Locating technology and algorithms in the social milieu – An Introduction Social media platforms are often advertised for their role in promoting modernity, freedom of speech and expression, and the quick dissemination of information. However, in a capitalist society where profit is the primary objective, it is difficult to believe that social media algorithms are […]
The Nation’s Syllabus: The redefinition of our education system
1. Contextual background Students all over the world, especially those heavily dependent on school teaching and teachers, have been through tumultuous changes in the past three years. These changes are not only accrued to the Coronavirus Pandemic but to the systemic changes that have been introduced in the way we teach our students. This is […]
Love Hostel: A ‘safe’ house for runaway couple
Love Hostel: The movie Imagine living in a state of constant fear, where you don’t know what unexpected and unfortunate awaits you. And then think about the social contract we have all mutually consented to, where we’ve given up our sovereign rights for the safeguard provided by the sovereign power. And now imagine the many […]
Digital Security Act 2018: Stamping out journalistic freedom and voice of dissent in Bangladesh?
Digital Security Act (DSA) 2018 was passed in Bangladesh on Oct 1, 2018, to address cybercrime and related issues. The law was introduced to update and replace the previous Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Act, which had been criticized for its overly broad provisions and potential for misuse. DSA criminalizes a wide range of online […]
To Speak or Not To Speak: The Modi question that we must answer
It is obvious that the barometer of any piece of media being ‘controversial’ or ‘infamous’ can be directly gauged as and when it trends on social media. By that, I do not necessarily mean the media, but what it creates, recreates, and so on. As someone with a social media account right now, you can […]
A Woman Taking A Stroll In Delhi’s Hauz Khas Village: Are Free Drinks Emancipatory?
The freedom of anonymity for women in cities like Delhi can be emancipatory, allowing them to temporarily escape from the traditional patriarchal authority and power structures at home. Living in the capital city can be empowering, but it is also shaped by historical, social, cultural, political, and economic factors that govern the city and the […]
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein: Where are the female characters?
Published anonymously in 1818, Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus can be considered Mary Shelley’s magnum opus. Considered by many as the first ever work of science fiction, the novel is interwoven with elements of Gothic horror as well as Romanticism. Frankenstein can be seen as a response to the era of Enlightenment that witnessed a […]
“Still broken”: The appalling practice of caste system in India
Caste is not a physical object like a wall of bricks or a line of barbed wire which prevents the Hindus from co-mingling and which has, therefore, to be pulled down. Caste is a notion; it is a state of the mind. […]
Tryst with blood : Deciphering the Menstruation Benefits Bill, 2017
Women’s bodies have always constituted the canvas on which the scripts of patriarchy had been violently inscribed, resulting in their historical exclusion from the sphere of production and subjugation in the domestic sphere. Feminists had been up in arms against the oppressive structures, employing multiple strategies to challenge the hierarchies that enforce the exclusion of […]
Rabindranath Tagore’s literature and the theme of resistance
Rabindranath Tagore: The patriot Rabindranath Tagore, as a theatrician, occupies a very important position in the history of Bengal theatre. Writing at a time when theatre practices in Bengal were still in a very nascent stage, Tagore introduces an air of freshness. Though initially he drew inspiration from the European dramas, those of Shakespeare and […]
