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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The red panda (Ailurus fulgens), also known as the lesser panda, is a small mammal native to the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China. It has dense reddish-brown fur with a black belly and legs, white-lined ears, a mostly white muzzle and a ringed tail. Its head-to-body length is 51–63.5 cm (20.1–25.0 in) with a 28–48.5 cm (11.0–19.1 in) tail, and it weighs between 3.2 and 15 kg (7.1 and 33.1 lb). It is well adapted to climbing due to its flexible joints and curved semi-retractile claws.
The red panda was formally described in 1825. The two currently recognised subspecies, the Himalayan and the Chinese red panda, genetically diverged about 250,000 years ago. The red panda's place on the evolutionary tree has been debated, but modern genetic evidence places it in close affinity with raccoons, weasels, and skunks. It is not closely related to the giant panda, which is a bear, though both possess elongated wrist bones or "false thumbs" used for grasping bamboo. The evolutionary lineage of the red panda (Ailuridae) stretches back around 25 to 18 million years ago, as indicated by extinct fossil relatives found in Eurasia and North America. (Full article...) -
Image 2The political history of medieval Karnataka spans the 4th to the 16th centuries in Karnataka region of India. The medieval era spans several periods of time from the earliest native kingdoms and imperialism; the successful domination of the Gangetic plains in northern India and rivalry with the empires of Tamilakam over the Vengi region; and the domination of the southern Deccan and consolidation against Muslim invasion. The origins of the rise of the Karnataka region as an independent power date back to the fourth-century birth of the Kadamba Dynasty of Banavasi which was the earliest of the native rulers to conduct administration in the native language of Kannada in addition to the official Sanskrit.
In the southern regions of Karnataka, the Western Gangas of Talakad were contemporaries of the Kadambas. The Kadambas and Gangas were followed by the imperial dynasties of the Badami Chalukya Empire, the Rashtrakuta Empire, the Western Chalukya Empire, the Hoysala Empire and the Vijayanagara Empire, all patronising the ancient Indic religions while showing tolerance to the new cultures arriving from the west of the subcontinent. The Muslim invasion of the Deccan resulted in the breaking away of the feudatory Sultanates in the 14th century. The rule of the Bahamani Sultanate of Bidar and the Bijapur Sultanate from the northern Deccan region caused a mingling of the ancient Hindu traditions with the nascent Islamic culture in the region. The hereditary ruling families and clans ably served the large empires and upheld the local culture and traditions. The fall of the Vijayanagara Empire in 1565 brought about a slow disintegration of Kannada-speaking regions into minor kingdoms that struggled to maintain autonomy in an age dominated by foreigners until unification and independence in 1947. (Full article...) -
Image 3The Legend of Bhagat Singh is a 2002 Indian Hindi-language biographical period film directed by Rajkumar Santoshi. The film is about Bhagat Singh, a revolutionary who fought for Indian independence along with fellow members of the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association. It features Ajay Devgan as the titular character along with Sushant Singh, D. Santosh and Akhilendra Mishra as the other lead characters. Raj Babbar, Farida Jalal and Amrita Rao play supporting roles. The film chronicles Singh's life from his childhood where he witnesses the Jallianwala Bagh massacre until the day he was hanged to death before the official trial dated 24 March 1931.
The film was produced by Kumar and Ramesh Taurani's Tips Industries on a budget of ₹200–250 million (about US$4.2–5.2 million in 2002). The story and dialogue were written by Santoshi and Piyush Mishra respectively, while Anjum Rajabali drafted the screenplay. K. V. Anand, V. N. Mayekar and Nitin Chandrakant Desai were in charge of the cinematography, editing and production design respectively. Principal photography took place in Agra, Manali, Mumbai and Pune from January to May 2002. The soundtrack and film score were composed by A. R. Rahman, with the songs "Mera Rang De Basanti" and "Sarfaroshi Ki Tamanna" being well received in particular. (Full article...) -
Image 4Enthiran (transl. Robot) is a 2010 Indian Tamil-language science fiction action film co-written and directed by S. Shankar. It is the first instalment in the Enthiran film series. The film stars Rajinikanth, who plays a dual role as a scientist and the robot alongside Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in the lead roles with Danny Denzongpa, Santhanam and Karunas in supporting roles. The soundtrack album and background score were composed by A. R. Rahman while the dialogues, cinematography, editing and art direction were handled by Madhan Karky, R. Rathnavelu, Anthony and Sabu Cyril respectively. The story revolves around the struggle of a scientist named Vaseegaran to control his sophisticated android robot named Chitti, after Chitti's software is upgraded to give it the ability to comprehend and exhibit human emotions. The project backfires when Chitti falls in love with Vaseegaran's girlfriend Sana, and is manipulated by Vaseegaran's mentor Bohra into becoming homicidal.
After being stalled in the development phase for nearly a decade, the film's principal photography began in 2008 and lasted two years. The film marked the debut of Legacy Effects studio (which was responsible for the film's prosthetic make-up and animatronics) in Indian cinema. Enthiran was released worldwide on 1 October 2010. Produced by Kalanithi Maran, it was India's most expensive film up to that point. (Full article...) -
Image 5Loev (pronounced love) is a 2015 Indian romantic drama film written and directed by Sudhanshu Saria. It stars Dhruv Ganesh and Shiv Panditt as two friends who set off to the Western Ghats for a weekend trip and focuses on their complex emotional and sexual relationship. It was Ganesh's final film, as he died from tuberculosis before its release. Loev also features Siddharth Menon and Rishabh Chaddha in supporting roles. The film's title is a deliberate misspelling of the word "love".
Saria wrote Loev's script while he was working on the draft of the unreleased film I Am Here and drew heavily from his personal experiences. It was eventually picked up for production by Arfi Lamba and Katherine Suckale despite Saria's own doubts on its viability. Principal photography took place at Mahabaleshwar, in the Western Ghats in peninsular India, and at Mumbai. The film was shot in the summer of 2014 over the course of sixteen days by the cinematographer Sherri Kauk in 2K resolution. It relied on crowdfunding and cost-cutting measures; its budget was relatively low at US$1 million. (Full article...) -
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The lion (Panthera leo) is a large cat of the genus Panthera, native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the tip of its tail. It is sexually dimorphic; adult male lions are larger than females and have a prominent mane. It is a social species, forming groups called prides. A lion's pride consists of a few adult males, related females, and cubs. Groups of female lions usually hunt together, preying mostly on medium-sized and large ungulates. The lion is an apex and keystone predator; although some lions scavenge when opportunities occur and have been known to hunt humans, lions typically do not actively seek out and prey on humans.
The lion inhabits grasslands, savannahs, and shrublands. It is usually more diurnal than other wild cats, but when persecuted, it adapts to being active at night and at twilight. During the Neolithic period, the lion ranged throughout Africa and Eurasia, from Southeast Europe to India, but it has been reduced to fragmented populations in sub-Saharan Africa and one population in western India. It has been listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 1996 because populations in African countries have declined by about 43% since the early 1990s. Lion populations are untenable outside designated protected areas. Although the cause of the decline is not fully understood, habitat loss and conflicts with humans are the greatest causes for concern. (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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Rashtrakuta (IAST: rāṣṭrakūṭa) (r. 753 – 982 CE) was a royal Indian dynasty ruling large parts of the Indian subcontinent between the 6th and 10th centuries. The earliest known Rashtrakuta inscription is a 7th-century copper plate grant detailing their rule from Manapur, a city in Central or West India. Other ruling Rashtrakuta clans from the same period mentioned in inscriptions were the kings of Achalapur and the rulers of Kannauj. Several controversies exist regarding the origin of these early Rashtrakutas, their native homeland and their language.
The Elichpur clan was a feudatory of the Badami Chalukyas, and during the rule of Dantidurga, it overthrew Chalukya Kirtivarman II and went on to build an empire with the Gulbarga region in modern Karnataka as its base. This clan came to be known as the Rashtrakutas of Manyakheta, rising to power in South India in 753 AD. At the same time the Pala dynasty of Bengal and the Prathihara dynasty of Gurjaratra were gaining force in eastern and northwestern India respectively. An Arabic text, Silsilat al-Tawarikh (851), called the Rashtrakutas one of the four principal empires of the world. (Full article...) -
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Preity G Zinta (pronounced [ˈpriːt̪i ˈzɪɳʈa]; born 31 January 1975) is an Indian actress, film producer and entrepreneur primarily known for her work in Hindi films. After graduating with degrees in English honours and criminal psychology, Zinta made her acting debut in Dil Se.. in 1998, followed by a role in Soldier in the same year. These performances earned her the Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut, and she was later recognised for her role as a teenage single mother in Kya Kehna (2000). She subsequently established a career as a leading actress of Hindi cinema with a variety of character types. Her roles, often deemed culturally defiant, along with her unconventional screen persona won her recognition and several accolades.
Following critically appreciated roles in Chori Chori Chupke Chupke (2001), Dil Chahta Hai (2001), Dil Hai Tumhaara (2002), and Armaan (2003), Zinta received the Filmfare Award for Best Actress for her performance in Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003). She starred in two consecutive annual top-grossing films in India, Koi... Mil Gaya (2003) and Veer-Zaara (2004), and was noted for her portrayal of independent, modern Indian women in Salaam Namaste (2005) and Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2006), top-grossing productions in domestic and overseas markets. For her first international role in the Canadian drama Heaven on Earth (2008) she was awarded the Silver Hugo Award for Best Actress and nominated for the Genie Award for Best Actress. She followed this with a hiatus from acting work for several years, with the exception of her self-produced comeback film, Ishkq in Paris (2013), which failed to leave a mark. (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 11Osbert 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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Alia Bhatt (/ˈɑːliə ˈbʌt/; born 15 March 1993) is a British actress of Indian descent who predominantly works in Hindi films. Known for her portrayals of women in challenging circumstances, she has received several accolades, including a National Film Award and six Filmfare Awards. She is one of India's highest-paid actresses. Time awarded her with the Time100 Impact Award in 2022 and named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2024.
