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The Wire
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Wire
One of India's Greatest Theatre Luminaries, Ratan Thiyam Passes Away
The Arts The productions that Thiyam mounted transformed the Indian theatre scene. New Delhi: Ratan Thiyam, one of India's most acclaimed directors and playwrights has died. He was 77. Thiyam was also a noted artist, painter, and musician. He was also known as Thiyam Nemai. Thiyam's imprint went far beyond Manipur, his state of origin. He received the Padma Vibhushan in 1989 and is seen as a co-founder of the 'theatre of roots' movement, which saw its coming of age in the 1970s. This kind of theatre was contemporary as well as grounded itself in indigenous aesthetics and art forms. He was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1987. He is especially known for his direction in dramas like Chakrabvyuha, Uttar Priyadarshi, Hey Nungshibi Prithivi, Chinglon Mapan Tampak Ama. You can catch a glimpse of Nine Hills One Valley here. The productions that Thiyam mounted transformed the Indian theatre scene. Indian theatre got global recognition in large part due to work done by Thiyam and his team. He never shied away from political themes and narratives, winning wide acclaim and admiration in India and internationally for his work. Sad to know that a very distinguished playwright, director, writer, scholar, leading personality of "Theatre of Roots" and founder of Chorus Repertory Theatre, Sri Ratan Thiyam has passed away. He was one of the few directors who popularized ancient Indian traditions & touched… — Sahitya Akademi (@sahityaakademi) July 23, 2025 Born on January 20, 1948, he passed away in the Regional Institute of Medical Science at 1.30 am today, July 23, 2025. The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.
Hans India
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
RASS gen sec appointed national president of ABRS
Tirupati: Dr S Venkataratnam, General Secretary, Rashtriya Seva Samiti (RASS), has been appointed as the national president of Akhil Bharatiya Rachnatmak Samaj (ABRS), an organisation founded by Padma Vibhushan awardee Dr Nirmala Deshpande. Venkataratnam received his certificate of election at the national executive meeting held at Seva Dham Ashram, Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh from Shankar Kumar Sanyal, National President of All India Harijan Sevak Sangh and Naresh Yadav, former Member of Parliament from Bihar. On the occasion, Venkataratnam expressed his happiness, stating that this position increases his responsibilities. He further explained that he would soon appoint presidents for all States across the country and strive to the best of his ability to spread Gandhian philosophy and principles. The Executive Committee members, general body members, and other staff of RASS congratulated Venkataratnam on his appointment to the new post at national level.
Hans India
20-07-2025
- General
- Hans India
Becoming a successful human being
Everyone desires success, and somewhere, many people believe aggression will lead to success. Aggression may sometimes lead to success but not always – and you could get killed with your aggression! What leads to success is your intelligence, clarity of vision and competence. So, instead of trying to bulldoze your way through the world, it is better to work on your competence because success does not come just because you desire it. Success comes because you make yourself competent. Let us say you want to run a hundred-meter race. You have to work on your legs, lungs and muscle. If you are seeking success, the foremost thing is that as a human being, you should function at the fullest. If that has to happen, you need to enhance your physical and mental capabilities. But the most important task is that there are other dimensions that one needs to explore – the science and technology for inner wellbeing. Unfortunately, although this science has been the mainstay of Indian culture for thousands of years, we are largely losing it today. We have to bring this science back into our lives. The very way this culture was structured was such that it is all about the human being. This is the only culture that spoke of how you can actually evolve to another dimension of existence. Even an illiterate person in this land is aware of this. If I go into a village and talk to an illiterate person, he will not ask me, 'Give me a golden horse.' He will say, 'Mukti venum ayya.' He wants mukti – Ultimate liberation. Nowhere else on the planet will you find this intention in such a large segment of the population to break their present dimension of existence. This was bred into this culture so deep. We should not lose it. This was not just an idea or philosophy – there are technologies to take a person towards Ultimate liberation. If you became free from the process of your body and mind, if what is you and what is your body and mind are clearly separate in your perception, you would work with them in the best possible way. You would be able to use this body and mind to the fullest only when you clearly see that they are not 'myself.' The body and mind are powerful instruments and they can be employed the way you want only when you have 'outside access' to them. You are a phenomenal supercomputer. The problem right now is that you do not know where the keyboard is. When people think hard about something, they scratch their head. It does not work like that! There are proper technologies that one can make use of to access the keyboard. These technologies can be offered to those who are willing. So instead of seeking success, seek competence. See how to enhance your body, mind and energy to a higher level. If human beings are phenomenally competent, wherever you put them, they will anyway succeed. (Sadhguru is a Yogi, mystic, and Padma Vibhushan awardee, also known for his New York Times bestselling books. He founded Conscious Planet–Save Soil, the world's largest people's movement, impacting over 4 billion people)
The Hindu
13-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
CPI(M) general secretary M.A. Baby seeks Bharat Ratna for percussion artists
