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Monday August 3 2020

Masking the Problem

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Sanity Break #1

During the national lockdown in Italy, two young girls—aged 13 and 11—played a tennis match, each on her own rooftop. went viral and made global headlines. The Italian company Barilla decided to an unexpected gift: a rooftop match with Roger Federer. His gift to the two girls: summer camp at the Rafa Nadal Academy. The loveliest part of this video: the unaffected and infectious joy of Vittoria and Carola.

Sanity Break #1

Headlines that matter

WHO WANTS TO BUY TIKTOK? * ByteDance is readying to in the US operations thanks to President Trump—who has repeatedly threatened to ban the app. ByteDance was hoping to retain a minority stake, but even that appears to be out of question now. Trump has given the company to complete the sale. * TikTok’s most likely buyer: Microsoft, which that it is hoping to seal a deal to buy out Bytedance in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand by September 15.  * The other company that will also be off the hook if this deal goes through: Facebook, which is under pressure for being a social media monopoly (see our explainer ). * Looking to : Mukesh Ambani and Sanjiv Goenka—but these are still unconfirmed reports.  * An of TikTok: Free speech organisations such as the American Civil Liberties Union.  * Profiting from TikTok’s misery: Triller, which has a star-studded lineup of investors including Eminem and Snoop Dogg.  * Missed our excellent explainer on WTF is going with TikTok? Read it .   Also under the gun: in India. The government is taking a “closer look”—which is making university officials very anxious.   CHINA’S NOT BACKING DOWN There are now reports that China has near Uttarakhand’s Lipulekh Pass—and ramped up presence at the border in "parts of North Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh." And it is dragging its feet —where disengagement talks have stalled.   In better China-related news: One of Apple’s manufacturers is planning to shift its operations to India—which will create . The plan is not just to serve India but also export iPhones worth $5 billion.   Those creepy Chinese seeds: First, Americans reported receiving mysterious packets of seeds. Now they’re being delivered to people —including New Zealand, Canada, Europe and the UK. The packets—which are marked with Chinese characters—are likely an e-commerce scam. But authorities are just not sure: “We don’t have enough information to know if this is a hoax, a prank, an internet scam or an act of agricultural bioterrorism.”   THE INDIAN PANDEMIC * First the good news: Almost 90% of over 1.35 lakh cases in Delhi have recovered. The transmission rate not just in Delhi (.66), but also Mumbai (.81)  and Chennai (.86). A transmission rate of 1 means that one person is passing on the disease to just one other person on average. Any number below 1 is therefore excellent news. * In other good news: The government quarantine stays for international arrivals—who only have to stay seven days in institutional quarantine and another seven in self-isolation at home. They can also skip the hotel stay if they show a negative Covid test taken 96 or fewer hours prior to takeoff. * reports on schools in Doodpathri, Kashmir which have started hilltop classes to teach children who don’t have internet connectivity or phones at home. The photos are lovely but also… sad.  * reports on the good people of Mumbai who are taking care of pets of Covid patients—many of whom use the service to try and abandon them instead.  * A must read: This profile of Adar Poonawalla, Serum Institute CEO—who is making a huge bet on the Oxford vaccine.    THE GLOBAL PANDEMIC: A QUICK UPDATE The virus is surging back in , and even —where the government has shut down the border province of Xinjiang. That’s where Beijing has imprisoned hundreds of thousands of Uighurs in internment camps. * SinoPharm is one of the six companies that are in the final stages of testing a vaccine. But its subsidiary is already offering to vaccinate employees of state-owned companies—claiming that it is safe and ready to use. has more details. * In a rare bit of good news: Social distancing has stemmed the spread of other infectious diseases like flu, mumps and measles. The numbers have plummeted worldwide. Point to note: in some places, the lower numbers may be due to people avoiding seeking medical care during a pandemic. has the story. * Kuwait has opened its borders and resumed commercial flights. But 31 countries——are still on the ban list. * Must watch: This alarming of a doctor in one of Pakistan’s busiest hospitals.   DID ‘SHAKUNTALA DEVI’ LIE ABOUT ITS HEROINE? The big point of controversy is not the film’s feminism or its uneven filmmaking, but its treatment of the math genius’ husband. Back in 1977, Shakuntala Devi wrote a groundbreaking book called ‘The World of Homosexuals’—which spoke on the subject with honesty and compassion. A huge achievement for that time! At a book event, when asked why she wrote the book, she revealed that her husband was gay. This is how the movie treats that moment:   > The moderator expresses sympathy but Devi stops her immediately. “No, you should not be sorry. It is his choice and I support > him.” The daughter, Anupama, gets so uncomfortable that she leaves the venue. Devi runs behind her. “How can you lie through > your teeth?” she asks her mother. Devi says, “I want to change people’s attitudes towards homosexuality. Personal stories affect > people the most. If you want to sell something, you need to weave a story around it.”    But even decades later, Shakuntala Devi was very clear about her motivation:    > “It created havoc in my life, in my child’s life, and then I needed to look into it, study it more thoroughly. And then I > realized that if this is accepted by society, so many victims would not be there suffering the way they are suffering now. > That’s what prompted me to write that book.”   So why did the movie cast such a serious slur on its own heroine? Answer: It was written in collaboration with Shakuntala’s daughter Anupama Banerji who insists her mother lied. Question: Is this ethical? Also: Does it matter if it's true, especially to the queer community? offers a thoughtful take on these questions.   ELLEN DEGENERES NOW HAS A #METOO PROBLEM Last week, Buzzfeed broke two stories on ‘The Ellen DeGeneres Show’. The first called out routine racism and bullying at the workplace. was more explosive, focusing on two Executive Producers: one, Kevin Leman—who allegedly groped and sexually assaulted male employees; two, Ed Glavin who had “a reputation for being handsy with women.” Also: a on her show claim that Ellen herself is “mean.” Now, there are that James Corden will replace her as host.   NETFLIX AND SPEED UP! A new Netflix feature on Android allows users to speed up (1.25x and 1.5x)  or slow down (0.5x and 0.75x) their viewing. Lovely, you can now binge-watch at break-neck speed. ()   New on WhatsApp: Facebook’s videocon tool, Messenger Rooms, is now available on the web version of the messaging platform—and will soon come to phones as well. explains how to use it.    TWO IPLS AT THE SAME TIME A media advisory confirmed that IPL will be held in UAE over 53 days in Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi. Being held alongside: An IPL tournament for women from November 1-10. has the details. has more on the men’s IPL, including timelines and prep for bio-bubbles.

