Portal:India
Portal maintenance status: (June 2018)
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Introduction
India, officially the Republic of India (ISO: Bhārat Gaṇarājya), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area; the most populous country from June 2023 and from the time of its independence in 1947, the world's most populous democracy. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the southwest, and the Bay of Bengal on the southeast, it shares land borders with Pakistan to the west; China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the north; and Bangladesh and Myanmar to the east. In the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives; its Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a maritime border with Thailand, Myanmar, and Indonesia. (Full article...)
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Kalidas (pronounced [kaːɭidaːs] transl. The Servant of Kali) is a 1931 Indian biographical film directed by H. M. Reddy and produced by Ardeshir Irani. It is notable for being the first sound film in the Tamil and Telugu languages, and the first sound film to be made in a Dravidian language. It was based on the life of the Sanskrit poet Kalidasa, hence its namesake; it featured P. G. Venkatesan in the title role and T. P. Rajalakshmi as the female lead, with L. V. Prasad, Thevaram Rajambal, T. Susheela Devi, J. Sushila, and M. S. Santhanalakshmi in supporting roles.
Kalidas, principally in Tamil, contained additional dialogue in Telugu and Hindi. While Rajalakshmi spoke Tamil, Venkatesan spoke only Telugu due to his lack of fluency in Tamil, and Prasad spoke only Hindi. Despite its mythological theme, the film featured songs from much later time periods, such as the compositions of Carnatic musician Tyagaraja, publicity songs of the Indian National Congress, and songs about Mahatma Gandhi and the Indian independence movement. The sound was recorded using German-made technology. Kalidas was shot in Bombay on the sets of India's first sound film Alam Ara (1931) and was completed in eight days. (Full article...) -
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Arthur Edward Jeune Collins (18 August 1885 – 11 November 1914) was an English cricketer and soldier. He held, for 116 years, the record of highest score in cricket: as a 13-year-old schoolboy, he scored 628 not out over four afternoons in June 1899. Collins's record-making innings drew a large crowd and increasing media interest; spectators at the Old Cliftonian match being played nearby were drawn away to watch the junior school house cricket match in which Collins was playing. Despite this achievement, Collins never played first-class cricket. Collins's 628 not out stood as the record score until January 2016 when an Indian boy, Pranav Dhanawade, scored 1009 in a single innings.
Collins joined the British Army in 1902 and studied at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, before becoming an officer in the Royal Engineers. He served in France during the First World War, where he was killed in action in 1914 during the First Battle of Ypres. Collins had been mentioned in despatches and also represented the Royal Military Academy at cricket and rugby union. (Full article...) -
Image 3Parinda (transl. Bird) is a 1989 Indian Hindi-language crime drama film directed, produced and distributed by Vidhu Vinod Chopra. The film stars Jackie Shroff, Anil Kapoor, Nana Patekar and Madhuri Dixit. The story and scenario were written by Chopra, while Shiv Kumar Subramaniam and Imtiyaz Husain wrote the screenplay and dialogues, respectively. R. D. Burman composed the music and Khurshid Hallauri wrote the lyrics. Binod Pradhan served as the film's cinematographer and Renu Saluja was its editor.
Parinda follows Kishan (Shroff), who works for the underworld chieftain Anna (Patekar). Kishan's brother Karan (Kapoor) returns home after completing his studies in the United States. The two brothers are caught on different sides of a gang war after Karan decides to avenge his friend's death by Anna. (Full article...) -
Image 4The 44th Chess Olympiad was an international team chess event organised by the International Chess Federation (FIDE) in Chennai, India, from 28 July to 10 August 2022. It consisted of Open and Women's tournaments, as well as several events to promote chess. The Olympiad was initially supposed to take place in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia, the host of the Chess World Cup 2019, in August 2020, but it was later moved to Moscow. However, it was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and then relocated to Chennai following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. This was the first Chess Olympiad to take place in India.
The total number of participants was 1,737: 937 in the Open and 800 in the Women's event. The number of registered teams was 188 from 186 nations in the Open section and 162 from 160 nations in the Women's section; being the host nation, India had three teams participating in each section. Both sections set team participation records. The main venue of the Chess Olympiad was the convention centre at the Four Points by Sheraton, while the opening and closing ceremonies were held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. The Chief Arbiter of the event was France's Laurent Freyd. (Full article...) -
Image 5Keechaka Vadham (transl. The Extermination of Keechaka) is an Indian silent film produced, directed, filmed and edited by R. Nataraja Mudaliar. The first film to have been made in South India, it was shot in five weeks at Nataraja Mudaliar's production house, India Film Company. As the members of the cast were Tamils, Keechaka Vadham is considered to be the first Tamil film. No print of it is known to have survived, making it a lost film.
The screenplay, written by C. Rangavadivelu, is based on an episode from the Virata Parva segment of the Hindu epic Mahabharata, focusing on Keechaka's attempts to woo Draupadi. The film stars Raju Mudaliar and Jeevarathnam as the central characters. (Full article...) -
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The black stork (Ciconia nigra) is a large bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in the 10th edition of his Systema Naturae. Measuring on average 95 to 100 cm (37 to 39 in) from beak tip to end of tail with a 145-to-155 cm (57-to-61 in) wingspan, the adult black stork has mainly black plumage, with white underparts, long red legs and a long pointed red beak. A widespread but uncommon species, it breeds in scattered locations across Europe (predominantly in Portugal and Spain, and central and eastern parts), and east across the Palearctic to the Pacific Ocean. It is a long-distance migrant, with European populations wintering in tropical Sub-Saharan Africa, and Asian populations in the Indian subcontinent. When migrating between Europe and Africa, it avoids crossing broad expanses of the Mediterranean Sea and detours via the Levant in the east, the Strait of Sicily in the center, or the Strait of Gibraltar in the west. An isolated non-migratory population lives in Southern Africa.
Unlike the closely related white stork, the black stork is a shy and wary species. It is seen singly or in pairs, usually in marshy areas, rivers or inland waters. It feeds on amphibians, small fish and insects, generally wading slowly in shallow water stalking its prey. Breeding pairs usually build nests in large forest trees—most commonly deciduous but also coniferous—which can be seen from long distances, as well as on large boulders, or under overhanging ledges in mountainous areas. The female lays two to five greyish-white eggs, which become soiled over time in the nest. Incubation takes 32 to 38 days, with both sexes sharing duties, and fledging takes 60 to 71 days. (Full article...) -
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Dimple Kapadia (born 8 June 1957) is an Indian actress predominantly appearing in Hindi films. Born and raised in Mumbai by wealthy parents, she aspired to become an actress from a young age and received her first opportunity through her father's efforts to launch her in the film industry. She was discovered at age 14 by the filmmaker Raj Kapoor, who cast her in the title role of his teen romance Bobby (1973), which opened to major commercial success and gained her wide public recognition. Shortly before the film's release in 1973, she married the actor Rajesh Khanna and quit acting. Their daughters, Twinkle and Rinke Khanna, both briefly worked as actresses in their youth. Kapadia returned to films in 1984, two years after her separation from Khanna. Her comeback film Saagar, which was released a year later, revived her career. Both Bobby and Saagar won her Filmfare Awards for Best Actress. Through her work over the next decade, she established herself as one of Hindi cinema's leading actresses.
While her initial roles often relied on her perceived beauty and sex appeal, Kapadia was keen to challenge herself and expand her range. She was among the first actresses who starred in women-centred Hindi action films but found greater favour with critics when she took on more dramatic roles in both mainstream and neorealist parallel cinema. Appearing in films ranging from marital dramas to literary adaptations, she played troubled women sometimes deemed reflective of her personal experience, and received acclaim for her performances in Kaash (1987), Drishti (1990), Lekin... (1991), and Rudaali (1993). For her role as a professional mourner in Rudaali, she won the National Film Award for Best Actress and a Filmfare Critics Award. She also had supporting roles in the crime dramas Prahaar (1991), Angaar (1992), Gardish (1993) and Krantiveer (1994), the latter securing her another Filmfare Award. (Full article...) -
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India, officially the Republic of India (ISO: Bhārat Gaṇarājya), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area; the most populous country from June 2023 and from the time of its independence in 1947, the world's most populous democracy. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the southwest, and the Bay of Bengal on the southeast, it shares land borders with Pakistan to the west; China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the north; and Bangladesh and Myanmar to the east. In the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives; its Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a maritime border with Thailand, Myanmar, and Indonesia.
Modern humans arrived on the Indian subcontinent from Africa no later than 55,000 years ago.
Their long occupation, initially in varying forms of isolation as hunter-gatherers, has made the region highly diverse, second only to Africa in human genetic diversity. Settled life emerged on the subcontinent in the western margins of the Indus river basin 9,000 years ago, evolving gradually into the Indus Valley Civilisation of the third millennium BCE.
By 1200 BCE, an archaic form of Sanskrit, an Indo-European language, had diffused into India from the northwest. Its evidence today is found in the hymns of the Rigveda. Preserved by an oral tradition that was resolutely vigilant, the Rigveda records the dawning of Hinduism in India. The Dravidian languages of India were supplanted in the northern and western regions. By 400 BCE, stratification and exclusion by caste had emerged within Hinduism, and Buddhism and Jainism had arisen, proclaiming social orders unlinked to heredity.
Early political consolidations gave rise to the loose-knit Maurya and Gupta Empires based in the Ganges Basin.
Their collective era was suffused with wide-ranging creativity, but also marked by the declining status of women, and the incorporation of untouchability into an organised system of belief. In South India, the Middle kingdoms exported Dravidian-languages scripts and religious cultures to the kingdoms of Southeast Asia. (Full article...) -
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In Hinduism, Ahalya (Sanskrit: अहल्या, IAST: Ahalyā) also spelt as Ahilya, is the wife of the sage Gautama Maharishi. Many Hindu scriptures describe her legend of seduction by the king of the gods Indra, her husband's curse for her infidelity, and her liberation from the curse by the god Rama.
Created by the god Brahma as the most beautiful woman, Ahalya was married to the much older Gautama. In the earliest full narrative, when Indra comes disguised as her husband, Ahalya sees through his disguise but nevertheless accepts his advances. Later sources often absolve her of all guilt, describing how she falls prey to Indra's trickery. In all narratives, Ahalya and Indra are cursed by Gautama. The curse varies from text to text, but almost all versions describe Rama as the eventual agent of her liberation and redemption. Although early texts describe how Ahalya must atone by undergoing severe penance while remaining invisible to the world and how she is purified by offering Rama hospitality, in the popular retelling developed over time, Ahalya is cursed to become a stone and regains her human form after she is brushed by Rama's foot. (Full article...) -
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Lieutenant-Colonel James Tod (20 March 1782 – 18 November 1835) was an officer of the British East India Company and an Oriental scholar. He combined his official role and his amateur interests to create a series of works about the history and geography of India, and in particular the area then known as Rajputana that corresponds to the present day state of Rajasthan, and which Tod referred to as Rajast'han.
