South Asia Citizens Web

There are many who blaze an individual trail of success in their lives but few who create institutions capable of nurturing generations of artistes. Joy Michael who breathed her last on March 9, 2018, aged 92, was one such towering figure. Not only did she help establish Delhi’s theatre movement by co-founding Yatrik, she was also associated with the idea of promoting creative drama and speech as an important aspect of education in schools. Whether as actor, producer or director at Yatrik or a much-acclaimed principal of St Thomas’ School in Delhi for over a decade

Renowned Historian Romila Thapar says the space for dissent in India is shrinking. She talks about covert pressures in the contemporary political arena and the intersection of nationalism, secularism and democracy. Discussing the place for nationalism in the current socio-political framework, Ms Thapar distinguishes between good historians and bad historians while highlighting the dangers of ’fantasy narratives’.

Armenian presence in India is documented at least since the sixteenth century. At that time the Mughals ruled much of northern India, whereas various Muslim sultanates ruled the Deccan or the interior southern region

The recent riots targeting Muslims in Kandy have provoked accusations on many sides. While mainstream conversations focus on what the riots entail in terms of immediate political consequences for the current Government and its tepid response, progressives have also had to reckon with the growing presence of anti-Muslim rhetoric and violence as a feature of contemporary Sri Lankan life.

The government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has appointed a committee of scholars to prove that Hindus are descended from India’s first inhabitants. Members of the country’s Muslim minority worry the government wants to make them second-class citizens.