Weekend reads

  1. My work reflects the lived realities of marginalised communities. A methodology that depends on secondary data cannot do justice to first-hand knowledge, says writer  Kancha Ilaiah Shepherd in Indian Express. The Delhi University is currently trying to remove his books from the syllabus for allegedly being “anti-Hindu”.   
  2. The latest efforts by the Centre to control research and prevent academics from protesting will kill the spirit of critical inquiry, argues Neera Chandhoke in The Hindu. 
  3.   Of all the Mughal emperors, Jahangir led the most comfortable life, free from problems that afflicted those who ruled before or after him, Manu S Pillai in the Mint writes on a fascinating and eccentric ruler.
  4. In The Telegraph, historian Ramachandra Guha argues that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s idea of nationhood is, as it were, a Xerox copy of Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s. 
  5. A New York Times investigation reveals how difficult are workplaces in the United States for pregnant women. Women in strenuous jobs lost their pregnancies after employers denied their requests for light duty, even ignoring doctors’ notes.   
  6.   He’s sold 150 million albums and been famous for five decades. But do we really know Elton John? Bill Wyman’s fascinating profile  of the musical genius in Vulture. 
  7.   Horror movies give more screen time to strong female characters and attract a large female audience. But few female filmmakers get to work on them, says Soraya Roberts in Longreads. 
  8.   Balochistan is Pakistan’s most restive province. For India it is a constant temptation. While military intervention is off the table there are opportunities to neutralise Pakistan’s terror threat, writes DS Sarao in Fountain Ink. 
  9.   A smog of complacency pervades the planet over this silent public health emergency. Next week is a chance for action. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in the Guardian on why air pollution is the new tobacco, putting millions at risk across the globe.    
  10.   Strong women and men make strong institutions. Emerging from shadows of the past, today the Supreme Court is manned by judges possessing the highest aggregate, writes Vibha Datta Makhija in Livelaw.