Culture
A Sufi Basant at Nizamuddin Dargah
February 17, 2021
After a rather cold and often bleak winter, the very idea of a festival marking the onset of spring is uplifting, but when it also brings with it the fragrance of a syncretic culture, it becomes incomparable. Such is the annual celebration of Basant Panchami at the ...
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Saraswati Puja amid pandemic
February 16, 2021
“The Saraswati Puja or Basant Panchami is extra special this year. As this festival is dedicated to the goddess Saraswati, it is also considered an auspicious day for the inauguration of academic institutes and teaching toddlers their first academic lessons. It is really happen...
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World Radio Day 2021: Community radio in India
February 12, 2021
“The community radio station, Radio Hevalvani’s interviews with doctors pushed me to get myself tested for the deadly disease,” says Ram Lakhi. “And I tested positive. I did not bother much till I heard about it on the radio. Thankfully, with timely intervention and a...
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Miniature art: Inside the magnificent 3mm universe
February 1, 2021
For many, passing a thread through the eye of a needle would rank among one of the toughest things to do. It requires immense concentration and patience to find success. And, here is Ganesh Subramanian, a goldsmith and miniature artist, who has perfected the art of the small and ...
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Weaving a regional heritage in Dakmanda
January 29, 2021
“The Dakmanda is my identity. It is comfortable and makes for excellent formal wear, especially for my ministerial meetings,” says Eva Marak, Assistant Director with the Border Area Development of Meghalaya. Marak is among several women of the Garo tribe of the north-eastern ...
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Of Chacha Chaudhary, Champak & childhood
January 23, 2021
Remember superhero Sabu? The alien from Jupiter who was Chacha Chaudhary’s constant companion? Or the simpleton Supandi in Tinkle? Or the notorious but intelligent Cheeku from Champak? All these and many more characters from different children’s magazines had been a constant ...
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Pandemic chokes bookstores, but books survive
January 18, 2021
The little nooks and crannies in bookshops had long been the abode of bookworms until the stores were shut suddenly due to the onset of Covid-19 pandemic. While booklovers tried to do with digital alternatives for their reading, bookstore owners had little choice but to sit out t...
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Patna Kalam: Bihar’s adrift artform
January 15, 2021
The eastern state of Bihar is known for its highly stylised Mithila and Madhubani painting traditions. But very few are aware of an equally popular folk-based school of painting, which has survived in the region for more than 200 years – the Patna Kalam. “Once very popula...
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Inside Majnu ka Tilla: Delhi’s own Mini Tibe...
January 12, 2021
Inside the crowded lanes of Majnu ka Tilla, the walls are painted in red, protesting against the Chinese occupation of Tibet. The walls read, “India-Tibet border, not India-China border.” The ‘Mini Tibet’ in the National Capital echoes the demands of a free Tibet....
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Changing tunes of Uttarakhand’s folk music
January 9, 2021
On January 14 each year as the sun traverses Tropic of Capricorn, large parts of India celebrate the harvest festival of Makar Sankranti, which coincides with the onset of an annual fair known as Magh Mela, celebrated in many parts of the northern India. On the occasion, resident...
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