Born into the Bhatt family, she is a daughter of filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt and actress Soni Razdan. After making her acting debut as a child in the 1999 thriller film Sangharsh, she played her first leading role in Karan Johar's teen film Student of the Year (2012). She won the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actress for playing a kidnapping victim in the road drama Highway (2014) and went on to establish herself with starring roles in several romantic films produced by Johar's studio Dharma Productions. (Full article...) -
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Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan (17 January 1933 – 12 May 2003) was a French-born statesman and activist who served as United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees from 1966 to 1977, during which he reoriented the agency's focus beyond Europe and prepared it for an explosion of complex refugee issues. He was also a proponent of greater collaboration between non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and UN agencies. The Prince's interest in ecological issues led him to establish the Bellerive Foundation in the late 1970s, and he was a knowledgeable and respected collector of Islamic art.
Born in Paris, France, he was the son of Sir Sultan Mahomed Shah Aga Khan and Princess Andrée Aga Khan. He married twice, but had no children of his own. Prince Sadruddin died of cancer at the age of 70, and was buried in Switzerland. (Full article...) -
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Darjeeling (/dɑːrˈdʒiːlɪŋ/, Bengali: [ˈdarˌdʒiliŋ], Nepali: [ˈdard͡ziliŋ]) is a city in the northernmost region of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located in the Eastern Himalayas, it has an average elevation of 2,045 metres (6,709 ft). To the west of Darjeeling lies the easternmost province of Nepal, to the east the Kingdom of Bhutan, to the north the Indian state of Sikkim, and farther north the Tibet Autonomous Region region of China. Bangladesh lies to the south and southeast, and most of the state of West Bengal lies to the south and southwest, connected to the Darjeeling region by a narrow tract. Kangchenjunga, the world's third-highest mountain, rises to the north and is prominently visible on clear days.
In the early 19th century, during East India Company rule in India, Darjeeling was identified as a potential summer retreat for British officials, soldiers and their families. The narrow mountain ridge was leased from the Kingdom of Sikkim, and eventually annexed to British India. Experimentation with growing tea on the slopes below Darjeeling was highly successful. Thousands of labourers were recruited chiefly from Nepal to clear the forests, build European-style cottages and work in the tea plantations. The widespread deforestation displaced the indigenous peoples. Residential schools were established in and around Darjeeling for the education of children of the domiciled British in India. By the late-19th century, a novel narrow-gauge mountain railway, the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, was bringing summer residents into the town and carrying a freight of tea out for export to the world. After India's independence in 1947, as the British left Darjeeling, its cottages were purchased by wealthy Indians from the plains and its tea plantations by out-of-town Indian business owners and conglomerates. (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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Kareena Kapoor Khan (pronounced [kəˈriːna kəˈpuːr xɑːn]; née Kapoor; born 21 September 1980) is an Indian actress. A prolific leading lady of Hindi cinema since 2000, she is noted for her roles in a range of film genres—from romantic comedies to crime dramas. Kapoor is the recipient of several awards, including six Filmfare Awards, and as of 2024, is one of Hindi cinema's highest-paid actresses.
Born into the Kapoor family, she is the daughter of actors Babita and Randhir Kapoor, and the younger sister of actress Karisma Kapoor. After making her acting debut in 2000 in Refugee, Kapoor established herself the following year with several roles, including in the top-grossing drama Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham.... This was followed by a series of commercial failures and negative reviews for her repetitive roles. An against-type performance as a sex worker in the 2004 drama Chameli marked a turning point in her career. She earned critical recognition for her portrayal of a riot victim in the 2004 drama Dev and a character based on Desdemona in the 2006 crime film Omkara. Her performance as a loquacious woman in the romantic comedy Jab We Met (2007) earned her the Filmfare Award for Best Actress. (Full article...) -
Image 17The 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 18Lage Raho Munna Bhai (pronounced [ləˈɡeː rəˈɦoː mʊnːaːˈbʱaːi] ⓘ; translation: Keep Going, Munna Bro) is a 2006 Indian Hindi-language satirical comedy drama film written, edited and directed by Rajkumar Hirani, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Abhijat Joshi, and produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra under the banner Vinod Chopra Films. A sequel to Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. (2003), the film is the second installment of the Munna Bhai series. Sanjay Dutt and Arshad Warsi reprised their roles as Munna Bhai and Circuit, respectively. New additions to the cast include Vidya Balan, Dilip Prabhavalkar and Dia Mirza, while several actors from the original, notably Jimmy Sheirgill and Boman Irani, appear in new roles.
In this film, the eponymous lead character, a don in the Mumbai underworld, begins to see visions of Mahatma Gandhi (Prabhavalkar). Through his interactions with Gandhi, he begins to practice what he refers to as "Gandhigiri" (a neologism for "Gandhism") to help ordinary people solve their problems. (Full article...) -
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The Bengali language movement was a political movement in former East Bengal in 1952, advocating the recognition of the Bengali language as a co-lingua franca of the then-Dominion of Pakistan to allow its use in government affairs, the continuation of its use as a medium of education, its use in media, currency and stamps, and to maintain its writing in the Bengali script.
When the Dominion of Pakistan was formed after the separation of the Indian subcontinent in 1947 when the British left, it was composed of various ethnic and linguistic groups, with the geographically non-contiguous East Bengal province having a mainly ethnic Bengali population. In 1948, the Government of the Dominion of Pakistan ordained as part of Islamization of East Pakistan or East Bengal that Urdu will be the sole federal language, alternately Bengali writing in the Perso-Arabic script or Roman script (Romanisation of Bengali) or Arabic as the state language of the whole of Pakistan was also proposed, sparking extensive protests among the Bengali-speaking majority of East Bengal. Facing rising sectarian tensions and mass discontent with the new law, the government outlawed public meetings and rallies. The students of the University of Dhaka and other political activists defied the law and organised a protest on 21 February 1952. The movement reached its climax when police killed student demonstrators on that day. The deaths provoked widespread civil unrest. After years of conflict, the central government relented and granted official status to the Bengali language in 1956. (Full article...) -
Image 20Anbe 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...) -
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Priyanka Chopra Jonas (pronounced [pɾɪˈjəŋka ˈtʃoːpɽa]; née Chopra; born 18 July 1982) is an Indian actress and producer. The winner of the Miss World 2000 pageant, Chopra is one of India's highest-paid actresses and has received numerous accolades, including two National Film Awards and five Filmfare Awards. In 2016, the Government of India honoured her with the Padma Shri, and Time named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world. In the next two years, Forbes listed her among the World's 100 Most Powerful Women, and in 2022, she was named in the BBC 100 Women list.
Chopra accepted offers to join the Indian film industry following her pageant wins. Her acting debut came in the Tamil film Thamizhan (2002), followed by her first Bollywood feature in The Hero: Love Story of a Spy (2003). She played the leading lady in the box-office hits Andaaz (2003) and Mujhse Shaadi Karogi (2004) and had her breakout role in the 2004 romantic thriller Aitraaz. Chopra established herself with starring roles in the top-grossing productions Krrish and Don (both 2006), and later reprised her role in their sequels. For playing a troubled model in the drama Fashion (2008), Chopra won a National Film Award and a Filmfare Award for Best Actress. Chopra gained further praise for portraying a range of characters in the films Kaminey (2009), 7 Khoon Maaf (2011), Barfi! (2012), Mary Kom (2014), Dil Dhadakne Do (2015) and Bajirao Mastani (2015). (Full article...) -
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Vithoba (IAST: Viṭhobā), also known as Vitthala (IAST: Viṭṭhala), and Panduranga (IAST: Pāṇḍuraṅga), is a Hindu deity predominantly worshipped in the Indian state of Maharashtra and Karnataka. He is a form of the Hindu deity Vishnu in his avatar: Krishna. Vithoba is often depicted as a dark young boy, standing arms akimbo on a brick, sometimes accompanied by his consort Rakhumai.
Vithoba is the focus of an essentially monotheistic, non-ritualistic bhakti-driven Varkari faith in Maharashtra and the Haridasa sect established in Dvaita Vedanta in Karnataka. Vithoba Temple, Pandharpur is his main temple. Vithoba legends revolve around his devotee Pundalik who is credited for bringing the deity to Pandharpur, and around Vithoba's role as a saviour to the poet-saints of the Varkari faith. The Varkari poet-saints are known for their unique genre of devotional lyric, the abhang, dedicated to Vithoba and composed in Marathi. Other devotional literature dedicated to Vithoba includes the Kannada hymns of the Haridasa and the Marathi versions of the generic aarti songs associated with rituals of offering light to the deity. The most important festivals of Vithoba are held on Shayani Ekadashi in the month of Ashadha, and Prabodhini Ekadashi in the month of Kartika. (Full article...) -
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Nyctibatrachus major, the Malabar night frog, large wrinkled frog, or Boulenger's narrow-eyed frog is a species of frog in the family Nyctibatrachidae, commonly known as the robust frogs. It was described in 1882 by the zoologist George Albert Boulenger, and is the type species of the genus Nyctibatrachus. It is a large frog for its genus, with an adult snout–vent length of 31.5–52.0 mm (1.24–2.05 in) for males and 43.7–54.2 mm (1.72–2.13 in) for females. It is mainly brownish to greyish in colour, with a dark greyish-brown upperside, a greyish-white underside, and light grey sides. It also has a variety of grey or brown markings. When preserved in ethanol, it is mostly greyish-brown to grey, with whitish sides. Sexes can be told apart by the presence of the femoral glands (bulbous glands near the inner thigh) in males.
