scorecardresearch
Monday, March 18, 2024
HomeThePrint Profile

ThePrint Profile

Jiddu Krishnamurti—Reluctant messiah, Indira Gandhi’s adviser, enduring philosopher

Jiddu Krishnamurti warned against the dangers of personality cults, religion, and dogma, but amassed an ever-growing flock of devotees. A look at his legacy on his death anniversary.

Dadasaheb Phalke ‘invented cinema’ in India. His films connected Indians to their roots

Dadasaheb Phalke cast his own daughter, Mandakini Phalke, in ‘Lanka Dahan’ and ‘Shri Krishna Janma’ when the very idea of women in films was anathema to society.

Arya Samaj founder Dayanand Saraswati inspired Gandhi to Aurobindo, championed ‘Vedic truth’

Dayanand Saraswati's 200th birth anniversary, 12 February, is a fitting time to revisit his progressive vision and lasting impact.

A British botanist took Sikkim’s rhododendron to Europe—tale of espionage, kidnapping, jail

Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker was the first European to be permitted to trek through Sikkim, where he discovered the richly coloured rhododendron.

Agha Shahid Ali was an inspiration to friends, a lover of people. His poems linked memory and history

Agha Shahid Ali rejected minimalism and sought to broaden English through the expressiveness of Urdu, despite his immersion in American poetry.

Tamil Nadu’s architect Annadurai questioned ‘Hindi imposition’, drove Congress out of Madras

Since CN Annadurai formed his government in Tamil Nadu in 1967, no leader from the Congress has held the position of chief minister in the state.

Karnal to cosmos & beyond—Kalpana Chawla’s journey is still a roadmap for India’s dreamers

On 1 February 2003, Kalpana Chawla, the first Indian woman to fly to space, was just minutes away from landing on Earth aboard Space Shuttle Columbia. It was already too late.

‘Rhythm king’ OP Nayyar faced AIR bans for music that was ‘too trendy, westernised’

OP Nayyar rode success with Geeta Dutt, Asha Bhosle, and Mohammed Rafi but his relationships with them were difficult. He once accepted the Filmfare award on Bhosle's behalf and then tossed it out of his car on his way home.

Lenin to Gandhi & Einstein, the controversial cross-continental legacy of CPI founder MN Roy

From Moscow to Mexico, MN Roy, a freedom fighter and founding member of the Communist Party of India, made more enemies than friends. A look at his fading legacy on his death anniversary.

The Bengali doctor behind ‘Das forceps’ was a champion for women, Indian medicine

Dr Kedarnath Das designed forceps customised for Indian women, authored an internationally lauded textbook on obstetrics, and championed for better childbirth practices in 1900s Bengal.

On Camera

The Draft Digital Competition Bill 2024 wields a sledgehammer where a scalpel is required

The rationale behind this proposed bill stems from the fact that existing competition enforcement is supposedly sluggish and ill-suited to today's fast-paced digital environment.

Complaints to RBI ombudsman up 68% in FY23, banks biggest cause for customer grievances

Data shows large public sector banks received highest number of complaints in absolute terms, but fared better than several private banks when looked at on complaints-per-branch basis.

All about dramatic ops by India on high seas that led to arrest of 35 pirates, rescue of 17 hostages

The former Maltese-flagged merchant vessel Ruen was originally hijacked on 14 December last year by the pirates and was being used as a mother ship.

CAA comes not with a bang, but with a whimper. Without NRC, it will fade into academic debate

For BJP, CAA was strategic move that did not quite work out because those it would benefit could’ve been accommodated under existing laws, and new entrants would remain excluded.