The Times Of India Podcast: Recent Episodes
Times Of India
The Times of India podcast expands storytelling and reportage from India’s largest newsroom. We put the spotlight on ideas, people and stories that matter from Monday to Friday. To listen to more podcasts like this, please subscribe to TOI+ at https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/toi-plus
Political scientist Suhas Palshikar explains the issues with the Prime Minister turning up at the Chief Justice's residence for Ganeshotsav. He also explains the problem with judges and government employees talking about links with the RSS and what it means for the RSS to be making statements that seem to target the PM.
Shakir Mir, who writes on Jammu and Kashmir for TOI+ and other publications, talks about why this year's assembly elections are so important in the region despite full statehood unlikely to be restored any time soon. He explains why there's so much enthusiasm for this election and which parties are expected to make an impact.
Patruni Chidananda Sastry talks to Labanya Maitra about the challenges of being a drag queen and parent and dealing with the hate that comes with publicly acknowledging one's unconventional choices.
Bina Paul - one of the founding members of the Women in Cinema Collective - talks about the fallout of the Justice Hema committee report on the Malayalam film industry. She explains why the report matters, why sexual harassment is rampant in the film industry and what needs to be done now to correct things.
Supreme Court lawyer Disha Wadekar explains the apex court's latest verdict that deals with the contentious subject of sub-quotas within reservations for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. She also decodes the Supreme Court's handling of reservations over the decades and what's worrying about multiple judgements regarding reservations.
Vijayendra Mohanty - better known as Vimoh online - talks about why influencers and content creators are seeking clarity over a proposed law that is reportedly set to limit who can say what on platforms like YouTube and social media.
At least 100 people have died due to heatwaves in the country this year. Aditya Pillai, who researches extreme heat-related policies at Sustainable Futures Collaborative, explains why we need to prepare for worse heatwaves in the coming years, the challenges of making plans to deal with heat and what might be the best options before us.
Political scientist and chief editor of Studies in Indian Politics, Suhas Palshikar, had explained his and Yogendra Yadav's campaign to have their names removed from re-edited NCERT textbooks. He also explains his concerns with how the textbooks were edited and why parents should also read their kids' textbooks.
Dr Arun Gupta from Nutrition Advocacy in Public Interest explains how we need to regulate our packaged food better so that we're not just eating sugar .
At least nine people were killed when terrorists attacked a bus filled with pilgrims in Jammu's Raesi district. Shakir Mir - who writes on Jammu and Kashmir - explains the spike in terror attacks in Jammu and what security officials are saying about what they might indicate.
Patricia Mukhim, Editor of The Shillong Times, explains why it will be an uphill task to achieve peace in Manipur, a year after clashes broke out in the state.
Political scientist Suhas Palshikar talks about the role the allies could play in the functioning of the new government, how Narendra Modi could deal with unfamiliar coalition politics and the impact on upcoming state polls.
Senior Fellow at Centre for Policy Research and political scientist Neelanjan Sircar explains why BJP lost what it thought were its strongholds and whether the INDIA coalition had a chance at forming the government.
TOI Plus political columnist and author Sugata Srinivasaraju decodes the 2024 poll verdict, Rahul Gandhi's success and the BJP's limited success in southern states despite a concerted push.
Great-grandson of MK Gandhi, Tushar Gandhi talks to TOI's Alka Dhupkar about the influence of the Mahatma beyond India's borders and his enduring appeal.
Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik talks about the idea of a non-biological birth across faiths, why the idea exists and how it has been used to shape history.
Two cases - one in Pune and the other in Uttarakhand - bring to the spotlight juveniles and the criminal justice system again. Sidharth Pillai, co-founder of the Rati Foundation, talks to TOI's Ambika Pandit about the challenges of tackling online sexual abuse that involves teenagers. Then Monica Kumar from the Manas Foundation talks about why the reformation of underage accused shouldn't be ignored. And finally, Gitanjali Prasad from the Azim Premji Foundation talks about what the Pune case reveals about the juvenile justice system.
At a time the serial Heeramandi is making waves, Manish Gaekwad - who wrote the 'The Last Courtesan' - talks about chronicling his mother's life, the death of kothas in Mumbai and how his mother adapted to life after leaving the kotha.
Political scientist and author Hilal Ahmed from CSDS explains what we get wrong about the Muslim voter and what's wrong with the many preconceived notions that are there about Muslims and politics.
The Indian cricket board is seeking a new coach for the men's cricket team as Rahul Dravid's tenure winds down. Columnist and author Anand Vasu talks about Dravid's tenure, explains who are the frontrunners to replace him, what sort of candidate the board is seeking and the benefits (and pitfalls) of being Team India's coach.
Shakir Mir, who writes for TOI Plus on Kashmir, explains the high turnout in the first phase of polling in Kashmir reveals about politics in the region.
Former RBI governor and IAS officer Duvvuri Subbarao talks his new book, what the civil services need, centre-state clashes over finances and what worries him about India's economy
Former diplomat and minister Mani Shankar Aiyar spoke with Harinder Baweja about why he has always favoured people-to-people ties with Pakistan. He also talks about controversies sparked by statements made by him, and Rajiv Gandhi, and why he thinks they're overblown.
It's been half a century since delimitation or the reorganisation of Parliamentary constituencies took place in India. Former IAS officer and founder of the Lok Satta movement, JP Narayan, spoke with TOI's Alka Dhupkar about the need to reorganise India's electoral map and what needs to be done to ensure no region feels shortchanged.
Editor of The Shillong Times Patricia Mukhim explains why it will be an uphill task to achieve peace in Manipur, a year after clashes broke out in the state.
The Times of India's Shivani Azad explains the worrying spread of forest fires in Uttarakhand this year and what experts say are the bigger lessons to be learned from such calamities.
Journalist and author of 'H-Pop: The Secretive World of Hindutva Pop Stars' Kunal Purohit explained the emergence and rise of a popular subculture, and its political implications.
Neelanjan Sircar, senior fellow at Centre for Policy Research, explains why turnouts may be low this election and why the political parties' campaigns feel more low-energy. He also explains the implications of this for the results of this election.
Two actors have already filed cases over fake videos of them endorsing a party during the ongoing elections. Karen Rebelo, deputy editor at fact-checking organisation Boom Live, had decoded how misinformation has evolved over the years in India and why artificial intelligence tools will make it so much harder to detect misinformation.
It turns out packaged baby food and 'health' drinks may have the same problem. Dr Arun Gupta from Nutrition Advocacy in Public Interest explains how we can regulate our packaged food better so that we're not just eating sugar
Retired diplomat and expert on the Middle East, Talmiz Ahmad decodes the attacks by Iran and Israel and how to read into the pause of hostilities that the two countries seem to have settled for.
Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik explains why the attempts to make faith and rituals scientific are unnecessary and why being scientific shouldn't mean a discarding of faith.
Vikram Doctor, one of India's best chroniclers of the food industry, explains why we may pay more for chocolate-based treats this year and whether we are going to face a chocolate apocalypse.
Zeba Sikora from Project 39A at the National Law University in Delhi explains the concerns with the three new criminal law bills that are expected to be implemented later this year and how much they really reform the criminal justice system
Dr Jayesh Lele, honorary secretary general of the Indian Medical Association, talks about why a petition was filed against Ramdev and Patanjali and what action the case should have prompted.
The screening of 'Kerala Story' has prompted a political furore ahead of elections. Kabir Taneja, who's an author and Fellow at Observer Research Foundation, had explained why Islamic State failed to gain ground in India
Defence minister Rajnath Singh has said India will target its enemies on foreign soil if needed.
Professor Rory Cormac from the University of Nottingham, who specialises in the study of covert action, and Ajai Sahni, who is Executive Director of the Institute of Conflict Management, explain the fallout of operations that take place outside India.
Policy analyst and commentator N Sathiya Moorthy explains why the agreement on Katchatheevu island was arrived at between India and Sri Lanka and why the campaign over the island isn't a great political or diplomatic strategy.
Author and journalist Sudheendra Kulkarni, who worked closely with LK Advani, talks about the lessons the former deputy prime minister's career offers for Indian democracy today.
Advocate Ramprasad Gupta, whose 18-year-long legal battle over his brother's killing resulted in the conviction of Mumbai 'encounter specialist' Pradeep Sharma, talks to TOI's Sunil Baghel about the challenges he faced.
Trade unionist and human rights lawyer Sudha Bharadwaj, who was arrested in the Elgar Parishad case in Maharashtra, talks to TOI Plus's Alka Dhupkar about her new book (that just won an award), life in jail and why she's still an optimist.
Eminent political scientist Suhas Palshikar explains what worries him about Arvind Kejriwal's arrest, what the opposition hasn't done right and what it could mean beyond the national elections.
Dr Zahid Badroodien who works in the city administration of Cape Town talks about how they dealt with the worry of 'Day Zero' and dry taps, and the lessons other water-stressed cities like Bengaluru can take from them.
The Godfather released on March 24, 1972, inspiring films everywhere since. Filmmaker Vikramaditya Motwane and critic Jai Arjun Singh talk about why a film about an Italian mafia family remains relevant over 50 years later and why it remains an inspiration to filmmakers
Rama Bijapurkar, one of India's most respected voices on consumer behaviour, talks about what firms continue to get wrong about the Indian consumer and her worries about the Indian economy
Maj Gen (retd) Anil Verma from Association for Democratic Reforms, which petitioned the Supreme Court against electoral bonds, explains what the data released about electoral bonds has revealed so far.
Supriya Sule, who has represented the NCP for three terms in Parliament, talks to TOI's Alka Dhupkar about her upcoming Lok Sabha campaign and how she will run it, even if her opponent is Ajit Pawar's wife Sunetra.
Dr Guha Pradeepa from the Madras Diabetes Research Foundation explains the worrying trends for India in a recent Lancet report on obesity and malnutrition.
AS Dulat was R&AW chief and a former advisor to the Prime Minister's office on Kashmir. He talks about his good friend Ajit Doval and what can be done to earn Kashmir's trust after abrogating Article 370.
Could the Mahabharata have taken place at a time before horses were used in India? Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik talks about the unusual problems that arise when you start to link myths with historical dates.
Sadia Hasan's son died when he was eight. She talks to TOI's Ambika Pandit about living with loss, and a chance meeting that resulted in her producing the film 'Yes Papa' which targets child sexual abuse.
Accused of murdering her daughter and out on bail, Indrani Mukerjea is presently the subject of a docu-series. In this interview, she spoke about not seeking to change people's opinions of her and why the high-life wasn't all fun and games.
In light of Zerodha CEO Nithin Kamath's public statement on suffering a stroke, Mumbai-based neurologists - Dr Shirish Hastak and Dr Pawan Ojha - talk about causes, first aid tips and why public figures talking about the condition is a good thing.
Recently, a two-year-old was killed in Delhi by a pack of stray dogs, raising questions about how cities should deal with the issue. Dr Gowri Yale, a veterinarian who works on the issue, spoke with TOI's Alka Dhupkar about how we can deal with stray dogs without resorting to extreme measures.
TOI's Rudroneel Ghosh speaks with Lithuania's foreign minister Gabrielius Landsbergis and Dr. Rajorshi Roy at the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses to decode where the Russia-Ukraine war is headed and its continuing impacts.