The species is endemic to the Western Ghats mountain range of India, where it is found in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka. Adults inhabit fast-moving forest streams at elevations of up to 900 m (3,000 ft) and have highly specific habitat requirements. Adults are mostly found in or near water and are nocturnal; subadults can be found during both the night and day. Its diet mainly consists of other frogs and insect larvae. Over a period of several days or weeks, females lay multiple small clutches of eggs on leaves and rocks overhanging water; tadpoles drop into the water below on hatching. The species is currently classified as being vulnerable on the IUCN Red List owing to its small and fragmented range and ongoing habitat degradation. Threats to the species include habitat loss, increased human presence near the streams it inhabits, and possibly nitrate pollution caused by fertiliser overuse. (Full article...) -
Image 24Parinda (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...) -
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Reginald Heber (21 April 1783 – 3 April 1826) was an English Anglican bishop, a man of letters, and hymn-writer. After 16 years as a country parson, he served as Bishop of Calcutta until his death at the age of 42. The son of a rich landowner and cleric, Heber gained fame at the University of Oxford as a poet. After graduation he made an extended tour of Scandinavia, Russia and Central Europe. Ordained in 1807, he took over his father's old parish, Hodnet, Shropshire. He also wrote hymns and general literature, including a study of the works of the 17th-century cleric Jeremy Taylor.
He was consecrated Bishop of Calcutta in October 1823. He travelled widely and worked to improve the spiritual and general living conditions of his flock. Arduous duties, a hostile climate and poor health led to his collapse and death after less than three years in India. Memorials were erected there and in St Paul's Cathedral, London. A collection of his hymns appeared soon after his death. "Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty" remains popular for Trinity Sunday, while "Brightest and Best" is frequently sung during Epiphany. (Full article...)
Selected pictures
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Image 1Image credit: Vaikunda RajaThe Lotus-Namam is the symbol of Ayyavazhi, a Dharmic belief system that originated in South India in the 19th century. The lotus represents the 1,008-petalled Sahasrara and the flame-shaped white Namam represents the Aanma Jyothi or ātman, sometimes translated as 'soul' or 'self'. The number of practitioners is estimated to be between 700,000 and 8,000,000, although the exact number is unknown, since Ayyavazhis are reported as Hindus during censuses.
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Image 2Photograph: JkadavoorCupha erymanthis is a species of brush-footed butterfly found in forested areas of tropical South and Southeast Asia which may feed on liquids from carrion. This specimen was photographed in Kadavoor, Kerala, India.
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Image 3Photograph 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 4Photograph: Arthur Chapman; edit: Papa Lima Whiskey and Ryan KaldariBrahmaea wallichii, also known as the owl moth, is a moth from the family Brahmaeidae. With a wingspan of about 90–160 mm (3.5–6.3 in), it is one of the largest species of Brahmin moth. This nocturnal species is found in India, Bhutan, Myanmar, China, Taiwan and Japan.
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Image 5Photograph: Muhammad Mahdi KarimAlstroemeria × hybrida, an Alstroemeria hybrid, at the Lal Bagh Botanical Gardens in Bangalore, India. The genus consists of some 120 species and is native to South America.
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Image 6A potter at work in Jaura, Madhya Pradesh, India. Pottery, defined by ASTM International as "all fired ceramic wares that contain clay when formed, except technical, structural, and refractory products", originated during the Neolithic period.
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Image 7Photograph: Augustus BinuOdissi is an ancient classical dance that originated in the Hindu temples of Odisha, India. Historically, it has been performed predominantly by women, and expressed religious stories and spiritual ideas, particularly of Vaishnavism (Vishnu as Jagannath), but also of other traditions such as those related to Hindu gods Shiva and Surya, as well as Hindu goddesses (Shaktism). Modern Odissi productions by Indian artists have presented a diverse range of experimental ideas, culture fusion, themes and plays.
Odissi is learnt and performed as a composite of a basic dance motif called the Bhangas (symmetric body bends, stance). It involves the lower, mid, and upper body as three sources of perfecting expression and audience engagement with geometric symmetry and rhythmic musical resonance. -
Image 8Painting: Raja Ravi Varma
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Image 9Photograph credit: Jeevan JosePapilio polymnestor, the blue Mormon, is a species of swallowtail butterfly found in southern India and Sri Lanka. It is a woodland species, often seen on forest paths and near streams. The larvae feed on trees in the family Rutaceae, such as citrus. Young larvae are green with white markings and position themselves on the upper surface of leaves, relying on their cryptic colouring, which resembles bird droppings, for protection. Older larvae seek less conspicuous locations, and have a unique habit of securing their balance by weaving silk on the substratum. This adult male P. polymnestor butterfly was photographed in the Indian state of Kerala.
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Image 10Photograph: JJ HarrisonThe Siberian rubythroat (Luscinia calliope) is a small passerine bird generally considered to be an Old World flycatcher of the family Muscicapidae. This migratory insectivorous species breeds in mixed coniferous forest with undergrowth in Siberia, where it nests near the ground. It winters in Thailand, India and Indonesia. It is an extremely rare vagrant to Western Europe and the Aleutian Islands.
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Image 11Photograph credit: Charles J. SharpThe southern plains gray langur (Semnopithecus dussumieri) is a species of Old World monkey native to the Indian subcontinent. It is about 62 cm (24 in) tall and lives in groups in various forest habitats, feeding mainly on leaves, fruit and flowers in the canopy, supplementing these with insects, gum, grasses, herbs and roots. The monkeys are considered sacred in India, and some are used by Hindu priests for religious purposes. They have adapted to living in close proximity to humans in urban settings; they are often fed by humans and accept cakes, millet, and other foods. The species is protected by law in India, but some are still persecuted for damaging crops, hunted for food and captured for pets.
This photograph of a female southern plains gray langur was taken in Kanha Tiger Reserve, in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. The park was created on 1 June 1955 and was designated a tiger reserve in 1973. -
Image 12Photograph: Muhammad Mahdi KarimA panoramic view of Bangalore from Corporation Circle, with UB City to the left and Richmond area to the right. Kanteerava Indoor Stadium is in the foreground. The third largest city in India, the city is known as the Silicon Valley of India for its numerous IT exports.
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Image 13Photograph credit: Charles J. SharpThe nilgai or blue bull (Boselaphus tragocamelus) is the largest Asian antelope and is endemic to the Indian subcontinent. The sole member of the genus Boselaphus, the species was described and given its binomial name by German zoologist Peter Simon Pallas in 1766. The nilgai stands 1–1.5 metres (3.3–4.9 ft) at the shoulder; males weigh 109–288 kilograms (240–635 lb), and the lighter females 100–213 kilograms (220–470 lb). A sturdy thin-legged antelope, the nilgai is characterised by a sloping back, a deep neck with a white patch on the throat, a short crest of hair along the neck terminating in a tuft, and white facial spots. A column of pendant coarse hair hangs from the dewlap ridge below the white patch. Sexual dimorphism is prominent – while females and juveniles are orange to tawny, adult males have a bluish-grey coat. Only males possess horns, which are 15–24 centimetres (5.9–9.4 in) in length.
This picture shows a male nilgai in a potato field at Jamtra, in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. -
Image 14Photograph: Muhammad Mahdi KarimAn Indian palm squirrel (Funambulus palmarum) photographed in Bangalore, India. In India these squirrels are associated with the Hindu deity Rama, an avatar of Vishnu, and as such are not to be harmed. However, in Western Australia they are considered pests and at times targeted for eradication.
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Image 15Photo: Augustus BinuRekha Raju performing Mohiniyattam, a classical dance form from Kerala, India. Believed to have originated in the 16th century CE, this dance form was popularized in the nineteenth century by Swathi Thirunal, the Maharaja of the state of Travancore, and Vadivelu, one of the Thanjavur Quartet. The dance, which has about 40 different movements, involves the swaying of broad hips and the gentle side-to-side movements.
Featured list – show another
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Amateur radio or ham radio is a hobby that is practised by over 16,000 licensed users in India.
Licences are granted by the Wireless and Planning and Coordination Wing (WPC), a branch of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology. In addition, the WPC allocates frequency spectrum in India. The Indian Wireless Telegraphs (Amateur Service) Rules, 1978 lists five licence categories:
To obtain a licence, candidates must pass the Amateur Station Operator's Certificate examination conducted by the WPC. The examination consists of two 50-mark written sections: Radio theory and practice, Regulations; and a practical test consisting of a demonstration of Morse code proficiency in sending and receiving. After passing the examination, the candidate must clear a police interview. After clearance, the WPC grants the licence along with the user-chosen call sign. This procedure can take up to one year. This licence is valid for up to five years. (Full article...) -
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India has submitted films for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (formerly Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film) since 1957, a year after the incorporation of the category. The award is given annually by the United States Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to a feature-length motion picture produced outside the United States that contains primarily non-English dialogue. The "Best Foreign Language Film" category was not created until 1956; however, between 1947 and 1955, the academy presented a non-competitive Honorary Award for the best foreign language films released in the United States.
