Uncle Pai, as he was fondly called, inculcated in Indian children a love for and interest in India's glorious past and its heroes.
Chief Secretary A K Tripathy and Director General of Police (DGP) Abhay rushed to the pilgrim town to make the necessary arrangements. "The DGP and I are rushing to Puri to take stock of the situation as per the direction of the chief minister. We will camp there," Tripathy said.
Rediff readers shared these pictures from their travels.
Arrows were fired to set the effigies of Ravana, Meghnad and Kumbhakaran ablaze at the Parade Ground on Saturday, an event that was attended by President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi among a host of other dignitaries.
Taking to Twitter, the army said its mountaineering expedition team spotted the 'mysterious' footprints on April 9 close to Makalu Base Camp.
'Are you so scared for your own skin that you will not help a lady or a weak man from attack?' asks an anguished A Ganesh Nadar.
'I have done so much work after the Mahabharat, but people still remember me as Duryodhan.'
Kapil Mishra had been invited because he was an "anti-corruption crusader", one 'IIT B for Bharat' organiser said. But in his half hour-long speech, Mishra didn't mention corruption. His entire focus was on the long "battle" Hindus had fought for their identity.
Here's a recap of moments captured in India in the past 24 hours.
The devotees pulled three 40-foot high colourful chariots carrying the sacred deities of Lord Jagannatha, Lady Subhadra and Lord Balarama from Hyde Park to Trafalgar Square. The giant chariots were accompanied by a procession of singers, musicians and dancers. At Trafalgar Square, where the procession concluded, thousands of people had gathered to witness cultural and educational displays and exhibitions linked to the Rath-yatra.
The London Fashion Week saw an Indian celebration of sorts, on and off the ramp.
Visiting the Rezang La Memorial, one has a feeling of super-humans defending the Indian territory against the Chinese onslaught, says Claude Arpi on the 60th anniversary of the heroic battle of the 1962 War.
A special session to discuss NRI women's issue was convened on the third day of the Pravasi Bhartiya Diwas.
Mani Ratnam is experimenting with a real-life historical in Ponniyin Selvan, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
Vishu invokes fond memories of childhood writes Divya Nair/Rediff.com
Sudha Murty has various roles -- philanthropist, author, teacher, wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt -- and she revels in each one of them, discovers Savera R Someshwar.
There is a deep-seated sense of rejection that the new generation Tamil youth have felt for a decade and more now, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
'This is about reviving this country as a centre of Hindutva at Ayodhya.'
The Andhra Pradesh Government on Wednesday approved Amaravathi town, the ancient seat of power of Satavahana rulers, as its new capital coming up in the Vijayawada-Guntur region, which is also known for its historical and spiritual significance.
'I challenge BJP spokespersons that they have no idea what their party's ideology is because they believe it is only Modi's party now.'
If only Mahabharat was a made-for-radio special instead of a half-heartedly animated demo reel masquerading as a children's fantasy, writes Sukanya Verma.
Readers send in their travel images. Have you sent yours yet?
Today is one of the holiest days in the Hindu calendar. Here's what you should know about it.
The activist will be produced before the magistrate court in Kochi after completing formalities of her arrest, they said.
According to custom, only believers of Hinduism are permitted entry at the temple, a major pilgrim centre and tourist attraction in the southern part of the country.
'My great grandfather Henry Ford would have been very happy with the lifestyle I am leading and the things I believe in.' He's a servant of god. A temple builder. Manu Shah meets the Ford who spreads word about the glories of Krishna.
A hundred dancers perform the Isai Vani Natyanjali to songs sung by the legendary singer, the late M S Subbulakshmi.
The policemen, most of whom are deployed on daily shifts, were sitting on wooden beds under a Neem tree, watching a steady stream of mediapersons arriving with a variety of questions.
Our cricketers, who rarely get off-time, have had to spend the last week locked down in their respective homes like the rest of us across India.
Syed Firdaus Ashraf lists 10 instances when the BJP didn't pull its punches.
On the second day of his trip to Varanasi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi picked up a spade and took part in a Swachh Bharat drive at Assi Ghat on the banks of river Ganga.
'In its history, the RSS has never seen success as it is seeing now. And it wants to extend their base.'
Sukanya Verma looks at the jhoola, and how it's an unforgettable part of many a Bollywood imagery in celebration, romance, frolic and, sometimes, even menace.
There are times in each nation's life when the gods shower their blessings on it. The right leaders are in place and they make the right decisions. Everything seems to click and good luck favours its people. Such times came to this country 50 years ago, recalls Admiral J G Nadkarni (retd).
'Art has no religion. An artist is an artist.'
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday hit back at Narendra Modi, comparing him to Hitler and said his desperate dream to unfurl national flag at Red Fort would remain unfulfilled.
Attlee said Great Britain had concluded that the Indian element of the army was no longer reliable and that Netaji's Indian National Army had demonstrated that. That had shaken the foundation on which Britain's Indian empire rested, argues Lieutenant General Ashok Joshi (retd).
