Israel’s Nationality Bill Is Challenging the Core of Jewish Identity

As the sun sets over the Mediterranean off the coast of Tel Aviv on Sabbath evening, Israelis, young and old, head down to the many bars along Ben Yehuda Street, or to the beach to cool off in the July heat. Ideally, Jewry across the world is meant to be indoors on this day, focused…

Cracks in a Faustian Pact in Kashmir

Last week, it was video of the army using a local boy as a human shield as they tried to evacuate a group of polling officers under attack by stone pelters. This week, it is the chilling video of gau-rakshaks attacking Gujjars, traditional cattle herders, including women and a 9-year-old child taking shelter inside a…

My Name is Honour

Watch my documentary: My Name is Honour Not far off the highway, less than 100 kilometers from the nation’s capital, the districts of Western Uttar Pradesh seem to have become synonymous with violence based on caste, religion or gender. The constitutional guarantee of a fundamental right to life is challenged every day by notions of honor. But what is this notion…

God’s Own Election. Kerala, May 2016.

Corruption, scams and tainted ministers in the Congress-led UDF, rampant infighting in the CPM-led LDF. Will the BJP be able to tap in to an electorate tired of Kerala’s limited political choices and open their account in the upcoming polls? Are fears of religious polarization in a state known for its communal harmony real or…

In Search of Muziris

The Archaeological Survey of India licensed the Kerala Council for Historical Research to oversee the dig in 2007. Its director, PJ Cherian, says the Pattanam excavations link the whole Indian Ocean region to the Mediterranean, through the Red Sea - a confluence of cultures and religions that led to a "web of relationships which included…