Light
Dark
In this age of heightened diversity, a lot people are curious as to what makes those-not-like-us tick. Earlier, the differences were around nationality, religion, language. Today, there’s a new kind of diversity that Indians are learning to deal with, and that is sexuality. As more and more LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer) people come […]
A Bharatnatyam performance by Rukmini Vijayakumar proved to be a big draw on the 11th day of the Saptak Music Festival at the LD Arts College, Ahmedabad on Tuesday. The 41-year-old danseuse, who has acted in several movies, the latest release being Sita Raman (in Tamil and Telugu), built her performance around the theme of Krishna, […]
The last time I met RS Sodhi in Anand was in 2019, when he introduced me to the then Chief Operating Officer (COO) Kishore Zala, who was to take charge as Managing Director of the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Federation (GCMMF) when Sodhi retired later that year. The visiting card Zala handed me even said “managing […]
Deepak and Ragini Maharaj, son and granddaughter of the Late Birju Maharaj made their debut at the Saptak Music Festival on Monday, with a lively, interactive Kathak performance. Pandit Birju Maharaj, who passed away in January 2022, was scheduled to perform at last year’s Saptak, but alas, the festival was cut short by a resurgence […]
Rakesh Chaurasia, nephew and student of Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, left the audience breathless with his mastery of the flute on Saturday, Day 7 of the Saptak Music Festival at LD Arts College, Ahmedabad. He was accompanied by young Yeshwant Vaishnav on the tabla. Clad in a blue kurta with gold embroidery, the flautist played Raag […]
Former global CEO of Reckitt Benckiser, Rakesh Kapoor, has donated a sum one-million-pound sterling (equivalent to Rs 10 crore) to his alma mater Birla Institute of Technology & Science (BITS) Pilani. The announcement was made today at the BITS Global Meet that is currently under way in Jaipur. According to BITS vice chancellor Souvik Bhattacharya, […]
Clad in a black cardigan and red silk sari, Vidushi Shubha Mudgal made magic on Friday, Day 6 of the Saptak Music Festival, singing light classical khayals, thumris and dadras, accompanied by Aneesh Pradhan on the tabla and Sudhir Nayak on the harmonium. Often referred to as the rock star of classical music, the 63-year-old […]
Last year, Hariprasad Chaurasia was one of the few major stars to play live at the Saptak Music Festival before it was shifted on-line because of a resurgence of Covid. He took the opportunity to crib about the mahol of social distancing, masks and the night curfew that obliged him to start his performance at an early […]
Audience numbers swelled to standing-room-only on the second day of the Saptak Music Festival at LD Arts College on Monday. The highlight of the evening was a performance by vocalists Suman and Apurva Ghosh, who sang a “Jasrangi Jugalbandi,” inspired by Pandit Jasraj. Accompanied by Paromita Mukherjee on the harmonium and Ramkumar Mishra and Sapan […]
The 43rd edition of the Saptak Annual Music Festival took off in high gear on Sunday, with a dazzling performance from Parveen Sultana. The Padma Vibhushan awardee was in full flow with her rendering of the ever-popular Rag Jog, followed by a Bandish Thumri. The vocalist was very ably accompanied by Akram Khan on the tabla […]
The passing of PM Narendra Modi’s mother, Hiraba Modi, on Thursday is an instance of a phenomenon Indians have long held to be true: that the cold of winter exerts a pull on the souls of the elderly. The world over, statistics show that more people die in winter than summer. A recent article by […]
Located in the densely populated Eastern part of the city, Ahmedabad’s closed mill lands have been lying fallow for decades. Unlike Mumbai, which has turned its old mill properties into centres of booming economic activity, Ahmedabad has failed to unlock the value of these large swaths of land. That may be changing, with large corporates […]
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has regularly mentioned Sri Aurobindo in his speeches on Independence Day, which also happens to be the revolutionary-philosopher’s birthday. Earlier this week, the PM took the lead in a programme honouring Sri Aurobindo on his 150th birth anniversary, releasing a stamp and a coin bearing his image. What is it about Sri […]
Uniparts India Limited plans to enter the capital markets on 30 November with an offer for sale of 14.5 million equity shares of Rs 10 each, at a price band of Rs 548-577. The shares are being sold by PineBridge Private Equity; 14 American and European employees of Uniparts, who received shares as part of the […]
In the posh enclave of ADC Bank Society, there’s one bungalow that’s buzzing with activity, and I naturally assume it’s the office-cum-residence of Amee Yajnik, Rajya Sabha MP and now the Congress candidate for the Ghatlodia constituency. As it turns out, the bungalow with all the cars parked outside belongs to a neighbour, who seems […]
When my fishmonger, Samuel Babu, changed his WhatsApp DP to the Aam Admi Party (AAP) logo six months ago, I sent him a congratulatory message. I’m always impressed by friends who enter the rough and tumble of electoral politics. When he changed this DP again earlier this month, this time to feature a photo of […]
Last month, State Bank of India (SBI) managing director Alok Kumar Choudhary flew into Ahmedabad to hand over the keys of a new bus to the Blind People’s Association (BPA) with much fanfare. Priced at Rs 28 lakh, the 25-seater Force Motors bus is now used to transport children to and from BPA’s schools in […]
The late Ela Bhatt was a leader par excellence, one who inspired her people, developed them to their full potential, and championed gender equality. Aspiring leaders in every field could do no better than to understand and emulate her. Here are 10 key features of Ela Bhatt’s leadership style: Never Compromise on Values: In the early […]
The parallels between the Morbi Footbridge tragedy on Sunday, October 31, and the tragedy that occurred in Seoul just the day before, on Saturday, October 30, are many. The stampede in a narrow lane in Seoul’s Itaewan area left 154 people dead. The Morbi death count has also crossed 150, though the final figure is […]
The season of Wanderlust is upon us and everyone is making travel plans. But where should you go? How about skiing in Davos? A Safari to Kenya’s Masai Mara maybe? A trek around pristine Bhutan? VO! decided to ask some of our CEOs what their favourite travel destinations are and we got an interesting array […]
