1. Housebound by Lalu, Will His Sons Sour the Mahagathbandhan?
As deputy chief minister, Tejaswi Yadav may officially be the second most powerful man in the newly formed Bihar government, but he will still be living at home with his parents.
Clearly, the RJD supremo is keen to keep his sons – both first time MLAs – close to him. There’s also a clear and strong message in the fact that two of the most senior ministers (by protocol, if not experience) in the new government will be reporting home every day.
2. SAD Invokes Tegh Bahadur’s Martyrdom to Thwart Radicals’ Designs
Speakers at the massive sadbhavna rally organised by the Shiromani Akali Dal in association with the BJP, near Bathinda on the eve of the martyrdom day anniversary of Guru Tegh Bahadur (on November 24) harked back to the ideals for which the guru had embraced martyrdom.
The ninth guru, who had vowed to protect Kashmiri pundits from forced conversions, and had himself refused to convert to Islam, was ordered to be beheaded by Aurangzeb at the age of 54.
3. An Open Letter to Aamir Khan From a Disappointed Fan
Bollywood actor Aamir Khan’s comments on what he sees as the “growing sense of fear and insecurity in the country” have already been garnering massive reactions on social media.
While some prominent names like Shashi Tharoor have praised his “forthrightness”, a large number of people have lashed out against the star for what they see as meaningless meandering.
4. Hey Mr Temple Chief, We Are Very #HappyToBleed
The Sabarimala temple chief recently said that he would allow women to enter the shrine only after a machine to “check the purity of women” is invented.
Following this, a ‘Happy To Bleed’ campaign was launched on Facebook to protest against menstruation taboos and the temple authorities.
5. Arundhati Roy, We Want the Novelist in You Back
A cramped 10X10 room. Books, clothes, and other oddities lie strewn all over. A room somewhere in a not-so-posh neighbourhood of Delhi. Not even a room. Just a space defined as a room by the excuse for furniture and furnishing that unceremoniously occupy it. A room without any impression-making acumen.
A woman, who appears to be the “unholy union between Sai Baba and Bugs Bunny” (Introduction, In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones: The Original Screenplay) looks up from a text she had been peering into, and asks about a possible Hindi translation for ‘dialectical materialism’. A question which she answers herself, breaking into a laugh – “dwandatmak bhautikvaad”; the sharp trails of cigarette smoke she’s surrounded by defining her acerbic demeanour.
6. Will Anyone Other Than AB de Villiers Stand up for SA in Nagpur?
The 3rd Test between India and South Africa begins on Wednesday and the visitors find themselves under enormous pressure.
Pressure for more than one reason; South Africa are the top-ranked side in Test cricket, they are already trailing 0-1 in the series, and are staring at the possibility of their undefeated run on the road since October 2007 being brought to a halt.
7. Why Do People Bite Their Nails?
What do Britney Spears, Kate Middleton and I have in common? They are all perpetual nail biters.
I know it’s gross. It’s disgustingly ugly and not lady-like, but I cannot bring myself to quit permanently. Over the decades, I’ve shortened my nail beds so much that my fingers look stunted and weird.
8. Like a Pied Piper, Salim Khan Still Has Takers for His Tales
Once upon the good ‘ole times, he could be as politically incorrect as a hawk among a ledgeful of pigeons.
Not the sort to suffer from delusions of grandeur, he’d laugh, “What’s the big deal about originality? The story of Zanjeer was actually inspired by the Gregory Peck-Anthony Quinn movie Behold a Pale Horse, that drunken scene of Dharmendra in Sholay was inspired by The Secret of Santa Vittoria…” and more such true confessions.
9. Premarital Sex a No-No? Maybe Indians Should Look to Their Sages
She refuses to use her husband’s surname – the very memory of their marriage still a bitter pill to swallow.
But Madhuri could probably find some solace in the recent judgement of the Madras High Court which has declared that pheras and pundits aren’t imperative for a Hindu marriage.
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