THE MERCURIAN TIMES

Let’s laugh in whispers  for the world shouldn’t know that we’re together And when the sun sets a darker shade of purple let’s fade a little into forever  let’s run on sands  that take us nowhere  we’ll reach where we’ve wanted to be all along  let’s paint our hearts a little darker  so that they don’t resemble the broken ones  let’s call this night our own and pretend that we’ve been here before so when the silence hits  and the hush takes over  we’ll probably know where to go  let’s scream with our footsteps  that are a bit too chained  so that when the cage breaks  we’ll not call it home  let’s be the music that we’ve never heard  and change the lyrics  to call them hope  let’s strum our heartbeats  a little faster  sit on the stars  and run after the moon  let’s count the breaths ...

A beautiful phase it was,  So beautiful  That it felt like magic all around.  Yesss, Childhood is the most beautiful and exciting phase of anyone's life. But what made it this perfect? The answer is obvious - 'CARTOONS'  Remember when we were cute little toddlers, what did we do all day long?  We just watched cartoons and had the time of our life.  Oswald, Noddy, Bob the Builder, the mere reference of these brings back so many memories.  Not only these cartoons were funny, they helped us to get to know the society at an early age. Watching them always proved to be fruitful!  Remember the theme song of 'Bob the Builder' -  "Bob The Builder, Karkedikhaengae" These cartoons inspired children, motivated them to dream big and then achieve those dreams.  The value of honesty, hardwork and good habits-this is what all was shown in the cartoons of our times! They had a charm of their own.  But present day cart...

What is society? Society is me. Society is you. It is something that consumes humans. It is judgemental. It is frail.  We cannot ignore it or run away from it. Each society dictates the practices, habits , efforts and doings of individuals. The way that a person talks, dresses and thinks is largely controlled by society. Who gave the power to make such decisions to society? The answer is simple: Humans themselves. What basis lies behind its judgements? More importantly, should we follow everything that society says? She has a deeper skin tone and scars so she is not beautiful. Are people with deep complexions or scars inferior to fir toned people in any way? She cannot be an actress because she is plump. Does this maker unappealing? It does not. These days all we seem to care about is projection. Be it projecting outwardly or projecting the superficial. Our body is and example. The amount of efforts we make to lose those extra kilos is ridiculous: following spec...

GOOGLE LOSES 6 YEAR-OLD TAX BATTLE Taxes are one of the rooted sources of revenue for a country and corporate taxes play a vital role. Multinationals tend to be more profitable than the domestic firms, implying that MNCs should also pay higher taxes. But that does not always happen. Who likes to give a considerable part of their earnings as tax? That is when tax evasions comes in picture.  One such six year-old tax battle was settled on Tuesday, bringing bad news for the world's favourite search engine, when the Indian tax office gained an upper hand with Google India in a ruling that would set a precedence for some of the other multinational companies. The rift owes its origin to the flow of funds between Google India and Google Ireland in the name of advertisement revenue. When the income-tax department in Bengaluru noticed that for years Google India had been routinely remitting a chunk of the advertisement revenue generated from India to Google Ireland, it put a...

There is a familiar feeling surfacing inside each of us right now. A feeling of joy which envelops us all, each year, around this time. Suddenly our mothers are over interested in the cleanliness of the home, and dad keeps suggesting certain rooms in the home that can be white washed. I don’t know about you, but when these conversations start up in my home, it’s when I know that it’s time for the favorite festival of millions of Indians around the globe, Its DIWALI. Diwali, the Indian festival of lights, falls on the day of 'Amavasyaa', when the moon does not rise and there is darkness all around. Light, a symbol of hope and positive energy, is spread by all of us in each corner of our premises, to destroy the reign of darkness, on the night of Diwali. The festival of Diwali is celebrated by people of a number of cultures, to mark different historical events and stories. The most commonly known Hindu story being the return of Lord Rama to his home after 14 years. All the...

Diwali, an ode to hope, happiness and homecoming. A festival that brings the entire nation together where about 1.3 billion people celebrate it by lightening diyas, making scrumptious food and bursting firecrackers. Oh! Wait. Did I just mention ‘Firecrackers’? Well, as the word has become a little sensitive nowadays, you need to be cautious before commenting on anything related to it. On October 9, merely ten days ahead of Diwali, The apex court of the country sent shockwaves throughout the capital city by reinstating the November 11, 2016 ban on sale of firecrackers in Delhi-NCR to be in effect till Nov 1. Thus, provoking mixed reactions from across the nation. Twitter witnessed a number of reactions; some applauding the judgement while others were seen giving it a communal colour.    The court’s order has significantly split people around the nation. While those concerned with Delhi’s deteriorating air condition and its rampant effects on the health of the citizens have ...

You may feel the world is putting you down, Making it hard for you to get out But what you need to remember is you’re gonna be okay, If not today or tomorrow then one day. Sometimes things may not turn out to be your way, All your plans and efforts may seem like a waste, And when you feel like you’re starting to give up, Just remember to keep your head high and chin up. A smile, a laugh, a hug, a phone call, They make a huge difference even though might seem small, The glimmer in your eyes will return You will achieve, what you yearn So today, what i want to say, Is one day all will be okay. Everything around you will be perfectly fine, And you will also have someone to call “mine”   Then all you went through will seem worth it, Trust me, keep working you will get it, Till then just take life one day at a time, Take a deep breath, and keep going, it’ll all be fine - Neeti Oberoi

  Lush green Campus? Oh yeah! Wonderful Fests? Yes, of course! Hot shot students? So are they! Jealous Relatives? Haha, from the very 1st day! But DU is not limited to this. It has a lot more in treasure. Well yeah, the very tag of DU is enough to make all your friends get burnt. But we have earned this, haven't we? So it's a common belief that once you enter this university, you need not do anything. Just chill and enjoy! But ask the first years, how the opposite appears on the scene. So many assignments,presentations and internal tests. Yes, we too have to give them. And score pretty well as well. Else, the so called elite group doesn't take us into acceptance. Though you might get into DU based only on academics, you will definitely not be able to survive only on studies.  The various societies from dance, music, theatre, to Enactus and E-cell meetings, all keep you very busy. The DU life does have ongoing fests of different colleges and differe...

  Being someone who was fortunate enough never to be tattered into bits and pieces during a metro ride, travelling was a big challenge for me. I had managed to evade this situation for the 18 years of my life by:   1   cancelling all invites faking sicknes s, clothless-ness (still pledging Oxford to add it in dictionary), fatigue and my personal favourite, ignorance.   2   And for the ones nearby, I was never willing enough to dress up and show up.  I always hoped that there would be a ‘zombie themed invites’ so that I never have to get ready and present my real self (Hello, it's a joke, obviously!).                                                Now that I could no longer escape it as it would get me really close to getting debarred, I decided to opt for metro because driving 18 kilometres daily after ramming int...