The Lives of Others

Kolkata-born writer Neel Mukherjee's "The Lives of Others" has won the UK's Encore Award for the best second novel. 

May be honesty is not the best policy

May be we have been taught a lie all along. May be honesty is not the best policy after all.

Look at what happened to constable Ravinder Patil just because he was honest. The night Salman Khan ran over the people on that pavement, it was Patil who filed the initial complaint. While every other witness turned hostile under pressure or threats, it was Patil who continued to hold his ground, just because truth was on his side.

Nepal, India struck by another powerful earthquake

A powerful earthquake measuring 7.1 on richter scale epicentred in Nepal shook West Bengal, Delhi and several parts of north India today, less than three weeks after the region was struck by a devastating temblor.

World's smallest goanna lizard species discovered in Australia

World's smallest goanna lizard species was discovered on 30 December 2014 in Australia.

Jiah was depressed, scared about future: RGV

Mumbai, June 4 (IANS) Ram Gopal Varma, who gave Britain-born actress Nafisa alias Jiah Khan a Bollywood launchpad with 2007 film "Nishabd", is "shocked and chocked" over the news of her death. He says she was depressed about her career, and scared about her future as she had no work the past three years.

"The last time I met her, Jiah told me that everyone around her makes her feel like a failure," Varma posted on his Twitter page, after hearing the news that the 25-year-old had committed suicide at her Juhu home here around midnight.

"Inspite of being highly appreciated in 'Nishabd' and being a part of hugely successful 'Ghajini' and 'Housefull', she had no work for the last three years. I don't know the reason what led to this, but Jiah was very depressed about her career and scared for her future," he added.

Varma said that he had "never ever seen a debutant actress with more spunk and more spirit than Jiah when I was directing her in 'Nishabd'".

"Nishabd" required Jiah to face the camera with a thespian like Amitabh Bachchan in an unusual love story between a 18-year-old and 60-year-old. And she did it with confidence. The movie was controversial and not very well-received at the box office, but it made the industry sit up and take notice of the then 19-year-old girl Jiah, who left a lasting impression with her act of a free-spirited soul.

"So young and so pretty," recalls Varma, adding: "Just can't believe that someone as young and so full of life is just dead. No matter what her problem was, I just so wish she applied her on screen philosophy of 'Nishabd' to her own life which is to 'Take Lite'."

No cheergirls, after-match parties for T20 league?

Kolkata, June 4 -- After-match parties in the T20 league, rocked by spot-fixing and betting scandal involving players, bookies and an important team functionary, may be a thing of the past. It is one of "clean-up" moves planned by Jagmohan Dalmiya, named to run the Indian cricket board on Sunday temporarily after BCCI president N Srinivasan "stepped aside", to restore confidence in the game.

Television reports claimed that strategic timeouts and cheergirls, too, could be banished but HT could not independently confirm it.

Asked about a deadline for the probe panel investigating allegations of betting against Srinivasan's son-in-law and Chennai Super Kings' Gurunath Meiyappan, Dalmiya merely said: "It is a million dollar question".

Srinivasan has agreed to stay away till the probe report is out. "No one can deny that the image of Indian cricket has been tarnished. But at the same time you can't cry over spilt milk. We need to ... take our responsibilities," Dalmiya said, adding he was not in favour of scrapping the cash-rich league.

Supreme Court issues directions to curb sexual harassment of women in public transport

NEW DELHI: Laying down stringent procedures to curb and punish harassment of women in public transport, the Supreme Court has ordered that in the event of a complaint of a woman, the bus driver must immediately drive the vehicle to the nearest police station. If the driver fails to do so, authorities must cancel his permit to ply.

This is part of a series of directions issued on Friday by the court that include installing CCTVs, setting up helplines and proactive steps by authorities to make public places safer, to curb the menace of women being harassed by offenders passing lewd comments and "singing, reciting or uttering" any obscene song or making sounds or gestures to insult their modesty.

Police Who Made Facebook Arrests Suspended

Shaheen Dhada, right, and Renu Srinivas, the women who were arrested for a Facebook post, speaking to the media in Mumbai, Maharashtra, on Nov. 20.

Two police officers in the state of Maharashtra who recently arrested two young women over a Facebook post were suspended from duty on Tuesday, while the state changed the way it would enforce a controversial law.

The moves were praised as a victory by free speech advocates, who have been sharply critical of the arrests and of India’s loosely defined Internet law.

Shweta Bhatt... Who is She?

Shweta Bhatt is 48 today. She spent a better part of her birthday rushing to file nomination papers since her party, the Congress, announced her candidacy for the Gujarat elections only at the last minute.

Even Mrs Bhatt will not give herself much of a chance as a giant-slayer. In her first election ever, the neophyte takes on the mighty Narendra Modi, who is widely expected to win Gujarat for a third time, in Maninagar, the constituency that has sent him to the state Assembly twice with huge margins.

Pakistani TV anchor escapes bid on Life

Leading Pakistani television anchor Hamid Mir escaped a bid on his life on Monday (26 Nov 2012) with the timely detection of a bomb planted in his car. he has now been provided a security detail by the government and Interior Minister Rehman Malik announced a Rs. 50 Million reward for anyone providing Information that could lead to the arrest of those involved.