'For a long time Pakistan dreamt that India would break up and that it would be the predominant power in the region,' says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
And no, the list doesn't start and stop with Boman Irani!
The Alams saw the magical spot while on a drive to the hills. A few years later they set up home and a small hand woven shawl business, hiring local weavers, using local wool and natural colours made of root, stem and flower.
'Sreedharan epitomises the way in which an Indic ethos can be brought to bear upon the seemingly intractable problems facing India,' says Rajeev Srinivasan.
Irrfan Khan's fascinating interview with Savera R Someshwar/Rediff.com.
Satyajit Ray's fabulous use of fantasy to condemn fascism and Shah Rukh Khan's gift of enthralling oratory, Sukanya Verma's fantastic filmi week.
Aseem Chhabra lists the movies that taught him about the Idea of India.
'We want to be a nation at par with the best internationally.' 'But why is it in theatre we continue to have such low standards?'
Saurabh Shukla, Piyush Mishra and Sanjay Mishra are not likely to be in the limelight when a film releases, but they are the ones who eventually light up the movie.
'For me, success is saying 'no' when you want to say no.'
'To be fair to Arnab Goswami, the television camera is his only fix.' Unlike other TV stars who rule social media, Arnab is nowhere to be found.' 'While they hold forth in newspaper columns, maybe having realised that true gravitas is earned via newsprint not digicams, he does nothing of the sort.' 'He breathes and lives TV news,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
Brilliant cinema at the ongoing Mumbai Film Festival, raves Sukanya Verma.
'I did not always want to be an actor. The initial plan was to become a filmmaker.' Sri gets candid about his movie career.
'I had to convince myself that I was steely enough to operate on a cold-blooded killer.' 'For all my medical experience, this was something I had never done!' 'If something happened to Charles, I knew my fate was sealed for me.' 'I would be called Doctor Death until I breathed my last.' 'Success was my only hope of escaping that fate.' A fascinating excerpt from heart surgeon Dr Raamesh Koirala's Charles Sobhraj, Inside The Heart Of The Bikini Killer.
'Though she was deeply religious, she was against communalism. Whenever she got the chance, she did speak out against the communalisation of society.'
'I am fortunate that I have never been stuck in riots. I have had a very protected life and upbringing. I remember my brother was in Mumbai during the 1992-93 riots and we were all worried about him. But he was fine.' Soha Ali Khan gets serious.
We are all 'Chasing the Monsoon', notes Ajit Balakishnan.
Ajit Balakrishnan recalls some lessons from the last time people talked of 'convergence' -- the mid-1990s.
Saurabh Shukla, one of our finest character actors, on his life and movie career.
Meet Bengaluru's fondest freedom fighter, HS Doreswamy, who has been a sprightly witness to the country's ups and downs since 1947.
'We asked Shashank Arora to go at nine in the morning and shit on the beach. We wanted him to sense what it feels like to have no personal space.' 'We wanted my father not knowing what he was doing, because it reflects on the kind of character he is in the film. Not giving him the script added to the situation the actor is in.' 'We would not say good or anything encouraging to Ranvir Shorey after each shot. We would not even talk to him.' 'We were always trying to get people out of their comfort zone. I think that's when the acting stops and something organic starts to come out.' Kanu Behl -- who has directed one of the most awaited films of the year, the most unusual movie Yash Raj Films has ever produced -- discusses Titli with Aseem Chhabra/Rediff.com
'Modi is likely to make more announcements to win or retain popularity, and put himself at the centre of things even more than now,' says T N Ninan.
How well did these actors play homosexuals? RATE THEM!
Like many such cases, this case too would have remained under wraps had the survivor not exposed the villains and the crime they had commited.
'His essential doctrine was only the local police can fight terror.' '"You can't fire at mobs throwing stones," he said, adding one has to think innovatively, even defensively, sometimes.' Shekhar Gupta remembers the uncoventional SuperCop.
Deven Verma passed away into the ages on December 2. We re-publish an interview done with the veteran actor.
'I have learnt what I shouldn't do with my children -- like, not check their phone.' 'I have really wanted to check my kid's phone, but I have controlled myself.' 'It would mean going over the line.' 'So I make best friends with her friends, and in this matter, I use my stardom to the fullest.'
'Masaan is history for me. This is another journey with Raman Raghav 2.0. You have to clean your slate after every film, and not let its success or failure affect you.' Vicky Kaushal moves on, with Raman Raghav 2.0.
Youngistaan neither says something new nor does it reinforce time-tested wisdom in a way that you actually want to pay attention to it, feels Paloma Sharma.
'We keep climbing one step and slipping three. In 2004, our relay team was 7th in the world. Then we slipped from there. Otherwise, today our 4x400 metres relay team would have been gearing for a medal at the Rio Games.' 'If we need to compete at the world level, our thinking needs to be at world level. You can't have akhada thinking.'
Now that Tamil Nadu's tallest politician is no more, it remains to be seen how new political re-alignments could shape up, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Kanu Behl's Titli is one of the best films from India in recent years, says Aseem Chhabra from the Zurich film festival.
'That has always been my ambition -- to take the reader behind the scenes, to the places he was not allowed to visit, but which I had the privilege of entering.' Haresh Pandya remembers Ted Corbett, sports journalist extraordinaire, who passed into the ages on August 9.
Intensive training and meticulous planning have gone into the making of Dangal.
Indian actors from different generations and worlds, Roshan Seth and Sendhil Ramamurthy, star in a remarkable film, co-starring Oscar winner Mary Steenburgen and Oscar nominee Michael Lerner. Brahmin Bulls director Mahesh Pailoor, in a fascinating conversation with Arthur J Pais/Rediff.com
Even as France mourns the bloodiest terrorist attack for 20 years, let's take a look at some major standoffs witnessed in the past:
'We had decided that if the audience liked Stree, then after two or three years we would plan a sequel.' 'Because of the kind of reaction we received for the film we have already started work on it.'
'I loved doing Bunty Aur Babli. I love working with Rohit Shetty. I just shot for Dilwale. Kuch bhi karva leta hain mujhse (he makes me do anything)!' I worked in Jolly LLB for free. It was just a night's work. We laughed till we died during the shooting. It was such a cute character!' Meet Bollywood's busiest actor, Sanjay Mishra.
