Open Essay

Politics As Costume Drama

Sunanda K Datta-Ray

It’s not for nothing that Indian politicians are so conscious of what they wear

Ashes 2015: Dust to Dust

James Astill

A thrilling and unexpected series victory for England in the Ashes of 2015 points to a troubling cultural change in world cricket

Say It again with a Rosogolla in the Mouth

Sunanda K Datta-Ray

As Odisha makes a historical claim over the sweet, please remember that Bengali cuisine has been as peripatetic as Bengalis

APJ Abdul Kalam (1931-2015): Icon, Idol, Ascetic…

Shiv Visvanathan

He was the poor man as scientist before we created the chaiwaala as Prime Minister. Remembering APJ Abdul Kalam (1931-2015)

Saving History from Historians

Murali Balaji

The late Marxist historian DD Kosambi continues to wield tremendous influence on the study of Hinduism. But his disciples have disallowed any rational critique of the man and have zealously ignored the religion’s diversity

Baahubali: An Epic for the Right Times

TM Krishna

What is it that makes Baahubali a film that reflects the age of Narendra Modi?

Has China Won the Bread Versus Freedom Debate?

Shashi Tharoor

The old debate has taken a new twist with the publication of a new book which argues that Chinese authoritarianism is superior to Indian democracy

Nikki and Bobby Come to Town

Tunku Varadarajan

Whatever their future, Nikki Haley and Bobby Jindal have got Indian-American knickers in a colossal twist

India’s new security doctrine: Red lines redrawn

Harsh V Pant

New Delhi’s muscular new security doctrine could have a far-reaching impact over the years

Amitav Ghosh: Thunder from the East

Shashi Tharoor

Amitav Ghosh in his historical Ibis trilogy reclaims the story of the victims told for so long by the imperial winners who enforced their will with the power of the gun masked by a rhetoric of civilisation