Exactly a year ago, at this time, I was rushing home from my grandpa’s funeral to get my dad admitted to a hospital before Bangalore ran out of beds.
A day later I was scrambling for an oxygen cylinder, pooling my family’s savings in case we had to buy it in black.
A day after that, the then Chief Minister caught COVID and there wasn’t a bed in the hospitals close by.
It’s been just a year and we’ve forgotten how terribly the Karnataka government failed us. How ambulances were turned into makeshift beds to to provide oxygen to people.
Jul 16, 2021 • 13 tweets • 6 min read
@dansiddiqui 's death feels so personal to many of us even though we didn't know him personally. I think this is, in large part, because of his photos. Not just what he shot, but how he shot them. Thread 🧵
All his photos clearly showed who was in power and who wasn't. This famous photo of his doesn't show a Muslim man being beaten up by thugs. It shows a rabid mob beating a Muslim man. What this means? The subject of the photo is not the man. It's the mob.
Jun 6, 2021 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
To everyone who is saying “there is no clear north-south divide, we have lot of similarities” ofc we have similarities and differences. As any group of people in the world share similarities and differences with one another esp with geographic proximity (1)
The similarities are esp evident in the ways people oppress minorities, even if the oppressor’s caste/gender/language varies.
The demand for a separate state (which is now a dying voice) is to ensure a focus and priority on the issues and concerns of South Indians.
Jun 6, 2021 • 32 tweets • 7 min read
Most people in North-Central India don’t understand how racist they are to South Indians, both as a society and as individuals.
Our culture & history has always been looked at as inferior, erased or mocked/misrepresented. Here are some basic, glaring differences b/w North-South
1. Names: My great grandfather’s name is T.K. Suchindran - Thanissery Kumaran Suchindran. My actual name is P.V. Vaishnavi - Peruvamba Vadakkanchery Vaishnavi. A lot of our names are name of village or district/father’s name/maiden name and at times suffixed by caste name.
May 26, 2021 • 19 tweets • 4 min read
TW: sexual abuse
When I was sexually assaulted at 14 I cried my way back home got a fever & stayed in bed for a week.
When I was flashed at 15 after a board exam, I walked away and tried to focus on my next exam instead of thinking of the gross things I saw.
When I was sexually assaulted at 18 I kept quiet because I willingly slept next to the guy, even though I objected to everything he did to me the whole night.
When I got sexually assaulted at 19, I was confused. He was someone I liked but I didn't like what he did to me. Maybe..
May 25, 2021 • 4 tweets • 3 min read
Given the way the current government is handling the pandemic, activists and individuals from various human rights and health organisations have written an open letter to the 74th World Health Assembly. Please read, endorse and share
We are only in our second wave and we are devastatingly low on medical resources, beds, vaccines and pretty much everything. We have more waves to endure and the next one will harm children more. We need the pressure and help from international communities to make it through
Apr 10, 2021 • 19 tweets • 3 min read
My dad has been hospitalized with severe COVID for the last five days. After a scary phase of worsening conditions, he started making progress today.
Now that I have a breather, thought I'd jot down some ways you can support your family/friends during a COVID situation: Thread
(a.k.a Things I wish I could tell my extended family but they will never listen so I'm once again using Twitter to cope)
Apr 8, 2021 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
Twitter, please come through.
My dad's COVID has gone from mild-moderate to severe because of bad chest congestion. Doctors have been administering Remedesivir from last night. Have any of you/your families been administered Remedesivir? What were its effects?
Please RT
Thanks to all of you in the replies! Knowing this already makes me feel better. Sharing the responses with Amma and she's also at ease. Consolidating his reports to send to a few experts. Will message people individually in case I need more help. Thanks again
Nov 2, 2020 • 13 tweets • 3 min read
Everytime I see a hot take on period leaves by men/women like Barkha Dutt, I lose my damn mind. Let me explain why.
I slept a little before midnight yesterday and woke up 30 minutes ago at 7:30pm: A thread
First thing I did from bed was to check if I got my period, and of course there it was. Having slept for 19+ hours without any food or water, I was severely disassociated. My head is woozy, I'm bloated and gaseous, and my thighs, bottom wear are all covered in blood.