Sreehari Aney, former advocate general of Maharashtra, talks to TOI's Bhavika Jain about the legal challenges the bill to grant a 10% quota for Marathas seems set to face.
India's announcement to fence the border with Myanmar hasn't been met with support from three states. Journalist and author Rajeev Bhattacharya - who has travelled into Myanmar through the open border - explains the situation on the ground and why there's limited support for the decision
Political scientist and author Suhas Palshikar explains the importance of ideology for political parties and why parties ignoring it isn't a good sign for Indian politics.
Sexologist and author Dr Rajan Bhonsle talks about the dangers of 'supplements' that promise to solve sexual problems and the dangers of self-medicating to solve problems.
As a state doubles down on its decision to teach school children parts of the Gita, author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik talks about why the holy text may not be for children. He talks about its complexities and also why he believes it shouldn't be viewed outside the context of the Mahabharata.
After Pakistan's national elections throw up a result that defies all pre-poll predictions, academic and author Ayesha Siddiqa explains what this means for Nawaz Sharif, Imran Khan, the Pakistan Army and ties with India.
Mihira Sood, Executive Director of the Centre for Child Rights & Juvenile Justice at the National Law University in Delhi, first decodes how much Uttarakhand's uniform civil code changes things. She also explains why the state's proposal on handling live-in relationships is very problematic. (15:50)
TOI+ columnist and journalist Radhika Ramaseshan talks about Bharat Ratna awardee LK Advani's contribution to the Ram temple cause and his own political fall. Then she decodes the BJP's campaign strategy ahead of the 2024 polls.
TOI Plus's Lata Mishra speaks with doctors and patients about hypersensitivity pneumonitis, why a bird's being blamed for its rise and how to prevent it.
Sanjay Kumar, co-director of Lokniti, talks to Alka Dhupkar about why he wrote off the 2024 national election after Nitish Kumar's departure, what explains the Bihar chief minister's political survival and what the INDIA alliance needs to do quickly.
Sociologist Dr Suryakant Waghmore talks to TOI Plus's Bhavika Jain about how the Maratha demand for a quota changed over decades, what it means for politics in the state and what its latest success means for the community.
A recent report said AI-driven misinformation is the second biggest risk to the world in 2024 and India is at the highest risk. Karen Rebelo, deputy editor at fact-checking organisation Boom Live, decodes how misinformation has evolved over the years in India and why artificial intelligence tools will make it so much harder to detect misinformation.
Former police officer Julio Ribeiro, former editor Rahul Singh and prominent gynaecologist Dr Rustom Soonawala reflect on India's successes over seven decades and where it could have done better.
As the origin story of the dish is contested, food historian and columnist Anoothi Vishal decodes how butter chicken became so popular (not just because of the taste) and the dishes it eclipsed on the way to becoming a global superstar.
Retired ambassador and West Asia geopolitics expert, Talmiz Ahmad talks to Jairaj Singh about the Iran-Pakistan missile strikes, what could spread the conflict in West Asia and what tensions in the region mean for India.
Former Maharashtra CM and senior Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan talks to TOI Plus's Alka Dhupkar about Milind Deora's departure and firming alliances. Then, CPR's Neelanjan Sircar explains what impact Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra can have, and what it means for the INDIA alliance.
Sunil Baghel and Bhavika Jain from TOI+ speak with constitutional experts - PDT Achary and former Maharashtra Advocate General Sreehari Aney - to decode what the Maharashtra speaker's verdict in the Shiv Sena split says about India's anti-defection law.
Political scientist and co-director of Lokniti, Suhas Palshikar examines the 'one nation, one election' plan and breaks down why it raises more concerns than solving problems.
One of India's longest-standing insurgent groups ULFA recently signed a memorandum of settlement with the Indian government. Journalist and author of 'ULFA: The Mirage of Dawn', Rajeev Bhattacharyya talks to TOI's Jayanta Kalita about what the latest peace agreement means, and how ULFA rose and then lost influence in Assam
Former central information commissioner, Shailesh Gandhi talks about what the transfer of an official for revealing information about government selfie points says about the health of the Right to Information Act and why it's a law that must be preserved in the interest of transparency.
Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik explains why our religions talk about how to handle money and wealth even though gods are above money. He also explains why different religions have different ideas about what to do with wealth
Dr Arvind Kumar, Chairman of the Institute of Chest Surgery at Medanta Hospital, explains why he's been talking about the blackening of lungs due to air pollution and why he believes more people need to know what air pollution is doing to them.
The Bangladesh elections are to be held on January 7 but the outcome seems set. Author and journalist Deep Halder talks to Prabhash K Dutta about what to expect as Sheikh Hasina's likely to enjoy a fourth term as the country's prime minister.
Zeba Sikora from Project 39A at the National Law University in Delhi explains the concerns with the three new criminal law bills passed by Parliament and how much they really reform the criminal justice system.
Author of 'H-Pop: The Secretive World of Hindutva Pop Stars' and journalist Kunal Purohit talks about the emergence of a popular subculture, what explains its rise and the dangers it comes with.
Aditya Bahadur, Chair of the Research and Strategy Team at the International Institute for Environment and Development, explains what was achieved, and what wasn't, at the COP28 summit in Dubai and why the world seems to be working so slowly on tackling climate change
Author and personal finance advisor M Pattabiraman explains why tax-saving investments aren't always the best option, how to invest and what most investors get wrong.
Journalist Shakir Mir, who writes on Kashmir for TOI+, talks about the reaction to the Supreme Court verdict on Article 370 in the region and how the union territory has fared since 2019.
After the flooding in Chennai, we're bringing back this episode in which we spoke with Jagdish Krishnaswamy, an ecohydrologist at IIHS, who explained what India's cities need to do to prevent flooding.
Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik explains why there are some myths and faiths in which gods make mistakes and in some faiths gods never make any errors.
Co-director of Lokniti and chief editor of Studies in Indian Politics, Dr Suhas Palshikar explains how to view the upcoming 2024 elections in light of the three state election victories for the BJP.
Political columnists Radhika Ramaseshan and Sugata Srinivasaraju decode the election results in MP, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan and what it means for the BJP and Congress months ahead of a national election.
Shivam Bharadwaj, who runs the social media handle 'The Guy In A Skirt', and founder of Pink List India, Anish Gawande, talk about the kind of abuse queer people and influencers face online in light of a teenager's death. Also, what does such constant abuse online mean for the queer community that has viewed the online world as a safe space?
A former student of a coaching class in Kota looks back at his time there, and with the benefit of hindsight evaluates the impact it had on him.
After the allegations of murder from Canada, a report says the US has warned India of its possible role in a murder plot on US soil. Meanwhile, multiple terror accused have died in mysterious circumstances in Pakistan.
Professor Rory Cormac from the University of Nottingham, who specialises in the study of covert action, and Ajai Sahni, who is Executive Director of the Institute of Conflict Management, explain the possible fallouts of these allegationsLinks to the previous episode with Ajai Sahni titled 'Is a Khalistani threat looming upon us?' on TOI website, Spotify and Apple podcasts
TOI's Shivani Azad, activist Renu Paul and former director of the People’s Science Institute in Dehradun, Ravi Chopra, discuss the impact of big infrastructure projects in the state of Uttarakhand.
Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik talks about religious food rules like halal and kosher and why communities adhere to them. He also explains better alternatives than bans on such practices.
Pulmonologist Dr Jeenam Shah talks to TOI's Lata Mishra about the health impacts of poor air quality and how he's seeing air pollution affect people.
Professor Yatindra Singh Sisodia, who is director of the Madhya Pradesh Institute of Social Science Research, explains why the contest between the Congress and BJP for 230 seats in Madhya Pradesh is too close to call this year.
Badminton legend and chief coach of the India national badminton team, Pullela Gopichand talks about what it takes to create winners and how he overcame his own challenges as a player and coach.
Sidhartha Mallya talks about depression, OCD, his complicated relationship with his father and life in a gilded cage.
Journalist and author Jafar Haand, who has been tracking Afghanistan cricket since the nation got a team, talks to Pinaki Chakraborty about a remarkable run in the World Cup
Despite leading the party's campaign, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Vasundhara Raje and Raman Singh are not assured of getting the chief minister's seat even if the BJP wins in their states. TOI+ political columnist and journalist Radhika Ramaseshan explains why they no longer call the shots.
Aalap Deboor, co-founder of YouTube channel Much Much Media, talks about finding out he was autistic in his 30s, how it changed his life and what he's learned from documenting the lives of other neurodivergent people.
Maj Gen (retd) Anil Verma from Association for Democratic Reforms explains why they've appealed to the Supreme Court to end the electoral bond scheme and the many issues with its implementation.
Major General (retired) Satbir Singh - who is Chairman of Indian Ex-servicemen Movement - talks to Harinder Baweja about the case of the eight former Navy personnel who have been sentenced to death in Qatar and India's handling of the case.
National film award-winning director Onir talks to Alka Dhupkar about how he views the Supreme Court verdict on same-sex marriages, the challenge of telling same-sex stories and the way forward for the LGBTQ+ community.
At a time when medical science is promising longer and healthier lives, author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik dwells on how myths across the world view immortality
Former diplomat and minister Mani Shankar Aiyar - who recently released his memoirs - talks to Harinder Baweja about why he has always favoured people-to-people ties with Pakistan. He also talks about controversies sparked by statements made by him, and Rajiv Gandhi, and why he thinks they're overblown.
To better understand a recent case where the Supreme Court first granted, then withdrew permission for a woman to undergo an abortion, we spoke with Mihira Sood from the National Law University in Delhi and Dr Subha Sri Balakrishnan from NGO CommonHealth.
They decode issues with how the country's apex court handled the case, how India could handle abortions much better and why courts, and medical practitioners, need to keep their morality in check.
Dr Cyriac Abby Phillips, who's better known as The Liver Doc on social media, explains his stand against ayurveda and wellness medication, the myth of detoxification and how to take a stand against misinformation
Trade unionist and human rights lawyer Sudha Bharadwaj, who was arrested in the Elgar Parishad case in Maharashtra, talks to TOI Plus's Alka Dhupkar about her new book, life in jail and why she's still an optimist.
Author and award-winning journalist Gideon Levy and Palestine analyst Tahani Mustafa at the International Crisis Group weigh in on the war and explain how things could play out in the coming days for Benjamin Netanyahu, Hamas and the region at large.
After multiple controversies over enforcing vegetarianism, sociologist at IIT Bombay Dr Suryakant Waghmore talks about why having separate spaces for vegetarians shouldn't reinforce caste practices and how it reflects the anxiety of vegetarians.
One of the world’s most respected CEOs talks about how women can be heard better, her wish to create high quality child care, her love for cricket and what retirement is like.
Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik explains how Indian myths are different from other mythologies in the depiction of women and feminist themes in Indian myths
One of India's finest food writers, Vikram Doctor talks about how ajinomoto has always had a bad reputation that it didn't deserve and why we can't get enough of it in our food.
The passage of the Women's Reservation Bill raised questions about delimitation which could re-organise the electoral map of India after half a century.
