A Life Etched in Water - Manikandan Kandeth

 

A Life Etched in Water - Manikandan Kandeth

“Swimming is not merely about conquering water; it is about conquering the fear within.”

As a growing up adolescent at 12, Manikandan Kandeth of Kousthubham, Perinkulam, Palakkad from the state of Kerala was afraid of water. With the encouragement of his father K. Govindankutty Nair and the guidance of coach V. Valsakumar, he turned that fear into a lifelong passion. What began as a childhood challenge soon became a remarkable journey.

A member of the Kerala University Swimming Team, Manikandan gained valuable exposure as a young athlete. His sporting ability eventually opened the doors to the Indian Navy through the sports quota from St. Thomas College, Pala. Representing the Indian Navy in Services Swimming Championships and other competitions, he also repeatedly participated in sea-swimming events, braving difficult and unforgiving waters without surrendering his determination to win.

After 16 years of service, he retired as a Chief Petty Officer serving at different destinations including Mumbai, Kochi and Sri Lanka. But retirement could not retire the swimmer in him. For the next 21 years, he carried his passion, working at institutions including Good Shepherd International School, Ooty, and Indian Public School, Erode. As a swimming mentor, he helped nurture generations of young swimmers, many of whom went on to excel in the sport.

Even after leaving school employment, the teacher within him remained active. At a local pond, and with the support of fellow athletes, he taught more than 200 children swimming free of cost, passing on not merely a sport, but an essential life skill.

For the past 50 years, Manikandan Kandeth has continued competing in State and National Masters Swimming Meets, participating in 20 Masters Meets and winning numerous medals and certificates. His performances have earned him selections for international Masters competitions, although financial constraints prevented him from representing himself on the world stage.

At 63, his discipline remains undiminished. For him, missing a day of practice is almost unthinkable.  He is in New Delhi to participate in the National Masters Swimming Tournament to be held at  Bahadurgarh, Haryana between 10^th and 13^the September, 2026.

“The water does not ask your age. It only asks how determined you are to keep moving.”

He entered the water to overcome fear. He stayed in it to discover himself and now teaches others how to swim beyond their own limitations.  Manikandan's story is therefore not simply about medals, championships or records. It is about fear transformed into courage, passion transformed into purpose, and experience transformed into inspiration. He is a true legend who deserves to be decorated with National Honours.

“A swimmer never really stops moving; every stroke is a promise to become better than yesterday.”

Master Storyteller who redefined the Japanese Mystery Novel - Keigo HIgashino

 

Keigo HIgashino (1958-2026)

Master Storyteller who redefined the Japanese Mystery Novel

In the bustling city of Osaka, Japan, on 4 February 1958, a boy was born who would one day transform the landscape of modern crime fiction.  That boy was Keigo Higashino. Growing up amid the energy of post war Japan, he developed an early fascination with logic, observation and the hidden complexities of ordinary lives.

Higashino graduated in electrical engineering from Osaka Prefecture University and briefly worked as an engineer before dedicating himself entirely to writing. Higashino made his literary debut in 1985 after winning the Edogawa Rampo Prize for After School.  Over the next four decades, he built an extraordinary body of work distinguished not merely by intricate plots, but by profound explorations of human relationships, morality, sacrifice, and the hidden burdens carried by ordinary people.

What sets Higashino apart was his remarkable ability to transform mystery novel into a deeply human experience. While his stories featured brilliant detectives and meticulously crafted puzzled weaved intricately within the plot, the true mystery often lay within the human heart.  His narratives explored love, guilt, redemption, loneliness, justice, and the moral ambiguities that define everyday life.  His prose was elegant, restrained, and accessible, allowing readers to immerse themselves in stories where emotional truth was as compelling as intellectual intrigue.

Through his novels Higashino walks us through the customs of his motherland, the prefectures, the food, shops while capturing how a younger generation is negotiating change in a changing society steeped in rituals and tradition.  His books have sold well over 100 million copies worldwide across all editions and have been translated into dozens of languages, introducing crime fiction to readers across Asia, Europe, North America and Latin America.  Numerous films, television dramas and stage adaptations have been produced through his inspiring works.

