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The Guardian
39 minutes ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
What Kept You? by Raaza Jamshed review – an extraordinary debut full of ritual and poetry
What Kept You opens in death: fires are raging through the Sydney hills, where Jahan lives with her husband, Ali. The revelation that she is grieving her nani's death follows shortly afterwards and, a beat later, we learn she has recently suffered a miscarriage. In the early pages of her extraordinary debut, Raaza Jamshed warns the reader this is not a story of clean endings and tidy miracles. This is a novel full of ritual and poetry. A type of witchcraft, and of healing. 'Perhaps, that's what I'm trying to do here – to build a staircase out of words, to climb towards you to the sky or descend into the grave and lie down beside you,' Jahan writes of her nani. This is a novel that sits comfortably in the grey areas between the literal and the figurative; between overcoming grief and being overcome by it. It exists between two worlds – not unlike Jahan herself, who grew up in Pakistan, raised by her nani, before fleeing, as a young adult, to Sydney. In Pakistan, Jahan's nani kept a watchful eye on her, mapping out the shadowy motivations of the world around them through story and superstition. But as an adolescent, Jahan begins to rebel against the stories she has been told, wanting, as all young people do, to find her own narrative, and her defiance brings her closer to danger. Her recollections start to form a second narrative: we begin to learn the reason she couldn't stay in Pakistan, and the night she did something that has haunted her in the years since. Jahan tries to find herself between the stories of her mother, who believed in the predictable arcs of conventional romance, and those of her nani, who spoke of dark things hiding in the shadows. She struggles to identify with either. This disconnect is amplified by her life in Australia, a country where she both belongs and doesn't, where she has found a friend and a husband who accept her but never seem to fully understand her. There's a sense that everyone in this story holds themselves at arm's-length from each other, preventing true intimacies, although their relationships are underpinned by genuine care and concern. Sign up for our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend, every Saturday morning In first-person narration, Jahan addresses her nani throughout. Early on, a facilitator at a grief circle tells her to write for 14 days to a person with whom she has unfinished business: 'You write and write and write. And when you're done, you don't back-read the letter. You burn it.' And even though this seems to fly in the face of her nani's belief in the power of stories spoken aloud and shared, the idea takes root in Jahan. There is a sense across the novel's 15 chapters that we are reading her response to the writing assignment, as she processes the unfinished business she had hoped to leave in Pakistan; the business that keeps her from returning to visit her nani, even upon her death. Alternating between her recollection of the past and the immediate crisis in the present, these chapters are in part a confession and in part Jahan's attempt to gain control over her own story. Jamshed peppers her text with Urdu and Arabic phrases. She leans into the slippage of words, delighting in the poetry and double meanings found in translation. For example, Shamshad (nani's name) 'implicates itself in the English 'shame' in the first half but swiftly escapes it in the Urdu 'happiness' of the second'. The pleasure for the reader is twofold: Jamshed's expression is a joy to read, treading carefully between poetry and prose; and thematically, the careful unpacking of words and meaning adds complexity, indirectly critiquing the loss of identity and language that occurs through the flattening process of western colonisation. Sign up to Saved for Later Catch up on the fun stuff with Guardian Australia's culture and lifestyle rundown of pop culture, trends and tips after newsletter promotion Towards the end of the novel, as the fires close in around her and Jahan nears the climax of her recollection of the past, she picks through the half lies and truths that she has told herself over the years. Finally, she lands on this: 'All I wanted to be was a girl who was not afraid.' Has she succeeded? In some ways, she has outrun the fears that kept her in place throughout her adolescence, but there is a sense that these have been replaced by something just as dark and unforgiving. What Kept You? is tightly crafted and rich in poetic metaphor, but the real satisfaction for a reader lies in its complex portrayal of grief and growing up. By rejecting either of the fixed narratives that Jahan's matriarchs have prescribed her, Jamshed imagines a space in which grief and hope might coexist. Ultimately, her question is not how to outwit fate, but how to make peace with uncertainty. What Kept You by Raaza Jamshed is out now through Giramondo ($32.95)