Former IAS officer and founder of the Lok Satta movement, JP Narayan, talks to TOI's Alka Dhupkar about the need to reorganise India's electoral map and what needs to be done to ensure no region feels shortchanged.
The monsoon this year has been below normal with some regions hit worse than others. Times of India's senior editor Vishwa Mohan and CareEdge's chief economist Rajani Sinha explain how a below normal monsoon could affect food prices and economic growth in the coming months.
TOI journalist and author of the book 'When Ardh Satya Met Himmatwala', Avijit Ghosh talks about why he takes a kinder view of 1980s Hindi films and why it was a decade marked by many big changes.
Dr K. Srinath Reddy, who is honorary distinguished professor at the Public Health Foundation of India, decodes a WHO report on hypertension, or high blood pressure, which says Indians are largely undiagnosed and untreated for the condition.
Former MP and vice president of the RLD, Shahid Siddiqui, talks with Harinder Baweja about BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri's abuse-filled speech in Parliament and why he feels the action taken is inadequate. He also reveals why he remains hopeful about the future of the Muslim community in India.
Former Indian ambassador Anil Trigunayat and Jeff Nankivell, President and CEO of Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, explain what to expect in India-Canada ties after they hit a new low.
Tushar Chakrabarty, Senior Analyst at PRS Legislative Research, talks about the history of the women's reservation bill. Then, political columnist Radhika Ramaseshan explains why previous attempts at passing the bill failed, the political gains from this move and whether it could change politics.
The last of a generation of double decker buses has driven into the Mumbai sunset. Gopal MS, who chronicles the city on the social media handle Mumbai Paused, talks about the magic of the double decker. Then Vidyadhar Date, author and head of a BEST commuter group, talks about the larger problems the city's bus system is facing.
A representative of the fireworks industry, an expert on air pollution and two senior TOI journalists weigh in on states banning fireworks during Diwali and the fallout.
Professor Suhas Palshikar examines the 'one nation, one election' plan and breaks down the issues at stake.
A new campaign seeks to get people to visit the homes of people from other religions or castes. Shabnam Hashmi, who is heading the campaign, talks to Alka Dhupkar about the aim of the initiative and people participating in the campaign talk about their experiences.
Author of 'The Last Courtesan', Manish Gaekwad talks about chronicling his mother's life, the death of kothas in Mumbai and how his mother adapted to life after leaving the kotha.
As India conducts solar and lunar missions, author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik talks about how the celestial bodies feature in our myths and through them in our lives.
A former student of a coaching class in Kota looks back at his time there, and with the benefit of hindsight evaluates the impact it had on him.
NCP member of Parliament Supriya Sule talks to TOI Plus's Alka Dhupkar about the defection of the party's MLAs and Ajit Pawar, the threat to her political future and what she expects from INDIA
Indian Medical Association's Dr Rajeev Jayadevan decodes three big studies that tracked patients of Covid-19 and what we need to keep in mind for future waves that will come.
Trade unionist Meena Menon talks about trade union leader Dr Datta Samant, the 1982 strike in Mumbai and how it ended up changing an industry, unions and a city
Accused of murdering her daughter and out on bail, Indrani Mukerjea talks about her recently-released memoir titled 'Unbroken', not seeking to change people's opinions of her and why the high-life wasn't all fun and games.
Prateek Raj, Assistant Professor of Strategy at the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, talks about a letter he and other academics wrote on their worries about hate affecting India's economic growth. He also explains the long history behind hate speech creating a fertile ground for disaster and why he is still hopeful about India.
Author and senior fellow at King's College in London, Ayesha Siddiqa, talks to Harinder Baweja about the big political twists in Pakistan and how it results in the country's military growing in influence.
Actor Chrisann Pereira tells TOI's Bhavika Jain about how an audition for a web series in Sharjah went horribly wrong, her life in jail and the strange story behind her misfortunes.
Former police officer Julio Ribeiro, former editor Rahul Singh and prominent gynaecologist Dr Rustom Soonawala reflect on seeing India become independent, its big successes in 76 years and where it could have done better.
Researchers Ghazala Jamil from JNU and Qudsiya Contractor from TISS talk to Chandrima Banerjee about myths regarding Muslim-dominated areas in cities and why they are easy targets for demolition drives.
Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik explains how faiths view marriage and love as well as the stories that explain how to deal with marriage.
ATREE's Dr Sharachchandra Lele decodes the issues with the Forest Conservation Amendment Bill cleared by Parliament and why it may not do a very good job of protecting India's forests
Retired DIrector General of Police VN Rai and Common Cause's Radhika Jha explain the challenges police face in tackling communal violence and why their record at curbing such incidents isn't very good.
Hinan Manzoor, co-founder of Srinagar-based football club Downtown Heroes, talks about the larger aim of the club and the challenges of starting a football team in Kashmir during a pandemic.
The latest change by Elon Musk has seen a change in Twitter's logo. Joyojeet Pal, Associate Professor at University of Michigan, explains what could result in the death of the platform. He also explains why it's still surviving and how research into hate speech has been hit by Elon Musk's changes.
Hunter, storyteller and conservationist. Jim Corbett wore many hats and here's why his story remains relevant decades later.
Omar Abdullah, former J&K chief minister and National Conference vice-president, tells Harinder Baweja why he's still fighting against the repealing of Article 370 and how the national opposition alliance is shaping up
Patricia Mukhim, editor of the Shillong Times, explains why she feels the Prime Minister's statement wasn't enough, the potential effect of the viral video in violence-hit Manipur and the risk of violence spreading in the region.
Ajai Sahni from the Institute for Conflict Management talks about three recent deaths involving the leaders of separatist groups and how India needs to tackle the influence of Khalistani groups abroad
Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik explains how Indian myths and faiths view floods very differently from other religions. He also explains why we don't have any rituals that beg the gods to stop floods.
Jagdish Krishnaswamy, an ecohydrologist and dean of the School of Environment and Sustainability at IIHS, talks about the lessons from the floods in North India this year and what we need to do to prepare for future floods.
Do the latest political developments in Maharashtra indicate ideology is irrelevant for political parties? Political scientist and author Suhas Palshikar explains the importance of ideology for political parties and why parties would do well to have one in an election year.
Rohit Pawar talks to Bhavika Jain about his uncle's (Ajit Pawar's) decision to split the party, what it means for the Pawar family and how his granduncle Sharad Pawar is dealing with it.
Dr Lakshmi Lingam, who led a TISS study on women in Hindi films, talks about what Bollywood films continue to get wrong about women and what needs to change to reach out to a bigger audience.
Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik explains the origins of the kanwar yatra, the mythology at the centre of it and its significance.
Senior Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan talks to Alka Dhupkar about his experience of working with Ajit Pawar, how he sees politics in Maharashtra playing out and the challenge for opposition parties
Political commentator and analyst Sujata Anandan talks to Alka Dhupkar about whether Sharad Pawar could have prevented his nephew's rebellion, what this means for state and national politics and why the split could backfire on Ajit Pawar.
Ben Dalton from research group New America talks to Pinaki Chakraborty about Yevgeny Prigozhin’s mutiny in Russia, what it means for Vladimir Putin and the future of the Ukraine war.
Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik explain the reasons behind the outrage over a recent film in which mythical characters speak in a more colloquial fashion. He explains why with some epics it's difficult to accept characters who speak like us.
Rehana Fathima was recently exonerated in a case of obscenity and child abuse that was filed against her over a video. She talks to Alka Dhupkar about why she protests for multiple causes, why she chooses unique ways of protest and the toll it's taken on her life.
CEO of Ananta Centre Indrani Bagchi decodes the impact of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to the US and what it means for ties between the two nations.
Senior journalist Anant Bagaitkar talks to Alka Dhupkar about why all journalists from language media outlets need to get access to Parliament, something many of them have been denied since 2020.
Political scientist and chief editor of Studies in Indian Politics, Suhas Palshikar, talks to Alka Dhupkar about his and Yogendra Yadav's campaign to have their names removed from re-edited NCERT textbooks. He also explains his concerns with how the textbooks were edited and why parents should also read their kids' textbooks.
Shahid Siddiqui - who has been an editor and lawmaker- was part of a group of Muslim community representatives who met with the RSS chief in 2022. He explains what that meeting, and subsequent dialogue, has achieved in terms of solving the issues affecting the Muslim community under the Modi government.
Gopal MS, who documents Mumbai under the social media handle @SloganMurugan, and sociologist Ishita Dey explain what smell can tell us about our cities and what it says about us.
Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik explains why he feels chat models and AI do a poor job of interpreting our myths and faiths.
Behishta Khairuddin talks to TOI's Manash Gohain about how she completed her masters in chemical engineering from IIT-Madras, which included making a lab at home using her sister's microwave and borrowed beakers.
TOI journalist and author of When Ardh Satya Met Himmatwala, Avijit Ghosh, talks about why he takes a kinder view of 1980s Hindi films, a decade marked by many big changes.
Subodh Jain, a former member of the Railway Board, and author-railway historian Arup Chatterjee join us to understand the issues raised by the train accident in Odisha that left 275 dead.
Prof Sanjay Kumar, co-director of Lokniti, talks about their latest survey that assesses what people think of the biggest issues. He also explains what opposition parties may still be getting wrong.
Olympian swimmer Nisha Millet talks about what the wrestlers' protest has achieved, her own experience of sexual harassment as an athlete and why she won't stay silent about the protest.
TOI's Akaash Dasgupta joins us to talk about the IPL season, that dramatic finale and what happens if Dhoni doesn't turn up to play next year.
Bimal Patel, the architect and urban planner behind the Central Vista project that includes the new Parliament building, talks about why most people will be pleasantly surprised by his work and the perils of working in polarised times.
Journalist and activist Jatin Desai talks to TOI's Bhavika Jain about how hundreds of fishermen keep getting jailed for venturing into Pakistan and how things can be improved.
As India experiences heatwaves and prepares for more, Centre for Policy Research's Aditya Pillai discusses how good are our plans to deal with them.
TOI Plus's Harinder Baweja explains what the extradition of Tahawwur Rana from the US will achieve in India's pursuit of the attacks' masterminds. She also talks about her experience of visiting the Lashkar-e-Taiba headquarters and what it says about Pakistan's handling of the case.
Campaigns in the Karnataka elections became all about him. Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik talks about the many lessons to take from the story of Lord Hanuman and why he signifies much more than just brute strength
South Africa-based cheetah conservation expert Dr Adrian Tordiffe talks about his takeaways from the deaths of three cheetahs moved from two African nations to Kuno National Park.
TOI Plus columnist and author Sugata Srinivasaraju decodes the Congress's big win in Karnataka and why it's not a sign for 2024's national polls. He also explains what it means for the BJP and the JD(S)
A victim of the recent clashes in Manipur talks about his experience and TISS's Jagannath Ambagudia - who's an expert on conflict studies - talks about how the state can prevent such clashes in the future.
TOI Plus's Bhavika Jain decodes NCP chief Sharad Pawar's decision to resign as NCP chief and to subsequently withdraw it.
As a new film raises claims about radicalisation and terror in India, author and Fellow at Observer Research Foundation, Kabir Taneja explains why Islamic State failed to gain ground in India
Bilawal Bhutto will be the first Pakistan foreign minister to visit India in over a decade. Pakistan's ex-foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi tells TOI Plus's Harinder Baweja why India and Pakistan shouldn't miss the opportunity for talks.