Oct 4, 2020 • 20 tweets • 5 min read
I exist solely because of the caste system (and that's not really a good thing): A thread on my paternal lineage, heartbreak, abandonment and most importantly, how the caste system affects families through generations (1/n)
2 years ago, I was trying to trace and document my paternal lineage which has its roots in present day Myanmar. My paternal grandfather (Achacha) was born in Burma in 1938. His father went from Kerala to Burma to be a station master at Irrawady, all places under British raj (2/n)
Oct 3, 2020 • 9 tweets • 4 min read
SPB's voice is theatre. He doesn't just sing, he acts through his singing. I will definitely miss the man.
Ok this is going to be a thread of my fav SPB songs y'all better prepare for a bomb list
Sep 19, 2020 • 17 tweets • 3 min read
JUSTICE ROCKS IS LIVE! WHERE ARE YOU ALL?
Bezwada Wilson is speaking right now
Jun 29, 2020 • 20 tweets • 6 min read
My cat cuddling with my boyfriend when I'm literally right there: a vv long thread
May 7, 2020 • 5 tweets • 3 min read
Public pressure leading to K'taka govt "letting" migrant workers travel back wouldn't have happened without honest journalism. It was the humane, ethical reporting of journalists like @ArunDev1@prajwalmanipal and others that showed us their ground reality. Let's support them!
Support @thenewsminute , the organisation @prajwalmanipal works at: thenewsminute.com/membership
May 2, 2020 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
Many people have pointed out why @neverhaveiever is a real shit show but I specifically want to talk about how this show's team has done ZERO research on South India. Thread.
cc: @mindykaling
They are a Tamil, clearly brahmin family that has clearly carried its brahmin bullshit all the way to the US. Ofc the mom wears and flaunts her taali and thinks therapy is crap. But literally NO Tamil person calls it "Ganesh puja" It is Vinayaka Chaturthi ffs
Apr 25, 2020 • 4 tweets • 6 min read
Using #BlueTwitter as an excuse to let everyone know that I miss my friends and family, and best some other pictures.
1. Gifting @visvak a sanghi sombu before he left for London. 2. My family from 2016 Vishu 3. Taking photos of Kandbari on my last day at Sambhaavna 1. Missing that good sarakku and murukku life at @amaladasarathi 's 2. And ofc missing @amaladasarathi and @nidhik_ 3. Thinking about this at puppy who have me company in my tent last year in Andaman 4. Why is Shriya making me model in front of pigeons who can shit on me anytime
Apr 18, 2020 • 27 tweets • 6 min read
taking cue from @visualfumble and live tweeting S01 of four more shots please. What is this god awful show? Starts with a steamy scene b/w Sanghi Soman and Sayani Gupta. In front of a conference room full of buncles. Yes, that is her dream.
And then we meet mad hot gym trainer Bani who has to cuss 4657 times per second and fucks a guy in her gym who already has a girlfriend coz apparently #feminism ?!
Apr 5, 2020 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
Stayed up for the last 4 hours to binge watch @sumukhisuresh 's Pushpavalli S2. So many thoughts fresh in my head but fuck what a show. Raises the bar for Indian shows by miles. Thread. Spoilers ahead.
The first season revolves around Pushpavalli moving cities for a man. By the end of it, you see this obsessive stalker who, despite her entire life going to shit, continues stalking him. But S2. Holy hell. She takes such a sharp turns from stalker to mindlessly manipulative...
Mar 29, 2020 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
Since lockdown I've been sleeping odd hours and I'm most productive only post 3 am. So the last couple of days I've been hearing the morning Azaan and for some reason it always made me feel weirdly comfortable and safe. I say weirdly because I'm not Muslim and temple (contd)
sounds do the opposite of comforting for me even though I'm a non practicing Hindu. I was able to figure out why just now.
Between 8 and 14, I lived about 1km from a mosque. My school started at 7 every morning and I'd listen to the azaan as I get ready/cycle to school...
Mar 24, 2020 • 17 tweets • 8 min read
T minus 2.5 hours for lockdown and my partner is already playing Let me out by Gorillaz.
Otha situation song ikku vera time kedekelaya da?
Day 1 of lockdown and poor Kanmani is bearing the brunt of a slowly-losing-his-mind @ShirtShanks
Feb 26, 2020 • 12 tweets • 2 min read
Taking hope from indigenious land movements at this time of unrest and injustice. One movement per thread.
Part 1: Rampur, Barnawapara
(1/n)
Barnawapara is a region of 22 villages in Northern Chattisgarh. It is also home to a wildlife sanctuary. Over the last few decades, Chattisgarh has been exploited for its minerals. Mainly coal, iron ore and thermal power. (2/n)
1. Missing that good sarakku and murukku life at @amaladasarathi 's
