Kabir

How does it feel to perform on the ghats by the river Ganga in Varanasi? Hindustani classical singer, Bhuvanesh Komkali performing in Varanasi at the Mahindra Kabira Festival. (Mahindra Kabira Festival) This place is extremely beautiful. The way in which the Mahindra Kabira Festival has been organized, the choice of location, and the entire thought process behind the curation is wonderful. Being on the ghats always leaves a strong impression on my mind. It inspires me deeply. In fact, Varanasi, on the whole, is…

What inspires you to sing the poems of Kabir, a man who lived way back in the 15th century? What strikes you when you think about the meaning of his words? Vasu Dixit performing in Varanasi (Courtesy the Mahindra Kabira Festival) His wisdom! Kabir says the most profound things but in a simple manner. He reminds us that the wisdom is within all of us because we come from the same source. The whole point of life is to reconnect with that source. Our mind keeps us disconnected from the deepest parts of ourselves…

Have you ever fallen so deeply in love with a place that you’ve wanted to protect it with all your might? Poet Mirza Ghalib felt this way about Banaras, the city also known as Varanasi and Kashi. In his Persian masnavi Chiragh-e-Dair, he wrote: “ta’ālallah banāras chashm-e-bad dūr/bahisht-e-khurram-o-firdaus-e-ma’mūr”. Maaz bin Bilal’s Temple Lamp: Verses on Banaras, a recent English translation, presents this as: “May God keep Banaras/ from the evil eye, / it is heavenly bliss, paradise established”. Hindustani…

When poet, lyricist, and screenplay writer Javed Akhtar was born, his father, a diehard Communist, read out the Communist Manifesto to him, instead of reciting the azaan, the Islamic call to prayer, in his ears, as is the tradition. The seeds were sown for an extraordinary journey. 214pp, Rs799; Westland Books Named Jaadu by his professor-writer parents Safia and Jan Nisar Akhtar (later changed to Javed when he was enrolled at school), life was magical till the day after his eighth birthday, when his mother died,…

The sixth edition of the Mahindra Kabira Festival, held from November 18 to 20 on the banks of the river Ganga in Varanasi, was a magnificent celebration of the 15th-century weaver-poet Kabir’s words and wisdom. The city, also called Kashi and Benaras, was where Kabir spent much of his life. The festival was memorable not only because of the breathtaking sunrises and sunsets that could be witnessed from the venues – Guleria Ghat and Shivala Ghat – but also because the itinerary was packed with a broad range of offerings…

The arrest of Delhi-based businessman Kabir Talwar by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has shaken the country. Talwar, who owns popular nightclubs in Delhi like Jazbaa, The White and RSVP, has been arrested due to his alleged involvement in the Mundra Port drug bust case, in which around 3,000 kg of heroin worth Rs 21,000 crore was recovered. Kabir Talwar was known for his affluent lifestyle and his love for expensive things, including high-end cars. Here‘s a list of all the high-end sports and luxury cars owned…

With The Forgotten Army — the new five-part Amazon Prime Video miniseries that follows the Subhash Chandra Bose-led Indian National Army — creator and director Kabir Khan (Bajrangi Bhaijaan) wants to shed light on what he thinks is an overlooked chapter of our history. This isn't the first time he's tackling the story, having directed a staid six-part eponymous docu-series in 1999, which has aged poorly. Khan has been trying to revisit the topic ever since and his dream has finally come true, over two decades later. And…