scorecardresearch
Add as a preferred source on Google
Wednesday, January 7, 2026
HomeThe FinePrint

The FinePrint

How Kanpur declined. A story of short-sighted protests, politics & policy

Not everyone agrees on who is to blame for Kanpur’s decline. Even RSS-backed trade unions don’t rush to blame the striking workers of the 1970s and the 1980s.

Inside Oscar-nominated Homebound boys’ village in UP—a heavy burden of memory

On screen, Chandan and Shohaib are given ambition and possibility — young men preparing for government jobs, dreaming of becoming sipahi. However, the reality was a bit different.

As Trump seeks regime change, the long arm of anti-Americanism in Venezuela—from Chavez to Maduro

Venezuelan President Maduro has been in power for over a decade despite a failing economy & US sanctions. Genesis of the crisis between the countries began almost 30 years ago.

Kolkata’s Priya Cinema is a bhadralok bastion. Shows Satyajit Ray to Dhurandhar housefull

Bengal’s 700 single-screen halls have dwindled to 130 but south Kolkata’s Priya Cinema is still drawing housefulls. ‘We have marketed and positioned ourselves for decades.’

India’s urban co-op banks are turning the page—crisis to cautious revival, one metric at a time

With bad loans shrinking & capital buffers stronger, urban co-op banks’ new umbrella body NUCFDC is now prioritising rollout of digital transformation.

How Old Delhi’s Delite Cinema outlived Golcha, Jubilee, Novelty. ‘Solution is romance’

The Raizada family has been keeping single-screen moviegoing alive in Old Delhi since the Nehru era. Cash registers are still ringing at Delite Cinema.

There’s a reason Bollywood loves Rajmandir Cinema. Jaipur’s single-screen hall is a unicorn

Amitabh Bachchan and Raj Kapoor to Vicky Kaushal have all waved from the balcony of Rajmandir Cinema. While peers like Minerva and Golcha have shut down, it keeps small-screen culture alive.

Punjab is caught in a ‘vicious circle’—guns, gangs, lack of jobs & a strained police force

With youth unemployment high and easy access to weapons, youngsters in the state are joining gangs for quick money and power. As families live in fear of extortion and violence, police officers say the force is burdened with too much work.

7 yrs into probe, ED weighs plea seeking ‘fugitive economic offender’ status for Jatin Mehta’s wife & sons

Mehta family, living in London, is linked to a series of bank frauds. While CBI has filed 16 cases against Mehta, his wife Sonia & sons Suraj and Vishal face a dozen cases of fraud.

India is reviving gazetteers minus the colonial lens. Moradabad is leading the way

While British gazetteers focused largely on administration and revenue, the new exercise aims to create living records of culture, social change, and democratic life. It’s a tough task.

On Camera

A 2-hour op, precise extradition—what Maduro’s capture tells us about modern US military

Despite multiple agencies being involved, the US could maintain a clear chain of command. This is something India should consider too, as it defines the theatre command structures.

Trump threatens India with fresh tariffs on Russian oil, calls PM Modi a ‘good guy’

The latest comment comes as New Delhi and Washington have yet to sign a trade agreement. India’s purchase of Russian oil has reduced, but Moscow remains top source for crude.

S-300, Su-30 jets, T-72 tanks: Inventory of Venezuela’s largely Russian-origin arsenal

Venezuela also boasts of a diverse portfolio of unmanned aerial vehicles capable of carrying out surveillance, reconnaissance and being employed for kinetic purposes as well.

A year-end Mea Culpa in National Interest—The Army-Islam combo doesn’t kill democracy

Many of you might think I got something so wrong in National Interest pieces written this year. I might disagree! But some deserve a Mea Culpa. I’d deal with the most recent this week.