The Red Moon

We have all heard the statements “Women are so dramatic” or “Men are so insensitive”. “Women are more caring”. “Men are more decisive.” Some of us agree; some of us disagree. The truth, I think, is somewhere in between. Recently, after an altercation with his female partner, one of my male friends quipped, “Women are so emotional”. I pointed out to him that that was a gender stereotype - to which he raised his eyebrows and said, "Is it though? It seems to be statistically true. Do you deny it?". I don’t deny it. How could I deny statistics? The women in my life do indeed exhibit more emotions than the men, and I daresay most people would agree with this observation, as my friend was happy to point out. But in my opinion, a stereotype can be true while also being oversimplified and unhealthy. Saying “Women are so emotional” and leaving it at that often sets the stage for a dicey ripple effect. Is it true in a lot of cases? Yes. Is it derisive of something not consciously under...

It was 3 AM and I had just gotten off a two-and-a-half-hour video call with my college friends. Visions from the past five years at IIT Madras swished past me in the next few minutes, lighting up my drowsy eyes with a smile. This was a couple of days ago. The COVID-19 pandemic interrupted our final semester - compelling us to leave the institute in a hurry to our respective hometowns. It has been three months, and as we know, the pandemic is still wreaking havoc in many states across the country - Chennai being a heavily affected area. So, we now resort to social media, online Catan, and the occasional video calls, to experience some semblance of the closure of college life. However, not having had the normal last few days before graduation or a proper farewell will always be something that raises a lament in me.  These years were not without their own ups and downs. But after due reflection, I would have to say that the downs were worth the ups. There were three things that c...