Writer | Editor | Voracious Reader
Gurgaon, India
Joined April 2019
- Tweets2.3K
- Following381
- Followers341
- Likes9K
Pinned Tweet
When India went into lockdown last year, Harper Collins came up with this idea of a crowdsourced novel.
@cdivakaruni was asked to write the first chapter.
I have written Chapter 9 in The Last Ones :)
It is now out on Kindle.
Do read! #StoriesConnectUS
When we were faced with isolation and uncertainty, we counted on the power of storytelling. We started a crowd-sourced novel and asked one of our most beloved storytellers, @cdivakaruni, to write the first chapter.
Read #TheLastOnes for free here: bit.ly/TheLastOnesEBook
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
Yoga has been reduced to spiritual Zumba. Onam is a secular harvest dance. Holi is rebranded as Jashn-e-Bahar. Diwali is now Eid with better lighting. And Ravana has been upgraded to a Social Justice Warrior.
Forget Hindus, it is Hinduism that is being converted. My views:
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
If anyone ever asks you, “If Hindus believe God is one, why do you worship so many gods?” 🕉️
Here’s how to answer ⬇️
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
Delhi’s air was choking us before Diwali too!
Stop making our festivals the scapegoat for a crisis that runs far deeper than one day of firecrackers.
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
Malaysian PM Anwar Ibrahim's Happy Diwali video, styled after Indian superstar "Thalaivar" (Leader/Boss) Rajinikanth.
The country has a large Indian diaspora, approx. 80% from the state of Tamil Nadu.
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
I've talked to so many people, and they all say the same thing: Diwali doesn't feel like Diwali anymore.
Here's why. As kids, our moms did all the preparation. We just burst crackers and made rangoli, so we enjoyed every bit of it.
Now we're the grown-ups, but we skip the effort our previous generation used to put in. We treat Diwali like a regular holiday, then wonder why it feels ordinary.
The magic was never in the festival. It was in the effort behind it. Do the preparation yourself, and Diwali will feel like Diwali again.
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
In trying to make Hinduism easy to understand, are we sometimes making it harder to appreciate?
Behind those lights are the stories of Shri Ram's return to Ayodhya, the worship of Maa Lakshmi and Maa Kali, Shri Krishna's victory over Narakasura, and generations of living Hindu traditions.
Simple explanations are a great place to begin. But they shouldn't be where understanding ends.
Deepavali is the Festival of Lights. But the lights are only the beginning of the story.
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
WB was flipped but I don’t hear the rejoicing. It’s only democracy when the whites do it. When the poorest Indians do it, it’s not flipping, it’s fascism.
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
Japanese film makers did a far better portrayal of Ravana’s lustful character than the Commie version of Ramayana that Namit Malhotra just produced.
Hindu epics need the widest possible platforms but not the communist, shoshit, vanchit versions for sure
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
Sikhs gather weekly in Gurudwaras.
Muslims gather every Friday in mosques.
Christians gather every Sunday in churches.
They stay connected and united.
Secular Hindus visit PVR and INOX on Sundays to learn about their own Ramayana through Bollywood's interpretation.
#RamayanaMovie #RamayanaReview
Secular hindus are praising Ravana more than Lord Ram after watching a movie based on the Ramayana.
One of the biggest shortcomings among Hindus is that many don't read their own scriptures. Their understanding of their religion and its characters is shaped more by Bollywood's interpretation than by the original texts.
Jab tak is desh mein cinema hai... log tuchiya bante rahenge
#RamayanaMovie
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
As per the initial reviews of Ramayana, film’s strongest character is Ravana and there is a fair bit of white-washing of his image. No wonder the lead actress was all praises about Ravana few days ago. Mockery of our dharma. Pathetic by even Bollywood standards.
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
I went back to read the original Valmiki Ramayana (Aranya Kanda) and the difference between the actual account and what's being shown in the new Bollywood Ramayana is quite surprising
In the original account Shurpanakha threatens to eat Sita after her advances towards Ram and Lakshmana are rejected. Shri Ram then instructs Lakshmana then Lakshmana cut off her nose and ears
but in the movie, the entire context is changed. Shurpanakha takes Sita's form to manipulate Ram and when Lakshmana cuts her nose, Sita questions his decision, saying her mistake wasn't that serious and that he had no right to harm a woman's appearance
That's a completely different narrative and moral framing.
