The Sanatan Sanstha has been in the dock over the controversial murders of rationalists and in the spotlight for bomb attacks in Maharashtra and Pune. But its national spokesperson, Chetan Rajhans, tells Outlook that the Sanstha has emerged as the new whipping boy for its detractors because it’s still a small organisation and their original target, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, is a much more powerful entity now.
- COVER STORY
By 2050, sea level rise is expected to inundate 40 per cent of Goa’s low-lying areas, ravaging the state’s popular beaches by draining the sand along its 105-km coastline.
As Goa faces climate change threats from rising sea levels and extreme tidal events, its age-old khazans could come to the rescue
‘From the time I entered public life until now, I cannot seem to recognise the Goa I once knew’, says former Union minister Ramakant Khalap as he laments the moral degradation of the state’s new generation.
Goans continue to take advantage of Portuguese citizenship laws, as India hopes to strengthen its ties with the European Union via the Iberian country’s PM with Goan roots
Naked hippies on beach, ‘adult movies’ with U certificate -- what Goa was like in the swinging seventies through the naughty nineties
Why books minus touristy cliches, voices from outside the metros, and inexpensive printing options in small states like Goa are the needs of the hour
The story of Goa is in many ways our story. And we decided to tell its story from the point of view of an old mermaid. We decided to make the mermaid speak to us.
A tale of a sensuous mermaid through her blithe adolescence, meditative adulthood and grim old age—that's the story of Goa too
Friendship, romance and a pint of urrack. A bitter-sweet story from the banks of River Zuari.
By 2050, sea level rise is expected to inundate 40 per cent of Goa’s low-lying areas, ravaging the state’s popular beaches by draining the sand along its 105-km coastline.
As Goa faces climate change threats from rising sea levels and extreme tidal events, its age-old khazans could come to the rescue
‘From the time I entered public life until now, I cannot seem to recognise the Goa I once knew’, says former Union minister Ramakant Khalap as he laments the moral degradation of the state’s new generation.
Goans continue to take advantage of Portuguese citizenship laws, as India hopes to strengthen its ties with the European Union via the Iberian country’s PM with Goan roots
Naked hippies on beach, ‘adult movies’ with U certificate -- what Goa was like in the swinging seventies through the naughty nineties
Why books minus touristy cliches, voices from outside the metros, and inexpensive printing options in small states like Goa are the needs of the hour
The story of Goa is in many ways our story. And we decided to tell its story from the point of view of an old mermaid. We decided to make the mermaid speak to us.
A tale of a sensuous mermaid through her blithe adolescence, meditative adulthood and grim old age—that's the story of Goa too
Friendship, romance and a pint of urrack. A bitter-sweet story from the banks of River Zuari.
OTHER STORIES
For generations now, absence of consistent and rigorous public discourse about Goa’s colonial history had led to a tentatively harmonious co-existence of Hindus, Catholics and Muslims. But the state’s rapidly changing demography due to in and out-migration patterns, as well as the consolidation of the Hindu right-wing in positions of authority, have led to questions being asked about history.
Founded in 1990 by Dr Jayant Balaji Atavale, a hypnotherapist, the Sanatan Sanstha is registered as a charitable organisation. A few people linked to the killing of four well-known rationalists and bomb blasts in Goa and Maharashtra were allegedly members of the Sanstha. However, their Sanstha membership has not been proved conclusively. There is very little information about its membership policy, and the locals are not allowed into the ashram.
A new fiction film on the business of baking bread highlights Goa’s desire to hold on to adlear tempar or ‘the way things were’, gauged through the everyday functioning of a traditional bakery
The Gawda kapodd, evolved as the Kunbi weave, has crossed the boundaries of caste, religion and region, but care must be taken to preserve and keep it in circulation
The effort is to have the next generation take over and ensure that the Fado has a secure future in Goa as well as India in the times to come.
Hardened truths delivered under the guise of melodic verse, combined with a lively sketch by Goa-based cartoonist and author Alex Fernandes
Three of my grandparents were Goans and Catholic by religious orientation. That is often the long-winded explanation I have to offer in order to justify my culturally diverse lineage, especially to those who tend to caricature Goa and its denizens based on loosely crafted characters in movies and in popular media.