Ruchi Kumar
@ruchikumar.com
Writer. Journalist. Humanist. Pacifist. #Ukriane #Afghanistan #Iran #India #Conflict
Pinned
Ruchi Kumar
@ruchikumar.com
· 14d
Every Ukrainian is now an involuntary sound engineer, acutely sensitive to ambient noise, mentally calculating threats from high-pitched buzz or faint whistle.
In interviews with over 40 Ukrainians I’ve attempted to understand the psychological toll of drone sounds w/ @newlinesmag.bsky.social
In interviews with over 40 Ukrainians I’ve attempted to understand the psychological toll of drone sounds w/ @newlinesmag.bsky.social
Reposted by Ruchi Kumar
Reposted by Ruchi Kumar
Editor's Pick:
The relentless noise of sirens and Russian drones is a deliberate, psychological warfare strategy, @ruchikumar.com reports from Ukraine. newlinesmag.com/spotlight/ho...
The relentless noise of sirens and Russian drones is a deliberate, psychological warfare strategy, @ruchikumar.com reports from Ukraine. newlinesmag.com/spotlight/ho...
How the Sound of Drones Inflicts Psychological Trauma in Ukraine
The relentless noise of sirens and Russian Shaheds is a deliberate strategy
newlinesmag.com
February 5, 2026 at 4:17 PM
Editor's Pick:
The relentless noise of sirens and Russian drones is a deliberate, psychological warfare strategy, @ruchikumar.com reports from Ukraine. newlinesmag.com/spotlight/ho...
The relentless noise of sirens and Russian drones is a deliberate, psychological warfare strategy, @ruchikumar.com reports from Ukraine. newlinesmag.com/spotlight/ho...
Video footage from ship’s deck that night, shared with @theguardian.com shows explosions and large flames close to the vessel. Sounds of prayers in multiple languages can be heard in some clips, punctuated by loud explosion.
www.theguardian.com/global-devel...
www.theguardian.com/global-devel...
February 4, 2026 at 8:59 AM
Video footage from ship’s deck that night, shared with @theguardian.com shows explosions and large flames close to the vessel. Sounds of prayers in multiple languages can be heard in some clips, punctuated by loud explosion.
www.theguardian.com/global-devel...
www.theguardian.com/global-devel...
Reposted by Ruchi Kumar
The relentless noise of sirens and Russian drones is a deliberate psychological warfare strategy. @ruchikumar.com spoke to over 40 Ukrainian civilians about such trauma, which is now being dubbed “drone-induced anxiety,”
How the Sound of Drones Inflicts Psychological Trauma in Ukraine
The relentless noise of sirens and Russian Shaheds is a deliberate strategy
shorturl.at
February 2, 2026 at 8:06 PM
The relentless noise of sirens and Russian drones is a deliberate psychological warfare strategy. @ruchikumar.com spoke to over 40 Ukrainian civilians about such trauma, which is now being dubbed “drone-induced anxiety,”
Reposted by Ruchi Kumar
Streets of Izium in the Kharkiv region are covered in anti-drone nets.
How quickly our reality changes. Only a few years ago, the idea that we would need to cover our streets to survive the russian 'human safari' seemed absurd. Now it’s our life...
🎥: place-kharkiv (tg)
How quickly our reality changes. Only a few years ago, the idea that we would need to cover our streets to survive the russian 'human safari' seemed absurd. Now it’s our life...
🎥: place-kharkiv (tg)
January 31, 2026 at 5:18 PM
Streets of Izium in the Kharkiv region are covered in anti-drone nets.
How quickly our reality changes. Only a few years ago, the idea that we would need to cover our streets to survive the russian 'human safari' seemed absurd. Now it’s our life...
🎥: place-kharkiv (tg)
How quickly our reality changes. Only a few years ago, the idea that we would need to cover our streets to survive the russian 'human safari' seemed absurd. Now it’s our life...
🎥: place-kharkiv (tg)
Olena Valentynivna Kozina, a 39-year-old economist, described the sound of a Shahed drone, “the terrible buzzing of their engines,” a sound that brings “the greatest fear and panic … this feeling of impending mortal danger.”
newlinesmag.com/spotlight/ho...
newlinesmag.com/spotlight/ho...
