Life/Philosophy

Remembering Kamlabai

Not everyone with a family is destined to enjoy all the fruits that the family has to offer. Let us take the case of Kamlabai Raghunath Gokhale, or simply Kamlabai, who was a Marathi actress in the early decades of the twentieth century and the first woman to act in films in India. Reena Mohan, who trained in editing at[Read More...]
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Eulogy or Elegy?

First the words; Eulogy: a speech or piece of writing that praises someone or something highly, especially a tribute to someone who has just died. Elegy: An elegy is a sad poem, usually written to praise and express sorrow for someone who is dead.  But eulogies, Wikipedia assures me, can also be delivered at retirement functions and other such events when a person[Read More...]

Should Muslims sacrifice cattle on Eid-al-Adha? 

On Friday, July 31, 2020, over a billion and a half Muslims around the world, will be slaughtering millions of goats, camels, and cattle to carry out Abraham’s tradition of sacrificing the symbolic lamb. Is there an alternative to the ritual of slaying animals on Eid Al-Adha, the festival of sacrifice? The answer is yes! Rituals are the pathways to[Read More...]

Reality of sacrifice in Eid-al-Azha

The companions of Prophet Hazrat Muhammed Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam(Peace and blessings be upon him) asked, “What is this sacrifice(Qurbani)?” He answered that it is the Sunnah of your father Hazrat Ibrahim Alaihissalam(Peace be upon him).” This historic Qurbani incident took place about five and a quarter thousand years ago in “Mina” near “Khana-e-Ka’aba” located in Mecca, a desert region of[Read More...]

Covid 19 exposes the way we treat our teachers   

“Teaching is not a lost art, but the regard for it is a lost tradition”, said Jacques Barzun. Rightly, did he point this out that ‘teaching’ is no more respected as a profession neither ‘teachers’ are accorded their due share of acknowledgement for the work that they do. This is not to say that teaching has always been a respectful[Read More...]

Remembering comrade T. Nagi Reddy (1917 Feb-1976 July 28)- How Indian Is The Indian Bourgeoisie ?

July 28 is the day comrade Nagi Reddy died in 1976, while he was under-ground. He and his comrade-in-arms DV Rao ( 1917 June-July 12, 1984)  are  remembered  in July every year through various  programmes  at different places across AP and Telangana. Thousands of people and activists, led by UCCRI-ML which they founded in 1975, are carrying forward their goals [Read More...]

Prof John Weeks Humanised Economics as a Discipline

Prof John Weeks, widely admired development economist passed away on 26th of June 2020 at the age of 79.  His death is a blow to many friends, comrades, colleagues, students and fellow progressive economists. He was born in Austin, educated in Texas and Michigan, lived and worked most of his professional life in the School of Oriental and African Studies[Read More...]

The Power of Non-Violence in 1965 and 2020

Watching a horse drawn wagon carrying the body of John Lewis cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma Alabama one final time is a stunning testament to the power of non-violence in 1965 and 2020. The body of Congressman John Lewis will lie in state in Montgomery and the U.S.capital as an honored American hero, a brave man, a moral[Read More...]

It Isn’t Just About Online Learning: Broadening the Post-Coronavirus Discussion on Teaching in Higher Education

We live in a time where various technologies are advancing at an exponential rate. This accelerated progress is influencing all aspects of our lives, and inevitably, has a profound impact on the job market. Surveys conducted among employers show that, although knowledge is important, a greater emphasis is being put on skills – specifically “soft” skills, more than ever before.[Read More...]

Minutes from Makkah : Hajj 2019

The vast lands of Arafat, the circumambulation around Kaaba, the humongous swarms of humanity at Rami Jamrat, the long, very long queues outside the washrooms at the tent city Mina! The list of memorable moments from our last year’s Hajj is endless. No one in his wildest of the nightmares had dreamed Hajj 2020, would be so contrastingly different. Can’t[Read More...]