Latest News from Author Binoo K John

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Sunday, May 26th 01:23 PM IST

Binoo K John

Art sprouts at Kochi Biennale, bringing hope to a contrarion state

Jan 21, 2013

Kochi: Over 1.5 lakh people have visited the first Kochi-Muziris Biennale, making it one of the biggest public art shows mounted in India. The biennale which began on 12/12/12 amid the contrarion culture of Kerala, with the culture minister slapping a case against the organizers for alleged misuse of government #art #installations #Kochi biennale #ThingsWeLike
Digital Newsweek with video covers is an awesome experience

Jan 18, 2013

In the murky history of magazine reinvention, Newsweek, which turned fully digital this year, seems to have pulled off a marvel. After reading two editions, it can be said that the future of current affairs weeklies may lie in following the footsteps of Newsweek digital, down the virtual highway full #androids #digital magazine #Digital Media #iPad #MediaWatch #news magazines #Newsweek #The Wall Street Journal Online #Time of India
Protests: A new class stakes claim to India of the future

Jan 2, 2013

The angry protests against the increasing criminalisation and lumpenisation of New Delhi over the last two weeks have captured the attention of the entire world. While there are protests all over the globe, significantly the anti-capitalist sit-in movement of Washington, there has seldom been such a spontaneous and leaderless urban #Anna Hazare #InMyOpinion #urbanisation
‘Photography strictly prohibited’: The image and why we are scared of it

Dec 23, 2012

The ongoing retrospective of Kulwant Roy’s historic photographs at New Delhi’s, National Gallery of Modern Art flanking Indian Gate, is an example of how valuable photographs have been to the study and understanding of history and our leaders. Such a grand retrospective also brings a #Indira Gandhi #InMyOpinion #Kulwant Roy #Shastri Bhavan
‘No sex involved in Nehru and Lady Mountbatten’s love’

Dec 1, 2012

Edwina Mountbatten and Jawaharlal Nehru were deeply in love according to her daughter Pamela Hicks whose autobiography Daughter of Empire (Weidenfeld and Nicolson) has just been released. It was blissful romance but there was no sex involved for the simple reason that they did not have time for it. Excerpts from #Daughter of Empire #Jawaharlal Nehru #Lady Edwina Mountbatten #Lord Mountbatten #Pamela Hicks #TheySaidIt
Is the Congress leaning to the right with Kasab’s hanging?

Nov 22, 2012

Two recent decisions by the Congress-led UPA government would have stumped the BJP. Apart from taking the wind out of their sails on the eve of a Parliament session, these decisions may force the BJP to take tactical steps to counter the rightward sway of the Congress. The decision of #BJP #Congress #Elections #Gujarat #InMyOpinion #Mohammed Ajmal Kasab
Why India adores its ‘returnees’ and the logic of its love for ‘Amrika’

Nov 20, 2012

We believe that a western stint is a necessary appendage to higher accomplishment. We are a self-criticial nation and see ourselves as survivors in a chaotic society with neither order nor governance nor intellectual heft. And hence, we foster this constant longing for Western thought and accomplishment as was seen in #ConnectTheDots #Kaushik Basu #Raghuram Rajan #Salman Rushdie #US Education #Western Civilisation
1962: The national memory and the Himalayan Blunder

Oct 22, 2012

For a nation which lives in the past, and constantly looks to the past for succour from the daunting problems of the present, the 50th year ‘celebration’ of the 1962 war beats everything. The three chiefs of services and the Defence Minister AK Antony were at the New Delhi’s India #1962 India-China War #Arunachal Pradesh #Ch-India #Himalayan Blunder
What death of Newsweek print means for Economist and Time

Oct 19, 2012

The foretold closing down of the iconic Newsweek weekly news magazine after 80 years, the last two years under the ownership of digital upstart The Daily Beast, holds warning signals and lessons for the future of many Indian magazines and newspapers struggling to survive or just pretending to have a #digital #Huffington Post #MediaWatch #Newspaper #Newsweek #The Economist #Time magazine #Week
Why our xenophobhia has diminished us as a nation

Aug 25, 2012

Now that our collective euphoria over winning six medals (one by default) in the Olympics is over, it is time to figure out why we do not grow as a nation in any walk of life, and sports particularly. The known factor is that we are poor managers of anything and #OnlyInIndia #Xenophobia

The best from the blog

Need your self-esteem shredded? Come on a makeover show in India

Sep 6, 2012
We don’t have the stomach to watch Tendulkar fail

Sep 6, 2012
Why Mumbai’s prime office rates are rising in a depressed mkt

Sep 6, 2012
Does a disrupted Parliament mean electoral reforms are in the offing?

Sep 7, 2012
Was Arsenal’s win over Chelsea down to sheer luck?

