Benegal came across as a man of refined sensibilities and great empathy for the human condition, which clearly reflected in his cinema.
Pakistan's Literary Festivals Inject Oxygen into Constrained Intellectual Spaces, but Cross-Border Exchanges Remain Frozen
Inspired by the Jaipur Lit Fest, Pakistan’s first literary festival took place in the country’s largest city Karachi in 2010. Subsequently replicated in Lahore and Islamabad, such festivals now take place around the country, from the agricultural and industrial hub of Faisalabad, formerly Lyallpur, to the port city of Gwadar on the Balochistan coast.
An Unending Struggle for Justice: A Rare Insight into the Everyday Lives of Migrant Workers in India
While the overall picture is depressing, Ramaswami also describes hopeful strands within the social fabric of workers’ lives such as the mutual support and 'bhaichara' (fellowship) between men across ethnic, religious and caste boundaries that become more fluid within the city. The inter-religious and inter-caste ties forged between workers can be seen as small glimmers of hope in the context of the rising tide of Hindutva politics over the past decades.
Suman Kalyanpur: A Silken Echo Falls Silent
Today, as we bid farewell to the Dhaka-born singer once fondly called the “Dhake ki malmal,” one is reminded that the softest fabrics often endure the longest. Her voice was just that. Fine, delicate, yet enduring beyond time. And now, as that voice falls silent, it leaves behind not an emptiness, but an echo. An echo that will continue to drift through radio waves, old recordings and the private corners of memory.
Aurat March is About Women's Identity: Movement for Gender Justice in Pakistan and Across the Region
Two girls stood silently holding a placard that read: ‘Forcing your daughter to get married is forcing her to get raped.’ The message speaks to a reality across the South Asian region where the priority for most families is to get their daughters married. On a sheet where attendees were penning messages to their mothers -- words they could not say aloud -- an anonymous note read: “Would you rather see me married or alive?”
More on Culture and Society
From Pakistan to China for a network of English language teachers - in Beijing
Singaporean, Chinese, Indian, Pakistani, Arabic – in fact all varieties of English are acceptable as part of ‘World Englishes’ as long as they serve the communicative purpose of language.
Overcoming the fear of pain and death
Fear of death has also been drastically reduced in people who have experienced near death experience (NDE). NDE seems to happen when a person is declared clinically dead but after some time returns to life. Quite a number of people during the NDE episode have also reported that their whole life flashes by and almost all their past actions become visible.
Sufism's ethos can be instrumental in healing societal rifts, fostering a culture of coexistence
Sufism’s relationship with other religions is characterized by respect and recognition of shared values. Sufi leaders often participate in interfaith initiatives, promoting cooperation and understanding. This engagement not only builds bridges between communities but also fosters a sense of secularism, where religious authority does not dominate public life.
When festivals become tools of hatred not harmony
What needs to be understood for prevention is that most of the time these processions, which are well armed, deliberately decide to pass through Muslim majority areas, with loud music and provocative and abusive slogans. It has become a pattern that someone will climb over the mosque and replace the green flag with saffron flag and the crowds down below dance and give a big applause.
Ratan Tata: Business with a gentlemanly grace
Minus any of the JRD charisma, and in fact distinctly uncharismatic as he was, Ratan Tata still stood out as a gentlemanly leader who kept a sense of grace and an understated manner in a business world that has gotten all too loud and flamboyant
Ratan Tata: A business legend who set an example in humility and altruism
To my mind Ratan Tata’s greatest gift to the group was that he consolidated all the Tata companies under one umbrella with tighter control and mandated them to do more social work.
Two Indian Navy women on an epic voyage, set to challenge the high seas
Navika Sagar Parikrama II will cover more than 21,600 nautical miles (approx 40,000 km) in five legs with stop overs at four ports for replenishment and maintenance as required. The broad contour of voyage will be (a) Goa to Fremantle, Australia, (b) Fremantle to Lyttleton, New Zealand, (c) Lyttleton to Port Stanley, Falkland, (d) Port Stanley to Cape Town, S Africa and (e) Cape Town to Goa.
Hilsa diplomacy and the prized fish that animates a Bengali conversation
How Bangladesh has used the weakness of Indian Bengalis for the 'Padma ilish' to pursue its hilsa diplomacy with India was seen as far back in September 1996 when I K Gujral, then external affairs minister in the government of Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, visited Dhaka to tie up the loose ends in the Ganga Water Treaty that the two countries were negotiating.
India's DRDO working on multiple cutting-edge military technology areas, says its chairman
‘DRDO is looking to restructure itself to better leverage this ecosystem for national good. In doing so, DRDO is aiming to be leaner, faster and more impactful’
So near yet so far: An aborted rendezvous of Indian, Pakistani peace activists at Wagah
What is so threatening about letting a few hundred peace activists in a combined population of over a billion meet for a few moments at a heavily guarded border?
A new paradigm of development: Technology guided by spirituality can lead to sustainability and happiness
With the wisdom gained through spirituality, we will use technology judiciously to use nature’s resources wisely and live sustainably. Living sustainably and in tune with nature will give us peace and happiness. This in a nutshell can be the new paradigm of development for the world.
How the Rescue and Restoration Act of 1947 failed the subcontinent's women it intended to serve
Sharma joins the ranks of writers like Urvashi Butalia, Aanchal Malhotra, Vazira Zamindar, Anam Zakaria, and Kavita Puri who are contributing to the scant literature around Partition
Indian teenager with autism disorder creates history with English Channel swim
Jiya was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder at the age of two. Jiya’s parents, Indian Navy MC at Arms II Madan Rai and her mother, Rachna Rai, a teacher, took her swimming to overcome taunts for her disorder by other children and even adults.
South Asian peace activists gear up to converge at India-Pakistan border
The friendship of javelin throwers Arshad Nadeem of Pakistan and Neeraj Chopra of India and the large-heartedness and nobility of their mothers has already warmed hearts around the region and the world. Another young athlete also holding up flags of both countries expressed similar sentiments.