Tod was born in London and educated in Scotland. He joined the East India Company as a military officer and travelled to India in 1799 as a cadet in the Bengal Army. He rose quickly in rank, eventually becoming captain of an escort for an envoy in a Sindian royal court. After the Third Anglo-Maratha War, during which Tod was involved in the intelligence department, he was appointed Political Agent for some areas of Rajputana. His task was to help unify the region under the control of the East India Company. During this period Tod conducted most of the research that he would later publish. Tod was initially successful in his official role, but his methods were questioned by other members of the East India Company. Over time, his work was restricted and his areas of oversight were significantly curtailed. In 1823, owing to declining health and reputation, Tod resigned his post as Political Agent and returned to England. (Full article...) -
Image 11Kal Ho Naa Ho (transl. Tomorrow may never come, pronounced [kəl ɦoː naː ɦoː]), also abbreviated as KHNH, is a 2003 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy drama film directed by Nikhil Advani in his directorial debut with a story written by Karan Johar with dialogue by Niranjan Iyengar, and produced by Yash Johar. The film stars Jaya Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Saif Ali Khan, and Preity Zinta, with Sushma Seth, Reema Lagoo, Lillete Dubey, and Delnaaz Irani in supporting roles. In the film, Naina Catherine Kapur (Zinta) and Aman Mathur (Shah Rukh Khan) fall in love, but a secret prevents him from reciprocating his feelings and results in a plan to set Naina up with her best friend, Rohit Patel (Saif Ali Khan).
Collaborating with Johar, Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy composed the soundtrack and score. Anil Mehta, Manish Malhotra, and Sharmishta Roy were the cinematographer, costume designer and art director, respectively. Principal photography took place in Toronto, New York City, and Mumbai from January to October 2003. The soundtrack was released on 27 September 2003 to positive reviews; the title song, "It's The Time To Disco", "Kuch To Hua Hai", and "Pretty Woman" were particularly well-received. (Full article...) -
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Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji (born Leon Dudley Sorabji; 14 August 1892 – 15 October 1988) was an English composer, music critic, pianist and writer whose music, written over a period of seventy years, ranges from sets of miniatures to works lasting several hours. One of the most prolific 20th-century composers, he is best known for his piano pieces, notably nocturnes such as Gulistān and Villa Tasca, and large-scale, technically intricate compositions, which include seven symphonies for piano solo, four toccatas, Sequentia cyclica and 100 Transcendental Studies. He felt alienated from English society by reason of his homosexuality and mixed ancestry, and had a lifelong tendency to seclusion.
Sorabji was educated privately. His mother was English and his father a Parsi businessman and industrialist from India, who set up a trust fund that freed his family from the need to work. Although Sorabji was a reluctant performer and not a virtuoso, he played some of his music publicly between 1920 and 1936. In the late 1930s, his attitude shifted and he imposed restrictions on performance of his works, which he lifted in 1976. His compositions received little exposure in those years and he remained in public view mainly through his writings, which include the books Around Music and Mi contra fa: The Immoralisings of a Machiavellian Musician. During this time, he also left London and eventually settled in the village of Corfe Castle, Dorset. Information on Sorabji's life, especially his later years, is scarce, with most of it coming from the letters he exchanged with his friends. (Full article...) -
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Muhammad Ali Jinnah (born Mahomedali Jinnahbhai; 25 December 1876 – 11 September 1948) was a barrister, politician, and the founder of Pakistan. Jinnah served as the leader of the All-India Muslim League from 1913 until the inception of Pakistan on 14 August 1947 and then as the Republic of Pakistan's first governor-general until his death.
Born at Wazir Mansion in Karachi, Jinnah was trained as a barrister at Lincoln's Inn in London, England. Upon his return to India, he enrolled at the Bombay High Court, and took an interest in national politics, which eventually replaced his legal practice. Jinnah rose to prominence in the Indian National Congress in the first two decades of the 20th century. In these early years of his political career, Jinnah advocated Hindu–Muslim unity, helping to shape the 1916 Lucknow Pact between the Congress and the All-India Muslim League, in which Jinnah had also become prominent. Jinnah became a key leader in the All-India Home Rule League, and proposed a fourteen-point constitutional reform plan to safeguard the political rights of Muslims in the Indian subcontinent. In 1920, however, Jinnah resigned from the Congress when it agreed to follow a campaign of satyagraha, which he regarded as political anarchy. (Full article...) -
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Western Ganga was an important ruling dynasty of ancient Karnataka in India which lasted from about 350 to 1000 CE. They are known as "Western Gangas" to distinguish them from the Eastern Gangas who in later centuries ruled over Kalinga (modern Odisha and Northern Andhra Pradesh). The general belief is that the Western Gangas began their rule during a time when multiple native clans asserted their freedom due to the weakening of the Pallava empire in South India, a geo-political event sometimes attributed to the southern conquests of Samudra Gupta. The Western Ganga sovereignty lasted from about 350 to 550 CE, initially ruling from Kolar and later, moving their capital to Talakadu on the banks of the Kaveri River in modern Mysore district.
After the rise of the imperial Chalukyas of Badami, the Gangas accepted Chalukya overlordship and fought for the cause of their overlords against the Pallavas of Kanchi. The Chalukyas were replaced by the Rashtrakutas of Manyakheta in 753 CE as the dominant power in the Deccan. After a century of struggle for autonomy, the Western Gangas finally accepted Rashtrakuta overlordship and successfully fought alongside them against their foes, the Chola Dynasty of Tanjavur. In the late 10th century, north of Tungabhadra river, the Rashtrakutas were replaced by the emerging Western Chalukya Empire and the Chola Dynasty saw renewed power south of the Kaveri river. The defeat of the Western Gangas by Cholas around 1000 resulted in the end of the Ganga influence over the region. (Full article...) -
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Sonam Kapoor Ahuja (pronounced [soːnəm kəˈpuːr]; born 9 June 1985) is an Indian actress who works in Hindi films. She has received several awards, including a National Film Award and a Filmfare Award. One of the highest-paid Hindi film actresses in the 2010s, Kapoor appeared in Forbes India's Celebrity 100 list from 2012 to 2016.
Kapoor, the daughter of actor Anil Kapoor, began her career as an assistant director on filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali's 2005 film Black. She made her acting debut in Bhansali's romantic drama Saawariya (2007), a box office flop, and had her first commercial success with the romantic comedy I Hate Luv Storys (2010). This was followed by a series of commercial failures and repetitive roles, which garnered her negative reviews. The 2013 box office hit Raanjhanaa marked a turning point in Kapoor's career, garnering her praise and Best Actress nominations at several award ceremonies. (Full article...) -
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Ganesha (Sanskrit: गणेश, IAST: Gaṇeśa), also spelled Ganesh, and also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, Lambodara and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in the Ganapatya sect. His depictions are found throughout India. Hindu denominations worship him regardless of affiliations. Devotion to Ganesha is widely diffused and extends to Jains and Buddhists and beyond India.
Although Ganesha has many attributes, he is readily identified by his elephant head and four arms. He is widely revered, more specifically, as the remover of obstacles and bringer of good luck; the patron of arts and sciences; and the deva of intellect and wisdom. As the god of beginnings, he is honoured at the start of rites and ceremonies. Ganesha is also invoked during writing sessions as a patron of letters and learning. Several texts relate anecdotes associated with his birth and exploits. (Full article...) -
Image 17Mughal-e-Azam (transl. The Great Mughal) is a 1960 Indian epic historical drama film produced and directed by K. Asif. Starring Prithviraj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar, Madhubala, and Durga Khote, it follows the love affair between Mughal Prince Salim (who went on to become Emperor Jahangir) and Anarkali, a court dancer. Salim's father, Emperor Akbar, disapproves of the relationship, which leads to a war between father and son.
The development of Mughal-e-Azam began in 1944, when Asif read a 1922 play called Anarkali, by the playwright Imtiaz Ali Taj, which is set in the reign of Emperor Akbar (1556–1605). Production was plagued by delays and financial uncertainty. Before its principal photography began in the early 1950s, the project had lost a financier and undergone a complete change of cast. Mughal-e-Azam cost more to produce than any previous Indian motion picture; the budget for a single song sequence exceeded that typical for an entire film of the period. The soundtrack, inspired by Indian classical and folk music, comprises 12 songs voiced by playback singer Lata Mangeshkar along with Mohammed Rafi, Shamshad Begum, and classical singer Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, and is often cited among the finest in the history of Hindi cinema. (Full article...) -
Image 18Eega (transl. The Fly) is a 2012 Indian Telugu-language fantasy action film written and directed by S. S. Rajamouli. The film was produced by Sai Korrapati's Vaaraahi Chalana Chitram with an estimated budget of ₹30–40 crore (US$6–7 million). It was filmed simultaneously in Tamil with the title Naan Ee (transl. I, the Fly). The film stars Nani, Samantha, and Sudeepa. M. M. Keeravani composed the songs and the background score, while K. K. Senthil Kumar was the director of photography. Janardhana Maharshi and Crazy Mohan wrote the dialogue for the Telugu and Tamil versions, respectively.
The film's narrative is in the form of a bedtime story told by a father to his daughter. Its protagonist, Nani, who is in love with his neighbour Bindu, is murdered by a wealthy industrialist named Sudeep, who is attracted to Bindu and considers Nani a rival. Nani reincarnates as a housefly and tries to avenge his death and protect Bindu from an obsessive Sudeep. (Full article...) -
Image 19Phoolan Devi (Hindi: [pʰuː.lən d̪eː.ʋiː], 10 August 1963 – 25 July 2001), popularly known as the Bandit Queen, was an Indian dacoit (bandit) who became a politician, serving as a member of parliament until her assassination. She was a woman of the Mallah subcaste who grew up in poverty in a village in the state of Uttar Pradesh, where her family was on the losing side of a land dispute which caused them many problems. After being married off at the age of eleven and being sexually abused by various people, she joined a gang of dacoits. Her gang robbed higher-caste villages and held up trains and vehicles. When she punished her rapists and evaded capture by the authorities, she became a heroine to the Other Backward Classes who saw her as a Robin Hood figure. Phoolan Devi was charged in absentia for the 1981 Behmai massacre, in which twenty Thakur men were killed, allegedly on her command. After this event, the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh resigned, and calls to apprehend her were amplified. She surrendered two years later in a carefully negotiated settlement and spent eleven years in Gwalior prison, awaiting trial.
Phoolan Devi was released in 1994 after her charges were set aside. She subsequently became a politician and was elected as a member of parliament for the Samajwadi Party in 1996. She lost her seat in 1998, but regained it the following year. She was the incumbent at the time of her death in 2001. She was assassinated outside her house by Sher Singh Rana, who was convicted for the murder in 2014. At the time of her death, she was still fighting against the reinstituted criminal charges, having lost a 1996 appeal to the Supreme Court to have the charges dropped. Phoolan Devi's worldwide fame grew after the release of the controversial 1994 film Bandit Queen, which told her life story in a way she did not approve of. Her life has also inspired several biographies and her dictated autobiography was entitled I, Phoolan Devi. There are varying accounts of her life because she told differing versions to suit her changing circumstances. (Full article...) -
Image 20Taare Zameen Par (lit. 'Stars on Earth'), also known as Like Stars on Earth in English, is a 2007 Indian Hindi-language psychological drama film produced and directed by Aamir Khan. It stars Khan himself, with Darsheel Safary, Tanay Chheda, Vipin Sharma and Tisca Chopra. It explores the life and imagination of Ishaan (Safary), an artistically gifted 8-year-old boy whose poor academic performance leads his parents to send him to a boarding school, where a new art teacher Nikumbh (Khan) suspects that he is dyslexic and helps him to overcome his reading disorder.
