The genesis of Hindi cinema occurred in homegrown entertainment forms like yatra, mujra, and tamasha. Consequently, whatever was produced included sizeable chunks of theatrical elements and routine songs and dances. Even in films that claimed to be “socials”—1941’s Behen (Sister), 1943’s Paraya Dhan (Other’s Treasure), or 1945’s Bachpan (Childhood)—melodrama was more of the sentiment.
In May 2020, in the backdrop of the migrant housing crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA) announced the Affordable Rental Housing Complexes (ARHC) scheme for urban migrants. This policy intervention became the fifth initiative under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana – Urban (PMAY-U) and forms the only scheme directed at rental housing provision.
(English captions & Hindi subtitles available)
(English captions & Hindi subtitles available)
(English captions & Hindi subtitles available)
On January 16, 2021, India began Phase-I of what may be the world’s largest vaccination drive, aiming to vaccinate nearly 300 million frontline workers against COVID-19. This rollout featured India’s indigenously developed Covaxin (Bharat Biotech/Indian Council of Medical Research) and indigenously produced Covishield (Serum Institute of India/Oxford-AstraZeneca), marking the beginning of a potential end to the pandemic’s eleven-month siege.
How can representation be designed such that the interests of vulnerable groups are best accommodated? Social science has tackled this question for decades, but much of the research on this topic has focused on the specific format of quotas. However, mandatory quotas—whether in politics, education, or the private sector—represent just one type of representation. They are a form of inclusion that allow minority groups to enter existing institutions and, at their highest level, mainstream marginalized interests through descriptive and substantive representation.