The Film Federation of India (FFI) appoints a committee to choose one film among those released that year to be submitted as India's official entry to the academy for a nomination for "Best Foreign Language Film" the following year. The chosen films, along with their English subtitles, are sent to the academy, where they are screened for the jury. The 1957 Hindi film Mother India was India's first submission. The film made it to the final shortlist and was nominated alongside four other films in the category. It came close to winning the Academy Award but lost to Nights of Cabiria by a single vote. Since 1984, India has not submitted a film on only one occasion; in 2003, the FFI controversially chose not make an entry as they felt no film would be in a position to compete with films from other nations. As of 2021[update], only three Indian films—Mother India (1957), Salaam Bombay! (1988) and Lagaan (2001)—have been nominated for the award. In 2011, the jury of the 58th National Film Awards made a recommendation that the Best Film winners at the annual National Film Awards be chosen as the official entry. (Full article...) -
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Punjab Kings, formerly called Kings XI Punjab (KXIP), is a franchise cricket team based in Mohali, Punjab in India, and is one of the teams participating in the Indian Premier League (IPL). KXIP was founded in 2008. The franchise is owned by actress Preity Zinta, Ness Wadia of Bombay Dyeing, Karan Paul of the Apeejay Surendera Group and Mohit Burman of Dabur. The group paid US$76 million to acquire the franchise. It is owned by a consortium, along with the Rajasthan Royals. Along with the Rajasthan Royals, KXIP's franchise agreement was terminated by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in October 2010, because the teams had been signed by people who were not members of the consortium which owned the team. A petition of arbitration (appeal) was filed to the Bombay High Court in November 2010, challenging the decision, which was accepted a month later.
KXIP played their first Twenty20 match in 2008 during the first season of the IPL, where they reached the semi-final. They lost the 2008 semi-final to Chennai Super Kings on 31 May 2008, after playing fourteen matches in the league, winning ten matches and losing four. With ten international cricketers in 2009, they finished fifth in the second season of the IPL, winning and losing seven matches. KXIP finished in eighth place in the third IPL season, losing eleven of their fourteen matches. KXIP improved in the fourth season of the IPL, finishing in fifth place with seven losses and victories. In the IPL's fifth season in 2012, the team played sixteen matches, winning eight and losing nine to finish in sixth position. In the 2013 season, they won eight matches out of sixteen, and lost the other eight. In the 2014 season, they won 11 of 14 matches. In the 2015 season, KXIP won three of fourteen matches and finished in last position. In the IPL's ninth season, KXIP won four of fourteen matches and finished in last position. In the 2017 season, KXIP won seven of fourteen matches to finish in fifth position. (Full article...) -
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In cricket, a five-wicket haul (also known as a "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 2019[update] only 48 bowlers have taken 15 or more five-wicket hauls at the international level. A right-arm off break bowler, Harbhajan Singh has taken 417 wickets in Test, 269 wickets in One Day International (ODI) and 25 wickets in Twenty20 International (T20I) matches for India. He has the second-highest number of five-wicket hauls (28) in international cricket—next to Anil Kumble—among Indian cricketers and the eleventh among overall.
Harbhajan made his Test debut against Australia in 1998. His first five-wicket haul came against the same team during the second Test of the 2000–01 series at Eden Gardens. His six wickets for 73 runs in the second innings of the match raised his tally to thirteen wickets in the match; his performance was instrumental in India winning the match after being forced to follow-on. In the third Test of the series, he claimed fifteen wickets for 217 runs, including career-best figures of eight wickets for 84 runs. The majority of his five-wicket hauls in Test cricket—seven out of his twenty-five—have come against Australia. (Full article...) -
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The Mizoram Legislative Assembly is the unicameral legislature of Mizoram state in Northeast India. The seat of the legislative assembly is at Aizawl, the capital of the state. The assembly comprises 40 members directly elected from single-seat constituencies. It sits for a term of five years, unless it is dissolved earlier. Early dissolution of state assemblies happens when the governing party (or alliance) loses confidence of the assembly. This leads to either the President's Rule being imposed on the state, or early elections being called. Mizoram is the fourth-smallest state in India, covering 21,081 km2 (8,139 sq mi); and the second-least populous state with a population of 1.10 million. The Mizoram Legislative Assembly has existed since 1972, when it had 30 constituencies.
Since the independence of India, the Scheduled Tribes (ST) along with the Scheduled Castes (SC) have been given Reservation status, guaranteeing political representation, and the Constitution lays down the general principles of positive discrimination for STs and SCs. The 2011 census of India stated that the indigenous population constitutes 95% of the state's total population. The Scheduled Tribes have been granted a reservation of 39 seats in the Mizoram assembly, leaving only one (Aizawl East-I) unreserved. (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...) -
Image 7Test cricket is the longest form of cricket. The women's variant of the game includes four innings to be completed over four days of play with eleven players in each side. The first women's Test was played between England and Australia in 1934. However, India did not play Test cricket until 1973 when the Women's Cricket Association of India was formed. The Indian women's team played their first Test match in 1976, against the West Indies. The Women's Cricket Association of India was merged with the Board of Control for Cricket in India in 2006 as part of the International Cricket Council's initiative to develop women's cricket.
India have played 41 Tests, starting with their first Test in 1976. They first won a Test in Patna (1976), in front of over 25,000 spectators, against the West Indies but did not win again until 2002, when they won against South Africa. The team has remained unbeaten since 2006, over the course of three Test matches. (Full article...) -
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The president of the Bharatiya Janata Party is the chief executive authority of the BJP, and fills a number of roles, including chairing meetings of the National Executive of the party and appointing the presidents of party subsidiaries, such its youth wing and farmer's wing. Any candidate for the presidency needs to have been a member of the party for at least 15 years. The president is nominally elected by an electoral college composed of members drawn from the party's National and State councils, but in practice is a consensus choice of senior members of the party. The term of the president is three years long, and individuals may not serve more than two consecutive terms. The president usually does not also hold a post within a government, and party chiefs have resigned the position to assume posts in Cabinet.
After the party's foundation in 1980, Atal Bihari Vajpayee became its first president. He later became the prime minister of India, the only BJP president to serve in that position to date. In 1986, Lal Krishna Advani was sworn in as the party president and has been the longest serving president over three different periods. As of 2022, 11 people have served as the president of the BJP, including Rajnath Singh and Amit Shah who have also served two terms. J. P. Nadda is the most recent president, having been appointed in January 2020. (Full article...) -
Image 9The Pampa Award (or Pampa Prashasti) is a literary award in the Indian state of Karnataka. The award was established in 1987 by the government of Karnataka. It is the highest literary honor conferred by the Department of Kannada and Culture, Government of Karnataka State, and recognises works written in the Kannada language (1 of the 22 official languages of India).
The award is named after the first Kannada poet Adikavi Pampa. The award originally comprised a cash prize of ₹1 lakh (US$1,200), a shawl, a citation and a memento. The cash prize was increased to ₹3 lakh (US$3,600) in 2008. Prior to 1996, the awards were given for a best single work by a Kannada writer. Since then, the award has been given to writers for their lifetime contribution to the Kannada literature. The Pampa Prashasti is presented by the Chief Minister, during the Kadambotsava, a cultural festival held annually in Pampa's hometown of Banavasi in Uttara Kannada district. (Full article...) -
Image 10India is a union consisting of 28 states and 8 union territories. As of 2022, with an estimated population of 1.4 billion, India is the world's most populous country. India occupies 2.4% of the world's area and is home to 17.5% of the world's population. The Indo-Gangetic Plain has one of the world's biggest stretches of fertile not-deep alluvium and are among the most densely populated areas of the world. The eastern and western coastal regions of Deccan Plateau are also densely populated regions of India. The Thar Desert in western Rajasthan is one of the most densely populated deserts in the world. The northern and north-eastern states along the Himalayas contain cold arid deserts with fertile valleys. These states have relatively low population density due to indomitable physical barriers. (Full article...)
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In cricket, a batter reaches a century when he scores 100 runs or more in a single innings. A century is regarded as a landmark score for a batter, and his number of centuries is generally recorded in his career statistics. The Indian Premier League (IPL) is a professional league for Twenty20 cricket in India, which has been held annually since its first edition in 2008. Till date, 101 centuries have been scored by 53 different batsmen, out of which 27 are Indian players and 26 are overseas players. Players from 12 of the 15 franchises have scored centuries, with the three franchises that have not had a player score a century for them being Pune Warriors India, Kochi Tuskers Kerala and Gujarat Lions. (Full article...) -
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Dharma Productions is an Indian production company established by Yash Johar in 1976. A large number of its were co-produced with companies such as Red Chillies Entertainment and Star Studios. In addition, Dharma Productions has presented five other Indian language films from other companies. The most frequent collaborations of the company have been with the actors Alia Bhatt, Shah Rukh Khan, Sidharth Malhotra, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, Ranbir Kapoor, Kajol, Varun Dhawan and Sanjay Dutt.
Dharma Productions' first release came in 1980 with the Raj Khosla–directed Dostana, starring Amitabh Bachchan, Shatrughan Sinha and Zeenat Aman, which was a commercial success. However, their subsequent releases, Duniya (1984) and Muqaddar Ka Faisla (1987) performed poorly at the box office. Their first release of the 1990s, the Bachchan-starring thriller Agneepath (1990) garnered critical acclaim but was a commercial failure. The company's next releases were the thriller Gumrah (1993) and the comedy Duplicate (1998), both directed by Mahesh Bhatt. In 1998, Yash Johar's son, Karan Johar made his directorial debut with the romantic drama Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, starring Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, Rani Mukerji and Salman Khan. The film was the highest-grossing Bollywood film of 1998, and established Dharma Productions as a leading production company in India. Their subsequent releases, the ensemble family drama Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham... (2001), and the romantic dramas Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003) and Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2006), all starring Khan, were top-grossing Hindi films in domestic and overseas markets. (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 fewer than 40 bowlers have taken more than 15 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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Irrfan Khan (7 January 1967– 29 April 2020) was an Indian actor who worked in Indian and British-American films. His on-screen debut was a minor role in Mira Nair's Salaam Bombay! in 1988. He followed this with appearances in a variety of television shows in the late 1980s to 1990s including playing ʽAbd al-Qadir Badayuni in Bharat Ek Khoj (1988), Makhdoom Mohiuddin in Kahkashan (1991), Vladimir Lenin in Lal Ghas Per Neele Ghodey (1992), a dual role in Chandrakanta (1994), and Valmiki in Jai Hanuman (1997). Khan found his television work unfulfilling and considered quitting acting.
