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Victory Is Just A Number
Poaching, the BJP avers, is never its business. Yet the party won’t say how it is to muster the numbers it lacks.
Ping-Pongology: Table For Ten
The story behind the gradual, gratifying turn of Indian table tennis
I'd Make Sanju Even If I Hadn't Worked With Sanjay
They collapsed the boundaries between mainstream entertainers and meaningful cinema much earlier in the day and, released at crucial post-lib junctures, came to almost define a 21st century national cinema—passing muster with the masses and the classes alike. Just four films—Munna Bhai MBBS (2003), Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006), 3 Idiots (2009) and PK (2014)—make Nagpur-born director Rajkumar Hirani one of the finest filmmakers of his generation. The 55-year-old auteur is now ready with his next, Sanju, a biopic depicting the turbulent life of Bollywood’s enfant terrible, Sanjay Dutt. With Ranbir Kapoor in the lead, the film, due for release on June 29, may well be the master filmmaker’s litmus test, as he has made a foray into the unfamiliar and dicey terrain of biopics with a movie on the life of somebody he has known professionally and personally for years. In conversation with Giridhar Jha, Hirani spells out the reasons behind making the biopic, dismissing the charge that he has made it to glorify his actor-friend, known for his chequered life and career. Excerpts from the interview:
On The Board In Testing Times
Pushed by WADA, the national anti-doping agency seeks cricketers’ samples. But BCCI hides behind the ICC Code.
All Those Colours Beyond Bling
Once again, glamour is not the sole yardstick for the success of an ­actress in Bollywood
The Many Merits In His Stars
Can Imran produce a nuanced India policy, beyond the patriotic rhetoric his past is studded with? It hinges on the exigencies of power—and the army.
Time For More Of The Same
Don’t expect a radical India policy from likely PM Imran
Go South, Young Man
Drawn by development, north Indians continue to migrate to the southern states in vast numbers
Tongues Of Lilting Grace
A band in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir singing lyrics penned by a legendary poet wins hearts in the Valley
They Stab Like A Butterfly
Pencak silat, sambo, wushu...the Asiad will bristle with martial arts events, and Indians are more than game for a throw
Outside The Realm Of Sacred Snips
Sacred Games underlines the power of freedom in the digital space
Not In His Hair
The scandalhopping Trump is in a deeper soup, but safe for now.
Bullets Have Names
Who killed Gauri, Kalburgi, Dabholkar, Pansare? the puzzle cracks, slowly.
Meghalaya's Caves Are A Treasure Trove Of Unique Flora And Fauna
The unique caves of Meghalaya hold many secrets and provide a glimpse of Earth’s past.
Sharper Than Naked Injustice
Journalists small and mighty suffered the Emergency defiantly, then resisted and defeated plans to muzzle the press. We look towards their example in gathering dusk.
HQ, Nagpur
The RSS evokes a sense of parallel authority—a secretive fraternity with its own idea of India. Questions abound as it seeks to mainstream itself.
Why Modi Must Lose!
He has been bad for social cohesion, economy and institutions.
Will Narendra Modi Win?
Insulating PM Modi from accusations as election season hots up is top priority for the BJP. The rest can be managed, they say.
Mutiny On The Bounty
In poll-bound Madhya Pradesh, farmers’ anger grows despite a good harvest
A Long Shadow Of Deportation
Anxiety engulfs Rohingyas in Jammu after India sends back seven ‘illegal’ refugees to Myanmar
'Raman Singh Has Failed On All Counts. And Congress Is Irrelevant.'
In the run-up to the Chhattisgarh assembly polls, Ajit Jogi, the state’s first CM, seems confident of a good show.
Society Of Zombies
Legally dead due to clerical error or greedy relatives, thousands live in limbo
No Desert Storm So Far
All’s not well with the ruling BJP, but rival Congress is yet to show it has the chutzpah to win Rajasthan
Eastern Approaches
Long treated like pariahs by the BCCI, six Northeast states get their Ranji whites
Pace Yourself
Jaguar has beaten its German rivals to the punch, and brought a fully electric SUV to market. So, should Tesla be worried – have traditional carmakers finally caught up? We drive the I-Pace to find out.
Pinnacle Of The Motor Car?
Is a ‘regular’ Ferrari too tame for you? Do you normally get out of a 488 GTB yawning? If so, say hello to the Pista…
The Human On The K-Table
It’s time for a new narrative and idiom to break the logjam. A Kashmir Roundtable finds early signs of meeting points that may open new roads.
Boots Off The Ground
Many argue that demilitarisation would help build confidence in Kashmir.
Where Is Indian Football Going?
The one thing that can change India’s permanent status as World Cup outsider is a revolution from the ground up.
Messenger That Kills
Rumours gone viral expose a deeply diseased side of society—fearful, xenophobic, murderous.