‘Barn’s burnt down – now I can see the moon’
I write this column with some hesitation, since many may regard it a bit preachy or elitist.
1y ago
Post-Covid musings: After the deluge
Now that we have stepped into a new year, it may be time to take a brief pause from our hectic schedule.
1y ago
Salma Khan: A mind without fear and a head held high
She gave visibility to the invisible by exposing the exclusion of women from development activities.
2y ago
Choosing the Slow Lane
Recently, I have been reminiscing about my music guru, the late Kanika Banerjee (known to her intimate circle as Mohordi).
2y ago
Reawakening
I begin with an apology to my readers for my long absence. Covid played havoc with our lifestyle and livelihoods. Even then, we could make choices still within limited parameters.
2y ago
Begum Sufia Kamal: A moral hero
Today, after a period of hiatus, I have once again taken up my pen (metaphorically) to remember and celebrate a hero—a woman of courage and integrity who changed the world, not with fire and fury but with her soft touch.
4y ago
Isolation and solitude: Life in the time of corona
It has only been a month of isolation, yet it feels like “One hundred years of solitude”.
4y ago
When will America be ready?
As my daughter and I drove to the polling booth last week to vote at the Democratic Primaries in the United States, I asked: “So,
4y ago
May 28, 2017
Bollywood, please spare us your Muslim stereotyping
Films are powerful tools that shape ideas, attitudes and social norms. But as any art form, the message can be diffused or even distorted if it's not presented in the right way.
May 7, 2017
Coping with 'otherness'
Some years ago a South Asian friend shared an interesting anecdote with me. When she landed her first job in the corporate banking sector in London, she bought herself a new wardrobe of business suits and dresses.
April 16, 2017
The bell also tolls for you
The Pahela Baishakh festivities bring out the best in us Bangladeshis. Apart from its creative and cultural aspects, Pahela Baishakh
April 2, 2017
Being Muslim – a pre-existing condition?
Recently, I have started reflecting on the implications of being a Muslim in a world that is predisposed to think that Islam is a religion of violence and hate.
March 12, 2017
Love – the best revenge
There is no silver bullet for raising a child since parenting is a complex task with uncertain outcomes. Perhaps the hardest part of parenting is imparting a value system to children. It's hard because values are often subject to cultural, ethnic and social biases.
February 21, 2017
What's in a word?
Nelson Mandela aptly said: “If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart”.
February 5, 2017
“Then they came for me”
In his bestselling book, The Black Swan (2007), Nassim Nicholas Taleb developed an interesting theory.
January 22, 2017
Goodbye, Barack Obama
All good things must come to an end, but some things leave us with a lingering “feelgood” emotion. Such was the Presidency of Barack Obama.
January 8, 2017
The complexity of simplicity
Recently, I have been reflecting on the act of giving gifts. My thoughts were partially triggered by the frenzied shopping sprees I witnessed during the Christmas season in the United States.
December 25, 2016
Living in a post-truth world
I have been racking my brain for a positive New Year message. But the US election outcome, the humanitarian disaster unfolding in Aleppo, the brutalities against the Rohingyas in Myanmar have plunged me into despair.
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