Two months ago, May 2, Major Anuj Sood made the supreme sacrifice for the motherland in a hostage-rescue mission in J&K. As his grieving family grapples with their immense loss, they graciously share memories of the young major -- a husband, brother and son -- whose only calling was the fauj.
'I don't know if I became an actor, I was just trying to book jobs and survive.'
Sri Lanka declared a state of emergency on Wednesday as angry protesters stormed the prime minister's office in Colombo, hours after president Gotabaya Rajapksa fled to the Maldives on a military jet, amid the country's worst economic crisis in decades.
Like the rest of India, film folk like Lata Mangeshkar, Amitabh Bachchan, Akshay Kumar and Karan Johar came out on their balconies to clap and give a shout-out to people, who have been providing medical and other essential services during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, as part of PM Narendra Modi's Janta curfew initiative.
Commander Abhilash Tomy of the Indian Navy sailed the oceans and conquered likely death after a storm badly injured his spine and destroyed his boat. Archana Masih/Rediff.com met the decorated sailor who fought all odds to return home alive.
Will Indian democracy benefit from the potential that Shashi Tharoor stores in his mind, spirit and intellect? Or will it be the saga of another leader who promised much but delivered too little, asks Dr Sudhir Bisht.
The BJP is not taking the AAP challenge lightly. Amit Shah has cautioned party insiders to ensure that AAP does not cross a vote share of 24%. He has always seen AAP as a much more significant challenge than the Congress, observes Ramesh Menon, author, Modi Demystified: The Making Of A Prime Minister.
'My relationship with the Pataudi family was to help me to survive in 1971.'
Air Commodore Jawahar Lal Bhargava recalls how he ejected from his failing aircraft in Pakistan during the 1971 War.
'That we could touch someone's loving memory is fulfilling; it is something we both cherish.'
The second half saw Persepolis create a number of chances yet again, but were thwarted on each occasion thanks to some excellent rear-guard action from the FC Goa defence.
'I have only one life and that is enough.'
There are 11 actors, who are among Bollywood's busiest, working on multiple films simultaneously. Just who are they?
'The judges won't be giving me points for my looks or height.' 'All I know is my punches are important and I just go about throwing them at my opponent.'
Joginder Tuteja looks at the 10 Best Action Thrillers.
'We decided that we would fire our rockets and dive into the valley and get away, making it difficult for the missiles to be fired.'
Nangiohbok Rymbai, a graduate in economics who works as a daily wage labourer in Shillong, tells Rediff.com's A Ganesh Nadar what he would like to see in Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's Budget.
One can only imagine how it is at the receiving end of the bomb. The sound is deafening, splinters and rocks fly like missiles and the blast sucks in the air around asphyxiating everyone. The shock waves can be felt for miles around.
Chhetri is currently the highest goal-scoring active Asian player with 64 strikes from 101 matches and third in the world after superstars Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
Singh and Punjab Governor V P S Badnore led hundreds of people from all walks of life who took out a candle march to pay homage to the martyrs.
A star-studded Indian shooting contingent will begin their Rio Olympics campaign on Saturday with in-form Jitu Rai hoping to launch the country's medal haul in an event which will also see his more illustrious senior colleague Abhinav Bindra aiming to end his glorious career on a high.
In awe of the sensational Saurabh Chaudhary, former World championship silver-medallist shooter Jitu Rai feels the reticent youngster has it in him to humble one of the sport's all-time greats, South Korean Jin Jong-Oh, at the Tokyo Olympic Games.
'The Chinese have been moving in step by step; inch by inch for the last 40 years.'
Sanjeet Kumar won a gold medal in the 91 kg weight category at the Asian Boxing Championships.
An agreement between India and Pakistan, however tenuous, has its own meaning and impact. We have not heard the last word about the ceasefire agreement, observes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
A weaker Russia, a sobered China at a time when Xi Jinping is manoeuvring to protect his third term prospects, a reunited West, a chaotic Pakistan. This is a perfect set of strategic circumstances. It is for India now to consummate this historic opportunity, argues Shekhar Gupta.
Here's a look at the tributes.
It is apparent that an easing of tensions at the border and a disengagement of troops is on the cards, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'War is won by team work. War is won by sacrifices,' says Subedar Sanjay Kumar, Param Vir Chakra.
'Any conventional conflict could trigger a nuclear war with results that neither India nor Pakistan could survive easily.' >A revealing excerpt from Shuja Nawaz's The Battle For Pakistan: The Bitter US Friendship And A Tough Neighbourhood.
The Battle of Pratapgad can be termed the turning point in Indian history as it interrupted the continuous chain of Muslim successes on the battlefield.
These hotties have been the toast of the fashion world this year. Vote for your favourite.
Lance Naik Mohan Nath Goswami met a hero's end battling Lashkar-e-Tayiba terrorists in the jungles of Kashmir. His valour earned him the nation's highest gallantry award in peacetime this Republic Day. Archana Masih/Rediff.com travelled to Lal Kuan, Haldwani, to find out who this hero was.
Manish Kaushik has announced his arrival on the senior scene in grand fashion.
UAVs are an intrinsic part of today's technology driven battlefield. Indians don't seem to be taking the challenge with the degree of urgency that is required, says Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd).
'The sooner we understand and accept this current situation as the new normal, the better,' advises Major Mohammed Ali Shah (retd).
'2,000 years later, we all want the same thing -- we want to live a healthy life, a life that has quality.' 'And Chanakya tells you exactly how to do that.'
Arpi deserves to be complimented for the commitment and hard work that have gone into this production. The frustrations of seeking reliable documentation from the catacombs of the Indian bureaucracy did not deter him from going after the best information available, and the result is one that he can take much satisfaction in. Ambassador Prabhat P Shukla, Member Advisory Council, Vivekananda International Foundation, reviews Claude Arpi's The End of an Era: India Exits Tibet.
'He never believes in loose talk.' 'If he is done with you, then you go your way, he goes his way.'
'I realised what a great leader he was by the way he took decisions to undertake the most-risky of missions.'