One of India's biggest athletes, Dutee Chand tells TOI Plus's Harinder Baweja why she's backing the protesting wrestlers in Delhi and why other athletes should back them. She also explains why she's hoping same-sex marriages will be legalised.
TOI Plus columnist Sugata Srinivasaraju explains what will decide the outcome of polls in Karnataka and who could emerge on top.
Prabhat Koli recently became the youngest in the world to complete the Oceans Seven challenge. He talks about open sea swimming and the challenges in and out of the water.
After a controversy involving the Dalai Lama, author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik talks about how different faiths talk about the tongue.
Dr Cyriac Abby Phillips, who's better known as The Liver Doc on social media, explains his stand against ayurveda and wellness medication, the myth of detoxification and how to take a stand against misinformation
TOI's Lata Mishra decoded why 14 people died and over a 100 people had to be hospitalised after an award function in Navi Mumbai that was attended by the state's top leaders.
Taipei-based Dr Sana Hashmi makes sense of the latest Chinese military drills simulating the invasion of Taiwan, and how the world has reacted to it.
One of India’s greatest writers, Premchand wrote a play a century ago. Professor Nishat Zaidi, who has just translated 'Karbala' into English, explains the importance of a play that Premchand had to defend stoutly.
Journalist and author Rasheed Kidwai explains the possible fallout of Sachin Pilot taking on Ashok Gehlot in Rajasthan and the possible fallout as Congress seeks to build a national opposition alliance.
Prof Anita Rampal, who signed a statement along with 200 experts objecting to the edits in NCERT textbooks, talks about the problems with the changes.
Mythologist and author Devdutt Pattanaik talks about the spread of Islam in India and how it adapted to existing Indian customs to acquire distinct characteristics.
Karhun Nanda is leading the Indian contingent at the upcoming World Transplant Games. He talks to Devyani Mohan about his heart transplant, how he learned to love golf and why organ transplants in India need a push.
As the standoff between doctors and the Rajasthan government ends, TOI's Rema Nagarajan explains the importance of the Right to Health law, what it should achieve and the need for regulation in private healthcare.
TOI's Lata Mishra speaks with Mumbai-based Dr Vaishali Solao about the simultaneous waves of influenza and Covid-19, and what we should watch out for.
Poet-novelist Jeet Thayil on editing 'The Penguin Book of Indian Poets' together and why poetry finds a resurgence in dark times
Taj SATS executive chief Arun Batra talks to TOI's Saurabh Sinha about the science and economics behind meals on flights and what he'll never serve a flyer
MPs Supriya Sule and Dr S Senthilkumar explain their attempts to legalise same-sex marriages through Parliament and Mumbai-based Dr Prasad Raj Dandekar talks about the importance of legalising same-sex marriages
Imtiaz Gul, the Executive Director of Center for Research and Security Studies, talks to TOI Plus's Harinder Baweja about the attempts to arrest Imran Khan and what the cases mean for Pakistan's politics and future
With Reliance relaunching the Campa Cola brand, Vikram Doctor decodes why the Indian alternative to Coca Cola failed and the enduring appeal of colas.
Dr DH Ashwath Narayana from KIMS in Bengaluru explains how to do better in our battle against rabies and Dr Gowri Yale explains a more compassionate way to deal with stray dogs in India
Rachna Dhingra, who has been working with victims of the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy, talks about the impact of the latest Supreme Court verdict and why the victims deserve more compensation than they got.
AS Dulat was R&AW chief and a former advisor to the Prime Minister's office on Kashmir. He talks to Harinder Baweja about his good friend Ajit Doval and what can be done to earn Kashmir's trust after abrogating Article 370.
TOI Plus's Lata Mishra speaks with doctors and patients about hypersensitivity pneumonitis, a bird that's being blamed for its rise in Mumbai and how to prevent it.
Mythologist and author Devdutt Pattanaik talks about how Indian culture has been viewed abroad over the decades and we also look at what the new anti-caste discrimination ordinance in Seattle changes about that.
TOI Plus's Shakir Mir talks about what it's like to live with internet disruptions and Access Now's Raman Jit Singh Chima explains the problem with India topping the charts when it comes to internet shutdowns.
Our summers are set to get longer and more intense. Dr Rajashree Kotharkar, who has long researched how heat affects cities, explains what we need to do to get by apart from turning up the AC.
Mumbai-based Dr Nikhil Datar may be India's first person to write an official living will. He explains why he rushed to file his living will and why he's hoping more people will do the same.
TOI's Abhishek Dey and political columnist Radhika Ramaseshan explain the long-term implications of Manish Sisodia's arrest on the Aam Aadmi Party and opposition unity.
Co-founder and CEO of TaxSpanner.com Sudhir Kaushik explains how to choose between the new and old tax regime and answers the biggest questions on how to ensure you don't lose any more than you need to.
The death of an IIT student highlights widespread caste discrimination on campuses. Author and professor Dr N Sukumar explains why it's still so prevalent and what needs to be done to tackle it.
Nitesh Pal, a resident of Kyiv, spoke with us in 2022. He joins us again to talk about life in Ukraine one year after the Russian invasion began and how it has changed.
Sommelier and author Magandeep Singh explains the history of scotch whiskey in India, why we're the biggest importers of the alcohol in the world and the problem with India's whiskey market.
Professor Suman Chakraborty, recipient of the 2022 Infosys Prize, explains how their revolutionary low-cost blood test technology could also work with just a drop of blood.
Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik explains how Indian myths celebrated love and desire long before Valentine's Day, and love stories in our myths (including queer ones).
Prominent child psychiatrist Dr. Shekhar Seshadri explains the big concerns about children and device use, how to tell if a child is addicted and the help they need.
After Budget 2023 gave incentives to move to the new income tax regime, author and personal finance advisor M Pattabiraman explains why he supports the new tax regime and how to make it work for you.
Analyst, columnist and author Ayesha Siddiqa explains the challenges facing Pakistan in its war on terrorism and why the attack in Peshawar could be a worrying sign of things to come.
Columnist Yousuf Nazar explains why the Pakistan economy is in trouble and the challenges in making things right again.
Celebrating the glorious career of Lata Mangeshkar and decoding how she became the soundtrack of Indian lives.
Supreme Court lawyer and author Chitranshul Sinha explains what's different about the criticism of the Supreme Court collegium this time and the problem with the proposals to alter it.
Anindya Dutta, the author of 'Advantage India: The History of Indian tennis', talks about the remarkable career of Sania Mirza.
Patna-based journalist Umesh Kumar Ray tells the story of how a woman brought a 'dead' man to life so that he could face justice.
Sabi Hussain talks about how the protest by some of India's biggest wrestlers played out. Then, lawyer Saurabh Mishra explains the lessons for other sporting bodies.
Mythologist and author Devdutt Pattanaik talks about the problem with trying to marry mythology with history and why historians don't always give us simple answers.
As the ambitious yatra draws to a close, TOI columnist and Futurebrands CEO Santosh Desai talks about the effect it has on the Congress leader's brand.
TOI's Rebecca Samervel explains how Dawood Ibrahim allegedly made the most of a dispute between two gutka barons, and resulted in JM Joshi being sentenced to jail.
The Times of India's Gaurav Talwar explains the situation in Joshimath and why residents are angry. Dr Anjal Prakash from ISB then explains why we need a rethink of development plans in the hills
Adi Shankaracharya is credited with reviving Hinduism and giving it a fresh lease of life centuries ago. Mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik explains the significance of the sage and the misinterpreted lessons from his life.
Vikram Doctor, one of India's finest food writers, talks about how Ajinomoto has always had an undeserved bad reputation and why we can't get enough of it in our food.
Swagata Raha from Enfold Enfold Proactive Health Trust explains how India dramatically changed its stance on juveniles accused of crimes and the problem with treating them as adults
Shaunak Sen, whose documentary film All That Breathes has been shortlisted for the Oscars, talks about the dystopic fairy tale about kites and two brothers in Delhi.
Xpheno's co-founder Kamal Karanth explains why the big changes promised in work and workplaces never came and why the recession isn't a big worry for India's tech sector.
Epidemiologist Dr Giridhar Babu from PHFI talks about how we can prepare for a potential wave of Covid-19 in 2023 and what we need to worry about.
Mythologist and author Devdutt Pattanaik talks about why there are so many branches of Christianity in India, the issue of conversion and Christmas.
Times of India's Siddharth Saxena talks about watching that epic World Cup final, the ups and downs of the tournament and 'sportswashing'
University of Michigan researcher Joyojeet Pal uncovers the campaign against Bollywood on social media and journalist Kaveree Bamzai explains how much it has hurt an already struggling industry.
TOI Plus's Bhavika Jain explains the challenges of redeveloping Dharavi and how its metamorphosis could change Mumbai.
Sexologist Dr Rajan Bhonsle explains the problem with getting sex education from pornography and why condom-carrying teenagers isn't a worry (their lack of knowledge is).
A victim of a sextortion racket on social media talks about his experience and The Times of India's Sakshi Chand explains how such criminals work.
Journalist and audio series host Bhanuj Kappal talks about the flaw in trying to censor songs that 'glorify' guns, gangsters and drugs.
Professor William Hurst from the University of Cambridge explains why protests against Zero Covid policies died out quickly and the challenges for the government going ahead.
Political columnist and journalist Radhika Ramaseshan explains how the BJP broke records in Gujarat and the lessons for the Congress from the two state election verdicts
Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik discusses why the story of Ravana is a cautionary tale and the lessons we are to take from it.
Writer and journalist Rahul Pandita, who along with his family was forced to flee Kashmir in 1990, talks about the Pandit exodus and why it haunts Kashmir.
Actor Swara Bhasker talks to Harinder Baweja about participating in the Bharat Jodo Yatra, the cost of speaking up and dealing with fear.
TOI's Abhishek Dey explains why elections to Delhi's municipal body have become a big contest and what's at stake for all the political parties concerned
Former Indian foreign secretary and ambassador to China, Vijay Gokhale, talks about the significance of the widespread protests in China and its possible implications.
Senior fellow at Centre for Policy Research, Sushant Singh, explains the challenges facing General Asim Munir as he takes over as Pakistan Army chief
It's a bad time to be an H1B visa holder as tech companies layoff thousands. SIIA's Neha Mahajan and TOI's Ishani Duttagupta explain why.
Mythologist and author Devdutt Pattanaik talks about Indian scriptures' nuanced view of murder and justice. We also talk about a serial killer in the scriptures, a murder mystery featuring Krishna and more.
A conversation with lawyer Saurabh Kirpal on why sexual orientation matters when it comes to becoming a judge and why the Supreme Court should be a counter-majoritarian institution.
TOI's Vishwa Mohan rounds up the big outcomes from the latest climate change summit and IIED's Ritu Bharadwaj explains why the loss and damage fund isn't reason for cheer just yet
We Speak Out's Masooma Ranalvi talks to TOI's Sunil Baghel about their attempts to end the practice of female gential mutilation and why a recent recommendation at a UN body matters.
