Hani Amir 22/6/16 Hani Amir 22/6/16

The Dhivehi Film Industry - An analysis of Reeko Moosa's Dhanmalhi (1993) [PART ONE]

Dhanmalhi is a 1993 made for television drama which was written and directed by Reeko Moosa, who also plays the lead character. This is part one of my analysis.

Hani Amir 14/6/16 Hani Amir 14/6/16

Translations of comments from Maldivians regarding the Orlando nightclub shootings

Below are some of the comments that Maldivians posted in regards to the Orlando nightclub shooting of 2016. Translating them was an exhausting process, but I feel like it is necessary, since a lot of these sentiments are expressed in Dhivehi - a language that very few people speak and is thus very globally inaccessible. If these are the thoughts of Maldivians in regard to these horrific incidents abroad, just imagine for a moment what ill feelings they must harbour towards LGBT people from their own community. This is of course not a scientific survey or research of Maldivian attitudes and shouldn't be used or regarded as such. It is simply an insight into one of the uglier sides of Maldivian society that many non-Dhivehi speakers rarely get to see.

Hani Amir 13/3/16 Hani Amir 13/3/16

Make glitch art by data bending an image as audio using Adobe Audition - A Simple Guide

This tutorial will teach you how to data bend an image as audio data using Adobe Audition. The will allow you to add effects that are normally used for audio, such as echo and chorus etc, to an image. It will also allow you to "listen" to the raw data from the image.

The process basically goes image data -> audio data -> back to image data

Note: These steps should also work with Audacity, a great free alternative.

Hani Amir 5/3/16 Hani Amir 5/3/16

Bit of a progress report on the Sinking Streets book

Hani Amir 4/3/16 Hani Amir 4/3/16

Why Do I Write In English?

Is there an easy answer to this question? Primarily I think I speak and write in English because it has been necessary for my survival. Most people from the Maldives are bilingual because of this reason. Our language, Dhivehi, is only spoken by us. And of us there are not many.

Hani Amir 4/2/16 Hani Amir 4/2/16

Maldivians freak out over harmless gesture from Maldivian Idol contestant

The recent launch of the Maldivian version of the hit "Idol" format by TVM is one of the most significant events in Maldivian TV history. The show is by no means perfect, but it is one of the first times that Maldivians from all over the country have had a platform to show their talents. It is inspiring to see the joy on the faces of contestants who make the cut. Part of its purpose also seems to be to give the impression that the Maldives is a lot more progressive than it actually is. Probably a move by the Yameen administration to improve it's image abroad. Whatever the case, the show is commendable for sticking to it's progressive values. Predictably the backlash from the conservative crowd has already begun, with many calling to boycott the show for being "laadheenee" or irrelgious and "against Islam".

Hani Amir 3/2/16 Hani Amir 3/2/16

TVM Haze

The world has changed so much in the past few decades. The sheer amount of information we have accessible at our fingertips is sometimes hard to comprehend. If you are a person who has the privilege of internet access, the only excuse you have for your ignorance is yourself.

Hani Amir 1/2/16 Hani Amir 1/2/16

A Colourless Divide

Hani Amir 19/1/16 Hani Amir 19/1/16

Third World Democracy Simulator v0.13

Hani Amir 13/10/15 Hani Amir 13/10/15

Fear of the Dark

All the while the rushing would intensify as if heading towards some grim crescendo. As this feeling grew and I drowned in feelings of utter helplessness, so did a growing panic that something... bad.... was about to happen. This jinni, this being, was going to take my life - or worse - take my sanity and run screaming with it all the way to hell.

Hani Amir 6/10/15 Hani Amir 6/10/15

5 sociological concepts that every Maldivian should know

Hani Amir 27/9/15 Hani Amir 27/9/15

Maldives, UPR Report Consideration 2015 - Statement by Dr. Ali Naseer Mohamed

"Let me now turn to the recommendations we received from Member States. As we have stated at the UPR Working Group, for over eight hundred years, Maldivians have embraced and maintained our Islamic values. Islam forms the basis of our Constitution, and all our laws. Any efforts to introduce practices contrary to the values of Islam, will not be entertained by the people of Maldives. Of the sixty recommendations the Government has rejected, and thus taken note of, are mostly those that contradict with the Islamic faith and our Constitution. The people of Maldives, through a democratic process, have rejected freedom of religion, LGBT, and non-traditional forms of family. However, as previously stated, non-Maldivians are allowed to practicetheir own faith in private. We have also provided explanations on the recommendations in the Addendum submitted to the Council." - Dr. Ali Nazeer

What democratic process?