It is time the current leaders who swear by 'cultural nationalism', that is religion neutral, assert that Bharatiyata is at the core of our nationalism and India was never a 'Hindu Rashtra', argues Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Ahmedabad is home to the strangest of cuisines and is a city of contrasts, if you look beyond the tourist places.
The New York-based Sikhs For Justice has sought a court order directing US Secretary of State John Kerry to designate the RSS a 'Foreign Terrorist Organisation,' which Preet Bharara says the US government intends to move to dismiss.
Japan's next restroom revolution? Phasing out squat toilets for Tokyo 2020
This isn't a compilation of his best films, biggest blockbusters or important milestones but moments that swept Sukanya Verma off the floor, blew her heart into smithereens, regaled her with their sheer silliness, made her laugh till her sides hurt and look at phenke hue paise in disdain.
'I was fortunate to have served as India's ambassador to Indonesia and witnessed on several occasions, the incredible performances of the Ramayana and episodes from the Mahabharata in Jogjakarta and in Bali,' recalls former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
Dr Lobsang Sangay entered the United States White House on Friday -- a historic feat. This is the first time in the last six decades the head of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) has been invited into the White House, the CTA said in a statement.
As much as we enjoy and write reams and reams about our amazement at the Kantara climax, 30 years on from now, will we remember these portions more fondly or the ones where Shiva is simply hanging out with his friends, mulls Rohit Sathish Nair.
'A Colourful World is for every child, telling them that like the different coloured crayons in a box, they should also appreciate their differing identities, shine and live peacefully with other human beings in our colourful world.'
Even though we may have voted a President out of office, that does not mean those who loyally supported him will be silenced. Nor should they be. While we may not agree with our neighbour's opinions, we can never stop fighting for their right to voice them, asserts Urvashi Banerjea.
Urvashi Vaid dreamed of a common movement for social justice that could address them all: Racism, gender oppression and homophobia. Sandip Roy salutes the memory of Urvashi Vaid, one of America's most prominent LGBT activists, who passed into the ages this month.
Justice Chandrachud also said that use of state machinery to curb dissent instills fear, which violates the rule of law.
Changing a state's name requires constitutional amendment and it is done after taking into consideration all relevant factors, he said.
Upskilling would not only improve chances of employability but would also increase the scope of jobs based on skills they have acquired over a period of time, says Akhand Swaroop Pandit, co-founder and CEO, The Catalyst Group.
'(Rumours about the break-up) was nothing but small talk, used by some people in the (Bigg Boss) house to put us down and move ahead themselves.'
Stalin's personal intervention in the Adheenam row may have contained the avoidable political damage and social tensions at least for now, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
'Pep Guardiola is a fantastic manager because he is able to build a really strong identity of his team.'
The PBD this year functions as a political stage for the BJP government at the Centre and in Uttar Pradesh. Both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress president Rahul Gandhi have been wooing the Indian diaspora through widely publicised events across the country. At the PBD, the mood was either largely pro-Modi, and when not, apolitical.
After 26 years, Aditya Chopra is set to direct DDLJ again and it will mark his debut as a director on Broadway.
Companies are looking for an engaging hook, and sound is universally seen as a big emotional connector, finds Nikhat Hetavkar.
He may have been in the news for all the wrong reasons but the greater irony is that Muslim stand-up comic Munawar Faruqui's best jokes ridicule Muslims, and are wolfed down by Muslims, who form the majority of his 177,000 Instagram followers, notes Jyoti Punwani.
The wrong of victimising, targeting and persecuting homosexuals on the basis of archaic and prejudiced ideas has gone for long. Time we set it right, says Mohd Asim.
'If we go in the same direction as them, we cannot expect a different result from them.' 'Our fall is going to be very swift.' 'Within a decade, we can expect the situation to change for the worse.'
'She is associated with our growing up years.' 'When I first met her, it was a little awkward for a couple of days as she is a really popular actor of the '90s.'
'The Bharat Ratna should have been given a long time ago. Not just to irk the Chinese, but to recognise His Holiness for what he is and how we have benefited immensely from his presence in India.' 'I don't think there's been a better ambassador for India's philosophical and cultural past than the Dalai Lama.'
'They are all the time asking people not to do this, not to do that.' 'Their version of society and Hinduism is very warped; not an inclusive one.'
Will the beard continue to be in vogue once WFH wraps up? asks Sandeep Goyal.
"There was absolutely no need or necessity to mount a visceral attack on the religious beliefs of the Hindus. It was unwarranted and utterly unrelated to the occasion. That is what makes it deliberate and malicious," Justice G R Swaminathan of Madras High Court said.
The relative ranking of castes can vary across regions and localities and depends on a number of factors including control over land, wealth, and political power. Castes have often tried to 'upgrade' themselves (a process sociologists refer to as Sanskritization), and sometimes get 'downgraded'. A revealing excerpt from Upinder Singh's Ancient India: Culture Of Contradictions.
Baby Yoda's latest adventures, spirits of all shapes and sizes, NRIs in vendetta mode, catch all this and more on OTT in Sukanya Verma's weekly recommendations.
Vogue India presents the many shades of Padma Lakshmi.
Senior Assam minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday said the government cannot implement the recommendations of the central panel on Clause 6 of the Assam Accord, as those are "far from legal reality".
'The idea was to show the simultaneity and coexistence of life in the city.'
Tawang is very much a part of India, and if the present Dalai Lama decides one day to take rebirth in Tawang, the Indian government will openly welcome him and support him, notes Claude Arpi.
'He always avoided eating non-vegetarian food in presence of his deputies if they were fasting for the month of Shravan.' 'There were no Hindu, Jain, Parsi and Swaminarayan festivals he would forget.' 'He was a conservative Muslim and therefore could get along well with conservative Hindus.'
The Gujarat government has directed seven district collectors to ensure that the identity of each and every person coming for the road show and the Namaste Trump event is verified thoroughly.
'The propagation of an absolutist narrative that shuts down any dissent is dangerous, irresponsible, and unbecoming of India's proud democracy.' 'The government must do better.'
'Nehru's inability to take religion seriously as a category led to serious errors of judgement in his dealings with the Muslim League, and later, also with the Hindu right.'
PM Modi's assurance came against the backdrop of violent protests against the CAB.
'We often assume that Ayodhya is Ram's property and Hastinapur is Yudhishthira's property when, in fact, it is their responsibility.' 'A king exists, as per Hindu philosophy, only to ensure that other people's property is safe,' explains Devdutt Pattanaik.
