BUSINESS
The curious case of Kenneth Branagh returning as Hercule Poirot for a third time
Kenneth Branagh's adaptations of Agatha Christie's stories lack what Peter Jackson's 'Lord of the Rings' and BBC's 'Sherlock' starring Benedict Cumberbatch clearly possess - a deep understanding of the books.
TRENDS
Fishy or nothing burger? Beyond the Chessgate that Magnus Carlsen opened last month
To make the accusations stick, the chess establishment needs far more substantial proof than the reasoning that the speed of Hans Niemann’s rise in the rankings is a statistical outlier.
CRICKET
Deepti Sharma's run out of Charlie Dean was perfectly legal. The debate around it stinks of something more foul
It is beginning to seem that English cricketers—specifically batters—and commentators have bestowed upon themselves the right to decide what “cricket” is and what the “spirit of the game” means.
WORLD
Mar-a-Lago raid: Donald Trump refuses to go away. And he's succeeding
The reasons: Donald Trump still harbours the delusion that the 2020 election was “stolen” from him. And the Joe Biden administration and the Democratic Party remain obsessed with Trump.
POLITICS
The who's who of Indian politics warming up for kaun banega prime minister 2024
Calls for a united opposition have been getting louder, but how likely is it that a bunch of politicians whose personal ambitions conflict with one another will be able to form a cohesive front?
POLITICS
Rahul Gandhi and the hall of mirrors problem
The Bharat Jodo Yatra is a five-month-long gamble. Rahul Gandhi will have to find something interesting to say or do every day for 150 days, to sustain public and media interest.
TRENDS
6 reasons why Bollywood film after Bollywood film is crashing
The world has changed in the last few years. The audience has changed, both in their preferences and behaviour. Bollywood producers have possibly been caught unawares. They need to rethink and adapt.
TRENDS
The politics of boycott Bollywood
The debate is not fundamentally about free speech; it is a matter of explicit political belief.
IIT
India@75: It’s time to evaluate the IITs, one of independent India's proudest achievements
As India celebrates 75 years of independence, it’s also time to address two serious problems that the IIT system has been facing for many years now.
WORLD
Russia Ukraine conflict: Why Volodymyr Zelensky wants to talk to Xi Jinping
Russia and China are doing more business than ever before, the two countries are also connected by a road bridge as of June 2022. Why then is the Ukrainian President even asking China to intervene?
TRENDS
Seinfeld reruns: A show about nothing, and everything
For nine years, the creators of 'Seinfeld' - Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld - kept the world in splits. They also denied the persistent and widespread theory that the show was about “nothing”.
CRICKET
The oddness of 'resting' Virat Kohli ahead of the 2022 T20 World Cup
Virat Kohli has been one of the greatest batsmen of the last decade, if not of all time. Perhaps he needs just that one piece of luck and he will come roaring back. For that to happen, though, he needs to play.
TRENDS
Sprezzatura: The art of getting a lot done without breaking a sweat - at least outwardly
Many office environments resemble the Spanish royal court. Employees have to appear agreeable and non-threatening to bosses and owners, and that's where sprezzatura comes in handy.
TRENDS
Remember that one great teacher...
Blessed are all of us who had at least one great teacher. For me, it has been the late Prof. G.S. Sanyal of the electronic engineering department of IIT Kharagpur and sociologist Saila K. Ghosh of IIM Calcutta.
TRENDS
Why Google's LaMDA is more like an MBA aspirant than a chatbot with a conscience
Someone going for an IIM interview may be coached in admission-appropriate replies to anticipated questions. Same with LaMDA, though its text prowess far exceeds what a human could pull off.
TRENDS
'Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron', 'The Big Lebowski' and the trajectory of most cult films
About films that deliver far more than they promise.
TRENDS
2022 Democracy Perception Index: How to read the survey of 52 - or 53 - countries
Ninety-one percent of Chinese believe democracy is important and 83 percent feel that their country is democratic. The corresponding India figures are 82 percent and 70 percent, respectively.
POLITICS
Mamata Banerjee: Poet, painter... education czarina
If Mamata Banerjee manages to get full control of the state’s universities, she will have an absolutely free hand to appoint and promote both academic and non-academic staff, and dictate syllabi.
TRENDS
What's US politics got to do with Elon Musk's $44 billion Twitter offer?
The Biden administration has never seemed to like Elon Musk. One reason could be that Biden has been calling for higher taxes to be paid by the super-rich and Musk is the richest man in the world.
TRENDS
Gritty, edgy and dark: Why blood and violence mark so many Indian series on OTT today
The trend began with Netflix’s first original Indian show 'Sacred Games', with its in-your-face violence and sex scenes that seemed to revel in their sordidness.
TRENDS
'Ozark' (2017-22): Why do so many of us love watching evil things being done on TV?
Shows like 'Ozark' challenge you: would you do what Wendy and Marty Byrde are doing?
WORLD
Fighting misinformation: Joe Biden, Elon Musk and the Disinformation Governance Board
The board’s first mission will be to fight “misinformation” in the US midterm elections later this year for the Senate and the House of Representatives. It has not been revealed exactly how it will do so.
TRENDS
How did Marilyn Monroe die: A Netflix documentary claims to have unearthed tapes we haven't heard before
Marilyn Monroe was the leading actor and global sex symbol when she died. Plus, there's something about conspiracy theories that piques our interest (almost) every time.
WORLD
Why India needn't respond to everything that's happening in Pakistan
Pakistan’s economy is not in a good place, the number of attacks by the Tehrik-e-Taliban has increased and country remains on the grey list of the Financial Action Task Force. Add to that, Shehbaz Sharif has a year to convince the people of Pakistan to vote for him in the 2023 general election.
