Culture

Kalidas, the great Sanskrit poet, composed his lyric poem Ritusamharam celebrating seasons circa the 5th century CE. The opening canto lists things that are cool to the touch and bring …

The whole world today is aware of yoga, India’s unique gift to humanity. It is recognised as the foundational concept of Indic civilisation. It is ironic that the equally seminal …

High in the cold desert air of Ladakh, prayer flags flutter against a cobalt sky while monks in crimson robes chant beneath snow-lined peaks. In the ancient Himalayan region where …

Hampi Art Labs is possibly one of the most striking new cultural institutions to emerge in India in recent years: part art destination, part production site, part retreat. Launched in …

There is a particular kind of exhaustion that defines our age. Not the honest tiredness that follows hard work, but something more corrosive: the fatigue of people who have chased …

Through the centuries, India has been a source of inspiration for art and architecture in Indonesia as it has been to the entire Southeast Asia. Today, a myriad of cultural …

Climb the steps of Kadri Hill in Mangaluru, and you enter a realm where gods share space across faiths and centuries. At the heart of Kadri Manjunath Temple—a Shiva shrine …

On April 16, 1853, a 21-gun salute echoed across Bori Bunder station in Bombay, marking a moment that would change the course of Indian history. As the steam locomotive named …

As Assam welcomes spring and the Assamese New Year, Rongali Bihu or Bohag Bihu, unfolds not as a singular celebration but as a richly layered cultural cycle spread across seven days. This …

For too long, the world’s most complex civilisation has been someone else’s academic subject. That is finally beginning to change. There is something quietly extraordinary about the fact that, for …

How the Study of Indian Civilization Became an Export Industry There is a small but persistent oddity in the global academic landscape. If a student today wishes to study Sanskrit …

In a country as vast and diverse as India, talent has never been the problem—access has. For decades, the nation’s sporting imagination has largely revolved around urban centers, formal academies, …

“The happiest thing to work in the gallery is seeing youngster enjoying their moments in the gallery. Most of them love to click pictures at the gallery to post on …

The Uttar Pradesh Buddhist Circuit weaves a quiet thread through the plains of northern India, tracing the life and teachings of Gautama Buddha in places that have drawn pilgrims, seekers, …

The India-South Korea partnership stands out as a beacon of optimism amid geopolitical tensions. This relationship goes beyond trade and defence agreements. The vibrant exchange between our peoples, especially among …

In the multitude of national symbols, few carry the weight of history and aspiration quite like India’s national flag, the Tiranga. This tricolor banner, saffron above, white in the middle, …

Everyone remembers the outfit.Not because it was special. But because life happened in it. It might not even be hanging in your wardrobe anymore. It may have been donated, misplaced, …

Luxury in India has always been loud.Gold that announced itself before you entered the room. Logos that sat squarely on chests. Weddings that made wealth visible from a kilometre away. …

Kerala’s mural paintings are among India’s most striking visual traditions, where temple walls become storybooks of colour, devotion and myth. These murals are not just decoration; they are a sacred …

There’s a moment every morning, right before the day begins, when I decide who I need to be for the next twelve hours. Designer, commuter, colleague, problem-solver, maybe a reluctant …

In the deep-green vastness of Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region—where the forest canopy once echoed with Maoist gunfire, and where the language of progress was spoken only in hushed hypotheticals—women lived at …