A controversy has erupted in Karnataka after BJP MP Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri claimed that the country's national anthem was written "to welcome the British official". This statement drew sharp criticism from Congress leader and Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge.
It this era of sensationalism, we should appreciate director Anant Mahadevan for treating Phule with calm and composure and not going overboard, notes Hemant Waje.
Shaheed was Manoj Kumar's first patriotic success. This small-budget black-and-white film had enormous impact, besides laying the foundation for Manoj's famous flag-waving Mr Bharat image that was strengthened by a string of subsequent films like Upkar, Purab Aur Paschim and Kranti.
The Noapara police station in West Bengal holds a unique historical connection to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, who was briefly detained there in 1931. The police station commemorates this event every year on Netaji's birth anniversary. The station preserves the cup and saucer used to offer Netaji tea, which he refused, as well as a memorial room with photographs and books about his life. Visitors can pay homage to Netaji at the memorial room and a statue of him stands proudly outside the station.
This Women's Day Week, we pay tribute to the extraordinary courage, resilience, and leadership of three iconic Indian queens -- Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi, Rani Chennamma of Kittur, and Maharani Ahilyabai Holkar of Malwa.
When in Landour, discovers Supriya Newar, one of the most important things to do and that too in large measures, is to do nothing at all.
"There is a need for a name change. What did Ravenshaw, after whom the university is named, do during the famine," the minister had asked,
Is it is necessary to play divisive politics to succeed in the next general elections? asks Dr Sudhir Bisht.
Heeramandi, a passion project that took off after years in development and planning, mirrors Sanjay Leela Bhansali's film-making's finest and frustrating features, observes Sukanya Verma.
'There have been and will continue to be, so many captivating stories in colonial India.' 'Obviously, most of the white people were British, so if I am going to take on a role in a film set in one of the most turbulent periods of Indian history, then it only stands to reason that my character would be of British descent.' 'But that doesn't mean all my roles are negative.'
A former senior British police officer has raised around Rs 50 lakh in the UK and rebuilt at least five elementary schools in rural Punjab after coming across a dilapidated village school building seven years ago.
'It is flabbergasting to think that this heavenly region has, for decades, been coveted by India's aggressive neighbours,' says Claude Arpi after a recent visit to Ladakh. 'Wanting to use the newly created infrastructure to defend the borders after the clash of 2020 with China and the resulting standoffs, the home ministry is keen to boost border tourism to show that these areas are controlled by India.'
When Jaipur's Maharaja Madho Singh was invited to attend King Edward VII's coronation in 1902, he chartered a ship for Rs 15 lakh for the journey. He also carried 27,000 litres of Ganga jal on board. Prakash Bhandari recalls the maharaja's voyage to attend a British monarch's coronation on a day when Charles III will be crowned king at Westminster Abbey.
The railways observed a week of Azadi ki Rail Gadi, from July 18-23, through 27 trains and 75 railway stations, across 24 states that are linked to the Indian freedom struggle.
The Congress on Sunday took a strong exception to the exclusion of former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru in the Karnataka government's newspaper advertisement on freedom fighters and termed the Bharatiya Janata Party action 'pathetic'.
Shamshera's problem is a shocking inability to support its bombastic ideas with gripping drama. The result is the wastage of not one but two Ranbir Kapoors, observes Sukanya Verma.
A copious amount of blood, beating, crying, saving, sacrificing, nationalism fills up its staggering three hours running time. Emotions run sky high, but you feel nothing, sighs Sukanya Verma.
For his participation in Netaji's INA, Major Ghulam Ahmed Qureshi was put into solitary confinement in the Red Fort, charged with rebellion against the Crown. Despite Nehru, Asaf Ali and a host of top lawyers defending them, Qureshi and his fellow officers were sentenced to death.
Who rocked the sari style best in the British Raj? Sukanya Verma asks you to take a poll.
'I bow to the great freedom fighters born in Andhra Pradesh. We have not forgotten our freedom fighters, we will not forget and we will move forward by taking inspiration from them,' the prime minister said
If General Asim Munir, Pakistan's new army chief, wants to help defuse the current polarised atmosphere and shepherd civilian politicians towards negotiations on an acceptable date for elections, he may need to distance himself from any perception of needless hostility to Imran Khan, explains Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at RA&W, India's external intelligence agency.
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'Today, after mustering courage, I am resigning from the party post and primary membership of the Congress'
London hopes to convince New Delhi's naval planners to power India's second indigenous aircraft carrier with the Queen Elizabeth's integrated all-electric propulsion system.
Like most army combat uniforms, this one has been designed to serve two requirements: First, protection against harsh climatic conditions, including extreme heat and cold. Second, the need to provide soldiers' outfits with field camouflage, so as to increase his battlefield survivability.
During the freedom struggle, Shah had launched revolts in the Awadh region. He made the local mosque, Masjid Sarai, located in Chowk area of Faizabad his headquarters. As he liberated Faizabad and larger part of Awadh region, he used the premises of this mosque to hold meetings with rebel leaders.
The Western powers appear to regard Delhi as the most logical destination in the region in these extraordinary times -- as a counterpoint to the ascendance of political Islam and a rising red star over Afghanistan, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Young Indians seem genuinely enthusiastic about craft brands that are hip, aspirational and have plenty of the novelty quotient, says Dhruv Munjal.
Lagaan's dream run on screen and off it is a much needed reminder of winning against all odds in these pandemic ravaged times, notes Sukanya Verma.
'Once accession to Pakistan appeared unlikely, the British instituted Operations Gulmarg and Datta Khel respectively to foil possible accession to India.'
Sardar Udham sets a great standard which, Utkarsh Mishra believes, would be emulated by other film-makers who want to make movies of this genre.
In our special series re-visiting great Hindi film classics, we look back at Prithviraj Kapoor-Geeta Bali-starrer Anand Math (1952).
'India is a strange place.' 'On the one hand we have the most advanced science working on our origins and our ancestry.' 'On the other we are at war with ourselves over a temple to a god whom our first ancestors knew nothing of,' says Aakar Patel.
The moustache protest is the latest blot on the face of a nation that has failed to ensure even the safety of the Dalit community, says Veenu Sandhu.
'Kesari devotes a significant chunk of its script to brandish Akshay's might as the dauntless, magnanimous, Sardar, Havildar Ishar Singh.' 'To his credit, the actor is a picture of restraint and righteousness as the worldly-wise Sardar on a mission,' notes Sukanya Verma.
Major Somnath Sharma was awarded the Param Vir Chakra posthumously for his bravery in the Kashmir operations on November 3, 1947.
Even as India has transferred its London-based diplomat Anil Verma, Britain disclosed that it had pressed for Verma's diplomatic immunity to be waived which was declined by government.
The sabre, or a curved sword, has been identified as a gift to a British officer for his success in suppressing a siege in Lucknow during what India describes its First War of Independence.
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