Dr Ranjana Kumari, director of the Centre for Social Research, on why the long-term domestic abuse Shraddha Walkar endured shouldn't be ignored.
Author and analyst Manoj Joshi explains why talks between India and China on the border dispute aren't going anywhere and why China's happy to keep India guessing.
As China refuses to abandon its Zero Covid policy, a Shanghai resident talks about what it's like to live with this policy when most of the world has moved on.
Gopal MS, who documents Mumbai's sights and smells, and sociologist Ishita Dey explain what the smell of cities tells us about them and also what it says about us.
The mythologist and author talks about the ancient cultural links between Iran and India and how the myths of the two nations diverge.
Times of India's senior editor Shankar Raghuraman decodes the issues with the 10% economically weaker section quota in light of the Supreme Court's verdict saying it's not illegal.
As Twitter muddles through layoffs and an employment winter looms, a person who was laid off and specialist staffing firm Xpheno's Kamal Karanth explain what companies should ideally do when letting people go
Co-Director of Lokniti, Sanjay Kumar, and political columnist Radhika Ramaseshan on what's expected in the Gujarat state election and why.
How industrialists, actors and politicians fell for conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar's many schemes, including a Rs 200 crore fraud orchestrated from inside a jail
Dr Indrajit Khandekar has been working to eliminate the invasive finger test for women for over a decade. He explains why the test should be junked and what the Supreme Court's latest order misses.
How the murder of two women, accompanied by allegations of cannibalism and torture, made national headlines. Journalist Anjana George walks us through the events so far
Mark Bergen, author of ‘Like, Comment, Subscribe: Inside YouTube’s Chaotic Rise to World Domination’, talks about the inner workings of video platform and its many controversies
What do Indian scriptures say about feasting, indulgence and detoxing during festivals? Mythologist and author Devdutt Pattanaik explains.
Ashwini KP, the first Dalit woman from Asia to become special rapporteur to the UN Human Rights Council, explains what she intends to do and why being anti-caste isn't being anti-Hindu
Dhirendra Kumar, the CEO of Value Research, explains how to invest in the current economic climate and how to protect your savings
TOI's Aakash Ahuja and Kalyan Das explain how a raid to catch an alleged illegal mining mastermind resulted in the death of a woman and a war of words between two states.
Journalist Shakir Mir explains the effect of targeted killings in Kashmir while Prof Ankur Datta explains how best to rehabilitate the Pandit community.
As Xi Jinping stays on as China's president, CEO of think-tank Ananta Centre Indrani Bagchi makes sense of what it means for India and global politics.
US-based women's rights activist Elnaz Sarbar talks to TOI's Alka Dhupkar about the protests in Iran, growing up hating the hijab and what people in Iran want
Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik talks about what Indian mythology tells us about winning and losing whether it is to do with a game or life.
The Times of India's Hemali Chhapia explains the issues with India's oldest grading system of colleges and universities that has let smaller institutes get the same grade as prestigious ones.
Vanchit Bahujan Aaghadi head and Dalit leader Prakash Ambedkar on why Arvind Kejriwal should have backed his minister and why many Dalits continue to embrace Buddhism.
Former chief election commissioner SY Quraishi explains what the Election Commission should and shouldn't do when it comes to policing 'freebies'
Times of India's Alka Dhupkar and Bhavika Jain talk about the two Shiv Sena rallies on Dussehra and what they tell us about the political turmoil in Maharashtra
Former Maharashtra chief minister and G-23 letter signatory Prithviraj Chavan talks to Alka Dhupkar about the upcoming party president elections and the challenges that remain.
Dr Arun Gupta from think-tank Nutrition Advocacy in Public Interest talks about the problems with how India plans to warn people against eating junk food
University of Michigan researcher Joyojeet Pal uncovers the campaign against Bollywood on social media and journalist Kaveree Bamzai explains how much it has hurt an already struggling industry.
Mythologist and author Devdutt Pattanaik decodes our Navratri rituals and why the imposition of food choices isn't true to the festival's origins.
In light of the ban by the government, TOI's Rajeev KR from Kozhikode explains why, despite its growth, the Popular Front of India remained on the fringes.
TajSATS executive chief Arun Batra talks to Saurabh Sinha about the science and economics behind meals on flights and what he'll never serve a flyer
TOI Plus columnist Hasan Suroor and columnist Sunny Hundal talk about the possible impact of the Hindu-Muslim violence in the UK city of Leicester.
As the legendary fast bowler retires after a two-decade-long career, author Suprita Das explains just how much Jhulan Goswami changed Indian cricket.
Author of The Great Smog of India, Siddharth Singh talks about why he expects no reduction in air pollution this year and what needs to be done to improve the air thousands of Indians breathe every winter.
After a court allowed a petition to conduct daily worship in Varanasi's Gyanvapi mosque, advocate Shadan Farasat talks about how the verdict affects The Places of Worship Act and its future impact.
In light of a recent case in Vadodara involving an octogenarian couple, prominent sexologist Dr Rajan Bhonsle explains how intimacy changes with age.
Mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik explores what Hindu beliefs and what scriptures say about death, letting go, funeral rituals, heaven and hell and rebirth.
A petition in the Supreme Court has raised questions about the state and atheism. Nikhil Joshi from the Bright Society talks about why atheists get a bad rap in India
As Reliance buys the Campa Cola brand, Vikram Doctor decodes why the Indian alternative to Coca Cola failed and the enduring appeal of colas.
Dr Geet Chainani is an Indian-born physician who's headed to help with Pakistan's floods after having helped out before in 2010. She talks about the challenges she expects to face.
Bimal Patel, the architect behind the newly inaugurated Kartavya Path, explains in this 2021 episode how Central Vista will inverse the iconography of power and why most people will be pleasantly surprised
Why Bengaluru flooded and why many Indian cities could meet the same fate in the coming years. Jagdish Krishnaswamy, an ecohydrologist at IIHS, explains what cities need to do
TOI's senior editor Rema Nagarajan explains the issues that arise with crowdfunding campaigns seeking inflated rates for medical procedures and platforms getting too close to private hospitals
TOI's A Subburaj explains why Indian students are trickling back into Ukraine and student Jinovince tells us what it's like to be studying in Ukraine again.
As INS Vikrant joins active naval duty today, The Times of India's defence editor Rajat Pandit explains the role it will play in India's defence plans and why the Navy would like one more soon.
Islamabad-based climate risk expert Ali Sheikh explains the worries after Pakistan's massive floods and IIED's Aditya Bahadur lists the lessons for India
Mythologist and author Devdutt Pattanaik explains how the god acquired the form we're so familiar with as well as the meanings behind how he looks.
TOI's Subodh Ghildiyal and political columnist Radhika Ramaseshan explain the impact of Ghulam Nabi Azad's departure and what to expect in Congress's internal election.
Industrialist Vijaypath Singhania reflects on his life as an aviator, a family squabble that landed him outside the company he ran and cut off from his grandchildren.
Former Maharashtra chief minister and minister of state in the UPA government Prithviraj Chavan talks about how he thinks the Congress can revive itself, the reforms it should undertake and more.
Gurprriet Siingh from Russell Reynolds India talks about dealing with depression at work while Manasthali's Dr Jyoti Kapoor gives some tips on how to deal with stress.
TOI's Sunil Baghel describes the long battle for justice in Bilkis Bano's 2002 case and Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy's Naveed Ahmad explains the many issues with the release of the 11 convicts.
Mythologist and author Devdutt Pattanaik tells us about why the form of Krishna changes across India's temples, why he inspires some of India's most iconic literature and why people identify the most with him.
TOI's Siddharth Saxena explains how a ban on Indian football hurts sportspersons but is also an opportunity to reform India's football body.
Former Indian diplomat Talmiz Ahmad explains the silence of nations over the attack on the prominent author and why The Satanic Verses remains so controversial in Islamic nations
TOI's Durgesh Nandan Jha and IMA's Dr Rajeev Jayadevan explain the rapid rise of Covid-19 cases and deaths in states like Delhi
Can 'too much exercise' hurt your heart? Professor of cardiology at AIIMS Dr G Karthikeyan and Preventive Cardiology & Rehabilitation Specialist Dr Aashish Contractor explain
A wave of lumpy skin disease has killed thousands of cattle across states. TOI's Suparna Roy and Indian Veterinary Association's Dr Dipankar Seth explain the outbreak and what to expect.
Political journalist and TOI Plus columnist Radhika Ramaseshan explains how Nitish Kumar's moves affect political equations in Bihar and the BJP's plans for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls
TOI's Deepthi Sanjiv explains how three murders raised communal tensions while author and columnist Sugata Srinivasaraju explains why the state government is struggling to handle its fallout.
A victim of a sextortion racket on social media speaks about his experience and The Times of India's Sakshi Chand explains how such criminals work.
Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik talks about the sports our gods played, what they teach us about life and our sportspersons favourite god.
India's tribal communities are battling to retain their unique religious identity. Former minister Geetashree Oraon and TISS Guwahati's Jagannath Ambagudia explain what's at stake
Lotfullah Najafizada, who was heading Afghanistan's largest news network, explains the challenges of documenting one of the world's most dangerous places in the world.
TOI's Subodh Ghildiyal and PRS's Mridhula Raghavan decode the drama seen in the first week of the monsoon session of Parliament and what it tells us about politics today.
TOI columnist and Futurebrands CEO Santosh Desai decodes the outrage over Ranveer Singh's nude photoshoot and what's worrying about it.
Supreme Court lawyer and author Chitranshul Sinha explains the implications of a Supreme Court verdict that confirms harsh provisions of India's money laundering law.
Former director general of police Prakash Singh on his decades-long battle to reform the police system and why the political establishment doesn't want to yield control.
TOI's Saibal Sen decodes the scam that resulted in West Bengal minister Partha Chatterjee's arrest and other sensational aspects of the case
How worried should we be after a spate of technical snags disrupted Indian flights recently? TOI's Saurabh Sinha, aviation safety expert Capt Amit Singh and retired aviation regulator JS Rawat weigh in.
Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik explains the origins of the kanwar yatra, the mythology at the centre of it and its significance.
India's considering a right to repair law. COO of NGO Consumer Voice Ashim Sanyal explains how it could save you time and money.
How worried should you be about monkeypox? Dr Giridhar Babu - who studies the spread of diseases - explains why we needn't worry if we get some things right
Author Manoj Joshi explains why multiple rounds of military talks between India and China over the border aren't going anywhere and why China's happy to keep India guessing.
Journalist and author Padma Rao Sundarji explains how the political crisis in Sri Lanka could play out and why the Rajapaksas aren't out of the game just yet.
Sleep specialist Dr Manvir Bhatia and psychiatrist Dr Harish Shetty talk about the explosion of pandemic-hit sleep cycles and why pills or apps won't help
Poet-novelist Jeet Thayil on editing 'The Penguin Book of Indian Poets' together and why poetry finds a resurgence in dark times
Debleena Majumdar of ET breaks down why education technology firms are seeing their business model crumble as the physical classroom finds favour again.
With new variants of Covid-19 constantly resurfacing, Ashoka University's Dr Anurag Agarwal and Dr Rajeev Jayadevan weigh in on how best to navigate surges
Author and journalist Rituparna Chatterjee talks about healing from sexual abuse and why forgiveness is key to the process.
Mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik explains what our gods and holy texts tell us to do about insults directed at them.
Dr Nikhil Datar, whose court battles helped improve India's abortion law, explains why giving India's women the right to a safe abortion is essential.
TOI's Chaitanya Marpakwar explains the battle over the Aarey metro car shed in Mumbai and how it highlights the challenges major infrastructure projects will face.
The return of the cheetah to India remains on hold thanks to red tape. Conservation biologist Neha Sinha explains how to make the project count for more than a vanity project.
Sanjay Nirupam talks to TOI's Alka Dhupkar about the Shiv Sena's past strengths, its convenient embrace of Hindutva and the challenges it faces.
Gateway House's Amit Bhandari and Ananta Centre's Indrani Bagchi explain Pakistan's economic mess, the role China played and why the rescue will need more than reducing chai consumption.
Prominent child psychiatrist Dr. Shekhar Seshadri explains concerns over children and device use, how to tell if someone's addicted and the help they need.
In the first of a fortnightly Times of India podcast episode, mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik explains war in our scriptures and the gods our soldiers evoke before battle.
How a split in the Shiv Sena will affect the state's political parties and also have an impact on the national elections
Times of India's Ishani Duttagupta and immigration lawyer Poorvi Chothani explain why it's so hard to get a visa to the US and how it's affecting Indians working there.
India-born businessman Nitesh Pal explains how his life was upended by the Russian invasion, why he returned to Ukraine, and why he's not leaving again.
Sociologist Pushpendra Kumar Singh helps decode the anger over 'Agnipath' and why the schemes announced by the government may not cool tempers.
Dhirendra Kumar, the CEO of Value Research, explains how to invest in the current economic climate and how to protect your savings
Lt Gen (retd) Satish Dua and Sushant Singh, Senior Fellow at Centre for Policy Research, explain how the 'Agnipath' recruitment scheme changes India's defence forces, their concerns and the path ahead.
The Times of India's K Shriniwas Rao and cricket analyst Joy Bhattacharjya make sense of the massive IPL broadcast rights auction and its implications.
Equality Labs' Thenmozhi Soundararajan talks about her cancelled talk at Google, caste-based discrimination in US companies and why critics are getting it wrong by terming her 'anti-Hindu'
Journalist and author of 'Sumitra and Anees', Seema Chishti explains how her parents' marriage shows what has changed in India and how food can be used to unite or divide.
Journalist Shakir Mir explains the effect of targeted killings in Kashmir while Prof Ankur Datta explains how best to rehabilitate the Pandit community.
Retired diplomat Talmiz Ahmad decodes why Islamic nations have reacted to a BJP spokesperson's statements and how it could affect foreign ties, and Indians working abroad.
As Covid-19 cases rise across states, Public Health Foundation of India's Dr K Srinath Reddy and Dr Anurag Agrawal at Ashoka University answer queries on what we should be concerned about.
TOI's Chandigarh resident editor Sarju Kaul makes sense of the singer's brutal killing, gangs in the state and what this incident means for the new state government.
Former Maharashtra chief minister and minister of state in the UPA government Prithviraj Chavan talks about how he thinks the Congress can revive itself, the reforms it should undertake and more.
Commentator and cricket analyst Joy Bhattacharjya explains how Hardik Pandya could change Team India and how the IPL could change the cricket calendar.
Journalist and author Rituparna Chatterjee talks about going through a school's shooter drill and TOI's Chidanand Rajghatta explains little may change after the horrific shooting in Texas.
ASHAs may have won a WHO award, but Usha Thakur, an ASHA in Delhi, explains what they'd prefer. Then, one of the initiative's founders, Dr T Sundararaman, explains the success of ASHAs and why they're essential for India.
India signs up for a new trade framework and the Quad comes up with new issues to tackle. Ananta Centre's Indrani Bagchi helps make sense of the developments.
Gurprriet Siingh from Russell Reynolds India talks about dealing with depression at work while Manasthali's Dr Jyoti Kapoor gives some tips on how to deal with it.
Times of India 'Swaminomics' columnist and economist Swaminathan Anklesaria Aiyar explains why there's no cure for high prices and the effects it will have.
K Shriniwas Rao decodes why two of the IPL's biggest teams crashed while Akaash Dasgupta makes sense of this year's biggest successes.
Lawyer Abhay Nath Yadav who's arguing for the mosque explains their objections while lawyer Surabhi Chaturvedi explains the law that protects the mosque.
Work from home may have given employees more flexibility but it's taken away their opportunity to find love in the workplace. But it's not entirely a lost cause.
Lt Gen (retd) DS Hooda and TOI's defence editor Rajat Pandit explain why India needs a new Chief of Defence Staff quickly and the reforms that are on hold.
Three people look back at their experiences during the most deadly wave of the Covid-19 pandemic in India, how they got through it and how it changed them.
Ghazala Jamil and Qudsiya Contractor explain the myths about Muslim-dominated colonies in cities and why they are easy targets for demolition drives.
As Mahinda Rajapaksa leaves amidst violence, TOI's Padma Rao Sundarji explains what his exit means for the beleaguered island nation
TOI's Amitava Sanyal explains why India's bumper crop prediction was hit and agricultural economist Ashok Gulati explains the bigger problems facing India's wheat output.
In conversation with Sumaira Abdulali, who has been battling noise pollution and horribly loud loudspeakers before it became something for politicians to battle over.
A car owner and two experts explain why more car owners are losing their vehicles to banks after failing to repay loans and the effect it's having on India's auto market.
A Shanghai resident talks about what it's like to live in a stringent Covid-19 lockdown in one of the world's biggest cities when most of the world has moved on.
TOI's Sanjay Dutta explains why many states faced power cuts as temperatures rose and IIHS's Chandni Singh explains how we can deal with future heatwaves.
Cricket analyst and commentator Ayaz Memon talks to TOI's K Shriniwas Rao about Virat Kohli's struggles and what it means for Team India
TOI's Subodh Ghildiyal and political analyst Rasheed Kidwai explain why Prashant Kishor-Congress talks fell through, what it means for the party and the Gandhi family.
Rukmini S explains why India's Covid-19 death toll is definitely higher than the official figures and why we need greater transparency with data
Former police officials LN Rao and VN Rai, and Common Cause's Radhika Jha explain the challenges police face in tackling communal violence and why their record isn't very good.
After two players test positive for Covid-19, TOI's K Shriniwas Rao explains how India's biggest cricket tournament is trying to deal with the virus and the challenges it faces
TOI+ columnist Aneela Z Babar speaks with Pakistani commentator Mohammad Taqi about what could, and should, change under the new PM.
As the state witnesses a spike in forest fires earlier than usual this summer, TOI's Shivani Azad and ecologist SP Singh decode their impact and how things can be handled better.
Dr Shahid Jameel talks to Rema Nagarajan about how to read a spike in cases in some states and how we can live with this virus.
Lawyer Chitranshul Sinha explains the problems with using demolitions to mete out justice and political columnist Radhika Ramaseshan decodes why Shivraj Singh Chouhan wants to be seen as 'bulldozer mama'
Immunologist Dr Vineeta Bal and Indian Medical Association's Dr Rajeev Jayadevan explain everything you needed to know about taking an extra dose of Covid-19 vaccine
Supreme Court lawyer Abhinav Sekhri and criminal law expert Mrinal Satish from NLSIU explain the risks that come with how criminal laws are being reformed
CEEW's CEO Arunabha Ghosh and IIED's Aditya Bahadur help make sense of the latest IPCC report, what it means for us and what you can do.
Dr Ashok Sharda in Kota, Dr Ravi Wankhedkar in Dhule and Dr Sanjay Nagral in Mumbai on how best to protect doctors after the suicide of a physician due to harassment over a patient's death
Author Devdutt Pattanaik and food writer Vikram Doctor weigh in on the weaponisation of what we eat
A constitutional crisis rocks Pakistan and Sri Lanka faces an economic collapse. A look at what the ramifications will be for South Asia, especially India.
Autocar India's managing editor Sergius Barretto explains why electric scooters may be catching fire while JATO Dynamics India head Ravi Bhatia explains the action it should prompt
Political analysts and TOI Plus columnists Sugata Srinivasaraju and Radhika Ramaseshan explain why communalism is being stoked in Karnataka and how it will shape politics in the state
Journalist Aisha Nazim explains what it's like living through Sri Lanka's rolling power cuts and fuel shortages, while TISS's R Ramakumar explains the economic policies that have brought the island to this point
As MPs debate the Criminal Procedure (Identification) Bill, Access Now's Raman Jit Singh Chima and PRS's Chakshu Roy explain what's worrying about the proposed law.
As Mahendra Singh Dhoni quits the last captaincy he holds, cricket analysts Bharat Sundaresan, Anand Vasu and Pradeep Magazine make sense of a remarkable career and legacy
Tanvi Madan from Brookings Institution and Ananta Centre CEO Indrani Bagchi explain the fallout of the Russia-Ukraine war and the effect on India
As a new entrance exam is rolled out, TOI's Shradha Chettri analyses the on-ground situation, ex-education secretary Anil Swarup says why it's needed and educationist Anita Rampal explains the problems it raises.
Understanding the political tumult that’s gripped Pakistan with author and analyst Raza Rumi and journalist Munizae Jahangir
As the Congress debates who should lead it and how, TOI's Subodh Ghildiyal and Sonia Gandhi's biographer Rasheed Kidwai explain what's happening and what to expect
Writer and journalist Rahul Pandita, who along with his family was forced to flee Kashmir in 1990, talks about the exodus and why 32 years on, it haunts Kashmir.
As India reels under an spike in temperatures, Dr Dileep Mavalankar explains how heat kills and Chandni Singh, a lead author from the recent IPCC report, explains why there's no escaping the heat
Filmmaker Vikramaditya Motwane and critic Jai Arjun Singh on why a film about an Italian mafia family remains relevant 50 years later and what its impact has been on Indian cinema
Defence experts Manoj Joshi from the Observer Research Foundation and Sushant Singh from the Centre for Policy Research analyse the accidental firing of a missile to Pakistan
The Aam Aadmi Party’s emphatic win in Punjab creates new contours for 2024 and why opposition in India is now in the post-Congress phase. Journalist Shivam Vij and Panjab University’s Professor Ashutosh Kumar weigh in.
Madan Sabnavis, chief economist at Bank of Baroda, and The Economic Times' Sugata Ghosh explain the fallout of the rupee touching new lows against the dollar
Political scientist Neelanjan Sircar and political commentator Shivam Vij decode exit poll results and the implications of the predictions made
Surgeon Dr Sanjay Nagral and TOI's Rema Nagarajan explain what the Ukraine crisis exposed about medical education in India and why there are no easy fixes
Writer and essayist Pankaj Mishra talks about his new novel, Run and Hide, the struggle to find 'New India' between small towns and cities, and the crisis of masculinity
Journalist and author Tim Judah is in Kyiv and decodes the many miscalculations that have been made in Russia's attack on Ukraine
Volunteer group Team SOS India's head Nitesh Singh explains what they're doing for trapped Indian students and CEO of Ananta Centre Indrani Bagchi explains how the war is changing the continent.
