A special post on Mohanlal’s sixtieth birthday. I am far from a film aficionado. I am at the most a casual viewer of cinema. As someone interested in politics and culture, films present an opportunity to observe social, cultural and political changes in real-time as well as an opportunity to sit back and enjoy them. To any Malayali, Mammootty and Mohanlal evoke strong emotions (granted there are a small minority of psychopaths that do not). These superstars have shaped the Ma

A tribute to the Cholas :An Introduction  A little over 10 months ago, I published a small article called The Lost History about how many Indians are unaware of the grandeur and achievements of the Chola Empire. This article can be considered as in continuum. Of the three great dynasties[1] to have made Ancient Tamilakam[2] their home, the Cholas are arguably, the greatest. At its greatest extent under Rajendra Chola I, it stretched near to the Ganges in the north, to Sri Lan