The Untold Stories

  Hey There! It is me Corona! How are you doing? Well, don’t mistake my genuine concern towards your health for sarcasm. You seriously seem to be taking a great dislike towards me. That is why I decided to write this piece to you. Not everybody wants to be the bad guy always!

Yes, we are ignorant.  Yes, we are mindless.  We know no difference between sense and non-sense.  We know not what alleviates panic during a pandemic.  We are a chaotic mass of people with no knowledge of steering,  but to set the sail in the direction of the wind. 

Lockdown. Quarantine. Self-isolation. Pandemic. Words that were almost unknown until 2019 have suddenly become common parlance in 2020. Hand hygiene, air purifying, social distancing have become daily norms on par with home-made concoctions and vaporisers. Giloy Tulasi hit the market shelves along with masks and gloves and shields and sprays. 2020 shall go down world history as a year of unprecedented panic. Panic that pushed humans indoors. Panic that brought economy down onto its knees. Panic that strengthened international borders. Panic that cleared the skies of air traffic. One virus gave a befitting answer to unquestioned human aggression. One virus raised many questions regarding the future of human existence. On the last day of 2019 China reported to World Health Organisation the presence of a deadly viral infection in Wuhan. Within less than two months the virus crossed international borders and by March 11, 2020, got recognised as a global pandemic. Lockdowns became a ne

Women empowerment and women security are two boats that India struggles to balance on a rugged sea of a patriarchal society. Sexual assaults against women are a day-to-day reality that, as of now, occupy no greater space in the mind of a reader than allocated in a newspaper. Protests against assaults escalate every once in a while (mostly before imminent elections) and die down with a strong condemnation of such assaults by all political leaders, academicians, journalists, film stars and all other individuals who have a word to say. Safety laws aimed at providing security to women are brought-in by various governing bodies but no law seems capable enough to put a cork onto these assaults. One main reason behind this inability can be attributed to unquestioned moral policing that aims at suppressing women in the name of safety. On January 5, 2020 an Anganwadi worker was reported to have been gang-raped and tortured to death by a temple priest and his cohorts in Badaun district of Utta

 It was the end of a terrible year. Hope was high in the air when the protagonist said he shall soon lead from the front. Thousands of followers waited with bated breath for his grand announcement. Thalaiva did make an announcement. Not what everybody expected him to make but quite the contrary. Film Stars in politics Superstar Rajinikanth , affectionately called Thalaiva , a veteran film actor and philanthropist, has been making news in Tamil politics for last five years. Rajini’s followers have been waiting for him to enter active politics since many years. It is not uncommon to Indian actors to move to politics at a later stage of their career. Tamil Nadu, in particular, has seen notable film stars turning mass leaders throughout its political history. M G Ramachandran, M Karunanidhi, Jayalalitha are some of the popular leaders from the state that had a previous career in film industry. Andhra Pradesh, is also, not unfamiliar with this trend. N T Rama Rao , a veteran film star

  In the early hours of September 6, 2020, a century-old wooden chariot was set ablaze in Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple in Antarvedi. Hindu religious bodies across the state raised an uproar at the incident. Political parties lost no time in condemning the ruling YSRCP for failing to protect the chariot. The incident was likened to the burning of the chariot of Sri Prasanna Venkateswara Swamy temple in Nellore district on February 14, 2020. Desecration of idol at Pithapuram Skathi Peetham on January 25, 2020 was also brought into light by the agitators. The ruling party tried to make amends by taking up the task of building a new chariot at Antarvedi. The case was also handed over to Central Bureau of Investigation to ensure a fair and transparent investigation.  The ripples seemed to die down when a Nandi idol was vandalized in Chittoor district on September 27, 2020. The incident again brought the state government under attack for its negligence in protecting religious property. Bef