CATEGORIES

INDIAN ART - A BRUSH WITH GOLD DUST

The 1990s economic liberalisation came as oxygen, lighting up the Indian art scene. Today, artworks by established masters routinely go for astronomical amounts

FESTIVAL OF INDIA, 1982 - CULTURE CAPITAL

The Festival of India grew into a symbol of our 'soft power', introducing our art and aesthetics to a global audience while also helping rebrand our domestic products

THE INDIPOP TREND - DISCO GOES DESI

For ages, the film song ruled. Nothing else was audible. Then came Nazia, charioteered by Biddu, and Indian ears went into a pleasant madness. Literally, Disco Deewane. A whole genre was born

SHOLAY 1975 - THE BIRTH OF THE FANDEMIC

India had seen hits before. But Sholay seared into its collective psyche like a badland bullet. The effect was on a scale never seen before- one film creating a new mass folk culture. And a trail of monster blockbusters that still continues

THE TELESERIALS - WHEN SMALL TURNS BIG

In the Eighties, Indian television went from a dull grey box to the full colours of immersive storytelling. The multichannel revolution was waiting to explode on the other side

INDIAN PREMIER LEAGUE - INDIA AS CRICKET CENTRAL

Sixers arriving on a flying carousel, Bollystars and Big Biz dancing in the aisles, power czars and pompom girls—IPL turned the gentleman's game into a rave party. Everyone won.

ABHINAV BINDRA: FIRST SOLO OLYMPIC GOLD, 2008 - The Golden Trendsetter

The calm of a yogi, the eye of a hunter. Abhinav Bindra needed that. For, he was about to shoot down demons of the collective Indian mind

PRAKASH PADUKONE: ALL ENGLAND, 1980 - OF GUTS AND GLORY

It was equal to the Wimbledon. And Padukone's win was a seminal event. Indian parents saw a new path to glory opening up for their children–and the young ones leapt up for the smash

VISWANATHAN ANAND: FIVE-TIME WORLD CHAMPION - THE CHESS ROYALTY

He came out of the blue to conquer the world. India's encore in 2024, with Gukesh, is part of his legacy

SUNIL GAVASKAR'S RECORDS - THE LEGEND AND THE LEGACY

He was the one they wrote a calypso for. Like his spiritual son Sachin, he could rock too...if he wanted, very rarely. Mostly, he was classical. Sublime, perfect.

CRICKET WORLD CUP, 1983 - THE IDEA THAT WE CAN WIN

Yes, even that was not there when Kapil Dev, himself only 24, led a bunch of devil-may-care no-hopers right up to the summit of world cricket. For India, it was the equivalent of the Moon Landing-except unplanned and unimagined. What changed after that? Everything.

SWACHH BHARAT MISSION, 2014 - THE CLEAN CRUSADE

From collective shame to national pride, India's journey toward eliminating open defecation is a story of strong political will and leadership, grand scale and ambition, and community, corporate and celebrity participation

PULSE POLIO CAMPAIGN, 1994 - A COUNTRY VERSUS A VIRUS

From being the epicentre of a dreaded disease that left children with permanent disability, India achieved the impossible task of eradicating polio through a sustained, concerted effort by the government, NGOs and members of the local communities

CHIPKO MOVEMENT - THE GREEN SAVIOURS

The simple, collective act of hugging trees saved the remaining forests in the Himalayas and serves as a beacon to both policy-making and environmental activism in India and beyond

SILENT VALLEY MOVEMENT - WHEN SILENCE BECAME A ROAR

Environmentalists, poets and journalists generated mass opinion against a hydroelectric project and saved Kerala's Silent Valley, one of India's last remaining tropical rainforests

GOODS AND SERVICES TAX, 2017 - Good, Streamlined Tax

GST marked a pivotal shift in taxation, simplifying the process, improving compliance, boosting revenues and fostering economic integration

AADHAAR ROLLOUT, 2009 - Giving Citizens an Identity

The world's largest biometric ID system, Aadhaar has streamlined welfare delivery, leading to financial inclusion and security

RIGHT TO INFORMATION ACT, 2005 - Breaching the Babu Barrier

Born from grassroots resilience, this landmark legislation put the might of information in the hands of millions while making the powers that be accountable

PM JAN DHAN YOJANA, 2014 - Banking the Unbanked

Ten years of PMJDY have transformed financial access for millions, empowering them to save, invest and access credit, while driving economic and social change

PANCHAYATI RAJ, 1992 - POWER TO THE PEOPLE

Empowering grassroots governance, the 73rd and 74th Amendments to the Indian Constitution redefined democracy, ushering in local self-rule and inclusivity

CHANDRAYAAN-1, 2008 - THE MOONSHOT AND BEYOND

Rakesh Sharma, India's first astronaut, whetted our appetite for space. Chandrayaan-1 made that a reality, and spawned a series of spectacular successes

NUCLEAR BOMB TESTS, 1998 - ATOMIC INTENT TO REALITY

India declared itself a nuclear weapons state with Operation Shakti, a series of nuclear tests at Pokhran in 1998. It set off a chain reaction—the emergence of strategic forces, a nuclear submarine and civilian nuclear deals

OPERATION MEGHDOOT, 1984 - ICE STATION SIACHEN

The daring sally on the Siachen Glacier in 1984 is a landmark achievement of the Indian military. It instilled an ethos of readiness in securing national interests- seen in the 1999 Kargil War, the 2016 surgical strikes and the Balakot air strike

SATELLITE LAUNCH VEHICLE SLV-3, 1980 - JOINING THE SPACE LEAGUE

When the SLV-3 lifted off successfully in 1980, it marked the beginning of the process of making India self-sufficient in launch vehicles and satellite technology for development

INS ARIHANT, 2016 - THIRD ARM OF THE TRIAD

A triumph of indigenous mastery of complex military technology, INS Arihant completes India's nuclear triad and bolsters India's maritime security at a time of aggressive Chinese naval expansion

INDO-US NUCLEAR DEAL, 2008 - Ending India's Nuclear Pariah Status

The Indo-US nuclear deal saw the US break ranks with the gatekeepers of nuclear technology to admit India into the global nuclear trade. It led to closer strategic ties with Washington

AGNI-I, 1989 - BALLISTIC MUSCLE

In 1989, the launch of its first intermediate-range ballistic missile, Agni, elevated India into an elite club. Agni-l laid the foundation of the country's emergence as a regional superpower

PRE-NATAL SEX DETERMINATION BAN, 1994 - SAVING THE UNBORN DAUGHTER

By banning pre-natal sex determination, India took the first step towards preventing the murder of a girl child in the womb. From that has flowed other latter-day battles-like the one for her right to education

PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION, 1979 - SUPREME RIGHT TO BE HEARD

The PIL has come as a boon to the disadvantaged, with the Supreme Court opening its doors for them. And while it has evolved as a powerful tool for social reform and government accountability, it has also become prone to misuse, which too the court has duly taken heed of

VISHAKA GUIDELINES, 1997 - An Armour for Working Women

One woman's fight for justice became the fight of the nation's women, resulting in the Supreme Court recognising, for the first time, sexual harassment at the workplace as discrimination against women and prescribing the Vishaka guidelines to deal with it