Higashino has received several prestigious literary honors including the Naoki Prize for The Devotion of Suspect X.  Some of his prominent novels include A Death in Tokyo, Malice, The final curtain, Forbidden Magic, The Decoded Heart besides numerous other best sellers.

Keigo Higashino leaves behind more than mysteries, he leaves mirrors to the human soul embedded in his works.  In every unanswered question lingers compassion, in every revelation, truth.  Though his pen has fallen silent, generations of readers will continue to find themselves, and one another, in the shadows and light of his stories.

 

Gen Z - Art of Roaching

 

I attended an Anime event held at New Delhi’s Yashobhoomi on Saturday the 6^th June, 2026 where at a kiosk, a GenZ kid made out a sketch that made me look 40 years younger! After the girl had finished sketching (it had taken her nearly 15 minutes for a sketch that perhaps could have been finished in under 5 minutes).  However, finding the sketch off the mark, I asked her jokingly, ‘Is this my sketch’? She smiled and retorted ‘Yes, that’s how I find you, isnt’ it perfect?’!  The confidence, and the child-like innocence of the kid amazed me!  She was 100% sure she had done a great job!  This left me puzzled and made me wonder, what a generation! 

On the same day at Jantar Mantar the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), a purportedly GenZ political enterprise staged a dharna drawing attention to the education sector reforms, unemployment and other matters that concerned the youth of the country.  While politics and dharnas have not been an area of interest for me but in the wake of the a large GenZ base support for CJP, I am inclined to scribble a take on the life and times we live in today.

With a population of about 1.45 billion, India now has world’s largest Generation Z population (a generation born between 1997 and 2012) that makes this country possess one of the youngest work forces in comparison to other countries of the world. A quick comparison indicates that today India possesses an employable work force out of which 43 to 55% are graduates and 1/3^rd of the entire population is below 25 years of age!

However, the overall employment scenario for youth seems dismal as we lack strong apprenticeship systems, close industry academia collabs and a general lack of focus on strong soft skills and practical training that makes youth available but unemployable.  A general sense of helplessness and depression seems to be spreading over young minds that is leading to exhibition of unrest and dis-trust towards the system.

Since gaining Independence, India has more or less continued with the British set school system that could only roll out manpower that focused on white collar jobs.  Lack of focus on skill development and a trust on government jobs further led to eroding of confidence for entrepreneurship or self-employment for youth passing out from schools and universities.

Gen Z has emerged as a generation where parents are more empowered in comparison to the earlier generations but helpless when it came to taking clear decisions in respect of education, discipline and employment for their wards. They perhaps wish to grant their children a sense of freedom that they themselves missed while growing up. Easy handy money, freedom for entertainment and a hollow sense of joy out of materialism, a leaf out from the West! Thus, GenZ stands as a section of population that wishes to see results quickly and with less efforts. Reel life has overtaken young minds and quick success with lesser responsibility seems to be their line of thought.  Attention deficit and lack of awareness for details seems to be way of things for this generation.  Global down turn in growth and employment has further stressed up matters and has become a major source of discontent to the Gen-Z in our country.

However, the silver lining is that we need not be hopeless.  The CJP rally showed that Gen Z may be wayward in their mannerism but they cannot be fooled. They reflected a sense of purpose and confidence.  They wanted to air their views and had concern for environment, cleanliness, social trust and development, Instead of scoring political points, Gen Z should be made as focal point for communication that should transform India. They should be made the sails by ruling dispensation as well as opposition to steer the ship of India towards success.

The huge bank of manpower should be made use of for monitoring social programs of government. Let them record, monitor deviations and be made part of the machinery to ensure success of reforms, policies and action.  They perhaps should be allotted spaces in Assemblies and Parliament (even as visitors in visitor galleries) to listen to leaders interact with their branches and downlines.  Let them be part of a machinery that spreads positive messages providing a  forward looking commentary on our life and times.

It is time to harness the Youth energy and make them pillars of change for making India a great country.  Gen Z requires guidance and mentoring.  Let their leaders not assume that they can hijack the minds of Gen Z in any direction they wish to but on the other hand India needs Gen Z to pick youth leaders who actually be ready to join government machinery  to bring in revolutionary changes in ways that can lead to higher skill development, employability and grown of our great nation.

