The following is based on real events

Someone needs to tell Lufthansa and Frankfurt airport that Halloween has come and gone because they seem to be providing curated horror packages to customers. There I am, travelling home to Helsinki, even more tired than usual since I have to singlehandedly wrangle and wheel a 1.5 year old through the Triwizard maze that is Frankfurt Airport in enough time to catch my plane, when I skid to a stop at the gate just in time for boarding. 

Finland’s regressive trans legislation and why it needs a complete overhaul

Finland, long regarded as one of the most gay-friendly nations in the world, has never shied from letting its pride flag fly. The country has made several strides in LGBTI rights over the years. 

Homosexuality was first decriminalised in 1971, at a time when it was still officially against the law in countries like Spain and Germany. Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation was prohibited in 1995 and same sex marriage has been legal since 2017. 

At the beach

The sea here is different. It regards you cautiously, smiles shyly as little ripples wade across its surface. At home the sea thunders, roars unapologetically as it unleashes it’s fury upon the battered rocks.

Why I Love Bojack Horseman

I hate Netflix for cancelling this show. I know that six seasons is plenty, but I’m nearly at the last season and I feel like it has endless potential.

 If I’m being completely honest, I wasn’t particularly impressed by the first episode and I only started watching it regularly because I needed something to occupy me while I ate lunch. So it became my lunch show.

Why the Istanbul Convention Matters

I come from a place where women are constantly and deliberately made to feel less than human. That’s how patriarchies work. Even with my protected, privileged upbringing, I have been groped, verbally assaulted, reduced to nothing more than my sex or gender, just because some guy felt the overwhelming urge to feel like a man.

Bhakts: Everything You Need to Know

What are they?

A bhakt (Also Modi bhakt. Borrowed from Hindi भक्त (bhakt), from Sanskrit भक्त (bhakta) is a biped species native to India. While research has provided some insights into this dangerous creature, much remains to be learned. Like its distant relative the honey badger, the bhakt thrives on violence and often behaves in an aggressive manner when provoked.

A Letter to My 23-Year-Old Self

Dearest 23-year old,

Where do I begin? Time goes by faster than you can ever imagine.  And sometimes, it doesn’t go by fast enough. I am sorry to tell you that you never did end up writing the novel you always planned to. But you will. Someday. You feel like you are lazier than humanly possible, and you probably are. But you change.

The Indian Male

The Indian Male is a peculiar creature, with his incessant calls for ‘frandship’ and penchant for scratching his crotch area in public. To truly understand the Indian Male’s utterly inexplicable and unshakable sense of confidence and self-assuredness, one must examine the circumstances that bred such a thing. The Indian Male has, over the centuries, evolved to develop a nearly impenetrable armour of perceived superiority. This has been fortified by age-old concepts such as dowry, which serve to strengthen his unchecked sense of self-worth. Dowry is, after all, proof that his value can literally be measured.

The Challenge of India

Is this from India? They ask innocently. “Yes.” I reply. But I hesitate. I pause. The word ‘India’ feels so reductive somehow, so limiting. The thing that they’re referring to is invariably Bengali or Goan or Maharashtrian in character.  Distinctively so. But how do I explain that?

What the World Cup Means to Me, A Non-Football Fan

Football was always a big deal in my house. All our dogs were named after football players and I knew the names of (first division) clubs and players, even though I never watched, simply because our TV always had a match showing on it. The World Cup was a sacred time in my house.