I first read Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis the year I turned fourteen. I’m sure, at that age, a lot of her prose had gone over my head; rich musings which described intricate political theory were as understandable to me as a foreign language. Her accompanying black and white illustrations of a childhood and early adulthood spent in post-Islamic Revolution Tehran had stood out to me the most – a powerful amalgamation of religious conflict, gender politics and punk music. I rev

The beginning of May heralds many celebrations. May Day, Early Bank Holiday, spring finally rearing its head (as much as it can in English weather, anyway). Yet perhaps the most prominent event for netizens and socialites alike is the Met Gala, a fundraiser and fashion event held in New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art on the first Monday of May. This year, the 4th of May saw celebrities strut across a garden-like carpet dressed in reference to this year’s theme: ‘Fashion is

Elon Musk seemed to be omnipresent a year ago. 2025 was swathed in a succession of Musk's political undertakings, his name part of the furniture of the headlines. January saw him salute in a way akin to the Nazis at the inauguration of Donald Trump, February his awkward wielding of a chainsaw at CPAC and the painful declaration that he had, quote, “become meme”. His role as leader of DOGE resulted in immense pitfalls for federal agencies and slashing of government jobs, as we

Last week, India’s Supreme Court rejected a repeat petition for 2-3 days of monthly menstrual leave for female workers and students. Lawyer Shailendra Mani Tripathi had previously filed it in February 2023 and July 2024, and the most recent rejection was filed by Justices Surya Kant and Joymala Bagchi. They had based their decision on the assumption that, if menstrual leave was put into effect, women would face increased barriers in the workplace. Kant stated that women who

In the late hours of the 6 th of February, Donald Trump posted a bizarre, AI generated video that depicted his political opponents as animals on Truth Social. The now-deleted clip had the faces of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez superimposed onto jungle animals, whilst The Lion Sleeps Tonight blared in the background. Amongst them, former President Joe Biden took the form of a mon