Human Times, Bangalore (2026)

08/04/2020

RePosted • “When we first met, the energy between us was magnetic. Our goals were uncannily similar & we discovered we’re both suckers for fashion, food & travelling. Before we knew it, we were heading to town for pizza!
Abu was struggling with 2 jobs, so I offered to help -- that marked the start of our journey of creativity & friendship. We fit like puzzle pieces -- he was the quiet one & I, the loud extrovert! But our differences made us balance each other out.
Once, we presented 80 designs to a family -- it was our first big initiative together. But our clients insulted our designs! I couldn’t take it. I got up & said, ‘Abu, they know nothing about fashion. Let’s leave.’ Abu was shocked, but then followed me out.
We genuinely believed in our work, so we were blunt, but that’s what kept us going. Abu sometimes tells me to calm down after such outbursts. Once, before a show, the front seats were filled with complete randos! I was furious & blew up at my team & only Abu could calm me down. But the best part is, we respect & understand each other. Once we were invited to a party, but the host pressured us to dress in a certain way. Before I’d met Abu, I’d have attended the party -- but Abu wasn’t comfortable, so we decided not to. Like this, we helped each other prioritise our happiness.
I think that’s what makes us best friends & successful business partners -- we’re 2 parts of a whole. Abu is a born artist & sketches like a dream. I don’t -- my art happens in my head. On the other hand, I’m the communicator & the one who pushes. We blend so well -- the fashion we create is a combination of what Abu and I bring to the table!
And we’ve already achieved so much -- our boutique, label & many national awards -- only because we’ve created something together. Now, our dream is to expand internationally & live on a Goan beach. I can’t imagine a future where Abu’s not in the picture -- because a friendship like this comes by only once in a lifetime; you must cherish it.”
--
HOB with brings to you stories of those whose individuality has taken center stage, because of their choices and the path they’ve taken with pride.

08/04/2020

RePosted • “I sent both my sons to live with my sister when I found out that I was going to be on duty for COVID-19 patients. It had to be done– I couldn’t risk infecting them. When I said ‘bye’ to my husband as I left for hospital, I didn’t realise that it would be days until I saw him. Apart from being scared of infecting our families, us nurses realised there were so many patients, that it was best to stay at the hospital– it’s been 10 days since I last saw my husband. ⁣
I honestly don’t know how he’s managing; what he’s eating because I barely get the time to think about anything.⁣
It’s been tough. We’re dealing with so many patients; which we do with a smile, but sometimes we have to face disheartening situations. Just the other day, a patient who’s the head chef at a restaurant threw the food we served him & started screaming– ‘your cook doesn’t know how to cook, what have you served me? This is terrible!’ ⁣
I didn’t know what to say–I know they’re not 5 star meals, but we’re doing our best. & there are people who are thankful for that– recently, I was counselling an old man who had a headache. He was worried sick that he had the virus, even though he had tested negative. I calmed him down until he realised that he had a headache because he was stressed! He thanked me profusely after. ⁣
& we do this everyday–it’s been days since we’ve seen our families. We find solace in each other during our lunch breaks, but yesterday one nurse started crying because she missed feeding her baby. I miss my family too. Still, we must stay strong. ⁣
When I went home last, I was welcomed into my society with cheers, but after that things have gotten worse. A colleague of mine wasn’t allowed to enter his society, because they feared he was infected– we all felt terrible; it felt like a thankless job at the time. ⁣
Still, that colleague was back to work with full vigor, because that’s what we do. We’re trying to keep morale high by talking about what we’ll do once this ends. Honestly, I just want to hug my children tight – I’ve only seen them sporadically on video call & I know they’re worried. But the only way I can do that is if you continue to stay at home– pleas

