Two quizmasters in conversation. Derek O’Brien: This is the first time we’re doing something like this. Thank you, Siddhartha. Siddhartha Basu: It’s the first time ever the both of us have been together, and I’m delighted. DOB: You and I met just three years ago. And it was such a beautiful occasion. We had dinner at home. You… Continue reading Two quizmasters, on the facts
“In this country, those who speak English will soon feel ashamed, the creation of such a society is not far away.” – Home Minister Amit Shah, 19 June, 2025. 121 languages. 19,500 dialects. In a country as vast and diverse as India, English is not only a language, it is a unifier. For the lakhs… Continue reading For Amit Shah, A Note On What Ambedkar, Gandhi, Azad Said About ‘English’
Framing of Meghalaya honeymoon case speaks of a disconcerting pattern when it comes to the region “Even Ganesh idols come from abroad, small-eyed Ganesh idols whose eyes don’t even open properly” — Prime Minister Narendra Modi, May 27. If the Prime Minister of India can propagate a hurtful stereotype against the 4.5 crore people living… Continue reading Unseeing the Northeast
June 9 marks exactly one year since Narendra Modi and his Council of Ministers were sworn in. Before the elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) published a 69-page manifesto. Here are 15 promises from the BJP Manifesto 2024. What is the reality in 2025. 1. Promise: Expanding our efforts to protect garib ki thali (page 11). Reality: According… Continue reading BJP Manifesto: Promise versus Reality
Centre’s skittishness about calling a Special Session is of a piece with its attitude to parliamentary precedents and principles This week, leaders from 17 political parties wrote to the Prime Minister urging him to call a special session of Parliament in June. Within hours of doing so, a skittish government hurriedly announced the dates for… Continue reading The Government’s Parliament-ophobia
There are some things about life that we take for granted. Sometimes that list includes life itself, whether we realise it or not. On Wednesday, May 21, I boarded an Indigo flight from Delhi to Srinagar. Just another day in public life. Just another flight. I take my usual seat at 19F, at the emergency… Continue reading 30 Terrifying Minutes On A Delhi-Srinagar Flight That Changed My Life
It has been one month and one day since the monumental tragedy at Pahalgam. Every life matters. More than 20 lives were lost in Poonch, Rajouri and Uri. Prime time debates did not do justice to this part of the story. At least 15 people were killed in Poonch, including four children. Three were killed… Continue reading A quizmaster’s tribute to the Indian Armed Forces
1. The operation conducted by the Indian Air Force (IAF) during the 1999 Kargil War was given the codename Operation Safed Sagar. What was the codename for the operation conducted by the Indian Army? 2. Which former President of India was responsible for the development and operationalisation of the Agni and Prithvi missiles when he… Continue reading What Is Your ‘War Quotient’?
Long before I started asking quiz questions or delivering speeches in Parliament, I spent eight years in advertising, in an agency that we often fondly called Ogilvy University. The most memorable four days of those eight years was when, as a junior copywriter, I hung around with the “father of advertising”, David Ogilvy, when he… Continue reading With child labour, law is not the problem — enforcement is
I am a Catholic and go to church every Sunday. On most weekdays, it’s the online service at home from 7 to 7.30 in the morning. Six popes have passed away in my lifetime. While I have no recollection of the first — the death of Pope John XXIII in 1963, when I was… Continue reading He was my Pope
