Author: Parnika Shriyan

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde introduces “Pro Dahi Handi” as a sport in Maharashtra with players receiving benefits such as jobs and insurance On the day of the auspicious festival of Janmashtami, the entirety of Maharashtra indulges in the numerous festivities and traditions that come with the day. The highlight of the day, however, has consistently been the event of Dahi Handi. Janmashtami celebrates the birth of Lord Krishna and the event pays tribute to him by emulating the legend of young Krishna’s attempts to steal “makkhan” or butter from neighbouring kitchens. His notoriety and ingenuity in this act led to…

Under the August 2 ruling, Civic Chandran is granted bail due to his activism against the caste system making it difficult for the judiciary to believe that he will “touch the body of the woman fully knowing she is of the Scheduled Caste.” 74-year-old Civic Chandran was accused of sexually harassing two women but the resolution of the case, in the form of anticipatory bail, involves several doses of misogyny and casteism, that must be further examined and were received by widespread public criticism. The reasoning the Kozhikode Sessions Court derived behind one of the allegations was that Chandran was…

Google’s recent case of caste discrimination has resulted in a global call for caste equity called ‘Radical Rhythms’, organized by Equality Labs in partnership with Alphabet Workers Union, Neelam Social, and Ambedkar Association of North America. Equality Labs, a California-based Dalit civil rights organisation, shone a light on the rampant caste bigotry and harassment taking place at the tech giant Google. The particular incident in question was when Thenmozhi Soundararajan, Dalit rights activist and founder and executive director of Equality Labs, was not permitted to conduct her scheduled talk to Google News employees in April as a part of Dalit…

Lack of projects implies challenging times ahead for the artisan who conducts word-of-mouth business. Due to the pandemic, getting close to nil projects means that the 10-year-old business of 28-year-old Ravindra Vedge has been struggling. A Warli artisan from Santacruz, Mumbai, whose work has otherwise been consistent, has been facing many hits during this pandemic. “Most locals from my village do Warli to their own houses as a form of decoration,” says Vedge. It all started with Vedge’s grandmother’s constant renovation and decoration of their house with Warli all through his childhood. He looks upon the memories of his grandmother…

Spirituality is hard to define precisely, but it can mean an unexplainable, more immense force that exists, which is more than human and can be considered divine and cosmic. A lot of the spiritual teachings describe most instances in a universal format. In one video of Sathya Sai Baba, to explain the universality of everything in life says these lines: “Clothes are many, but the yarn is one. Jewels are many, but gold is one. Cows are many, but the milk is one. Beings are many, but life is one.” Due to these universal ideas, the applications of these concepts…

Instagram artists have begun using their art to participate in social activism during the pandemic when physically attending protests has become difficult We have reached a point in our lives where everything has become politically charged. With issues constantly arising and restrictions on how dissent can be voiced during this pandemic, artists have begun making their art political and amplifying their voice through their art. Instagram has become a news source and a developed substitute for the voice that would otherwise be on the streets. These Instagram artists are incredibly passionate about their art and expressive in using this device…

The American Civil Liberties Union accuses the US Border Patrol of racial profiling and the unlawful confiscation of Sikh men’s turbans. Allegations by ACLU The US Border Patrol agents are responsible for checking the passports of immigrants once they cross the Mexican border. This particular incident, which the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has alleged the Border Patrol for committing, occurred on 18 May 2022 in Yuma, Arizona. According to ACLU’s claims, the Yuma sector’s Border Patrol have been infringing on the rights of Sikh asylum seekers to practice their religion by having them remove their turbans and confiscating them…

Approximately 100 activists in Turkey gathered in protest against the genocide being perpetrated against Uyghur Muslims in East Turkestan. As part of a global campaign, “Stand4Uyghurs,” Uyghur rights activists organised a protest against the violent and derogatory treatment of Uyghur Muslims in East Turkestan. The protest took place at Sarachance Park, in Faith, Istanbul and boasted of banners and flags of East Turkestan along with chants and slogans against the horrific Chinese policies. The campaign’s press release highlights crucial details of the protest, crediting Abdusselam Teklimakan, head of the East Turkestan New Generation Movement under East Turkestan International NGOs, as…

Arivu’s blatant exclusion from Enjoy Enjaami became recently evident at the song’s performance at the inauguration of the 44th Chess Olympiad in Chennai. At the inauguration of the 44th Chess Olympiad held in Chennai, the song, Enjoy Enjaami was performed by singers Dhee and Kidakuzhi Mariyammal and the credit of the music composer was given to Santosh Narayan. This specific crediting was done although Arivu penned and composed the song. This fact was reinforced by rapper Arivu in an Instagram post as a response to the snub caused by the credit of the song’s composition being given to musician Santosh Narayan. Arivu…

A day after Punjab Health Minister Vice Chancellor, Dr Raj Bahadur, to lie down on a dirty mattress at the hospital, the official, and his secretary, resigned. Resignation of Punjab medical official  Vice-Chancellor of Baba Farid University of Health Sciences, Dr Raj Bahadur, filed his resignation from his post after Punjab Health Minister, Chetan Singh Jouramajra, compelled him to lie on a dirty mattress at a hospital during the minister’s inspection of Faridkot’s Guru Gobind Singh Medical College and Hospital. This mattress was being used by patients and was evidently in a damaged and overall poor condition.   The medical official…