In the last six months that I have been researching work in gig economy in Bengaluru I have had to revise my idealism and those social science theories that I carried from university.
Notes from an Indian highway
Towns and villages along Indian highways that connect major cities are being transformed in ways that will have significant bearing on the growth trajectory of this country. It is in these locations that India is changing perhaps more rapidly. One tends to imagine the metropolis as a site of reading transformation in a society, which [...]
Malnad Ultra: It gets easier after 100K
On Saturday I ran the Malnad Ultra. Runs near Bengaluru have the same format - ride to starting point, run, sleep over, ride back. This was my first 100 KM+ trail run. After Ooty Ultra, I was doubling the distance. In the interim, since April, I have had six months of time to prepare for [...]
Deal With It
My friend reminded me that yesterday, October 10, was being observed as World Mental Health Day. It brought back memories of individuals I met whose situations struck me as impossible, had I not met them for real. On a long flight some time back, the man on seat besides me and I began playing with [...]
Arbeit macht frei: Auschwitz and Birkenau
What disturbs me about this place seems an obvious answer on the face of it. A million human lives were destroyed here in a time which I can only read about and imagine. I live in its continuity. But I haven’t had the misfortune of being in the time when it happened, to have witnessed [...]
Six years of Contested Realities
In the years that followed after I set up this blog, there was a subtle shift in the way I processed new information. I haven't written prolifically in the six years of this blog. I took time to refine my thoughts into a coherent, complete form before publishing them. These were small essays than a [...]
Ringside view: Muay Thai
Lean bodies, torsos, tattoos, the heavy footsteps pacing before combat, deep drawn breaths, jaws moving with last minute adjustment of the guard inside their mouth, tugs and loosening of arms, furtive dance-like movement of legs as a warm up in the few minutes leading up to the bell strike and the gaze. Every single contestant [...]