Anime: Building new Worlds and Heroes

Anime: Building new Worlds and Heroes

History is witness to civilisations that narrated stories. Stories, that were painted on cave walls, passed down generations through word of mouth, etched on palm leaves, weaved into songs or depicted on pottery and performed through theatre. Stories that bore testimony through proofs on temple walls through murals and art mediums. 

In the 20^th Century, humanity discovered a new way to tell stories, through anime, a medium that has captured global imagination.  Anime refers to the distinctive style of animation that originated in Japan and has evolved into a global entertainment phenomenon. As storytelling evolved in other parts of the world through multifarious mediums, animated story telling emerged in Japan as early as the 1910s and through 1960s it took shape in to pioneering works through the efforts of Osamu Tezuka, whose Astro Boyestablished innumerable visual and narrative conventions that is in use till today.

While India has its own rich tradition of visual story, Japanese anime began making a noticeable impact in the 1990s through television broadcast of shows such as Tracking Ball Z, Pokémon, Doraemon and Naruto. These series introduced Indian audiences to distinctive style of animation, characterised by complex narratives, emotional depth and memorable characters. The rise of satellite television followed by internet, streaming platforms, and social media has transformed anime into a mainstream cultural phenomenon and has brought in its distinct impact on the youth in India. 

There is a big scope for Indian artists for exploring opportunities to blend anime and its integration with indigenous themes, mythology, and folklore for creating unique fusion that will reflect both India’s historical storytelling roots and the global appeal of Indian anime around the world.

The anime industry is today valued at nearly USD 38 billion and this projected to be more than double over the next decade. Streaming platforms, international audiences, and merchandising are major drivers of this growth. The key trends in Anime include global storytelling that is incorporating cultural settings and characters. A lot of creators from outside Japan are producing an inspired content and there is a diverse representation which has become common standard. AI tools like background generation, colouring, animation, assistance, and workflow optimisation has brought a revolution to this industry. Franchises that revolve around memorable characters, genres merchandise, games, collectibles, and spinoff have virtually given this industry a big boost. Intellectual property development too has also become a major business model in this industry. Hybrid 2 and 3-D animation styles are increasingly becoming common with advanced character creations and Avatar tech technologies that are expanding opportunities for interactive anime experiences. Modern audience are increasingly preferring nuanced characters with flaws, vulnerabilities, and complex motivations, rather than simple heroes and villains that is a huge area of interest for patrons and followers of this genre.

The scope for creating original anime characters is immense. The areas of high potential include the Indian mythology with background of Indian epics, folklores, African mythology, Celtic legends, and indigenous traditions. Climate change, prohibition, and ecological themes that remain under represented in mainstream Anime also has huge potential through character representation of forests, biodiversity, indigenous wisdom that can strongly resonate with young audiences.

While most of anime protagonists are teenagers, there is considerable creative space for older heroes, retired professional professionals, spiritual seekers, and wise elders, basking on meaningful and memorable journeys through anime. The intersection of artificial intelligence, ethics, memory, and identity offers scope for unique character development. Culture and traditions of Kerala also offer unique opportunity for artists to create new anime characters through depiction of Kerala Temple culture, Kathakali performances, Elephant caretakers, traditional healers, tribal culture etc, that offer narratives rarely seen in global anime.

Memorable anime characters typically combine elements that have distinct visual appeal that provide instant recognition. The characters have unique back story that provide emotional connection through conflicts that help in character growth and there is underlying signature that provides memorability to the characters and the story. There is also a personal philosophy, that has depth and conveys elements of strong relationships giving fillip to the development of the story that include flaws and weaknesses providing the required depth to the characters of the story.

Anime is not merely a style of drawing. It is an art from capable of transforming emotions into images, myths into adventures, and dreams into living words. Despite cultural differences, anime speaks of universal human experiences through Hope, Courage, Friendship, Sacrifice, Identity, Love and Redemption. It invites audience into a world where real spirits walk among humans through machine processed information wherein friendships are enabled to move mountains, and where ordinary people discover extraordinary Destinies.

