[First published in Mint Print Edition, 17th May 2024.] “To erase the line between man and machine is to obscure the line between men and gods,” says the line in the teaser clip for the movie Ex-Machina released in 2015. What technology does for us has never been a topic for a discussion or debate….
When Bharathan’s Kathodu Kathoram was released in 1985, I was in high school. It was a time of movies with great stories and music. A time when directors, script writers, music directors, and even lyricists were all considered superstars. In discussions in school and college campuses, it was not just the actors that got attention,…
(This was first written and published in 2008) Have you heard of Social Technographics? Social what? Or have you read the research paper ‘Sources and Consequences of Embeddedness of the Economic Performance of the Organizations: The Social Network effect’. Huh! I still haven’t understood the title itself. But then if you are in the online…
Kittu, Bittu, Boni, Bunny, Goldy, Channi, Babbi, Dimpa. This is no kindergarten roll call but a list of ‘‘surnames’’ adopted by some of the candidates who fought the hotly-contested Punjab elections…… (a report in Indian Express about Punjabi politicians adopting universal, forever young nick name). But have you heard about these names? – Gladoo, Calgoo, Zattoo, Zingee,…
Malayalees’ love story with elephants is centuries old. No temple festivals are complete without a procession with an Elephant. And it is not just temples. Even churches and some mosque festivals have elephants that add glamour and pride to the festivities. Not surprisingly the man-animal conflict and elephant revenge stories are as old as the…