“Look Dad, I made a temple with LEGO, just like the one I visited with Ma!”

“Don’t make a temple dear. Construct a mosque.”

“But why? Why not a temple?”

Statues of women at the women’s museum in Bonn, Germany

Bonn is a culturally diverse city and one that appreciates the arts. I happened to visit the women’s museum in Bonn and was pleasantly surprised to see the wonderful installations on display there.

Angela Merkel speaking at a political rally in Bonn

A pragmatic persona and a confident, unswerving approach towards the people of her nation is an important element of her success. She is counted among the most influential women of the world and is serving her second term as Germany’s chancellor. Angela Merkel is known for her confident speeches and the power to defend herself. She wears a broad smile on her face and half of her job to motivate her people is done.

In the tube in Bonn, Germany

Women empowerment is about many things. The right to education, the right to work, the right to making choices, but ever since I’ve come to Bonn, I’ve been thinking of one factor that could contribute to  making women more independent.

A large proportion of working women in Pakistan find it tough to juggle between values at home and at work, women head only 12% of the largest NGOs in the US and 27% in the UK, Pashtun poetry has long been a form of rebellion for Afghan women  and the gang rape of a woman journalist in India’s financial capital has triggered street protests. Read more to find out about women in the news.

Music is an integral part of many people’s lives. It knows no boundaries. It is felt by people of every religion, culture and ethnicity. A new entrant in the field of music, Sidj has given a new meaning to the way music can be perceived. As an independent singer-composer and song writer, Sidj uses music as a catalyst for friendship.