Podcasts & Appetizers REVISIONIST HISTORY (Episode 1: The Lady Vanishes) Best-selling author Malcolm Gladwell's new podcast "Revisionist History" got off to an interesting start this week with its first episode "The Lady Vanishes". Gladwell delves into the story of Elizabeth Thompson, one of very few female historical painters who rose to fame in the… Continue reading The Weekend Specials
Author: The Glass Elevator
Why Black Panther’s Arrival in ‘Superhero-verse’ Is Significant Beyond The Obvious
Superhero films in the past decade have single-handedly changed the complexion of the Hollywood film industry. Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), responsible for ‘The Avengers,’ and all the films starring its constituent superheroes, has grossed close to $4bn at the box office – all from one genre. The idea of a shared universe spanning television and… Continue reading Why Black Panther’s Arrival in ‘Superhero-verse’ Is Significant Beyond The Obvious
Urban Poverty: We May Have Missed The Point
There's been one article that's been trending on many of our newsfeeds over the past couple of days. Buzzfeed published an article about “Millennials” (God, I hate this term) being the urban poor that we don't notice. ICYMI, the article talks about how “millennials” have internalised societal pressure to keep up appearances, even at the… Continue reading Urban Poverty: We May Have Missed The Point
An Open Letter to Smt. Smriti Irani – II
Dear Smt. Smriti Irani, Honourable HRD Minister (Government of India), I write this letter in response to the public announcement that was made by the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) on September 8, 2015, requesting all the Members of Parliament (MPs), under the Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY), to work to achieve 100% literacy by March,… Continue reading An Open Letter to Smt. Smriti Irani – II
Ron Woodrof: From ‘Homophobic Asshole’ to ‘Someone Kind’
"And a small town don't like it when somebody falls between sexes. No, a small town don't like it when a cowboy has feelings for men." I can't shake off the idea that Ned Sublette's 1981 song, Cowboys are Secretly, Frequently Fond of Each Other, has inspired the blinding, poignant Dallas Buyers Club (2013). Jean-Marc… Continue reading Ron Woodrof: From ‘Homophobic Asshole’ to ‘Someone Kind’
Moral Absolutism
“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of an Internet connection, must be in want of a fight online” – Jane Austen So this article has been a long time coming. With DiCaprio being in the press for his Oscar win, his recent speech about climate change at the UN… Continue reading Moral Absolutism
Stories Unheard: Jessy
The clock is ticking. It’s the last shot that the team has to redeem itself. She can hear the crowd roaring. Her teammates have been reduced to zooming dots in the distance, as she mans (well, womans) the goalpost. There are yells from the stands behind her, slander she is very accustomed to. The opponent… Continue reading Stories Unheard: Jessy
Conversations in Rotterdam
Anubha Sarkar I realised while trying to put down my thoughts that it was around this time that I had met her. It was 2013 and I was pursuing a short term Art Appreciation programme at the National Museum Institute. I became friends with a bunch of other people, and amongst them was a guy… Continue reading Conversations in Rotterdam
Dude, where’s my sanskaar?
Indian soaps are a staple of every person who has ever grown up in India (or outside), much like croissants and berets with the French and clouds and rain with the British. We all have a fascination with gross exaggeration and let’s face it – as much as we may detest them, the over-the-top nature… Continue reading Dude, where’s my sanskaar?
Our Collective Conscience
Rohith Vemula, one of the five Dalit PhD Research Scholars suspended by the University of Hyderabad (UOH) under circumstances that can be best described as reeking of casteist authoritarianism, committed suicide day before yesterday. His suicide note contains these heartbreaking lines “My birth is my fatal accident. I can never recover from my childhood loneliness.… Continue reading Our Collective Conscience
THE GLASS ELEVATOR 