Book Review : The Lady Killer

"It was a land of seven kingdoms. Seven kingdoms, and seven thoroughly unpredictable kings."   

Middluns, Murgon, Estill, Sunder, Monsea, Lienid and Nander; the seven Kingdoms. 

An imaginative world with primitive lifestyle and Kings as supreme rulers reside in between the pages of this novel. We all love a place different yet similar to ours with the same yet entirely different faculties. Here, the adventure that the female lead traverses is a reminder of physical and mental fortitude.

   'The Lady Killer'. 'The Royal Thug'.  These were the whispered names that accompanied Katsa since her barely eight year old self killed a cousin from touching her. The Gracelings, identified by their two distinct eye colour from the others, have a gift or a curse in a particular activity. Graced as she is with killing, Katsa being the king's niece is forced to carry out her Uncle's whims of killing or maiming petty and foolish men who had dared to oppose him. The only rebellion that she raised against her Uncle is the Council, more like a Robin hood and his band of Merry men, whose main objective is to help those who face injustice from tyrannical and power hungry Kings. The first time she met Prince Po, she had no idea that her life is going to change dramatically. Po, with his silver and gold eyes, cheerful laughter and graced combat skills melted away the walls around her heart. Po and Katsa undertake a journey to reveal a dangerous truth about themselves and a powerful foe, with their strength and cunning, they must fight. Katsa is a growing and powerful character, she begins with baby steps to find herself and those around her. Po is the nice contrast to her in more ways than one. A charming and thoughtful companion with no issues in being defeated by a woman.

This novel by Kristin Cashore, in itself is simply written; the landscape, seasons and the food is so properly described that it leaves no question or confusion. The character of Bitterblue is admirable and I personally cannot wait to read her book which is, unfortunately, the third in the series, Graceling Realm  followed by the second book, Fire. If you have read or are aware of something like Poison Study, Uprooted, Throne of Glass or even Vampire Academy  then this is a book to try. I really like reading a good Fantasy novel once in a while. Besides the trend (I highly approve of this trend) of a strong female character, who needs no man's protection but accepts his company and just that, had risen and claimed the spot of the "damsel in distress" characters in many novels. So celebrate an independent woman in her decision to lead her life however she wants with a powerful Grace.

Read it. You won't regret.

Reviewed by :- Saisaa Ray.

Saffronisation of Education

Is it a step towards integrity or textbook politics?

Did you know that Madhavacharya discovered Newton's power series, or that the Qutub Minar was built by Emperor Samudragupta and its real name was Vishnu Stambha, or that 1000 years before Copernicus – In the 5th century, Aryabhatta stated that the Earth is round, it rotates on its axis, orbits the sun, and is suspended in space, or that the Vedas are the reservoir of all wisdom of the universe, they contain the knowledge of Art, Music, Linguistics, Economics, Religion, Science, Mathematics, Philosophy, Medicine, Architecture, and so much more?
These are few of the “facts” about the world and national history that lacs of students are learning as a part of their curriculum under RSS-run schools all over India.



The Rashtriya Swamayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has set up a consultative body to ensure that the Narendra Modi government moves ahead with the saffronisation of the country’s education system – a move that seems to digress underlying impact and the erroneous details and portrayals regarding minorities and different ideologies other than Hinduism.
Partisans of the decision claims that the project is an attempt to address the 'past glory of India' and the curriculum is believed to be widely influenced by 'Vedas' and 'Upanishads' that the Sangh Parivar deem to be the intuition of ancient 'Bharat' and will thrust the sense of patriotism(hopefully) into students. Very well! To be fair, ancient India has also produced books like the 'Kamasutra', a super comprehensive volume on the several ways of enjoying carnal pleasure, and the highly caste-ist Manusmriti. But don’t worry, your kids probably won’t learn them because they do not advance the ‘pure’ and ‘perfect’ picture of India’s past that the Government wants them to learn.



Critics believe that saffronising education is an attempt to communalise history, to promote the Aryans, ‘predecessors of modern Hinduism’, and reduce Muslims and the other ‘dreadful minorities’ to invaders or converts. Muslim rulers like the Mughals will either be eliminated from textbooks or painted as barbaric philistines who plundered ‘the land of Hindus’ and destroyed its sanctity. The idea clearly is to influence the direction of funding and scholarship towards the Sangh Parivar’s communal agenda and to ensure appointments for RSS sympathizers in the field of education in a manner that had been done in the media institutions in the post-emergency period by Mr. Advani.



The moral of the story is thus clear. It is time to re-examine the unnecessary politicization of the question of value education through the fundamentals of all religions, including Hinduism, in India.
This kind of thinking is against humanity and anti-progressive. It is a clear shadow of the prejudice and dogmatic approach of the RSS. The very fact that children are the bearer of the future of this great nation cannot be taken lightly and they deserve an education which is unbiased and profound about its historical culture and antiquity.

