Daily Briefing: Post-tariff anxiety; India's ‘dead' economy; Dhadak 2 movie review

Indian Express

2 days ago

Good morning,
Sydney Sweeney's ad is selling 'great jeans,' or maybe, reinforcing just the same-old 'tired, recurring trope' of sexualised women selling products ranging from cars to mango juice. Highlighting the commodification of Sweeney's sexuality in American Eagle's latest campaign, my colleague Sonal Gupta, in our latest Fresh Take column, shares why we need change. 'Critics argue that casting a blue-eyed, blonde, conventionally attractive white woman while referencing 'great genes' inadvertently echoes eugenics — the discredited pseudo-scientific belief in racial and genetic superiority.'
With that, let's move on the top 5 stories from today's edition:
🚨 Big Story
Hailing India's decision of not buying oil from Russia as a 'good step', United States President Donald Trump Saturday said that he wasn't sure of the development. His comments come a day after Trump unveiled sweeping new tariffs on dozens of countries including 25 per cent for goods from India. Moreover, Trump also mounted a sharp attack on India and Russia for their close ties and said that the two countries can take their 'dead economies down together.'
'A diplomatic challenge': A day earlier, Trump's remarks were met with diplomatic pragmatism from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). Underlining that the India-US partnership has 'weathered several transitions and challenges,' the MEA said that New Delhi will remain 'focused on the substantive agenda' even as it flagged that its friendship with Russia was 'time-tested.' Trump's comments sever Delhi's diplomatic challenge at a time India and the US are negotiating a bilateral trade deal.
'Setback': Amid Trump's higher tariffs imposed in India, domestic apparel exporters have expressed concern and sought government intervention to 'offset this huge setback.' The Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI), Delhi based-industry chambers of the textile and clothing sector, said that the latest US tariff announcement has added to the challenges that India's textile and apparel exporters were already grappling with.
A 'veiled jibe': Earlier on Thursday, Trump's announcement that Americans will work with Pakistan to develop the latter's 'massive' oil reserves, came as a bit of a surprise, as Pakistan is not exactly a country synonymous with oil exploration and production. However, Trump said that 'maybe' Pakistan will be 'selling oil to India some day', a remark interpreted as a veiled jibe in New Delhi over heavy imports of Russian oil, which has emerged as an irritant relationship between India and US. Does Pakistan possess these massive oil reserves? We delve deeper.
⚡ Only in Express
'Pushed back': Thousands of migrant workers from West Bengal have, over the last few months, been detained and pushed into the neighboring country as part of an ongoing drive against illegal Bangladeshis. It's the Bengali-speaking migrant workers in cities such as Gurgaon, Assam, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Mumbai and Odisha, who have borne the brunt, with some of them packing their bags and returning to their home state. Here's an account of these migrant workers being 'pushed back' from parts of the country.
💡 Express Explained
'Dead economy?': Trump's sharp attack on India and Russia for their close ties led him to significantly remark that the two countries can take their 'dead economies down together.' The Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, agreeing with the US President's remarks, called it a 'fact.' Meanwhile, Union Minister of Commerce & Industry Piyush Goyal pushed back, saying that India had rapidly transformed from being one of the 'fragile five' to the fastest growing major economy in the world in just over a decade. Is India's economy really 'dead'? We unpack.
✍️ Express Opinion
In our Opinion section today, S Y Quraishi delves into PM Modi's declaration of Indian democracy predating Magna Carta as an invocation of the 'truth that has too often been forgotten.' Calling it 'timely' and 'necessary,' Quraishi writes: 'At a moment when democracy across the world is under pressure — from authoritarian populism, money power, disinformation, and shrinking civic space — it is vital to remind ourselves that India's democracy is not a borrowed robe. It is rooted in indigenous traditions of collective decision-making, anchored in values of ethics, equity, and participation.'
🍿 Movie Review
Wondering what to watch this weekend? Well, we've got you covered! Shazia Iqbal's 'Dhadak 2' has hit the theatres, bringing you a young love story, set against the political depths of discrimination in India. Shubhra Gupta, in her review, writes: 'This is a film which is clearly on the right side of many of the hot button issues we need to be pressing: casteism, classism, feminism, gender identities. While at it, you can see an awareness of the wrongs and injustices which have made, and continue to make headlines.'
That's all for today. Have a lovely weekend!
Until next time,
Ariba