'Unlike in Gujarat, where he could ask for votes based on delivery, in 2019 he will have to appeal to his core Hindutva ideology, by firing over someone else's shoulders,' says T C A Srinivasa-Raghavan.
A five judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra was apparently not in agreement with the argument of the Travancore Devaswom Board running the over 800-year-old Lord Ayyappa temple that the "practice and belief" that have continued uninterrupted cannot be tested on the ground of "modern ethos".
Siva Sankar looks at S P Balasubrahmanyam's fantastic repertoire.
'In UP/Bihar there is no industry. There are no other jobs, you either herd cows, teach or join the IAS. The brightest go to the IITs. The rest go to arts college and they become IAS officers and it is this crowd that is now agitating.' 'English is the business language of the world, we have to accept that. If I had done my IIT in Hindi, I would be stuck in the cow belt without work.' IIT graduate, entrepreneur and politician R K Misra on the row over English in the UPSC prelims.
Dear Zindagi's high on sublime Alia, splendid SRK!
An insistence on only one language will inevitably be resented as a form of imperialism and resisted.
In the aftermath of the Easter Sunday terrorist attacks, allegations have been made that the Muslim militants in Sri Lanka draw sustenance from India. An overarching impression is being created that the ISIS is gaining ground in India, points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Sukanya Verma revisits Chaalbaaz where Sridevi was such a pleasure to watch, twice over!
This historic Vishaka judgement brought the issue of sexual harassment in the workplace into the mainstream discourse says Kanika Dutta.
Kareena Kapoor Khan proves what an asset she can be, writes Sukanya Verma
Hansal Mehta sniffs a political conspiracy; Information and Broadcasting official poohpoohs the charge.
A look at the top tweets from your favourite Bollywood celebrities.
In our special series re-visiting Hindi film classics, we look back at the Jeetendra and Neetu Singh starrer Priyatama (1977).
'The maverick, alpha male, super suave spy, who kills as efficiently as he charms the pants off women, doing the mother of all gender-benders and trading his tux for high heels?'
'Arvind Kejriwal displayed crass male chauvinism and gender illiteracy in saying that "rape tendencies arise out of sex, prostitution and drug rackets." This shows a failure to grasp that rape has little to with sex, and even less with drugs. Such remarks are far worse than the deplorable comments of policemen and politicians who attribute rapes to women's "provocative" attire or their outdoor presence at night!' says Praful Bidwai.
'Politically, Tamil Nadu has faced several setbacks in the past -- the water sharing issue with Karnataka, on Katchatheevu, on the Tamil fishermen issue...' 'In all these issues, the central and state governments acted in an inefficient and incompetent manner.' 'That must have stayed in the minds of the people.'
If India is to follow a smart cultural diplomacy, it has unmatched advantages over both China and Pakistan, says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
'Like it or not, the Congress is still the only party with the potential to challenge the BJP at a pan-Indian level,' says T V R Shenoy.
'This is a movie, which if you allow it to, will wash itself all over you, so that you emerge from it a little drenched but wide awake,' says Sreehari Nair.
'He still has to deal with party norms and traditions and has been careful to follow the order of seniority,' points out Claude Arpi.
Kamal Haasan's unrivalled make up skills, Jack Nicholson's haunting imagery, Asha Parekh's life as a Hit Girl and the surprise package of Beauty and the Beast, it's all there in Sukanya Verma's super filmi week.
PINK, Penaz Masani and a precious picture of Nirupa Roy in and as Superman, a low-down of Sukanya Verma's fully filmi week!
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Ram Leela is a lavish visual spread and is filled with moments of thrill, ingenuity and splendour.
Mohammad Sajjad salutes the memory of Mushirul Hasan -- historian, thinker, academic, institution builder, -- who passed into the ages this week.
Why are far right Hindu organisations growing in strength? Why is there a rising subscription to Neo-Wahabism, the Saudi Arabian version of contemporary Islam?
'The bonhomie that once characterised the Shiv Sena and BJP was clearly missing this time. Is there a deeper divide than what was apparent?'
The real brilliance of this RSS campaign, therefore, lies in building a dominant power base with, and for, a mostly non-RSS leadership. That is why the rise of the BJP in Assam is their stand-out victory, says Shekhar Gupta.
'Indian nationhood is indeed at the cusp of alarming redefinition -- hate-filled, and exclusionary.' 'Nations are not built this way, instead these are the ways of liquidating nations.' 'We must pre-empt it.' 'Can we?' asks Mohammad Sajjad.
United States President Barack Obama said goodbye to his nation in an emotional address enriched with wisdom and optimism.
Dil Dhadakne Do is like a really long episode of Sarabhai Vs Sarabhai where Satish Shah doesn't show up, says Raja Sen.
'The Cauvery river has become excessively politicised by all political parties.' 'They see a vote bank in an emotive issue of this kind.'
'If chutzpah nationalists brought the Babri Masjid down, chutzpah secularists did precious little to stop it from being torn down.' 'If chutzpah nationalists ensured carnage in Gujarat, chutzpah secularists allowed Muzaffarnagar to become their next hunting ground.' 'Chutzpah secularists readily banned SIMI, but dragged their feet when it came to banning the Bajrang Dal.'
On the 30th anniversary of the football tragedy, Rediff.com's Bikash Mohapatra, in an exclusive interaction with Italian author Francesco Caremani, discusses the incident that affected so many people, including himself.
'I do not require validation from a hostile media. My conscience is clear.'