07/04/2020

RePosted • "I was raised in a male dominated culture, where women weren't allowed to step out of the house; & if they did, they could only work in conventional roles such as teaching. Eager to break this mindset, I did chemical engineering–a male dominated field, & took up a job that came with unusual work hours.
I'm one of the first Female Night Shift officers in my company, managing 80 men in 2 plants. When I'd joined HUL, I was concerned about working the night shift because it's not always safe for women. But, I couldn't have been more wrong. My team was so supportive.
On my first shift, I was nervous & didn't know how they'd react to a female superior. But they encouraged me and said,‘Madam, no lady has ever done it before! If you need any help, let us know.' Once, a machine broke down & I wasn't able to figure it out. So they simply said, 'Don't worry! We're in this together.' Over the past 6 months, we've spent so much time learning & talking, that we've developed a strong rapport.
So when we had to continue working to keep the essentials running, everyone was ready! A lot of our people weren't able to come in as they lived quite far, but the rest reported to duty immediately. So to provide them the safest working environment, we set up processes.
The team is picked up by a company bus & dropped outside the factory & each worker has to sanitize himself every hour. We've given them protective gear & everything from the bus to the machines is sanitized. We're also following social distancing.
Everyone is putting in their 100%. In fact, when I asked a colleague why he comes in even though he doesn’t need to, he said, 'I'm doing this for the society & my kid–I want my baby to be born in a safe world & I'm willing to do everything I can to make it happen.' To show them our appreciation, we've even given them safety kits for their families.
The other day I overheard one of the team members telling another, 'If we back out now, we'll be facing a crisis that affects us, our kids, our families & our society. So why not help while we can?’ That’s what keeps us going–the simple fact that we’re needed & it is our privilege to serve.”

07/04/2020

“As I was walking home from work, I saw a skinny dog across the road from my house –– she had an injured spine. I checked on her and returned home, but couldn’t stop thinking about her. I went back that night to give her food. I did this for a few days, until she somehow figured out where I stayed, crossed the road and waited outside my building! You could tell by just looking at her, that she’d had a hard life— she could walk on only 3 legs, but she was still so spirited! Everyone in our building fell in love with her and we named her Choti. She’s our little darling and we’re all so protective about her– she lives at my home some days of the week and in the building on other days. ⁣
I still remember, this one time when I was returning home late. The street was empty and I was walking towards my building, when a group of bikers started whistling and literally followed me to the entrance. At that point, Rani my other stray and Choti went crazy barking to kind of alert people that I was in trouble. These men heard the commotion and rode off — just as I had rescued my dogs, they stepped up to protect me. ⁣
Through this time of lockdown, Choti who lives with us, is obviously well fed, but my heart goes out to all those strays who have no food for days. So, I’ve been doing what I can, by feeding 30-40 stray animals every single day. I just urge you all, to please think of our four legged friends and birds — they don’t have anybody but us. So the next time you go to get your groceries or your essentials, please buy some pet food and feed the strays in your area. Or else, just carry some chappatis and milk for them — they’ll be more than happy. Also, keep a bowl of water and leftovers for the birds who equally hungry.⁣
This is a time for empathy and compassion, where we show future generations what we are made of. Believe me, these animals have nothing but love to give us, lets help them when they need us now more than ever.”

06/04/2020

(6/6) “The night before the hanging, while India slept -- I was in court. After trying his luck in the lower courts, AP Singh woke up the Supreme Court at 12:00 am in a last ditch attempt to save the convicts. An emergency session had been called.
I watched as he scrambled in front of the judges. He tried using old arguments, made baseless accusations and even tried to use COVID-19 as an excuse to delay the ex*****on. At that point, I didn’t even need to fight back; the court was tired of his antics and saw through them. Finally, at 3 in the morning, the judge said, ‘It’s time for your clients to meet with God and you need to accept that AP Singh!’
But he still couldn’t accept it. Outside the courtroom, he abused Jyoti in front of the media and blamed her for the suffering of the convict’s family. He asked, ‘Pawan’s mother is handicapped, Vinay has a young son–who will look after them?’ When a journalist asked him, ‘What about Jyoti’s mother?’, he said, ‘What about her? She didn’t even know where her own daughter was that night!’ We didn’t even bother responding– he had lost the war.
At 5:30 am that same morning, as aunty, uncle and I watched the news of the hanging at Tihar jail, we hugged each other and cried. We had finally won -- Jyoti’s soul could rest in peace.
It’s strange... I’ve never even met Jyoti, but I felt attached to her as if she was my little sister. She could have grown up to do such amazing things for the world, had she survived.
We fought for over 7 years, but we still have a long way to go, because the mentality is the same. After they were hung, I began receiving threats on my social media handles. They abused me and said things like, ‘We’ll r**e you worse than Jyoti’. I don’t care about those comments, but what pains me is that ever since, I’ve received over 500 messages from women -- some send me pictures of the FIRs they’ve filed to no avail and others tell me about how they’ve been r**ed, harassed or violated without any justice. I’m going to reach out to all of them to say, ‘Hum chodenge nahi unhe’. The fight has just begun.”