A hike in petrol, diesel and LPG prices was imminent but the war in Ukraine means it could bite much deeper and longer than expected
Political analysts Rasheed Kidwai and Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay discuss a new opposition front taking shape and whether it can exist without the Congress
Ahead of crucial BMC polls, Aaditya Thackeray on the city’s mega projects and what awaits Mumbai
Understanding what’s happening in the world’s biggest hotspot. Indrani Bagchi of Ananta Centre and Nandan Unnikrishnan of ORF decode how a war in Ukraine could impact India and the world.
Mindtree co-founder Subroto Bagchi on his philanthropy, the personal journey that brought him to it, and how big donations can lead to institution building.
Political commentator Radhika Ramaseshan and Senior Fellow at the Centre for Policy Research Neelanjan Sircar explain what's influencing voters in India's largest state
Revelations of a former National Stock Exchange CEO's emails with an alleged yogi raise questions of corporate governance and how a scandal was handled
R Gopalakrishnan and ET Tech editor Samidha Sharma explain the toxic culture that bedevils certain start ups, how to rein in egotistic CEOs and what lies ahead for BharatPe's Ashneer Grover
TOI's K Shriniwas Rao explains the cold numbers and logic behind the drama of the IPL mega auction.
The Punjab elections have always been close but this year's polls could go down to the wire. Lokniti's Ashutosh Kumar and TOI's Chandigarh resident editor Sarju Kaul explain why.
Union minister and BJP national secretary Bhupender Yadav speaks on how the party welcomes dissent, unemployment and polarisation while his coauthor of a book on the BJP, economist Ila Patnaik, breaks down the party’s economic plank
Saba Hussain, author of Contemporary Muslim Girlhoods in India, senior advocate BT Venkatesh and TOI’s Deepthi Sanjiv on what the hijab controversy has unmasked about Karnataka.
Celebrating Lata Mangeshkar’s glorious career and how she became the soundtrack of Indian lives.
A conversation with Shaunak Sen, whose new film All That Breathes, won the Sundance Film Festival’s World Cinema Grand Jury prize for Documentary this week. The film explores two brothers' quest to save kites set against a city battling pollution and polarisation
Sleep specialist Dr Manvir Bhatia and psychiatrist Dr Harish Shetty talk about the explosion of pandemic-hit sleep cycles and why the best solutions aren't pills or apps
Making sense of the Budget's proposal to grant legitimacy to cryptocurrency by taxing it and the plan to launch a digital rupee.
Understanding the deeper malaise that led to the railway exam violence in Bihar and the role of popular coaching class teachers like Khan sir.
Author-journalist Sandesh Prabhudesai and Times of India's Goa editor Rajesh Menon explain why the Goa election will be closer than ever.
Ramachandra Guha on what it takes to write history, and how he sees his role in public life.
As the standoff between Russia and the West over Ukraine continues, Tanvi Madan from Brookings Institution and TOI's diplomatic editor Indrani Bagchi explain its multiple geopolitical fallouts, including for India.
Senior Fellow at Centre for Policy Research Sushant Singh explains the issues that the merging of the flames of the Amar Jawan Jyoti and National War Memorial throw up
Brand guru Santosh Desai and cricket writer Anand Vasu on why Kohli matters and how his stepping down will change the Indian team and Brand Virat.
Pulmonologist Dr Zarir Udwadia and immunologist Dr Vineeta Bal explain the dangers, and futility, of overmedicating against Omicron and the path ahead after this wave is over.
Dancers Shovana Narayan and Aditi Mangaldas and musicologist Yatindra Mishra talk about the life and times of 'Maharaj-ji', the doyen of the Lucknow Gharana of Kathak
Ahead of a crucial state election in Uttar Pradesh, multiple leaders from the ruling BJP have switched sides. Columnist Radhika Ramaseshan, veteran journalist Vasindra Mishra and Professor Badri Narayan decode what's happening.
As the famous boy reporter from Brussels turns 93, Amitava Sanyal speaks with graphic novelist Orijit Sen and professor Abhijit Gupta on why the Tintin comics and its iconic characters still resonate with readers.
Actor Parvathy explains what changed - and what needs to - nearly five years after the shocking sexual assault of a Malayalam cinema star in 2017
Neil Nongkynrih, the founder of the Shillong Chamber Choir passed away earlier this month. We speak to his pupil William Richmond, TV impresario Siddhartha Basu and Shillong Times' editor Patricia Mukhim to understand his legacy.
As India starts giving senior citizens and frontline workers booster doses of Covid-19 vaccines, Dr Ambarish Satwik and AccessIBSA's Achal Prabhala explain the issues at stake and how much it will help.
TOI's Vaibhav Purandare speaks with senior journalist Sagarika Ghose on why she decided to write a biography of AB Vajpayee, and his relationship with Advani and RSS
Will offices open this year or will waves of Covid-19 keep them shut? We look at how companies have tweaked how they expect their employees to work, perhaps for good.
As China builds a bridge over the Pangong lake in Ladakh, defence and international affairs expert Manoj Joshi joins us to decode the latest developments on India's eastern front.
2022 opens on a downer, with Covid-19 cases spiking across India. Epidemiologist and pulmonologist Dr Lancelot Pinto explains the risks the Omicron variant comes with and the precautions we need to take
As 2021 comes to a close, we take a look back at the year that's passed through some of the voices that featured on our show, making sense of a tumultuous time
As 2021 draws to a close, food writer Vikram Doctor and National Restaurant Association of India's Anurag Katriar decode food delivery trends and what it means for ghar ka khana
As the Hindu Vahini Sena’s Haridwar conclave casts its dark shadow over India, scholar Suhas Palshikar takes the political temperature and discusses the idea of a Hindu rashtra.
As the Omicron threat looms large, Padmapriya, one of the thousands of long-haulers, offers this harrowing account as a cautionary tale.
With Parliament concluding a day ahead of schedule, our two in-house political watchers Subodh Ghildiyal and Rajeev Deshpande weigh in on a session that saw Opposition protest, even though Lok Sabha clocked 82% productivity and Rajya Sabha 48%
How industrialists, actors and politicians fell for conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar's many schemes, the latest being a Rs 200 crore fraud orchestrated from inside a jail
Understanding the implications of the new Act that seeks to link Aadhaar to voter ids and how it impacts Indian democracy. Former Chief Election Commissioner SY Quraishi, ADR's Maj Gen (retd) Anil Verma, and Access Now's Raman Jit Singh Chima weigh in.
Director Kabir Khan on ‘83', Ranveer Singh’s transformation and fanboy moments with Kapil Dev.
Dr Shashank Joshi in Mumbai explains what we need to worry about as the highly transmissible Omicron variant makes its presence felt, and Dr Rajeev Jayadevan explains why booster shots shouldn't be our biggest concern
A conversation with biographer Syed Badrul Ahsan on the political legacy of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and how India contributed in shaping the newly-formed country.
Journalist and author Pradeep Magazine talks about why Virat Kohli's removal as ODI captain was a raw deal, the highs and lows of Indian cricket over the decades and about the original legends of the game.
The Vicktrina wedding kept paparazzis at bay. How are Mumbai’s paps coping as more and more stars control access and narrative.
TOI's Chidanand Rajghatta, journalist Snigdha Sur and author-journalist Anita Raghavan weigh in on what Parag Agrawal's elevation to Twitter CEO reveals about Indians in the US and in the world of tech.
Retired Air Vice Marshal Manmohan Bahadur and defence analyst Rahul Bedi weigh in on the chopper crash that killed Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat and 12 others and the tenure of India's highest-ranking military official.
TOI diplomatic editor Indrani Bagchi explains the significance of Vladimir Putin's visit at a time when India is moving closer to US and Russia to China, and why India-Russia relations need nurturing.
Nearly three decades after the 1992 Babri Masjid demolition, journalist and author Nilanjan Mukhopadhay explains how the event shaped the BJP's politics and why the building of the Ram temple won't alter its course.
The pandemic crushed India's multi-crore wedding industry in 2020, but this year it's back with a bang. But the big Indian weddings have changed, perhaps forever
Badminton legend Pullela Gopichand on what it takes to create winners and how he overcame his own challenges as a player and coach
What does a new, possibly highly transmissible variant of the virus that causes Covid-19 mean for India just as it opens up? Eminent virologist Dr Shahid Jameel explains what to worry about and what we need to do.
After the recent defection of 12 MLAs in Meghalaya to TMC — a look at how the party in Bengal is expanding its footprint. In this episode, editor Patricia Mukhim, political analyst Neelanjan Sircar and TOI's Sunando Sarkar weigh in.
Two deeply-researched reports reveal exactly how the narrative was influenced and controlled by social media on the farmers' protest and the Aryan Khan case
Former diplomat Chandrashekhar Dasgupta attempts to set the record straight on what drove India's push to liberate Bangladesh in 1971.
How much is the right exercise for your heart? Professor of cardiology at AIIMS Dr G Karthikeyan and Preventive cardiology & rehabilitation specialist Dr Aashish Contractor explain.
The repeal of three farm laws opens up new political spaces. We analyse them and who benefits.
India came out of COP26 accused of watering down a provision on power generated from coal. Decoding India's stand on emissions and how developed nations got off relatively easy.
The government seems set to come up with rules for reining in the booming cryptocurrency market. But what can it do and what does the industry want?
Understanding the legacy of Maharashtra’s cultural icon Babasaheb Purandare, also known as Shivaji’s bard.
Industrialist Vijaypat Singhania reflects on his life as an aviator, and a family squabble that landed him outside the company he ran and cut off from his grandchildren.
With Mamata Banerjee’s high-decibel campaign in Goa, Vikram Doctor discovers foods that unite East and West.
Understanding why India and Pakistan are holding different international summits on Afghanistan and what they hope to achieve.
A conversation with Desmond Shum about wealth, power, corruption and vengeance in today’s China.
It’s been five years since that fateful night when 85% of India’s currency was made invalid. We weigh in on the impact of that shock move.
In this episode, writer Amitava Kumar talks about his new book, A Time Outside This Time, and the role of the novelist in the post-truth world.
India made headlines by promising to hit net zero carbon emissions by 2070. What does this mean for India and how can this be achieved?
How China's new law gives it power to take different actions under the guise of defending its borders and what it means for India. Former foreign secretary Shyam Saran breaks it down.
As states opt for a fireworks ban ahead of the festival of lights, we look at the environmental and financial fallout underpinned with serious health concerns
TOI's diplomatic editor Indrani Bagchi and Dhaka Tribune's Asif Islam weigh in on the rise in incidents of majoritarian violence against the minority community in Bangladesh during Durga Puja and how it affects ties between both countries.
Prize-winning writer Sonia Shah talks about how we've dealt with Covid-19, why exterminating a pathogen isn't the best strategy to take on a pandemic and how to prevent the next pandemic.
In these hyper-polarised times, social media has become a fierce arena, where opinion can make or break a company. Futurebrands CEO and TOI columnist Santosh Desai weighs in
In today's episode, constitutional expert Gautam Bhatia and investigative journalist Josy Joseph on the role of investigative agencies and judiciary in the upkeep of democracy
Picking the Indian men's cricket team coach is always a contentious affair, which might explain why the BCCI is pushing for its safest option. But Rahul Dravid won't have it easy if he takes the job.