Creative director and writer Amole Gupte developed the idea with his wife Deepa Bhatia, who was the film's editor. Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy composed the score, and Prasoon Joshi wrote the lyrics for many of the songs. Principal photography took place in Mumbai, and in Panchgani's New Era High School, where some of the school's students participated in the filming. (Full article...) -
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Typhoon Gay, also known as the Kavali Cyclone of 1989, was a small but powerful tropical cyclone which caused more than 800 fatalities in and around the Gulf of Thailand in November 1989. The worst typhoon to affect the Malay Peninsula in thirty-five years, Gay originated from a monsoon trough over the Gulf of Thailand in early November. Owing to favorable atmospheric conditions, the storm rapidly intensified, attaining winds over 120 km/h (75 mph) by 3 November. Later that day, Gay became the first typhoon since 1891 to make landfall in Thailand, striking Chumphon Province with winds of 185 km/h (115 mph). The small storm emerged into the Bay of Bengal and gradually reorganized over the following days as it approached southeastern India. On 8 November, Gay attained its peak intensity as a Category 5-equivalent cyclone with winds of 260 km/h (160 mph). The cyclone then moved ashore near Kavali, Andhra Pradesh. Rapid weakening ensued inland, and Gay dissipated over Maharashtra early on 10 November.
The typhoon's rapid development took hundreds of vessels by surprise, leading to 275 offshore fatalities. Of these, 91 occurred after an oil drilling ship, the Seacrest, capsized amid 6–11 m (20–36 ft) swells. Across the Malay Peninsula, 588 people died from various storm-related incidents. Several towns in coastal Chumphon were destroyed. Losses throughout Thailand totaled ฿11 billion (US $497 million). Striking India as a powerful cyclone, Gay damaged or destroyed about 20,000 homes in Andhra Pradesh, leaving 100,000 people homeless. In that country, 69 deaths and ₹410 million (US $25.3 million) in damage were attributed to Gay. (Full article...) -
Image 22Anbe Sivam (transl. Love Is God) is a 2003 Indian Tamil-language slice-of-life drama film directed by Sundar C and produced by K. Muralitharan, V. Swaminathan and G. Venugopal under the banner of Lakshmi Movie Makers. The film was written by Kamal Haasan, and Madhan provided the dialogues. Anbe Sivam stars Haasan, Madhavan and Kiran Rathod, with Nassar, Santhana Bharathi, Seema and Uma Riyaz Khan playing supporting characters. The film tells the story of Nallasivam and Anbarasu, two men of contrasting personalities who undertake an unexpected journey from Bhubaneswar to Chennai.
Produced on a budget of ₹120 million, Anbe Sivam takes on themes such as communism, atheism, and altruism and depicts Haasan's humanist views. The music was composed by Vidyasagar. Arthur A. Wilson served as the cinematographer and M. Prabhaharan served as the art director. (Full article...) -
Image 23Osbert Guy Stanhope Crawford CBE FBA FSA (28 October 1886 – 28 November 1957) was a British archaeologist who specialised in the archaeology of prehistoric Britain and Sudan. A keen proponent of aerial archaeology, he spent most of his career as the archaeological officer of the Ordnance Survey (OS) and also wrote a range of books on archaeological subjects.
Born in Bombay, British India, to a wealthy middle-class Scottish family, Crawford moved to England as an infant and was raised by his aunts in London and Hampshire. He studied geography at Keble College, Oxford, and worked briefly in that field before devoting himself professionally to archaeology. Employed by the philanthropist Henry Wellcome, Crawford oversaw the excavation of Abu Geili in Sudan before returning to England shortly before the First World War. During the conflict he served in both the London Scottish Regiment and the Royal Flying Corps, where he was involved in ground and aerial reconnaissance along the Western Front. After an injury forced a period of convalescence in England, he returned to the Western Front, where he was captured by the German Army in 1918 and held as a prisoner of war until the end of the conflict. (Full article...) -
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Hoysala architecture is the building style in Hindu temple architecture developed under the rule of the Hoysala Empire between the 11th and 14th centuries, in the region known today as Karnataka, a state of India. Hoysala influence was at its peak in the 13th century, when it dominated the Southern Deccan Plateau region. Large and small temples built during this era remain as examples of the Hoysala architectural style, including the Chennakesava Temple at Belur, the Hoysaleswara Temple at Halebidu, and the Kesava Temple at Somanathapura. These three temples were accorded UNESCO world heritage site status in 2023. Other examples of Hoysala craftsmanship are the temples at Belavadi, Amruthapura, Hosaholalu, Mosale, Arasikere, Basaralu, Kikkeri and Nuggehalli. Study of the Hoysala architectural style has revealed a negligible Indo-Aryan influence while the impact of Southern Indian style is more distinct.
Temples built prior to Hoysala independence in the mid-12th century reflect significant Western Chalukya influences, while later temples retain some features salient to Western Chalukya architecture but have additional inventive decoration and ornamentation, features unique to Hoysala artisans. Some three hundred temples are known to survive in present-day Karnataka state and many more are mentioned in inscriptions, though only about seventy have been documented. The greatest concentration of these are in the Malnad (hill) districts, the native home of the Hoysala kings. (Full article...) -
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Shefali Shah (née Shetty; born 22 May 1973) is an Indian actress of film, television and theatre. Working primarily in independent Hindi films, she has received multiple local and foreign accolades for her performances. Shah's acting career started on the Gujarati stage before she debuted on television in 1993. After small parts on television and a brief stint with cinema in Rangeela (1995), she gained wider recognition in 1997 for her role in the popular series Hasratein. This was followed by lead roles in the TV series Kabhie Kabhie (1997) and Raahein (1999). A supporting role in the crime film Satya (1998) won her positive notice and a Filmfare Critics Award, and she soon shifted her focus to film acting starting with a lead role in the Gujarati drama Dariya Chhoru (1999).
Shah was selective about her roles through the following decades, resulting in intermittent film work, mostly in character parts and often to appreciation from critics. She appeared in the international co-production Monsoon Wedding (2001) and the mainstream comedy-drama Waqt: The Race Against Time (2005). In 2007, her portrayal of Kasturba Gandhi in the biographical drama Gandhi, My Father won her the Best Actress prize at the Tokyo International Film Festival, and she received the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for the drama film The Last Lear. Among her subsequent film roles, she played a leading part in Kucch Luv Jaisaa (2011) and was noted for her work in the social problem film Lakshmi (2014) and the ensemble drama Dil Dhadakne Do (2015). (Full article...)
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Image 1Photo credit: PeripitusThe national flower of India, Nelumbo nucifera is known by a number of common names, including Indian lotus, sacred lotus, bean of India, and sacred water-lily. This plant is an aquatic perennial, though under favorable conditions its seeds may remain viable for many years.
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Image 2Painting: Raja Ravi Varma
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Image 3Photograph credit: Charles J. SharpThe Indian roller (Coracias benghalensis) is a member of the bird family Coraciidae, the rollers. It occurs widely from the Arabian Peninsula to the Indian subcontinent and is designated as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. The bird is best known for the aerobatic displays of males during the breeding season. It is commonly found in open grassland and scrub forest habitats, and is often seen perched on roadside bare trees and wires, which give it a good view of the ground below where it finds its prey. Its diet consists mainly of insects such as beetles and grasshoppers, but also includes spiders, scorpions, amphibians and small reptiles. The largest population occurs in India, and several states in India have chosen it as their state bird.
This picture shows an Indian roller of the benghalensis subspecies, photographed in Kanha Tiger Reserve in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. -
Image 4Photograph credit: Prathyush ThomasMacrotyloma uniflorum, commonly known as horse gram, is a legume native to tropical southern Asia. The plant grows from a rhizome, sending up annual shoots to a height of 60 cm (24 in). The flowers are cream, yellow or pale green and are followed by short pods. The seeds, pictured here, have been consumed in India for at least 4,000 years and are used both for animal feed and human consumption, including Ayurvedic cuisine. In other tropical countries in southeastern Asia, and in northern Australia, the plant is grown mainly as a fodder crop and for use as green manure. It is a drought-tolerant plant, largely cultivated in areas with low rainfall.
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Image 5Papilio demoleus matingPhotograph: JkadavoorA mating pair of Papilio demoleus, a common and widespread Swallowtail butterfly, photographed at Kadavoor, Kerala, India. After successful mating the female goes from plant to plant, laying a single egg at a time on top of a leaf, and flies off as soon as the egg is laid.
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Image 6Photograph: Muhammad Mahdi KarimThe Bara Imambara is an imambara complex in Lucknow, India. Built by Asaf-ud-Daula, Nawab of Awadh, in 1785, the building reflects a maturation of ornamented Mughal design (as seen in the Badshahi Mosque).
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Image 7Coin design credit: East India Company and the Calcutta Mint; photographed by Andrew ShivaThe mohur is a gold coin that was formerly minted by several governments, including those of British India. It was usually equivalent in value to fifteen silver rupees. Gold mohurs issued by the British East India Company or the Crown are valuable collectors' items, and sell in auctions for high prices. The double mohur (minted between 1835 and 1918), with a value of thirty rupees, is the highest-denomination circulating coin ever issued in India. The 1835 two-mohur coin above was minted in the reign of King William IV, while the 1862 one-mohur coin below was minted in the reign of Queen Victoria; both are now part of the National Numismatic Collection at the National Museum of American History.
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Image 8Al-Ameen College of PharmacyPhoto: Muhammad Mahdi KarimAl-Ameen College of Pharmacy is a pharmacy college in Bangalore, India. Established in 1983, it is under the purview of the Al-Ameen Educational Society.
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Image 9Photograph credit: Charles James SharpThe pied bush chat (Saxicola caprata) is a small passerine bird widely distributed in Asia. The males are black with white shoulder and vent patches, while the females are predominantly brownish. This species is insectivorous, and like other chats hunts from a prominent low perch. This female pied bush chat was photographed in Pench National Park, India.
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Image 10Photograph credit: Muhammad Mahdi KarimThe Dharmaraya Swamy Temple is one of the oldest temples in Bangalore, India. It is thought to be more than 800 years old and is built in the Dravidian style, with a gopuram, an ornate monumental entrance tower. Gods worshipped here include Dharmaraya, Krishna, Arjuna, Draupadi and Bhima.
The Karaga festival starts from the temple each year; the festival is dedicated to Draupadi, the most important female character in the Hindu epic, the Mahabharata. Starting at midnight, a priest dressed as a woman carries an earthen pot filled with water and adorned with decorations several feet high on his head in procession through the town, preceded by hundreds of bare-chested, dhoti-clad, turbaned Veerakumaras bearing unsheathed swords. -
Image 11Photograph: Muhammad Mahdi KarimMysore Palace, the official residence and seat of the Wodeyars — the rulers of the Kingdom of Mysore. Located in southern India, the kingdom is traditionally believed to have been founded in 1399 as a vassal state to the Vijayanagara Empire before becoming independent in the 16th century.
