Whenever someone talks about their articles being rejected by newspapers or magazines, I tell them that I call this a God given time, the time to prepare for bigger opportunities. I have lived long enough to know that rejection is not the end of the road; it is often the…
Robert Clements is a journalist and newspaper columnist. With an estimated 6 million readership, his column, Bob’s Banter is published in over 30 newspapers and magazines in nearly every state in India, as well as in the top newspapers of Bangladesh, London and Dubai and is also translated into Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu.
Jungle Raj and Bihar..!
Again and again, I hear the term “jungle raj” being tossed about like a rotten tomato at a fair, hurled by those in power at the previous rulers of Bihar. Apparently, during Lalu’s time, it was jungle raj — lawlessness, chaos, crime, and the collapse of governance. But forgive me…
Stampedes and the Police..!
It happens again. People gather to celebrate, to pray, to watch, or to cheer, and before the sun sets, screams fill the air, sandals lie scattered, and bodies are heaped together. Another stampede. Another tragedy. And yes, another round of blame. The organisers are blamed, the party in power is…
My Harmonica and Our Country..!
My wife gifted me a harmonica for my birthday. Not because she thought I needed a new hobby, but because she had not heard me play for a long time. I had a few harmonicas already, but they had been lent out to my grandchildren, who, after producing sounds that…
Your 127 Runs..!
Yesterday, I wrote about Jemima Rodrigues and her unbeaten hundred and twenty-seven runs that took India to the World Cup final. The column drew a flood of responses, and nearly every reader spoke about how humble she was, how touching it was to see a young player publicly thank her…
Batting for God..!
Was watching the interview of Jemima Rodrigues who with an unbeaten 127 runs against the mighty Australians, steered the Indian women’s cricket team into the World Cup final. There she stood, tears cruising down her tired face, and instead of boasting about her shots or her timing, she kept repeating…
You, Me, and Police Encounters..!
Fifteen thousand encounters since 2017! Can you imagine that? Fifteen thousand men and women shot dead in so-called “encounters,” and two hundred and fifty six “hardened criminals” eliminated in just one state. I say “hardened criminals” in quotes because what seems truly hardened today is not the criminal, but the…
Political Leaders and Their Pics..!
Every morning I open the newspaper, and what greets me? The smiling, smirking, sneering faces of our political leaders. I go for a walk, and there they are on giant billboards. They are there in advertisements for roads, in government schemes, even on electricity bills. Sometimes I wonder whether I…
Compensation for Wrongful Conviction..!
I once met a man who had spent ten years in jail for a crime he never committed. When he came out, his hair was grey, his eyes empty, and his soul crushed. He had lost not just ten years, but a lifetime of chances. His wife had remarried, his…
Public Spaces, Private Fear..!
They were just two young women, Australian cricketers, guests of our nation, here to play the game we love more than we sometimes love our women. And yet, as they walked to a café, a man on a motorbike came close enough to touch, grope, and ride away laughing. Within…
Robert Clements is a newspaper columnist and writes a daily column, which has graced the pages of over 60 newspapers and magazines, from a daily column in the Khaleej Times, Dubai, the Morning Star, London, and in nearly every state in India, from The Statesman in Kolkata, to the Kashmir Times in Kashmir to the Trinity Mirror in Chennai.