Thought Box

POLITICS: FLASHBACK TO THE TIMES OF HINDUTVA

The influence of Hindutva politics on democratic and academic institutions in India has raised concerns about the erosion of secularism, threats to freedom of expression, comm...

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KALEIDOSCOPE: HUMRA QURASHI’S BOOK IS A WAKE UP CALL

Humra Quraishi’s book, The Diary of Gull Mohammad - A Kashmiri Muslim boy’s journey from Kashmir to Kerala, is an eyeopener. Once in it, it is unputdownable. It&rs...

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INDEPENDENT FILM: THE STORY OF A YOUNG BOY IN KASHMIR

In conflict-ravaged Kashmir, Adnan, a young boy from a lower middle-class family, stretches himself beyond limits to earn a smile on his blind sister’s face by buying he...

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ART HOUSE: THINKING ABOUT JAANE BHI DO YAARO

Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro (Just Let It Go, Friends) is a 1983 black comedy directed by Kundan Shah and produced by the NFDC. It is a satire on bureaucracy, the media, the real estate...

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HYPOCRISY AND DOUBLE STANDARDS ARE DESTRUCTIVE

Humra Quraishi elaborates on the double standards of the right-wing government in India, and warns that what is taught in schools to children manifests in harmful ways over th...

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THE COURAGE AND CONVICTION OF SAIF HYDER HASAN

After seeing the film YES PAPA, story of a victim of child sexual abuse at the hands of her father, Vinta Nanda has a conversation with producer, writer and director Saif Hyde...

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ACHIEVING CULT STATUS: MASSEY SAHIB

O.P. Srivastav brings Raghubir Yadav and Arundhati Roy's celebrated debut Massey Sahib, a 1985 Hindi drama, adaptation of Joyce Cary’s 1939 novel Mister Johnson, this ti...

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THE ARCHIES, ANIMAL, SOCIAL MEDIA AND DUMBING DOWN

We have fallen in the great social media trap. It has used the power of algorithms and the internet and fooled us into believing that we are serious cinema viewers, makers and...

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MAKE NOTE, EVERYONE’S SUSPECT

Humra Quraishi writes this in the backdrop of last month’s brutal killing and grievous injuries caused to civilians in the P...

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MY LIST OF THE MOST POWERFUL PEOPLE OF 2023: VINTA NANDA

In a world dominated by mainstream narratives and established structures, the celebration of independent art, business, social work, and literary endeavours is a necessary ack...

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POWERFUL PEOPLE: 55 YEARS ON, MERE APNE’S RELEVANCE

Khalid Mohamed in conversation with the indefatigable poet, lyricist, story-script-write...

January 20 2026

KALEIDOSCOPE: LUCKNOW BETWEEN PAST AND NOW

Cultures are never frozen in time, they keep moving, keep evolving.Filmmaker and writer ...

January 19 2026

HEALTH: WHEN CANCER GETS PERSONAL

As cancer treatment continues to rely on averages and probabilities, a breakthrough appr...

January 18 2026