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Image 12Photo: YannWomen of the Gondi, the largest tribe of Indian aboriginals in central India. They are classified as a Scheduled Tribe in most Indian states. The Gondi language is related to Telugu and other Dravidian languages. About half of Gonds speak Gondi languages, while the rest speak Indo-Aryan languages including Hindi. For many years during the British colonial period, the Gonds were considered to have performed human sacrifices, although this notion was later discredited.
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Image 13Photograph credit: Bourne & Shepherd; retouched by Yann ForgetThe Rudra Mahalaya Temple is an ancient temple complex at Siddhpur in the Patan district of Gujarat, India. The temple was completed in 1140 by Jayasimha Siddharaja, but in 1296, Alauddin Khalji sent an army under Ulugh Khan and Nusrat Khan, who dismantled the structure. In 1414 or 1415, the temple was further destroyed and the western part was converted into a congregational mosque by Muslim ruler Ahmad Shah I of the Muzaffarid dynasty. Apart from the mosque, the surviving fragments consist of two porches, a torana (ornamental gateway) and a few pillars.
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Image 14Photograph: Augustus BinuChandiroor Divakaran (b. 1946) is a Malayalam–language poet and folk song writer from Kerala, India. He has published numerous collections of poetry since his debut collection, Radha, in 1965.
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Image 15Map credit: PlaneMadA map of Network of National Highways in India, including NHDP projects up to phase IIIB, which is due to be completed by December 2012. The National Highways are the main long-distance roadways and constitute a total of about 58,000 km (36,250 mi), of which 4,885 km (3,053 mi) are central-separated expressways. Highways in India are around 2% of the total road network in India, but carry nearly 40% of the total road traffic.
Featured list – show another
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The president of India is the head of state of the Republic of India and the Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces. The president is referred to as the first citizen of India. Although vested with these powers by the Constitution of India, the position is largely a ceremonial one and executive powers are de facto exercised by the prime minister.
The president is elected by the Electoral College composed of elected members of the parliament houses, the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, and also members of the Saasana Sabha or Vidhan Sabha, the state legislative assemblies. Presidents may remain in office for a tenure of five years, as stated by article 56, part V, of the Constitution of India. In the case where a president's term of office is terminated early or during the absence of the president, the vice president assumes office. By article 70 of part V, the parliament may decide how to discharge the functions of the president where this is not possible, or in any other unexpected contingency. (Full article...) -
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The Victoria Cross (VC) was introduced in Great Britain on 29 January 1856 by Queen Victoria to reward acts of valour during the Crimean War. For the Indian Mutiny (also known as India's First War of Independence, Revolt of 1857, or the Sepoy Mutiny) the VC was awarded to 182 members of the British Armed Forces, the Honourable East Indies Company (HEIC) and civilians under its command. The VC is the highest British honour and is awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy". Created in 1856 for the British Army and Royal Navy, eligibility was extended in 1857 to members of the HEIC and in 1858 to non-military personnel bearing arms as volunteers.
Queen Victoria created the tradition of the British monarch presenting the VC to the recipient, personally presenting 74 of the 111 awards for the Crimean War. Many VCs for the Indian Mutiny were sent to India for presentation and while there is documentation for 42 presentations, the information on 51 presentations which were likely presented in India is vague and it not known if the medal was personally presented or received by post. There were 18 Indian Mutiny VCs sent to next of kin where the award was posthumous, or the recipient died before presentation. The Queen personally presented 63 Indian Mutiny awards after the recipients returned to the UK. (Full article...) -
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Vikram Vedha is a 2017 Indian Tamil-language neo-noir action thriller film directed and written by the husband and wife duo Pushkar–Gayathri and produced by S. Sashikanth under the banner of YNOT Studios. R. Madhavan and Vijay Sethupathi play the title characters Vikram and Vedha respectively. Shraddha Srinath, Kathir and Varalaxmi Sarathkumar play the other lead roles while Prem, Achyuth Kumar, Hareesh Peradi and Vivek Prasanna feature as supporting characters. Sam C. S. composed the film's soundtrack and score. Richard Kevin and P. S. Vinod was in charge of the editing and cinematography respectively.
A contemporary adaptation of the Indian folktale Baital Pachisi, the film follows Vikram, a police inspector who is decisive about good and evil, and the head of an encounter unit which is formed to track down and kill Vedha, a gangster. When the unit makes plans for another encounter, Vedha walks into the police station and voluntarily surrenders himself. He then tells Vikram three stories which bring about a change in the latter's perceptions of right and wrong. (Full article...) -
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The Jnanpith Award is the oldest and the highest Indian literary award presented annually by the Bharatiya Jnanpith to an author for their "outstanding contribution towards literature". Instituted in 1961, the award is bestowed only on Indian writers writing in Indian languages included in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India and English, with no posthumous conferral.
From 1965 till 1981, the award was given to the authors for their "most outstanding work" and consisted of a citation plaque, a cash prize and a bronze replica of Saraswati, the Hindu goddess of knowledge and wisdom. The first recipient of the award was the Malayalam writer G. Sankara Kurup who received the award in 1965 for his collection of poems, Odakkuzhal (The Bamboo Flute), published in 1950. The rules were revised in subsequent years to consider only works published during the preceding twenty years, excluding the year for which the award was to be given and the cash prize was increased to ₹1.5 lakh (equivalent to ₹31 lakh or US$37,000 in 2023) from 1981. (Full article...) -
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Shilpa Shetty is an Indian actress who is primarily known for her work in Hindi films, in addition to a few Telugu, Kannada and Tamil films. Shetty made her acting debut opposite Shah Rukh Khan in the 1993 thriller Baazigar. Shetty's performance earned her two Filmfare Awards nominations for Lux New Face of the Year and Best Supporting Actress. She subsequently earned recognition with dual roles in the 1994 action-comedy Main Khiladi Tu Anari. After initial success, Shetty's films fared poorly at the box office for the next five years. Films Shetty starred in including action drama Aag, romantic drama Aao Pyaar Karen, comedy Haathkadi and Chhote Sarkar proved to be financially unsuccessful.
The 2000 romantic drama Dhadkan marked a turning point in her career, earning her several nominations in the Best Actress category at various award ceremonies. Shetty played the lead female in films such as family drama Apne, police drama Garv: Pride and Honour and musical drama Life in a... Metro. Her comic performance as an eccentric fisherwoman in 2002 action-drama release Rishtey earned her a nomination for the Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award. Shetty became a global figure after winning the 2007 British reality television series Celebrity Big Brother, after comments made by other contestants about Shetty fell afoul of Ofcom rules and caused an international controversy over racism. (Full article...) -
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Queen is a 2013 Indian comedy-drama film directed by Vikas Bahl and produced by Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane. The film stars Kangana Ranaut in the lead role, and features Rajkummar Rao and Lisa Haydon in supporting roles. The film was edited by Abhijit Kokate and Kashyap, and the cinematography was provided by Bobby Singh. Amit Trivedi composed the musical score for the film. Queen tells the story of Rani, an under-confident woman, who embarks on her honeymoon alone after her fiancé calls off their wedding.
Made on a budget of ₹125 million (US$1.5 million), Queen was released on 7 March 2014, and grossed ₹970 million (US$12 million) worldwide. The film garnered awards and nominations in several categories, with particular praise for its direction, performance of Ranaut, cinematography, and editing. As of June 2015, the film has won 32 awards. (Full article...) -
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Ranbir Kapoor is an Indian actor who appears in Hindi films. He worked as an assistant director on the films Aa Ab Laut Chalen (1999) and Black (2005), before making his acting debut opposite Sonam Kapoor in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's romantic drama Saawariya (2007). It earned Kapoor the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut. He established himself in 2009 with leading roles in three films—the coming-of-age drama Wake Up Sid, the comedy Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani and the drama Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year. He won the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor for his combined work in these three films. In 2010, Kapoor played a character based on Arjuna and Michael Corleone in the commercially successful political thriller Raajneeti.
From 2011 to 2013, Kapoor's releases were among the highest-grossing Hindi films of their respective years. In Imtiaz Ali's musical Rockstar (2011), he played an aspiring singer, and in Anurag Basu's comedy-drama Barfi! (2012), he starred as a joyful deaf and mute man. His performance in both films was critically acclaimed and he earned two consecutive Best Actor awards at Filmfare and the former also earned him a Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor. The romantic comedy Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (2013) further established him as a star. (Full article...) -
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Sourav Ganguly is a former Indian cricketer and captain of the India national cricket team. From his international debut in 1992 to his retirement in 2008, he scored centuries (100 or more runs) on 16 occasions in Test cricket and in 22 One Day International (ODI) matches.
Ganguly scored a century on Test debut, against England in Lord's in June 1996. He became the 10th Indian player to perform the feat, and the third player to score a century on debut at the ground. In the next match at Trent Bridge, he made 136 and became the third batsman to make a century in each of his first two innings. He is eighth in the list of leading Test century makers for India. His highest score of 239—his only double century—was made against Pakistan in 2007 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore. He made centuries against all Test-cricket playing nations except South Africa and West Indies. His centuries have been scored in fourteen cricket grounds, including eight outside India. He ended up in the nineties on four occasions—including two scores of 99. (Full article...) -
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Nani is an Indian actor, film producer and television presenter who works predominantly in Telugu films and appears in a few Tamil films. He made his acting debut with Mohana Krishna Indraganti's 2008 comedy film Ashta Chamma, an Indian adaptation of Oscar Wilde's play The Importance of Being Earnest. After Ashta Chamma's commercial success, Nani played the lead roles in three Telugu films in the next two years: Ride (2009), Snehituda (2009) and Bheemili Kabaddi Jattu (2010). In 2011, Nani collaborated with B. V. Nandini Reddy on the romantic comedy film Ala Modalaindi which was profitable. The same year, he made his Tamil cinema debut with Anjana Ali Khan's Veppam, a crime drama set in the backdrop of North Chennai. The following year, Nani collaborated with S. S. Rajamouli and Gautham Vasudev Menon on the Telugu-Tamil bilingual Eega and the romance film Yeto Vellipoyindhi Manasu respectively. The former, which was about a murdered man reincarnating as a housefly and avenging his death, earned Nani an award in the Best Hero category at the 2013 Toronto After Dark Film Festival. He received the Nandi Award for Best Actor for his performance in Yeto Vellipoyindhi Manasu.
