"Maiki"

Over the last few decades, the IIT-IIM nexus has embedded itself in our collective imagination. We examine how these prestigious technology and management institutes took on a newer significance in the post ’90s economic landscape — one fixated on material achievements as markers of success — and put the obsession with the institutes in the context of the matrimony portal IITIIMShaadi.com, which propagates a similar culture of exclusivity
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It may have been the reason for “Housefull” signs in theatres again, but the first instalment of Ayan Mukerji’s much-awaited fantasy trilogy met with mixed reactions. The dialogues in particular, which were intended to polish the film’s aspirational edge, came under fire because of the purported inauthenticity of their phrasing. We explore the film’s relationship to language and how Dharma Productions, an industry powerhouse that has successfully employed Hinglish in several of its productions, failed to do the same thing in its most globally ambitious project yet
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The recently released Tamil-language film Gargi featured scenes of sexual assault that raised questions about its sensitive portrayal on-screen. Feminist historian and activist V. Geetha speaks to Verve about the ethics of picturising such violence, the function of trigger warnings, the rape-revenge genre, as well as imagining a visual narrative outside of the criminal justice framework
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Tales from the Border, cultural bonding, unexpected windfalls and archival footage. Culture know-all, Anil Dharker, looks at the rediscovery of India with wry amusement
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Vidisha-Fadescha, founder of the New Delhi based anti-caste, anti-racist, trans*feminist art and social space Party Office, reflects on challenging heteronormativity and capitalism through partying and on creating safe spaces for the DBA and LGBTQIA+ communities
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The following is an exclusive excerpt from Nilanjana Bhowmick’s ‘Lies Our Mothers Told Us: The Indian Woman’s Burden’, which takes a closer look at middle-class Indian women and the structural inequalities that frame their lives. The book will be out on July 5
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Much has been written about Ranveer Singh’s untraditional off-screen persona, so on the heels of ‘Jayeshbhai Jordaar’ we instead deconstruct the actor’s displays of masculinities across his filmography to understand how he has chipped away at the toxic convention of a “mass hero” — whose contemporary avatar has increasingly been playing to the Hindutva imagination — and the innate gentleness that underpins several of his roles
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‘Sharmaji Namkeen’ marked a pivotal departure for mainstream Indian cinema with the casting of Paresh Rawal as the same character played by Rishi Kapoor, who passed away unexpectedly during the filming. We consider the willing acceptance of this unconventional solution — likely encouraged by Ranbir Kapoor’s personalised introduction before the opening credits — and what it says about Indian spectatorship, celebrity culture and the audience’s relationship with Bollywood’s “first family”
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