Indian Express
2 hours ago
- Indian Express
Solving crime: How age progression software applied to old sketch helped MBVV police nab accused after 24 years
A crucial murder case which remained unsolved since 2001was recently cracked with the use of modern facial recognition and age-progression software. The software was applied to an old sketch drawn 24 years ago. This technological intervention allowed the Mira-Bhayander and Vasai-Virar (MBVV) police to trace and arrest an absconding autorickshaw driver wanted for stabbing a passenger to death. The breakthrough came after MBVV's top officers decided to revisit pending cases involving absconding accused in serious crimes. Among them was the 2001 murder of Moharram Ali, a 56-year-old resident of Arnala Shantinagar in Virar (West). On the evening of October 14, 2001, Ali, flagged down an autorickshaw driven by the then 19-year-old Sayyed. When asked to ply the vehicle, Sayyed refused, which led to a heated altercation. Tempers flared when Sayyed suddenly produced a knife from his autorickshaw and stabbed Ali in the abdomen. The injured man was rushed to nearby Hospital but succumbed to his wounds within the hour. The Virar Police registered a murder case under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and initiated the probe. The Police identified Haroon Ali Mustaqim Sayyed, however he had immediately fled after the incident. As a result, a chargesheet was filed in his absence under section Section 299 of the Criminal Procedure Code, which allows prosecution of absconding accused. For years, efforts to locate him proved fruitless, and the case went cold. The case was revived after the top officers of the Mira-Bhayander and Vasai-Virar (MBVV) a few months ago directed its officers to prioritise tracing absconding accused booked in old serious crimes. Thereafter, MBVV's crime branch swung into action, trying to locate and interview eyewitnesses and autorickshaw drivers who were familiar with the accused. The Police discovered that Sayyed was native of Uttar Pradesh and had settled in Vasai area, using false identity, while his permanent address belonged to Kannauj. As the case was 24-years-old, to overcome the challenge posed due to probable transformation of Sayyed's facial features over the years, the probing team took help of advanced facial reconstruction software. Using old sketches of the 19-year-old suspect, the software generated progressed images coming close to Sayyed's current appearance, the probing team then travelled to Uttar Pradesh to inquire with Sayyed's relatives including his sister, who provided a mobile number linked to him. Subsequently, as per Police, they tracked his location and found that his phone was last active in Talasari, Palghar district. The Police team then arrested Sayyed at Nilkanth Industrial Estate in Vasai (East) in May, this year and during questioning, he allegedly admitted to stabbing Ali, adding that it was due to escalation of dispute over the fare for auto rickshaw. He was later produced before the local court and was sent to police custody for further probe and case against him pending before the court.
Toronto Sun
a day ago
- Politics
- Toronto Sun
Global Affairs Canada employee faces sexual assault charges
Gilal Eldien Ali is accused of sexually assaulting an Afghan woman who once worked for Canada in Afghanistan. A Global Affairs Canada employee is on trial at the Ottawa courthouse for sexual assault and other charges.. Photo by PATRICK DOYLE / THE CANADIAN PRESS The trial of a federal public servant who is accused of sexually assaulting a female Afghan who formerly worked for Canada in Afghanistan is under way. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Gilal Eldien Ali faces several charges that stem from allegations dating back to a period between 2011 and 2013 after the woman immigrated to Canada through a government program. The woman, whose identity is protected by a publication band, lived at the defendant's home at the time that most of the alleged abuse took place. Ali and the complainant met in Afghanistan when he was a civilian technical advisor working for Canadian International Development Agency in Kandahar from 2009 to 2012. Ali is now on leave from his job with Global Affairs Canada, according to CBC. The woman recounted the alleged abuse she suffered in court last week. 'He called me his sex toy, a whore and a bitch,' the Afghan woman said, according to CBC. