Online monthly Nirali Magazine, which bills itself as “a different kind of (publication) for today’s modern South Asian American woman,” finally ended a lengthy two-month intermission with the release of its latest issue.

Editor-in-chief Ismat Mangla blamed the break in publication on a “storm of issues,” which have since been resolved. This is good news, because the magazine is a worthwhile read, and in its short existence, has managed to break some downright entertaining stories. On top of everything, Art Director Priya Patel’s interface design makes this one of the slickest e-zines around.

And before any of the smart-asses out there decide to berate me via e-mail — yes, I know the magazine is directed toward women. Can’t a brutha’ be up-to-date on the feminine perspective without a bunch of mofo’s getting all up in his grill about it? Geez.

Now I will go back to drinking a domestic beer, killing anything that moves in “Halo 2,” and lounging on the sofa in my boxers. And just for good measure: Maxim, Stuff, ESPN, Playboy, “Girls Gone Wild,” and red meat.

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Last Friday I wrote up my “review” of the M.I.A. concert that I attended in Los Angeles, and tried to convey to my readers the curiosity I had over the fact that the talented Maya Arulpragasam has a link to a group that possibly aids terrorists on her website. Whether or not said group was simply a legitimate aid organization delivering tsunami relief supplies or really something more sinister, in league with the LTTE, may have been answered on Monday as reported at Scotsman.com:

Port authorities found thousands of small steel balls hidden in water pots in a shipping container that consigned to the Tamils Rehabilitation Organisation, the army reported.

Sri Lanka’s Tamil Tiger rebels, who fought a two decade civil war against the government, are known for loading suicide bombs with metal balls to cause maximum damage.

The rebels control a large area in the ethnic Tamil-majority north and have authorised the Tamils Rehabilitation Organisation to co-ordinate tsunami relief work there.

The military website said the balls “could be used for production of bombs or explosives.”

The report said the pots, believed to have been shipped from Britain, are being held for investigation.

A spokesman for the Tamils Rehabilitation Organisation said it would comment only after seeing the military’s report.

IF this turns out to be true, to me this raises a bunch of interesting ethical dilemmas. First, can you blame an artist for supporting a group that seems to be assisting what the U.S. has designated as a terrorist group, if said artist has a father who is one of the rebels? Is she supporting the group and its practices or simply her father? Secondly, isn’t part of M.I.A.’s appeal that she has rebellious lyrics? Haven’t young people always been drawn to rebellious lyrics? Thirdly, how can you (if of a politically liberal persuasion) enjoy yourself at a concert knowing that the lyrics (and possibly your money) are in support of a group that employs child soldiers and female suicide bombers? I understand that the Sri Lankan government is also complicit but simply letting two wrongs balance each other out doesn’t seem right. I don’t really have answers to my questions but I did think it would make an interesting debate. Continue reading →

This is just too delicious… one of the more popular SM posts – based on number & ferocity of comments – was one back in December about Govindini Murty. In addition to the cerebral attraction of a fellow desi espousing the message of individual freedom / responsibility and smaller governments, Govindini’s physical charms were, uh, well noted.

Well, it appears that SM isn’t the only one who’s noticed. The wild & crazy folks at the New Jersey GOP website apparently run a mini contest called GOP Babe of the Week and this week’s winner is…. Govindini Murty. Govindini says she’s

“…truly honored to have been chosen – being Republican Babe of the Week… has always been a dream… ;)”

I love Govindini’s smirking smiley at the end. She shares the honor with an eclectic group of past winners including Rachel Hunter, Heather Locklear, Kennedy (of MTV fame), Gloria Estefan, body builder Cory Everson (what is it about Republican body builders?), and quite a few others. Muy excelante company. Continue reading →

For some time, there has been controversy around the death of Subhash Chandra Bose. The official history states that Bose died in a plane crash in Taipei on August 18, 1945 en route from Singapore to Tokyo. Since no body was ever recovered, many Indians refused to believe that Bose was dead, despite three official investigations into the matter. One rumor claims that Bose died in Siberia, in Soviet captivity. The Hindustan Times claims that Bose returned to India where he lived as a hermit named Gumnami Baba (the man with no name) until 1985.

These conspiracy theories have recently taken a surprise twist with support from a most unlikely source, the Taiwanese government:

Taiwan has now told a Indian investigation that there were no plane crashes at Taipei between 14 August and 20 September 1945.

All of this should stir up further interest in the recent Shyam Benegal film Netaji: The Last Hero. For those of you in the Boston Area, the director will be screening his film at the Harvard Film Archive as part of a Tsunami fundraiser on Friday, February 11. Continue reading →