Writer, Editor
I live in a Himalayan village. Today, I woke up to a mountain dog chewing my shoes and pulling the strings of my bamboo chair. He was glad I was up early. He wanted to take me out to show me his friends in the valley.
Quillette / September 2017
Years ago, I worked for a magazine in Delhi. I wanted to live near the magazine office, but the rent was too damn high. In a low-rent area nearby, I rented a dingy room my girlfriend named “The Black Hole.”
Foundation For Economic Education / July 2016
If the admirers of democracy were honest, they would have rejoiced when a tea-seller becomes the Prime Minister. If they were consistent, they would have considered this the logical end result of democratic politics. But, they do not.
Daily News And Analysis / May 2014
Many decades from now, my most vivid memories of elections in my youth will be that of the indelible ink mark on the fingers of conscientious people littering my Facebook newsfeed.
Daily News And Analysis / May 2014
Farming is considered a patriotic enterprise, and nearly half of India’s labour force is engaged in agriculture and allied activities. Almost everyone believes that in the election season, political parties should pledge to aid this patriotic endeavor.
Daily News And Analysis / May 2014
During the school elections, candidates distributed notebook labels and similar “gifts” among younger children. When the catholic nuns found out, we were asked to hand over those goodies.
Daily News And Analysis / April 2014
When an auto rickshaw driver in Karnataka ferried people to the polling booths for free on the Election Day, the media called him a great philanthropist. But, is it self-evident that it is a virtue to vote?
Daily News And Analysis / April 2014
Critics of Manmohan Singh tend to believe he is a neo-liberal economist, but this is, of course, nonsense. The term ‘neo-liberal’ is often an epithet hurled by their anti-capitalistic critics at the proponents of the market economy in India.
Daily News And Analysis / April 2014
Babies are deeply idealistic about love, because their prospects of mating are quite low on the probability scale. The voters who mock Manmohan Singh for being a wimp are in the position of the babies who hold others to such highly scrupulous standards.
Daily News And Analysis / April 2014
Much as they rant against politicians, the Indian public expects too much of them. They have now set down Arvind Kejriwal as a liar and a fraud after he was found persuading a television interviewer to avoid questions about the corporate sector.
Daily News And Analysis / March 2014
Today, the most valuable of all possessions that a young man can have is the intellectual equipment with which he is born. If God had sent him to earth marking his place at the top of the IQ pyramid, he should count his blessings.
Daily News And Analysis / March 2014
It is hard to think of a popular policy that is not intended at lowering the status of such enemy groups, and raising the status of the in-groups. If you think that the “well-intentioned” redistribution schemes are any different, you are fooling yourself.
India.Com / March 2014
If Howard Roark were an architect in India, he would have been lynched by the mob. In a country where humility is considered the fundamental moral virtue, they would have sent this man to a lunatic asylum, to see to it that he is salted away..........
The Freeman / March 2014
Many believe that with higher internet penetration, the demand for online education will grow radically in India. Some even believe that the traditional university system might not survive for long.
Business Standard / March 2013
Many believe that Indian businessmen have cash registers for hearts. Their philanthropic contributions are believed to be insignificant in comparison to their wealth.
Business Standard / April 2013
In its World Economic Outlook, the IMF said that after the ongoing “great recession”, central banks should rethink their position on inflation targeting.
Business Standard / April 2013
In Kerala, the state which has the highest development indicators in India, the amount allocated for health care in the 2012-13 budget is only 0.99 per cent of the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP).
Business Standard / March 2013
Mencken knew that of all the delusions that are close to the heart of men, the most pathetic is their belief that they are intellectually superior to women.
Business Standard / January 2013
When a Nigerian gifts us his estate over email, we tell him: “Thanks, but no thanks!” We know that there are no such easy solutions to our personal woes.
Business Standard / January 2013
Robert Greene thinks intelligence is the most sensitive trigger point for envy. A sensible man would regard this “insight” somewhat suspiciously, because intelligence is also his greatest strength.
Business Standard / January 2013
There were times when brawn mattered more than brain. In the battle between nerds and jocks, jocks always had the last laugh. But the second half of the 20th century witnessed the rise of nerds.
Business Standard / January 2013
Cyn-Young Park is assistant chief economist of the Asian Development Bank. She has written widely on the economies and the financial markets of Asia.
Business Standard / December 2012
Avinash Dixit, John J. F. Sherrerd '52 University Professor of Economics at Princeton University is a pioneer of game theory, and a major influence behind the Nobel Laureate Paul Krugman’s acclaimed work on International trade.
Business Standard / December 2012
Tyler Cowen is a professor of economics at George Mason University. He was among the “Top 100 Global Thinkers” of the Foreign policy magazine in 2011. Bloomberg Businessweek named him America’s hottest economist.
Business Standard / December 2012
Kerala is the most “socially developed” Indian state. It is also the state where mothers used to tuck their children into bed whispering the punishment for bed-time resistance.
Open Magazine / September 2012
When I decided to give the job a shot, I had little idea what was in store for me. I had believed that think-tanks engage in research and policy advocacy.
Open Magazine / July 2012
Here are some of the other writers who are using porterfolio right now.