06/04/2020

(5/6) “It was tough for me to even get a date in the Supreme Court–I desperately tried to get our matter heard, but in vain. The courts had a backlog of cases & I was even told that our case wouldn’t be heard before 2021–but how could this case be ignored? I made calls to advocates, aggressively pushed the registrar’s office & finally got a hearing after 1 full year.
2 years & 11 months after that; in 2017, the Supreme Court gave the same verdict–the convicts deserved to die.
But AP Singh tried everything to delay the final ex*****on. He drowned me in petitions–every time I won a round, there were 10 others that hadn’t even begun. He had found his loophole–the convicts had to be hung together or not at all. He could’ve filed petitions for all 4 of them together, but he filed each one after the previous one had been dismissed, prolonging the trial & our agony. It was a vicious cycle.
Everyday they lived was another day of justice denied. It had been 6 years by then. Why were the courts being so lenient? Hadn’t they seen the rod that still gives me nightmares? Hadn’t they heard the nation’s outrage? Or had we normalised r**e, no matter how brutal?
Justice felt distant, but I found the strength every time I went to Jyoti’s room & saw a photo of her smiling. You know, after everything the only thing she told aunty in the hospital was that she wanted to live? That she wanted to see her torturers hang & become a doctor to help others?
I kept looking at her photo & promised her I would make sure they hang–to prove that she did nothing wrong that night. That her being out at 8 pm with a male friend didn’t give them a right to r**e her & take her life.
I became relentless. I wrote to the President & PM, I questioned the delay in the media & fought in court like my life depended on it. It didn’t matter that it was my first case–for every ounce of experience that AP Singh had, I made up for it by not giving up.
Finally, 7 years, 3 death warrants & countless delays later, our efforts paid off. Justice for Jyoti would be delivered on March 20th, 2020–the 4 of them were finally going to hang. But AP Singh hadn’t given up yet–he had another trick up his sleeve.”

06/04/2020

(4/6) TRIGGER WARNING⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
“I still remember the way I felt when I saw the convicts in the High Court. I was gut-wrenched -- images of their brutality & crimes haunted my mind. But they behaved as if nothing had happened; they joked with each other & even dared to smile at aunty -- they just didn’t care. I was filled with a rage like never before. As a woman, I wanted to beat them & make them pay with my own hands for what they did. But as a lawyer, I had to put a stone on my heart & keep calm. ⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
Through a flurry of cross-examinations, witness statements & DNA testing, I saw all 4 of them lie through their teeth. Vinay & Pawan said they were at a party that night; Akshay claimed he was out of town, and Mukesh said he was just driving the bus & didn’t r**e her. ⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
The bite marks on Jyoti’s body matched Akshay’s teeth. The skin in her nails was theirs & samples of their s***m were found in her private area. I can’t put into words what I felt when they produced that rod in court. I felt like I’d faint, even imagining the pain that it would have caused her -- still, they lied & said they hadn’t seen the rod before. Their fingerprints were all over it. ⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
Even after the High Court passed the death sentence, AP Singh amped up his aggression to save the convicts. He verbally attacked judges in court, delayed the appeals to stop the case from moving forward & even insulted Jyoti’s character. I was shocked. I saw my opponent for what he was -- a prejudiced man who‘d stop at nothing. ⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
As much as his words triggered me, I knew I couldn’t flinch. I needed to understand his mindset to defeat him. So, I kept my composure no matter how much he tried to rile me up & fought with dignity. ⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
Still, justice was nowhere in sight & the matter wasn’t moving forward. As much as I tried to comfort uncle & aunty, they‘d lost hope. But I swore to them that as long as a death penalty was in the letter of the law, justice would be served. ⁣⁣⁣⁣
My fight wasn’t just for Jyoti anymore...it was for every girl in India. I was ready for anything that came my way. Even if that meant fighting my first ever case in the highest court of India – the Supreme Court.”

