Chai Chalk Chatter

So, I just came across this post in a random group that I follow on my social media and it is just when it struck me - don't we have such confusions all the time? Why do we fail to say what we mean to say? Is such a response conditioned in women? Is it cultural? Most importantly though, does it promote activities of stalking or for that matter other forms of harassment? It is at this point that I am inclined to think about our very own Bollywood cinema or for that matter commercial cinema from most other parts of India. A stereotypical Indian commercial film will have a male lead who in his romantic endeavor will keep insisting on a relationship, even after a consistent 'NO' from the female character, until she actually gives in. Interestingly, after all those 'Nooooo(s)' and 'Naaaaaa(s)', she gives in and the male lead becomes her soulmate which she is convinced, were destined to be together throughout their seven lives.  While we all have t...

While many of my friends in South India probably know about this small settlement but I am very sure my friends up North and elsewhere are not familiar with the existence of it. It is quite fascinating to note that even the Danes were not far behind in the European quest for new markets and colonies. Unfortunately, it has been a very long time since I visited this small settlement but going through my archive of old photographs, I genuinely feel my friends in other parts of the country and elsewhere ought to know about this intriguing piece of history.     Tranquebar is a small settlement about 300 km south of Chennai and local public transport is easily available. The Danes settled here in the early part of the 17 th century. The settlement does not really have much to offer and with very few people it infact felt like a ghost town. Of some of the attractions that the settlement has to offer is the fort Dansborg, build in 1620 which boasts of being the second-...

I was very elated when a research paper of mine was accepted for presentation at the University of Bonn in Germany. After all the hassle and a load of documents which were required for the Schengen visa, I was very happy that my visa was approved within 4 days when the usual duration is about 2 to 3 weeks and that too, the German Embassy was kind enough to grant me the visa without having to pay any fee for it. This was my first trip out of India and obviously, I was very excited and a little nervous too. When I reached the IGI airport in Delhi, I stood in a queue as was the norm for a boarding pass to Air India flight AI121 flying directly from Delhi to Frankfurt. Oh, well all was fine until this young man at the counter asked me where is the luggage that I would like to check-in. All hell broke loose. I prefer traveling light and as usual, I was only traveling with hand baggage which was about 5.9 kg. I think for the man at the counter, this was not a usual sight and was p...

The recent reaction of the Bangladesh Government on the suspension of telecom services in the Rohingya camps in Bangladesh has brought about outrage and criticism from International agencies and media. The print media in Bangladesh was prompt to paint a picture depicting Bangladesh as the victim. In an article published by  The Daily Star , the highest circulating English daily in Bangladesh details the resources and provisions that had to be created to shelter the refugees from Myanmar. The  New York Times  in an article published on September 5th, 2019, on the other hand, has accused Bangladesh of not granting refugee status to the Rohingya. In an attempt to repatriate the Rohingya as soon as possible, the Bangladeshi Government has also ignored Myanmar’s denial of the ‘ vicious cycle of ethnic cleansing ’. While these geopolitical developments in the region might seem to be of little significance, yet it is very important to plan and act on issues that might blow...