His career experienced a turnaround with his breakthrough role as the lead in Asif Kapadia's The Warrior (2001), which won the BAFTA Award for Outstanding British Film. He followed this with critically acclaimed villainous roles in Haasil and Maqbool (both in 2003). For the former performance, where he played a devious politician, Khan received the Filmfare Award for Best Performance in a Negative Role. In 2006, Khan portrayed a first-generation Bengali immigrant in the Nair-directed film The Namesake with Tabu and a hitman in The Killer. The following year, he won the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance as a 38-year-old man waiting to marry the right woman in Life in a... Metro, directed by Anurag Basu. In 2008, he received international recognition for his role as a police inspector in Danny Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire, which won the Academy Award for Best Picture. (Full article...) -
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Kal Ho Naa Ho (transl. Tomorrow May Never Come) is a 2003 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy-drama film directed by Nikkhil Advani. The film stars Jaya Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Saif Ali Khan and Preity Zinta. Sushma Seth, Reema Lagoo, Lillete Dubey and Delnaaz Irani play supporting roles. The film's story focuses on Naina Catherine Kapur (Preity Zinta), a MBA student who falls in love with Aman Mathur (Shah Rukh Khan). He does not reciprocate her feelings as he is a terminally ill heart patient, a fact he hides from Naina. Aman does not wish to bring Naina any pain through his illness, and tries to make her fall in love with her friend and fellow MBA classmate Rohit Patel (Saif Ali Khan). The film's dialogues were written by Niranjan Iyengar while Karan Johar drafted the story and screenplay. The latter also co-produced the film with his father, Yash Johar, under the Dharma Productions banner. The soundtrack for Kal Ho Naa Ho was composed by Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy while Javed Akhtar wrote the lyrics for its songs. Anil Mehta and Sanjay Sankla handled the cinematography and editing respectively. Sharmishta Roy was in charge of the production design.
Produced on a budget of ₹280 million, Kal Ho Naa Ho was released on 27 November 2003 and received positive reviews from critics. It was a commercial success, grossing ₹860.9 million worldwide. The film won 35 awards from 78 nominations; its direction, story, screenplay, performances of the cast members, music and cinematography have received the most attention from award groups. (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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A One Day International (ODI) is an international cricket match between two teams, each having ODI status, as determined by the International Cricket Council. The women's variant of the game is similar to the men's version, with minor modifications to umpiring and pitch requirements. The first women's ODI was played in 1973, between England and Australia. The Indian women's team played their first ever ODI match in 1978, against England, after the Women's Cricket Association of India was formed. The Women's Cricket Association of India was merged with the Board of Control for Cricket in India in 2006 as part of the International Cricket Council's initiative to develop women's cricket.
Since the team was formed, 144 women have represented India in ODI cricket. This list includes all players who have played at least one ODI match and is arranged in the order of debut appearance. Where more than one player won their first cap in the same match, those players are listed alphabetically by last name at the time of debut. (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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The Khel Ratna Award (Hindi pronunciation: [kʰeːl rət̪nə]), officially known as the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award (transl. Major Dhyan Chand Sport Jewel Award) or formerly known as the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, is the highest sporting honour of India. It is awarded annually by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Government of India.
Recipients are selected by a committee constituted by the Ministry and honoured for their "spectacular and most outstanding performance in the field of sports over a period of four years" at an international level. As of 2020[update], the award comprises a medallion, a certificate, and a cash prize of ₹25 lakh (US$30,000). (Full article...) -
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In cricket, a five-wicket haul (also known as a "fifer") refers to a bowler taking five or more wickets in a single innings. This is regarded as a notable achievement, and as of March 2024[update] only 51 bowlers have taken 15 or more five-wicket hauls at international level in their cricketing careers. Ravichandran Ashwin – a right-arm off break bowler – is a Test, One Day International (ODI) and Twenty20 International (T20I) cricketer who represents the India national cricket team. In a 2016 interview, former Sri Lankan cricketer Muttiah Muralitharan described Ashwin as the "best current Test spinner". As of March 2024[update], Ashwin has taken 36 five-wicket hauls in international cricket; he ranks joint-fifth in the all-time list, and second among his countrymen.
Ashwin made his Test debut in November 2011 against the West Indies. He took nine wickets in the match, including a five-wicket haul in the second innings. India won the match and his performance earned him the man of the match honour. His career-best figures of seven wickets for 59 runs came against New Zealand in October 2016; in the process he also became the fifth bowler to take six five-wicket hauls against them. He has picked up ten or more wickets in a match on seven occasions. Ashwin made his ODI and T20I debuts in June 2010 against Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe, respectively, and is yet to take a five-wicket haul in both formats. His four wickets for 25 runs against the United Arab Emirates in the 2015 World Cup remain his best in ODIs, while his figures of four wickets for 8 runs against Sri Lanka are the fourth-best by an Indian in T20Is. (Full article...) -
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The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award of the Republic of India. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "distinguished service of a high order", without distinction of race, occupation, position, or sex. The recipients receive a Sanad, a certificate signed by the President of India and a circular-shaped medallion with no monetary association. The recipients are announced every year on Republic Day (26 January) and registered in The Gazette of India, a publication used for official government notices and released weekly by the Department of Publication, under the Ministry of Urban Development. The conferral of the award is not considered official without its publication in the Gazette. The names of recipients whose awards have been revoked or restored, both of which require the authority of the President, are archived, and recipients who are struck from the register are required to surrender their medals; none of the conferments of Padma Bhushan during 1990–1999 have been revoked or restored. The recommendations are received from all the state and the union territory governments, as well as from Ministries of the Government of India, the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan awardees, the Institutes of Excellence, the Ministers, the Chief Ministers and the Governors of State, and the Members of Parliament including private individuals.
When instituted in 1954, the Padma Bhushan was classified as "Dusra Varg" (Class II) under the three-tier Padma Vibhushan awards, which were preceded by the Bharat Ratna in hierarchy. On 15 January 1955, the Padma Vibhushan was reclassified into three different awards as the Padma Vibhushan, the Padma Bhushan and the Padma Shri. The criteria included "distinguished service of a high order in any field including service rendered by Government servants", but excluded those working with the public sector undertakings with the exception of doctors and scientists. The 1954 statutes did not allow posthumous awards; this was subsequently modified in the January 1955 statute. The design was also changed to the form that is currently in use; it portrays a circular-shaped toned bronze medallion 1+3⁄4 inches (44 mm) in diameter and 1⁄8 inch (3.2 mm) thick. The centrally placed pattern made of outer lines of a square of 1+3⁄16 inches (30 mm) side is embossed with a knob carved within each of the outer angles of the pattern. A raised circular space of diameter 1+1⁄16 inches (27 mm) is placed at the centre of the decoration. A centrally located lotus flower is embossed on the obverse side of the medal and the text "Padma" is placed above and the text "Bhushan" is placed below the lotus written in Devanagari script. The State Emblem of India is displayed in the centre of the reverse side, together with the national motto of India, "Satyameva Jayate" (Truth alone triumphs) in Devanagari script, which is inscribed on the lower edge. The rim, the edges and all embossing on either side is of standard gold with the text "Padma Bhushan" of gold gilt. The medal is suspended by a pink riband 1+1⁄4 inches (32 mm) in width with a broad white stripe in the middle. It is ranked fifth in the order of precedence of wearing of medals and decorations of the Indian civilian and military awards. (Full article...) -
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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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Kajol is an Indian actress who is known for her work in Hindi films and has also acted in 2 Tamil films. She made her screen debut in the 1992 film Bekhudi. She was noted for her performance and went on to sign the 1993 commercially successful thriller Baazigar opposite Shah Rukh Khan. She starred in the 1994 film Udhaar Ki Zindagi, which earned her critical acclaim. This was followed by a role in Yeh Dillagi alongside Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali Khan. Kajol featured in five films in 1995. She appeared briefly in the thriller Karan Arjun, and played Simran, an NRI in Aditya Chopra’s romance Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, both of which ranked among the highest-grossing Bollywood films of the year, and the success of the latter established her career in Bollywood. As of 2021, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge is the longest-running Indian film. Also in 1995, she appeared in the box-office flops Hulchul and Gundaraj. Her only screen appearance of 1996 was in Bambai Ka Babu, a financial failure.
In 1997, Kajol featured in the film Minsara Kanavu, her first Tamil feature. She played an obsessive lover in the mystery film Gupt (1997), and became the first woman to win the Filmfare Award for Best Performance in a Negative Role. Later in 1997, she featured as a poor girl in the romantic film Ishq, a box-office hit. In 1998, she played the leading lady in three romantic comedies, which were among the top-grossing Bollywood productions of the year — Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya, Pyaar To Hona Hi Tha, and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. Also in 1998, she played dual roles in the drama Dushman. The following year, she played the secret lover of Ajay Devgn's character in Dil Kya Kare and starred in the commercially successful film Hum Aapke Dil Mein Rehte Hain opposite Anil Kapoor. Following this, she starred in the films Raju Chacha (2000) and Kuch Khatti Kuch Meethi (2001), both of which performed poorly at the box-office. (Full article...) -
Image 24Mani Ratnam is an Indian filmmaker who works predominantly in Tamil cinema. Regarded as one of the greatest Indian filmmakers, he is credited with redefining the "range and depth of Tamil cinema". As of 2019, he has directed 28 films, and produced over 15 under his production company Madras Talkies.