Masking the Problem

Sanity Break #2

  Most of our sanity breaks tend to be upbeat. This by a Canadian teenager is not. The three-minute video instead perfectly captures the soul-crushing experience of self-isolation and home confinement. Staying sane also requires acknowledging and respecting our pain.

Sanity Break #2

Smart & Curious

A LIST OF GOOD READS * A brilliant must-read in : In ‘America’s Untouchables’, Isabel Wilkerson draws a thought-provoking parallel between American racism and the Indian caste system—and explains why ‘caste’ is a better descriptor of the dehumanizing of entire peoples.  * Also in : Why negotiating with terrorists is surprisingly similar to negotiating with children, even life partners. * Kapil Komireddi in offers a beautifully observed account of his repatriation flight from London to Hyderabad. * Maria Teresa de Filippis was the first woman to compete in a Formula 1 race in 1958. Forty three years later, Jamie Chadwick is getting ready to follow her footsteps. profiles F1’s great female hope. * spotlights India’s gay prince: Prince Manvendra Singh Gohil of Rajpipla, Gujarat. A man who came out back in 2006 and paid a heavy price for it. * (the “bleating heart liberal”) riffs on the tension between his revulsion for goat sacrifice—be it for Eidh or Durga Pujo—and his love for mutton. Also: the hypocrisy that often abounds in debates over meat-eating and animal cruelty. * profiles the matchmakers who cater exclusively to super-rich Indians in search of a rishta. And it reads like a text-only episode of ‘Indian Matchmaking’. Example: “If the boys stresses on looks, I remind them that they are not going to get film stars. Gujarati, Marwari, kitne khoobsurat honge?”

Smart & Curious

Feel Good Place

is two-feet tall, weighs only 12 lbs—and has been declared by Guinness World Records as the world’s shortest living woman. She’s already starred in ‘American Horror Story’—and is now the subject of a US documentary.   is far more amusing than any other weather report—thanks mainly to the contribution of a young gentleman. in Mumbai just became a bit less sexist.    are the new face-mask parottas. This one is a Jodhpur restaurant along with ‘Covid curry’—i.e. malai kofta balls with coronavirus-like spikes.  

Feel good place

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