Tanisha Malla
Tanisha writes on philosophy, culture, women, religious and spiritual belief, exploring the ideas that shape how we think and live. Off the page, you'll find her farming, birding, or deep in the study of Vedic philosophy.
Why am I Only Defined By My Body?
Women are judged for gaining weight, losing it, ageing, motherhood, strength and even success. The ideal keeps shifting, but the scrutiny remains. Perhaps the real problem is not that women fail to meet beauty standards, but that we keep insisting they should meet one at all.
The Aparna Kurup Controversy and the Political Battle Over Speech in Keralam
Journalist Aparna Kurup has been booked over remarks about Islam after a television debate on women’s rights. The controversy, and the political intervention that preceded it, has opened a larger debate over free speech and coalition politics in Keralam.
How India Helped Shape an American Feminist Icon
Gloria Steinem, the journalist and activist who became one of the most influential figures in the American women’s movement, has died at 92. Her decades of work transformed debates over equality, reproductive rights and women’s political power.
The Women of Chittor Did Not Ask for Your Permission
We are endlessly comfortable with our women as victims, and uneasy the moment they become warriors. A reflection on Swara Bhaskar, the jauhar of Padmaavat, and the courage we keep mistaking for a wound.