'The BJP has not moved on since its 2014 victory. There is nothing new to offer. There is far too much negativity about the other side and far too little about what has been achieved by its government.' 'That may have worked when the BJP was in the Opposition but if they believe that the people of India will continue to hold them to such a low standard of expectations, they are really taking the voter for granted or misreading his pulse.'
Irrfan Khan's fascinating interview with Savera R Someshwar/Rediff.com.
'One of the biggest issues the Indian economy faces right now is of job creation...' 'The nexus between growth and employment has to be closed...' 'In the absence of a manufacturing expansion, the alternative is to have the service sector as the driver of both GDP as well as employment growth.'
Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari's Bareilly Ki Barfi had the critics reaching for the stars. But that is just the tip of the iceberg discovers Rediff.com's Savera R Someshwar.
Popular Kannada actor Devaraj talks about his foray into film production.
This cult of speed reaches its crowning glory during that peculiar Indian spectacle called medical camps. Medical camps are an activity in which doctors from cities travel to underserved areas, often on weekends, where the poor are then herded in hundreds for deliverance, photo-ops and freebies. In their more evolved form, there are surgical camps where bewildered and overawed patients are put onto operating tables and, much like an assembly line, a series of operations are performed in rapid succession. The surgical instruments are often magically sterilised in minutes between procedures, says Dr Sanjay Nagral.
Aseem Chhabra's take on the highlights of Indian cinema this year.
'Indian universities are giving out PhDs without adequate evaluation,' charges Dr Satya Narain Jatiya, MP.
'He was not even 15 when he showed skills at captaincy.' 'Now that he is the captain, I keep telling him not to expect from others what easily comes to him.'
"Reform is not an end in itself. Reform for me is just a way station on the long journey to the destination. The destination is the transformation of India," he said.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
'Woman need to be respected much more in our country. But choices should be allowed for women as well as men. I don't care about the box office collections of Ki & Ka; I care about the thoughts and conversation that it brings on. Every actor has that one film in their filmography where they pushed the envelope further.' Arjun Kapoor takes on new challenges with Ki & Ka.
Jyoti Punwani examines the relevance of the Sairat, the hit Marathi film everyone is talking about, in today's times.
Deven Verma passed away into the ages on December 2. We re-publish an interview done with the veteran actor.
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.
Over two years since the Nirbhaya rape shook the nation women in New Delhi feel no safer than they did before. With safety apps to self-defence classes on the rise, Ritika Bhatia takes a look at what working women in Delhi are doing to keep themselves safe.
Sumedha Raikar-Mhatre examines the Marathi film industry, which annually produces around 190 dissimilar films that requires an investment of Rs 400 crores.
Beautiful glimpses into Dilip Kumar's life with Saira Banu.
'The challenges of the world are too great for any one religious tradition to address alone... The best way to learn about other religions is not from books, but from people... Go talk to someone from a different faith tradition. Get to know them. Build up some trust.' Dr Katharine Rhodes Henderson, who jointly won Hofstra University's Guru Nanak Prize for inter-faith champions in the United States, discusses religion and the challenges of extremism in this lively interview with Rediff.com's Arthur J Pais.
'The beef fest is about an individual's freedom to wear what he wants and eat what he wants. The students were protesting against the state interfering with their personal liberties.' 'Everybody has the right to air his or her opinion and lead a life they want. Nobody has any right to put restrictions on others. What we need is tolerance but what we see is intolerance.' Deepa Nisanth, a lecturer who backed Kerala's beef fest, on why she supported the students in their protest.
Giving up cricket isn't easy for a cricketer especially when you are the son of a cricket legend.
'I was a very late child of my father. I was suddenly a little toy, who appeared from nowhere. Everybody experimented.' 'I don't know why I took up dancing. I think I wanted to find one more excuse to drop out from school.' Kamal Haasan gives us beautiful nuggets from his life.
Aseem Chhabra picks his favourite movies from the Telluride Film Festival.
'Not allowing people to speak or listen is the biggest act of anti-nationalism,' says Arvind Krishna Mehrotra, one of India's finest poets.
'When I give advice to my Indian relatives they are shocked.' 'I tell them to eat butter again and eggs and all that stuff.' And eat only so much rice.' 'Instead of having three chapattis, have one.' A must-read interview!
Shah Rukh Khan, in an uncensored and extensive interview.
People from all walks of life and political inclinations, budding and aspiring poets and lyricists, looked at Vaali for inspiration, writes N Sathiya Moorthy.
"When you feel you can't fight it, just go with it." said Robert De Niro's commencement speech to students graduating from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts!
Vinita Bisht and Vinita Kamte lost their husbands -- one an NSG commando, the other an IPS officer -- in the 26/11 terror attack. Six years later, Archana Masih/Rediff.com meets them to discover that closure is one of the hardest things to find.
Lieutenant General J F R Jacob, Chief of Staff, Eastern Army Command during the 1971 war, revealed how, armed with only a draft surrender document and an aide, he made the Pakistani army led by Lieutenant General A A K Niazi surrender.
Lieutenant General J F R Jacob, Chief of Staff, Eastern Army Command during the 1971 war, revealed how, armed with only a draft surrender document and an aide, he made the Pakistani army led by Lieutenant General A A K Niazi surrender.
Lieutenant General J F R Jacob, Chief of Staff, Eastern Army Command during the 1971 war, revealed how, armed with only a draft surrender document and an aide, he made the Pakistani army led by Lieutenant General A A K Niazi surrender.
Lieutenant General J F R Jacob, Chief of Staff, Eastern Army Command during the 1971 war, revealed how, armed with only a draft surrender document and an aide, he made the Pakistani army led by Lieutenant General A A K Niazi surrender.
Lieutenant General J F R Jacob, Chief of Staff, Eastern Army Command during the 1971 war, reveals how, armed with only a draft surrender document and an aide, he made the Pakistani army led by Lieutenant General A A K Niazi surrender.
Fifty years ago, India and Pakistan fought a short but bloody war. The author finds out how Sainik Samachar, the defence ministry's journal, reported it.
Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals were suspended from the Indian Premier League for two years for betting activities of their key officials, Gurunath Meiyappan and Raj Kundra, during the 2013 season of cash-rich Twenty20 cricket tournament.
'He was believed to finish his own work in an hour and spend the remainder of the time walking from one office to another, sitting down with the harried junior staff and helping them sort out the problems they were working on.'
