'Narendra Modi could be too old to change his personality. On the other hand, his attachment to the RSS could be mostly sentimental. So one must hope that if he becomes prime minister, he is able to detach himself from the RSS view of the world as completely as Narasimha Rao detached himself from the Congress's First Family.' 'India cannot be governed by the autocratic methods by which he has governed Gujarat. If he becomes prime minister he will have to learn to speak in a more civil language about his political opponents,' historian Ramachandra Guha tells Arthur J Pais/Rediff.com
The court case in India against Wendy Doniger's book The Hindus was in a way initiated in Atlanta, Georgia, by a group of Indian-American businessmen including Dhiru Shah, who have been fighting against several controversial books on Hinduism by Western thinkers and professors in recent years.
'For over a decade, the United States has been shaping the contours of Hinduism. It has been doing this from the perspective of upper caste and conservative interests,' Professor Shefali Chandra tells Rediff.com's Arthur J Pais.
On Tuesday, a judge in the US denied a request by Aakash Dalal's attorney to have his trial sent to another district and conducted under a different judge since the adverse publicity the case had gathered in the present court area in the Bergen county of New Jersey. Arthur J Pais reports.
By taking Mary Kom's life to millions of young people across India, Priyanka Chopra hopes the film can make a difference to future generation of Indians.
Director Danis Tanovic, producer Anurag Kashyap and actor Emraan Hashmi have created an inspiring work of international collaboration with Tigers. Arthur J Pais reports from Toronto.
The preferred course of action to challenge Wendy Doniger's many published works and polemical Hinduphobic statements is to debate it, Aseem Shukla tells Rediff.com's Arthur J Pais.
The Dalals, whose son faces 30 years in prison if found guilty of masterminding domestic terror acts, have decided to take their case to the Indian-American community.
Just two actors on stage capturing love, jealousy, possessiveness, class issues and guilt in 90 minutes... a highly entertaining musical set in 19th century Paris. Arthur J Pais/Rediff.com reports from New York on Love Letters and Can-Can.
Lawyer and scholar Vinay Sitapati says the 'Get Modi' strategy largely misses the efforts to prosecute people evidently guilty of violence and murders in the Gujarat riots in favour of "a narrow quest to stop one man from becoming prime minister."
'At the end of the interview, as he walked with us to the elevator, he looked at me and said, "Do you think it was my karma that I should have made this film?"' Arthur J Pais/Rediff.com recalls his encounter with Richard Attenborough.
Sakina Jaffrey looks back at her parents, Saeed and Madhur Jaffrey's acting journey, to map the changing Hollywood landscape for desi artists.
The brilliant Indian boy star of the musical The Jungle Book, currently playing in Chicago, is being applauded for his rare talent.
Director Ritesh Batra discusses his film, The Lunchbox, which releases this week.
'My worst performances are in those movies in which the directors showed me how to act,' Emraan Hashmi tells Arthur J Pais/ Rediff.com in Toronto.
In analysing census data from 2007-2011, researchers found that the at-birth sex ratios of Asian Americans are the same as white Americans. Arthur J Pais reports
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'Both resisted cruel white rule through non-violence. But Mandela's is a singular story. He never lost faith in his ideals and goal even when he was in prison for many years,' Anant Singh, who produced the Mandela biopic, tells Rediff.com's Arthur J Pais.
Arthur J Pais analyses Oscar 2014 big wins and losses.
December 22 marks the 129th birth anniversary of Srinivasa Ramanujan, the greatest Indian mathematician of our time. Just 32 when he died, Ramanujan has fascinated mathematicians, writers and filmmakers for nearly a century.
Vice-President Hamid Ansari embarks on an important Latin American visit, heralding that resource-rich continent's importance to India.
Nearly a thousand people from different faiths gathered today to pay homage to the six Sikh worshippers gunned down inside a Gurdwara by a white supremacist here last year, as a sea of candles and emotional tributes marked the tragic incident's anniversary.
Millions of kids and young adults were terrified of Pran and believed him to be a villain in real life, writes Arthur J Pais, in his tribute to the legendary actor who passed away on July 12.
Om Puri, notes Arthur J Pais/Rediff.com, has given one of the most endearing performances of his career in producers Steven Spielberg and Oprah Winfrey and director Lasse Hallstrom's new film, The Hundred-Foot Journey
US President Barack Obama's plan to shield up to 4.7 million undocumented immigrants from deportation may be immensely significant, but only a comprehensive legislation from the Congress with a larger goal could do justice to immigrant expectations.
There are 2.5 lakh undocumented Indians across the United States. While President Barack Obama's executive order last week does help, only the US Congress can really address the needs of those caught in the immigration tangle.
Arthur J Pais interviews John Madden, director of the Marigold Hotel films, on the difficult task of creating an equally hilarious and as feeling a sequel.
'How can Hindus protest efforts to ban an edition of the Gita in parts of Russia, and force a publisher to withdraw an academic critique of Hinduism, all in the same breath? It makes the Hindu community seem petty, self-serving, and hypocritical. Episodes like this allow Hinduism to be "owned" by the most conservative, intolerant, extremist voices. These people do not speak for me, and they certainly don't represent the form of Hinduism I practice and love," Princeton University's Hindu chaplain Vineet Chander tells Rediff.com's Arthur J Pais.
Indians in and around Ferguson, Missouri, tell Arthur J Pais and Suman Guha Mozumder what it's like to be caught in the thick of America's racial volcano eruption
With her final act, paddleboarding from Rishikesh to Varanasi during the last months of her battle with cancer, Michele Baldwin fought for the promise of life. Filmmaker Frederic Lumiere tells Arthur J Pais about the inspiring story of Lady Ganga.
Residents anxious after masked gunmen break into 4 desi homes in New Jersey, many disappointed over the police's response to the violent crimes. Arthur J Pais reports from New Jersey.
'Asked which Dilip Kumar films were among her favourites, she said she had seen not a single movie of his until that time. This became a sensational issue. She did not mean to offend Dilip Kumar. There was not a bone of diplomacy in her and she never acquired that calculating attitude even at the cost of some of the roles that she would eventually lose.'
Indian actors from different generations and worlds, Roshan Seth and Sendhil Ramamurthy, star in a remarkable film, co-starring Oscar winner Mary Steenburgen and Oscar nominee Michael Lerner. Brahmin Bulls director Mahesh Pailoor, in a fascinating conversation with Arthur J Pais/Rediff.com
Have you tasted Besan ke ladoo cookies?
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