The Other Hidden Heroines in Indian History
“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” Shakespeare certainly had a right to his opinion but names, like words, are very important. Rarely in Germany or Russia are children given the names Hitler or Stalin, because of the brutally horrible offenses those rulers committed. Yet in India, such practices More...
ISIS defeat in Mosul is not an end to the extremist Islamic ideology
Defeat of ISIS in Mosul The ISIS leader Abu Bakr Baghdadi has reportedly acknowledged his defeat in his ‘farewell sermon’ (Khutba al-Wida’a), which was addressed to the religious preachers of the Islamic More...
Interview with Gautam Chikermane, Author of Tunnel of Varanavat
Gautam Chikermane is a writer tracking the worlds of money, power and faith. His last book Tunnel of Varanavat exploring a theme in Mahabharata was widely appreciated and became a best-seller. Saiswaroopa Iyer, More...
Forgotten Heroes of Independence: How NCERT books are perpetuating injustice
The very ink with which history is written is merely fluid prejudice- Mark Twain The sad truth in Twain’s words is nowhere more evident than the Indian historical discourse. It is undeniable that a select clique More...
Dholkal Ganesh and the Sad Tale Of Apathy
Fifty-six stone fragments lying forlornly on a blue tarpaulin. You can see the vermilion mark still on the part that used to be the face, as the trunk turns gracefully. A fragment that formed the large stomach still More...
The Growing Network of Pakistan’s ISI in India
The role of the Pakistani Military’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) is being suspected in a series of recent train mishaps, especially since the Indore-Patna Express train tragedy near Kanpur on November More...
Alauddin Khilji and Padmavati: just who is afraid of History?
Several “liberal” columnists have expressed anguish at the recent protests against the director of the upcoming controversial film ‘Padmavati’, which is based on the historical saga involving the characters More...
Musings on Reason, Religion and Reform
A few months back, around Diwali to be more specific, we heard/read/watched all sorts of ‘concern’ about environment and pleas to ban firecrackers. Soon we will be again hearing similar voices, this time More...
Book Review: An Era of Darkness by Shashi Tharoor
An Era of Darkness by Shashi Tharoor can be purchased from Amazon Shashi Tharoor gave a fantastic speech at Oxford last year where he took apart the British rule in India. He playfully asked for a reparation of More...
Demonetisation – A Dharmic Perspective
Demonetisation is the reneging by a government of its promissory undertaking in regard to currency. The recent scrapping of Rs 1000 and Rs 500 notes is not demonetisation because the government still promises More...