Who invented butter chicken? Dueling claims battle it out in an Indian high court.
The grandsons of two now-deceased business partners are fighting over credit for inventing the dish
Arts + Culture
‘Happiness is in your hands’: Young Jain women continue to renounce the world
Jains make up less than 1% of India's population. A steady number of them — even children — are renouncing the world.
Across South Asia, this sweet drink is synonymous with summertime refreshment
Rooh Afza, "the summer drink of the East," quenches thirst in India and Pakistan
Hip-hop artists in India call out caste discrimination
In India, a new wave of Dalit artists are using hip-hop to stand up to one of the world's oldest forms of discrimination: caste
Subhash Kapoor: Art Dealer by Day, Idol Thief By Night
One night in January 2006, Rathinam and Kaliaperumal broke into the ancient Sivan temple in Sripuranthan, Tamil Nadu. The temple, built during the Chola dynasty in southern India between the 9th and 13th centuries, had fallen into disrepair and hadn’t seen worshippers in 10 years. But, for hundreds of years, eight idols of Hindu deities had resided there — that is, until the arrival of the duo. Over the next few months, the thieves made several such clandestine trips to the temple, repeating the
'It is a legacy': How British-era ghosts are kept alive in India's hill towns
The British have left but they left their ghosts behind.
Meet the amateur art sleuths helping bring back Asia’s stolen heritage
Behind the return of stolen artifacts to Asia is a network of volunteer art sleuths working together to preserve their cultural heritage. They’re driven not only by a sense of responsibility, but also by a desire for justice.
A male Bollywood star's nude photoshoot prompts love, rage & confusion in India
A report for CBC's The World This Weekend
The Indian Olympian Turned Accused Killer
On the night of May 4, 2021, at the height of India’s deadly COVID-19 wave, a fight broke out in the shadows of Delhi’s Chhatrasal Stadium, a mecca for wrestlers. Armed with wooden rods and hockey sticks, a group of men was thrashing a man who’d fallen to the ground. The victim — later discovered to be aspiring wrestler Sagar Dhankhar — cowered as his assailants rained blow after blow. “They hunted him like wild pigs,” a lawyer would later describe in court. A few feet away, others attacked Saga
'An air of hope': Sri Lankans see cricket as a welcome distraction from the country's economic, political woes
How cricket continues despite Sri Lanka's crises
How Puberty Ceremonies Went the Way of Indian Weddings
Do period ceremonies celebrate womanhood or perpetuate stigma?
Why South Asians Often Have Multiple Birthdays
Baishakhi Connor used to think she was born on April 29, a Sunday. For some reason, her mother remembered it being a Friday, but the family didn’t make much of it — until one day when Connor, a teenager at the time, found a piece of paper while cleaning their house in India. It was a note from the hospital saying they were discharging her mother on April 28, after delivery. Connor realized she had been wrong about her birthday that whole time. She was indeed born on a Friday: April 27.
Connor t
Connor t
How an Unusual Calendar Became a Symbol of Indian Culture
It was the early 1970s, and Jayantrao Salgaonkar was in trouble. The Bombay-based astrologer used to design crosswords for a puzzle-solving contest in Marathi-language newspapers. But due to its financial reward, authorities deemed the contest a form of gambling and, therefore, illegal. Between this run-in with the law, growing competition from state-owned lotteries, and the rise of matka, another betting game, Salgaonkar's crossword business was struggling.
“We had no money,” Salgaonkar's son,
“We had no money,” Salgaonkar's son,
This goat and lentil stew is a beloved Ramadan tradition in Hyderabad, India
A peek at how Hyderabad's lip-smacking Ramadan haleem is made
'Writing With Fire' is up for an Oscar. But its subjects say they're misrepresented
'Writing With Fire' is up for an Oscar. But its subjects say they're misrepresented
It's been a month of highs – and controversies – for Writing With Fire, a documentary from India about Khabar Lahariya, the country's only major news outlet run by women from marginalized communities. The journalists focus on rural reporting through a feminist lens and are led by chief reporter Meera Devi.
The movie is one of five nominees in the Oscar category of best documentary (feature). But the reporters t
It's been a month of highs – and controversies – for Writing With Fire, a documentary from India about Khabar Lahariya, the country's only major news outlet run by women from marginalized communities. The journalists focus on rural reporting through a feminist lens and are led by chief reporter Meera Devi.
The movie is one of five nominees in the Oscar category of best documentary (feature). But the reporters t
To society, they’re married. To India’s courts, they’re roommates.
The struggle to legalize same-sex unions in a country that loves the concept of marriage
Popular Bollywood singer, Lata Mangeshkar, dies at 92
Lata Mangeshkar recorded more than 25,000 songs for Indian movie musicals. She died in Mumbai, where she had been hospitalized with pneumonia and COVID-19.
Indian music sensation Lata Mangeshkar has died. She was the singing voice of the leading lady in countless Indian movie musicals. She recorded more than 25,000 songs. Mangeshkar was 92 years old. Sushmita Pathak has this tribute.