Over 10 crore doses later, why is India's indigenously developed Covid-19 vaccine Covaxin still off the WHO's list and what's wrong with the data revealed so far?
Sidhartha Mallya confronts depression and OCD. In his new book he also speaks about his complicated relationship with his father and life in a gilded cage.
Petrol and diesel prices have hit new highs and states are warning of power blackouts over coal supply. How deep is the crisis and how long will it last?
Following a debate over renaming India's oldest national park, a look at the life and times of India's most well-known huntsman-turned-conservationist.
After actor Shah Rukh Khan's son and others are accused of drug use, we take a look at why the NCB is being accused of foul play, the consequences and what's wrong India's war against drugs.
The writer and the winner of the Jnanpith award talks about his new book which looks at climate change and the pandemic, and how it traces back to the history of colonialism.
The death of 8 persons in Lakhimpur Kheri reveals the deep fault lines in Uttar Pradesh, what’s fueling the farmers’ anger and the political fallout.
As schools across India slowly reopen their doors to students, we look at how safe it is for children to fill classrooms again and why we need to reconsider how we teach them.
The Indian stock markets are at all-time highs even as the economy struggles to get on its feet. Decoding the Indian economy's predicament and how it's affecting how we save money.
First Capt Amarinder Singh, then Navjot Singh Sidhu. What does the massive churn in the Congress mean months ahead of an election in Punjab. Also, what does it say about the Gandhis?
The controversial death of Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad chief Swami Narendra Giri also opens the lid on murky land deals, succession battles and the deal making that plague many religious akharas.
One of the world’s most respected CEOs on how women can be heard better, her wish to create high quality child care inspired by anganwadis, and that mad dash she made to catch Sachin’s last match.
Experts explain why Uttarakhand has been witnessing a number of landslides and other natural disasters.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi heads to the US with the Quad and newly-formed AUKUS in the spotlight. What to expect from the visit.
Virat Kohli and a turn in the affairs of Indian cricket. Understanding what’s going on.
Bimal Patel is the man executing architecturally PM Modi’s new Idea of India. In this rare interview, he says Central Vista will preserve Edwin Lutyens and Herbert Baker’s vision but inverse the iconography of power.
Writer Nirad C Chaudhuri’s son alleges memorabilia worth crores which he gave to the Calcutta Club has gone missing.
Randima Fernando, co-founder at the Centre for Humane Technology, talks about the impact of the film, Social Dilemma, and why well-being is not at the heart of Big Tech.
Understanding the larger political manoeuvering behind four BJP chief ministers being axed in the last six months
Author and former diplomat Pavan Varma explains why his new book is a counter to those who claim to protect Hinduism and to liberal scholars who he says have airbrushed history.
US moves on after two wars lost in Afghanistan and Iraq; Bin Laden is dead but the ISIS is around and South Asia has just become inflammable. How will it all play out?
Journalist and author Adrian Levy on Afghanistan’s new government, New Delhi’s tight embrace of the US, Pakistan’s dilemmas, and what Ajit Doval might be thinking.
What awaits us at the movies once theatres reopen? Vikramaditya Motwane and PVR CEO Kamal Gianchandani weigh in.
The protest against the farm laws completes a year, and takes a sharp political turn with Sunday’s mahapanchayat. What are its implications?
A page has turned with the death of Kashmir’s top separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani. What comes next?
Why the move to redo Jallianwala bagh has stirred such passion and controversy. The man who’s tweet sparked it, weighs in.
Rebellion is running rife through Congress ranks while its top leadership is in abeyance. What’s in store next for India’s grand old party?
Understanding Kerala’s huge COVID surge—what’s causing it, and why the rest of the country needn’t worry about it. Yet.
Breathless political theatre is hurting Mumbai. Former home minister Anil Deshmukh and former police commissioner Parambir Singh are both on the run from investigators. What happens when they surrender?
With the Indian Council of Historical Research planning to exclude those who participated in the 1921 Malabar Rebellion against colonial rule from the list of freedom fighters, a look at how the 100-year-old incident has polarised the state.
What’s behind the rising clamour for a caste-based census? Can it affect the reservation policy? Is it going to be a political game changer or another hot potato? All your questions answered here.
Vidhie Mukerjea speaks about the five years that followed the shock discovery of her sister Sheena Bora’s sensational murder, her parents arrest, and her own descent into anxiety.
After a grim report on climate change, experts explain how we can lead more sustainable lives and actually make a difference.
British Asian author Sunjeev Sahota, long-listed for the Booker Prize, on his new book, his Indian roots and the role Mathematics has played in his writing
The heartwarming story of what happened after thirteen lions at Chennai zoo contracted Covid.
Afghanistan is plunged into political strife and a humanitarian crisis. What are the implications of this Pakistan-backed regime change for India?
Forced to live in a toxic hellhole, why thousands of people fought to move out of Mahul and what their struggle says about our cities
…It’s been that long since the fiercely contested elections in West Bengal, Assam and Tamil Nadu. How the new governments have scored, and what it tells us about Indian politics shaping up for 2024.
Be worried. Very worried. A new global report by top climate scientists sounds the alarm.
All that went into the making of India’s Olympics campaign in Tokyo and what that remains to be done.
Marico founder Harsh Mariwala explains why he actively participates in philanthropic efforts. Plus some tips for aspiring entrepreneurs.
India's hockey teams at the Tokyo Olympics have the nation's attention after stellar runs. Decoding the rise of the men's and women's teams.
A never-before number of Class 12 students may have scored over 90 per cent marks, but educationists are saying the crisis of learning is real
The withdrawal of top stars from sporting events has put the focus on mental health in sports. Top coaches explain why mental toughness doesn't matter if an athlete's life lacks balance.
India planned to vaccinate all its citizens against Covid-19 by the end of 2021, but that increasingly seems unlikely. What went wrong and what can be done to protect the most vulnerable against the pandemic?
Kaushik Basu, who's out with a new book, on what it was like to get a ringside view of New Delhi politics when he served as the Chief Economic Adviser during UPA-2 government.
A century divides the bubonic plague and Covid that hit Mumbai. This is the story of how the city’s finest doctors saw the challenge then and now, and how the past is linked with what we are experiencing today.
A reluctant BS Yediyurappa is being nudged to step down as CM of Karnataka on Monday. What does this mean for the state and the BJP.
A conversation with Javed Akhtar about the loss of songs in movies, how the pandemic will change Bollywood and the star power of Dilip Kumar and Amitabh Bachchan.
The Taliban is on the march again in Afghanistan after a 20 year gap. The US has left without brokering peace, and now the country is plunged in chaos and civil war. We unpack and explain what’s going on in Afghanistan and why India should worry.
Will Prashant Kishor join the Congress for the biggest political challenge of his life?
A law proposed in Uttar Pradesh to curb population growth plays into entirely inaccurate and deeply held notions on population. Is it a diversionary tactic or preventing a demographic disaster?
India’s most ambitious plan to transform its military under new CDS General Rawat has run into controversy. Defence expert Manoj Joshi decodes what’s going on and what’s at stake.
Stan Swamy’s death and the continued incarceration of Bhima Koregaon 15 suggests that political negotiations with inconvenient opponents is no longer an option.
Dilip Kumar’s death marks not just the passing of an actor extraordinaire but also that of an icon who spoke for a shared Hindu-Muslim south Asian heritage.
Shiv Sena leader and spokesperson Sanjay Raut addresses the rumours of split that dog the Maharashtra government and also the Sena’s very ambiguous feelings for the BJP.
A conversation with Mohamedou Slahi whom the Americans detained, interrogated and tortured for 14 years at Guantanamo Bay without ever charging him. His heartbreaking story is now a major motion picture.
We put the spotlight on a series of high-value digital acquisitions that are revolutionising art world and indeed our notion of what art really is.
Staring at a precipitous population decline, the Parsi community’s efforts to add to their numbers is bearing fruit.
This June marks 30 years of India’s liberalisation and its architect PV Narasimha Rao’s 100th birth anniversary. We piece together the legacy of India’s first PM from the south, whom the Congress chose to forget
From covert ops to vaccine diplomacy, it takes all sorts of stratagem to catch an artful dodger. How India is closing in on Mehul Choksi
Shahid Jameel, one of India’s most prominent virologists, on entering the age of pandemics and why virus surveillance is the future of health.
An LIC salesman in Punjab breaks the country's biggest coronavirus fake test scam at this year's Kumbh Mela
A conversation with lawyer Saurabh Kirpal on why sexual orientation matters when it comes to getting on the bench and why SC must necessarily be a counter-majoritarian institution.
Carnatic singer TM Krishna on what it means to be an artist, whether politics and art are inseparable and what are the fears that keep him up at night
The Times of India podcast will put the spotlight on ideas, people and stories that matter from Monday to Friday.
Jhumpa Lahiri who has just translated her own Italian novel into English talks about moving deftly between multiple languages, and how Hindustani classical music helps to cope with the recent loss of her mother.
For a country, which was being hailed as the world's answer to get everyone vaccinated, is today struggling to jab its own. TOI's diplomatic editor Indrani Bagchi weighs in.
Peter Piot, one of the world’s foremost public health experts and the man who co-discovered Ebola, on the roadmap ahead.
The river becomes the theatre for a morality play on Pandemic, politics and Hinduism. Uma Bharti and Hinduism scholar Wendy Doniger weigh in.
Leading child and adolescent psychiatrist Dr Amit Sen on how to help kids grappling with difficult emotions in the pandemic.
Leading clinical psychologist Sonali Gupta on how to build resilience and how to acknowledge difficult emotions in the time of a deadly second wave.
For a tenure that coincided with the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, Justice SA Bobde's term as CJI may not have been a remarkable one, but it was most certainly eventful. Migrants, Sabarimala, Habeus Corpus petitions, and constitutional matters were not heard but a Prashant Bhushan’s tweet was adjudged with alacrity...We take the temperature on the tenure of the 47th Chief Justice of India
Earlier this year, four tigers from one family went missing from the Ranthambore National Park. A tiger (T-64) tigress (T-73) and their two cubs, have not been spotted by forest officials for nearly a year, and are now thought to be confirmed missing. In this episode, we explain how and why tigers go missing, and what it says about conservation efforts in the country.
Former National Security Advisor, and unarguably one of India's finest thinkers on international affairs, Shivshankar Menon is just out with a new book called "India and Asian Geopolitics: The Past, Present". In our interview of the week, Menon speaks to The Times of India's diplomatic affairs editor Indrani Bagchi about the implications of China's increasingly militarised politics and how India's own hyper nationalism will play out on the global stage.
Dr Ambarish Satwik a vascular surgeon at Delhi's Ganga Ram Hospital, calls the Indian capital the world's most distraught city at present. In this interview, he tells us what we to expect over the next few weeks, why one must mask even while indoors and to vaccinate urgently for the pandemic has left no safe spaces.
Bengal’s Bhadralok wields a disproportionately large clout in the Indian imagination. But as Kolkata, the bastion of this elite section goes to the polls today, find out who these Bhadraloks are, their rich legacy, and whether they still matter.