"This move will strengthen the unity of the country, which is the requirement of the hour," says Charu Wali Khanna.
'The political leadership is not realising that it is dividing the uniform on the lines of religion.' 'This will lead to anarchy.'
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav may not have been able to fix the responsibility for the Samajwadi Party's dismal performance at the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections.
'Violence is the only answer to violence.'
'To be good at the heptathlon takes at least seven years; to compete internationally and win medals takes 10 years.' 'Swapna became Asia's best heptathlete in just five years!' 'Nobody would have believed it. but she did it.'
The year is coming to an end and overall, it's been one hell of a year! We have had our share of ups and downs and we look forward to a better 2020. While we count down the days to the new year, let's also reflect on those who gave us strength to stand up in what we believe, the courageous who didn't bow down and the ones with gumption who inspired us to be better. We, Rediff.com, have selected 26 personalities, who we think are worthy of the title -- HERO OF THE YEAR -- and we want you, dear readers, to choose your hero!
'He only talks about what concerns our home, like what I have made for lunch or dinner. No politics at home and no controversies too.' 'If I want to know something, I have to update myself from the newspapers or the local people; unfortunately no inside information.' 'He is like a strong fort, which no one can break and get in, not even his wife.'
The Supreme Court of India became "lions under the throne" when Jawaharlal Nehru brought in the fourth amendment in 1955, says T C A Srinivasa Raghavan.
Serena Williams launched a charm offensive on Sunday as she sought to broker a truce with Maria Sharapova and calm the storm surrounding comments she made about a rape victim.
Described as a novel and pioneering process, Congress Vice president Rahul Gandhi said the party's manifesto was based on the views and opinions gathered from people from all walks of life. Anita Katyal reports
Conversations with her bestie in the bathroom and other Dosti tales from Tista Sengupta.
Mamata Banerjee's TMC and Kejriwal's AAP challenged the old order.
Blaming Akhilesh Yadav for "sleeping over" the demand for justice by a "beti" in the rape case against Gayatri Prajapati, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said the voters in Uttar Pradesh have got an opportunity to perform the pind daan (last rites) of their "tormentors".
We sorted through countless photographs taken around the world to come up with the top photos of 2019. Together these images tell the story of the year -- capturing moments of hope and heartbreak, triumph and tragedy.
'Women want a man with a sense of humour, but refuse to see the funny side when they show it' ...whines the male protagonist of Madhuri Banerjee's fourth novel My Clingy Girlfriend
'The Opposition has no option but to make it an 'All versus One' fight to even think about winning.'
'Like 2014, 2017 was also Modi's election.' 'Every voter you met, apart from those who are BJP cadres, everybody said they would vote for Modi, not the BJP.' 'The one and only factor is the Modi juggernaut. He is the one who turned the tide.' 'The wave which he created in 2014, and to maintain it for three years, is a huge task in itself.'
'He only talks about what concerns our home, like what I have made for lunch or dinner. No politics at home and no controversies too.' 'If I want to know something, I have to update myself from the newspapers or the local people; unfortunately no inside information.' 'He is like a strong fort, which no one can break and get in, not even his wife.'
Fashion designer Pria Kataaria Puri, host of celebrity chat show 'Born Stylish', spills the beans about designing for celebrities, her journey as a fashion designer and her ultimate style icon in an interview with Anita Aikara/Rediff.com.
From earning Rs 5 a day as a farm labourer to starting an IT services company that is worth Rs 15 million, Jyoti Reddy's story of success is nothing short of an inspiring movie plot.
In an unprecedented measure, the Maharashtra government requested defence officials to arrange airlift of the stranded passengers of the 17412 Mahalaxmi Express.
At its heart, the furore over 'love jihad' reveals an anxiety over the increase in inter-religious marriages and women's freedom, says Charu Gupta, associate professor of history at Delhi University, whose areas of research include the colonial history of Uttar Pradesh and issues of gender and sexuality.
'The parents have seen the documentary. They have liked the documentary. They called me to say, "Aap log himmat mat hariye (You don't lose heart)".' 'After that I don't care what people think. I got goose bumps when they said, "Aap log piche mat hathiye (You people don't back off)".'
'There are many serious crimes in which powerful and fake babas have been involved in... The states where this is prevalent are Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and even Delhi,' CPI-M General Secretary Prakash Karat tells Neeta Kolhatkar.
Rakhi Sawant is as uncensored as they come.
'For me, success is saying 'no' when you want to say no.'
And it's written with tears, blood and unspoken lines.
'In the long term, the party that is going to be irrelevant is the Left.' 'It seems absurd that the people of Kerala are the last ones to wake up to the reality that this kind of discredited dogmatic ideological politics has no place in the modern world.'
'The starting point of the Udta Punjab casting was that we didn't think stars would do a film like this, so we'd take non-stars. As the names kept rolling in and we had Kareena Kapoor and Shahid and Alia Bhatt, I was like yaar yeh ho kya raha hai?'
She sung a song for every mood, every situation. Sukanya Verma dives into Asha Bhosle's magnificent repertoire and pulls out gems on her 85th birthday.
The young politician seems unfazed about the complaint and tells Subhash K Jha that she would return to the neighbouring country to foster peace.
Two Muslim women were slapped, kicked and abused by a mob in Madhya Pradesh allegedly over the possession of beef.
The ongoing violence in the valley is driving students to excel, but it is also making them angry, discovers Ritwik Sharma.
Gone are the days of over-the-top Diwali parties, says Kishore Singh. This year round, the taxman is the invisible -- and unwanted -- guest at these once extravagant affairs.
He asserted his force was as competent as the CBI to probe the Kathua rape and murder case.
'It's not only what's been done politically. It's also the way it's been done. It's the suffocating atmosphere.'
The movie presents a version of Modi that the bhakts wants the rest of us to see, feels Utkarsh Mishra.
The top two in the government and in the Bharatiya Janata Party, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party President Amit Shah, respectively, spent the day trying to hard sell not just the contentious land Bill but also how the Modi government stood for the welfare of farmers.
'I lived in a chawl for 33 years, aur potty ke liye line lagaya, holding a dabba in my hand (I would queue up to go to the loo, with a bucket in my hand). Even after I became a hero, I had to stand in line. It has become so ingrained in my bones that it cannot come out easily.'
This piece is a tribute to that corner of film criticism that they call subtextual film criticism.
