April 2025: Monthly roundup
Summer's here
April. The month of blooming flowers, gentle breezes, and—oh wait, no. This April slapped us across the face with a heatwave like a grumpy sun god.
To my dear Lighter Side readers (all 2,817 of you in the Northern Hemisphere, because apparently the South Pole doesn’t get newsletters): this year, April skipped “pleasant” and went straight to “open-air sauna.” While you were frantically cranking your AC to “arctic blast” and googling “Can humans hibernate?”, here’s what else happened in April 2025:
AI was back in the news. No surprises. ChatGPT launched a Studio Ghibli filter that took the world by storm. Everybody and his brother wanted to create a profile picture of themselves the way Miyazaki would have sketched it. I wasn’t very kicked about this filter, because
a) Nobody asked Miyazaki for permission to use any of his pictures to train the data, and
b) same as a).
If you are hearing the word Studio Ghibli and Miyazaki for the first time, worry not, I have you covered. I wrote about this in a detailed piece earlier. This should tell you all about why you should agree with me and get thoroughly annoyed at ChatGPT.
The 'Studio Ghibli' AI filter is a disgrace
In 2016, a smart TV entered our living room. Suddenly, I could watch any movie or TV series I wanted. I could play, pause, and resume whenever I chose. As I scrolled through the options, an animation movie called My Neighbour Totoro appeared on Amazon Prime. Feeling adventurous, I pressed ‘Play’. The film showed two little girls, aged 10 and 4, flitting…
Elon Musk was in the news (when is he ever not?). But this time for the wrong reasons (isn’t that almost always true?). When the war in Ukraine began and Russia destroyed Ukraine’s internet infrastructure, Musk came to their rescue. His company Starlink’s satellites offered internet coverage to Ukraine.
Two years later, Musk got into one of his moods. He recently threatened to turn off Starlink’s coverage in Ukraine. European and Ukrainian leaders went scratching their heads looking for alternatives, but found none as good as Musk’s. Europe has found itself in a rather uncomfortable place - Musk is both their friend and enemy.
Elon Musk: Europe’s Frenemy
Ukraine’s military leader Oleksandr Syrskyi looked annoyed. Also angry. And deeply frustrated. Elon Musk, the owner of Starlink, had just threatened to cut off Ukraine’s internet. Ukraine’s soldiers would be devastated, Musk had declared.
Pope Francis passed away. He wasn’t one of those popes that gave long sermons and hung out with billionaires. He was a man who had no problems telling the rich that they were wasting too much and causing the earth to pile up in filth (yes, he said that). He also met indigenous tribes who had been wronged by the Catholic Church more than a century ago, and apologised for their deeds. He tried knocking sense into the heads of political leaders to create laws that were more sympathetic to the refugees. He politely reminded them that the refugees were fleeing war zones, where the wars were often started by the rich countries. This is a post contains multiple stories about this wonderful man.
Pope Francis: the saint who broke many rules
Joseph Merrick was born with a very large skull. His chin stuck out to the side, pulling his mouth down. Half of his face was covered in thick, bumpy skin. To many, he looked like a "monster."
Greenland and its sled dogs were also in the news. A scientist who often visits the country for research, took a photo of a team of sled dogs wading through knee-deep water. He shared it on Instagram. The internet went bonkers admiring the landscape. The scientist though, found something scary about the photo. 12-year old Darsh joined me on a podcast episode to find out exactly what was scary in this photo.
Darjeeling Zoo was in the news recently. The zoo has opened a new center inside the zoo, to protect wildlife. But there aren’t any animals or birds or even plants in it. It contains the secrets that we will need to revive any species that goes extinct. 13-year old Sathwik joined me in a podcast episode and solved the riddle of what this fascinating new center contains. Hint: it is the first of its kind in India.
Book review this month - Immortals of Meluha
This is the first of a three-part book series based on Lord Shiva. It’s been a big success both amongst young readers and adults readers (don’t we love mythology stories!). Four kids joined me on a podcast episode and shared their views on whether it is okay for authors to take mythological stories and change them. Why do some people get annoyed when myths are tweaked? If you want to find out if this book is for you, best to hear about it from the horse’s mouth.
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