Unable to rid Delhi of aggressive rhesus monkeys, and unwilling to trap or kill animals some consider an incarnation of Hanuman, Delhi cops are getting creative. They’re buying statues of bigger monkeys called langurs (via India Uncut):
The department… plans to procure stone statues of langurs. “These dummies will look real. They will have wheels for […]
Even in a Hollywood movie directed by a desi, male desis whose names are not Kal Penn will be waiting a long time before they ever play romantic lead. But if you’re female, walk right in.
“Chris Tucker will be playing the main character in [Gangsta MD, a remake of Munnabhai MBBS],” said Nair, adding that […]
The trailer for The Namesake looks fabulous, 35mm doused in regret, and not just for its greater 2nd gen focus than Jhumpa Lahiri’s novel. Director Mira Nair cast a bushel of eye candy: model Jacinda Barrett (Bridget Jones 2) plays the WASP girlfriend, Tabbu turns auntie into MILF, and part-desi actress Zuleikha Robinson plays Gogol’s […]
You may have heard of the Society for Creative Anachronism, a group of medieval geeks who gather in cardboard armor every week to beat each other senseless about the head.
The AP now tells us about groups modeled on the movie Fight Club where the fighting is real:
Gints Klimanis, a 37-year-old software engineer and martial arts […]
All the delicious stuff I’m eating in Bombay, and you’re not Seriously, import this, stat.
Saffron pistachio cardamom soy milk, the nectar of gods
Peanut butter and mango kesar sandwiches
Masala paneer wraps. India requires veg-friendly labeling — green means go.
You thought you were being clever with your Indian food hacks. These noodles come pre-masalafied.
A flush of pleasure came over me when I heard that Bombay is becoming increasingly vegetarian-friendly. Yes, we brutish fruitivores are abusing the underprivileged meat-eaters of the world who just can’t find any meat any more:
House hunters in Bombay increasingly are being asked: “Do you eat meat?” … “Some people are very strict. They won’t […]
Currylingus recently blogged about an activist with the coolest cross-cultural name this side of Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak and Tristyn-Finn Cherian. The tongue-twisting Leah Lakshmi P-S makes an appearance at the Queens Art Museum (via 3rd I):
Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha is a queer Sri Lankan high femme diva without the drama. Burgher/Tamil Sri Lankan by way of […]
I had to report on the pungent case of pirate deo attracting rented dicks:
… big cosmetic manufacturers are hiring foreign detectives to hole out hawkers selling fake deo on the pavements of Churchgate… “We are also contacting international detective agencies to help us get rid of retailers using our labels to sell spurious goods…”
An […]
A Calcutta university plans to offer a course on magick:
Well-known magician P C Sorcar’s company Indrajaal, has tied up with Rabindra Bharati University in Kolkata to offer what is being regarded as the first-ever course on magic being delivered under an UGC-registered university…
“The aim behind institutionalising magic is to eliminate superstitions and make people think […]
You can now read Ultrabrown on your mobile phone. Point your browser here for posts and here for comments.
My buddy Shaheen, a folk-pop singer from LA, just did a week-long record launch in Bombay. Here’s the coverage from Time Out and the ToI.
He’s like Evil Mr. Rogers
Trying to stave off an acquisition by the world’s third-richest man, French steelmaker Arcelor has decided to sell to a Russian steel baron. The CEO decided that Russians are preferable to Indians:
Mittal Steel, an empire spanning five continents, was a “company of Indians,” Mr. Dollé said at the time, and […]
You’ll be happy to know that PETA has gone to bat so that animals can swing their batons. They’re making sure Indian zoo animals get laid at least once a year:
The Supreme Court, on a petition filed by NGO People for Ethical Treatment to Animals, have sought responses from various authorities on why over 500 […]
Still from Phir Hera Pheri
I could go for the Bollyback Mountain joke, but sublimated homoeroticism in Bollywood isn’t exactly news.
This year’s Masala Mehndi Masti, the monster North American desi arts fest, starts July 26. They’re upgrading their digs to Toronto’s Exhibition Grounds:
M!M!M! is a free festival that takes place over five eventful and fun-filled days and includes over 75 performances, events and activities covering music, dance, film, theatre, food, natural health practices and a […]
I’ve written before how much I loved a painting by Siona Benjamin, a Bombay Jew and master of mashup whose wry work featured in Fatal Love at the Queens Museum of Art.
I am a Sephardic Jew from India, my ancestors came from the Middle East (and perhaps from Spain) centuries ago. Having grown up in […]
I’ve long dug rapper MC Kabir, he of conscious lyrics and suave flow. The New Yorker shows him some love on his new album, Peaceful Solutions, which released last month (via SM and SAJA).
A not-so-subliminal image in orange, white and green
Listen here.
He deplores hip-hop’s preoccupation with guns and money and beating up women. “Hip-hop […]
The Indian photog formerly known as 50mm has a lovely portfolio of her work up on Flickr (via Amardeep). It’s more gloss than grit. But two comments on this photo of an Indian model betray a, shall we say, lack of perspective:
Probably not a tan
Stitch says: beautiful tan, beautiful shot.
-(¯`·.·?VäLLëyGïrl?·.·´¯)- says: her tan is […]
The Simpsons dance to a Hindi song at the end of the ‘Kiss Kiss, Bang Bangalore’ episode (via Within and Without; thanks, dhaavak and Amardeep). Watch the clip.
The song is ‘Pal Bhar Ke Liye’ from Johnny Mera Naam, sung by Kishore Kumar.
Homer: This isn’t India! Where’s the University of Notre Dame and the Indy 500 […]
New Orleans finished repairing its levees just under the wire before the hurricane season begins anew:
With just days to go before the beginning of the hurricane season… New Orleans is still very much at risk… because the level of protection the corps has reached is still not as strong as the city needs. Many experts […]