'The way the anticipation is built up for Gabbar Singh's introduction scene with sound, image and details of his personality, like the combat boots he wears.' 'The camera comes so close -- not a tele lens shot, but a wide-angle close-up -- that you can almost smell Gabbar's breath.'
...the DMK chief minister's campaign -- which includes criticism of the BJP's 'pro-Hindutva, anti-Tamil, anti-federal' policies and building on his own government's social welfare programmes targeting especially women and youth -- appeals to Tamil Nadu's voters in next year's assembly election, explains N Sathiya Moorthy.
In the short run, the Trump presidency has already ensured one thing: The assumptions of the past can no longer guide the strategies of the future, points out Manish Dabhade.
There is no guarantee that if we speak in only Indian languages, all our faults will be washed away and India will shine. Why then do they bully and belittle the English-speaking? asks Shyam G Menon.
'Within minutes, my mobile began ringing. It was National Security Adviser Brajesh Mishra, asking why the Iranians were complaining.' 'I explained that we had only restated our position in the light of the conclusion reached by the IAEA, but will remain helpful to Iran to reach a consensus.' 'Then came a call from Foreign Secretary Kamal Sibal, repeating what Mishra said about the Iranian complaint.' 'I was very impressed that Iran was able to reach two top officials in India to intervene at short notice,' recalls Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
Russian and Ukrainian negotiators convened in Istanbul on Friday for their first direct peace talks in over three years, amidst pressure from US President Donald Trump to resolve Europe's deadliest conflict since World War Two.
On that fateful day, Narayan, popularly known as JP and a fierce critic of the then-Indira Gandhi government, addressed a massive gathering at the Ramlila Maidan in Delhi.
Eight persons have been killed in floods and landslides in Assam as incessant rainfall caused massive inundation in 17 districts, affecting over 78,000 people, officials said on Saturday.
Mock drills were conducted on Saturday in states and Union territories adjoining the western border -- from Jammu and Kashmir to Gujarat -- to enhance wartime emergency preparedness and response capabilities, officials said.
Trump knows by now that the western narrative of Biden's war is a load of bullshit peppered with falsehoods and outright lies, and that the war erupted only out of the diabolic western plot to poke the bear, which got provoked finally and hit out, explains Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
More than twice as much global glacier mass will remain if countries restrict temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius, compared to the warming level of 2.7 degrees Celsius resulting from the current policies, says a new study released.
Western criticism of Russia's Winter Olympics was reminiscent of Cold War ambitions to hold the Soviet Union back, President Vladimir Putin said on Monday, despite signs that the world was warming to the most expensive Games ever held.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi officially commissioned the Vizhinjam International Seaport on Friday in Thiruvananthapuram in the presence of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, whose presence at the inauguration, Modi said, will give 'sleepless nights' to many.
When the country has been at war, the Opposition has buried its differences with the government, points out Aditi Phadnis.
'India for its survival has to change its doctrine from no first use to a pre-emptive attack in case of any hostile move by Pakistan,' recommends Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
'I don't know whether the top Gujarati leaders of Indian politics (Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah) in Delhi realise that the narrative of HindiHinduHindustan will eventually destroy their own language too.'
An inconclusive end to this war will pose high risk for Netanyahu of a cascading demand for a regime change in Israel, predicts Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
In what was perhaps the most critical meeting before full-scale war broke out, Shastri defined India's immediate war objectives to his defence minister, army, and air force chiefs: 'To defend against Pakistan's attempts to grab Kashmir by force and to make it abundantly clear that Pakistan would never be allowed to wrest Kashmir from India; To destroy the offensive power of Pakistan's armed forces...' A fascinating excerpt from Shiv Kunal Verma's must-read 1965: A Western Sunrise India's War With Pakistan.
At the end of the day, for many worldwide, the ongoing mutual attacks between Israel and Iran would seem a contest devoid of any moral high ground and only a bout between two ordinary adversaries, one that nevertheless risks spinning out of control into a larger conflagration, notes Shyam G Menon.
Thanks to a close one's illness, I have seen quite a few hospital rooms in the past half a year or so. They have revived my respect for life reinterpreted via its essentials, notes Shyam G Menon.