06/04/2020

(3/6) “The whole country became aggressive. She went through torture that we can’t even imagine -- and we all felt the pain. At that point, had any of us seen the accused, we would have shred them to pieces -- such was our frame of mind. Where we were housed, there were around 50,000 youth in and around the area -- we decided to protest. ⁣
On 22nd December, I was at the forefront of the protest at India Gate. I’d climbed a pole to tell the crowd that we needed to fight to get her treated out of the country. They sprayed water cannons on us; lathi charged us -- but we didn’t stop. I attended every protest from beginning until end. I can’t explain how I felt when we got the news that she had succumbed and lost her life. I felt so deeply connected to her that I organised a meet in her memory and invited her parents. After that, there’s rarely been a day that I haven’t spoken to aunty. I also followed the case like a hawk and attended every hearing, even though I wasn’t Jyoti’s counsel. ⁣
I made sure I was present on 7th January when they filed the chargesheet in Saket court. There were a few lawyers there who wanted to take the case of the accused -- I appealed to them on moral grounds to not take it. I knew it was illogical; the accused had to go through due process -- but I was just so angry.⁣
That’s when AP Singh jumped in and took the case of the accused, while the state provided a lawyer to defend Jyoti. Over the next year, the convicts were sentenced to death in the District Court. Still, there was no ex*****on. Months went by and aunty grew sadder with each passing day. To add to everything, when a journalist had questioned AP Singh on whether he would have taken the case, had Jyoti been his daughter -- he said, ‘If she was my daughter, I would have poured petrol on her and let her burn’. ⁣
My blood was boiling. Finally, in May 2014, when I spoke to aunty and she said to me, ‘I don’t think my daughter will get justice’. That’s when I promised her– ‘I’ll fight for Jyoti; I’ll take the case -- hum chodenge nahi unhe.’”

06/04/2020

RePosted • (2/6) “I was so excited to study further that I didn’t care about much else–I put on my worn out slippers, carried my jhola, took my brother’s cycle & went to class. I took part in everything–I gave speeches & even got chosen to captain my NCC team in Lucknow–again everyone in my village opposed. ‘She’ll go to the city & ruin our name,’ they said–but my dad supported me. I took money from my brother & without telling anyone, left for Lucknow. There, we won the competition & my name came in the paper–a small article about a village girl leading her team to victory. After that, for sometime, I was left alone.
But after my 10th, my family insisted on my marriage. I was so scared of my studies being stopped that I went on a hunger strike for 3 days! The ladke wallas heard about it, got scared of the ‘pagal ziddi ladki’ & didn’t show up to see me!
I was desperate to study. To pay for my college fees, I sold my payal & earrings & began teaching at a school. Throughout, I refused to give up.
Even in 2002, when my dad passed away & my eldest brother said, ‘Now no one will pamper you, you have to get married’, so my friend Rinky helped me get the LLB form & books. Finally, I left home.
This has been my life–taking up jobs, sometimes walking to get to class, sacrificing food & sleep–just so that I could become a lawyer.
But let me tell you, the status of women lawyers in Bombay or Delhi is different than those in smaller cities. In Kanpur, we were given no respect in courts–it was common for a woman lawyer to not get dates just because of her gender.
So eventually, I moved to Delhi where I began preparing for my UPSC exams.
I was staying in a PG, when it happened. 16th December, 2012, the day they gangr**ed her in a way no one could fathom. When we woke up to the news, there was fear & anger. 12 girls from my PG immediately left Delhi, because their parents were terrified. I was gutted. I cried uncontrollably thinking about her; about what she went through. When more details started pouring in, something in me moved. I wiped my tears. All my life, I’d fought for myself, but this wasn’t the time to sit at home & cry–it was the time to get out t

06/04/2020

(1/6) “I was born in a village called Uggarpur in UP. Until recently, if you googled it, it wouldn’t show up–that’s how remote it is. When my mom found out she was pregnant, she wanted to abort because they’d already had 3 daughters & 3 sons, but she couldn’t because we were a sufficient family.
When she had me; a girl, everyone except my dad & bua was unhappy. The elders & my mom considered killing me–‘What will we do with one more girl?, they debated. But bua & papa intervened & I got a shot at life.
Growing up, my brothers treated me like an unwanted child. Things got better eventually, but I always felt that us girls weren’t treated equally.
But dad gave me the space to grow independently–that’s why at 5, I fought to go to school which was 1 km away from my village. We had to cross a jungle to get there, but somehow 7 of us girls managed until the 8th grade.
After that, all the girls from my class dropped out–senior school was 3 kms away & no one from our village wanted to send their girls so far. ‘For what?’, they asked, ‘She’ll anyway get married soon–no point spending money & sending her so far.’ But, I was stubborn. By then dad had become the village Pradhan & I’d see city folk & MLAs visit with their educated kids. ‘Why not me?’ I asked. I’d also read books on Indira Gandhi & Rani of Jhansi & wanted to become like them. I told dad that my brother’s studies aren’t being stopped–then why mine?
Finally, my teacher Mr. Jagdish Tripathi convinced my dad–that’s how I became the first girl from my village to study beyond the 8th grade. But dad was worried about my security, because it took me 3 hours each way. He soon realised he had nothing to worry about, because when a boy tried to pass cheap comments, I beat him black & blue. A crowd gathered & that guy began apologising, but I said, ‘Mein chodungi nahi tujhe!’ Word spread. These boys would say, ‘Bahut dangerous ladki hain, usse panga mat lena, woh seedhe maarne lagti hain’. My intolerance towards patriarchy started since then, but maybe it was in my destiny to go through all of this, so that one day I could fight the most important case of my life–to get justice for Jyoti Singh Pandey… Nirbhaya.”

