Mayawati, the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, recently unveiled 15 statues in the capital city of Lucknow. The kicker, though, is that two of the statues were of Mayawati. Mayawati provided much-needed rationale for this move, though. She claimed that statues of eminent personalities provide inspiration to societies¹.

On behalf of all other narcissists in the world, we have a winner!

As expected, opposition parties had issues with Mayawati using the state’s money to immortalize herself in stone. According to The Hindu, Akhilesh Yadav, a member of the Samajwadi party, said that he would mourn for the statues of Mayawati since according to Hindu tradition, only statues of dead persons are installed².

Playing the Hindu tradition card is like playing the Joker card in Rummy - it’s whatever you want it to be.

Senior BJP leader Jaswant Singh wrote a letter to his party that found its way into the media’s hands. BJP’s general secretary, Vinay Katiyar, questioned Singh about the leakage of his letter to the media. The offended Singh responded that he was not answerable to anybody³.

I agree. Accountability goes against an Indian politician’s moral code.

In 1996, Raj Thackeray, who was then part of the Shiv Sena, had organized a Michael Jackson concert in India. This move received plenty of criticism from political opponents. However, Thackeray did not feel that organizing the concert would be “a political liability”. He explains, “Hitler, for all his faults, did resurrect Germany. Similarly, I look at him (Michael Jackson) as a great dancer, singer and composer who had a social message in his songs^“4.. Thackeray then played down the Holocaust, saying that it helped shape world history.

You believed that last line, didn’t you?

A producer in Bollywood aims to use the alleged rape incident involving actor Shiney Ahuja to publicize his forthcoming movie. The movie is about actors struggling to handle their success in the film industry, and is titled ‘Chamak - The Shyning’⁵.

No, that is not a typo.

In a landmark ruling, the Delhi High Court has legalized gay sex. There are a few Indians, however, who are not overjoyed to hear about this new ruling. Dr. P.V Cherian, from Chennai, said, “I think homosexuality is a sickness affecting men and women^“6.

Brilliant diagnosis there, Doctor.

Rakhi Sawant, the ‘actress’ famous for being loud and annoying, is part of a new reality show where she will find herself a husband from a pool of 16 candidates. When asked about what she expects from a potential husband, she said, “He shouldn’t look at using me as a ladder for his career^“7.

Right, I’m sure it’s your personality that’s attracted these men to the show.

She is, however, confident that she will be able to find the man for her through this show. “Yes. I am sure I will get the right man. I am a self-made individual. I have taken all my decisions myself till now. I have been successful because of my choices in life. Rest, I have left to God”⁸.

When questioned, God said “Hey, leave me out of this”.

To read more ‘India, This Past Fortnight’, click here.

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