Bastar Dussehra

Where Is Dussehra Celebrated for 75 Days in India? Why Bastar Has No Ravana Burning

Bastar Dussehra is the festival that answers the question “where is Dussehra celebrated for 75 days in India?” Held in Jagdalpur, in the Bastar region of Chhattisgarh, it runs for roughly 75 days and has no Ravana effigy burning at all. Instead of the Ramayana’s final battle, the festival centres on Goddess Danteshwari, local village…

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Takshashila

Takshashila: World’s Oldest University: The Untold Story Almost Nobody Knows

Long before “campus,” “syllabus,” or “degree” existed as ideas, there was a city on the Indus where students walked for weeks just to sit at a teacher’s feet. Was Takshashila really the world’s first university? This piece looks through the eyes of its ancient chroniclers, its teachers, and the modern historians who’ve argued about it…

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Raja Man Singh of Amber portrait

Raja Man Singh I of Amber: The Complete Life Story, Vansawali, Battles and Temples of Akbar’s Greatest General

Raja Man Singh of Amber: Complete Life Story, Vansawali and Battles Few names in medieval Indian history carry as much weight, and as much controversy, as Raja Man Singh I of Amber. Born a Kachhwaha Rajput prince in a small hill kingdom, he rose to become the most powerful general in Emperor Akbar’s empire, a…

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