- SHREYAN MUKHERJI

The Kolkata Monsoon Affair

As July slowly approaches and the page of the calendar waits for a flip, Kolkata awaits the monsoons with excitement. The rains bring relief from the sultry and scorching tropical summer and the "bheja maatir gondho" cannot be forgotten,if not craved for.

Unlike other cities, the City of Joy doesn't come to a standstill when there is a torrential downpour. Instead, the joy is doubled, because nothing beats the gastronomic delight of "gorom gorom khichudi and begun bhaja". The rains can bring out the footballer in anyone and wet and muddy football matches suddenly become the order of the day as the sun loses its unequal battle with the clouds. Children set their paper boats a-sail on the waterlogged alleys and engage in euphoric  splashes at each other from the puddles on the streets.The waves created by the moving vehicles on a flooded street make them gape in open-mouthed wonder and admiration. If a vehicle breaks down, they volunteer to help and hope for some money in return-generous tokens of monsoon!

Buses and taxis often go into a refusal spree when there is a lot of water to wade through. In such a situation which renders you helpless to a degree, you can definitely count on the Japanese rickshaw-walas. These are probably only found in Kolkata, and their demand increases during waterlogged days. Even though they might charge a lot, they will ensure that you reach your destination, swiftly galloping you through the chaotic traffic and of course,the gushing torrents.

If you are however reluctant to go out during the rains, I don't blame you. The weather is bound to make you lethargic, because "lyadh khawa" is directly proportional to the intensity of downpour. Being at home and watching your favorite movie, or listening to Coldplay and Tagore... ahh, nothing like it! Or maybe, inviting your friends for an adda over tea, dancing like crazy souls on the terrace-sounds promising,eh?

As one sits by the window,drowned in nostalgia and thinks about those long walks and sweet stolen kisses in the corners of the streets,lost love... the rain provides solace.

The divergent hues of Kolkata become more beautiful during the monsoons, and the joy of the city rains is infectious and touches everybody,whether you're sixteen or sixty.

Author : Jayita Chakraborty

5 times the Western Media has failed to identify the 'Terrorists'

In the wake of the assassination of the British Member of Parliament, Jo Cox, at the hands of Thomas Mair, both the conservative and liberal press have once again followed the same old trend of using different labels and language to describe attackers based on their race, religion and ethnicity.

To quote an example, The Guardian— often  a favorite daily among the so-called "progressives" — published a story a day after the attack on June 17 with the headline: ”Suspect in Jo Cox's killing described as quiet, polite and reserved.”

The article goes on to list how Mair’s family and friends spoke of a gentle and quiet man whom they least expected to commit such a hideous crime.
“The picture that emerged of the man known as Tom or Tommy from those who knew him best was of a quiet and caring loner,” The Guardian wrote. “His half brother, who is mixed race, claimed he had been volunteering at a school for children with disabilities for several years and had never expressed any racist views.”

This sort of language is rarely, if ever, used by mainstream media in the West to describe non-White attackers, who are quickly labelled as terrorists. And if the words of families and friends are used, they're usually taken out of context and twisted to serve a particular narrative and agenda. It has been a common occurrence for years fanned by mass media in the United States and Europe.

We look at five examples of when the same biased coverage was resorted to by the western media :-

1. 2015 Charleston Shooting by Dylann Roof

On June 17, 2015, during a prayer service at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, Dylann Roof entered the church, locked its doors and started shooting at the people in it, mostly Black folk.
Roof killed nine African Americans, including Senior Pastor and State Senator, Clementa C. Pinckney, and injured one other person. He was later arrested after reports emerged that he was motivated by a longstanding hatred of Black people and had told friends that he favoured segregation. Later confessing he committed the shooting in the hope of igniting a race war, the media failed to focus on Roof’s history of bigotry and hate. Instead mental illness and inadequate mental health resources were the primary go-to explanations behind his horrifying actions.


Activist Deray McKesson noted in a tweet days after the incident that while discussing Roof’s motivations, an MSNBC anchor said: "'We don’t know his mental condition."
"That is the power of whiteness in America," McKesson commented.

Dylann Roof

The Guardian also published a story describing how Roof had a history of drug abuse, further individualizing the narrative as one of subjective misfortune and poor decisions.

2. 2011 Norway Attacks by Anders Behring Breivik

On July 22, 2011, Norwegian national Anders Behring Breivik carried out two lone-wolf attacks, a bomb attack against the Regjeringskvartalet Government Complex in Oslo and later a shooting of 69 people at the Workers' Youth League-run summer camp. The attacks claimed a total of 77 lives.
Several articles emerged following the incident demanding that he not be called a terrorist and that he was insane and mentally ill. “Anders Behring Breivik's not a terrorist, he's a mass-murderer,” one headline on The Guardian newspaper read in 2011.