CPI(M) General Secretary M.A. Baby, a connoisseur of Carnatic music, made a strong case for awarding the Bharat Ratna to percussionists in India, stating that percussion music had reached 'Himalayan heights' in the country. 'There is not only Umayalpuram Sivaraman. There were Kishan Maharaj, Alla Rakha, Zakir Hussain, and Samta Prasad. But the highest honour, like the Bharat Ratna, has gone only to Bhimsen Joshi, Bismillah Khan, M.S. Subbulakshmi, Ravi Shankar, and Lata Mangeshkar,' he said during a conversation with Mr. Sivaraman at The Hindu office in Chennai on Sunday (July 13, 2025). Mr. Baby's friendship with Mr. Sivaraman dates back to several decades. He has organised many concerts and even persuaded Mr. Sivaraman to perform for Kathak dancer Birju Maharaj. He added that the Music Academy and The Hindu should play a role in advocating Bharat Ratna recognition for percussion artists. 'This is the most appropriate platform to raise the question: why has a percussion artist never been given the Bharat Ratna? No one deserves it more than Umayalpuram Sivaraman. He is already a Padma Vibhushan awardee. The music fraternity should raise its voice for the recognition that is long overdue. Why is the government not listening to such a sane voice in the field of music and culture?' he asked. He also recalled an incident in which tabla maestro Kishan Maharaj criticised the Centre for its miserly attitude toward conferring awards on musicians. 'Unless we live for 80 or 85 years, no national honour will come to us,' Mr. Baby quoted Kishan Maharaj as saying at an event in Delhi attended by Union Ministers. The CPI(M) leader further pointed out inadequacies and partialities in the selection of awardees. 'Of course, there are genuine North Indian artists, but genuine South Indian artists have not been sufficiently considered,' he said. Mr. Sivaraman said that long ago, he had suggested to the Sangeet Natak Akademi that it institute an award in memory of the legendary nagaswaram player T.N. Rajarathinam Pillai. 'There is the Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar. Institute a similar award in the name of Rajarathinam Pillai,' he said. Mr. Baby supported this demand, saying Rajarathinam Pillai was equal in stature to Bismillah Khan. Mr. Sivaraman, who has performed with four generations of musicians, said he was ready to accompany the next generation as well. He also described the specific playing styles required for accompanying great musicians such as Mudikondan Venkatrama Iyer, Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar, G.N. Balasubramanian, Madurai Mani Iyer, T.R. Mahalingam, and M.D. Ramanathan. Speaking on the subject of creativity, Mr. Sivaraman cited poet Kalidasa to explain his philosophy: 'Don't think everything old is good; don't criticise everything new as bad. People with wisdom will always select the best from the old and the best from the new. That is my motto,' he said. N. Ram, former Editor-in-Chief of The Hindu, who introduced the two, said the event was meant to highlight and celebrate an unusual association and a relationship that blossomed into enduring friendship. He said that Mr. Baby first encountered Mr. Sivaraman's music during the Emergency, when he was semi-underground and courted arrest. 'His elder brother advised him to visit a temple and listen to concerts. That is how he first discovered the great music of Mr. Sivaraman,' he said.
Hans India
12-07-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
Op Sindoor: India hit 9 terror targets in 23 mins: Ajit Doval
Chennai: Indian military's precision hitting capabilities were on display during Operation Sindoor where nine terror targets crisscrossing Pakistan were smashed, "we knew who was where," while back home not even a glass pane was broken, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval said here on Friday. In what was seen as India's retribution to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that left 26 persons dead, none of the intended targets in Pakistan was missed during the military offensive, Doval said while also taking pride in India's capability and technological prowess in neutralising the threats from across the border. The precision was to the point where India knew who was where, and the entire operation lasted hardly 23 minutes past 1 am on May 7, he said. "Thereafter, they said Pakistan did this and so on. You tell me one image or photograph which shows any damage to India being done. Not even a glass pane was broken," Doval said while speaking at the 62nd convocation ceremony of IIT, Madras. "They (international media) wrote these things and put out things. The images only showed 13 air bases in Pakistan before and after May 10, whether it was in Sargodha, Rahim Yar Khan, Chaklala. I am only telling you what the foreign media put out on the basis of images. We are capable of doing that (damage to Pakistani air bases)." Addressing the students, Doval also said the link between technology and warfare was very important, and that the country should develop indigenous technology to meet its requirements. Referring to the earlier speaker, Padma Subrahmanyam—Padma Vibhushan awardee and legendary danseuse—congratulating him for the success of Operation Sindoor and evoking thunderous applause from the students and graduates, the NSA said, "I am really proud of it (Operation Sindoor). Much of it was driven by indigenous content." "We are proud of it—that some of our best systems worked, whether it was BrahMos (missiles), the integrated air control and command system, or battlefield surveillance. We decided on nine terrorist targets, not in the border areas but in the crisscross of Pakistan, and we missed none." No unintended site was struck, and the strike was precise to the point where "we knew who was where. And the entire operation lasted for 23 minutes," he said. In a subtle rebuttal to coverage of international media, including the New York Times, questioning the operation's effectiveness, the NSA said, "They wrote what they wanted. But satellite images tell the real story—that 13 Pakistan airbases, before and after May 10, show exactly what happened." Earlier, speaking at the convocation, Padma Subrahmanyam said the historic victory of Operation Sindoor was a manifestation of adherence to the valour that the Bhagavad Gita preaches. "As a proud Indian, I have always offered my salutations to our jawans, who are our national guardian angels," she said, congratulating Doval for his role in the operation. At the event, Doval said the country could not afford to lose the technology battle and remain behind or fall decades behind others. He acknowledged the role of IIT, Madras and the private sector in developing 5G in two-and-a-half years' time, whereas the Chinese took over 12 years and spent 300 billion dollars to develop 5G technology. "Even a screw that deals with anything related to data or security protection must come from a trusted source. It is either made in India or by somebody who is very close to India," he added, emphasising the need to totally insulate our system from the enemy. A total of 3,227 students graduated. As many as 3,661 Degrees (including Joint and Dual Degrees) were awarded to the students on the occasion. A total of 529 PhDs were also awarded, which included PhDs, Joint Degree with foreign institutions and Dual Degree PhDs, the institute said. The precision was to the point where India knew who was where, and the entire operation lasted hardly 23 minutes past 1 am on May 7, he said. "Thereafter, they said Pakistan did this and so on. You tell me one image or photograph which shows any damage to India being done. Not even a glass pane was broken," Doval said.
