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The Brunch round-up for August 29: The week and how it made us feel
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This week, we’re fake-apologising, making cold cup noodles, collecting cat memorabilia and searching for black hole stars
Feeling amazed. Is this the collab of the century? Astronomers discovered a massive red star, the size of our solar system, releasing energy the way a black hole does. All those little red dots in space? Maybe this is what they are. Project Hail Mary had its own version, with the stellar energy-consuming astrophage microbes. Someone hide Ryan Gosling!
On the pill. So, you hate going to the gym, but want a six-pack? A biotech company is developing a tablet that reduces appetite and weight, while keeping muscle mass intact. Cue intrusive thoughts: What happens if you take two pills? Will you get super jacked? Gym bros are going to lose their whole personality.
Done slurping. Here a heatwave, there a heatwave…. So, Nissin is selling its Cup Noodles in a cold version across Asia. There’s a summer spicy kimchi, and a chicken salt lemon variant. Just add ice-cold water. We want to try it so bad, but it’s also giving us a sensory ick. Hot ramen hits different, no matter the weather, no?
Foaming hot. A barista at The Craftery, Bengaluru, a Subko outlet, described a customer as “Little fat black shirt” on the bill. What happened next was worse. The brand thought calling themselves out was kinda chic, and put out a multi-slide, humble-brag, ChatGPT-sounding apology. Bitter aftertaste. Why is this the age of performative regret?
Claw-struck. What do you do when you’re obsessed with cats, but your husband is allergic to them? Sandy Lerner, founder of Urban Decay and Cisco Systems, was forced to be “catless”, so she spent 40 years collecting cat memorabilia. Now, her 1,000 artworks, decorative objects, jewellery and collectibles are up for auction. The world is healing.
Throne for a loop. Clément Vandenkerckhove, a 26-year-old car salesman, just found out that he’s a Belgian prince. No Princess Diaries tiara scene or eyebrow-wax makeover. No Julie Andrews to break the news. He was recognised as the son of Prince Laurent (King Philippe’s brother) in a town hall ceremony. Erm, Clément, you’re stepping on our fairytale there. This was supposed to be our story.
Still raging. Party on! Luminate’s 2026 midyear report says that electronic music has outgrown every other genre this year, with bangers from Tinashe, FKA twigs and Skrillex. Great news for nightclub devotees. Even better news for us. Clubbers can head back to actual raves, leaving us with lo-fi the way Nature intended.
Kill switching. JioHotstar’s Furious is female rage, weaponised and bedazzled. The killer, Catherine (Lola Petticrew), carries murder weapons in a glittery bag and puts a heart sticker on every victim’s photo. Her targets are powerful, connected, old, White Boomers. Emmy Rossum is perfect as Alice Black, an FBI rookie who is up against the police-boy’s club. #WomenInMaleDominatedFields.
From HT Brunch, August 29, 2026
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