Improving focus through mindfulness: a practical guide

While I am not promoting the adage — easier said than done — but even Hanuman had to be goaded into action by the bear-avatar named Jambhavan

Swallow it or vomit it: The conundrum around using data-driven technology

In the case of America, there are stricter laws like the Anti-Trust Law and various other mechanisms like summoning the chief of Facebook or Google and asking them to explain their position concerning breach of Privacy or else. But, in the case of India, such action against corporates seems unlikely

Ukraine: how an armed conflict could play out

Julien Théron, Sciences Po Talks between Russia and the west have failed. Moscow has described the situation in Ukraine as “intolerable” and “a matter of life or death”. The US president, Joe Biden, has predicted the Kremlin “will move in” to Ukraine. The impasse was reached when the Russian president,

History of Nissin Noodles: How Momofuku Ando's Instant Noodles Took the World by Storm

Successful businesses manufacture products for the markets, but the extraordinary ones create markets for their products. For all intents and purposes, Momofuku Ando was neither successful nor remarkable till the first half of the 20th century. When he built a makeshift shed outside his house in 1957, he was 47,

C/o Kancharapalem: A collage of broken dreams made whole by a gripping tale

Life is a series of accidents stitched together by an observer’s memories. And what better example of this could be made available than maverick auteur Maha Venkatesh’s C/o Kancharapalem. The cinema cements the suggestion that we are a product of accidents, which we carelessly call experience. Understated

Namak Haram: An Impression

Rajesh Khanna knew the pulse of the people but forgot that it was auteurs like Mukherjee that created them. After Namak Haram, Khanna and Bachchan never acted together again

Late Review: Sarpatta Paramparai

Agreed it is no Raging Bull or the marvellous Daniel Day-Lewis’ The Boxer, yet there is a certain studied panache to the way Pa Ranjith goes about Sarpatta. Though it peddles in clichés, it is the best sports movie ever made in India

Great Escape Part 1: Carlos Ghosn Spirited Away From Tokyo

In 2017, Carlos Ghosn's success story was the envy of his peers, but by the end of 2018, he was in jail. And by 2019, he was out of it and how.

South Africa's Dream Run Dashed by an Absurd Rule in 1992 World Cup

When play resumed, under the Least Productive Over rule, two overs had been lost. As per the rule, the two overs that could be deducted from the South Africa's chase were that of Meyrick Pringle

Should India Host the Olympics? A Cautionary Tale (Part 2)

The mismanagement, corruption and bad press notwithstanding, the economic strain of the Games was as shocking as the consequences of botching up the event.

Should India Host the Olympics? A Cautionary Tale

At the onset, this discussion does not aim to demean the achievements India has made over the past few decades, but seeks to build a cautionary tale by highlighting that the side-effects of organising the extravaganza far outweigh any perceived gains.

Population Explosion and New Zealand's Experiment in Zealandia

Our universe is fast expanding, but our earth is not. By rough estimates, we add over 2,00,000 people to the world population every day, but the resources to support this spurt is limited. According to a UN estimate, by 2050, the world would add 2.5 billion more

Wood Wide Web: The Underground Internet of Trees

Do you remember those old box radios, which would every once in a while latch on to some obscure frequency and belt out random gibberish? Perchance, your stroll in the garden opened you to the frequency the trees were chatting on

Ace in the Hole: Billy Wilder's Personal Disaster

Sensationalism and disregard for victims' privacy has come to define the very existence of media coverage. However, can we say with conviction that we crave only for hard news to keep ourselves informed?

The Forgotten Classic That Took The World By Storm

It was in protest of this partisan selection that French bureaucrats and ministers decided to start their own festival. Cannes was selected as the venue and September 1, 1939 was set as the date of inauguration. However, on that very day Nazi Germany invaded Poland to start the Second World War.

The Best Movie on Extraterrestrials Was Nearly an Indian's Oeuvre

Columbia Pictures was deeply interested in the script, and is believed to have even roped in actors like Peter Sellers, Marlon Brando and Steven McQueen. In 1968, Peter Sellers backed out citing a lack of a meaty role; Brando and McQueen followed suit.

Cricket

Zimbabwe and their magical Cricket World Cup exploits (1983 to 1996)

The Zimbabwean cricket team made its World Cup debut in 1983 under Duncan Fletcher, who would later go on to become the England team coach. The African country's finest moment came when it defeated a strong Australian line-up in the league stage

Politics

The curious case of the Czar’s missing jewels and Roy’s Communist baptism by fire

With all the diplomatic aveneues shut for them, the Bolsheviks decided to sell the Czarist jewels they had appropriated during the revolution. To sell the jewels and fund the trade delegation, the jewels first had to be smuggled into America.

Opinion

It was Church versus Socialism in Roy’s Mexico

The Constitution of the short-lived Spanish Republic for the first time enfranchised the women in a European Catholic country. They promptly exercised their democratic right by voting for the restoration of the monarchy.

Politics

MN Roy: How Rasgolla Delivered India Its First Communist

Odisha and Bengal's fight for Rasgolla rights is legendary. Now, who would have thought that a sweet dish would leave such a bitter aftertaste! But, did you know that Rasgolla played an important role in shaping India's revolutionary movement, and also transforming Naren into an ardent communist?

Opinion

M N Roy: The Making of a Revolutionary Freedom Fighter

The year is 1920. The winter is harsh. The people of Russia are searching for the last vestige of humanity, and warmth, in vain. The situation is tolerable in this plush office, where an old man is closely observing a 27-year-old. What he says next is going to break the

Opinion

Communism: An Indian perspective

It is a blasphemous undertaking to commit oneself to an ideology without letting the various schools of thoughts impact us, effect changes in us or leave a lasting impression on us.

Cinephilia

Jallikattu, an interpretation

Man by nature is an animal. Despite the forcible conversion to a relatively peaceful mode of existence, man's propensity to violence manifests in myriad ways, sometimes nuanced, sometimes blunt. It's this bluntness of character that Liju Jose Pellissery carves out from beneath the veneer of sophistication we pass off as

Bibliophilia

Lust For Life: A Monument Dedicated to Futility of Genius

Review of a biography of Vincent Van Gogh by Irving Stone.

Opinion

Lamenting A Dying Culture of Haggling

Supermarkets and the death of the neighborhood's friendly shop.

Bibliophilia

Wuthering Heights

Nothing raises the standard of revolt inside a teenage mind more than a strict order prohibiting it from doing something. With all the hormones raging inside, my young mind, which had just crossed the threshold of teenage, wanted to make its presence felt. While Shakespeare would have summarised my predicament

Panaroma

A Day in The Life of Future IAS Officers

Why is it that these kids, away from the selfless companionship of family members, choose to grind themselves for cracking an exam, where the chances of their failing is much greater than winning