All Stories

WANTED: HEALTHY OPPOSITION

Never before in the history of Indian democracy has the opposition been so feeble and bedraggled as it is today. I say this because, in every epoch of the Indian democracy, there were...

In Politics, History, Jul 01, 2019

Countering the Hindutva Narrative

There are three things that contribute most to the rise of a political party. These are: ideology, ideology, and ideology. Without an ideology, it is plainly impossible to build or su...

In Politics, Jun 18, 2019

Churchill and Kissinger: The Predicament of Evaluating Some Public Figures

It is easy to evaluate the legacy of those public figures who did much good for society and some bad; or those who are remembered in the history of the world because of the havoc they...

In Biography, History, Jun 12, 2019

Is the World Order Fundamentally Changing?

On the thirtieth anniversary of Tiananmen Square protests, let us see the fundamental shift that is happening in the world by the rise of China. Many scholars including Former U.S. Se...

In History, InternationalAffairs, Jun 03, 2019

Nehru, the Opposition, and the One Sheep

On his 55th death anniversary, here are three episodes that show Nehru’s outlook towards the opposition and which also have contemporary relevance.

In History, May 26, 2019

Dilip Kumar: A Synonym of Perfection

After the battering that I received over my last post, I thought, I should stick to a (hopefully) less controversial topic: the greatest Bollywood actor of all time.

In Cinema, May 19, 2019

Two Agendas for the Wish List of Indian Democracy

In the past seven decades, Indian democracy has matured to a level where we, Indians, can be rightly proud of our democratic achievements. Benjamin Franklin once wrote that the duty o...

In Politics, History, Apr 14, 2019

Verdicts on the Events of 1857

The rebellion of 1857 has been interpreted in three distinct ways by various people. Britishers view the clash between them and Indians as “The Great Mutiny.” Indians, on the other ha...

In History, Apr 07, 2019

Two Dichotomies of the Indian Civilization

Undoubtedly, the greatest Indian of the 20th century (some may say since Buddha, to which I agree) was Mahatma Gandhi. This apostle of non-violence is still revered across the nation....

In History, Culture, Mar 25, 2019

Stability vs. Transformation: Caste, Congress, and Civil Services

There is an old adage that thou shalt not drink water from a stagnant body. It is ironical that the stability which helps a water body transform itself into an ecosystem, when sustain...

In History, Politics, Mar 14, 2019

To read posts by topic, click here.