Mani Ratnam made his directorial debut, without formal training or education in filmmaking, with the Kannada film Pallavi Anu Pallavi (1983). The critically acclaimed film, which he also wrote, won him the Karnataka State Film Award for Best Screenplay. Then he entered Malayalam film industry with Unaroo, which was based on then prevailing trade union politics. His first Tamil film Pagal Nilavu (1985) was a commercial failure, but immediately followed Idaya Kovil (1985) found theatrical success. The following year, he made the romantic drama Mouna Ragam, which narrated the story of a young woman who is forced into an arranged marriage by her family. The critical and commercial success of the film established him as a leading filmmaker in Tamil cinema. His next release Nayakan, starring Kamal Haasan, was inspired by the life of the Bombay-based gangster Varadarajan Mudaliar. The film was submitted by India as its official entry for the 60th Academy Awards. Later in 2005, Nayakan was included in Time's "All-Time 100 Movies" list. Mani Ratnam followed this with the tragic romance Geethanjali (1989), which marked his Telugu cinema debut; the tragedy Anjali (1990), which narrated the story of an autistic child; and the crime drama Thalapathi (1991), loosely adapted from the Indian epic Mahabharata. In 1992, he made the romantic thriller Roja for Kavithalayaa Productions. The film was dubbed into many Indian languages, including Hindi, and its widespread success brought national recognition to Mani Ratnam. Three years later, he made Bombay (1995), which was based on the 1992–93 Bombay riots. Although controversial for its depiction of religious riots, the film met with wide critical acclaim and became commercially successful in India. (Full article...) -
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Shruti Haasan is an Indian actress, composer and playback singer who works in Telugu, Hindi and Tamil films. Born into the prominent Haasan family, she is the daughter of actors Kamal Haasan and Sarika. Haasan started her career as a playback singer at the age of six in the 1992 Tamil film Thevar Magan. She later made a cameo appearance in her father's Tamil-Hindi bilingual directorial Hey Ram (2000) as a child artist. Haasan's first major appearance was in the Hindi film Luck (2009), in which she played a dual role of a woman avenging her twin sister's death. She played the female lead in the films Anaganaga O Dheerudu and 7aum Arivu; both were released in 2011 and together earned her the Best Female Debut – South at the 59th Filmfare Awards South ceremony.
Haasan's subsequent releases Oh My Friend (2011) and 3 (2012) were commercially unsuccessful. The latter earned her a nomination for the Best Actress – Tamil at the 60th Filmfare Awards South ceremony. A turning point came in Haasan's career with Harish Shankar's commercially successful Telugu film Gabbar Singh (2012). The release was followed by a series of successful films such as Balupu (2013) and Yevadu (2014). She received her first Filmfare Award for Best Actress – Telugu for her performance in Race Gurram (2014). (Full article...)
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Image 1Major Shaitan Singh Bhati, PVC (1 December 1924 – 18 November 1962) was an Indian Army officer and recipient of India's highest military decoration, the Param Vir Chakra. Singh was born in Rajasthan. On completing his graduation, Singh joined the Jodhpur State Forces. He was transferred to the Kumaon Regiment after the princely state of Jodhpur was merged into India. He took part in operations in the Naga Hills and also in the 1961 Indian annexation of Goa.
During the Sino-Indian War, 13th Battalion of Kumaon Regiment was stationed in the Chushul sector. C Company, under the command of Singh, was holding a position at Rezang La. In the morning hours of 18 November 1962, the Chinese attacked. After several unsuccessful attacks from the front, the Chinese attacked from the rear. The Indians fought until their last rounds, before eventually being overpowered by the Chinese. During the battle, Singh continuously moved from post to post reorganizing the defences and boosting the morale of his men. As he moved between the posts without any cover, he was seriously wounded, and later succumbed to his injuries. For his actions on 18 November 1962, Singh was awarded the Param Vir Chakra. (Full article...) -
Image 2Vyāsatīrtha (c. 1460 – c. 1539), also called Vyasaraja or Chandrikacharya, was a Hindu philosopher, scholar, polemicist, commentator and poet belonging to the Madhwacharya's Dvaita order of Vedanta. As the rajaguru of Vijayanagara Empire, Vyasatirtha was at the forefront of a golden age in Dvaita which saw new developments in dialectical thought, growth of the Haridasa literature under bards like Purandara Dasa and Kanaka Dasa and an increased spread of Dvaita across the subcontinent. He himself composed many kīrtanas in Kannada and Sanskrit.
Three of his polemically themed doxographical works Nyayamruta, Tatparya Chandrika and Tarka Tandava (collectively called Vyasa Traya) documented and critiqued an encyclopaedic range of sub-philosophies in Advaita, Visistadvaita, Mahayana Buddhism, Mimamsa and Nyaya, revealing internal contradictions and fallacies. His Nyayamruta caused a stir in the Advaita community across the country requiring a rebuttal by Madhusudhana Saraswati through his text, Advaitasiddhi. He is considered as an amsha of Prahlada in the Madhva Parampara. (Full article...) -
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Sera Monastery (Tibetan: སེ་ར་དགོན་པ, Wylie: se ra dgon pa "Wild Roses Monastery"; Chinese: 色拉寺; pinyin: Sèlā Sì) is one of the "great three" Gelug university monasteries of Tibet, located 1.25 miles (2.01 km) north of Lhasa and about 5 km (3.1 mi) north of the Jokhang. (The other two are Ganden Monastery and Drepung Monastery.)
The origin of its name is attributed to a fact that during construction, the hill behind the monastery was covered with blooming wild roses (or "sera" in Tibetan). (An alternate etymology holds that the location that was surrounded by raspberry shrubs called 'Sewa' in Tibetan, that formed like a 'Rawa' in Tibetan, meaning "Fence".) (Full article...) -
Image 4Tum Hi Aana (transl. You, please come back) is an Indian Hindi-language song from the soundtrack of the Indian feature film, Marjaavaan (2019). The pop ballad was released by major Indian label T-Series on 3 October 2019 as a single from the soundtrack. It was composed by Payal Dev, written by Kunaal Verma, and sung by Jubin Nautiyal. The melody of the song occurred to Dev, while she was working on a different track.
The song received positive reviews from film critics, the majority of whom complimented its composition. The song peaked at number one and two on the Official Charts Company Asian Music Charts and The Times of India Mirchi Top 20 Chart, respectively. The music video features Sidharth Malhotra and Tara Sutaria reprising their characters in Marjaavaan. (Full article...) -
Image 5Appu Chesi Pappu Koodu (transl. Live Comfortably on Credit) is a 1959 Indian Telugu-language comedy drama film directed and co-written by L. V. Prasad. The film was produced by Nagi Reddi and Chakrapani of Vijaya Productions; the latter co-wrote its script with Prasad and Vempati Sadasivabrahmam. It is the Telugu version of Prasad's Tamil film Kadan Vaangi Kalyaanam (1958). Starring N. T. Rama Rao, Relangi and Savitri, Appu Chesi Pappu Koodu features Jaggayya, C. S. R. Anjaneyulu, S. V. Ranga Rao, and Jamuna in supporting roles. The conflict between two older men with different mindsets—Ramadasu (an eternal, devious debtor) and Mukundarao (a generous, rich gentleman with fake prestige)—is the film's centrepiece.
Production began after the success of Mayabazar (1957), with M. S. Chalapathi Rao and Jagannadham the film's executive producers. Marcus Bartley was the director of photography. S. Rajeswara Rao composed the soundtrack and background score. G. Kalyanasundaram and K. Radhakrishna edited the film, and Madhavapeddi Gokhale and Kaladhar were its art directors. The film is shown almost entirely in black and white, with the exception of a dance sequence filmed in Gevacolor. (Full article...) -
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The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "distinguished service of a high order ... without distinction of race, occupation, position or sex." The award criteria include "service in any field including service rendered by Government servants" including doctors and scientists, but exclude those working with the public sector undertakings. As of 2020[update], the award has been bestowed on 1270 individuals, including twenty-four posthumous and ninety-seven non-citizen recipients.
The Padma Awards Committee is constituted every year by the Prime Minister of India and the recommendations for the award are submitted between 1 May and 15 September. The recommendations are received from all the state and the union territory governments, as well as from Ministries of the Government of India, Bharat Ratna and Padma Vibhushan awardees, the Institutes of Excellence, Ministers, Chief Ministers and Governors of States, Members of Parliament, and private individuals. The committee later submits their recommendations to the Prime Minister and the President of India for further approval. The award recipients are announced on 26 January, the Republic Day of India. (Full article...) -
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British General Charles Cornwallis, the Earl Cornwallis, was appointed in February 1786 to serve as both Commander-in-Chief of British India and Governor of the Presidency of Fort William, also known as the Bengal Presidency. He oversaw the consolidation of British control over much of peninsular India, setting the stage for the British Raj. He was also instrumental in enacting administrative and legal reforms that fundamentally altered civil administration and land management practices there. According to historian Jerry Dupont, Cornwallis was responsible for "laying the foundation for British rule throughout India and setting standards for the services, courts, and revenue collection that remained remarkably unaltered almost to the end of the British era."