Nani ventured into film production in 2013 as a co-producer for the film D for Dopidi. He faced three box office failures in the upcoming years: Paisa (2013), Aaha Kalyanam (2014) and Janda Pai Kapiraju (2015). Nani termed it a "low phase" in his career and worked on the "planning of films and the timing of their release". He then played the lead role in Nag Ashwin's Yevade Subramanyam (2015), a film focusing on a businessperson's journey to the Himalayas seeking self exploration. Nani later starred in Maruthi's comedy film Bhale Bhale Magadivoy (2015), in which he played an absent minded scientist easily prone to distraction. It was the actor's first blockbuster success, and earned him the Critics Award for Best Actor – South at the 63rd Filmfare Awards South ceremony. With his subsequent releases, the profitable ventures Krishna Gaadi Veera Prema Gaadha (2016) and Gentleman (2016), he gained stardom in Telugu cinema. Nani later played the lead in the commercially successful Telugu films Majnu (2016), Nenu Local (2017), Middle Class Abbayi (2017), and Ninnu Kori (2017). In 2018, Nani featured as the host of the second season of the Telugu game show Bigg Boss. (Full article...) -
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The Indian Navy currently operates twenty-five air squadrons. Of these, eleven operate fixed-wing aircraft, ten are helicopter squadrons and the remaining three are equipped with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV). Building on the legacy inherited from the Royal Navy prior to Indian independence, the concept of naval aviation in India started with the establishment of Directorate of Naval Aviation at Naval Headquarters (NHQ) in early 1948. Later that year officers and sailors from the Indian Navy were sent to Britain for pilot training. In 1951, the Fleet Requirement Unit (FRU) was formed to meet the aviation requirements of the navy. On 1 January 1953, the charge of Cochin airfield was handed over to the navy from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation. On 11 March, the FRU was commissioned at Cochin with ten newly acquired Sealand aircraft. The navy's first air station, INS Garuda, was commissioned two months later. From February 1955 to December 1958, ten Firefly aircraft were acquired. To meet the training requirements of the pilots, the indigenously developed HAL HT-2 trainer was inducted into the FRU. On 17 January 1959, the FRU was commissioned as Indian Naval Air Squadron (INAS) 550, to be the first Indian naval air squadron. In the following two years, three more naval air squadrons—INAS 300, INAS 310 and INAS 551—were commissioned. The first two operated from the newly purchased aircraft carrier INS Vikrant flying Sea Hawks and Alizés, whereas the latter one, equipped with Vampires, was used for training purposes.
Between 1961 and 1971, three helicopter squadrons were commissioned—INAS 321, INAS 330 and INAS 561. The first two were equipped with HAL Chetak and Sea King 42Bs for search and rescue and anti-submarine roles respectively, whereas the later one assumed a training role. In December 1971, the squadrons embarked on the aircraft carrier INS Vikrant saw action in the 1971 Indo-Pakistani War. Between 1976 and 1977, INAS 312 and INAS 315 were commissioned with Super Constellation and Ilyushin Il-38s respectively. In December 1980, another helicopter squadron intended for anti-submarine warfare—INAS 333—was commissioned. It was initially equipped with Ka-25s, and with Ka-28s in late 1980s. In 1984, one patrol and one helicopter squadron—INAS 318 and INAS 336—were commissioned. The patrol squadron was initially equipped with Islander aircraft, but they were replaced by Dornier 228s in 2000. In November 1990, another Sea King squadron—INAS 339—was commissioned. Later in 1993, the Sea Kings were replaced by Ka-28s, and in 2003, Ka-31s were inducted, making it the only Indian naval air squadron for the role of airborne early warning and control. (Full article...) -
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Kareena Kapoor Khan is an Indian actress who has appeared in more than 60 Hindi films. She made her acting debut opposite Abhishek Bachchan in the 2000 drama Refugee, for which she won the Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut. The following year, she appeared in five films, including the romance Mujhe Kucch Kehna Hai, the thriller Ajnabee, and the ensemble melodrama Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham.... The latter emerged as the highest-grossing Bollywood film in overseas to that point, and the success of these films established her in Bollywood. This success was followed by repetitive roles in a series of commercial failures.
In 2004, Kapoor portrayed a prostitute in the drama Chameli, which proved to be a turning point in her career, earning her a Filmfare Special Award. That same year, she played a Muslim woman affected by the 2002 Gujarat riots in Govind Nihalani's political drama Dev, and two years later, she played the Desdemona character in Omkara (2006), an adaptation of William Shakespeare's tragedy Othello from director Vishal Bhardwaj. She won two Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actress for these films. In 2007, Kapoor played a loquacious Sikh girl in Jab We Met, a commercially successful romantic comedy co-starring Shahid Kapoor, for which she won the Filmfare Award for Best Actress. (Full article...) -
Image 12The prime minister of India is the chief executive of the Government of India and chair of the Union Council of Ministers. Although the president of India is the constitutional, nominal, and ceremonial head of state, in practice and ordinarily, the executive authority is vested in the prime minister and their chosen Council of Ministers. The prime minister is the leader elected by the party with a majority in the lower house of the Indian parliament, the Lok Sabha, which is the main legislative body in the Republic of India. The prime minister and their cabinet are at all times responsible to the Lok Sabha. The prime minister can be a member of the Lok Sabha or of the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the parliament. The prime minister ranks third in the order of precedence.
The prime minister is appointed by the president of India; however, the prime minister has to enjoy the confidence of the majority of Lok Sabha members, who are directly elected every five years, unless a prime minister resigns. The prime minister is the presiding member of the Council of Ministers of the Union government. The prime minister unilaterally controls the selection and dismissal of members of the council; and allocation of posts to members within the government. This council, which is collectively responsible to the Lok Sabha as per Article 75(3), assists the president regarding the operations under the latter's powers; however, by the virtue of Article 74 of the Constitution, such 'aid and advice' tendered by the council is binding. (Full article...) -
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In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoueverable, long-distance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, short-range attackers. Seventeen destroyers have served, or currently serve, in the Indian Navy. The navy operates 12 guided-missile destroyers from four classes: Visakhapatnam class, Kolkata class, Delhi class, and Rajput class. Six other destroyers (three R class and three Hunt class) have been decommissioned and scrapped.
India did not have any destroyers of its own until 1949. The R-class INS Ranjit, built in the United Kingdom, was the first destroyer commissioned in the Indian Navy. Two more of the R-class were later commissioned. Three Hunt-class destroyers were commissioned in 1953 to succeed the R-class destroyers. These ships (all of which were built in the United Kingdom) were decommissioned by 1976, with the Hunt-class INS Godavari the last. (Full article...) -
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Thani Oruvan is a 2015 Indian Tamil-language action thriller film directed by Mohan Raja, who also co-wrote the screenplay and dialogues with the duo Subha. The film features Jayam Ravi, Arvind Swami and Nayanthara in the lead roles. Thambi Ramaiah, Ganesh Venkatraman, Mugdha Godse and Nassar play supporting roles. The film's story focuses on Mithran (Ravi), an IPS officer, who learns of the plans of scientist and businessman Siddharth Abhimanyu (Swami) to sabotage a deal to make generic medicines available at low cost for poor people. Siddharth succeeds in his plan and begins indulging in a game of cat and mouse with Mithran. The rest of the story revolves around how Mithran overcomes the obstacles set by Siddharth. Produced by Kalpathi S. Aghoram, Kalpathi S. Ganesh and Kalpathi S. Suresh under their company AGS Entertainment, the film's soundtrack and score were composed by Hiphop Tamizha. Ramji and Gopi Krishna handled the cinematography and editing respectively.
Made on a budget of ₹200 million, Thani Oruvan was released on 28 August 2015 and received positive reviews. It was commercially successful, grossing ₹1.05 billion worldwide. The film won 21 awards from 37 nominations; its direction, story, screenplay, performances of the cast members and music have received the most attention from award groups. (Full article...) -
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Brabourne Stadium is a cricket ground in Mumbai, India. It is the home of the Cricket Club of India and has played host to Ranji Trophy matches (including seventeen finals) and Indian Premier League matches, as well as being a Test, One Day International and Twenty20 International (T20) venue. It has a capacity of 20,000 spectators. The ground has hosted eighteen Test matches, the first in 1948 when India played the West Indies. It has also staged nine One Day International matches, the first of which was in 1989 when Australia lost to Pakistan by 66 runs. One T20 International has been played at the ground when India beat Australia by 7 wickets in 2007 (first T20 International to be played in India). Of the nine One Day Internationals played at the stadium, five matches (including the final) were staged during the ICC Champions Trophy in 2006.
The first Test century (100 or more runs in a single innings) scored at the ground was in 1948 by the West Indian Allan Rae in the first innings of the first Test match played at Brabourne Stadium. The first Indian to score a century at the Brabourne was Rusi Modi in the third innings of the same match. In total, 35 Test centuries have been scored at the ground in 18 Test matches. Virender Sehwag's 293, scored against Sri Lanka in 2009, is the highest Test innings achieved at the ground. The highest Test score by an overseas player is 194 by the West Indian Everton Weekes in 1948. Vijay Hazare has scored the most Test centuries at the ground with four. (Full article...) -
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A women's Twenty20 International (WT20I) is a 20 overs-per-side cricket match played in a maximum of 150 minutes between two ICC member sides, and is played under the rules of Twenty20 cricket. The first such match was held in August 2004 between England and New Zealand. The India women's national cricket team played its first WT20I against England in August 2006; India won the match by eight wickets.
Since the team made its first WT20I appearance in 2006, 73 players—including five different captains—have represented India in the format. The list is arranged in the order in which each player won her first Twenty20 cap. Where more than one player won her first Twenty20 cap in the same match, those players are listed alphabetically by surname. (Full article...) -
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Kapil Dev is a former Test and One Day International (ODI) cricketer who represented India between 1978 and 1994. He took 24 five-wicket hauls during his international career. In cricket, a five-wicket haul—also known as a five-for or fifer—refers to a bowler taking five or more wickets in a single innings. This is regarded as a notable achievement, and as of October 2024[update], only 54 bowlers have taken 15 or more five-wicket hauls at international level in their cricketing careers. A right-arm fast bowler, Kapil Dev took 434 wickets in Test cricket and 253 in ODIs. With 23 five-wicket hauls in Tests, he has the third highest number of international five-wicket hauls among Indian cricketers as of 2012, after Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh. Kapil Dev was named by the Wisden as one of their Cricketers of the Year in 1983 and Indian Cricketer of the Century in 2002. Eight years later, the International Cricket Council (ICC) inducted him into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. As of 2012, Kapil Dev also holds the record for being the only player to have taken more than 400 wickets and scored over 5,000 runs in Tests.
Kapil Dev made his Test and ODI debuts against Pakistan, both in 1978. His first five-wicket haul came a year later against England during the first Test of India's tour. His career-best bowling figures in an innings of nine for 83 was achieved in 1983 against the West Indies in Ahmedabad. In Tests, Kapil Dev was most successful against Pakistan and Australia, with seven five-wicket hauls against each of them. He took his only five-wicket haul in ODIs against Australia during the 1983 Cricket World Cup. (Full article...) -
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Parineeti Chopra is an Indian actress who appears in Hindi films. Chopra has 26 awards to her credit including a National Film Award, one each from the Filmfare, Screen and Zee Cine Awards, and two awards each from the Producers Guild and International Indian Film Academy Awards (IIFA).
