Why Bengaluru’s Men Felt Entitled To Molest Women That Night
December 31, 2016 will go down in the memories of Bangaloreans as a very sad day to be remembered for all the wrong reasons. A city that always prided itself on being bold, progressive and safe for women proved to be a nightmare. On New Year’s Eve, over 2 lakh people took the Metro and thousands of people converged on […]
Are our schools safe from fires? What can you do about it?
A park with a river right next to it. Colourful slides, beautiful wall paintings that encourage communal harmony amongst all, and greenery all around. Who would not want to spend some time in such a park? The answer to this could well be ‘the parents of the 94 children who lost their lives in the tragic fire accident in the […]
Beyond Carlton: Born out of an Accident
Birth is considered a painful process. It however results in a new life being born – a joyous occasion for most. In our case, it was the needless loss of 9 innocent lives on a February 2010 afternoon that gave birth to a citizen-led movement on fire safety. From the ashes of the Carlton Tower fire was born Beyond Carlton, […]
A Billion Eyes: It Takes All of US
The Timetable Every morning I wake up at 6 in the morning to reach work by 9. I catch my bus at roughly 7:30-8 am. I say I do this to avoid the morning traffic, which is partially true, I also come earlier than everyone else because I want to leave earlier. I am scared to leave by 8 or […]
Understanding the Uber Taxi Rapist
After the turn of schools in Bangalore, it is now time for the focus to shift on to taxi services (Uber to be specific). For the record, a child protection policy for schools is in the works and likely to roll out soon in Karnataka. Anyways, coming to the recent incident of rape in Delhi, when the news broke out, […]
I will Not be just Another Crime Report
I was interning in Bangalore during May-June 2014, staying in this PG in Shanthi Nagar. I had acquired the place by pre-paying a sum of INR 9,500 for a two sharing bedroom with a TV and breakfast-lunch and dinner facilities. I was appalled at what happened when I got there. On this one day my manager let me go by […]
Paedophilia at our doorstep!
This vandal act in a Bangalore school is a crime that opens our eyes in many different ways. It tells us that we are a “Big City” with typical “Big City” problems gnawing at all of us. It opens our eyes to the fact that even our little ones are not away from the dirty touch of such acts. In […]
It shouldn’t hurt to be a child…
Okay, here’s a rapid-fire: 1. What is the most dreaded question to a parent from a child? 2. What is the question that most parents avoid answering directly? 3. What is the topic that parents always hope their children will get to know through some other means but not from them? 4. What is the topic that always gets communicated […]
Do you want to be the change?
All of Bangalore was rocked last week by the shocking news of an innocent six-year old being raped in her school. Our newspapers scream child rape and molestation every single day. Not to mention women being raped in every corner of the country. Only, they scream from the pages that do not technically make “headlines”. So, what was different about […]
Speak Out
I’m 30 years old. I’m a travel columnist who has had the fortune to travel widely across South-East Asia, Central America and India. Many a time, readers ask me how my family and I were brave enough to live in El Salvador or travel to Nicaragua. “Aren’t they dangerous places?” They ask.Sure, some of the regions we’ve visited do have […]