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150 Years Ago, the Field of Astrophysics Was Born In This Fishing Hamlet in...
Machilipatnam is one of the oldest port towns on the Andhra coast. Very few Indians would know that it was also the site of a landmark discovery 150 years ago that laid the foundation of a new branch...
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An Ode to The Pioneering Woman Who Handed Vajpayee a Rare Poll Defeat!
There is no question that the late Atal Bihari Vajpayee remains one of India’s greatest parliamentarians having been elected on 12 occasions—he was a 10-time Lok Sabha and 2-time Rajya Sabha member....
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Blazing A Trail: The Forgotten Story of Bengaluru’s ‘Coffee Pudi’ Sakamma
Mornings often begin with a cup of piping hot filter ‘kaapi’ in Karnataka, a state with one of the strongest coffee drinking cultures in India. Not only does it produce more than 70% of the country’s...
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When Gandhiji Collected Rs 28 Lakhs for Kerala: Remembering the ‘Great Flood...
Most reports about the recent Kerala floods described them as “the worst floods that the state faced in a century.” Thousands of people were displaced, hundreds of lives were lost, and estimates of...
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Sonali Banerjee: The Untold Story of India’s First Woman Maritime Officer
Even in the 21st Century, sailing on the high seas remains a male-dominated trade. Whether aboard trans-oceanic cargo vessels or sturdy inshore tugboats, crews and officer complements of India’s ships...
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Velu Nachiyar & Kuyili: The Women Who Took Down The British 85 Yrs Before 1857!
History books will never tell you who Velu Nachiyar was, or that she was the first ever queen from India to have bravely rebelled against the British forces. Neither will they mention Kuyili, who was...
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“Fashion Now to Denigrate the Country”: What 20-YOs Thought of India in 1967
It was 20 years since India had achieved independence. In the decade before 1967, India had witnessed the first television service (1959), Goa’s liberation from the Portuguese (1961), the first Prime...
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Want to Be a Medieval Indian King? The Many Mysteries of ‘Manasollasa’ Will...
King Someswara III, who succeeded his father Vikramaditya VI and inherited the Western Chalukya kingdom (parts of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Goa and Andhra Pradesh), was a ruler by blood but a poet at...
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Unsung Pioneers: Five Forgotten Women Who Defined the Spirit of Bengaluru
Bengaluru city has a long history of brave, visionary women, who were instrumental in making remarkable changes in policy and social systems and establishing orders that remained in place for...
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Food Fit for Royalty: So What Did The Mughal Emperors Eat For Dinner?
One of the most powerful dynasties of the medieval world, the Mughals are entwined inseparably with India’s history and culture. From art and culture to architecture, they bequeathed to this country a...
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The Untold Story of The Fighter Pilot Who Almost Became the 1st Indian in Space!
On April 2, 1984, Retired Wing Commander and Ashoka Chakra recipient Rakesh Sharma flew aboard Soyuz T-11, as part of the Intercosmos Programme, making him the first Indian citizen to travel to space....
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4500-YO DNA From Rakhigarhi May Rewrite Crucial Theories About Harappans!
A recent archaeological find in Rakhigarhi, Haryana, could shed light on the history of the Indus Valley Civilisation. According to a report in India Today, a 4,500-year-old skeleton, possibly...
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How This ‘Lion of Odisha’ Took On the British & Helped Sardar Patel Unify India!
Mainstream media in India has done a shoddy job in its coverage of Odisha. Like Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, the Northeast and the other frontier regions of this country, the state usually appears in the...
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Why Do Israel’s Textbooks Have Lessons on Indian Soldiers? An Amazing Tale...
The city of Haifa, in Israel, holds a deep-rooted connection with India—one that it remembers and celebrates even today. On Thursday, 6 September, Haifa celebrated the centenary year of its liberation...
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In 1792, a Scottish Artist Came to Paint a Peshwa. The Chaturthi He Saw Will...
Ganesh Chaturthi—the festival famously “started” by Bal Gangadhar Tilak to unite the masses in an attempt to revolt against the British forces—has its roots way back in history. Even as the entire...
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70 Years Ago, Hyderabad Acceded to India: What Unfolded in Those Crucial 109 Hrs
Today marks the 70th anniversary of the day the erstwhile Hyderabad State merged with the Indian Union. At noon on September 17, 1948, the 2,12,000 square kilometre-large kingdom of Hyderabad ceased to...
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The ‘Untouchable’ Cricketer Who Challenged the British & His Fellow Countrymen
Palwankar Baloo, the left-arm orthodox spinner who could turn the bow both ways with immaculate accuracy, was probably the greatest Indian cricketer of the early 20th century. More than a sporting...
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Alladi Krishnaswami: An Architect of the Constitution Who Was ‘Better’ Than...
When the Constituent Assembly came together for the first time on December 6, 1946, India was on the cusp of Independence. However, the contours of what a sovereign India would look like weren’t very...
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How India’s 1st Muslim Woman Teacher Started a ‘Beti Padhao’ Movement in 19th...
Are you in favour of education for girls? To even ask this question in today’s socio-political milieu seems ridiculous, considering that this is not only enshrined in our Constitution but supported by...
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The Origin of Gulab Jamun: A Story of History, Tradition & Oodles of Sweetness!
Festivals and celebrations without sweets? No can do! From the rasgulla and the modak to jalebi and gajar ka halwa, Indian desserts can make most of us go weak in the knees. However, if there is one...
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