July 21, 2021
Pegasus: How Israeli Software Spied on Indian Citizens
The revelation has led to widespread civilian outrage and paranoia. Opposition parties have accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of treason in what’s being touted as “India’s Watergate.”
Imaan Sheikh
July 14, 2021
The Case of Serial Killer Javed Iqbal
In 1999, a Pakistani man confessed to killing 100 children. But it would take over 20 years and hundreds more deaths for Pakistan to pass its first child abuse law.
July 8, 2021
“An Icon, A Star, A Diva”: How Priyanka Made Drag History
We talked to the reigning queen of “Canada's Drag Race” about her drag, coming out to her dad via the show, sharing gowns with Priyanka Chopra, chicken nuggets, and changing the world.
June 28, 2021
The Myth of Canadian Niceness
The country’s public image as a nation of polite people is cracking under the weight of discrimination and violence against immigrants, indigenous people, and minorities.
June 21, 2021
Ma Anand Sheela: Mother of all Problematic Faves
You did not — and do not — want to mess with her. But part of you is oddly obsessed with her.
June 8, 2021
Captured in Cape Town: The Murder of Anni Dewani
Her husband was a key suspect. But the investigation’s focus on his bisexuality may have hindered justice.
May 27, 2021
Horror in Hounslow: The Chohan Family Case
In 2003, a family of five vanished from their London home; what followed was a shoddy police investigation.
May 7, 2021
Good Ma, Bad Ma
Can Bollywood’s mothers exist between virtue or vice?
May 4, 2021
“Your Silence Will Be Remembered”
Why Indian celebrities are mum about the politics of India’s COVID-19 crisis.
April 21, 2021
How Twitter became India’s COVID E.R.
Jaded by the health care system, Indians are taking to social media, offering and requesting help to save lives. But this is no feel-good human story.
April 15, 2021
Why You Can’t Help But Love Strings
What set the Pakistani pop rock group — which disbanded after 33 years — apart was a fortuitous blend of timing and talent.
March 31, 2021
The Accidental Feminist Side-Effects of 2000s Hindi Remixes
The naughty genre served as an unintentional glimpse into a world where young women could just have fun.
March 19, 2021
Noor Jehan: The Light of the Closet
How the singer born in pre-Independence Punjab became a contemporary icon for sex workers, dissenters, and queer people.
March 10, 2021
Helen, the Glittering Mehbooba of Bollywood
Draped in lace, rhinestones, and fur, Helen claimed and rebranded the archetype of a vamp.
March 3, 2021
“Bhaji on the Beach” and the Magic of Communal Unlearning
Against the symbolic backdrop of the beach, Gurinder Chadha and Meera Syal’s film captures what a single fleeting day of freedom can do for Brown women.
February 24, 2021
Rekha, Amitabh, Jaya: A Silsila of Deprivation
Decades later, Bollywood’s most infamous love triangle seems even more tragic than we first thought.
February 19, 2021
Nisha Ganatra and the Whole Picture
The director behind 'Late Night' and 'Chutney Popcorn' forges masterpieces by centering the full lives of her diverse characters, not just their identities.
February 15, 2021
Why Everyone is Talking About Disha Ravi
Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg tweeted out a toolkit to help mobilize allies of India’s protesting farmers. Here’s how it led to the arrest of a student in Bangalore.
February 11, 2021
Why Everyone is Talking About Nodeep Kaur
The Dalit labor rights activist, who protested alongside farmers, was arrested on January 12. Allegations of her torture and sexual assault at the hands of police have garnered international attention.
February 10, 2021
The Horny Sophistication of “Choli Ke Peeche”
Let’s take a walk down mammary lane and dissect the scandal and power that surrounded one of Bollywood’s most tastefully titillating songs to date.
February 2, 2021
Black TikTok, Brown Culture
With perfect pronunciation and killer Bhangra moves, Black TikTokers are going viral taking on South Asian music.
January 8, 2021
Music and Moonlight
In a culture where romance too often must be conducted in secrecy, the moon has come to symbolize the sole companion to love.
December 22, 2020
How Pandemic Pets are Helping Brown Families Cope
As pet ownership rates go up amid lockdowns, fuzzy friends are turning frowns upside down in even the most reluctant of Brown households.
December 7, 2020
Eating Disorders: Recovering While Brown
What does recovery look like when not just your community, but even doctors don’t take you seriously?
November 25, 2020
Let's Talk About Eating Disorders in Brown Families
Food in Brown homes can be a love language, a guilt trip, or even an apology. So what happens when eating becomes disordered in a culture so centered around food?
November 2, 2020
What Makes Shah Rukh Khan A Superstar
On his 55th birthday, we look at how King Khan romanced audiences for over three decades, and why they’re still smitten by his charm.
October 27, 2020
The Making of a Witch
South Asia has a centuries-long history of making — and killing — its witches. For some women, the crime is independence and liberty. For others, mere existence on the margins.
August 20, 2020
Opinion: Yes, Patriot Act Oversimplified Things — Thank Goodness
The show wasn’t perfect, but access to credible news is a luxury and there shouldn’t be shame in learning from visual, jargon-free crash courses.
November 5, 2019
Bollywood Warped the Brown Girl
Almost all Bollywood hits (and flops) from our collective millennial childhood have propagated anti-woman messages.