A list of good reads

• Horses are not indigenous to India. So how did they get here? The Hindu offers some answers.
• Zocalo has an excellent read on the mystical, magical, terrifying supernatural cats of Japan.
• Mint Lounge looks at the future of the fitness industry in India—and how the pandemic has changed it… or not.
• Reuters profiles the Indian king of the metaverse—Vignesh Sundaresan, aka MetaKovan, who has amassed a digital art collection worth tens of millions of dollars.
• Cold Takes offers five intriguing maritime analogies—rowing, steering, anchoring, equity and mutiny—to decode very different strategies to create change in the world.
• The India Forum analyses the upcoming trafficking bill—and points out why it is flawed. Short answer: It fails to recognise extreme social inequality.
• The rusty-spotted cat is a feral species indigenous to India and Sri Lanka. Mongabay tells the story of the rehabilitation of one such kitten.
• The Conversation explains why some people have a harder time experiencing happiness than others.
• Quartz looks at the trend of US colleges beginning to recognize caste as a category that needs protection from discrimination.
• The New York Times has a lovely read on the coffee and chai addas of Kolkata.
• The Wire explains why the Apple suit against NSO—the maker of the snoopware Pegasus—is important, and why it poses a problem for the Indian government.
• Gizmodo has a thought-provoking interview with pollution expert Max Liboiron—who argues that trying to clean up the plastic in our oceans is futile.
• Mel Magazine profiles the ‘boob whisperer’ who claims to have increased the cup sizes of countless women!
• The New York Review of Books has an excellent essay on the many burdens we place on the modern marriage: personal growth plus affectionate companionship, sexual appreciation, and spiritual renewal. Free sign in required.
• Scroll offers a must-read ground report from Uttar Pradesh—where Jats are torn between their Hindu and farmer identities.