'These Marathas are farmers and they only do farming. They have no other business other than farming. Now, they want reservations because farming is no longer a profitable business.'In this interview, veteran farmers' rights advocate and founding member of the Shetkari Sanghatna, Vijay Jawandhia, with Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff unpacks the historical and structural roots of the agitation.
He added that India sells to the US, its biggest "client", "massive" amounts of goods, "but we sell them very little - Until now a totally one sided relationship, and it has been for many decades."
'If the BJP had its way, it would sideline him in favour of someone else. But that's not feasible. There is no vote catcher in Bihar for the BJP.'
In response to the recent incident in Etawah where a non-Brahmin kathavachak (religious storyteller) was allegedly assaulted and tonsured, the Kashi Vidvat Parishad, a prestigious council of Sanskrit scholars and experts on Hindu scriptures, has issued a strong statement defending the rights of all Hindus to recite and narrate the Bhagavad Katha.
'Shinde, via Jarange Patil, is making his moves to become the sole leader of the oppressed, poor, backward Marathas in Maharashtra.'
'When I undertook a study of temple desecration in precolonial India, it was not enough simply to document what temples were desecrated, by whom, when, and where.' 'It was also important to explore the total historical context of such incidents, with a view to discovering patterns, which in turn could reveal the reasons why they occurred.'
Seventy years after Pather Panchali released on August 26, 1955, we finally get it. Shuttling between the village of Boral and a studio in Calcutta, caught between worrying about the next purse of funds and wondering which item to mortgage next, Satyajit Ray was explaining Indians to themselves, discovers Sreehari Nair.
Anurag Kashyap has expressed his frustration over the release issues faced by Ananth Mahadevan's biographical drama Phule.
'I was so full of josh, with all my friends cheering me on, I gave it everything from the get-go.' 'By nightfall, the pain had set in. My legs were aching, my back was on fire and I was in tears.' 'I turned to my mom and said, "I can't do this."'
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.
Jitin Prasada was once considered as among Rahul Gandhi's 'young Turks' and was a minister in successive Manmohan Singh governments but defected from the Congress to the BJP in 2021, where he has again established himself as a prominent Brahmin face of Uttar Pradesh.
One of Debashish Bhattacharya's most remarkable contributions is that he has taken the scope and foundation of the slide guitar, improvised it again and again, thereby designing and creating four entirely new guitars.
The latest biopic on Jyotibai Phule has come at a time when the Department of Taking Offence is super-active. Utkarsh Mishra feels it will be interesting to see if it portrays his attack on Brahminism in the same 'no holds barred' manner-- and, if it does, what reaction it provokes.
Andhra recipes for palate-pleasing pappu or dal.
Days after the alleged caste-based tonsuring of a Bhagwat Katha preacher and his aide in Etawah's Dandarpur village, tensions escalated on Thursday as members of Yadav groups staged protests demanding the arrest of all accused and withdrawal of the case registered against the victims.
The 155-year-old Kendrapara Municipality, the oldest civic body in the eastern state, has even put up a 'Brahmin crematorium' signage at the entrance of the burning ghat at Hazaribagicha locality in the town.
According to Hindu scriptures, Ganga Dussehra marks the day the holy river Ganga descended to Earth from Lord Shiva's locks, moved by King Bhagirath's penance. The day is considered highly auspicious and symbolises virtue, penance, and the collective well-being of humanity.
'The Dravidian movement was started for the Hindus who were rejected by the upper castes.'
'To all those then who talk about ending Brahminical hegemony, my advice is: Get the Brahmins on your side,' says Syed Firdaus Ashraf.
'If you look around the world at people of colour, religion, caste, sexuality or any of the marginalised communities, we are always talking in numbers.' 'We are always assigning them a statistic.' 'That is an easy way to assuage your urban guilt. Because you hide your apathy with hollow sympathy.' 'We are, in a way, making them invisible.'
Kamal has a crisp pen when it comes to writing short and yet powerful film dialogues. But while speaking ex tempore -- and that has been his style -- he looks every bit a confused man, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Terming Pakistan as a 'failed state', National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah Thursday said relations between New Delhi and Islamabad would never improve until a peoples' government is elected in the neighbouring country.
'We have had several films on the caste system but they are all in different decades, when sensibilities were mature enough to comprehend.' 'Today, we are in a different zone of thought.'
'It has the potential to sow seeds of furthering discord when the direction of the discourse is aimed at propagating the perceived supremacy of 'cultural nationalism' from a distant past over the prevailing dominance of 'Constitutional nationalism',' argues N Sathiya Moorthy.
