The comedy of the colonised

“It went too soon, too soon That age when cats fiddled And cows jumped over the moon...” From Tension Nahin Leneka by Bachchoo On the strength of a few series of situation comedy for TV and the fact that I have written material for stand-up comics and parodists, I am invited to participate in a seminar on comedy at a German university. The particular department of the university has post-graduate students who learn through the medium of English and in the case of this seminar have chosen the option of what universities call “post-colonial” studies.

Flaws in our grand laws

The year is still new, and we are full of good intentions. This week we learnt that the government’s sporadic efforts — mostly weak and often mindless — to change anti-dowry laws for better implementation may include laying down rules on how much you can spend on weddings. The Planning Commission’s Working Group on Women’s Agency and Empowerment has recommended an income-linked ceiling on marriage expenditure, which would include gifts as well as celebratory feasts. In short, if you try to spend beyond your means on your daughter or son’s wedding, you’d better be ready for the dowry inspector.