Today, anime has become a worldwide cultural force. Yet, its greatest opportunity and strength is yet to be unfolded. The creation of entirely new characters and stories inspired by cultures and landscapes are yet to appear in mainstream animation.

Mohanlal and Shahrukh Khan - Weaving magic through films

 

 

In the recently held National Film Awards in New Delhi Mohanlal and Shah Rukh Khan, two towering figures of Indian cinema, who embody the diversity and dynamism of the country’s film culture, won coveted National Awards. While Shah Rukh Khan, popularly hailed as the “King of Bollywood”, who rose to global prominence through Hindi cinema, won best actor award for his role in Jawan, Mohanlal (popularly known as lalettan) the quintessential actor of Malayalam cinema revered for his naturalistic performances, won the coveted Dadasaheb Phalke Award for his life time Achievement in Indian Cinema. While, for Shahrukh Khan aged 59, it was the first National Award, for Mohanlal, aged 65, it was the highest award that Indian Cinema offers to any Indian Film Personality.    A closer look at the trajectory of their film careers take us into contrasting yet complementary artistic traditions with divergent narrative styles, and audience expectations. But a question remains, who is more successful and loved amongst them?

Shah Rukh Khan’s journey from theatre and television to mainstream Hindi films in the early 1990s coincided with the liberalization of India’s economy. His early roles in TV in serial Fauji immediately revved up interest in him and later films like Baazigar (1993) and Darr (1993) broke the mould of the virtuous hero, presenting instead a charismatic anti-hero. This boldness however quickly gave way to a romantic persona that redefined the Bollywood hero archetype. Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (DDLJ) (1995) was one such landmark in Indian cinema that combined diaspora concerns with traditional Indian values and cemented Khan’s image as the universal lover. His career arc mirrors the aspirations of a middle class that was becoming increasingly global yet rooted in cultural tradition. Khan’s strengths lie in his magnetic screen presence and an ability to blend flamboyance with vulnerability. However, it is often argued that he has occasionally relied too heavily on formulaic romantic roles, leading to stretches of creative stagnation before his recent resurgence with action-driven spectacles like Pathaan and Jawan (2023).

Mohanlal, by contrast, built his reputation on understatement and versatility. Beginning his film career in the early 1980s, he emerged during Malayalam cinema’s golden era, when socially relevant narratives and realist filmmaking were dominant factors determining success or failure of a film. During that era Mohanlal could effortlessly shift from the disarming charm of films like Thoovanathumbikal (1987) to the moral gravitas of Iruvar (1997) and the layered introspection of Drishyam. His genius lies in making the extraordinary feel ordinary imbibing even larger-than-life characters with a lived-in and simplistic authenticity. Unlike Khan’s star persona, Mohanlal often dissolves into his roles, enabling Malayalam cinema to explore complex social issues without the distraction of celebrity spectacle. While his prolific output includes uneven projects, his sheer consistency over four decades remains remarkable and unparalleled in Malayalam cinema.

A Comparison of these towering stars in the backdrop of National Film Award would but underscore the regional diversity of Indian cinema. Hindi films traditionally target a pan-Indian and international audience, rewarding charisma and spectacle, while Malayalam cinema prizes narrative realism and cultural specificity. While roll out OTT platforms have suddenly elicited immense Pan Indian and global interest for regional films especially South Indian Movies, Hindi Cinema today faces the largest challenge of having to compete with the un-whetted appetite for good films by masses.  While a few years back Shahrukh was a household name who has been a heartthrob but remained an uncrowned king in the context of having won National Awards, reach of Mohanal was somehow limited to regional audiences due to language barriers and non-availability of content (dubbed or otherwise) in all regions due to monopolistic distribution systems in the cinema world.   

While both actors seem to share similar moments of success and glory in their individual career paths, their charisma and emotional connect have easily broken linguistic and cultural barriers through their films. While Shahrukh Khan has a global fan base, mostly comprising of women that include the  Indian diaspora spread across the world; Mohanlal’s nuanced performances have slowly and firmly earned international recognition by making the Malayalam Film Industry a reason for debate and attention within India and abroad.

