27 May,2024 06:49 AM IST | Mumbai | Team mid-day
Pic/Shadab Khan
A man rides a horse along the Dadar beach against the backdrop of the Bandra-Worli Sea Link.
Today marks the 60th death anniversary of India's former Prime Minister, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. While he is known for his love for children, Arati Desai, librarian and documentation officer at Nehru Centre Library in Worli, told this diarist that he had a deep connection with nature. "In his will, he mentions how he wants his ashes immersed in the Ganga in Allahabad [Prayagraj], not for any religious sentiments, but for his attachment to the river since childhood," she revealed. The will read: Let my ashes scatter over fields and mingle with the dust and soil of India. "A permanent exposition in the Discovery of India building, beside the library, displays photographs from his life. The first image is a blown-up photograph of his funeral procession. The crowds that gathered showed how much he was loved," she said. Those keen to view this photographic treasure can head to the Centre on all days, barring Mondays.
If you search for feminist memes on the Internet, you will be surprised by the misogynistic memes you get," shared Megha Garg, of NGO Point of View (POV). The organisation's new initiative, Feminist Meme Making Contest, will invite people from across the country to counter these by creating memes of their own. Prompts include body, technology and social justice.
"This campaign is a part of our course called The Digital Everyday. In this course, we aim to articulate materiality of technologies and transform understanding of what the word digital stands for. In today's world, our physical lives have merged with our digital ones. But often, people find themselves lost for words when it comes to the impact of technology on their lives. In our third edition, which will begin in August, we will guide people across genders on how to articulate their relationship with technology," she elaborated.
Garg added that memes were chosen as the first step to spread technological awareness because they are one of the best modes to convey messages with ease. "We want people to approach memes through a feminist lens," she explained. To participate and learn about rules, requirements and prizes, head to digitaleveryday.in.
Indian comics are set to take over the global arts Edinburgh Festival Fringe this year. In the list of comics from across the world, you will find names like Vir Das, Sumukhi Suresh, Urooj Ashfaq, Kanan Gill, and Suhani Shah, among others. "This festival is a platform where you could either be the most popular person, or someone who has come from nowhere. The beauty remains in its pure respect for art," shared Suresh, who will perform a set called Heomonal. "It is about hormonal imbalance, the idea of womanhood and how as a 30-year-old, I am restarting my life relationship-wise, while my hormones are all over the place," she revealed to us.
One of the major concerns that emerged on May 20, when Mumbaikars stepped out to vote, was not being able to spot their names on the voters' list. "Many of them had their voter ID card, but they were unable to vote because their names did not reflect in the list. The Lok Sabha general elections are conducted once every five years, and this year, many lost their right to vote," revealed Chaitanya Prabhu, founder of youth-centric initiative Mark Your Presence. To address this, the group is compiling a list of names that did not appear on the list. "We will send this list to the Election Commission of India and demand a reason for the deletion. We will ask if these people can be ensured that this doesn't happen again in the State election, or if we need to re-apply for their voter ID. We will offer these people end-to-end service," he added. Those who wish to include their name in the list, drop a message on @markyourpresence_org.
