Click here to read Confluence February 2017 issue Every crisis yields an opportunity Two major events that took place during 2016 in Europe and in America are still dominating the headlines. Britain’s decision to leave the European union and the future of UK-Europe relations is causing huge uncertainties re likely economic challenges in the coming years.…
By Aline Dobbie It was a great pleasure to meet Mrs Anju Ranjan the new Consul General of India to Scotland this week at her offices in the elegant old building at the Consulate General of India in one of Edinburgh’s most perfect and prestige heritage squares in the West End of Edinburgh – Rutland…
by Reginald Massey Gutala Krishnamurti who died recently was a Telugu and English scholar who believed that the Aesthetic Movement which flourished during the 1890s (the fin de siecle period) was among the most productive in English literature. The Aesthetes viewed life as an art. Taking their cue from the likes of the flamboyant Wilde…
By Reginald Massey Nanak was born to a Hindu family in 1469. He was born in Dera Baba Nanak, now in Pakistan. Had there then been application forms to fill in, the chances are he would have referred to himself as Bedi Hindu. His father was the trusted employee of the local Muslim landowner. His…
Confluence Nov 2016 final version 0
By Devi Rajab Three Strong Women Sita Gandhi, Sushila Gandhi and Kasturba Gandhi Diwali is a time when the often forgotten story of Rama and Sita gets submerged by the celebration of the event. Fireworks, sweetmeats and prayers distracts from the original message. So who was Sita in a collective sense? Was she a symbol…
By Reginald Massey In a free society such as Britain it is unthinkable that anyone would voice an outrageous opinion such as “Dance is un-Islamic and schoolgirls must not be taught to dance.” However, I would like to inform my readers that this ridiculous slogan is being chanted out loudly in Pakistan. Nevertheless, there are…
by Chaand Chazelle Tom Alter is a fine, versatile and well known actor and a familiar presence in the Bombay film industry. Any film which requires a British character rooted in colonial times will very likely have Tom in the role. In the film,‘Sardar’ he played Mountbatten and has acted in over 400 films including famous…
By Dawood Ali McCallum “That was a mistake. I’m sorry about that. I take responsibility.” “I said it, I was wrong, and I apologize.” The first of these quotes is Hillary Clinton’s September 2015 acknowledgement of an error of judgement in using a private email server for official communications when Secretary of State. The…
By Usha Akella Hold up the onion skin of your poetry to the light, You are nothing, A drum roll, With no procession. What is your flag? But a terrain of demons, A McDonald poetry, Your epic is not long, Birthed through size zero thighs, Your gluten free poetry. You try hard to be real,…