Witnessing the Turkish century
In the post-9/11 world, no country’s name has been evoked more than Turkey’s (or its newly rebranded name of Türkiye) in public discussions by foreign policy pundits and politicians alike, to demonstrate the harmonious symbiosis of the East and West, Islam and secularism, and tradition and modernity.
1m ago
An enigma amongst nations
In Alex Christofi’s newly published fascinating book—Cypria: A Journey to the Heart of the Mediterranean—we get a deep close-range look at one of world civilisation’s interesting hotspots that has long swayed between the cross-currents of the rise and fall of the great monotheisms.
2m ago
A love letter to traveling with friends
A review of ‘Roaming’ (Drawn and Quarterly, 2023) by Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki
4m ago
A graphic novel on the push and pull of friendships
The stories occur in places deeply etched into many of our memories—from rooftops to buses to benches in the park to the digital world of emails and texts.
1y ago
Lee Lai's 'Stone Fruit': Jokes, rhymes, and the depths of relationships
One of the most searing scenes in Lee Lai’s magnificent graphic novel, Stone Fruit (Fantagraphics, 2021) is when a young child, Nessie,
2y ago
Abdulrazak Gurnahs 'Afterlives': The repercussions of colonialism, unveiled
Abdulrazak Gurnah, this year’s Nobel laureate in literature, seems to come as an admirable choice compared to the Nobel Prize’s controversial recent history.
2y ago
Blood Brothers: exploring Ali and X’s bittersweet friendship
There are very few friendships that have attracted the public eye and provoked reactions of dread and rapacious approval in equanimity. One of those friendships - better described as blood brothers - is that of the charismatic militant civil rights activist, Malcolm X and the greatest boxer of all time, the ballistic and eye-brow raising trash talker, Muhammad Ali.
2y ago
Here’s why switching to ebooks is a good idea
Reading is popular. It has always been that way. Human beings have been reading ever since patterns of writing first emerged in cuneiform in Mesopotamia and books have always contained a kernel of our individual merriments.
3y ago
January 8, 2021
Looking back at 2020: The ones who made us proud
In what was a terrible and ominous year, many individuals stood out to make the world a better place for the present and future. These are towering paragons of virtue who have made enormous strides in ensuring a more intellectually vibrant and medically safe world.
January 7, 2021
On Edward Said: Different shades of an intellectual
Edward Said is one of only a handful of intellectuals who can truly be said to have educated and influenced multiple generations on the Palestinian cause and the different prisms of thought through which we now look at literature, art, and history. In many ways, we are the heirs of the man who popularised the term, “Orientalism”; a man who championed the voices and struggles of the Global South in the Anglo-American sphere.
January 1, 2021
Notifications are killing you
The constant ping-pongs and pop-ups have become deeply embedded into our everyday mode of living causing a flow of untrammelled daily minute by minute reminders of various sorts from messages from friends, family, work, and the bank to update notifications to reminders by the apps to use them. Overall, all this seems to be overwhelming at times leading to the loss of energy and direction amid pandemonium and chaos looming large.
January 1, 2021
Video essays are the new art form: Our top 5 picks
Due to malleability and expansion of the internet, a new form of art form – the video essay – has picked up a lot of traction using audio-visuals to provide deep-seated commentary on a wide range of issues. While the initial focus of video essays has been on films, video essays have been used to analyze a plethora of ideas in the realm of diverse intersections between pop culture and the real world. Here are a few of the top video essays of the year you should look at.
December 22, 2020
Marinated with history
There is one secret to the delicious T-bone steaks, the barbecued juicy lamb chops, or seared vegetables — marination!
December 17, 2020
A History of the Destruction of Knowledge
Humanity has always had an ambivalent relationship with knowledge. While the written word has changed from being recorded on papyrus to tablets, scrolls, ink-ridden bindings to printed books all the way to electronic screens,
December 11, 2020
Netflix courts the anime world
Netflix is the world’s largest streaming entertainment service with millions registered as its users. In the current awards season, Netflix has been making rounds with brilliantly executed respective
December 4, 2020
Delving into the world of Korra
Everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked. What followed was finding Aang in the iceberg, genocides, Iroh’s advice, Zuko’s revolutionary redemption arc, and the climactic battle between Team Avatar and Fire Nation punctuated with thematic awestruck music and emotionally charged state of the art animation.
December 1, 2020
Garnished — with panache and taste
Ever since the pandemic altered our lives, we have seen an outgrowth of creative synergies all around us enabling better lifelines of help and eking out a standard of life in a time of deep uncertainty.
November 26, 2020
The Trauma of Identity
George Takei’s visceral and heart-wrenching graphic memoir, They Called Us Enemy (2019), dives deep into the cold, dark heart of America’s perceived multiculturalism.
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