The enduring legacy of trade routes lies in shared stories and religious diversity. Can the India-Middle East-Europe Economic corridor harness this legacy to empower nations, asks Arundhuti Dasgupta.

Arundhuti Dasgupta maps a trail from the southernmost tip to its suburbs.

Instead of its once haloed existence as the year of lofty goals and vision statements, it is now staring at an epitaph that may well read: The year when death ran amok and the gods went missing, notes Arundhuti Dasgupta.

Arundhuti Dasgupta on the anxiety and logistical challenges of caring for elderly parents during lockdown, especially if they are ailing and live away from you.

'With doctors going up against a seemingly invincible enemy, often at immense risk to their lives, the myths reveal an interesting relationship between the men of medicine and the rest of humankind,' notes Arundhuti Dasgupta.

In this lockdown, no matter how many similarities the memory dredges up from past events and associations, there is one thing that has no precedent: The isolation that it has imposed on people, reports Arundhuti Dasgupta.

'Manthara wants Kaikeyi to make her son Bharat king of Ayodhya, instead of Rama.' 'She fuels hate and mistrust in her queen, much like what many modern-day viziers are doing, whipping up venom and frenzy among an entire nation,' notes Arundhuti Dasgupta.

'She exists alongside Sita, the archetype of the ideal woman,' notes Arundhuti Dasgupta.

The fascination for the skies and what lies beyond has fathered an expansive stockpile of astronomical myths and legends and in India, also an elaborate astrological system, notes Arundhuti Dasgupta.

'Gods are deceitful too and villains can be upright upholders of the law.' 'Perhaps political leaders of all shades would benefit from these lessons instead of declaring themselves upholders of a dharma that means different things to different people,' points out Arundhuti Dasgupta.

'Even among scientists and technology mavens -- typically communities that tend to view the world through the lens of logos or reason and not mythos, there is a shiny-eyed enthusiasm for the mythical world,' says Arundhuti Dasgupta.

A year has passed since Shashi Kapoor passed into the ages. His movies live on on television, but Shashiji's greatest legacy must remain Mumbai's Prithvi Theatre, where people came to be entertained, informed and, perhaps, also enlightened.

'Politicians have long appropriated the hero turned god as their totem, but never before with the ferocious intensity of the present regime,' notes Arundhuti Dasgupta.

'This year, it may be pertinent to look at some of the myths that invoke her warrior form, where she manifests herself as Shakti, the underlying strength in all humanity,' says Arundhuti Dasgupta.

Arundhuti Dasgupta finds herself surrounded by Greek legends and fables in the mythical centre of the world.

'Fear of the Other stalks our lives as it did in ancient times and the mobs are just as easy to incite as it was then,' says Arundhuti Dasgupta.

As politicians fast to score brownie points, they should know that not every fast has a desirable ending, says Arundhuti Dasgupta.

Stories about the harrowing experiences of young artistes are common lore.

Inclusion has never been a straight road and stories from ancient cultures show it has always been a struggle to accord equal status to all genders and species, says Arundhuti Dasgupta.

'Through his conversation with Yama, Nachiketa helped society grapple with a bunch of knotty issues, just as many of the ongoing conflicts could do today,' says Arundhuti Dasgupta.