Asia
Panesar
A headline in my hometown newspaper brought me to tears this morning. B.P. Panesar had died. He was a renowned artist. Water color. Oil. Etchings. He was also made a name as mentor to Shakila, a poor village woman who gained fame for her collages. He gave away his earnings as an artist to charity. …
Cat fight between homeland and home
I just read a CNN-IBN report on the Devyani Khobragade episode that made me squirm. “Devyani’s arrest,” the report said, “has rattled the Indian Diplomatic Corps. “It is forcing the government to hit back at the U.S. According to Indian diplomats serving in the Western countries, paying lesser than what is actually on official papers …
Bhopal's forgotten tragedy
This tragedy has been forgotten by most people. It shouldn’t be. It was 29 years ago on this night that tank 610 exploded at the Union Carbide pesticide plant in Bhopal. A milky fog that spread silently across the sleeping India city, spreading toxic gas in the densely populated slums nearby. Within minutes, people poured into …
First-person fire
In my 30 years as a journalist, I’ve written a lot about victims. Many sorts of victims. Of war. Murder. Illness. Natural disasters. And man-made ones. I always try to be sensitive and to highlight the incredible resiliency of human beings. I was lucky enough to have won a Dart-Ochberg Fellowship from the Dart Center …
A very difficult story
I have reported difficult stories before. It was never easy to tell tales of tragedy from places like Iraq. But a piece that published on CNN.com today is the hardest story I’ve ever told. Because it became very personal. Because it was raw. The producer, the photographer, the cameraman who went with me to Maharashtra …
India cyclone ravaged memories as well as land
Thinking of the 12 milion Indians who are bearing the brunt of Cyclone Phallin. Here is a piece I wrote for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in 1999, after the last deadly cyclone in the state of Orissa. November 25, 1999 Bhubaneshwar, India — I had been to Orissa before, lured by its ancient Hindu temples and …
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Durga
Phir bhi dil hai Hindustani
“When did you get home?” a friend asked me yesterday. “Last night,” I replied. “It must feel good to be back,” she said. The pause on the phone was long enough to be awkward. “Yes,” I said. I wanted the conversation to end. But what was home? That word has always been problematic for me. I …
Sacred sounds
One of the greatest musical talents of our time was silenced Tuesday. Ravi Shankar died at 92. His was a name I grew up with, a name that made me proud to be Indian at a time when my country was known mostly for human misery. I read the sad news of Shankar’s death Tuesday …
