From the Editors: On World Wish Day, everyone wants the pandemic to end

ONLY ONE WISH: It’s World Wish Day today and it’s safe to assume that there can be no greater wish for anyone today than for COVID-19 to halt it’s virulent grind. As the pandemic sweeps India and other parts of the globe with more ferocity than ever, everything else pales in the face of the tragic state of victims and the untold suffering of families. While those in the UAE are thankful for the state of affairs in this country, there is no doubt that they are praying as ardently as others elsewhere for the pandemic to end at the earliest. [COMMENT BY: Sharmila Dhal, UAE Editor]

AMERICA ‘DREAMING, DISCOVERING, WORKING’: US President Joe Biden’s first address to Congress has come as he completes 100 days in office. He has proposed a $1.8 trillion investment in children, families and education to help rebuild an economy devastated by the pandemic. Stating that America is on the move again, the speech highlighted Biden’s belief in the good that a government can do for the people. The road ahead is not easy, but ‘dreaming’, ‘discovering’ and ‘working’, as the president stated, can motivate the people to achieve goals. [COMMENT BY: Alex Abraham, Senior Associate Editor]

MANCHESTER CITY, SO CLOSE THEY CAN TASTE IT: Manchester City had an eventful night against Paris St-Germain in the first leg of the Champions League semifinals on Wednesday. Despite PSG dominating the first half with a single goal, City managed to make a comeback and score two crucial goals in the second half, thanks to Kevin De Bruyne and Riyad Mahrez — and a pep talk from Pep Guardiola at half time, where he urged them to ‘enjoy more’, according to Bernardo Silva. Now PSG will have to score at least two on Tuesday to be considered still in the running for the title. Is it going to be another night of heartache for the French side? Last year, Neymar Jr was left in tears when Bayern Munich defeated them on aggregate to become victors of Europe… But it might be worse to be eliminated in the semifinals. PSG — the only team in the semifinals who resisted the allure of the European Super League — can still turn this around. If they do manage a successful comeback, they will face either Real Madrid or Chelsea in the final clash. [COMMENY BY: Marwa Hamad, Assistant Editor]

IRRFAN KHAN’S FIRST DEATH ANNIVERSARY: It’s been exactly a year since Indian icon Irrfan Khan died after his battle with a rare form of cancer in Mumbai. The adage: ‘They don’t make them like him anymore’ keeps popping up. Khan, despite his rich legacy of stirring films in Bollywood and Hollywood, was unassuming about his acting skills and never threw tantrums like a few high-profile actors. What you see is what you get when it comes to this Khan. And that was precisely what his doting wife Sutapa Sikdar remembers best about him: his lack of artifice. In a recent televised interview, Sikdar spoke about how her late husband never attended film parties because he didn’t know the art of faking it. If he didn’t like a film at a movie premiere or didn’t have anything good to say to his colleagues, there’s a good chance that he will blurt out that unvarnished truth. Perhaps, we should take a leaf from the way Khan lived and not try to sugar-coat everything. As Khan’s year-long absence proves how fleeting life is, let’s celebrate him, his honesty, and his searing films today. [COMMENT BY: Manjusha Radhakrishnan, Assistant Editor Features]