CATEGORIES

Disjointed front

Opposition unity seems to be a pipe dream, especially after the coup in Maharashtra

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP CHAPTER IS OVER FOR ME

Viswanathan Anand is back home in Chennai after a hectic tour to pro-mote the Chess Olympiad that Mahabalipuram will host from July 28 to August 10. He also recently played the Leon Masters in Spain, which included a field of Boris Gelfand, Andrey Esipenko and Jaime Santos. That is Anand at 53; he picks and chooses events, with enjoyment being the main criteria. He is not ready yet to retire, but he now has other chess-related things to do and enjoy. One of these was setting up the Westbridge Anand Chess Academy, where he mentors some of India’s most promising talents. He is currently world number 13, but rankings do not matter to him anymore. He now wants to ensure that the next wave of Indian chess players breaches the top 10; the highest-ranked Indian after Anand, right now, is P. Harikrishna at 25. In an exclusive interview with THE WEEK, Anand looks at the chess he is currently playing, the next generation of Indian players, his plans for the coming years and the different demands on his time. Excerpts:

THE GOOD BAD

The feral joy of watching Vijay Varma as flawed, devious and all too human

Peaks and lows

Santhals have many achievers among them, but most in the tribe have a long way to go

Livid in Ladakh

Three years after Ladakh became a Union territory, its people are not happy with the Centre’s promises; the Dalai Lama’s visit could break the ice

THE MATRIARCH OF MAYURBHANJ

The remarkable story of Droupadi Murmu's rise from rural Rairangpur to the Rashtrapati Bhavan is one of resilience, pain and hope

'Light Is A Temporary Happening, But Kali Is Forever'

In Sanskrit language, the word kala—and the femi-nine form of it, Kali—mean time and space, which are seen as one thing.

Ticket To Good Health

Meet the new wellness traveller-young, Indian, discerning and ready to spend

Power Of Kali And The Art Of Taking Offence

From Kali to the Prophet, we are all the same in matters of religion. Welcome to a nation of 'hurt sentiments'

Wild, Wild Westminster

Boris Johnson leaves behind a drifting economy and a damaged government; the next British prime minister has to be a repairman

Women in black

Yogi Adityanath is assembling women commandos and expanding the state's anti-terrorist squad to deal with changing threats

Quality has to be a continuous process

PROFESSOR S.C. SHARMA has vast teaching and administrative experience.

READY FOR THE NEW

The implementation of the NEP, despite potential teething problems, may help take Indian universities and their thriving research culture to the next level

People came in by themselves; we had only educated them

During Easter this year, Sri Lankan playwright, theatre director, and screenwriter Ruwanthie de Chickera received a text from her father, a priest: “How would it be if a priest could wash a protester’s feet?”

JNAFAU, HYDERABAD

Jawaharlal Nehru Architecture and Fine Arts University established in 2008, but its history goes back to 1940 when the Institution was established by the erstwhile Nizam of Hyderabad to promote fine arts and crafts in the region.

Destination Number 10

Rishi Sunak, Liz Truss and Penny Mordaunt lead the race to find Johnson's successor

Maharashtra: The Dual-Core Dilemma

Shinde and Fadnavis make for a potent political combination, but only a clear understanding between them can make the government work

Saffron Heads South

The BJP plans to highlight casteism, corruption and dynastic politics to unseat regional parties in the south

WINGING ITS WAY

India’s airlines and airports are yet to come out of the biggest crisis in their history. Why is then everyone gung-ho about the aviation industry?

WED-LOCKED!

The Covid-19 pandemic has triggered an uptick in child marriages in India

Vicious web

A seemingly innocuous social media post turned Ketaki Chitale’s life upside down

SOLO assassins

Extremist ideologies enabled by the internet and social media platforms are leading to lone-wolf terrorism, posing a major challenge for law enforcement agencies

Down, but not out

Despite recent legal setbacks, people who survived the 2002 Gulbarg Society massacre are still hopeful of getting justice

Project runway

New airlines and more flyers will hit air pockets if India does not ramp up its airports

I'm looking at 40 crore air travellers by 2027

INTERVIEW Jyotiraditya Scindia, civil aviation minister

Becoming Mithali

Portraying a demure Mithali Raj on-screen was no easy task for the feisty Taapsee Pannu

Riding Into A Himalayan Sunset, Phone-Less And Free

Riding into a Himalayan sunset, phone-less and free

No Financial Consideration Behind Agnipath

Though the protests against Agnipath have subsided, the debate continues—not only among veterans and aspirants, but also among serving personnel. The concerns are mostly about Agniveers being without jobs after serving four years. There is also a fear that the scheme may bring an end to the century-old regimental ethos that made the Indian military one of the world's finest fighting machines. However, the military leadership has welcomed the scheme. Among the chiefs, Admiral R. Hari Kumar has been the most vocal, calling it “transformational”. Excerpts from an interview:

Battle For Survival For Uddhav Thackeray

Two simultaneous battles have been tearing the Shiv Sena apart-one for control of the legislative party, and another for securing Balasaheb's political legacy. Winning just one may not be enough to win the larger political war

This is nothing but operation lotus

INTERVIEW: SHARAD PAWAR NCP president