Published in Himal Southasian, 29 June 2015 You are on life support, it’s fragile, it’s technical, it’s public, it’s political, it could break down – it is breaking down – it’s being fixed, you are not too confident of those who fix it. – Bruno Latour, from his essay on air. The debate on urban…
The Aam Aadmi Party’s stupendous victory in Delhi has been explained by several observers as the rise of populism constructed around the promise of various kinds of ‘freebies’ to, in particular, subaltern urban residents. This argument has been critiqued by AAP sympathizers as an elitist one that fails to recognize the various subsidies and state…
With Persis Taraporevala. Published in The Hindu. There is an eerie silence masquerading as peace in Khirki Extension. Previously home to a people of various nationalities, the recent fracas in the area has turned it into a shadow of its former self with many African residents fleeing the region. The raid and self-declared exposé against…
Notes in response to Arnab Ray’s ‘Deconstructing Modi’, published on his blog. —- — At the risk of being modeled, according to your schema, as a congenital Modi-basher, I must say that I abhor the person and much of what he stands for. Before Feb/March 2002 I did not. Fact is, Modi wears the killings…
It is increasingly apparent that India is in the midst of an economic crisis. Most sectors are on a downward trajectory, the Rupee is in free-fall, and inflation has never really been adequately controlled despite government assurances. So much is clear from TV discussions and opeds in the last fortnight. It is, we are told,…
Published in The Alternative here. Nearly a decade ago, in December 2003, I remember listening to a BBC radio show in the aftermath of a massive earthquake in Iran, which had killed close to 30,000 people. The discussion centered on various religions’ interpretation of tragedies/disasters such as the one Iran had then witnessed, and the…
Commemorating the completion of a century of filmmaking in India, here’re my favorite 100 Hindi movies. (In no particular order…for some reason wordcloud generator returned Chupke Chupke in a larger font for no discernible reason).
Google Earth is a great tool to analyze cities, particularly the rapidly changing peri-urban spaces. Consider the following images: they are divided not only by the Old Delhi-Gurgaon Highway, but by much more. The area in question 1. East of the Highway In case it’s hard to make out (clickable), these are farmhouses of the NCR…
After independence from Britain in the early 1960s, Tanzania and Zambia simultaneously embarked on a purportedly non-aligned, moderately socialist, and import-substitution-led path to modernization. Given the economic ideas prevalent amongst modernist leaders of the time, the state-led creation of basic infrastructure was considered particularly crucial in the endeavor. This was the context to the attempts of Julius…
Another version of this article was published in the Tribune. After two decades of stagnation, Africa is widely believed to have turned the corner in the new millennium. Countries across the continent are witnessing significantly increased foreign investment, trade, and feverish economic activity. More than half the countries in Africa recorded GDP growth of over…
This was written in response to a friend’s comment on a FB thread. 1) Taking words like ‘national sovereignty’ and ‘attack on the nation’ out for a minute (why should the parliament–given not its place in the national ideology but actual everyday work–be considered more of a symbol of our nation than a temple, mosque,…
Published online in The Alternative here. The rising suspicion, censorship, and conflicts around religion must be viewed through the lens of political history. “Whenever there is an act of violence in the name of Islam, I am called upon to air my views on it and dispel the notion that by virtue of being a…
It is an ongoing project of mine at AUD–and hopefully, of others elsewhere in India–to help augment/create capacities for learning/research on Africa. To this end, I’ve come up with a course (below) that gives an introduction to geography-history-political economy of the Sub-Saharan part of the continent, but of course, reflects my own interests too. I…
‘ Why the glaring schism between what we all know about the Army, and what we publicly say or write about it?‘ On 26 January 1950, the Indian Constitution, devised after much debate and deliberation, came into force. The day is since commemorated and celebrated as the Republic Day. The Constitution is no doubt an inspiring…
Published in Himal Southasian, July 2011 Following Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s recent visit to Africa and the accompanying India-Africa Summit in Addis Ababa, this relationship across the Indian Ocean has come firmly into the spotlight. Like previous iterations, however, this time observers in India have analysed the situation through a lens that has been simultaneously…
Rikshaa Republic 