Harvest all the way
It is payback time in Punjab. Paddy fields are laden with hi-tech harvesters and farmers are busy reaping the produce of their investment. A.J. Philip traverses the Malwa belt to present the grainy flavour of the season
A VISIT to Bathinda, even if it is for as prosaic a reason as meeting colleagues, is not complete without a visit to the Gobind Fort in the heart of one of the oldest cities of Punjab. The fort, that resembles a ship in a desert, has withstood the vicissitudes of time, though it could not always save its occupants from invaders in its eventful history that spans a millennium.

RICH BOUNTY: Mandis in Malwa are now a beehive of activity. Photos by the writer

On a strong wicket
Braving family opposition and official apathy, a gutsy cricketer bats for freedom to pursue cricket as a career. Ehsan Fazili meets 26-year-old Sakina Yusuf, the coach of men’s cricket team of Kashmir University
Sakina Yusuf, who joined as the coach at Kashmir University in June 2007, recounts her life’s journey at the office of Directorate of Physical Education, overlooking the sprawling cricket ground on the Hazratbal campus. Sakina was the vice-captain of the Kashmir state team in the Under-19 cricket tournament held in 1999. She scored the maximum runs and was the highest wicket-taker and was adjudged "Woman of the Series."

On a high with low-waist jeans
Dolly Sagar
I prefer low-rise jeans which are loose fitting, although low-rise bootcuts are equally popular in Mumbai," says Rajan, who owns about seven pairs of jeans, all low waist, and belts in all colours — green, yellow, white, red. Says Ragini Kumar, a college student from Mumbai: "I love low-waist jeans as they fit me perfectly and my stomach doesn’t feel trapped in it."