Cinematic adaptations can have creative interpretations but when you're adapting an epic like the Ramayana shouldn't the original characters events and context be treated with some responsibility?
@GemsOfBollywood #RamayanaMovie #RamayanaReview
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
It was a choice between the donkey and the ass and the Americans chose the donkey.
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
Oh hello @TimesNow
Lord Ram is NOT a mythological figure to us. He is Maryada Purushottam, the embodiment of righteousness, dharma, sacrifice and virtue.
Calling Him a “mythological icon” may be convenient cinematic terminology, for you but it does not define our faith, our civilisation or our history.
Ramayana is not merely a screenplay. Lord Ram is not merely a character. His legacy transcends cinema, generations and the Kapoor family.
Ranbir Kapoor may portray Lord Ram on screen, but Lord Ram belongs to the eternal consciousness of Bharat.
And that legacy did not begin with Prithviraj Kapoor, nor will it end with Ranbir Kapoor.
From Prithviraj Kapoor to Ranbir Kapoor, the legacy of Lord Ram comes full circle! Nearly 93 years after his great-grandfather first portrayed the mythological icon, Ranbir is set to carry the Kapoor family’s cinematic legacy forward in Ramayana. But do you know there was another Kapoor who played Lord Ram?
timesnownews.com/entertainme…
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
Most of us are happy not because Democrats won but because Trump lost.
Trump’s 2nd term until now has been a disaster for the world. Our country somehow managed much better because of the blessings called CiOJ.
Trump tried to insult Modi ji in various ways. Be it the open support to Pakistan or mad tariffs on us by ridiculous excuse of we buying Russian oil. His ministers spoke about NaMo insultingly. He tried to put pressure on signing Business deals which was in their favor.
Even so, Trump failed in every attempt due to Modi ji’s astute policy of “Bharat First”, his unmatched political brain and silent stubbornness that can even drive mad the best of strategists!
So again, we aren’t celebrating win of Democrats per say, but we are celebrating the defeat and severe humbling of the one who tried his best to humiliate our beloved Prime Minister!
I suppose our H1B aspirants will have some relief and stability now and we’ll have some scope of better weather wrt USA. As far as winning candidates of Indian roots, they are useless as ever. They are no longer Bharatiyas at their hearts.
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
Did you tell your ‘newly Sanghified’ uncle that you are absolutely illiterate when it comes to understanding international immigration protocols? That the concepts of passports, visas, border security and immigration control are clearly alien to you?
And then did your ‘newly Sanghified’ uncle explain to you that this is precisely why his son *can* live in New Jersey, while a Bangladeshi who has sneaked across the border cannot in West Bengal?
Dinner table conversation with a newly Sanghified uncle.
Uncle: Why should Bangaldeshis be allowed in West Bengal?
Me: Same reason why your child is allowed in New Jersey.
Total silence from uncle and end of argument. #NeverGiveUp
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
The problem with all Pride and Prejudice adaptations is that Colin Firth was quite possibly the most attractive man on the planet as Mr. Darcy.
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
Yoga is welcome. Indians aren't. Apparently cultural appropriation comes with a racism policy. The irony is unreal.🎭🙃
Harini Srinivasan retweeted
Namit Malhotra’s Ramayana already seems to have several issues, but the song “Main Ram” might be the most glaring one. 😭
The song and its lyrics show that the director, writer, producer, and even Ranbir Kapoor haven’t understood the character of Prabhu Shri Ram.
How do you make a film about Bhagwan Ram without understanding the very essence of his character?
“Ab tak sab saha, kuch bhi na kaha, par ab na sahunga ye.”
Is this really how you interpret Shri Ram’s character? The restraint, dignity, compassion, and righteousness that define him seem to be missing from this portrayal.
Also, the music sounds like Saiyaara. 😭😭
I genuinely hope this Ramayana doesn’t turn out to be Adipurush 2.0