Another interesting piece of writing about animal-human interaction, I found in the ‘Rasail-e-Ikhwanus Safa’ (Epistles of the Brethren of Purity). In tenth-century Basra, there was a group of Muslim philosophers…
Perhaps the best Urdu short story involving a bird is by Nayyar Masood. ‘Taoos Chaman Ki Mynah’ (The Mynah of the Peacock Garden) is set in the Lucknow of the…
The dance of medieval barbarism with lethal weapons of 21st century is being played out, while the world watches; some with glee; some with awe; some with pain; some with…
THANKS to their large size and humanlike features, gorillas, bonobos, orangutans and chimpanzees are graciously referred to as the ‘Great Apes’. The title is deserved, because these larger primates share…
Many of us would not believe that the Leviathan state still exists as a political reality in many parts of the world today. The argument goes like this: the Hobbesian…
"The Prime Minister Whisperer." "I have heard of a ghost whisper, horse whisperer and a lion whisperer and even a monkey whisperer but never a Prime Minister Whisperer." "How would…
SOME might be inclined to present the view that the misery of the animal kingdom is too idealistic a cause to highlight. Yet it was the sustained campaigning of animal…
Opening at The Landmark at 57 West on May 10th, documentary ‘The Biggest Little Farm’ is a stunningly dramatic portrait of a husband and wife trying to create an ecotopian…
Much before the term ‘underworld’ was associated with organised urban crime, rats were linked with subterranean activity. They have always had a very bad reputation and are seen as unwelcome…
According to ancient legend in Japan, the emperor’s throne (the state) is guarded by four lions. While three of them are conventional: the legislature, the judiciary and the executive, the…
