'May it be the guardian which calls for breaking down narrow walls of the mind.' 'May it continue to invite everyone to celebrate the possibilities of humanity's one-ness.' Claude Arpi salutes 50 years of Auroville, a Grand Experiment in Living.
'The middle class is already alienated.' 'If the stockmarket is destabilised, the BJP is finished; the party will lose in every town.' 'And if the stockmarket crash happens now, the BJP will not cross the 150 mark in 2019.'
For teams that work on projects to make art, culture and travel accessible to the differently-abled, the experience of seeing faces light up is reward in itself.
Here are the winners of this year's National Geographic Travel Photographer Of The Year.
'The Mahabodhi temple is the only example in the world where a religion's most sacred place is controlled by people belonging to another religion.'
'Culture is our asset. Culture is our identity.' 'Wherever you go in India, every millimetre can be measured with culture.' 'There is so much to see that even one life is not enough.'
'It is a great misfortune that the Nehruvian Stalinists of India have colluded with the grand project of demeaning and destroying Sanskrit. Today, the number of Sanskritists in India is low, and falling,' says Rajeev Srinivasan.
From dating apps to events, the shrinking community is innovating ways to encourage the young to marry within the faith.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday termed his Japan trip as "very successful" and hoped that India's infrastructure will improve and the country will become clean with the help of $35 billion promised by Japan over five years, the highest ever amount ever.
The PM also asserted that the traditional practice has now become part of every person's life.
An unplanned trip to Hoi An in Vietnam turns out to be more fascinating and historic than the mainstream Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City says Anjuli Bhargava.
Saltwater crocodiles are the world's largest reptiles, and these had already disappeared from the coasts of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh by the 1970s. In all of Bhitarkanika, there were only 96 of them left. The census this January noted their count at 1,682.
Just an hour or so from the ones we commonly throng to, they promise a lot more for a lot less.
Though it would be wonderful for Indians to have the Kohinoor and Peacock Throne displayed in all its glory at the Red Fort, it seems unlikely that the British will part with the Kohinoor in a hurry.
Auroville just turned 50. Aurovilians who grew up in The experimental city speak of how their childhood was marked by a sense of openness and possibility.
'We do not oppose any parent admitting his child to any English school.' 'We are opposed to the government grants that are to be given to such institutions.' 'If local languages are to be kept alive, at least they have to be taught at the primary level.'
'At one of the UK's best known museums, one of our greatest sculptures had been placed next to a public toilet.' 'This perception that art antiquities are better looked after in the West is one created by the cultural elite of our country.'
The painstakingly created Buddhist temples and gardens of Japan are a work of art, says Anjuli Bhargava.
'It all runs on sugar-coated lies. If I like something, I will want to believe it.'
Following her spat, 'Aunty National' Irani took to Facebook to speak out against her detractors. Here's the Facebook post in response to her critics which Rediff.com represents verbatim:
The Al-Qaeda and its patrons seems to have outsourced, for the time being, the achieving of that larger, civilisationally retrograde goal of establishing an Islamic Caliphate in the Middle-East, to the ISIS. The symptoms are all similar; the difference lies only in the expressions, says Dr Anirban Ganguly.
There are several other famous temples across India that disallow non-Hindus to enter their place of worship, Rediff.com lists some of them.
'The creation of Pakistan was integral to Britain's grand strategy.' 'If they were to ever leave India, Britain's military planners had made it clear that they needed to retain a foothold in the NWFP and Baluchistan because that would provide the means to retain control of Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, the UAE, Bahrain and Qatar.'
'Modi and Abe are working seriously for India-Japan bonhomie to grow stronger.' 'It is a win-win situation for both countries and the future look promising,' says Rajaram Panda, the Indian Council for Cultural Relations India Chair Visiting Professor at Reitaku University, Japan.
'The nicest thing is that it is not my film.' 'People bring their own stories and life histories to the film.'
Time to pack your bags and pamper the wanderlust in you.
After performing with Manipuri artistes the world over, Astad Deboo, India's greatest contemporary dancer, performed with artistes of the Shri Shri Govindajee Nat Sankirtan in Imphal for the first time.
There's more to this country than just the Northern Lights.
The National Geographic Traveler magazine has released its go-now destinations for 2015. And apna Hyderabad is on it!
The Parsi community runs India's respected corporate houses like the Tata, Wadia and Godrej groups.
'The Cauvery river has become excessively politicised by all political parties.' 'They see a vote bank in an emotive issue of this kind.'
Payal Mohanka travelled to Morocco, that magical place where the past and the present don't jostle but instead coexist rather beautifully.
'By lifting his visit to vibrant new functional and emotional planes, Modi saved it from looking like a mere obligatory give-and-take. This is no mean achievement. With his penchant for execution, he must fast track action on the proposals agreed upon, so that the fine print matches the hype,' says B S Raghavan.
Arvind Singh, a member of Mahabodhi temple management committee, said the two injured included a national of Myanmar and another of Tibet. They have been admitted to the Magadh MedicalCollege and Hospital, he said
'When the youth population is so large, in a globalised world, they look for opportunities. Are there enough opportunities for the youth in India?' 'The idea of affirmative action has to be creating capability. All individuals have potential. Unfortunately, there is capability deprivation because of the State's inaction.' 'Nation building has been a disaster in India mainly because we lacked the work ethic compared to the US and European countries.'
What makes Ashdeen Lilaowala's work with the Parsi gara so important? Read on.
Princess Shivranjani of Jodhpur is breathing new life into dead forts and quietly changing the house of Marwar.
The book Effective People by Dr TV Rao features inspiring examples of success icons from across the world.
Sumedha Raikar-Mhatre examines the Marathi film industry, which annually produces around 190 dissimilar films that requires an investment of Rs 400 crores.
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