Radhika is a Senior Sub Editor with the indianexpress.com She is an alumna of Columbia University. She tweets @radhika_iy
Khilauna (Toy) was a journal that was first published 1927. It regularly featured a column dedicated to voicing anti-colonial ideology called, Desh ki Baat. It also carried poems that glorified and valourised battles and fighting for one's nation.
Thu, Nov 30, 2017In 1937 the Indian National Congress, concerned that the song might inspire communal tensions, took the decision to drop the last three stanzas of the original Vande Mataram, declaring that only the first two, non-controversial stanzas would be sung.
Thu, Jul 27, 2017When Israel proclaimed itself as an independent nation in 1948, it immediately sought international recognition. But Nehru, the then Prime Minister of a newly-carved out country, was hesitant. Today, the relationship between India and Israel has changed, dramatically.
Thu, Jul 06, 2017GenderAnd The Nation: What right wing nationalism teaches young girls about love marriage, western dresses and Hindu culture.
Wed, Jun 28, 2017While training the young girls to combat, the Rashtriya Sevika Samiti also teaches them the importance of 'upholding the family values'.
Wed, Jun 14, 2017#GenderAnd The Nation: We speak to Atul Kothari, secretary of right-wing academic organ, Shiksha Sanskriti Utthan Nyas, to discuss how rigorously they are attempting to re-sculpt the academic syllabi taught in government schools and universities.
Thu, Jun 08, 2017Sound, solid research is a marker of a good journalist. That’s our brand – to be informed, to be prepared, to be accurate. Important, prevalent information should be at the tip of our tongue.
Fri, Jun 02, 2017Twenty-three per cent of adolescent girls drop out of school since proper facilities are not provided to them when they are menstruating. In schools, girls don't have access to functional toilets, access to clean water and proper sanitation and disposable facilities.
Tue, May 23, 2017Time magazine has been vocal, and pointedly visual, about its opinion on Trump. Last year in August, it depicted Trump – who, at that time was running the Presidential race – as a caricature that was 'melting'. The title that accompanied the image was “Meltdown”.
Sat, May 20, 2017In Chauhan's novel, an IAF instructor, Hosannah Carvalho doles out wisdom to his trainees saying, “Aggression and awareness are the keywords to being a good Fighter.
Sat, May 20, 2017It is disconcerting to know that peripheral political outfits like Hindu Yuva Vahini (with their agendas driven by violence and hooliganism) can do what they want, without facing any dire repercussions for their actions from the State.
Wed, May 17, 2017A local myth suggests that German women traveled to India to be impregnated by the Aryan 'seed'.
Fri, May 12, 2017Macron's win is unprecedented. To have a man who has never held an elected office before, win on a national scale, with a one-year-old party certainly sets a new record for France.
Mon, May 08, 2017The problem is authenticity. Even with BBC's earlier adaptation of Tolstoy's War & Peace, each character had a British accent.
Fri, Jun 09, 2017How the Indian Press tried to fight severe censorship imposed by the British Government in pre-independent India, starting from the 1850s.
Sun, Jul 18, 2021In India, cattle protection has suddenly emerged as the government's prime agenda, marginalising or trivialising other issues higher up on the scale of grave importance.
Wed, Apr 26, 2017Within the Babri Masjid compound, there once existed a mosque for Muslims, as well as a shrine for Hindus to pray. A railing functioned as a barricade between the two prayer spaces.
Mon, Apr 24, 2017Language cannot be imposed upon people. Imposition spawns resistance. There are several instances in history that serve as evidence, including the history of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh)
Thu, Apr 20, 2017Nikah halala is a law that requires a woman to marry and sleep with another man in order to return to her first husband.
Mon, Mar 26, 2018In the name of tradition, the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB ) finds triple talaq or talaq given in one sitting, sacrosanct and crucial, particularly for women.
Thu, Apr 20, 2017The sale of cattle through conventional means has dropped dramatically. Subsequently, there has been a sudden spike in the number of cow advertisements on e-commerce sites, particularly post the state elections.
Tue, Apr 18, 2017“If we were racist,” he argues, “why would we have all the entire south, which is completely – you know Tamil (sic), you know Kerala, you know Karnataka and Andhra – why would we live with them? We have black people around us.”
Sat, Apr 08, 2017Both 'eve-teasing' and 'roadside Romeo' are Indian-invented-English-euphemisms, used particularly in South Asians countries like India, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh.
Wed, Apr 05, 2017Back in the day, even bhajans fiercely associated a Hindu’s manhood to his strength in defending the cow.
Wed, Apr 05, 2017Kumar's trajectory of fate is similar to that of Regal's. Kumar and Regal are symbolic of a time when single-screened theater halls and skilled operators had a standing in society.
Mon, Apr 03, 2017