Heeramandi

An Indian TV series ignites cross-border cultural discourse over a romanticised bygone era

Even so, Bhansali’s project has evoked considerable interest in Pakistan since the word went out that he was once considering casting Fawad Khan and Mahira Khan, two of the top stars who have acted in Bollywood films. “Then, politics entered,” one of them rued.

Western media biases colour South Asia coverage: Need for greater journalistic empathy and objectivity

Despite the myriad challenges faced by Western journalists in covering South Asia, maintaining journalistic integrity is non-negotiable. This entails a rigorous commitment to fact-checking, corroborating information from diverse sources, and challenging ingrained biases.

Clash of Civilizations: Which will be the best-placed to lead the world?

India and China represent the future, America (West) the present, and Europe the past; Islam has a long way to go. 

Is Pakistan playing with fire by aligning clandestinely with the ISK?

The growing camaraderie between Pakistan’s military and the ISK  poses a threat to the entire South Asian region.

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Chuck Yeager: Aviation legend who batted for the Pakistan Air Force

In the course of his advisory duties, Yeager had made good friends in the higher echelons of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF), and within a short period, he fell prey to an affliction, known, amongst diplomats, as ‘localitis,’ i.e, a deep sympathy, verging on identification, with the host country and its people, writes Admiral Arun Prakash (retd) for South Asia Monitor

India should create a corpus for post-COVID South Asia rebuilding

Would it be appropriate to suggest that the Modi government defer the construction of a new parliament building in Delhi, and use the funds (approximately Rs. 971 crores) to create a corpus for post-COVID South Asian rebuilding? writes Cmde C Uday Bhaskar (retd) for South Asia Monitor

South Asia: COVID-19 and the digital divide

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought in additional challenges to tackle amidst the technological disparities within Asia. There is a digital divide witnessed in the economies of South Asia, writes Partha Pratim Mitra for South Asia Monitor  

Aseefa Bhutto Zardari: A new star rises on Pakistan's political horizon

Pitching for her exiled father, Maryam has become a veteran. But she appeared to yield space to Aseefa, the surprise debutante, in terms of public response and social media fervour that followed this Multan rally, writes Mahendra Ved  for South Asia Monitor

India-Sri Lanka-Maldives trilateral: Towards consolidating regional maritime security

The resumption of this interaction last held in New Delhi in 2014 is an important step forward in recognising the magnitude of the external and internal threat to maritime security and to develop a shared approach to the security of this region, writes Cmde Anil Jai Singh (retd) for South Asia Monitor

Women journalists in Afghanistan: Defiant in the face of violence

The protection for journalists remains the biggest challenge in Afghanistan, and while women journalists make up just 17 percent of the news force, 30 percent of them have reported violence, writes Farida Nekzad for South Asia Monitor

Bangladesh within its rights in relocating Rohingyas

It is the height of hypocrisy if the global community led by the West lets Myanmar off the hook  and instead pressurises poor Bangladesh to not only shelter more than a million people in the overcrowded country but even dictate locations for settling them, writes Subir Bhaumik for South Asia Monitor

Can death penalty end Bangladesh’s rape culture?

Experts feel that impunity enjoyed by rapists in the country are not due to the fact that Bangladesh does not have a high punishment for rape - currently the highest punishment afforded is life imprisonment - but that rapists are convicted in only three percent of the cases, writes Tasmiah Nuhiya Ahmed for South Asia Monitor

What ails India's agitating farmers?

The anger of these agitating farmers is yet another manifestation of the narrative of farmer distress that stalks the India growth story, writes N Chandra Mohan for South Asia Monitor 

Pakistan remains vulnerable to a 'terrorist takeover'; Taliban deal 'poorly advised', says former US National Security Advisor John Bolton

With the outgoing President Donald Trump having ordered a nearly full US troop withdrawal from Afghanistan after almost two decades in the war-torn country, in Bolton’s assessment  there are clear dangers of a serious instability that could threaten not only the South Asian region but the rest of the world, writes Mayank Chhaya for South Asia Monitor

Stymieing nuclear capability the dirty way: Yet China-Pakistan nuclear axis is ignored

Yet no nuclear scientist has been targeted in Pakistan, not even Abdul Qadeer Khan, father of Pakistan’s nuclear bomb who indulged in blatant nuclear proliferation with obvious government support, writes Lt Gen Prakash Katoch (retd) for South Asia Monitor

Two years after death, Sindh’s left-leaning leader still holds sway among masses

Rasool Bux Palijo has earned a place in the pantheon of leaders of South Asia who has earned lasting fame and created an ideological legacy in the struggle against martial law, feudalism, colonialism, and imperialism, writes Muhammad Abbas Khaskheli for South Asia Monitor 

Colombo-Delhi-Male dialogue: Looking beyond maritime security

India, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives agreed to expand the scope of intelligence sharing, including terrorism and cybersecurity, at the meeting to discuss common security threats, writes Sugeeswara Senadhira for South Asia Monitor

Pakistan's misguided cultural nationalism - and a losing battle with Indian content

Pakistani audiences seem unwilling to discard the supposedly "vulgar" stuff they are addicted to, given the common socio-cultural ethos of the subcontinent, writes Mahendra Ved for South Asia Monitor  

COVID-19 and South Asia: Sequencing of policy options

The spread of COVID-19 infections in South Asia has not been uniform across countries; while some countries were successful in controlling the pandemic, others were not, writes Partho Pratim Mitra for South Asia Monitor