CATEGORIES
فئات
Builders OF THE FAITH
A powerful Swaminarayan sect is erecting some of the biggest and grandest Hindu edifices across cities in the world, the latest being the temple in Abu Dhabi. The inside story of how they are doing it
A CROWN OF THORNS
SHEHBAZ SHARIF IS SET TO TAKE OVER AS PAKISTAN PM AGAIN AFTER A FRACTURED VERDICT. HE NOW HAS TO TACKLE A COLLAPSING ECONOMY, HIGH INFLATION, UNRULY IMRAN SUPPORTERS AND A DOMINEERING ARMY
THE ZEBRA CROSSING
On Feb. 8, hours before finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman tabled a white paper in Parliament on the \"governance, economic and fiscal crises\" during the UPA regime and steps taken to turn around the economy, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge released a black paper to highlight the failures of the NDA government, terming the past 10 years as an \"era of injustice\". With plenty cherry-picking in both documents, here's a lowdown on some of the claims:
A DIPLOMATIC COUP
It is a ghar wapsi New Delhi had been working on with bated breath for months-ever since news got out that eight former Indian Navy men were facing a dire fate in Qatar.
SHIFTING SANDS
During the 2022 Uttar Pradesh assembly poll campaign, a statement of Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) chief Jayant Chaudhary had gone viral. “Chavanni nahin hoon jo palat jaoonga (I am not a 25 paise coin to flip sides)”, he had said, scotching speculation that he was joining the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
Message from Sandeshkhali
A leafy hamlet some 75 km from Kolkata and generously speckled with fish ponds, Sandeshkhali has been on the boil since February 8. Roiled by allegations of ghastly, systematic crimes against women, it has emerged as the latest flashpoint in the state, with the opposition BJP-from its state unit to the party high-command-tearing into the Trinamool Congress (TMC).
CHAVAN WEARS LOTUS ON HIS SLEEVE
In an election season marked by the dissolution of alliances and politicians crossing party lines, former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan is the latest to depart from the Congress ranks.
Heading For A Hat-Trick
His personal popularity still high, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP are set to return for a third consecutive term with a clear majority, though unemployment continues to remain a concern
MEMORABLE SHOW
Nick Jonas's first-ever performance in India, at Lollapalooza, was a hit-if the chants of 'Jiju' were anything to go by!
Mofussil Men
Gorakhpur and the eccentric characters of small-town India come alive in Omair Ahmad's Tall Tales by a Small Dog
FAMILY DRAMAS
CYRUS MISTRY'S PLAYS IN DOONGAJI HOUSE PIVOT ON PLOT-DRIVEN CRISES AND REVELATIONS
SHE'S GOT THE BLUES
There's an all-female line-up at the Mahindra Blues Festival this year
Home-made Treats
The Goa Open Arts Festival is for and by the local community
EPIC ROCK
Lillete Dubey's Jaya! The Victory! is a rock musical based on the Mahabharata
THE STRENGTH OF SHAKTI
Music is all about collaboration, say Zakir Hussain and the band members of Shakti, after the Grammy win
SINGING ROYALS
Arijit Singh emerges the undisputed badshah of male playback singing; Shreya Ghoshal retains melody queen status among women artists
ALL HAIL KING KHAN
Riding on a stupendous year, the Badshah of Bollywood emerged on top after 12 years. Deepika remains the nation's leading lady
OLDEN GOLDIES
Neeraj Chopra and P.V. Sindhu remain the country's most favourite sportspersons. In cricket, Kohli's World Cup heroics catapult him to No. 1, while Smriti Mandhana holds on to her place among women
WINDS OF CHANGE
Be it 'one nation, one poll' or reservation for women in legislatures, new political initiatives are finding wider acceptance even as social mores change, albeit slowly
A FIRM PRESENCE
Most MOTN respondents approve of the Modi government's overall foreign policy and are satisfied with its handling of the diplomatic row with Canada and the boycott of the Maldives as a tourist destination
REIGNING SUPREME
No surprises here. UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath remains the most popular across India; Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik grabs the honour within home state
FEELING LOST IN I.N.D.I.A.
The implosion in the Opposition alliance has turned into some cynicism among voters but they are also unhappy at the ruling BJP's bid to browbeat rivals
A THUMBS UP FOR RECOVERY
The Modi government's handling of the economy wins approval, but it is tinged with worry over stagnant incomes and lack of quality jobs
TROUBLE@PAYTM
ANALYSTS DO NOT SEE A NEAR-TERM SOLUTION TO PAYTM’S PROBLEMS, AS RBI HAS FOUND LAPSES AFTER A COMPREHENSIVE IT AUDIT
AN ILL WIND OVER A CITY'S HERITAGE
ONE YEAR SHY OF A CENTURY, THE HERITAGE STRUCTURE - AN EXEMPLAR OF INDO-SARACENIC ARCHITECTURE - WAS KEPT BEREFT OF FUNDS FOR UPKEEP
THE ODIA RENAISSANCE
A NEW KEYBOARD DEBUTED FOR CHILDREN TO FACILITATE THE USE OF ODIA IN DIGITAL FORMATS
THE LONG FIGHT BEFORE JMM
THE BJP IS RELYING ON A NARRATIVE OF CORRUPTION AGAINST JMM TO STOP A POTENTIAL TRIBAL BACKLASH
THE CODE IN UNIFORM
With just weeks to go before the general election is announced, Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami believes he has handed Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the party, the BJP, a political plank to push further the pro-Hindutva narrative.
What Lies Beneath
Two odes to our neverending affair with carpets
IN SEARCH OF A GOOD RIFLE
It is an interesting conundrum: how is it that India, with some of the most capable rocketry and ballistic missile programmes in the world, does not have an indigenously designed, world-class assault rifle-the infantryman's basic weapon.