January 30, 2026 at 6:50 PM
Olena Valentynivna Kozina, a 39-year-old economist, described the sound of a Shahed drone, “the terrible buzzing of their engines,” a sound that brings “the greatest fear and panic … this feeling of impending mortal danger.”
newlinesmag.com/spotlight/ho...
newlinesmag.com/spotlight/ho...
Reposted by Ruchi Kumar
“As Russia’s invasion of its southern neighbor grinds on, with no clear end in sight, the noise of war has become an inescapable backdrop to daily life, a soundscape of sirens, drones and explosions.” | @ruchikumar.com
How the Sound of Drones Inflicts Psychological Trauma in Ukraine
The relentless noise of sirens and Russian Shaheds is a deliberate strategy
shorturl.at
January 28, 2026 at 5:31 PM
“As Russia’s invasion of its southern neighbor grinds on, with no clear end in sight, the noise of war has become an inescapable backdrop to daily life, a soundscape of sirens, drones and explosions.” | @ruchikumar.com
Reposted by Ruchi Kumar
This is why frontline towns and cities in Ukraine cover roads with nets.
This is a russian lancet drone struck one of those nets. It very likely saved someone’s life.
This is a russian lancet drone struck one of those nets. It very likely saved someone’s life.
January 29, 2026 at 3:00 AM
This is why frontline towns and cities in Ukraine cover roads with nets.
This is a russian lancet drone struck one of those nets. It very likely saved someone’s life.
This is a russian lancet drone struck one of those nets. It very likely saved someone’s life.
Every Ukrainian is now an involuntary sound engineer, acutely sensitive to ambient noise, mentally calculating threats from high-pitched buzz or faint whistle.
In interviews with over 40 Ukrainians I’ve attempted to understand the psychological toll of drone sounds w/ @newlinesmag.bsky.social
In interviews with over 40 Ukrainians I’ve attempted to understand the psychological toll of drone sounds w/ @newlinesmag.bsky.social
January 28, 2026 at 3:06 PM
Every Ukrainian is now an involuntary sound engineer, acutely sensitive to ambient noise, mentally calculating threats from high-pitched buzz or faint whistle.
In interviews with over 40 Ukrainians I’ve attempted to understand the psychological toll of drone sounds w/ @newlinesmag.bsky.social
In interviews with over 40 Ukrainians I’ve attempted to understand the psychological toll of drone sounds w/ @newlinesmag.bsky.social
Reposted by Ruchi Kumar
NEW: The relentless noise of sirens and Russian drones is a deliberate, psychological warfare strategy, @ruchikumar.com reports from Ukraine, for @newlinesmag.bsky.social newlinesmag.com/spotlight/ho...
How the Sound of Drones Inflicts Psychological Trauma in Ukraine
The relentless noise of sirens and Russian Shaheds is a deliberate strategy
newlinesmag.com
January 27, 2026 at 1:16 PM
NEW: The relentless noise of sirens and Russian drones is a deliberate, psychological warfare strategy, @ruchikumar.com reports from Ukraine, for @newlinesmag.bsky.social newlinesmag.com/spotlight/ho...
Reposted by Ruchi Kumar
“In four years of relentless war, the psychological toll of these sounds is the latest, most insidious weapon. It is a kind of sonic warfare.” | @ruchikumar.com
How the Sound of Drones Inflicts Psychological Trauma in Ukraine
The relentless noise of sirens and Russian Shaheds is a deliberate strategy
newlinesmag.com
January 27, 2026 at 9:02 PM
“In four years of relentless war, the psychological toll of these sounds is the latest, most insidious weapon. It is a kind of sonic warfare.” | @ruchikumar.com
Wordle 1,672 2/6*
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January 16, 2026 at 8:29 PM
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January 13, 2026 at 10:46 PM
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Perhaps what’s been most frustrating watching the commentary on #IranProtests from outside Iran has been how people seem to view the country and its people from within a single lens of their choosing instead of the diverse, complex civilisation they are.
January 13, 2026 at 6:51 PM
Perhaps what’s been most frustrating watching the commentary on #IranProtests from outside Iran has been how people seem to view the country and its people from within a single lens of their choosing instead of the diverse, complex civilisation they are.
Reposted by Ruchi Kumar
💥 Russia has fired a ballistic missile from occupied Crimea at Dnipro, with local outlets reporting an explosion in the city.
January 13, 2026 at 5:17 PM
💥 Russia has fired a ballistic missile from occupied Crimea at Dnipro, with local outlets reporting an explosion in the city.
