Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens 'can be likened, in essence, to a new Salman Khan actioner where the core audience goes in with a checklist knowing they'll get some cheeky dialogue, some trite punchlines, an item song and one eventually shirtless fight scene,' says Raja Sen.
Mohammad Shahabuddin, in prison for over a decade, still inspires fear, a reminder of the 'jungle raj' when political murders were commonplace in Bihar.
US Republican front runner Donald Trump on Thursday came under a brutal attack from party's former presidential nominee Mitt Romney who called him "phony and a fraud".
Pollution is not merely the price to be paid for growth; it is also a drag on the same growth.
The effects of creating 'baiting crowds' on social media, and their use by politicians, have diluted the civilising processes of parliamentary democracy, says Deepak Lal.
Protestors outside the Indian Consulate in San Francisco, California, tell Rediff.com's Ritu Jha that they are outraged because nobody is speaking for the rights of Sangeeta Richard, the former domestic help of Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade
'No government should be viewed as authoritarian, rather as a collective institution of people,' says Pinarayi Vijayan.
'I have seen so many cows roaming the streets of Mumbai. When people from foreign countries see cows roaming on our streets, it is not good.'
'It is the regional parties and their leaders who are the ones we have to watch.'
Aseem Chhabra attends an unusual medley of movies and literature in Chandigarh.
'Mohammad Akhlaq's death isn't only about a Muslim being killed out of sheer communal bigotry, but also the denial of the Constitutional guarantees of "due process" under Article 21 and the freedom of choice,' says Shehzad Poonawalla, who has moved the National Commission for Minorities over the murder.
Hundreds of people staged a demonstration outside the Ryan International School demanding a CBI probe and set afire a liquor shop near the school.
Aseem Chhabra is impressed by Rima Das's Bulbul Can Sing, Ritesh Batra's Photograph and eight other outstanding films.
'I hope the anger that Gujarat farmers have demonstrated is also reflected in other parts of the country in ensuing elections.' 'Only then will the ruling parties accept that something is terribly going wrong in the hinterland.'
The Bharat Ratna conferred on Madan Mohan Malaviya has exposed the frictions within his family, reports Manavi Kapur
Small and medium enterprises had complained of tedious compliance burden under the Goods and Services Tax
Glimpses of I-Day celebrations across India.
A monsoon holiday can be cheaper because of discounts.
Nandini Gupta who interned at an IT firm explains how Artificial Intelligence can change our future.
Angus Deaton's Nobel Prize should spark off more research on the measurement and usefulness of poverty percentages.
'The more I lived in India, the more I realised that America was my home too.'
The kindest thing one can say about Ishqedarriyaan is that it is yawn worthy
Can we make high speed 4G Internet available at 10 cents per GB, and make all voice calls free of cost -- that too in a large and diverse country like India? Can we make high-quality but simple breast cancer screening available to every woman, that too at the extremely affordable cost of $1 per scan? Can we make a portable, high-tech ECG machine which can provide reports immediately and that too at the cost of 8 cents a test? Can we make an eye imaging device that is portable, non-invasive and costs 3 times less that conventional devices? Can we make a robust test for mosquito-borne dengue, which can detect the disease on day 1, and that too at the cost of $2 per test? Amazingly, says Dr R A Mashelkar, the eminent scientist, all this has been achieved in India, not only by using technological innovation but also non-technological innovation.
Trump, 70, took the oath of office in front of about 800,000 people who braved chilly weather to gather on the National Mall in the center of the capital to celebrate the rank political outsider, who defied all odds to defeat political heavyweight Hillary Clinton in the November polls.
'Having a voice at the table means the other side has to show up to listen. It became clear that wouldn't happen,' says actor Maulik Pancholy, one of the 10 members who resigned from the US president's advisory commission on Asian Americans.
'Quite the raconteur, much to the dismay of Courtroom 51's CBI Special Judge Jayendra Chandrasen Jagdale, Christopher 'Doglis' Marquis, a Bandra dog-breeder who was Prosecution Witness No 57 and a panch or witness, seemed to move into the witness box with glee, embellishing every answer that he gave to the lawyers' questions with a variety of additional details.' Vaihayasi Pande Daniel reports from the Sheena Bora murder trial.
For a start this award has a history of having less to do with actual contributions and more to do with some part of a larger agenda. Some pretty dubious people have received this. Many more were patently undeserving, says Mohan Guruswamy.
As a mother, as a woman, as a human being, Savera R Someshwar is horrified by some of the provisions of the Surrogacy Regulation Bill, 2016.
'I always say I am a teacher by choice and an entrepreneur by chance.'
If new goals have emerged, this is the time to make fresh investments.
While some say an agreement was reached over the Panama Papers, others suggest that Nawaz Sharif may have handed the CPEC to the military in exchange for his survival.
Sanjay Kumar Singh draws up a mediclaim policy checklist.
Businessman P C Mustafa wants Indian Americans to return home, Cognizant CEO Francisco D'Souza outlines how Indian tech companies could grow, Gaurav Dalmia has some investment recommendations while Subramanian Swamy warns that India is flirting with a debt trap.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan talks CNN's Becky Anderson.
Kashmiris hope that India and Pakistan can find a lasting solution to what many call the Kashmir 'problem'.
Legendary Pakistani philanthropist Abdul Sattar Edhi, who had dedicated his life to humanity and serving the poor, died in Karachi from renal failure. He was 92.
Devastation struck Venezuela when oil prices started collapsing in 1982, following a global oil glut. The country's economy contracted overnight.
Congress Vice-president Rahul Gandhi, in an interview to a leading daily, has stated that he is "ready to take charge".