He was raised to the title of Marquess Cornwallis in 1792 as recognition for his performance in the Third Anglo-Mysore War, in which he extracted significant concessions from the Mysorean ruler, Tipu Sultan. Returned to England in 1793, he was engaged in administrative and diplomatic postings until 1798, when he was posted to the Kingdom of Ireland as Lord Lieutenant and Commander-in-Chief. In 1801, he was again posted to India. He arrived in July 1805 and died in October in Ghazipur. (Full article...) -
Image 8Kanche (transl. The Fence) is a 2015 Indian Telugu-language romantic war film written and directed by Krish. It stars Varun Tej, Pragya Jaiswal, and Nikitin Dheer. Produced by First Frame Entertainment, Kanche revolves around the enmity between two friends—Dhupati Haribabu (Tej) and Eeswar Prasad (Dheer). Eeswar's sister Sitadevi (Jaiswal) and Haribabu graduate from the University of Madras in the late 1930s and fall in love. Due to the prevailing casteism in their native village, Eeswar opposes their relationship and kills Sitadevi accidentally. Years later, Haribabu joins the British Indian Army as a captain to fight against the Axis powers in World War II and Eeswar, now a colonel, is his commanding officer.
Krish began research on the film's subject after seeing a bomb, dropped by the Imperial Japanese Army, preserved in a museum in Visakhapatnam during the filming of Vedam (2010). He worked on the film's screenplay for nine-and-a-half months and considered it his most ambitious project. Chirantan Bhatt composed the film's songs and score, marking his debut in Telugu cinema. Gnana Shekar V. S. was the film's director of photography; Sahi Suresh was the film's art director, and Sai Madhav Burra wrote the film's dialogue. (Full article...) -
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The grey heron (Ardea cinerea) is a long-legged wading bird of the heron family, Ardeidae, native throughout temperate Europe and Asia, and also parts of Africa. It is resident in much of its range, but some populations from the more northern parts migrate southwards in autumn. A bird of wetland areas, it can be seen around lakes, rivers, ponds, marshes and on the sea coast. It feeds mostly on aquatic creatures which it catches after standing stationary beside or in the water, or stalking its prey through the shallows.
Standing up to 1 metre (3 ft 3 in) tall, adults weigh from 1 to 2 kg (2 to 4 lb). They have a white head and neck with a broad black stripe that extends from the eye to the black crest. The body and wings are grey above and the underparts are greyish-white, with some black on the flanks. The long, sharply pointed beak is pinkish-yellow and the legs are brown. (Full article...) -
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Independence Day is celebrated annually on 15 August as a public holiday in India commemorating the nation's independence from the United Kingdom on 15 August 1947, the day when the provisions of the Indian Independence Act, which transferred legislative sovereignty to the Indian Constituent Assembly, came into effect. India attained independence following the independence movement noted for largely non-violent resistance and civil disobedience led by Indian National Congress under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi.
Independence coincided with the partition of India, in which British India was divided into the Dominions of India and Pakistan; the partition was accompanied by violent riots and mass casualties. On 15 August 1947, the first Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru raised the Indian national flag above the Lahori Gate of the Red Fort in Delhi. On each subsequent Independence Day, the incumbent Prime Minister customarily raises the flag and gives an address to the nation. The entire event is broadcast by Doordarshan, India's national broadcaster, and usually begins with the shehnai music of Ustad Bismillah Khan. Independence Day is observed throughout India with flag-hoisting ceremonies, parades and cultural events. It is a national holiday in the country. (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...) -
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The Telangana Rebellion, natively known as Telangana Sayudha Poratam, was a communist-led insurrection of peasants against the princely state of Hyderabad in the region of Telangana, Dominion of India, that escalated out of agitations in 1944–46.
Hyderabad was a feudal monarchy where most of the land was concentrated in the hands of landed aristocrats known as durras in Telangana. Feudal exploitation in the region was more severe compared to others of India; the durras had complete power over the peasants and could subject them to agricultural slavery. Conditions worsened during the 1930s due to the Great Depression and a transition towards commercial crops. In the 1940s, the peasants started turning towards communism, organised themselves through the Andhra Mahasabha and began a rights movement, catalyzed by a food crisis that affected the region following the end of the Second World War, the movement escalated into a rebellion after the administration and the durras attempted to suppress it. (Full article...) -
Image 13Vikram Vedha is a 2017 Indian Tamil-language neo-noir action thriller film written and directed by Pushkar–Gayathri and produced by YNOT Studios. The film, which is inspired by the Indian folktale Baital Pachisi, stars R. Madhavan and Vijay Sethupathi in titular roles, alongside Shraddha Srinath, Kathir, Varalaxmi Sarathkumar, Prem, Achyuth Kumar, Hareesh Peradi and Vivek Prasanna. In the film, Inspector Vikram sets out to track down and kill Vedha, a gangster. After voluntarily surrendering himself, Vedha tells Vikram three stories which change his perceptions of good and evil.
In January 2015, Sashikanth revealed that he would be producing a film directed by Pushkar–Gayathri. Following a year of development on the script throughout 2015, Madhavan and Sethupathi were selected to play the lead roles in February 2016. Principal photography began in November of the same year and was completed by January 2017. The film was shot mainly in North Chennai, with the area being used as its backdrop. Sam C. S. composed the soundtrack and score, while P. S. Vinod and A. Richard Kevin handled the cinematography and editing respectively. (Full article...) -
Image 14rameless (Full article...)
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Parsurameswara Temple (IAST: Paraśurāmeśvara) also spelt Parashurameshvara, located in the East Indian city of Bhubaneswar, the capital of Odisha, India, is considered the best preserved specimen of an early Odia Hindu temple dated to the Shailodbhava period between the 7th and 8th centuries CE. The temple is dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva and is one of the oldest existing temples in the state. It is believed to have been built around 650 CE in Nagara style and has all the main features of the pre-10th century Kalinga Architecture style temples. The temple is one among the Parashurameshvara group of temples.
Parashurameshvara Temple has a vimana, the sanctum, and a bada, the curvilinear spire over its roof, rising to a height of 40.25 ft (12.27 m). It is the first temple to have an additional structure called jagamohana, compared to the earlier temples that had only the vimana. Though the temple is dedicated to Shiva, it contains sculpted images of Shakta deities, which are otherwise normally part of Shakta temples. The temple is the first in Bhubaneswar to contain depictions of Saptamatrikas, namely, Chamunda, Varahi, Indrani, Vaishnavi, Kaumari, Shivani and Brahmi. The temple is maintained and administered by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) as a ticketed monument. Parashurashtami is the major festival celebrated in the temple during June–July every year. The temple is one of the most prominent tourist attractions in the state of Odisha. (Full article...) -
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Nagore Dargah (also called Nagoor Dargah or Syed Shahul Hameed Dargah or Nagore Andavar dargah) is a dargah built over the tomb of the Sufi saint Nagore Syed Abdul Qadir Shahul Hamid (1490–1579 CE). It is located in Nagore, a coastal town in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The outer doors of the dargah are kept open always, while the internal doors are open from 4:00 am to 07:00 am and from 6:00 pm to 10:00 pm. On Fridays, the doors are additionally kept open between 12:00 pm and 2:30 pm. Shahul Hamid is believed to have performed many miracles in Nagore, and cured the physical affliction of king Achuthappa Nayak, a 16th-century Hindu ruler of Thanjavur. He is locally referred to as Nagore Andavar, meaning the "Ruler of Nagore" and Qadir wali baba. Nagore dargah as it stands now, is believed to have been built by ardent devotees of Shahul Hamid, with major contribution from Hindus. There are five minarets in the dargah, with the Hindu Maratha ruler of Thanjavur Pratap Singh (1739–1763 CE), building the tallest minaret. The dargah is a major pilgrimage centre that attracts pilgrims from both sufi Islam and Hinduism, symbolizing peaceful coexistence between the two religions.
The most prominent event celebrated at Nagore Dargah is the Kanduri festival (Urus Mubarak), a fourteen-day commemoration of the death anniversary of Shahul Hamid. Common worship practices at Nagore dargah include the presentation of offerings, accompanied by the playing of musical instruments like nadaswaram, typical of Hindu religious tradition. The Shifa Gunta, a pool within the precincts of the dargah, is considered sacred; pilgrims take a holy dip in it. The hereditary board of trustees performs all the official and duties of the dargah. The governance and upkeep of the dargah are overseen by an 11 Member board of trustees, which operates under a court-decreed scheme established by the Madras High Court. (Full article...) -
Image 17Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham… (lit. Sometimes Happiness, Sometimes Sadness…), also known by the initials K3G, is a 2001 Indian Hindi-language family drama film written and directed by Karan Johar and produced by Yash Johar under his banner Dharma Productions. The film stars an ensemble cast of Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, Hrithik Roshan, and Kareena Kapoor, with Rani Mukerji in an extended guest appearance. It tells the story of an Indian multimillionaire family, which faces troubles and misunderstandings over their adopted son's marriage to a girl belonging to a lower socio-economic group than them. The film score was composed by Babloo Chakravarty with the music composed by Jatin–Lalit, Sandesh Shandilya, and Aadesh Shrivastava, and lyrics written by Sameer and Anil Pandey.
