NEW DELHI, March 17 -- On the ninth day of the Russia-Ukraine war, I wrote a column in this magazine criticising the Government of India's neutrality, which only benefited the aggressor. I argued that... Read More
NEW DELHI, March 10 -- First, a disclaimer. Emperor Aurangzeb was not my great-great uncle. Nor is Maharashtra Samajwadi Party MLA Abu Asim Azmi my nephew. I have no reason to defend either. But what ... Read More
NEW DELHI, Feb. 17 -- There is a demand to rename Akbar Road in New Delhi. I used to take this road daily while commuting to and from the office. Given the alacrity with which the BJP-led Central and ... Read More
NEW DELHI, Feb. 10 -- We were seated in the last but two rows on an Air India flight from Paris to Delhi in the year 2000. After almost everyone had taken their seats and stored their luggage, two Fre... Read More
NEW DELHI, Feb. 3 -- When I read about Pope Francis' autobiography "Hope," co-authored with Carlo Musso in Italian and translated into English by Richard Dixon, I decided to get a copy. Amazon said it... Read More
NEW DELHI, Jan. 27 -- During the last 30-plus years that I have been writing this weekly column, I have chosen to write on foreign issues only very rarely. I decided to make an exception this week as ... Read More
NEW DELHI, Jan. 20 -- One phrase that had nearly gone out of circulation was "Unity in Diversity." Originally coined by the first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, it first appeared in his book The Di... Read More
NEW DELHI, Jan. 13 -- Crucifixion is what made Jesus great. In the case of Gautam Buddha, it was his abdication of the throne, and in the case of MK Gandhi, it was his decision to give up his upper ga... Read More
NEW DELHI, Jan. 6 -- Like most Malayalis, I too grew up hearing a few lines from Vallathol Narayana Menon's celebrated poetic work Sahityamanjari. Let me quote: "Bharatham enna per kettal abhimana poo... Read More