K'taka govt announces Rs 1610 cr COVID-19 package

The Karnataka government on Wednesday announced a Rs 1,610 crore relief package for the benefit of those in distress due to the COVID-19-induced lockdown, and hiked excise duty on liquor by 11 per......

The Mallah Factor in Bihar

'The Mallahs may remain divided between the two competing coalitions in Bihar,' says Mohammad Sajjad. IMAGE: VIP national President Mukesh Saini, left, with Tejashi Yadav and Upendra Kushwaha.......

Meet India's Mona Lisa

One of the best stories coming out of Bihar is a meeting place for Chandragupta Maurya, Buddha, Ashoka, Sher Shah Suri and India's Mona Lisa.Rediff.com's Archana Masih dropped by.Photographs: Seema......

An India like no other

Every year, for thousands of years, the Sonepur Mela, transforms a small rural town in north Bihar into a giant fair.Rediff.com's Archana Masih spent a day in the rural fair that once drew......

Cheap loans for cobblers, blacksmiths orders FM

Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Friday said he has asked PSU banks to provide loans at lower interest rates to workmen, like cobblers and washermen, and brushed aside apprehensions of possible......

Mani Ratnam and the art of innocence

Yet, for all his belief in the goodness of life, Mani's films show that life is too complicated for goodness to permeate it completely. In Mani Ratnam's latest film O Kadhal Kanmani, a boy and a......

Why PK is OK

If we don't want a Hindu version of our neighbour, we must keep open minds -- even when what we hear or see is not what we like. Rajkumar Hirani's PK is a banal satire on godmen. An......

HC dismisses plea against Aamir's Dhobi Ghat title

The Delhi High Court dismissed a plea challenging the title of Aamir Khan's upcoming film Dhobi Ghat on the ground that it offended the sensitivity of a particular caste. A Bench headed by Chief......