SUSHMITA PATHAK, BYLINE: Lata Mangeshkar was a hugely popular star, even though she never actually appeared on
Indian music sensation Lata Mangeshkar has died. She was the singing voice of the leading lady in countless Indian movie musicals. She recorded more than 25,000 songs. Mangeshkar was 92 years old. Sushmita Pathak has this tribute.
SUSHMITA PATHAK, BYLINE: Lata Mangeshkar was a hugely popular star, even though she never actually appeared on
India's Single-Screen Cinemas Were Struggling Before COVID-19. Now They're Dying Out
An ode to India's charming single-screen theatres
Skateboarding Gives Freedom To Rural Indian Teen In Netflix Film — And In Real Life
Skateboarding Gives Freedom To Rural Indian Teen In Netflix Film — And In Real Life
When Asha Gond first started skateboarding, neighbors in her village of Janwar in central India were aghast. They urged the teenager's parents to keep her busy with housework or get her married. When she walked through the village, skateboard in hand, they would sneer at her and make disparaging comments. Skateboarding is for boys, Gond, now 21, recalls the villagers saying.
Skateboarding isn't common in Indian
When Asha Gond first started skateboarding, neighbors in her village of Janwar in central India were aghast. They urged the teenager's parents to keep her busy with housework or get her married. When she walked through the village, skateboard in hand, they would sneer at her and make disparaging comments. Skateboarding is for boys, Gond, now 21, recalls the villagers saying.
Skateboarding isn't common in Indian
India's Major Cricket Tournament Got Suspended. Should It Have Even Happened?
India's Major Cricket Tournament Got Suspended. Should It Have Even Happened?
Sohini Mitter is a huge cricket fan. Normally, she would never miss the Indian Premier League (IPL), a glamorous, action-packed cricket tournament held every year during the months of April and May — and one of the biggest in the world. But this year, Mitter had other things on her mind.
"My parents' illness coincided with the IPL," Mitter told NPR.
Both her parents became sick during India's deadly COVID-19 outbrea
Sohini Mitter is a huge cricket fan. Normally, she would never miss the Indian Premier League (IPL), a glamorous, action-packed cricket tournament held every year during the months of April and May — and one of the biggest in the world. But this year, Mitter had other things on her mind.
"My parents' illness coincided with the IPL," Mitter told NPR.
Both her parents became sick during India's deadly COVID-19 outbrea
PHOTOS: Mumbai Falls In Love All Over Again With Its Forgotten Fountains
PHOTOS: Mumbai Falls In Love All Over Again With Its Forgotten Fountains
In a narrow lane near Mumbai's docks, commuters on bicycles weave through the crowd as workers push wooden carts loaded with heavy burlap sacks into warehouses.
Thirty-eight-year-old laborer Mohammad Yaqoob unloads sacks full of marbles from a truck. When he gets tired and thirsty, he walks to an ornate stone structure in the middle of the bustling street. It's a drinking fountain, or pyau (sometimes spelled pyaav), as it
In a narrow lane near Mumbai's docks, commuters on bicycles weave through the crowd as workers push wooden carts loaded with heavy burlap sacks into warehouses.
Thirty-eight-year-old laborer Mohammad Yaqoob unloads sacks full of marbles from a truck. When he gets tired and thirsty, he walks to an ornate stone structure in the middle of the bustling street. It's a drinking fountain, or pyau (sometimes spelled pyaav), as it
From Around The World: How To Have A Happy(ish) Pandemic Thanksgiving
From Around The World: How To Have A Happy(ish) Pandemic Thanksgiving
A lot will be missing about Thanksgiving this year. It's a holiday that's celebrated on a bedrock of bringing family and friends, near and far, together for a big meal and lots of catching up, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention urges: "As cases continue to increase rapidly across the United States, the safest way to celebrate Thanksgiving is to celebrate at home with people you live with."
This isn't the firs
A lot will be missing about Thanksgiving this year. It's a holiday that's celebrated on a bedrock of bringing family and friends, near and far, together for a big meal and lots of catching up, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention urges: "As cases continue to increase rapidly across the United States, the safest way to celebrate Thanksgiving is to celebrate at home with people you live with."
This isn't the firs
Netflix's 'Indian Matchmaking' Is The Talk Of India — And Not In A Good Way
The series has sparked a debate about arranged marriage and is drawing criticism for its portrayal of the practice
'TikTok Changed My Life': India's Ban On Chinese App Leaves Video Makers Stunned
When India imposed coronavirus restrictions in late March, Arman Rathod's work dried up.
The 29-year-old had made a living washing cars and painting statues of Hindu gods in his hometown of Valsad, in western India. Broke and bored under lockdown, Rathod and his friends started recording videos of themselves in April on the social media app TikTok.
Dressed in a baggy button-down, Rathod would gyrate on a dusty patch of ground under a tree in his village, while a friend filmed him. His 15-secon
The 29-year-old had made a living washing cars and painting statues of Hindu gods in his hometown of Valsad, in western India. Broke and bored under lockdown, Rathod and his friends started recording videos of themselves in April on the social media app TikTok.
Dressed in a baggy button-down, Rathod would gyrate on a dusty patch of ground under a tree in his village, while a friend filmed him. His 15-secon
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