'Shivaji and Sambhaji followed the gospel of humanity. 'They did not discriminate based on religion, caste, or colour.' 'That is the beauty of Shivaji and Sambhaji's Hindvi Swaraj.'
Opposition to the Karnataka government's proposed implementation of a caste census has intensified with dominant communities raising concerns about the survey's findings. The report, which has not been publicly released, is said to contradict traditional perceptions regarding the numerical strength of various castes, particularly Veerashaiva-Lingayats and Vokkaligas. These communities, along with political parties, including sections of the ruling Congress, have criticized the survey as "unscientific" and demanded a fresh assessment. The Vokkaligara Sangha and the All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha have expressed strong opposition, alleging that the report misrepresents their populations and demanding a fresh survey. Meanwhile, Dalit and OBC groups have defended the survey and its recommendations, including an increase in reservation for OBCs to 51%. The controversy has fueled political tensions in Karnataka, with opposition parties accusing the Congress government of using the caste census for political gain.
The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) in Uttar Pradesh is reviving its 'brotherhood committees', a strategy used successfully in the 2007 elections, to bolster its support among Other Backward Castes (OBCs) ahead of the 2027 state assembly elections. These committees, to be formed in all 403 constituencies, aim to connect with 100 people from OBC communities in each village, acting as ambassadors of the party at the booth level. The BSP sees these committees as a counter to the Samajwadi Party's PDA pitch and a means to consolidate its scattered rural vote bank. The party is also highlighting the 'anti-Dalit' and 'anti-OBC' tactics of the Congress, BJP and SP, hoping to capitalize on perceived grievances and reposition itself as a champion of marginalized communities.
Several Muslim families in Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh, have adopted Hindu surnames such as Dubey, Pandey, and Tiwari, claiming their ancestors were Brahmins. This follows a campaign by the Vishal Bharat Sansthan, which aims to "reconnect people with their roots" and reduce religious conflict. The campaign has sparked controversy, with some accusing families of converting their religion. The local police are investigating the situation and have deployed extra personnel in the area as a preventive measure.
The government has to specify what it intends to do with caste census data. It will be closely tracked if the government would simultaneously move towards removing the present 50% bar on reservations using means which are permitted in law. If this is not done, the entire exercise will become meaningless and could boomerang on the BJP, observes Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
'The BJP lacks a credible mass leader who matches Mamata Banerjee's popularity.' 'Given the division of votes among Opposition parties, the West Bengal government's dole-giving strategy, and the consolidation of the poor, significant sections of scheduled caste groups and Muslim minorities behind the ruling party, it will be difficult to dislodge the Trinamool from power.'
This Women's Day week, we salute India's first female doctor, Anandibai Gopal Joshi. Her achievement opened the gates of freedom and liberty for India's women.
'Dharmendra, Shashi Kapoor and I were inseparable while we struggled together.' 'When a disillusioned Dharmendra was packing his bags to return home, I prevailed upon him to give himself two months.' 'Five days later, he was signed for Shola Aur Shabnam and I signed Picnic.'
'I am determined now to celebrate all festivals together.' 'People don't respond much when you try to convince them by talking about principles of secularism etc. But if we revive our shared cultural practices, specially food, we may get a better response.'
Union Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas Suresh Gopi has stirred controversy by suggesting that members of the "upper castes" should handle the tribal affairs portfolio. Gopi, an actor-turned-politician, argued that true progress in tribal welfare would only be achieved under the leadership of individuals from "upper castes." His comments have been met with widespread criticism, including from CPI state secretary Benoy Viswam and prominent tribal leader C K Janu.
The Madhya Pradesh unit of the Akhil Bharatiya Brahmin Samaj said it will move the high court against the demolition at the house belonging to his father.
Khushi Dubey, Hari Shankar Tiwari and Mata Prasad Pandey represent the resentment among Brahmins towards the Adityanath government. Radhika Ramaseshan reports.
According to sources, the party has formed a committee comprising BJP's Rajya Sabha chief whip Shiv Pratap Shukla, party leader Abhijat Mishra, former national secretary and Gujarat MP Ram Bhai Mokariya and Mahesh Sharma to reach out to Brahmin members of the community.
'BSP will remain a player, but only a marginal player, as long as the BJP is extremely dominant in North India politics.'
'Unsurprisingly, Trump shared Modi's podcast with Fridman on his Truth account.' 'The intentions of Trump, a transactional president, are never easy to tell.' 'We will know in the next fortnight if and when he unfolds reciprocal tariffs on Indian goods, whether Modi's flattering words made any significant difference to Trump's compass,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
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