Gopika Kaul
Big Cat in Big Trouble
My fifteen-month-old daughter is learning animal names and excitedly points out to tigers in her picture book as I read to her…chances are that that’s the only memory she’ll have of the tiger, because by the time she’s ten, the Indian tiger may well be extinct.
The Untouchables
On Friday, the 11th of May, Mayawati – India’s most famous politician belonging to the lowest caste, the untouchables – won the election in India’s most populous state, Uttar Pradesh, in a landslide win. This is big news, for a number of reasons. First, and most important, because she belongs to the dalit caste, the lowest rung of the Indian caste system
A Kiss is Just a Kiss
The Indian moral police, are at it again, and it’s revolting. This time American actor, Buddhist and friend to India Richard Gere has been caught unawares. His “mistake?” – he made a charming gesture at an AIDS awareness event recently in New Delhi.
I Came, I Saw, I Married.
My mother loves to tell the story of how she and my father got married. It probably won’t make it to the list of ‘the most romantic marriages’ since it was arranged by my granddad and she barely spoke to my father before they were wed.
The Modern Indian Woman
It’s always nice to check out new places town. But it’s especially great when the place in question is the sort that insists on allowing entry only to its rather fortunate members. Delhi, where I live, has tons of them.