The truth about pain
Who says life’s lessons are learnt from pain? You might have read the story of Uncle Podger who wanted to hang a picture. I was in some junior class and this story by Jerome K Jerome was a part of our English reader. Uncle Podger keeps hitting his thumb or finger and even as the...
Ram Bahadur and Oli
The soul of Ravan chuckled and didn’t quite LoL-ed or ROFL-ed because he wasn’t updated about the new internet lingo going around in the human world. He turned to Ram and guffawed, ‘Never seen you with a khukri, sir… ever!’ ‘What?’ replied Ram, ‘I didn’t quite get you. I mean, I know you are quite...
Villainy is dead
Headings matter and I do not want the title of this piece to be ‘Vikas is dead’ because then the ruling party spokespersons and their economists are going to be really perplexed. But then headings, like the names of gangsters, always make an impact… and even Bollywood has convinced me that it is looks and...
Fair, white, and light
We know now that the word ‘fair’ has been eased out of brand promotion for a certain product and that Sunny Jain, president of Unilever Beauty Division has even gone on record to announce that the company recognizes ‘that the use of the words fair, white, and light suggest a singular ideal of beauty that...
The idea of well-being in education
Well-being isn’t a fairy tale that exists only in books and board-rooms… or as discussions and debates in the staff-rooms of colleges, if this sounds more appropriate. As Hans Christian Anderson once wrote: ‘Just living isn’t enough’, said the butterfly, ‘one must have sunshine, freedom and a little flower.’ When I told a university professor...
It is time to step out of your comfort zones
Explore. Defend. Protect. Lead. Discover. Serve. These past few months have given us all an opportunity to see these words in action. We have read, and sometimes watched, our warriors venture forth into the unknown to turn a mere word (like the ones listed at the start) into an applause-worthy act. Our doctors and para-medical...
Idiot in a lockdown
Idiot. This one word tells you how most of us were made to feel during the lockdown. If you think I’m being unreasonable, just look at the sheer number of people who were updating and guiding you with facts that you never knew existed. Before you think I am trying to be cynical only towards...
Rankings and online education in the post-covid era
There will be 60 million students the world over who will be looking for the right courses in the right regions this season. I obviously mean the admission season. Students are smart enough to understand that they need to assess not just disciplines relevant to their career plans but also the best and safest options...
Only the doer learns
Talking about the art of cooking, Tom Colicchio wrote that ‘recipes tell you nothing. Learning techniques is the key’ and you’ll be surprised at how much these few words tell about what is relevant and what isn’t in the emerging world of online education today. Despite a fistful, nay, a wheelbarrow-full, of theories for effective...
The prosaic world of the poetry of doing nothing
The prosaic world of the poetry of doing nothing It surprises me to find everyone doing so much. The social media tells me that everyone is reading, writing, exercising, cooking, knitting, dancing, singing, sewing, sharing photographs, drawing, sketching… or even spending hours updating status in ways that makes everyone envious. Or trolling, arguing, being logical...
Will a post-covid India be any different?
Covid-19 Pandemic Will a post-covid India be any different? From learning to earning, from survival to career, from passion in relationships to passion in professions, from choices one wants to choices that exist, from what was to what is… this pandemic has the power to roll over and transform entire lifestyle landscapes, conceptual environment, and...
More monkey, less human
Much before humans of 2020 got pandemic-bitten, a friend looked up at the Delhi sky in disgust and said, ‘We’re really monkeying around with our environment.’ Well, he was right to some extent because many would feel that monkeys are still more human than humans because humans are forever monkeying around with disruptions. Talking of...
