feet They want to…
You don't everWant to be hauntedBy children By the childrenYou've killed But you will be I hope they comeIn their millions I hope they suffocateI hope they strangulateI hope they…
Such an abyss between sweet peace and war!Which one do you want to be living for? Alas, most people do not have a choice.In government, they do not have real…
This Indian film delves into the pervasive issue of women being unjustly reduced to mere physicality, shedding light on the challenges they face in today's society. The film "B 32…
A key part in Anand Patwardhan’s recent acclaimed film is his apt observation that his two uncles Achyutrao Patwardhan and Raosaheb Patwardhan chose to go into political oblivion after independence.…
You cameFrom the gas chambersWith HistoryTattooedOn your arms You cameFor justiceFor freedomYou said But we were hereWithout knowingWe were waitingTo be toldThat we were notPart of History'sOr God's plan We…
You come at meWith hate You come at meWith acid argument You come at meSo as to erase me But I'm still here Breathing the smokeStaring into the fireListening to…
The world kept rushing by.And with it anger. Finallyhe freed his emotions from the tangled world. From a palace window he could seethe shore of an ancient sea.In his heart…
"12th Fail" is a brilliantly scripted movie, masterfully delivered by Vidhu Vinod Chopra. It instils the belief that with energy and clear goals, anything is achievable in life. Similar to…
Thoroughly enjoyed the play Karl Marx in Kalbadevi at a new theatre Veda Kunba in Andheri last evening. A rare combination of an intelligent look at history and the present…
Now that our revels are ended, the holiday celebrations and feasts, if one had them, just a dream melted into thin air, our hungers perhaps richly satiated temporarily or not,…
The poem runs: I leant upon a coppice gate When Frost was spectre-grey, And Winter's dregs made desolate The weakening eye of day. The…
As despair pours from the eyes and the heart bleeds from pain, solitude crawls in and with it comes peaceAs the past fades out and the present looks bleak, the…
All tonguesThat have spoken in prayerAre equally beautiful.All places of worshipAll over the EarthAre beautiful. All facesAll racesAll deeds doneThat have shone with loveShineAnd are beautiful. Harsh worldDo not fall…
It is hard for those who have not lived through the shattering political assassinations of the 1960s to grasp their significance for today. Many might assume that that was then…
Rachel Aliene Corrie (April 10, 1979 – March 16, 2003) was an American peace activist and a member of the pro-Palestinian International Solidarity Movement. She was crushed to death while…
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