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Friday, November 21, 2025
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Book Excerpts

India’s Constitution is ready for gay marriage. Are India’s society and courts?

In ‘Sex and the Supreme Court’, Saurabh Kirpal writes about how marriage equality will fulfil the Constitution makers’ promise to all Indians.

Why we made Aadhaar a number, and not a card

In ‘The Making of Aadhaar’, former UIDAI CEO Ram Sewak Sharma writes about why the counter-intuitive decision to make Aadhaar a digital ID and not a smartcard worked.

Vasoo Paranjape told Rahul Dravid at 14 he will play for India, but not as a wicket-keeper

The strength of Bombay cricket was built on the shoulders of coaches like Vasoo Paranjape, Rahul Dravid writes in the book 'Cricket Drona' by Jatin Paranjape and Anand Vasu.

America isn’t really a middle-class nation, but Clinton to Obama, all relied on the myth

In ‘The Sinking Middle Class’, David Roediger writes about how Democrats and Republicans praise the middle-class as America’s heart. But numbers tell a different story.

Do-piyaza, blood-spitting paan, camels — The ‘bizarre’ food of Mughals in Western travelogues

In 'Tasting Difference', Gitanjali Shahani writes about the Mughal foods and traditions that early Western travellers considered 'ugly' and disturbing.

Mumbai gangster watched the film Satya 18 times to study how to become a real-life villain

Puja Changoiwala’s book 'Gangster on the Run' is about criminal-turned-marathon runner Rahul Jadhav, whose pseudonym ‘Bhiku’ was inspired by the 1998 film Satya.

Why old black-and-white wedding photos lack smiling couples

In ‘The Fear of the Visual?’, Sasanka Perera decodes why couples usually didn’t smile in old wedding photos, not just in India but all over the world.

Nehru going to UN on Kashmir was an error. And he knew it

In the book ‘India’s World’, Rajiv Dogra writes how Nehru quickly realised going to UN on Pakistan’s aggression in Kashmir was a mistake.

Grindr, PlanetRomeo, Gayglers — corporate queerness reached India. But many still in closet

In ‘The Pink Line’, Mark Gevisser explores how the conversation around gender & sexuality has shaped communities across the world in the twenty-first century.

An Indian-Chinese couple went on a road trip to Chengdu — this is what they found

In 'The Other Shangri-La', Shivaji Das writes about his travels to Chengdu, its ear-cleaners, 'Chinese dream' posters and Tibetan dogs.

On Camera

Trump’s 28 points for Ukraine add up to a no-go at peace

Two questions are pertinent: Why does the Trump administration keep making the same mistakes on the peace proposal? And what does a hurried peace plan mean on the ground?

At Charcha 2025: Local entrepreneurship, not just big IT, will drive next wave of distributed AI work

While global corporations setting up GCCs in India continue to express confidence in availability of skilled AI engineers, the panel argued that India’s real challenge lies elsewhere.

Tejas fighter aircraft crashes at Dubai Air Show, IAF confirms pilot’s death

This is the second such incident after a Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas had crashed into a hostel on the outskirts of Jaisalmer in March last year.

INDIA has a Congress-sized hole. And the fix begins with a little humility

Without a Congress revival, there can be no challenge to the BJP pan-nationally. Modi’s party is growing, and almost entirely at the cost of the Congress.