Jane Goodall and the search for humans in animals
Not very long ago, a scientific definition of a human was an animal that could use a tool. But in 1960, the British scientist Jane Goodall observed that chimpanzees could use blades of grass to extract termites from a nest, to eat them. Goodall, who died on Wednesday, would go on to become one of […]
Why there is no Pop Culture in Indian Pop Culture
In my screenplay for a TV series, I want my character to hold a conspiracy theory that Zeenat Aman and Parveen Babi are the same person. This is a riff on the findings of my lifelong survey that 50% of Indians, including north Indians surprisingly, cannot tell the difference between the two film stars, especially […]
The Huge Cultural Surplus of America
The complaint of Donald Trump is that most nations in the world sell their goods cheap in America, but they never let America sell enough or sell at a good price. He believes this imbalance is a form of stealing, “a rip-off” conducted by all major nations, including India. But the thing is, it does […]
Why You want Vengeance, but don’t Act on It
In June last year, a man named Renukaswamy, who worked in a medical shop, was found dead miles away from home in a drain in Bangalore. It later emerged that he was a fan of Kannada actor Darshan and had sent an indecent message to another actor, Pavithra Gowda, believed to have been in a […]
There is no Such Thing as Organic Revolution
WE are told that an ‘organic’ uprising against corruption broke out in Kathmandu a few weeks ago. The youth, angry with the government, supposedly rushed out of their homes in unison after social media apps were banned, set fire to buildings, nearly killed politicians and toppled the government, all within days. And this happened without […]
The Ironman is the opposite of health
Where has the bicep curl gone? There was a time when every gym had the image of a man lifting a dumbbell and curling the bicep—a muscle that signified strength and health. You don’t see this as much today because it has been downgraded to a show muscle, though that is a bit harsh, as […]
Evaluate People by their Worst Qualities, not Best
PEOPLE REMEMBER actors, singers, writers, directors and sports stars through their best works, even when such works are very few. Some artists are celebrated for a single work; for instance the status of V.V.S. Laxman as a sports legend rests on a single Test inning. The glory of major public figures comes from their finest […]
All Marriages are Arranged Marriages
Materialists, a delightful film, especially for people who are not wounded, wants to say that beautiful women want to marry wealthy and tall men, and wealthy men want to marry beautiful young women. And people who are not so sought-after choose others like them. So the marriage of the undesired, too, is of two equals, […]
On Insulting Men For Not Reading Novels
NOW and then, there is a lecture given to men about how they must read, chiefly novels, and how that would make them better people, like women. A few days ago the New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd wrote a column entitled, ‘Attention, Men: Books Are Sexy!’ This headline portended a genre of advice to […]
Don’t Bring Psychoanalysis Home
Home psychoanalysis is a modern disorder. More than ever, people are attributing reasons for a person’s behaviour to something not very obvious, like the distant past or sexual melancholy or the subconscious mind. Thus there are claims that a man does not prioritize his family because he had a bad father; or that a child […]