'As the global economy undergoes significant transformations in 2025, India's ability to navigate the complexities of trade wars, financial realignments, and emerging blocs will be pivotal,' explain Harsh V Pant and Soumya Bhowmik.
A 17-year-old girl is in critical condition after a man allegedly set her ablaze in Mumbai's Andheri area. The victim and the accused, who were friends, had recently been asked by the victim's mother to stop seeing each other. Police are investigating the motive behind the attack.
Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday issued a three-line whip to all of its Lok Sabha MPs asking them to be present in the House for the passing of the Union Budget 2025-26.
Railways ramps up project to instal AI-based cameras that can recognise faces.
India's Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri has underscored the importance of not equating the victims and perpetrators of terror attacks, highlighting the need for global unity in combating terrorism. Speaking at Raisina Tokyo 2025, Misri expressed appreciation for Japan's support following the recent terror attack in Pahalgam, India. He also cautioned against the trend of some Western countries hyphenating India and Pakistan in the context of their recent military confrontation. Misri further outlined India's economic aspirations and its commitment to becoming a factor of stability in a turbulent world.
Will Russia's entry deter Trump on his warpath?, asks Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted above-normal rainfall for the upcoming monsoon season in India (June to September). The cumulative rainfall is estimated to be 105 percent of the long-period average. The IMD has also ruled out the possibility of El Nino conditions during the entire season. The monsoon is crucial for India's agriculture sector, which supports the livelihood of a significant portion of the population and contributes substantially to the country's GDP. However, while the prediction of normal rainfall brings relief, climate change is expected to cause variations in rainfall distribution.
While acknowledging that they needed strong allies for a chance in the assembly polls, AIADMK cadres seemingly prefer actor-politician Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam to the BJP, owing to the latter's 'communal agenda' and consequent hardline Hindutva image, explains N Sathiya Moorthy.
Several Indian states bordering Pakistan have implemented stringent security measures, including school closures, blackouts, and cancellation of leave for police and administrative personnel, in response to escalating tensions between India and Pakistan. These measures were taken after India conducted airstrikes on terror infrastructure in Pakistan in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam massacre. Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, and West Bengal have all implemented these precautionary measures.
Ukrainian forces conducted large-scale drone strikes on several air bases deep inside Russia, destroying multiple combat planes, Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) said on Sunday.
So far, over 30 people have died across Northeastern states due to heavy rainfalls, floods and landslides, according to media reports.
The outage raised broader concerns about the dependency on a few large tech companies controlling critical platforms.
The ISI strategy has been to use its proxies to target Hindus in India. They want an outrage and counter-targeting of India's minorities. Further, even the whiff of it restores the Pakistan army's popularity, especially when it's in the dumps, like now, points out Shekhar Gupta.
Security experts have warned that using Signal for discussions of this nature violates every established protocol for handling classified information.
When S Jaishankar became India's external affairs minister in May 2019, he was largely considered a political lightweight despite his undisputed mastery over foreign policy.
Pakistan military spokesperson Lieutenant General Ahmad Sharif Chaudhry told a hurriedly called press conference in Islamabad at around 4 am that th Pakistan air force's Nur Khan (Chaklala, Rawalpindi), Murid (Chakwal) and Rafiqui (Shorkot in Jhang district) airbases were targeted.
'If they aim to remain aligned with the public sentiment, as any democratic government should, then they must respond. Why else would the prime minister have cut short his visit to Saudi Arabia? And why would he have instructed the home minister himself to travel to Srinagar to assess the situation firsthand? This suggests that something is indeed being planned. I am quite certain of that, although the exact form it will take remains to be seen.'
The real intention of the 'Tariff Man' (as Trump calls himself) may not even be to put the 'Tariff King' (as he describes India) on the mat with a knockout punch but to arm-twist the Indian leadership to agree to some multi-billion dollar mega arms deal, argues Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'If we truly wish to understand and apply Marx's insights today, we must reject the rigid dogmas that later 'Marxists' imposed in his name.'
'The intensity and frequency of heatwaves will be much higher than in previous years over Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha.'
