Columns

I don’t get invited to many dinners these days, primarily because 80% of the chaps I know are convinced that Mr. Modi is the best thing that has happened to mankind since the discovery of penicillin. They are what somebody has termed “educated clapper boys” of the Supreme Inaugurator. I stopped clapping shortly after committing

Now that the Karnataka elections are done and dusted (at least until Mr. Amit Shah launches the 2023 version of Operation Kamala), the media and social media are going bananas debating the impact of Bharat Jodo Yatra on it, the contributions of EVMs and ATMs to the final vote tally, whether Kumaraswamy will now shift

These days my reading consists mainly of books with titles like TEN SECRETS OF LIVING TO BE A HUNDRED or SEVEN THINGS YOU MUST DO BEFORE YOU DIE. There was a time, however, when one read more exciting stuff, most of which have now faded into the mists of forgetfulness. But I do remember one

There is an insight in the Bible that is least noticed by most Christians. That insight pertains to the deep but hidden connection between worshippers and murderers. The earliest hint is in the book of Genesis, chapter 4: Cain invited Abel, his brother, to join him in worship, when he wanted to kill him. And

These days my reading consists mainly of books with titles like TEN SECRETS OF LIVING TO BE A HUNDRED or SEVEN THINGS YOU MUST DO BEFORE YOU DIE. There was a time, however, when one read more exciting stuff, most of which have now faded into the mists of forgetfulness. But I do remember one

I was privy last week to an extended Whatsapp chat between a serving senior IAS officer (let’s call him K) and a venerable retired colleague about the extra-legal execution of the gangster-politician Atiq Ahmed. K, who otherwise plays the victim card more often than the Prime Minister does, was vehement in his support of the

The Bermuda Triangle is an area over the north-western part of the Atlantic ocean where there have been persistent reports of ships and planes simply disappearing without a trace. The phenomenon has baffled oceanographers and scientists for decades and no plausible explanation has been offered so far by science. Answers range from a magnetic black

There are rare occasions in a country’s history when one event, one freeze-frame moment in time, encapsulates and captures its “weltanschauung” and prevailing state of affairs. Two recent examples in recent times are the protests by women in Iran against the mullahs’ hijab diktat, and the citizens’ movement in Israel for the rolling back of

There are rare occasions in a country’s history when one event, one freeze-frame moment in time, encapsulates and captures its “weltanschauung” and prevailing state of affairs. Two recent examples in recent times are the protests by women in Iran against the mullahs’ hijab diktat, and the citizens’ movement in Israel for the rolling back of