Blogs

Nobody in the right mind had heard of this outfit called Shri Ram Sena till it mercilessly assaulted five young women at a pub called Amnesia in Mangalore city. This happened on Saturday. The group went on a rampage, damaging the property of the pub and beating whoever they found. While the girls were beaten black and blue, two women patrons are reportedly critical and admitted to a local hospital. According to reports, the girls were having lunch when the hooligans attacked the pub. While there...

You can't beat this. The nuisance detection squad (NTS) of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) on January 23 swooped down on 12 young couples sitting in a position which the squad found "objectionable" and slapped a fine of Rs 6,000 on them. Sakaal Times has all the details: [ Link] This is the first time that the NTS has actually levied penalties, though it claims to have carried out such exercise in the past also. Ward officer Madhav Jagtap said that the action is, however, in no way an...

This has certainly spooked the censors a bit. A scene from Mukesh Bhatt's Raaz — The Mystery Continues has been censored, and has yet managed to get an A certificate. Hindustan Times gives us the details: [ Link] In the ‘offending scene’, Kangana Ranaut is having a bath in her tub, the ghost spooks her, she jumps out, covered in soap suds. “What is wrong with the scene? You don’t have a bath with your clothes on!” exclaims Bhatt. “Kangana is not even nude, she is wearing a bodysuit. But the...

The moral police in Mysore city too has decided to prevent organisers of New Year's events from holding celebrations if they find them against the culture and tradition of the land. Whatever that means. The manglorean.com website says: [ Link] Bharatiya Janata Party city unit president B.P. Manjunath on Friday said five groups, each comprising 15 to 20 people, would be constituted and these people would visit hotels, resorts, clubs and community halls here where the New Year eve celebrations...

The saffron brigade in Gujarat has issued its warnings over New Year's celebrations well in advance. Five major resorts and clubs and over half a dozen restaurants and hotels in Rajkot had begun bookings for the New Year bash, before the Shiv Sena announced that it would 'chalk out an action plan' to enforce a boycott. The VHP, on the other hand, has only appealed to the people to cancel all celebrations, says the Indian Express. [ Link] “We must boycott New Year celebrations in the city since...

Sometime in the second half of the 1970s there was this frail boy who one fine morning fell heads over heels in love with cricket, a game he could not play by any measure. Because he could neither bat, nor bowl, or field. He loved the game, nonetheless. For its sheer grace than anything else, perhaps. The more he realised that he could not weild the willow or hurl the cherry, the more he grew passionate about the game. He loved the game because of two players who used to be the favourite...

Freedom of expression is slightly more than scribbling poems and tucking them away in your closet, or giving a small, inane speech at a party you might be hosting in your kitchen garden. It is also about putting across a point of view. And it is also about accepting someone else's point of view, however, obnoxious or virulent it might be. The attacks on Biharis, among others, in Mumbai by chauvinist Marathis, and the subsequent display of primeval sentiments by political leaders of Bihari...

It becomes slightly trying for a blog that stands for freedom of expression to defend religion in any way or on any count. Given the backdrop that most attacks on freedom of expression both in India (primarily from the Hindu right) and cross the world (primarily from the Islamic right) come from those steeped in religion. And, of course, it is ironical that an unrepentant atheist has to write all about it. The other day there was a report in the Hindustan Times about the Telecom Regulatory...

The health minister, S Ramadoss, is at it again. This time he wants to ban liquor advertisements. He has expressed “disappointment” over alcohol advertisements at airports across the country and has written to Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel for their removal, according to CNN-IBN. [ Link] Ramadoss has written to the civil aviation ministry for removal of advertisements of alcoholic drinks on display at airports in Delhi and elsewhere across the country in August but no action was taken....

A Virgin Mobile advertisement considered insulting to nurses has been withdrawn after the Information and Broadcasting Ministry threatened to take action against two television channels for showing it. The Hindustan Times reported on what prompted the move: [ Link] The National Commission for Women, which considered the ad obscene, said it treated the nurse like an object. “There were also sexual overtones which cannot be allowed on public television,” an NCW official said. The Commission had...