All Immy needs for Christmas is a Sat Nav on December 2, 2018If only young Immy had thought of it. The very instant those luxury cars had been auctioned was the time to make a canny investment. In the shape of a Sat Nav. Of course, to the untrained eye, this might look a lot like shutting the stable door after the buffalo have already been sold to the highest bidder. But not to Kaptaan. How unfortunate, then, that he failed to remember his premiership … [Read more...] about All Immy needs for Christmas is a Sat Nav
‘East is East’ and other anecdotes on November 25, 2018As the lights began to dim, the three of us were still marvelling at how many people had shown up. And paid good money to see this. Of course, it was different for us. For me. This was the story of a family not too dissimilar from my own. That is, one with a Pakistani father and English mother. The only difference being that this was set somewhere up north. And no one was an only child. It was … [Read more...] about ‘East is East’ and other anecdotes
The un-reluctant fundamentalists on November 18, 2018Boris Johnson is on cunning form. Getting off his bike to swoop down like the caring-and-sharing politician that everyone — and their cat — knows him not to be. Beseeching Britain to do the decent thing and offer Aasia Bibi asylum. That’s all it took. For Theresa May and Sajid Javid to almost both fall down. Dusting themselves off with a pocket full of posies. Thus has the Brexit side-show begun. … [Read more...] about The un-reluctant fundamentalists
Of Immy, Asia Bibi and feminism on November 11, 2018No sooner had the man formerly known as His Imminence arrived, then did he lose his footing to stumble and fall. Though never once dropping that weighted begging bowl; without which he never dared leave home. What better way for a former sportsman to incorporate a fitness regime in to his new helicopter lifestyle that is fraught with U-turn after U-turn? Honestly, his determination knows no … [Read more...] about Of Immy, Asia Bibi and feminism
Human Development Index 2018 is sober reading on September 19, 2018The UN Human Development Index (HDI) 2018 has described inequality as the defining challenge of the time. Indeed, it finds that this phenomenon decreases the global HDI by one-fifth. Yet it also inadvertently underscores how it becomes all too easy to overlook its impact when considering purely economic indicators. For if taken at face value, South Asia has enjoyed the fastest growth during the … [Read more...] about Human Development Index 2018 is sober reading
Of Felipe Gonzalez, Spanish bullrings and Brexit on September 16, 2018We were mesmerised. Above all by the spectacle of Prime Minister Felipe Gonzalez. Nonchalantly lighting up a cigarette. What an absolute rock star. Or so we thought. Perhaps for no other reason than neither of us could picture the decidedly un-suave John Major pulling off such rebel casus belli with just the right dash of aplomb. Relieved that we had arrived in good time, my flatmate and I did … [Read more...] about Of Felipe Gonzalez, Spanish bullrings and Brexit
Sugar in a plum, plum plum on September 9, 2018Sitting cross-legged in a small circle on the playground, we must have been no more than about seven years old. A rare English summer. In as much as the sun had been shining all day long. Which meant that we were all dressed in our PE kit: shorts and aertex top. A brief reprieve from the royal blue and grey that predominantly featured in our regulation uniform. Of course, little did I know how … [Read more...] about Sugar in a plum, plum plum
Ahmadis and Naya-Naya land on September 2, 2018It’s not easy being Kaptaan. Everyone wants a piece of him. Even when he is as happy as Larry, flourishing his magic wand, for which he will have kept the receipt, naturally, to grant overseas Pakistanis their hearts’ desire. Namely, the right to vote in Naya-Naya land. For hard currency alone is all it takes for them to be considered premiership assets. Yet the PTI chief took his eye off the … [Read more...] about Ahmadis and Naya-Naya land
The ‘barefoot colonial’ – VS Naipaul (1932-2018) on August 13, 2018Sir Vidiadhar Surajprasad Naipaul was undoubtedly one of literature's greats. That he enjoyed such an illustrious career ought to be a matter of pride for the Global South. Not least because it brought with it an authentic tale of success in the face of an ever-changing and, at times, inhospitable world. VS Naipaul was born to Indian parents in Trinidad in 1932. His father Seepersad, a man of … [Read more...] about The ‘barefoot colonial’ – VS Naipaul (1932-2018)
Tales of His Imminence and the homecoming King on July 15, 2018Dammit. His Imminence could stomach anything but this. Even the prospect of his former paramour, with her premature kiss n’ tell, momentarily stealing his thunder. After all, he could quite easily chomp on a cigar while the storm passed. But this. Well, this was too much. To be upstaged by a man. It would never do. And yet here he stands. With Kuggoo poised to steal his still to be anointed … [Read more...] about Tales of His Imminence and the homecoming King
