Padmaavat Jauhar

A revived debate is forcing India to confront the history — and meaning — behind one of Bollywood’s most controversial climaxes.

Did ‘Padmaavat’ Glorify Jauhar?

Kaushikee Nayudu

Isha Banerjee

Gloria Steinem by a fishing boat in India

Gloria Steinem

The face of American feminism went to India in part to escape marriage. What she learned there changed her life.

Gloria Steinem, Made in India

Lakshmi (1894) by Raja Ravi Varma (Metropolitan Museum of Art)

Lakshmi by Raja Ravi Varma

A wellness influencer repackaged a Hindu goddess as self-optimization. Then came the backlash.

What the Hell is ‘Lakshmi-Maxxing’?

Vijay Deverakonda and Rashmika Mandanna (House on the Clouds)

HOTC photo

House on the Clouds founder Siddharth Sharma shares why Rashmika and Vijay’s photos resonated, how he handles copycats, and why he turns down clients.

What it Takes to Capture India’s Most Viral Weddings

Chirayu Rana with an excerpt of text messages in his new federal lawsuit (The Juggernaut)

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Our exclusive interview might hold some clues to why the former JPMorgan banker just filed a new federal lawsuit.

Chirayu Rana is Back — With a New Case

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi takes a group photo with AI leaders including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman (C) and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei (R) at the AI Impact Summit in Delhi on February 19, 2026 (Ludovic MARIN / AFP via Getty Images)

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The country built a global empire and created millions of jobs by doing work others didn’t want to do. What happens when AI can do it, too?

India Mastered Outsourcing. AI is a Different Test.

Snigdha Sur

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Why Did Chirayu Rana’s Lawyer Drop His Case?

Chirayu Rana in 2024 (Michaela Bublikova/@dudesinsuits), graphic by The Juggernaut

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We spoke to the ex-JPMorgan banker who claimed a female executive abused him — and found an even messier truth.

Exclusive: Chirayu Rana’s Wall Street Nightmare

Margot Robbie at the "Wuthering Heights" world premiere on January 28, 2026 in Los Angeles, California (Araya Doheny Photography/Variety via Getty Images)

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Hollywood and Western luxury houses keep exploiting Indian royal artefacts to sell jewels on the red carpet. When will it stop?

The Outrageous History Behind the Taj Mahal Necklace

Shah Rukh Khan attends the 2025 Met Gala Celebrating "Superfine: Tailoring Black Style" at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 5, 2025 (Michael Loccisano/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images)

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Viral clips, cropped videos, and eerily similar talking points. Fans suspect it isn’t a coincidence.

Who’s Trying to Take Down Shah Rukh Khan?

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Tomas Bata came to “shoe” the natives. They ended up building his empire — and saving his company.

How a Racist Czech Shoemaker Built India’s Biggest Shoe Brand

Still from Ai-generated 'Mahabharat: Dharamyudh' (JioHotsar)

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Some think artificial intelligence will democratize storytelling. Others think it’ll destroy what has long made films special.

AI is Coming for Indian Cinema

People stand around the debris of an airplane after it crashed in India's northwestern city of Ahmedabad in Gujarat state, Thursday, June 12, 2025 (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

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Tata is pouring billions into the airline. But a deadly crash — and years of passenger complaints — continue to cloud its comeback.

Can Air India Be Saved?

Indian farmers pick flowers at a farm in Kannauj, the perfume capital of India. Traditional workers are struggling to keep their craft alive in the face of fierce competition from modern fragrance makers. (AFP PHOTO/ SAJJAD HUSSAIN/GettyImages)


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 The $62 billion global fragrance industry runs on synthetics. But one country’s ancient, natural traditions are gaining ground.

Can India Reclaim Its Perfume Glory?

Prasanna Sankar, Sam Altman, Dhivya Sashidhar (X)

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Rippling co-founder Prasanna Sankar is in a viral fight with his ex-wife over money, custody, and reputation — and the internet is choosing sides.

A Founder, a Divorce, and the Trial by X

Tata Group chief Ratan Tata at the launch of Jaguar, Land Rover brands in Mumbai on June 28, 2009 (Bhaskar Paul/The The India Today Group via Getty Images)


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The British automaker’s most shocking moment wasn’t a viral 2024 ad. It was when one Indian man dared to buy it.

Jaguar’s in Trouble. Can Tata Save It Again?

Indian women make a “pookalam” or floral art during a contest in New Delhi, 11 September 2005 ahead of Onam (RAVEENDRAN/AFP via Getty Images)

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As Kerala’s biggest festival goes mainstream, the internet is divided over who gets to celebrate it — and what it even means.

Everyone Wants a Piece of Onam

British nationals queue before check-in for a special flight to London at the Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport in Amritsar on April 25, 2020. (Photo by NARINDER NANU/AFP via Getty Image)

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Viral videos have convinced us that travelers are faking disabilities. But the data tells a messier story.

Are Indians Really Gaming Airport Wheelchairs?

British director Peter Brook directs a rehearsal of his play Mahabharata on stage at Theatre des Bouffes du Nord in Paris (julio donoso/Sygma via Getty Images)

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Over 40 years ago, a British director cast actors from 17 countries in an Indian epic. The backlash still feels surprisingly current.

When the Mahabharata Went Global

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan (left) with his younger brother Farrukh Fateh Ali Khan (right, playing harmonium), recording at Real World Studios in England (Real World Studios)

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan

Gandhi, Tagore, and Nehru despised it. All India Radio banned it. Yet today, we can’t imagine our music without it.

How the Harmonium Outlived its Haters

Devi and her friends having a sleepover in Never Have I Ever 

Sleepovers

From Padma Lakshmi to Vivek Ramaswamy, one parental mandate has persisted across generations of immigrants. Why?

The ‘No Sleepover’ Rule Refuses to Assimilate

Shah Rukh Khan and Anupam Kher in Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995)

Entitled kids 

Parents want children to have every advantage they didn’t. But giving them more can come with unexpected costs.

Are We Raising a Generation of Entitled South Asian Kids?

Saswato Das

Ushoshi Das

The 2026 total solar eclipse (Ushoshi Das)

Solar Eclipse

The celestial events have inspired myths, math, and science. For our family, we can’t help but chase them.

A Father, Two Daughters, and Three Eclipses

Margaret Bourke-White's Partition photography (LIFE)

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Millions were uprooted not just in Punjab and Sindh, but also in the east. Yet one side dominates how we remember 1947.

Why Bengal Gets Left Out of the Partition Story

Shefali Shah's character in 'Dil Dhadakne Do' (2015) developed an eating disorder

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They’re taught to swallow their feelings and keep the peace. Research is only now revealing the toll this takes on the body.

Is People-Pleasing Making South Asian Women Sick?

Nadir Shah on the peacock throne after his defeat of Muhammad Shah, c. 1850 (India). Source: San Diego Museum of Art, San Diego

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One diamond became a symbol of British colonialism. But priceless other jewels ended up somewhere else entirely.

Why India Forgot the Other Koh-i-Noors

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Exclusive: We spoke to director Lena Khan and the dancers behind the real championship that might have inspired the Netflix film.

Before ‘Best of the Best,’ There Was Best of the Best

Aishwarya Rai, Zeenat Aman, Usha Vance, Katrina Kaif, Deepika Padukone, and Parveen Babi (The Juggernaut)

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The internet loves asking how he got her. The better question is why beauty and success still don’t give her more power.

Why Do Beautiful Women of Color Keep Dating Down?

This photo taken on July 5, 2017 shows Sukhwant Kaur, 78, showing a photograph of her late father Sulkhan Singh, with her son Jaswinder Singh (L) in Amritsar. (NARINDER NANU / AFP via Getty Images)



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Fifteen stories on the events that forever changed the subcontinent.

Remembering Partition and Independence, 79 Years On

Bangladeshi people participate in a rally to celebrate the first day of the Bengali New Year or Pohela Boishakh in Dhaka, Bangladesh on April 14, 2015 (Zakir Hossain Chowdhury/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)


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This June, explore some of our favorite features on queer South Asian icons, history, and culture.

The Juggernaut’s Essential Longreads for Pride 2026

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A curated guide to the subcontinental histories, icons, and cultural moments that shaped America — and the world.

15 South Asian Stories to Read This AAPI Heritage Month

Shakuntala Pines for King Dushyanta, With Priyamvada and Anusuya (Raja Ravi Varma)

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This March, dive into our stories about South Asian women in all their multitudes. Astronaut. Spy. Goddess. Saint.

Celebrating Women’s History Month: 2026

Yinka Animashaun and her husband Nitin at their 2019 wedding (Nana Annan Photography)

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Fifteen of our favorite stories on the often-overlooked, intertwined histories of Black and South Asian communities.

Celebrating Black History Month: 2026

Still from 'Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Ram'

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The best of film, TV, and music: the Japanese man who dared to animate the Ramayana,  ‘Dhurandhar,’ Mira Nair, Shah Rukh Khan, and more.

The Juggernaut’s Top 15 Entertainment Stories of 2025

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Prada’s $1,300 Kolhapuri chappals, AI’s breakout year, Air India’s turnaround — our best reporting on the companies and technologies that defined 2025.

The Juggernaut’s Top 10 Business and Tech Stories of 2025

Mahendra Patel (Courtesy of the Patel family)

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Wrongful imprisonment, hate crimes, and the search for justice — from Mahendra Patel to Xulhaz Mannan.

The Juggernaut’s Top 10 True Crime Stories of 2025

British Guiana Premier Cheddi Jagan and U.S. President John F. Kennedy on October 25, 1961 in the Oval Office (Abbie Rowe, White House Photographs / John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston)

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How the CIA toppled Guyana’s first leader, the forgotten Indian roots of flamenco, the dark history behind the old mine cut diamond, and more.

The Juggernaut’s Top 10 History Stories of 2025

Anurag Kashyap (Kriti Jain for The Juggernaut)

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Unfiltered perspectives, defining moments, and life lessons from filmmaker Anurag Kashyap, activist Malala Yousafzai, comedian Vir Das, and more.

The Juggernaut’s Top 15 Profiles of 2025

Zohran Mamdani is sworn in as NYC's 112th mayor by NY Attorney General Letitia James, alongside his wife Rama Duwaji, in the former City Hall subway station on January 1, 2026 (Amir Hamja/Getty Images)

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From Zohran Mamdani’s historic win to the H-1B visa controversy and Nepal’s anti-corruption protests, these were the political moments that defined 2025.

The Juggernaut’s Top 10 Politics Stories of 2025

The viral bandana girl, Priyanga (X user: w0rdgenerator)

viral bandana girl

From the myth of the “smelly” South Asian to the iconic bandana girl and Indian baddies, our best stories on the trends, practices, and beliefs that shape us.

The Juggernaut’s Top 15 Culture Stories of 2025

Lord Archibald Percival Wavell, the British vicory and governor-general of India, talks with Mr. J. K Biswas, the chairman of the Rotary Club Relief Committee, during a visit to a kitchen for victims of famine (© Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS via Getty Images)


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How British-orchestrated famines rewired South Asian genes, why we still aren’t getting enough protein, what America gets wrong about mustard oil, and more.

The Juggernaut’s Top 10 Health Stories of 2025

Indian food at several farmers markets including the Penn Street Farmers Market including these mango lassi yogurt drinks (Harold Hoch/MediaNews Group/Reading Eagle via Getty Images)


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From curry goat’s Caribbean swagger to mango lassi’s global takeover, these were our most delectable stories of the year.

The Juggernaut’s Top 10 Food Stories of 2025

biggest south asian momenets

The Biggest South Asian Moments of 2025

Akbar receives the Iranian Ambassador Sayyid Beg in 1562, illustration to the Akbarnama, c. 1590-5 © Victoria and Albert Museum

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Our favorite picks for your favorite loved ones.

The Juggernaut Holiday Gift Guide: 2025

Woman lighting candles for Diwali (Wikimedia Commons)

Woman lighting the candles for the Festival of Lights in India (cropped)

Ten must-read stories to enrich your festive season.

Celebrating Diwali: 2025

Shahbaz Khan shows pictures of his uncle Inayat Khan (left), who was also separated from the family at the time of Partition and died in India a few years ago, and his late father Sharif Khan (Murtaza Ali/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images)

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Fifteen in-depth stories about the event that forever changed the subcontinent.

Remembering Partition and Independence, 78 Years On

Members of Nepal's LGBT community take part in a gay pride parade in Kathmandu on August 27, 2018 (Gopen RAI / AFP via Getty Images)

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This June, explore some of our favorite long reads on queer South Asian icons, history, and culture.

Our Top Stories for Pride 2025

Hanumankind performs at the Mojave Tent at Coachella on April 12, 2025 in Indio, California (Arturo Holmes/Getty Images for Coachella)


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Dive into 20 of our favorite stories that celebrate South Asian American icons, culture, and history.

Celebrating Asian Pacific American Heritage Month: 2025

Pather Panchali 

Critics called Satyajit Ray’s debut “rambling” and “formless.” Yet its originality is precisely why it endures.

‘Pather Panchali,’ the Genius Film Where “Nothing” Happens

Shah Rukh Khan and Manisha Koirala in Dil Se..

Dil Se 

Beneath the haunting soundtrack, stunning cinematography, and supposed love triangle lies a far darker story hiding in plain sight.

‘Dil Se..’ Isn’t a Love Story. That’s the Point.

Akshaye Khanna, Saif Ali Khan, and Aamir Khan in ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ (2001)

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Farhan Akhtar on the film that changed Bollywood, the friends who inspired it, and where he imagines Akash, Sid, and Sameer 25 years later.

‘Dil Chahta Hai’: Friendship is Really That Important

kareena omkara 2

Vishal Bhardwaj’s 2006 adaptation reveals what the bard’s weakest play was missing.