Chopra made her film debut with a supporting role in the 2011 romantic comedy Ladies vs Ricky Bahl, which won her the Best Female Debut at the 57th Filmfare Awards. She also received Best Debut awards at other ceremonies, including Screen Awards, IIFA Awards, Producers Guild Film Awards, and Zee Cine Awards. Additionally, Chopra won the IIFA Award for Best Supporting Actress, and the Producers Guild Film Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, and was nominated in the same category at the Filmfare, Screen, and Zee Cine award ceremonies for her performance in the film. In 2012, she played her first lead role in the action romantic drama Ishaqzaade, for which she earned a Special Mention at the 60th National Film Awards. For the film, Chopra also received her first nomination for the Filmfare Award and Producers Guild Film Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role, among other honours. (Full article...) -
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Fashion is a 2008 Indian drama film directed by Madhur Bhandarkar and produced by UTV Motion Pictures. The film features Priyanka Chopra in the lead role, with Kangana Ranaut, Mugdha Godse, Arbaaz Khan and Arjan Bajwa in supporting roles as well as several professional fashion models playing themselves. Bhandarkar co-wrote the film with Ajay Monga and Anuraadha Tewari. Deven Murdeshwar edited the film while the cinematography was provided by Mahesh Limaye. Salim–Sulaiman composed the musical score, with lyrics written by Irfan Siddiqui and Sandeep Nath. The film focuses on the transformation of Meghna Mathur, an aspiring fashion model played by Chopra, from a small-town girl to a supermodel in the Indian fashion industry.
Produced on a budget of ₹180 million (US$2.2 million), Fashion was released on 29 October 2008 to critical acclaim and box-office success. It grossed ₹600 million (US$7.2 million) and was noted for being commercially successful despite being a women-centric film with no male lead. Fashion received various awards and nominations, with praise for its direction, the performance of the cast, screenplay, editing, musical score, and costume design. (Full article...) -
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Ayushmann Khurrana is an Indian actor, playback singer and television host who works in Hindi films. Khurrana first appeared in 2004 teen drama reality show MTV Roadies, winning the second season of the show. He went to star in many other MTV shows, including MTV Fully Faltoo Movies, Cheque De India and Jaadoo Ek Baar, and hosted multiple television shows, including India's Got Talent and Music Ka Maha Muqqabla. In 2012, he made his feature film debut with the romantic comedy Vicky Donor, about sperm donation, which received critical acclaim and performed strongly at the box office. Khurrana's performance won him the Filmfare Award for Best Male Playback Singer (for the song "Pani Da Rang"), Screen Award for Best Male Debut, Producers Guild Film Award for Best Male Debut, and Producers Guild Film Award for Best Male Playback Singer. He then starred in a series of commercially unsuccessful films, including the comedy-drama Nautanki Saala (2013), romantic comedy Bewakoofiyaan (2014), and drama Hawaizaada (2015).
In 2015, Khurrana starred in the Sharat Katariya-directed romantic drama Dum Laga Ke Haisha opposite Bhumi Pednekar. His performance was praised, and the film emerged as a commercial success. He then starred in Meri Pyaari Bindu (2017), Bareilly Ki Barfi (2017), and Shubh Mangal Saavdhan (2017). The latter two were commercially successful. In 2018, he starred in the black comedy Andhadhun and the comedy-drama Badhaai Ho. The former grossed ₹4.56 billion (US$64 million) worldwide, and became one of Indian cinema's biggest grossers; for his performance he won the National Film Award for Best Actor (shared with Vicky Kaushal for Uri: The Surgical Strike) and the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor. Badhaai Ho became a sleeper hit, earning over ₹2.21 billion (US$31 million) worldwide. This success continued with Khurrana's 2019 releases, Article 15, Dream Girl, and Bala. For the first of these, he won the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor, and Screen Award for Best Actor (Critics). In the comedy Bala, he played a man plagued with premature balding. (Full article...) -
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Sachin Tendulkar is a retired Indian cricketer who is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest batsmen of all time, he is the most prolific run-scorer in international cricket. Tendulkar has scored the highest number of centuries (100 or more runs) in Test matches and One Day International (ODI) matches organised by the International Cricket Council. His total of 51 centuries in Test matches is a world record for highest number of centuries by a batsman and his 49 centuries in ODI matches are the second highest number of centuries after Virat Kohli. He became the first and only cricketer to score 100 international centuries when he made 114 against Bangladesh in March 2012.
After making his Test debut in 1989, Tendulkar achieved his first century against England at Old Trafford, Manchester in 1990; he made 119 not out. In Test matches, Tendulkar has scored centuries against all the Test cricket playing nations, and is the second batsman to score 150 against each of them. He has scored a century in at least one cricket ground of all Test cricket playing nations, except Zimbabwe. In October 2010, Tendulkar went past Brian Lara's record of 19 scores of 150 or more by hitting his 20th against Australia in Bangalore. He made his highest score in 2004, when he made 248 not out against Bangladesh at the Bangabandhu National Stadium, Dhaka. Tendulkar has scored six double centuries and remained unbeaten on 15 occasions. His centuries have come in 30 different cricket grounds, with 27 of them being scored in venues outside India. Tendulkar has been dismissed nine times between scores of 90 and 99. (Full article...) -
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Yash Chopra (1932–2012) was an Indian film director and producer known for his works in Bollywood. Acknowledged as one of the greatest filmmakers from the country, he was credited by the media for "changing the face of romance to become a brand" in the industry. He made his directorial debut with the family drama Dhool Ka Phool, which was produced by his elder brother Baldev Raj. The film, released in 1959, became a commercial success worldwide and gave him critical acclaim. Chopra's next film, Dharmputra (1961), failed to perform well at the box office but won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi. In 1965, he directed the drama Waqt about a family who are separated due to a natural disaster. A commercial success, it was one of the earliest Indian films to star an ensemble cast and won a first Best Director trophy for him at the Filmfare Awards.
The 1980s was the most unsuccessful period of his career. Following the failure of his romantic drama Silsila (1981), which he co-wrote, directed and produced, Chopra's popularity began to wane. According to his biographer, the British academic Rachel Dwyer, this was because action and crime films were more popular at the time while most of his films were romances. Chopra experimented with making two action films, Mashaal (1984) and Vijay (1988), which underperformed financially but were well received by critics. Chandni was his only box-office success of the decade. Starring Sridevi in the title role, the film tells the story of a young woman who is accused of being responsible for her lover's accident. Chopra's career began to revive since its premiere in 1989; the film was named the Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment at the 37th National Film Awards and considered one of his best films. (Full article...) -
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The National Film Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role is an honour presented annually at the National Film Awards of India since 1968 to an actress for the best performance in a leading role within the Indian film industry. The National Film Awards were called the "State Awards for Films" when established in 1954. The State Awards instituted the "Best Actress" category in 1968 as the "Urvashi Award for the Best Actress"; in 1975, the Urvashi Award was renamed as the "Rajat Kamal Award for the Best Actress". Throughout the years, accounting for ties and repeat winners, the Government of India has presented a total of 56 Best Actress awards to 45 different actresses. Since the 70th National Film Awards, the name was changed to "National Film Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role".
Until 1974, winners of the National Film Award received a figurine and certificate; since 1975, they have been awarded with a "Rajat Kamal" (silver lotus), certificate and a cash prize that amounted to ₹2 lakh (US$2,400) in the 70th edition. Although the Indian film industry produces films in more than 20 languages and dialects, the actresses whose performances have won awards have worked in eleven major languages: Hindi (22 awards),Tamil (8 awards), Bengali (7 awards), Malayalam (6 awards), Telugu (4 awards), Kannada (3 awards), English (3 awards), Marathi (2 awards), Assamese (one award),Gujarati (one award) and Urdu (one award). (Full article...) -
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Mohabbatein (transl. Love Stories) is a 2000 Indian Hindi-language musical romantic drama film written and directed by Aditya Chopra. It stars an ensemble cast of Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai, and the newcomers Uday Chopra, Shamita Shetty, Jugal Hansraj, Kim Sharma, Jimmy Sheirgill, and Preeti Jhangiani. It tells the story of a fictional all-boys college Gurukul's principal Narayan Shankar (Bachchan) who prohibits his students from falling in love and will unhesitantly expel those who do not obey the rule. The rest of the film focuses on how the arrival of the violin teacher Raj Aryan Malhotra (Khan) changes his views. Mohabbatein's soundtrack was composed by Jatin–Lalit, and the lyrics were written by Anand Bakshi. The film was shot by Manmohan Singh on sets designed by Sharmishta Roy, while the editor was V. Karnik.
The film opened at theatres on 27 October 2000 and was met with widespread acclaim from critics, who praised the performances of Bachchan and Khan. Made on a production budget of ₹130 million (US$1.6 million), the film had a total gross of ₹900.1 million (US$11 million) becoming the year's highest-grossing Indian film. (Full article...) -
Image 25Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (English: You Live Only Once) is a 2011 Indian coming-of-age film directed by Zoya Akhtar, who also co-wrote the film along with Reema Kagti. It is produced by Excel Entertainment. The film stars an ensemble cast of Hrithik Roshan, Abhay Deol and Farhan Akhtar, with Katrina Kaif and Kalki Koechlin in supporting roles. The musical score for the film was composed by the trio Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy. Its cinematography was provided by Carlos Catalan. The film narrates the story of three friends on a bachelor trip and how each of them discover themselves and overcome their problems and insecurities.
Made on a budget of ₹550 million (US$6.6 million), Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara was released on 5 July 2011 and grossed over ₹1.53 billion (US$18 million) worldwide. Rotten Tomatoes, a review aggregator, surveyed 7 reviews and judged 100 percent to be positive. The film garnered awards and nominations in several categories, with particular praise for its direction, screenplay, and the performances of its cast. As of 2015, the film has won 33 awards from 66 nominations. (Full article...)
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The British Asian Cup was a day/night Twenty20 cricket charity match played between the 2008 Indian Premier League (IPL) champion Rajasthan Royals and the 2008 Twenty20 Cup champion Middlesex Panthers played at the Lord's Cricket Ground, London, England. A portion of the earnings of the match went to the British Asian Trust. It ended as the Royals defeated the Panthers by 46 runs.
Shaun Udal and Shane Warne were the captains for the Panthers and the Royals respectively. The Royals played a warm-up game with the Middlesex Second XI before the match, and won it by 28 runs. The match attracted a crowd of 20,000 people, but was delayed due to rain. (Full article...) -
Image 2Madhumati is a 1958 Indian Hindi-language paranormal romance film directed and produced by Bimal Roy, and written by Ritwik Ghatak and Rajinder Singh Bedi. The film stars Vyjayanthimala and Dilip Kumar in lead roles, with Pran and Johnny Walker in supporting roles. The plot focuses on Anand, a modern man who falls in love with a tribal woman named Madhumati. But they face challenges in their relationship finally leading to a paranormal consequence. The film was ranked 11th in the Outlook Magazine's 25 leading Indian directors' poll for selecting Bollywood's greatest films in 2003.
