Long Reads
Long Reads News
An AD-mi-RAY-ble vision: Revisiting Satyajit Ray's foray into the advertising industry
Charting the growth of Satyajit Ray, the ad-man, Pinaki De selects five advertisements created by the filmmaking genius and analyses how Ray balanced commercial demands with his fine aesthetic sensibilities.
Mexico City marks 500 years of Spanish siege of Tenochtitlán, the capital of Aztec Empire
It was one of the few times an organised Indigenous army under local command fought European colonisers to a standstill for months, and the final defeat helped set the template for much of the conquest and colonisation that came afterward.
After being hit by COVID-19 crisis, fishing season offers hope to Senegal's women
In the small community of Bargny, women support their families by drying, smoking, salting and fermenting the catch brought home by male villagers.
Livelihoods of Worli's Koli community, impacted by coastal infra projects, further battered by COVID-19 crisis
For years, artisanal Kolis at Worli have been coping with environmental and community endangerment from coastal development projects. The COVID-19 lockdown has added to the woes of the fishing community.
Along Nepal's Kamala river, cultivation has brought both opportunities and problems for farmers
Hundreds of families are adapting to sandbank cultivation on both sides of the Kamala. The practice has appeared along a 35-kilometre stretch of the river.
In Bosnia, Muslim miners mark Ramadan underground; pray and break fast underground
During Ramadan, observant Muslims abstain from eating, drinking and smoking from dawn until sunset and Zenica coal miners are no exception. For the entire duration of the Muslim holy month, they go about their normal work routine, insisting they feel no exceptional hunger, thirst or exhaustion.
'Eccentrics washed up here': Shabnam Minwalla’s book highlights diversity that characterises Mumbai's Colaba
Colaba’s diversity is evident in its population, ranging from its original inhabitants, the Kolis and the fishing community, to enthusiasts frequenting art galleries and libraries, and from shoppers at Colaba Causeway to the Indian Navy at Navy Nagar, and more.
Aparna Sen and Madhabi Mukherjee on Satyajit Ray, the man, and his enduring legacy
On Satyajit Ray's 100th birth anniversary, his leading ladies Aparna Sen and Madhabi Mukherjee weigh in on the political significance of the man and his legacy, even 29 years since he breathed his last.
Jose Gregorio Hernández, Venezuela's beloved 'doctor of the poor', to be beatified following 72-year campaign
Known as the "doctor of the poor, Hernandez is set to be beatified by the Catholic church, a step towards sainthood, on 30 April.
Mass funeral pyres present a chilling portrait of India's surge in COVID-19 cases
India’s surge in coronavirus infections, growing at the fastest pace in the world, has left patients pleading for oxygen outside hospitals, relatives weeping in the street as their loved ones die while waiting for treatment.
'Look after my babies': In Ethiopia, a Tigray family's quest amid gunshots, ethnic violence
Five months after it began, the armed conflict in Ethiopia has turned into what witnesses describe as a campaign to destroy the Tigrayan minority. Thousands of families have been shattered, fleeing their homes, starved, murdered or still searching for each other across a region of some 6 million people.
In photos, how India is coping with world's worst COVID-19 surge amid shortage of hospital beds, meds, oxygen
A Delhi gurdwara has started offering free breathing sessions with shared tanks to COVID-19 patients waiting for a hospital bed.
On World Earth Day, Indian artists reflect on their relationship with trees and use of art to bring attention to natural world
By drawing attention to trees and individualising them, environmental art works to combat plant blindness and offers an outlet for eco-anxiety.
In The Break of Dawn, illustrated tales of Awadh's struggles during India's First War of Independence
Originally published in Urdu under the title Aghaaz-e-Sahar, The Break of Dawn is a reminder of a time when Indians of all classes and faiths came together to fight for the honour and freedom of their homeland.
As COVID deaths cross 3 million globally, a look at the pandemic's most defining images
To mark the milestone of 3 million COVID-19 deaths worldwide, The Associated Press asked 15 photographers in 13 countries to pick the single image they shot that affected them the most, and explain why.
As Joe Biden announces withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan, a look at 20 years of conflict and its remnants
There were 2,500 to 3,000 US troops in Afghanistan when Biden took office, the smallest number since early in the war. The number peaked at 1,00,000 during President Barack Obama’s first term.
In Mexico, hunger and unemployment force many former sex workers back into trade amid COVID-19 pandemic
Conditions that have always been tough for the women who ply the trade in Mexico City — violence by clients and gangs who prey on prostitutes and shakedowns by corrupt police — got even worse during the pandemic.
Revisiting Lathmar Holi, the colourful recreation of Radha-Krishna's relationship in villages of Nandgaon, Barsana
Lathmar Holi is essentially the story of the two love-locked villages of Nandgaon and Barsana in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, believed to be the birthplaces of Lord Krishna and his consort Radha, respectively.
At Magnetic Fields Nomads, some answers for music festivals grappling with challenges of COVID-19 era
While the past year has stripped audiences of the opportunities to enjoy live events, festivals such as Magnetic Fields are trying new approaches that might serve as blueprints for others.
In Peru, govt-approved clandestine burials of COVID-19 victims rouse ire
Local authorities approved the burials but never told the families, who believed their loved ones were in a local cemetery — and only months later discovered the truth.