The Politics of Female Longing in Fire and “Lihaaf”
In the art of filmmaker Deepa Mehta and writer Ismat Chughtai, Farah Ahamed explores themes of patriarchy, infidelity, and a testament to the desires of women.
A Searing Little Fire in Mumbai
Photo Gallery: Infrastructural concerns and safety negligence have led to multiple major fires in Mumbai in recent years. But there are fires that often go unreported, small flares that alert the Maximum City of the rising infernos to come. By Altamash Kadir
Short story by Debi Mukherjee: “Unlike the little girls I see outside temples, draped in their pano bhaju’s stringing garlands of Marigolds, I dare not play with the flowers in our garden. Papa cautions me against the rows of Mogras, Shoe-flowers, Frangipanis and a multitude of others. He says that I must not be lured by a flower’s fragrance.”