A comparison of careers of these two towering stars is not possible but magic of films through heroes like them reveal the hard work, determination and mystery that revolves around evolving nature of stardom. While on one hand Shahrukh Khan has embraced marketing, social media, and global collaborations to sustain relevance, Mohanlal’s longevity is anchored in craft and adaptability within a smaller but discerning market. Both approaches highlight different strategies for survival in a rapidly changing industry.

Ultimately, Shah Rukh Khan and Mohanlal represent two poles of Indian cinematic excellence: one that thrives on grand romantic ideals and mass spectacle and the other that relies upon subtlety and realism. Together, they illustrate Indian cinema’s richness that has hidden layers of not one single tradition but like threads that weave out wonderful patterns in a fabric, they encompasses myriad styles, languages, and emotional registers.  Thus Indian cinema and film industry today wields tremendous soft power where each actor is a master of his own distinctive universe and each film turns out to be a unique creation that encapsulates artistic excellence, technical expertise, hard work and creative imagination of the entire team led by stars like Shahrukh Khan and Mohanlal, who truly deserve recognition that can inspire millions through the medium of Cinema and films.

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71st National Film Awards – A celebration of Films and film craft

 

New Delhi, 23 September 2025

Hon’ble President of India will present the 71st National Film Awards (NFA) at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi today.   The awards go to the filmmakers, actors and technicians whose work was adjudged the best for films certified in the year 2023. Earlier on 1^st August, 2025, the official winners were announced and today at Vigyan Bhawan, their contributions are being formally recognised and celebrated through felicitations in the NFA Awards ceremony.

The first National Film Awards ceremony (for the film produced in 1953) took place in the year 1954 at the same venue in New Delhi.  With passing years the number of awards and categories in which selections are made by jury has expanded considerably.  The categories now include the feature, non-feature, regional, book on films and the coveted Dadasaheb Phalke Award that honours the life time achievement of personalities involved in the field of Films.

This year Malayalam cinema’s iconic actor Mohanlal, who has a career spanning four decades and celebrated for over 350 films across multiple Indian languages is being conferred with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award. The Award was instituted in the year 1969 to commemorate the achievements of “father of Indian cinema,” Dadasaheb, and is reserved for a film personality for his/her lifetime of outstanding contribution to the growth and development of Indian cinema.

Born in Elanthoor, Kerala in the year 1960, Mohanlal is known for effortless versatility, who besides being an actor is also a producer, singer, martial-arts enthusiast, and recipient of several national and international awards. His work spans across action, drama, and experimental cinema. His landmark works include Manichitrathazhu, Kireedam, Vanaprastham, Bharatham, and Drishyam, alongside blockbusters like Pulimurugan and Lucifer. He excels in both art-house and commercial roles, collaborating with masters like Bharathan, Padmarajan, and Priyadarshan, shaping Malayalam cinema while also acting in Tamil, Hindi, and Telugu films. He is married to Suchitra and has two children, Pranav and Vismaya.

The 71st National Film Awards recognises films certified between 1 January and 31 December 2023. The winners who were declared in a press release on 1 August 2025; today the winners will be formally honoured by Hon’ble President of India.

Apart from the Dadasaheb Phalke life time award, the Best Feature Film (Swarna Kamal) goes to 12th Fail. Best Actor in Leading Role is being awarded to Shah Rukh Khan and Vikrant Massey (shared) — for Jawan and 12th Fail respectively. Best Actress (Leading Role) goes to Rani Mukerji in Mrs Chatterjee Vs Norway. Some of the other award are best Supporting Actor Shri Vijayaraghavan a prominent actor from Malayalam Films. Best Supporting Actress: Urvashi; Janaki Bodiwala, besides winners in several other categories.

3I-ATLAS – An Interstellar Comet or an alien spaceship?

 

                                       3I-ATLAS – An Interstellar Comet or an alien spaceship?

These days my mobile and social media accounts are flooded with videos and news items relating to alien invasion on Earth, sighting of UFOs and of course 3I-Atlas. While doomsday prophecies and alien invasions are being discussed, official agencies such as NASA are dismissing any such claims, reiterating that the Interstellar object in discussion is a comet that is merely passing by our solar system through millions of years of time travel.