Madhumati was filmed in various Indian locations, including Ranikhet, Ghorakhal, Vaitarna Dam and Aarey Milk Colony. The soundtrack album was composed by Salil Chowdhury and the lyrics were written by Shailendra. The film was released on 12 September 1958. It earned ₹40 million in India and became the highest-grossing Indian film of the year, and one of the most commercially successful and influential Indian films of its time. It received highly positive reviews from critics, who praised the technicality, soundtrack, and performance of the cast. (Full article...) -
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The Ram Rath Yatra was a political and religious rally that lasted from September to October 1990. It was organised by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its Hindu nationalist affiliates, and led by the then-president of the BJP, L. K. Advani. The purpose of the yatra was to support the agitation, led by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and its affiliates in the Sangh Parivar, to erect a temple to the Hindu deity Rama on the site of the Babri Masjid.
The masjid, or mosque, had been built in the city of Ayodhya following the Mughal conquest of the region in 1528. According to hearsay, it was built over a temple dedicated to Rama, and stood on the site of his birth. In the 1980s, the VHP and other Sangh Parivar affiliates began an agitation to build a temple to Rama at the site, with the BJP lending political support to the movement. In 1990, the government of India led by V. P. Singh decided to implement some of the recommendations of the Mandal commission, and announced that twenty-seven percent of government jobs would be reserved for people from Other Backward Class. This announcement threatened the electoral constituency of the BJP, which decided to use the Ayodhya dispute to unite the Hindu vote by mobilising anti-Muslim sentiment. (Full article...) -
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The Khalji Revolution, alternatively spelled the Khilji Revolution, marked a military coup and a period of political and societal transformation in the Delhi Sultanate. It unfolded following the death of Mamluk sultan Balban and the subsequent incapacity of his successors to effectively govern the Delhi Sultanate. The upheaval commenced and concluded in 1290 when Jalaluddin Khalji seized absolute power, toppling the Mamluks and inaugurating the rule of the Khalji dynasty.
After Balban's death, his underage grandson Qaiqabad ascended the throne. A poor governor, Qaiqabad later fell ill and became paralyzed, leading to the succession of his son, Shamsuddin Kayumars. Amidst this upheaval, factions arose within the Mamluk court, with the Turkic faction led by Aitmar Surkah facing off against the Khalji faction, led by Jalaluddin Khalji. (Full article...) -
Image 5The Bobbili Fort, located in the Vizianagaram district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, was built during the middle of the 19th century in Bobbili. It has a historical link to the nearby mud fort of the same name which was destroyed during the Bobbili war in 1757 in a feud between the Rajas of Bobbili and the neighbouring Maharaja of Vizianagaram.
Chinna Ranga Rao, who survived the Battle of Bobbili as a child was, at a later date, installed as the Raja of Bobbili. The successors of his lineage constructed the present Bobbili Fort following their improved economic conditions in the middle of the 19th century. (Full article...) -
Image 6Imsai Arasan 23rd Pulikesi (transl. Pulikesi XXIII, the Tyrant ) is a 2006 Indian Tamil-language historical-comedy film written and directed by Chimbu Deven in his directoral debut .The film stars Vadivelu in his debut as a solo lead actor. Monica and Tejashree play the female leads, while Manorama, Nassar, Ilavarasu, Sreeman and Nagesh play supporting roles. Sabesh–Murali composed the soundtrack album and background score. S. Shankar produced and distributed the film under his production banner S Pictures.
Set in the late 18th century during the early stages of the British Raj, the film tells the story of twin brothers separated at birth. Pulikesi XXIII, the foolish elder brother, becomes a puppet of his uncle, the Chief Minister, while Ukraputhan, the wise younger brother, becomes a patriot intent on saving his land and his brother. (Full article...) -
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The Mountain railways of India are the railway lines that were built in the mountainous regions of India. The term mainly includes the narrow-gauge railways in these regions but may also include some broad-gauge railways.
Three of the lines, the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, the Nilgiri Mountain Railway, and the Kalka–Shimla Railway, are collectively designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site under the name "Mountain Railways of India". Two more, the Matheran Hill Railway and the Kangra Valley Railway, are on the tentative list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The Nilgiri Mountain Railway is also the only rack and pinion railway in India. (Full article...) -
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Jasprit Jasbirsingh Bumrah (born 6 December 1993) is an Indian international cricketer who plays for the Indian cricket team in all formats of the game. A right-arm fast bowler with a unique bowling action, Bumrah is widely regarded as one of the best bowlers in the world and one of the greatest fast bowlers India has ever produced. He plays for Gujarat in domestic cricket and for Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Bumrah was a member of the Indian team that won the 2024 T20 World Cup, where he was named the player of the tournament.
Bumrah is the fastest Indian pacer to take 150 wickets in Test cricket and the second fastest Indian bowler to reach 100 wickets in One Day International (ODI) cricket. He is the first bowler to have achieved the number one ranking in the ICC men's player rankings in all three formats of the game. He also holds the record of scoring the highest number of runs in an over in Test cricket. (Full article...) -
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INS Kursura (S20) was a Kalvari-class (variant of the Foxtrot-class) diesel-electric submarine of the Indian Navy. It was India's fourth submarine. Kursura was commissioned on 18 December 1969 and was decommissioned on 27 February 2001 after 31 years of service. It participated in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, where it played a key role in patrol missions. It later participated in naval exercises with other nations and made many goodwill visits to other countries.
After decommissioning, It was dedicated to the Nation by the Chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on 9 August 2002 and was preserved as a museum for public access from 24 August 2002 making its final journey to Visakhapatnam on RK Beach. Kursura has the distinction of being one of the very few submarine museums to retain originality and has been called a "must-visit destination" of Visakhapatnam. Despite being a decommissioned submarine, she still receives the navy's "Dressing Ship" honour, which is usually awarded only to active ships. (Full article...) -
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The Badami cave temples are a complex of Buddhist, Hindu and Jain cave temples located in Badami, a town in the Bagalkot district in northern part of Karnataka, India. The caves are important examples of Indian rock-cut architecture, especially Badami Chalukya architecture, and the earliest date from the 6th century. Badami is a modern name and was previously known as "Vataapi", the capital of the early Chalukya dynasty, which ruled much of Karnataka from the 6th to the 8th century. Badami is situated on the west bank of a man-made lake ringed by an earthen wall with stone steps; it is surrounded on the north and south by forts built during Early Chalukya and in later times.
The Badami cave temples represent some of the earliest known examples of Hindu temples in the Deccan region. They along with the temples in Aihole transformed the Mallaprabha River valley into a cradle of temple architecture that influenced the components of later Hindu temples elsewhere in India. (Full article...) -
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Saif Ali Khan (pronounced [ˈsæːf əˈli xaːn]; born Sajid Ali Khan Pataudi; 16 August 1970) is an Indian actor and film producer who primarily works in Hindi films. Current head of the Pataudi family, he is the son of actress Sharmila Tagore and cricketer Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi. Khan has won several awards, including a National Film Award and seven Filmfare Awards, and received the Padma Shri, the fourth highest Indian civilian award in 2010.
Khan made his acting debut in Parampara (1993), and had success in the multi-starrers Yeh Dillagi (1994), Main Khiladi Tu Anari (1994), Kachche Dhaage (1999) and Hum Saath-Saath Hain (1999). In the 2000s, he gained praise and won multiple awards for his roles in the romantic comedies Dil Chahta Hai (2001) and Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003), and had success as a solo male star in the romances Hum Tum (2004), Parineeta, Salaam Namaste (both 2005) and Ta Ra Rum Pum (2007). (Full article...) -
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In the Hindu epic Ramayana, Tara (Sanskrit: तारा, Tārā, lit. 'star') is the Queen of Kishkindha and the wife of the vanara King Vali. After being widowed, she becomes the Queen of Sugriva, Vali's younger brother.
Tara is described as the daughter of the monkey physician Sushena in the Ramayana, and in later sources, as an apsara (celestial nymph) who rises from the churning of the milky ocean. She marries Vali. After Vali is presumed dead in a battle with a demon, his brother Sugriva becomes king and appropriates Tara; however, Vali returns and regains Tara and exiles his brother, accusing him of treachery. (Full article...) -
Image 13Soggade Chinni Nayana (transl. The young man is a charmer) is a 2016 Indian Telugu-language supernatural drama film directed by Kalyan Krishna Kurasala and written by Satyanand and Ram Mohan P. In addition to producing the film under his Annapurna Studios banner, Nagarjuna played dual roles, starring alongside Ramya Krishna and Lavanya Tripathi. Nassar, Mahadevan, Sampath Raj and Brahmanandam played supporting roles. The film revolves around the soul of Bangarraju, a flirtatious zamindar whom Yama sends back to earth to reconcile his son (Ram "Ramu" Mohan) and his wife Seetha, who are on the brink of divorce. In the process, he learns about his death and its connection with a local Shiva temple.
P. S. Vinod and Siddhardh Ramaswami provided the cinematography, and Anup Rubens composed the film's soundtrack and background score. Prawin Pudi edited the film. Principal photography for the film began on 19 November 2014 after it was launched in Hyderabad, and wrapped on 4 October 2015. Most of the film was shot in and around Rajahmundry and Mysore. (Full article...) -
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Srinivasa Ramanujan Aiyangar
(22 December 1887 – 26 April 1920) was an Indian mathematician. Though he had almost no formal training in pure mathematics, he made substantial contributions to mathematical analysis, number theory, infinite series, and continued fractions, including solutions to mathematical problems then considered unsolvable.
Often regarded as one of the greatest mathematicians of all time, Ramanujan initially developed his own mathematical research in isolation. According to Hans Eysenck, "he tried to interest the leading professional mathematicians in his work, but failed for the most part. What he had to show them was too novel, too unfamiliar, and additionally presented in unusual ways; they could not be bothered". Seeking mathematicians who could better understand his work, in 1913 he began a mail correspondence with the English mathematician G. H. Hardy at the University of Cambridge, England. Recognising Ramanujan's work as extraordinary, Hardy arranged for him to travel to Cambridge. In his notes, Hardy commented that Ramanujan had produced groundbreaking new theorems, including some that "defeated me completely; I had never seen anything in the least like them before", and some recently proven but highly advanced results. (Full article...) -
Image 15AK vs AK is a 2020 Indian Hindi-language black comedy thriller film directed by Vikramaditya Motwane and is the first release under his banner Andolan Films. Anurag Kashyap, the executive producer and dialogue writer, also stars alongside Anil Kapoor as the title characters with Harshvardhan Kapoor and debutante Yogita Bihani in pivotal roles.
The story, written by Avinash Sampath, utilises a film-within-a-film narrative where the main actors play fictionalised versions of themselves. After a public feud between Kashyap, an eccentric film director, and Anil Kapoor, an ageing film star, the former kidnaps the latter's daughter (Sonam Kapoor Ahuja) and forces Kapoor to search for her while his assistant (Bihani) films them as part of his next project, with most of the film shown from the perspective of her camera. (Full article...) -
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Rati (Sanskrit: रति, Rati) is the Hindu goddess of love, carnal desire, lust, passion, and sexual pleasure. Usually described as the daughter of Prajapati Daksha, Rati is the female counterpart, the chief consort and the assistant of Kama (Kamadeva), the god of love. A constant companion of Kama, she is often depicted with him in legend and temple sculpture. She also enjoys worship along with Kama.