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Ali, who is an Ottawa resident, was back in court on July 22, when Claude Désilets, a witness, testified that Ali seemed to have a parental relationship with the woman, and that she called him 'daddy Gilal' in Afghanistan. Under cross-examination, Désilets, who worked with Ali in Afghanistan, said he had heard that things were 'not going well' a few months after she had immigrated to Canada, but added that nothing pointed to her being sexually assaulted. The court heard last week that it wasn't long after the woman moved to Canada that the alleged abuse began, according to CBC. Ali is also being sued by the woman in civil court. In that lawsuit, she is seeking $1.75 million from Ali for punitive damages, mental suffering and loss of future or past economic gain, according to CBC. The Afghan woman also sued the federal government for $1 million in damages. That lawsuit was settled out of court this summer, CBC reported. The charges Ali faces include sexual assault, sexual exploitation of a young person, assault, uttering threats and extortion. The trial will resume on Sept. 16. Read More Golf Canada Toronto & GTA Ontario World
Ottawa Citizen
a day ago
- Politics
- Ottawa Citizen
Global Affairs Canada employee faces sexual assault charges
The trial of a federal public servant who is accused of sexually assaulting a female Afghan who formerly worked for Canada in Afghanistan is under way. Article content Gilal Eldien Ali faces several charges that stem from allegations dating back to a period between 2011 and 2013 after the woman immigrated to Canada through a government program. The woman, whose identity is protected by a publication band, lived at the defendant's home at the time that most of the alleged abuse took place. Article content Article content Article content Ali and the complainant met in Afghanistan when he was a civilian technical advisor working for Canadian International Development Agency in Kandahar from 2009 to 2012. Ali is now on leave from his job with Global Affairs Canada, according to CBC. Article content Article content The woman recounted the alleged abuse she suffered in court last week. Article content 'He called me his sex toy, a whore and a bitch,' the Afghan woman said, according to CBC. Article content Ali, who is an Ottawa resident, was back in court on July 22, when a witness testified that Ali seemed to have a parental relationship with the woman, and that she called him 'daddy Gilal' in Afghanistan. Article content Under cross-examination, the witness, who worked with Ali in Afghanistan, said he had heard that things were 'not going well' a few months after she had immigrated to Canada, but added that nothing pointed to her being sexually assaulted. Article content Article content The court heard last week that it wasn't long after the woman moved to Canada that the alleged abuse began, according to CBC. Article content Article content Ali is also being sued by the woman. Article content In that lawsuit, she is seeking $1.75 million from Ali for punitive damages, mental suffering and loss of future or past economic gain, according to CBC. Article content The Afghan woman also sued the federal government for $1 million in damages. That lawsuit was settled out of court this summer, CBC reported. Article content Article content Article content
The Hindu
a day ago
- Business
- The Hindu
Construction of LuLu mega shopping mall in Visakhapatnam will begin soon, says its CMD Yousuff Ali
LuLu International CMD M.A. Yousuff Ali said at the Investopia-CII meet organised here on Wednesday that the UAE-based multinational business conglomerate would soon begin the construction of a mega shopping mall in Visakhapatnam that would provide employment to 5,000 to 8,000 persons. The LuLu mall in Cochin, which was India's biggest, employed 8,230 persons. The company would soon start a food processing plant and a hypermarket in Vijayawada. Similar hypermarkets were planned in other cities in Andhra Pradesh, Mr. Ali said, observing that these projects would bring in the much-needed foreign exchange and generate employment. Mr. Ali said Andhra Pradesh was achieving commendable progress with each passing day, and that the LuLu Group was happy to be again associated with the State government, while recalling that the construction of the shopping mall in Visakhapatnam did not fructify earlier for reasons beyond his control. As far as the proposed food processing plant in Vijayawada was concerned, Mr. Ali said the area had abundant raw materials, and the facility would help the company in ensuring uninterrupted supply of that material to its 38 food processing plants located around the world. Currently, LuLu was exporting a huge quantity of vegetables and fruits from Andhra Pradesh.