Oct 31, 2011

New bloggers

Mid-wicket Tales

S. Giridhar is Registrar and also the Head of the University Resource Centre at Azim Premji University. V J Raghunath retired as CEO of Addison Paints and is now a senior training consultant. Both share a great love for test cricket. Both have combined to
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Sugandha Dubey

Sugandha Dubey has over 18 years of work experience in marketing, sales and brand management for iconic brands like Tanishq, Gillette, Group 4 and Getty Images. She turned entrepreneur in 2008 and launched SIBSA Digital Pvt Ltd, a total photography solut
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Editor's picks

The Big Mac of sports: Why we love IPL and its scandals

The average IPL fan isn’t outraged by the spot-fixing scandal. It merely confirms what we already suspected about the junk food of sports.
Nine years of UPA: What makes Sonia Gandhi the real hero

Not burdened by the baggage of caste or dogma, Sonia Gandhi has the opportunity and capacity to make a real difference to Indian society.
Sex charge against Phaneesh Murthy may be settled out of court

If the three can’t thrash out an out of court settlement, the sexual harassment case is likely to result in long litigation in the full glare of the media.
Why Preity Zinta stands for all that is wrong with the IPL

Preity Zinta embodies a lot of what is wrong with the IPL – irresponsibility and compromising the dignity of cricket as a sport.

Money, sleaze take the sheen off imperious Chennai Super Kings

Given the huge legal, moral and ethical stakes, Srinvasan and Meiyappan should have voluntarily clarified their position and should have offered to face an investigation.
How the Woolwich terror attack will harm Britain's Muslim community more

For Muslims in Britain, there comes one thing after another to get defensive about, and at quite short intervals. The Muslim community will be cornered into paying a price for the brutality of these two killers.
Explainer: Why Sensex has fallen over 300 points today

Chidambaram ‘s soothsaying may not work when the markets are driven largely by foreign institutional investors (FIIs)
PM carrying out responsibility with great dignity, says Sonia

Rejecting the talk about two power centres and differences between them, UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi today said there is “collective leadership” between her and Manmohan Singh and “we all stand by” the Prime Minister who will complete his term.

Why India is concerned about supplying arms to Afghanistan

From across the Hindu Kush, a plea for Indian help. Hamid Karzai wants New Delhi to provide artillery and military transport aircraft. It won’t cost India much—but New Delhi is worried about upsetting Pakistan, and wary of making commitments before it becomes clear which way the political wind is blowing in Kabul.
Sreesanth and IPL spot fixing: Why history makes it so hard to believe the police

With the glut of information regarding the IPL spot fixing scandal and the three cricketers how much of it can we really trust?
Phaneesh Murthy admits to relationship with employee

This is the second time the IT industry veteran has been involved in a sex scandal.
Despite BJP edge over Cong, both NDA and UPA are conjectures

Opinion polls show the BJP and the NDA ahead of the Congress and UPA. But it is the regional parties that are likely to make the biggest gains. NDA and UPA are post-poll creatures

Not just niceties, China and India need to focus on thorny issues

India’s discourse with China has traditionally been trapped in the Mao-ist maze that defines how “friends” ought to conduct themselves. But Chinese statecraft has evolved, and India too must up its diplomatic game.
Why the Indian media gives a damn about poverty

In that sense the poverty line of India is cruel. It is merciless and doesn’t allow the majority of Indians any money for shelter or access to education or healthcare or sanitation or anything else that civilised nations would consider as essential as food.
Goa meet: Will the BJP finally find a way out of its troubles?

Can the party resolve internal discord and take a call on Modi’s PM candidature?
Why Dhoni, Tendulkar can't distance themselves from spot fixing

Try following a game on twitter or with friends or at the ground. At every step of the way, the spot-fixing question raises itself.

Movie Review: 'The Reluctant Fundamentalist' leaves you dissatisfied

If you forget the politics and just look at the film, The Reluctant Fundamentalist doesn’t fare much better. It’s a thriller that lacks tension and suspense.
Here's how the Delhi Police stumbled upon spot-fixing in IPL

After monitoring a phone call, the investigation had virtually turned pan-India with some of the bookies based in Gujarat and Mumbai.
Ex-Citi CEO Vikram Pandit, JM Financial join hands for banking foray in India

JM Financial will nominate Pandit as the non-executive chairman of the proposed bank. Pandit and Aiyar will have the right to purchase shares up to the amount prescribed by the RBI in this entity.
Movie Review: The Great Gatsby is the most Bollywood of Baz Luhrmann's films

The great American dream is an integral part of America. It’s ‘great’ in that it symbolises not truth, but hope when the truth is disillusioning; it symbolises not facts, but ideals when facts are unnerving; it symbolises not likelihood, but promise when likelihood is all but bleak.

Google I/O 2013 keynote: New Maps, Search, Plus, and S4 with 'pure' Android

We’re tracking the Google I/O conference 2013 live – what will be unveiled?
Hero worshipped in Kerala, Sreesanth still innocent in his state

The summary of the response in his Sreesanth’s home turf is that of incredulity. They are unwilling to believe that the pacer is guilty.
Why return of Dreamliners won't change Air India's fortunes

The original promise of the Dreamliner has failed to materiallise due to limitations in its flying range. Will Air India continue to pay a price for this?
Did Indira abolish bonded labour or Sonia? NREGA's tall claims

The UPA ads eulogising MGNREGA as a a huge success needs to be taken with bags of salt. The scheme did make a difference, but not as is claimed.