The Hindu scriptures stress Rati's beauty and sensuality. They depict her as a maiden who has the power to enchant the God of Love. When the deity Shiva burns her husband to ashes, it is Rati, whose beseeching or penance, leads to the promise of Kama's resurrection. Often, this resurrection occurs when Kama is reborn as Pradyumna, the son of Krishna and Rukmini. Rati – under the name of Mayavati – plays a critical role in the upbringing of Pradyumna, who is separated from his parents at birth. She acts as his nanny, as well as his lover, and tells him the way to return to his parents by slaying the demon-king, who is destined to die at his hands. Later, Kama-Pradyumna accepts Rati-Mayavati as his wife. (Full article...) -
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The Salt march, also known as the Salt Satyagraha, Dandi March, and the Dandi Satyagraha, was an act of nonviolent civil disobedience in colonial India, led by Mahatma Gandhi. The 24-day march lasted from 12 March 1930 to 6 April 1930 as a direct action campaign of tax resistance and nonviolent protest against the British salt monopoly. Another reason for this march was that the Civil Disobedience Movement needed a strong inauguration that would inspire more people to follow Gandhi's example. Gandhi started this march with 78 of his trusted volunteers. The march spanned 387 kilometres (240 mi), from Sabarmati Ashram to Dandi, which was called Navsari at that time (now in the state of Gujarat). Growing numbers of Indians joined them along the way. When Gandhi broke the British Raj salt laws at 8:30 am on 6 April 1930, it sparked large-scale acts of civil disobedience against the salt laws by millions of Indians.
After making the salt by evaporation at Dandi, Gandhi continued southward along the coast, making salt and addressing meetings on the way. The Congress Party planned to stage a satyagraha at the Dharasana Salt Works, 40 km (25 mi) south of Dandi. However, Gandhi was arrested on the midnight of 4–5 May 1930, just days before the planned action at Dharasana. The Dandi March and the ensuing Dharasana Satyagraha drew worldwide attention to the Indian independence movement through extensive newspaper and newsreel coverage. The satyagraha against the salt tax continued for almost a year, ending with Gandhi's release from jail and negotiations with Viceroy Lord Irwin at the Second Round Table Conference. Although over 60,000 Indians were jailed as a result of the Salt Satyagraha, the British did not make immediate major concessions. (Full article...) -
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Anurag Kashyap (born 10 September 1972) is an Indian film director and actor known for his works in Hindi cinema. He is the recipient of four Filmfare Awards. For his contributions to film, the Government of France made him a Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters in 2013.
After writing a television serial, Kashyap got his major break as a co-writer in Ram Gopal Varma's crime drama Satya (1998) and made his directorial debut with Paanch, which never had a theatrical release due to censorship issues. He then went on to direct Black Friday (2004), a film based on the namesake book by Hussain Zaidi about the 1993 Bombay bombings. Its release was held up for two years by the District Board of Film Certification because of the pending verdict of the case at that time but was released in 2007 to widespread critical appreciation. Kashyap's follow-up, No Smoking (2007) met with negative reviews and performed poorly at the box-office. His next venture Dev.D (2009), a modern adaptation of Devdas received positive reviews and was a commercial success; followed by the socio-political drama Gulaal (2009), and the thriller That Girl in Yellow Boots (2011). (Full article...) -
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Vishnudevananda Saraswati (31 December 1927 – 9 November 1993, birth name Kuttan Nair) was an Indian yoga guru known for his teaching of asanas, a disciple of Sivananda Saraswati, and founder of the International Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centres and Ashrams (ISYVC). He established the Sivananda Yoga Teachers' Training Course, possibly the first yoga teacher training programs in the West. His books The Complete Illustrated Book of Yoga (1960) and Meditation and Mantras (1978) established him as an authority on Hatha and Raja yoga. Vishnudevananda was a peace activist who rode in several "peace flights" over places of conflict, including the Berlin Wall prior to German reunification.
In 2007, his long-serving assistant, Julie Salter, reported sexual abuse against her by the guru; she published details of her experiences in 2019, leading at least 3 other women to report their experiences of similar abuse by Vishnudevananda. (Full article...) -
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Madurai (/ˈmʌdʊraɪ/ MUH-doo-rai, US also /ˌmɑːdəˈraɪ/ MAH-də-RY, Tamil: [mɐðuɾɐi̯]), formerly known by its colonial name Madura is a major city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District, which is governed by the Madurai Municipal Corporation established in 1 November 1866. As of the 2011 census, it is the third largest metropolis in Tamil Nadu after Chennai and Coimbatore in terms of population and 27th largest urban agglomeration in India. Located on the banks of River Vaigai, Madurai has been a major settlement for two millennia and has a documented history of more than 2500 years. It is often referred to as "Thoonga Nagaram", meaning "the city that never sleeps".
Madurai is closely associated with the Tamil language. The third Tamil Sangam, a major congregation of Tamil scholars, is said to have been held in the city. The recorded history of the city goes back to the 3rd century BCE, being mentioned by Megasthenes, the Greek ambassador to the Mauryan Empire, and Kautilya, a minister of the Mauryan emperor Chandragupta Maurya. Signs of human settlements and Roman trade links dating back to 300 BCE are evident from excavations by Archeological Survey of India in Manalur. The city is believed to be of significant antiquity and has been ruled, at different times, by the Pandyan Kingdom, Chola Empire, Madurai Sultanate, Vijayanagar Empire, Madurai Nayaks, Carnatic kingdom, and the British East India Company's British Raj. The city has a number of historical monuments, with the Koodal Azhagar temple, Meenakshi Temple and the Thirumalai Nayakkar Mahal being the most prominent. (Full article...) -
Image 21Maitreyi who lived during the later Vedic period in ancient India. She is mentioned in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad as one of two wives of the Vedic sage Yajnavalkya; she is estimated to have lived around the 8th century BCE. In the Hindu epic Mahabharata and the Gṛhyasūtras, however, Maitreyi is described as an Advaita philosopher who never married. In ancient Sanskrit literature, she is known as a brahmavadini (an expounder of the Veda).
Maitreyi appears in ancient Indian texts, such as in a dialogue where she explores the Hindu concept of Atman (soul or self) in a dialogue with Yajnavalkya in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad. According to this dialogue, love is driven by a person's soul, and Maitreyi discusses the nature of Atman and Brahman and their unity, the core of Advaita philosophy. This Maitreyi-Yajnavalkya dialogue is the topic of Sureshvara's varttika, a commentary. (Full article...) -
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Nina Davuluri (born April 20, 1989) is an American public speaker, advocate, and beauty queen who hosts the reality show Made in America on Zee TV America from Manhattan.
As Miss America 2014, she became the first Indian American contestant to win both the Miss New York followed by the Miss America Competition. She is also the second Asian American to be crowned Miss America. (Full article...) -
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Somnath Sharma, PVC (31 January 1923 – 3 November 1947), was an Indian military officer and the first recipient of India's highest military decoration, Param Vir Chakra (PVC), which he was awarded posthumously.
Sharma was commissioned into the 8th Battalion, 19th Hyderabad Regiment, in 1942. He served in Burma during the Arakan Campaign in World War II, for which he was mentioned in despatches. Fighting in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947-1948, Somnath Sharma was killed in action on 3 November 1947 while repulsing Pakistani infiltrators near Srinagar Airport. For his gallantry and sacrifice during the Battle of Badgam, he was posthumously awarded the Param Vir Chakra. (Full article...) -
Image 24Apoorva Raagangal (pronounced [apuːɾʋa ɾaːɡaŋɡaɭ] transl. Rare melodies) is a 1975 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film written and directed by K. Balachander. It stars Kamal Haasan, Sundarrajan, Srividya and Jayasudha, while Nagesh and Rajinikanth, in his feature film debut, play supporting roles. The film revolves around Prasanna (Haasan) who falls in love with the much older Bhairavi (Srividya) while Bhairavi's daughter Ranjani (Jayasudha) is drawn to Prasanna's father Mahendran (Sundarrajan).
Apoorva Raagangal's theme was based on a riddle featured in the Indian folktale collection Vetala Panchavimshati about a king marrying a woman and his son marrying her mother, and Vetala, the riddler asking Vikramaditya what would be their kinship relations if these couples were to beget children. The film was produced by V. Govindarajan and J. Duraisamy under the Kalakendra Films banner, photographed by B. S. Lokanath and edited by N. R. Kittu; the music was composed by M. S. Viswanathan. Unlike many contemporaneous Tamil films, it was shot entirely in actual houses for their interiors without building sets, as Balachander wanted to convey a more authentic narration. (Full article...) -
Image 25Andhadhun (pronounced [əndʱaːdʱʊn] transl. Blind Tune) is a 2018 Indian Hindi-language black comedy crime thriller film co-written and directed by Sriram Raghavan. It stars Tabu, Ayushmann Khurrana, Radhika Apte and Anil Dhawan. The film tells the story of a blind piano player who unwittingly becomes embroiled in the murder of a retired actor.
The script of Andhadhun was written by Raghavan, Arijit Biswas, Pooja Ladha Surti, Yogesh Chandekar and Hemanth M. Rao. The film was edited by Surti, and K. U. Mohanan was its director of photography. Amit Trivedi composed songs for the film and Jaideep Sahni wrote the lyrics. Raftaar and Girish Nakod co-wrote the title song as guest composers. The film was shot in Pune in 44 days spread over more than a year; principal photography began in June 2017 and ended on 17 July 2018. (Full article...)
News
- 21 October 2024 – Insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir
- Seven people are killed and five others are injured in a mass shooting at a camp for construction workers near Sonamarg, Jammu and Kashmir, India. (Al Jazeera)
- 21 October 2024 – China–India relations
- India and China reach a breakthrough in discussions on disengagement and border patrol along the disputed Line of Actual Control. (Zee News) (DW)
- 17 October 2024 –
- A court in Bangladesh orders the arrest of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina and 45 others for crimes against humanity. Hasina is in exile in India. (AP)
- 16 October 2024 – 2024 Indian bomb hoaxes
- It is reported that at least 10 flights operated by Indian airlines have received bomb threat hoaxes over the past 48 hours, causing the flights to be delayed or diverted. (BBC News)
- 13 October 2024 – Starship flight test 5
- SpaceX completes its fifth test flight of the Starship spacecraft, successfully catching the rocket booster with the arms of the launch tower at Starbase in Texas, United States, and with the spacecraft landing in the Indian Ocean. (Space.com) (CNBC)
Did you know...
- ... that an Egyptian rabbi's authority was invoked in a deed freeing a woman from slavery in 1132 in Mangalore, India?
- ... that Nutan, the lead actress of the 1951 A-rated suspense thriller Nagina, was not allowed to enter the film's premiere because she was underage?
- ... that Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, India's second Muslim president, was also the second Indian president to die in office?
- ... that Indian women's hockey player Elvera Britto and her sisters would stitch their own team uniforms while playing in the 1960s?
- ... that George Vernon's loss against the Parsis cricket team was seen as "a blow to the prestige of the Empire"?
- ... that Indian field hockey player Sukhbir Singh Gill continued to play professionally after being diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2006?
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