N.B. Nair Bhubaneswar (Inspirational India): Poverty drove the 10–11-year-old Sudarsan Pattnaik to work as a domestic help at a neighbour’s home, in the locality where he lived in a dilapidated home in…
Challenging stereotypes: a single woman redefines public discourse of love, sex, marriage, and suicide
N.B. Nair Traditional Indian society virtually considers marriage essential for women. Single women or widows have no independent identity in society and are even looked down upon as bad omen for families….
Muslim lawyer ‘re-marries’ his wife under Special Marriage Act, to ensure equal inheritance to his daughters
N.B. Nair Every religion has its own personal law, which delineates marriage, divorce, maintenance, inheritance, and succession. These personal laws discriminate against women and deny them equality. There have been debates in…
Saving lives from the waves of Sarayu is an impulse for boatman Ramji Nishad
N.B. Nair Ramji Nishad is yet another boatman ferrying visitors for a ride in the Sarayu River in Ayodhya at Gupt Hari Ghat. There are dozens of such boatmen operating at…
Sixty-two-year-old takes Naga tribal music to the world stage blending with modern; receives fourth highest civilian award, Padma Shri
N.B. Nair Moa Subong from India’s north-eastern Nagaland is a musician with a difference. He made Naga tribal music popular, with the creation of an innovative genre blending modern English music. Moa…
‘Give dignity for all jobs’ – Barber-turned professor cum lyricist wants society to change its perception on dignity of labour
N.B. Nair Dr Jeteesh Sivadas teaches in a college in the Ernakulam district of Kerala and in the evenings, he slips into the role of a barber on Aluva-Munnar Highway. He is…
A gritty animal scientist’s story to revive near-extinct cattle breed, facing multiple challengers
N.B. Nair India has a very rich genetic diversity and possesses some of the best breeds of cattle and buffaloes in the world. It accounts for 17 percent of the world’s population…
Beedi Roller to hotel hand, humble Indian lawyer becomes district judge in the United States
N.B. Nair ‘Firm on law, fair on justice,’ reads the slogan on the website of Surendran K. Pattel, in the run-up to seeking Democratic Party nomination for 240th Judicial District Judge from…
Daring complete disability, this woman fights illiteracy, inequalities, for women empowerment, and mafia
N.B. Nair The crusader for literacy, uplifting women from inequalities and their economic empowerment – Kariveppil Rabiya, or K V Rabiya in short was born in a backward village – Vellilakkadu in…
A young engineer dreams to halt Bengaluru drifting to ‘Day Zero’ and restore dying lakes across India
N.B. Nair A report by Niti Ayog in August 2019 painted a grim picture of water security in several cities of India. The report, came out after global concerns about the worsening…