The British Telegraph published an article with the headline: “Don't call Anders Breivik a terrorist – he is a sad fantacist leading an army of one." Despite a Norwegian court charging Breivik with carrying out a “terrorist act”, the author argued that to "call Breivik ‘a terrorist’ is to give him exactly what he wants. The most appropriate response to this psychopathic narcissist is ridicule, as the author claimed.

Forensic psychiatrists examined Breivik before his trial and and he was eventually diagnosed as a having narcissistic personality disorder.

But denying the political — and therefore terroristic — nature of the crime was really quite extraordinary, especially considering Breivik himself wrote a 1,518 page political manifesto titled "2083: A European Declaration of Independence" which called for a civilizational war against Muslims and migrants.

3. 2012 Aurora Shooting by James Eagan Holmes


On July 20, 2012 James Eagan Holmes carried out an attack on moviegoers at Century movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, killing 12 people and injuring 70 others.

As is the case for most other White attackers, the media was quick to brand Holmes as a mentally ill individual who snapped and decided to kill people due to his condition. The Associated Press ran a news story with the headline: ”Doctor who found James Holmes sane says mental illness caused him to attack Colorado theater.”

Major media organizations ran stories on the attack and Holmes with comments from the FBI saying he had no significant criminal record, while local police said he had a speeding ticket from 2011, and no links to terrorism. Medical professionals in fact testified in court that Holmes was sane.

While we now know that the attack had no political motive, the media's collective response in immediately designating the White Holmes psychologically ill is a trope we have all become accustomed to.

4. 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting by Adam Peter Lanza

The victims of the attack

On December 14, 2012, 20-year old Adam Peter Lanza stormed into the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, where he shot 20 children aged between 6 and 7 years old, as well as six adult staff members. As police and emergency services arrived at the scene, Lanza committed suicide by shooting himself in the head.

Shortly after the incident, news outlets in the U.S. went on to portray Lanza as a “troubled and disturbed kid from a rich family” who was a “ticking bomb." There was no mention of terrorism or him carrying out one of the most disturbing terror attacks in U.S. history.

A day after the attack, The New York Daily News published a story with the headline: “Sandy Hook mass murderer Adam Lanza, 20, 'deeply disturbed kid,'” in which the newspaper went on to push for a mentally ill and unstable man who was pushed over the edge and committed a troubled yet almost understandable crime against innocent children.

Fox News also digged into Lanza’s past, pushing the mentally ill narrative as it revealed that the attacker had been diagnosed with psychiatric conditions which could explain his actions. Again no mention of terror or terrorism! While many have argued the shooter did not commit terrorism because he lacked a political motive, the argument has long since been debunked. In fact Lanza, like other shooters, posted a political screed to a website shortly before the incident.

“It goes without saying that an AK-47 and enough ammunition could do more good than a thousand ‘teachers,’ if one is truly interested in reforming the system. In short time the children will be brainwashed, pumped full of Xanax and told to conform, until they have been turned into the oppressors,” Lanza had written ahead of his attack according to MSNBC.


5. The 2010 Austin Suicide Attack


When Andrew Joseph Stack III desliberately crashed his plane into Building I of the Echelon Complex in Austin, Texas, killing both himself and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Manager,Vernon Hunter, and injuring 13 others, the United States Department of Homeland Security issued a statement saying the incident did not appear to be linked to international terrorist groups.

But the targeting of the IRS and the political nature of the incident soon emerged as Stack's suicide note condemned the "greed" and "insanity" of the central government, the bailing out of banks and financial institutions, corporations, unions and the Catholic Church.

"I saw it written once that the definition of insanity is repeating the same process over and over and expecting the outcome to suddenly be different. I am finally ready to stop this insanity. Well, Mr. Big Brother IRS man, let's try something different; take my pound of flesh and sleep well," he wrote in the letter.

The terrorist attack — widely reported as a suicide by local and nationalmedia — eventually resulted in the media and government closely scrutinizing the Tea Party, as it was  believed Stack was linked to the group. But following the attack, the New York Times published an article saying that "Mr. Stack" was not driven by "terrorist ideology" but was rather "described as generally easygoing" and a "talented amateur musician with marital troubles."


What essentially comes out of the picture is a deliberate toning down of terrorist attacks and dressing them up as cases of psychiatric disruptions or subjective misfortune for that matter. This not only tosses out the possibility of a political probe into the happenings with sheer convenience, but also manages to secure public sympathy through victimization of the terrorist and puts a permanent seal on such cases as it were. We wish the Western media was a bit empathetic in yellowing up the massacres of non-White terrorists too, instead of belching out a thoroughly racist stance in this regard.Or better, it realizes that it's high time to see terrorism for what it is and not to doll it up for what it is not.


Article by :- Igor Gorbachev