On 1^st July, 2025, a comet from Interstellar, which is referred to as the space between the stars, was discovered by Astronomers. This interstellar object was named 3I-ATLAS.  Based on its characteristics, it has been categorized as a 'comet' based on the typical hyperbolic shape of its orbital path.  It is estimated that this comet will be reaching the closest point to the Sun on 30^th October, 2025, at a distance of about 1.4AU (130 million miles or 210 million kilometers), just inside the orbit of Mars.

Travelling at a speed of roughly 90,000–110,000 km/h, the comet is now officially recognized as the third known interstellar visitor after ‘Oumuamua and 2I/Borisov and is projected to make its closes pass to Earth on 19  December, 2025. While social media is abuzz with bizarre stories about the interstellar object, it has now been acknowledged that the comet, calculated to have arrived from the direction of constellation Sagittarius, is formed in another star system and was ejected into the interstellar space until it recently entered into our solar system.

While scientists and astronomers are closely observing the alien object, research so far has shown that the comet has extreme Negative Polarization (meaning a deep and narrow negative polarization branch reaching about −2.7% at a ~7° phase angle), with an inversion angle (~where polarization changes sign) around 17°, which is interpreted to be unusual among comets and asteroids. Gases such as CO2, Methane have been discovered via JWST Infrared Spectroscopy, which is suggestive of a volatile rich composition of its nucleus with the possibility of ices that are less processed. Ultraviolet imaging (with Swift telescope) has detected emission characteristic of OH (a by-product of water splitting), which is a sign of water presence.  Hubble observations has also estimated the size of its nucleus to be up to ~5.6 km in diameter.

While official agencies such as NASA have declared 3I-ATLAS as a comet that shall pose no threat to Earth, there have been several speculations about the Interstellar object to be of Alien origin and that it is a weaponized spacecraft that could possibly turn hostile towards humans on Earth.  Multiple observatories and instruments such as Hubble, JWST, Swift, ground telescopes discovering consistent features like coma development, gas/dust output, tail growth and Spectroscopy showing composition through polarimetry giving extensive details about dust properties, water detection supports the theory that the interstellar object is of natural behavior typical for a Comet.

However, uncertainties in relation the exact internal structure / nucleus shape, rotation period of the object and some of the “odd” features (e.g. unusually high CO₂/H₂O ratio, strong activity far from Sun, polarization peculiarities) which are not fully explained by existing comet models point to either unusual formation environments or preservation (less processed by radiation, etc.) in respect of 3I-ATLAS which makes a clear interpretation of the object as comet, a matter of debate.

While the best scientific evidence as of now strongly supports the theory that 3I/ATLAS is indeed a comet with natural origins and behavior but it surely is an unusual case compared to comets previously identified having marked their presence in our Solar System. Moreover, with claims that it is “emitting its own light,” or shows mission-maneuver-like behavior, which as of now largely remains speculative are reasons that the subject matter has become a hot case for debate in scientific community. 

Social Media through stories and reels emanating from various geographic locations is deeply speculating a hidden threat to mankind based on predictions such as one from Baba Vanga about humanity making contact with aliens in 2025. Some researchers are claiming that humanity is poised to make contact with aliens and that the interstellar object could well be part of some extra-terrestrial reconnaissance. Harvard astrophysicist Avi Loeb has speculated (in more “thought-experiment” fashion) that some of the observed features of the comet might be consistent with artificial origin like its brightness, possibly not just from sunlight reflection, trajectory “fine-tuning etc.  Even astrologers and innumerable social media geeks have come out with pages amplifying theories that seem more seeped in fiction than any credible scientific study.

It is said human mind is a fertile ground for creation and imagination. Thus as 3I-ATLAS travels across our solar system, sci-fi writers are penning stories of the Interstellar object akin to an alien spacecraft likely to make a landing over Mars.  People are also imagining the aliens hidden in the spaceship are stealthily trying to alter human minds through alien technologies or even planning to attack Earth! Researchers and official agencies are however reiterating that the object under study is indeed a Comet and it poses no threat to humankind on Earth.  It is hoped that scientists with the help of new age tech and in-depth research, will possibly be able to make new discoveries about this fascinating interstellar visitor and offer deeper understanding of about such alien trespasses into our solar system.

 Image Source: Internet

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