Captain Pradeep Shoury Arya is an Income-Tax officer whose mission against terrorists in J&K won him the Shaurya Chakra.
Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, Parinda, 1942: A LOve Story, Devdas, Kareeb, Mission Kashmir, Munnabhai MBBS, Rang De Basanti, Delhi 6, Bhag Milkha Bhag, Kalank... all bear the visual stamp of Binod Pradhan's genius.
'There are so many dimensions to history that we need to attend to: We need more space for local and regional histories; we need to delve into the histories of particular communities; we need to emphasise gender history and environmental history.' 'We need to think about India's history beyond India's current borders.'
'When he first came to office, my belief is that the PM's reading of the landscape was that, with a vanquished Congress and fragmented Opposition, he was looking at least at two terms in office. This reading perhaps allows for a more cautious, gradual approach.' 'It was only a matter of time before the government was forced to come face-to-face with a serious corruption scandal. This is not a commentary on the BJP, but a statement about India's political economy.' 'There is growing concern about the government's commitment to freedom of expression, religious tolerance, and an independent civil society. Thus far, the positive movement on strategic and economic matters has crowded out these concerns, but they are lingering beneath the surface.'
Tarun Vijay on why the victory in Uttar Pradesh belongs to Narendra Modi and the road ahead.
Our generation got independence too easy, we take our freedom too lightly, we treat our country and environment like toilet paper and take the easy way out because we have no sense of pride or self worth except when it is an India-Pakistan match. We need to be broken more so that we may rise, says film director Suparn Verma.
'It is very important for Indian Americans to understand that we need to have as many seats at the table as we can get. I am going to see to it that I am going to get there," Kumar Barve, the longest-serving Indian-American legislator in America, tells Aziz Haniffa/Rediff.com in an exclusive interview.
'You can't take your eyes off him.'
Modi said social justice is not a lip service for the government but a commitment.
Aseem Chhabra picks the scenes that left him impressed this year.
New Delhi has repeatedly missed opportunities for political engagement in Kashmir in the past. It must seize the next one, says Ajai Shukla.
War is as grand and consummate as love in Bollywood.
There are many firsts in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Lok Sabha speech which constitute the cardinal elements of a strategy which has all the potential to serve as the mainspring of the polity for the rest of the century, says B S Raghavan.
'The response to terror is not always reciprocal terror, nor is launching a conventional response the best response.' 'The best response is to make the sponsor pay a price he cannot afford,' says former RA&W chief Vikram Sood.
'For its part, Pakistan often gives safe haven to agents of chaos, violence, and terror.'
Amberish K Diwanji on Indian prime ministers and the seven-year itch.
Upbeat after convincingly winning the One-Day International series 4-0, Australia's Twenty20 captain Aaron Finch is confident that the hosts can handle the more experienced Indian reinforcements in Yuvraj Singh and Suresh Raina who have joined the visitors for the three-match rubber starting in Adelaide, on Tuesday.
In this exclusive conversation with Rediff.com contributor Rajeev Sharma, exiled opposition leader Ahmed Naseem explains why the world should care about democracy in Maldives.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on range of issues -- from Rafale deal to Ram temple and triple talaq.
Dinesh Raheja salutes the legend's versatility in her heyday.
In our special series re-visiting great Hindi film classics, Sukanya Verma looks back at Raj Kapoor's Boot Polish (1954), starring Baby Naaz and Ratan Kumar.
'Probably only Sonia-ji knows the extent of what he is doing.'
2014 will be a watershed election. Much is at stake and much needs to be changed. Women need their voice to be heard and they need representation with real power, says Sunanda Vashist.
'I'm a rascal, I'm going to play a paramahansa?!'
'Modi's campaign has been strikingly devoid of anti-Muslim rhetoric. After the kutta pilla incident, it has been several months since he said something horrible about the Muslims of India. It is the result of democratic constraints. He has to make compromises... He's trying to reinvent himself. He will politically hurt himself if 2002 becomes the definition of Mr Modi again', says political scientist Ashutosh Varshney.
The top posts on social media from your favourite Bollywood celebrities.
'The CPM is not in a mood to introspect, and their total failure on all fronts is being covered up by crimes such as maiming and killing political opponents,' alleges Bharatiya Janata Party's Kerala president V Muraleedharan on the eve of his rally to protest the murder of his party activists in Kannur.
Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy tells rediff.com's Shobha Warrier why the UPA lost in the general elections, the decline of the Left and what he expects from the Centre.
'He is a man whose utterances have been so virulent and communalistic.' 'That's why many people did not look at him as the party's choice for chief minister.' 'UP is the state that reports the largest number of communal incidents every year.' 'Modi may not be using the Hindutva card, but he never condemns the incidents too.'
Hamid Anasari's was not talking of reservation for the whole religious community to which he too happens to belong. Yet, sections of media chose to put words into his mouth and then subject him to the criticism he never deserved. This does not augur well for our media or democracy, says Mohammad Sajjad.
'The irresistible Cuban cigars, which acquire their unique flavour as they are rolled on the thighs of Cuban women, have always been the ultimate temptation for cigar connoisseurs in the US.'
Anjali Lama will walk for the very first time at the coming Lakme Fashion Week Summer/Resort Week 2017.
After the Bihar setback, these are the issues the PM must address to maintain the people's faith in him.