Durga Shakti Nagpal, a young officer in the Indian Administrative Services (IAS), was suspended by the government of Uttar Pradesh in north India on July 27. She was accused of risking communal tension by ordering the demolition of the wall of a mosque being built illegally on government land at a village in Greater Noida, close to India’s capital, New Delhi. Amid allegations that she was punished for going after the state’s powerful sand mafia, the president of India’s ruling Congress party, Sonia Gandhi, asked the Prime Minister to ensure that the officer was not unfairly treated.

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As an Indian living in Germany, I try to hold on to as much “Indian-ness” I can possibly get. During one of my efforts to try and stay in tune with India, I went to a Bollywood dance workshop in Cologne. My curiosity grew when I found out that a German woman was conducting the workshop.

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Which themes made it to the headlines in South Asia this week? What books and films on women are making it big? Click on this blog to find out more and let us know if you think we missed out on some theme you think is really important.

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A Pakistani TV programme gives away orphaned babies, a team of young women from India take the third place in a football competition in Spain and violence against civilians has increased in Afghanistan, the main targets being women and children. Read on to know which South Asian women’s themes made it to the headlines in the last few days.

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Rajasthan is a western Indian state along India’s border with Pakistan. The state is known in the western world for its Maharajas and exotic palaces, but now residents in a small village are determined to get famous- with a little bit of help from Andrea Thumshirn.

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16-year-old Malala may be a heroine in her own right, having survived an attack by the Taliban. However, people in her country think there is a huge hype around her created by the local media. Afghanistan’s parliament is scheduled to discuss a law which will protect men who have committed crimes against women and bar dancers in Mumbai are getting back their jobs.

Find out which women’s themes made it to the headlines in South Asia.

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In newspapers there is a section called “personal ads.” When I was younger, I remember reading these personal ads, hiding from my mother since the content was explicit. Now, 25 years later, the language is the same: “Groom needed for a fair, pretty Muslim/Hindu girl,” or “A pretty fair bride needed for a businessman.” I wonder, even after so many years, why do women still have to be fair and pretty to be eligible for marriage?

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