Annie Zaidi's Blog, page 11

Corona virus wali shakl

Somebody on Twitter called me a 'corona virus ki shakal ki...' (other words followed) It was obviously meant as an insult. Made me thoughtful. Virus ki shakal means the face of the virus. Since viruses don't have bodies that can easily be anthropomorphized - where's the 'face'? - one may assume that the whole of it is a shakal. 

I've seen images accompanying news articles and was struck by the

Reading in

Less going out of the house (which I do reluctantly at the best of times) means more reading. Over the last few weeks, between deadlines, at airports, and through sleepless nights, I've read a fair bit. Ali Khan Mahmudabad's 'Poetry of Belonging' was special, not just because it was about poetry and belonging, but also because it includes references to my dear departed grandfather's work (which

The price of not being a real leader is counted in (other people's) deaths

He could have said that peaceful protest is an inalienable democratic right.

If he had said it before, or even after winning the state assembly, it may have given pause to millions of people who were being told repeatedly that protestors deserve to be attacked simply for opposing the policies of the central government. After all, Mr Kejriwal himself has done everything in his power to topple

The price of not being a real leader is counted in (other people's) death

He could have said that peaceful protest is an inalienable democratic right. If he had said it before, or even after winning the state assembly, it may have given pause to millions of people who were being told repeatedly that protestors deserve to be attacked simply for opposing the policies of the central government. After all, Mr Kejriwal himself has done everything in his power to topple

Samman nahin, samaanta

Women's day, so I'm linking to the first documentary I made in 2015. It's online and free to watch now. I'll also say a bit about struggling against censorship of an indirect kind, because I feel like that is linked to the overall deterioration in our polity and our self-definition as Indians.This film was the result of a PSBT grant but this particular grant came from the Public Diplomacy

A new short story and interview

I have a new short story out in the Massachusetts Review. The story's called Mallika Reflects on the Events of Discount Monday. 

The journal also interviewed me for its blog about the writing of this story and other writing stuff in general. 



What inspired you to write this piece?

Well, I’m a woman and I wish I could say that I am the sort of woman who rejects all norms around femininity.

कैसे ये मस्त लोग थे क्या नौजवान थे

अली जवाद ज़ैदी साहब की एक नज़्म जो उन्होंने 1941 में लिखी थी, लखनऊ जेल में, जहाँ वो जंग-ए-आज़ादी में शामिल होने की वजह से क़ैद थे। 
गोली के ज़द पे जम गऐ , सीनों को तान केतोपों के मुँह पे डट गऐ ,अंजाम जान केक्या वीर थे सुपूत वो हिन्दोस्तान के

कैसे ये मस्त लोग थे क्या नौजवान थेफौजों को अपने ध्यान में लाऐ नहीँ कभीदुश्मन के दिल नज़र में समाऐ नहीँ कभीमैदाँ से अपने पाऊँ हटाऐ नहीँ कभीकैसे ये मस्त लोग थे

Learning to see and speak: 1

In 2018, I had begun to maintain a document of fear and self-censorship. In the wake of online aggression, often coordinated, and the killings and arrests of writers and journalists, not to mention the chilling effect of cases being filed in courts under one pretext or the other, I had begun to hold back a lot, writing only for myself, if I had to. Even where I did write and publish, I found

Gandhi and students protests

The recent wave of protests by students, and several others, and especially young people opposed to the CAA and the NRC/NPR rolled out by the government reminded me of what M.K. Gandhi had said to students during the freedom struggle.Writing in ‘Young India’, in 1928, Gandhi refused to humour a principal who had wanted him to stop students from getting more involved with politics. At a

'शायरी मैंने ईजाद की'

ये मेरी पसंदीदा नज़्मों में से एक है, उर्दू के नामी शायर अफ़ज़ाल अहमद सय्यद की लिखी हुई: 

'शायरी मैंने ईजाद की' काग़ज़ मराकेशों ने ईजाद किया हुरूफ़ फ़ोनेशनों ने शायरी मैंने ईजाद कीक़ब्र खोदने वाले ने तंदूर ईजाद कियातंदूर पर क़ब्ज़ा करने वालों ने रोटी की पर्ची बनाईरोटी लेने वाले ने क़तार ईजाद कीऔर मिलकर गाना सीखारोटी की क़तार में जब चींटियाँ आ कर खड़ी हो गईं तो फ़ाक़ा ईजाद हो गया शहतूत बेचने वाले ने रेशम का