03/04/2020

RePosted • “When we first heard about the virus in early March, my Chairman called & said, ‘Do you know what a great opportunity this is?’ Thinking he meant business, I started discussing strategy when he cut me off & said, ‘No, I mean, to help people; to make a difference.’
Ever since, our entire organisation has come together to work towards one goal–the safety of our team & customers. Just recently, some of the finance guys were helping with sales & distribution. They went beyond their work profile & got on-field to make sure that the soaps & sanitizers reach everyone.
The entire workforce has made it their priority to serve. Last week, one of our team members, who was pregnant & quarantined before others, began distributing soaps amongst all helpers of her society with a message that there is no cure, but soaps can help in the fight.
These trying times have not only brought out the best in everyone, it’s also made us more empathetic & connected. Since our operations have moved online, we’re video calling all the time–whether it’s to make important decisions or just to check-in. Plus it helps to see each other– it makes us feel less alone & more together. I’ve even made it a point to have lunch with someone on chat–the way we would if we were in office.
It’s also been amazing to see some of our partners step up! Recently, one of our partners in Goa reached out to us with a proposition–he was ready to produce sanitizers for HUL at 50% of the cost, but only if we gave them away for free. So now we have a whole line of sanitizers called, ‘Not for sale, for donation only’. And while work goes on, I’ve also had the chance to unwind & spend some time at home. My wife & I have divided our chores & at the end of each day, one of us chooses what to watch. This time has also let me get back in touch with music–it helps boost morale!
There are days when we’re all feeling a little low; a little overwhelmed. But what keeps us going is the responsibility we want to fulfill. Because no matter what happens, everyday we’re sure of one thing–Lifebuoy soaps were first made in 1895 to save lives, & all of us; our brand will never stop working on that mission.”

02/04/2020

“Anand & I met 4 years back on campus. I was with my friends & he joined us. I instantly felt like he was my kind of person. Whenever we’d meet in the hall, we’d pass funny comments. It wasn’t long before we started making excuses to our friends for not meeting -- we wanted to hang out alone! Soon, he asked me out & I said yes!
But as our bond grew, the world seemed to be against us. Our own friends said things like, ‘He’s so dark & short, why’re you with him?.’ My own parents knew about us but were still looking for guys for me. One day, my mom told me, ‘You can do much better. He’s a different caste & not as good looking as you!’
That day, I called Anand, broke down, & told him everything. He was hurt but ignored his pain & told me, ‘They have good intentions -- they care about you. The only thing I can promise is that I’ll always keep you happy’. I never doubted us, but felt closer to him after that call. I told my mom, ‘You have two options. Either you accept us, or don’t. We’re getting married anyway’.
After that, I made my parents meet him regularly -- I knew that if I loved him, eventually my parents would too. It took 2 years to get our parents on board, but we did it because we knew it was us or nothing. Eventually, my parents loved his company & my dad & him even had inside jokes! I met his parents too & over time, everything fell into place.
Then one day, he called me home, & I reached before him. Little did I know he was out buying my ring! He knelt down & asked me to marry him -- I laughed, held him tight, & said yes. It was so us; simple and honest. And we always knew we wanted a small gathering to celebrate our love. So we had a court marriage with only our close family & friends.
It’s been nearly a year since we’ve been married & things couldn’t be better. Today, the people who said horrible things to us now tell others, ‘Look at them -- that’s how love should be’. I think being so sure about each other got us through it all -- we believed in us, & nothing & no one could rock that belief. That’s the thing, sometimes, it just takes two hopeless romantics, unabashedly in love, for everything to fall into place.”

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