Part II: What Can Bring Them Together If geopolitics is the fault line running through BRICS, what can hold it together? The answer may lie not in trying to resolve the world’s political differences, but in finding areas where countries with very different interests can still work together. This is where India’s opportunity begins. WhatContinue reading “Can India Give BRICS a New Purpose?-II”
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Can India Give BRICS a New Purpose?-I
Part I: The Geopolitical Trap BRICS returns to Delhi at a moment when the world seems unusually divided. But before asking what India can do with the grouping, it is worth asking what BRICS has achieved so far—and whether its original economic promise has been overtaken by geopolitics. A Summit at a Difficult Moment NewContinue reading “Can India Give BRICS a New Purpose?-I”
The Delivery Boys
The doorbell rings. I look at my phone. Your order has arrived. Outside stands a young man, helmet still on, perhaps sweating beneath it. He hands me the packet, waits for the OTP, gives me a faint smile and turns away. By the time I close the door, he is already back on his motorcycle, lookingContinue reading “The Delivery Boys”
The India That Stayed With Gloria Steinem
Gloria Steinem, who died yesterday at 92, was much more than an American feminist. For more than five decades, she was one of the most recognisable voices of the women’s movement in the United States—a journalist, writer, organiser and campaigner who helped turn women’s equality from a private grievance into a public and political question.Continue reading “The India That Stayed With Gloria Steinem”
क्यों श्याम हैं कृष्ण?
आज जन्माष्टमी है. सनातन धर्म के अवतारों में कृष्ण का स्थान अप्रतिम और अद्वितीय है। और सबसे रहस्यमय भी। इस अवतार को हम अक्सर पूर्ण अवतार मानते हैं क्योंकि मानते हैं कि कृष्ण सभी सोलह कलाओं से युक्त थे। हर वर्ष कृष्ण के बारे में आज जब सोचने और फिर कुछ लिखने बैठता हूँ तो लगताContinue reading “क्यों श्याम हैं कृष्ण?”
From Press Release to Public Conversation -II
Part II — From Information to Influence If the architecture of communication has changed, the role of the government communicator must change with it. The challenge is no longer simply to disseminate information but to create understanding, build credibility and, where necessary, persuade citizens and stakeholders that a particular course of action is both necessaryContinue reading “From Press Release to Public Conversation -II”
From Press Release to Public Conversation-I
Part I — When Communication Changed Its Architecture There was a time when government communication followed a relatively uncomplicated trajectory. The Government had something to announce; the communication machinery prepared the message; newspapers, radio and television carried it; and citizens received it. The system had its complexities, but its architecture was reasonably stable. There wereContinue reading “From Press Release to Public Conversation-I”
Two Pavilions, Two Ways of Showing India
A recent article in The Economist drew attention to a striking contrast between India’s pavilion at the Osaka World Expo and its pavilion at this year’s Venice Biennale. Both were official representations of India, both came under the Ministry of Culture, and yet the magazine’s assessment of the two could hardly have been more different. Two WaysContinue reading “Two Pavilions, Two Ways of Showing India”
AI and Labour: Preparing for a Future We Cannot Stop
There is a question about artificial intelligence being asked almost everywhere today: Will AI take away our jobs? It is an understandable question, but perhaps not the best one with which to begin. Every major technological transformation has changed the nature of work. The steam engine, electricity, computers and the internet each eliminated some occupations, createdContinue reading “AI and Labour: Preparing for a Future We Cannot Stop”
When the Monsoon Changed
India’s ancient rhythm in an age of extreme weather A Monsoon Out of Step The Himalayas have provided the latest and most unsettling images of India’s monsoon. In Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, intense rain has triggered landslides, flash floods and the collapse of roads and bridges. Mountain slopes have given way, sometimes carrying away everythingContinue reading “When the Monsoon Changed”
