One of India's legends Smita Patil would have been 69 today, October 17.
'It will bring the next wave of awareness and pursuit of excellence from people who want to take chess as a game or a competitive sport or even as a career.'
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.
Anil Kumble expressed his disappointment with India's humiliating 0-3 whitewash against New Zealand, particularly criticising the team's top-order batting and the questionable pitch preparation.
'This novel, even after 1,000 years, is still relevant.' 'The politics and psychology is still relevant.' 'It is as contemporary as you can get.'
Allu Arjun is fantabulous as the doting husband, emotion-loving son and risk-taking entrepreneur. Pushpa escalates his brand from fire to wildfire, applauds Divya Nair.
They try to hide behind the smokescreen that these are works of fiction inspired by real events. So, you can pick and choose from facts and fictionalise to push the right triggers with your audience or appease the powers that be, observes Shekhar Gupta.
As a leader, he was ambitious, not for himself but for India and its people. His was not the short-term election cycle calculation of individual political gain. His was a practical vision of how to better the lives of his fellow citizens, asserts Ambassador Shivshankar Menon, who served as foreign secretary and national security advisor when Dr Singh was prime minister.
"There was complete clarity in my mind that taking the public in Jammu and Kashmir into confidence was absolutely essential for the execution of the decision," Prime Minister Narendra Modi says about his government's decision to abrogate Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir.
Kanguva is a mishmash of conceptually strong set pieces that feels bloated, as the central scaffolding holding together the core themes of love that heals over time and eternity, feels like an afterthought, observes Arjun Menon.
This Web series is more about wine, opium, sex, more sex, gay love and incest, rues Syed Firdaus Ashraf.
As he took the bow at the end of the Lakme Fashion Week x FDCI show, many in the crowd cheered for him with an inkling that the magic and the beauty they just witnessed on the ramp was perhaps for the last time. But no one in the fashion fraternity thought that Bal would pass away so soon.
Ishaan P Zore doesn't think Vicky Kaushal's persona quite matches Chhatrapati Sambhaji's iconic figure.
All We Imagine as Light has been on several critics' best of the year lists, including Sight and Sound (Payal Kapadia appeared on the magazine's cover, perhaps a first for an Indian filmmaker), to The New York Times, Time and it is the number one film recommended by Barack Obama. The future certainly belongs to Payal Kapadia, asserts Aseem Chhabra.
'There are films, documentaries and reportage on the Internet regarding the Godhra riots. But whether the Sabarmati Express burned in an accident or a planned attack, what was the truth?'
Andaz Apna Apna is practically the most quoted film since Sholay, observes Sukanya Verma, as she celebrates 30 years of this cult classic movie.
His cinema of compassion inspired me, gave me tools to develop empathy for others. But it also made me understand that serious, socially committed cinema with deeply engaging narratives and great performances is an art form to admire, appreciate and explore. Aseem Chhabra remembers Shyam Benegal, who passed into the ages on Monday evening.
'When you watch Freedom At Midnight, I want you to feel like you are sitting on a ticking time bomb.'
'After Om's untimely demise, he would call us every Sunday for the next two years to ask, "How are you doing my dear? How's the young fella?"'
Shailendra's songs were attuned to Raj Kapoor's explorations of the themes and dreams of the Everyman.
Gandhi will now be seen in two upcoming OTT series -- Hansal Mehta's Gandhi, starring Pratik Gandhi in the title role, and Freedom at Midnight by Nikkhil Advani.
Economic gloom and rising ownership costs have savaged sales.
David, the current chairman of selectors for Indian women's team, enters the ICC Hall of Fame a year after the induction of former captain Diana Edulji.
Even a whiff of an incident like the violent 1989 shirt-ripping attack on Krishnamachari Srikkanth by a Karachi spectator would be ruinous. It would set back the ties further, derail an ongoing tournament, and harden Indian attitudes on playing Pakistan anywhere at all, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
A Web series Bandon Mein Tha Dum will chronicle the Indian cricket team's historic Test series win in Australia last year.
Will Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, who gets his orders from New Delhi, call the shots or allow a democratically elected government to independently govern, questions Ramesh Menon.
Captain Sharan and Flight Engineer Anil Jaggia both confirm that the hijackers seemed to know a lot about flying an aircraft. Without help from the ISI or the Pakistan army, it was impossible, points out Utkarsh Mishra.
Modern Masters aims to showcase Rajamouli's enigmatic career and paints a context of what makes him the singular voice that defined his generation of film-makers, for millions, observes Arjun Menon.
'The war ended in 2009 and I believe the new generation of Tamils don't know what was going on there.' 'I felt it was my duty to tell our story.' 'Since 2009, it seems like we are sleeping.'
Musheer Khan stroked a fluent 181 from 373 balls, while Navdeep Saini claimed 2/36 to give India B the upperhand on Day 2 of the Duleep Trophy match.
As Heeramandi, set in 1920s Lahore, drops on Netflix on May 1, Sukanya Verma marvels at Bhansali's magnificent slices of history in 25 resplendent frames.
The PDP looks a distant third in the race, observes Mohammed Sayeed Malik, the distinguished commentator on Kashmir politics.
Never before in history have Cannes and its sidebars found space for eight Indian, or India-themed, films.
'I was completely in awe of him. After the shot was okayed, I would quickly run back to my chair and sit quietly till I was called again.'
The MPs representing various political parties offered heartfelt tributes to the building that has been the epicentre of India's democratic journey.
How wonderful it would be for all of us to watch the Oscar ceremony on March 2, 2025 and watch AWIAL win an Oscar, notes Aseem Chhabra.
'It's such a mishmash of wonderful things, so many different cultures, subsections of society and weird histories.'
Did Jeff Bezos decide against endorsing Harris because it would hurt his business interests? Only God and Bezos know, and neither of them are talking, notes Prem Panicker.
'When Bad Newz was given to me to direct, the first thing I did was go back to my childhood.' 'It's an ode to Hindi cinema.'
'My primary reason to participate was -- and I told my wives as well -- that the three of us would live happily together on the show and create history. We would make sure that people remember us for the longest time.'
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