Reposted by Ruchi Kumar
January 11, 2026 at 6:48 PM
Reposted by Ruchi Kumar
Day 410 of #GeorgiaProtests
Iranians living in 🇬🇪 recently joined the protests in a magnificent blend of international protest against dictatorship, and it’s been at least two days of such 🇬🇪-Iranian protests in Tbilisi.
I’m not crying, you’re crying.
#FreeIran #FreeGeorgia
📷 Levan Zazadze
1/2
Iranians living in 🇬🇪 recently joined the protests in a magnificent blend of international protest against dictatorship, and it’s been at least two days of such 🇬🇪-Iranian protests in Tbilisi.
I’m not crying, you’re crying.
#FreeIran #FreeGeorgia
📷 Levan Zazadze
1/2
January 11, 2026 at 6:48 PM
Day 410 of #GeorgiaProtests
Iranians living in 🇬🇪 recently joined the protests in a magnificent blend of international protest against dictatorship, and it’s been at least two days of such 🇬🇪-Iranian protests in Tbilisi.
I’m not crying, you’re crying.
#FreeIran #FreeGeorgia
📷 Levan Zazadze
1/2
Iranians living in 🇬🇪 recently joined the protests in a magnificent blend of international protest against dictatorship, and it’s been at least two days of such 🇬🇪-Iranian protests in Tbilisi.
I’m not crying, you’re crying.
#FreeIran #FreeGeorgia
📷 Levan Zazadze
1/2
Wordle 1,667 3/6*
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January 10, 2026 at 10:14 PM
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January 7, 2026 at 10:54 PM
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December 26, 2025 at 9:03 PM
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December 25, 2025 at 9:41 PM
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India has a long history of spoken word poetry so it’s no surprise that hip-hop finds an audience here.
Although male dominated industry, women rappers are gaining traction with songs of identity,climate,women’s safety
My story for @thepersistent.bsky.social
www.thepersistent.com/theres-alway...
Although male dominated industry, women rappers are gaining traction with songs of identity,climate,women’s safety
My story for @thepersistent.bsky.social
www.thepersistent.com/theres-alway...
December 19, 2025 at 6:44 PM
India has a long history of spoken word poetry so it’s no surprise that hip-hop finds an audience here.
Although male dominated industry, women rappers are gaining traction with songs of identity,climate,women’s safety
My story for @thepersistent.bsky.social
www.thepersistent.com/theres-alway...
Although male dominated industry, women rappers are gaining traction with songs of identity,climate,women’s safety
My story for @thepersistent.bsky.social
www.thepersistent.com/theres-alway...
If you're an Indian journalist, chances are you're familiar with veteran journalist Abhay Mokashi. And if you were fortunate, like I was, you might've had opportunity to learn from him. He now needs support to fight this awful disease; please consider helping him
www.impactguru.com/fundraiser/h...
www.impactguru.com/fundraiser/h...
A Daughter’s Hope Against All Odds: Save My (Foster) Father’s Life
My Name Is Laavanya, and I Am Raising Funds for My Foster Father, Abhay Mokashi, a Respected Journalist Diagnosed With Stomach Cancer and Non-Alcoholic Liver Cirrhosis. He Is Undergoing Treatment at M...
www.impactguru.com
December 19, 2025 at 12:35 PM
If you're an Indian journalist, chances are you're familiar with veteran journalist Abhay Mokashi. And if you were fortunate, like I was, you might've had opportunity to learn from him. He now needs support to fight this awful disease; please consider helping him
www.impactguru.com/fundraiser/h...
www.impactguru.com/fundraiser/h...
Wordle 1,641 3/6*
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December 15, 2025 at 9:06 PM
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"Studies conducted among Afghan evacuees have noted the “unique” mental health challenges and traumas of refugees... For many former Afghan soldiers, this distress is further compounded by mental health issues stemming from their role in the conflict."
www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti...
www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti...
Opinion: The mental health crisis among Afghan refugees is no longer simmering beneath the surface
Alleged deadly attack by Afghan soldier who worked with U.S. military underscores problems evacuees face in country they once served or supported
www.theglobeandmail.com
December 12, 2025 at 12:21 PM
"Studies conducted among Afghan evacuees have noted the “unique” mental health challenges and traumas of refugees... For many former Afghan soldiers, this distress is further compounded by mental health issues stemming from their role in the conflict."
www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti...
www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti...