ME & MY SHELF

Former director-general of the Delhi Policy Group, Radha Kumar is an academic, author and policy analyst. Her most recent book, The Republic Relearnt: Renewing Indian Democracy (1947-2024), explores the triumphs and the democratic decay of the Indian Republic.

The Journey Of The Kon-Tiki

Is it possible to cross the Pacific on a wooden raft? Natural scientist Thor Heyerdahl risks everything to prove it

Hot and (Un)bothered

Not that anyone in India needs to be reminded, but summer is here, and the collective energy dissipated by people complaining about the heat is making climate change even worse.

GOTCHA!

We asked for it: What’s the best prank you ever pulled?

NEXT STOP: WHO KNOWS?

We wanted to do a once-in-a-lifetime trek in northern Laos. Just getting there became the adventure

Do More With Your Tech

You're undoubtedly missing out on cool features that can help make life easier, safer and even more fun

Why Water Workouts Work

Swimming and other aquatic exercises have special benefits

Surf's Up... Again

A Hawaiian helps victims of a devastating fire in the most Hawaiian way possible

HUMOUR in UNIFORM

I got sloppy with my shaving one morning and nicked my skin.

Leave the WILD Things Be

Wild animals have been made to serve a variety of human needs, including recreational ones. It’s up to everyday folk to decry the use of animals for entertainment

Doing Dad's Bucket List

Laura Carney's father died suddenly, with unfinished business. So she started checking off the items for him

Buried beneath a Mountain

The amazing 17-day-long, multi-agency effort to rescue 41 workers trapped inside the Silkyara-Barkot tunnel

IS EVERYONE ON OZEMPIC?

Everything you need to know about the new diabetes drugs shaping the weight-loss revolution

Have Child, Will Travel

Bringing my kid on my around-the-world adventures helped me see her in new and unexpected ways

As Gods Among Us

A photographer explores the gamut of India’s ritual performers who embody deities as a form of worship

My stutter, Myself

If others don't notice my stutter, can I really call myself a stutterer?

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Modification

A Queensland mechanic customizes bikes so veterans can get riding again

I Tried It...Exercises to Relieve Tech Neck

I STARE AT MY phone for five hours a day.

The Upside of Getting Lost

I was in the woods with my family and we'd lost our way. My phone was dead. It was getting dark. How could this possibly be a good thing?

A MOTHER'S CONVICTION

AFTER ALL FOUR OF KATHLEEN FOLBIGG'S CHILDREN DIED IN INFANCY, A COURT FOUND HER GUILTY OF MURDER. TWENTY YEARS LATER, SCIENCE FINALLY UNCOVERED THE TRUTH

KITT THE COURAGEOUS K-9

Officer Bill Cushing needed a partner. His dog needed a purpose. Together, they rescued each other

Lite, Unplugged

Could you get through seven days without looking at a device? I tried—here’s what happened

GET A GREEN(ER) THUMB

Whether you love digging in the dirt, planting seeds and reaping the bounty that bursts forth, or find the whole idea of gardening intimidating, this spring offers the promise of a fresh start.

THE UNBELIEVABLE MR RIPLEY

The creator of Believe It or Not had an insatiable curiosity about strange and astonishing facts

HE OPENED UP THE ARC TIC

\"You don't just sit and wait for adventure to come,\" famed polar explorer Knud Rasmussen liked to explain.\"You go out and make it happen!\"

Discovering Babasaheb

This Dalit history month—which also marks the 134\" birth anniversary of Dr B. R. Ambedkar, we recount four momentous incidents from his life

Lion in the Living Room

Five decades after two young men brought a playful cub into their London home, the tale has touched a whole new generation

The Many Roles of SUNIL DUTT

Through many personal tragedies, this favourite matinee idol finds strength and solace in helping others

AGATHA CHRISTIE MURDER BY THE BOOK

More widely read than any other English writer, she baffled the world with masterly tales of murder and remained something of a mystery herself

THE DAY WE MADE Flying History

Ona sunny September day in 1913, the author set three world records ina homemade flying machine