AS I See It

Why I welcome Priyanka to Kerala Politics

Valson Thampu Two women politicians are currently in Kerala limelight; though for contrary reasons. Unsurprisingly, Kannur’s Divya is hogging the limelight. Her exploits presumably by way of moral-policing the administrative culture of Kerala, has deflected attention from Priyanka’s débuting in electoral politics from Wynand. Contradictions in political cultures apart between them, they highlight the limits […]

ON BEING A THAROORIST

Valson Thampu ‘What do you call a person who terrorises people with words,’ is a question making its rounds on the Internet. The answer is also provided: A Tharoorist! I am sure most Congressmen in Kerala will agree. Language is at once a tool and an ornament. It is a tool, when used in order […]

Beirut and The Homelessness of Humankind

Valson Thampu Ever since the outbreak of the Israel-Gaza war, the homelessness of our species has haunted me. About 80% of the people living in Gaza being in a state of chronic internal displacement, driven like cattle from one end to the other, is not an easy thing to contemplate. It is, also, not an […]

AN APPEAL TO ANWAR, KERALA’S OWN DON QUIXOTE

Valson Thampu P V Anwar is a quintessential politician. Even so, he does not always bother to mind keraleeyatha, the cultural flavour of being Keralite, in the practise of his politics. He has his opportunistic finger on the pulse of Keralites. I wish he’d also care to put his ear to their hearts. Anwar is […]

My Take On Justice Hema Committee Report

Valson Thampu The world of cinema is to a society what the kitchen of a five-star hotel is to its dining hall. Hiding the former is basic to customer enjoyment in the latter. It was against this logic that Justice Hema Committee was appointed. But it didn’t take long thereafter for that logic to assert […]

Sports And Spirituality : Reflections In The Wake Of Paris Olympics 2024

Valson Thampu The author of the Letter to the Hebrews compares a believer, in relation to the spiritual discipline he or she needs to maintain, to a sprinter (Heb 12:1-2). Paul asks Christians in Galatia, ‘You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth?’ (Gal 5:7) As he reviews his own life as […]

RELIGION AND PERSONHOOD

Valson Thampu A central irony in religions is that their founders were all luminous examples of personal authenticity and individual uniqueness. But their followers have to bear the yoke of conformity and compromise their individuality. Collective identity of every kind is a by-product of conformity. If you have a political identity, you would be like […]

Democracy: Executive Power Vs. People’s Power

Valson Thambu In a democracy, the will of the people is assumed to be sovereign. The shift of sovereignty from the monarch to the people is the hallmark of democracy’s genealogy. But historical patterns die hard. Monarchy is indeed formally dismantled; but its spirit is roaming free all over the world. History teaches us that […]

Eviction-facing Indian Catholics to fight Muslim charity’s claims

Goans oppose tourism project near 16th century basilica