The Middle

GOA, long regarded as a bustling destination for foreigners, is witnessing an unsettling shift. Silent shacks and nearly deserted beaches are ringing alarm bells. A couple of months ago, an entrepreneur claimed on social media that foreign tourist arrivals in...

SHARING a packet of freshly roasted groundnuts, my friend and I sat on a bench just opposite the bank branch near Kali Bari, Shimla, basking in the mellow sunlight. The day was bright as winter had not yet arrived, but...

Every time a patient suffering from a chronic disease like diabetes, hypertension, thyroid disorder or, for that matter, obesity consults me, I always ask, “At what time do you go to bed?” And the reply usually startles me. Most of...

When World War II broke out in 1939, Subedar Richhpal Ram of 4 Rajputana Rifles was on two months’ leave at his village Barda in Gurgaon district. Barda was known in the region as ‘Faujion ka gaon’ since almost every...

This well-maintained museum showcases weapons of mass destruction such as bomber aircraft, tanks, chemical weapons and artillery equipment left by the US forces when Vietnam earned freedom in 1975

My parents aren’t just any regular socialites. They are professional MBAs — Marriage & Bhog Attendees. Weekends for them are a blur of bhogs, high tea soirées and posh shok sabhas — and that’s just the beginning. As soon as...

FROM the clerk at the lowest rung of the administration to the Prime Minister, everyone has to deal with files. How efficiently one handles them often separates a good functionary from the average one. Early in my practical training as...

THE Indian Army’s performance in the 1971 war was unparalleled. The iconic photo of Pakistan’s Lt Gen AAK Niazi signing the Instrument of Surrender in the presence of Lt Gen Jagjit Singh Aurora is an indelible part of our proud...

WHENEVER, in my imagination, I go back to the streets of the town where the days of my childhood, adolescence, youth and middle age were spent, certain figures flash across my mind. Their facial contours, simple and rustic attire, innocent...

DOMESTIC helpers make our life easier and less hectic. They are almost indispensable to working couples and the elderly. My family has been fortunate to have had very good helpers. The first one I remember is Ram Dhani, who came...

THE 1971 war marked the coming of age of the Indian military after the fiasco of 1962 and a significant improvement witnessed during the 1965 war. The Amar Jawan Jyoti was installed at India Gate in New Delhi. It served...

BACK in 1981, my PhD supervisor at Jawaharlal Nehru University, Prof GS Bhalla, asked me to stay back in his office. He was expecting a visitor. Dr Manmohan Singh, then Member, Planning Commission, was scheduled to meet him around 2...

I unabashedly drop the name of Dr Manmohan Singh, who found time for a memorable one-on-one meeting with me, then a lowly official of a state government. The year was 1992, the state was Punjab. Following a decade of terrorism,...

THE clock strikes midnight on December 31. Fireworks explode in the sky, your phone buzzes with identical WhatsApp forwards, and neighbours shout “Happy New Year” over the din. Somewhere in the background, someone vows, “This year, I’ll finally get fit”,...

The Tribune mourns the loss of its loyal reader

BACK when I had long hair and he still had… well, hair, life had a few more strands in it. Looking back, my hair has always been a bit of a personal project — long, short, somewhere in between. Every...

ONE sunny afternoon, I felt drawn to the quiet allure of a nearby garden in my hometown, Ferozepur. It was not the most lavish of gardens, but its charm lay in its simplicity — a mix of vibrant flowers, lush...

BOXING Day or Offering Day, celebrated the day after Christmas, is all about the joy of giving. In keeping with tradition, wealthy people give gifts in boxes to those less fortunate than them. My sons fondly remember their Boxing Day...

AS a teenager, I was deeply drawn to the soul-stirring voice of Mohammad Rafi. When the news of his death on July 31, 1980, was announced on the radio, tears welled up in my eyes. My mother was taken aback...

THE main purpose of my trip to Finland this autumn was to see the Northern Lights. However, visiting Santa Village turned out to be an equally memorable experience. Replete with magical stories, the place inspires adults to be more childlike...

CHRISTMAS preparations start in London in October, a good two months before the festival. Beautifully decorated and well-lit Christmas trees are displayed in every store as well as market square. Bundled up in layers of insulated clothing — woolly hats,...

HINDU priests, while performing yajna or any other ceremony, insist on making offerings to the deities with the hands joined and extended. The gesture itself showcases an intent to give wholeheartedly. I saw this practice being followed during my travels...

AS the world, and not just India, mourns the loss of tabla maestro Zakir Hussain, I am reminded of my first and only meeting with the iconic artiste. In the early 1990s, as a college student, my ‘patriotism’ had made...

IN ayurveda, healthy food is termed maha bhaishajya — the best medicine. It is emphasised that “with appropriate diet, medicine is not needed, and without proper diet, medicine is of little use”. Dietary advice, therefore, forms an integral part of...

I recently read American author Helen Keller’s autobiography, The Story of My Life. Keller (1880-1968) continues to be an inspiration to countless people around the world as she had carved a niche for herself in the literary sphere despite being...