Development began in 1998, soon after the release of Johar's debut film Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998). Principal photography began on 16 October 2000 in Mumbai and continued in London and Egypt. Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham... was promoted with the tag-line "It's All About Loving Your Parents". Initially scheduled for the Diwali festivities of 2001, the film was eventually released in India, the United Kingdom and North America on 14 December 2001. (Full article...) -
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Mahākāśyapa (Pali: Mahākassapa) was one of the principal disciples of Gautama Buddha. He is regarded in Buddhism as an enlightened disciple, being foremost in ascetic practice. Mahākāśyapa assumed leadership of the monastic community following the parinirvāṇa (death) of the Buddha, presiding over the First Buddhist Council. He was considered to be the first patriarch in a number of Early Buddhist schools and continued to have an important role as patriarch in the Chan/Zen tradition. In Buddhist texts, he assumed many identities, that of a renunciant saint, a lawgiver, an anti-establishment figure, but also a "guarantor of future justice" in the time of Maitreya, the future Buddha—he has been described as "both the anchorite and the friend of mankind, even of the outcast".
In canonical Buddhist texts in several traditions, Mahākāśyapa was born as Pippali in a village and entered an arranged marriage with a woman named Bhadra-Kapilānī. Both of them aspired to lead a celibate life, however, and they decided not to consummate their marriage. Having grown weary of the agricultural profession and the damage it did, they both left the lay life behind to become mendicants. Pippali later met the Buddha, under whom he was ordained as a monk, named Kāśyapa, but later called Mahākāśyapa to distinguish him from other disciples. Mahākāśyapa became an important disciple of the Buddha, to the extent that the Buddha exchanged his robe with him, which was a symbol of the transmittance of the Buddhist teaching. He became foremost in ascetic practices and attained enlightenment shortly after. He often had disputes with Ānanda, the attendant of the Buddha, due to their different dispositions and views. Despite his ascetic, strict and stern reputation, he paid an interest in community matters and teaching, and was known for his compassion for the poor, which sometimes caused him to be depicted as an anti-establishment figure. He had a prominent role in the cremation of the Buddha, acting as a sort of eldest son of the Buddha, as well as being the leader in the subsequent First Council. He is depicted as hesitatingly allowing Ānanda to participate in the council, and chastising him afterwards for a number of offenses the latter was regarded to have committed. (Full article...) -
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The Currency Building is an early 19th-century building in the B. B. D. Bagh (Dalhousie Square) central business district of Kolkata in West Bengal, India. The building was originally built in 1833 to house the Calcutta branch of the Agra Bank. In 1868, it was converted for use by the Office of the Issue and Exchange of Government Currency, an office of the Controller of the Currency under the British Raj. From 1935 until 1937, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) used the building as its first central office. The building remained in use, and was used at one time by the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) as a storehouse. Authorities decided to demolish it in 1994.
From 1996 to 1998, the CPWD undertook demolition; but the building was saved from being completely demolished by the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) and the Kolkata Municipal Corporation. In 2003, custodianship passed to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), which renovated the building from 2005 to 2019. On 11 January 2020, Prime Minister Narendra Modi formally dedicated and reopened it as a museum. (Full article...) -
Image 20Kumari 21F is a 2015 Indian Telugu-language romantic drama film written by Sukumar and directed by Palnati Surya Pratap. Produced by Bandreddi Vijay Prasad, the film stars Raj Tarun and Hebah Patel. Kumari 21F focuses on a romantic relationship between Siddhu, a chef and Kumari, a struggling model.
The film marks the debut of Sukumar, a director and screenwriter in Telugu cinema, as a producer. The film was produced on a budget of ₹6–15 crore. Sukumar took inspiration from his youthful college days in Razole, where a young woman went to a picnic with some young men; a major undertaking for a woman at that time, which earned her the undeserved label of a "loose" character. (Full article...) -
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Ravish Malhotra (born 25 December 1943 in Lahore, British India) is a retired air commodore of the Indian Air Force. He was an Air Force test pilot stationed at the test centre in Bangalore. He was also the Air Officer Commanding of Hindon Air Force Station near Delhi.
In 1982, he was chosen to train for spaceflight in the Soviet Union's Intercosmos program. Malhotra served as backup for Rakesh Sharma on the Soyuz T-11 mission to Salyut 7 space station which launched the first Indian into space, but never went to space himself. Malhotra was awarded the Soviet Order of Friendship of Peoples in 1984 and the Kirti Chakra in 1985. (Full article...) -
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Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm Nilofar was, at the time, the third-strongest cyclone in the Arabian Sea. In late October 2014, it reached peak maximum sustained winds estimated between 205 km/h (125 mph) and 215 km/h (130 mph). The India Meteorological Department (IMD) named it Nilofar; the name refers to the water lily, and was suggested by Pakistan. The western fringes of the storm caused flash flooding in northeastern Oman, killing four people.
Nilofar originated from a low-pressure area between India and the Arabian Peninsula. It developed into a depression on October 25 and moved generally northward through an area of favorable conditions. The system intensified into a cyclonic storm on October 26. Quickly organizing due to the conditions, Nilofar developed a well-defined eye and structure, attaining its peak intensity on October 28. At the time, Nilofar was expected to make landfall in western India, prompting evacuations and preparations. However, high wind shear caused the storm to rapidly weaken, and Nilofar degraded into a remnant low-pressure area on October 31 off the Indian state of Gujarat. (Full article...) -
Image 23Tenali Ramakrishna is a 1956 Indian Telugu-language political drama film produced and directed by B. S. Ranga based on Ch. Venkataramaiah's stage play of the same name. Produced for the banner Vikram Productions, it stars Akkineni Nageswara Rao, N. T. Rama Rao, V. Nagayya, Bhanumathi Ramakrishna, and Jamuna in key roles. Ranga handled the cinematography with his brother-in-law B. N. Haridas while P. G. Mohan edited the film. Viswanathan–Ramamoorthy composed the soundtrack and background score.
Written by Samudrala Sr., Kannadasan, and Murugadasa, Tenali Ramakrishna narrates the story of the 14th century Telugu and Sanskrit poet and scholar of the same name, and his life as a member of the court of Krishnadevaraya, the king of the Vijayanagara Empire. Using his wits, Ramakrishna manages to save Krishnadevaraya from attacks by the Bahmani Sultanate, which tries to invade the Vijayanagara Empire. The rest of the film is about Ramakrishna's efforts to save Krishnadevaraya from courtesan Krishnasani, a spy, and convincing Emperor Babur against extending support to the Sultanate in the war. (Full article...) -
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Tiruvannamalai (Tamil: Tiruvaṇṇāmalai IPA: ˈtiɾɯʋaɳːaːmalɛi̯, otherwise spelt Thiruvannamalai; Trinomali or Trinomalee on British records) is a city, a spiritual, cultural, economic hub and also the administrative headquarters of Tiruvannamalai District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The city is home to the renowned Annamalaiyar temple, Annamalai hill, Girivalam and the Karthigai Deepam festival and a prominent pilgrimage destination.
Tiruvannamalai has a thriving service sector industry, including retail, resorts and recreation activities. Apart from the service sector, the city is also the hub for many industrial setups including SIDCO, spinning mills and premier educational institutions. The city is administered by the Tiruvanamalai City Municipal Corporation, originally constituted in the year 1886 as Tiruvannamalai Municipality. The city has a good network of roadways and railways connecting it with Chennai (150 kms) and Bengaluru (145 kms). The Union Ministry of Civil Aviation is considering setting up a new airport at Tiruvannamalai. (Full article...) -
Image 25Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind or Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind (Urdu: جمعیۃ علماءِ ہند transl. Council of Indian Muslim Theologians) is one of the leading organizations of Islamic scholars belonging to the Deobandi school of thought in India. It was founded in November 1919 by a group of Muslim scholars including Abdul Bari Firangi Mahali, Kifayatullah Dehlawi, Muhammad Ibrahim Mir Sialkoti and Sanaullah Amritsari.
The Jamiat was an active participant in the Khilafat Movement in collaboration with the Indian National Congress. It also opposed the partition of India, taking the position of composite nationalism: that Muslims and non-Muslims form one nation. As a result, this organisation had a small break-away faction known as the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, which decided to support the Pakistan movement. (Full article...)
News
- 13 September 2024 – Insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir
- Two Indian soldiers are killed in action in clashes with separatists in Kishtwar, Jammu and Kashmir, India. (NDTV)
- 12 September 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- A spokesperson for the Indian Foreign Ministry say that about 45 Indian nationals have been discharged from the Russian military, with efforts currently underway to get a further 50 Indians released. (Reuters)
- 11 September 2024 –
- Hundreds of workers at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, Kenya, go on strike to protest against a planned deal to lease the airport to the Indian conglomerate Adani Group for 30 years. (Al Jazeera)
- 7 September 2024 – Manipur violence
- Ethnic violence between the Meitei and Kuki tribes kills five people in Manipur, India. The Government of Manipur orders all schools in the state to remain closed in response. (Al Jazeera)
- 2 September 2024 –
- One person is fatally shot and at least four other people are injured including one person who was critically injured in a mass shooting at the West Indian Day Parade in Brooklyn, New York, United States. (AP)
Did you know...
- ... that police in Indianola, Mississippi, shot an unarmed 11-year-old African-American boy after responding to his 9-1-1 call for help at his home?
- ... that the 2022 Yangtse clash saw Chinese and Indian troops fight hand-to-hand with melee weapons on a high-elevation ridgeline that formed their frontier in the area?
- ... that Indian field hockey player Sukhbir Singh Gill continued to play professionally after being diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2006?
- ... that Grandpa Indian, created in the 1930s to replace Santa Claus in Brazil, was portrayed as adorned in colorful bird feathers, bringing gifts to Brazilian children?
- ... that, upon ordination, Earl K. Fernandes will be the first Indian-American Latin Catholic bishop in the United States?
- ... that Kitty Shiva Rao was the head of a committee to find out what Indian women wanted from the new Constitution of India?
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