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Karan Thapar

Karan Thapar

Karan Thapar is a super-looking genius who’s young, friendly, chatty and great fun to be with. He’s also very enjoyable to read.

Articles by Karan Thapar

A manual that may satisfy even Gen Z

Shobhaa De’s canvas is wide and the essays in her new book cover a range of acts. (PTI)

Published on Nov 08, 2025 10:06 pm IST

Ode to November and memories of autumn

Fall, as it’s called in New England, is perhaps the most colourful season of the year. The trees are clothed in shades of ochre, rust, magenta, auburn and deep green set against their own rich brown. (Getty Images via AFP)

Published on Nov 01, 2025 09:58 pm IST

The works of Krishnan Srinivasan: Mr Marco and Ms Deb, solving crimes in Kolkata

I suspect Kris is rather fond of Michael Marco. Although he doesn’t dominate the plot and tends to hover in the background, Kris’s affection for his creation is unmistakable. (Wikimedia Commons)

Published on Oct 25, 2025 10:28 pm IST

The ugly Indian and other stories of racism

Watch the difference in the behaviour of a Delhi shopkeeper to an African and an Englishman. He will treat the former with disdain while fawning over the latter. (HT Archive)

Published on Oct 18, 2025 09:56 pm IST

MF Husain: Man and myth, art and artist

Imagine how much we could learn if the Husain museum were in Delhi or Mumbai. Instead we’ve lost it. Actually, we’ve let it slip out of our hands. (Qatar Foundation via PTI)

Published on Oct 11, 2025 09:28 pm IST

Mother Mary Comes to Me: In which Arundhati gives it those ones

The book takes you through the early years of her life, when she acted in or wrote the script for films like Massey Sahib , In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones and Electric Moon. (PTI)

Published on Oct 04, 2025 09:55 pm IST

The home and the world, in a time of nationalism

Last week, when Sam Pitroda innocently said he felt at home in Pakistan, a TV channel attacked him for being unpatriotic. Over 15 minutes of a 25-minute news bulletin was devoted to excoriating this innocuous comment. (HT Archive)

Published on Sept 27, 2025 09:08 pm IST

Living in the grey zone: Peter Mandelson’s story

I imagine that after success has elevated him to the stratosphere, few people get to see this endearing side of Peter. But it’s definitely how I prefer to remember him. (AFP)

Published on Sept 20, 2025 07:53 pm IST

A challenging time for Indian diplomacy

The question that must be asked is: Is there a possibility of some sort of G2 emerging between America and China? If yes, would that “legitimise” China’s dominance of the Asian region? India definitely would not want that. (via REUTERS)

Published on Sept 13, 2025 08:55 pm IST

Monsoon in Delhi, summer in London

The freak summer of 1976 in London was talked about for years. Now it seems commonplace. Who knows heat waves in summer could be the new normal? (REUTERS)

Published on Sept 06, 2025 09:31 pm IST

It is no more about trade; peoples’ ties are at risk too

The Trump Administration is also targeting the bedrock of India-US ties, people-to-people relations. Commerce secretary Howard Lutnick says he wants to change the H1B visa programme, possibly affecting the 70% beneficiaries who are Indian. (AFP)

Published on Aug 30, 2025 09:43 pm IST

Shimon Peres and the war on Palestinians

Shimon Peres wanted to solve a situation that had already lingered for four decades. He had a conscience. The Palestinian people mattered to him. (HT Archive)

Published on Aug 23, 2025 08:51 pm IST

Hell hath no fury like Donald Trump scorned

Scott Bessent, the US treasury secretary, has revealed that secondary tariffs on India could increase if Trump’s talks with Putin fail. (AFP)

Published on Aug 16, 2025 08:55 pm IST

Questions that Bihar SIR brings to the fore

Now so far, we have only been analysing names that have been deleted and their impact on the electoral rolls and the electoral trajectory of Bihar. But what about the names that haven’t been included? (HT Photo)

Published on Aug 09, 2025 08:02 pm IST

Why voting rights at 16 is the way forward

Do people in their 20s and 30s or 50s and 60s decide intelligently? Or do they do so emotionally? Or just out of habit and prejudice? If it’s ok for them, why not 16-year-olds? (AFP)

Published on Aug 02, 2025 10:12 pm IST

Process as punishment and deceptive closures

Twelve fellow citizens, with the same right to justice and fair play as you or I, have spent 19 years in jail, accused and then initially convicted of a crime they did not do. They were punished when they were innocent. (HT Photo)

Published on Jul 26, 2025 08:35 pm IST

Missing in the list of Bharat Ratna awardees

Of the 53 people awarded the Bharat Ratna starting with the first in 1954, by my count, 31 are politicians. That’s almost 60%. (PTI)

Published on Jul 19, 2025 11:27 pm IST

ECI needs to course correct on Bihar SIR

(The Commission has said that those who don’t can provide any one of 11 other documents such as a PSU identity card, passport, matriculation certificate, forest right certificate and caste certificate. (AFP)

Published on Jul 12, 2025 09:22 pm IST

Wimbledon is on, it’s time to watch tennis

Wimbledon is more than just brilliant tennis. It’s also a social event. British industry does a lot of entertaining whilst the tennis is being played. (AFP)

Published on Jul 05, 2025 06:52 pm IST

Saving Veeraswamy, a British institution

It’s not just Veeraswamy’s place in history that should be protected and preserved. It’s also a rather good restaurant. (Alex Muller/Wikimedia Commons)

Published on Jun 28, 2025 08:51 pm IST

Blinded by devotion to power and her son

The truth is, as Srinath Raghavan’s book points out, Indira Gandhi never thought very highly of democracy

Published on Jun 21, 2025 06:24 pm IST

Valmik Thapar: Cousin, critic, and wise counsel

He instinctively knew what would excite curiosity and could easily distinguish it from what was of interest only to the elites of Delhi’s drawing rooms (HT Photo)

Updated on Jun 14, 2025 10:00 pm IST

By censuring Tharoor, Congress lost the plot

In its dislike of Shashi — and what else would you call it — it threw this opportunity awa (@ShashiTharoor)

Published on Jun 07, 2025 07:06 pm IST

Rights and duties as per the Constitution

The handling of the Ali Khan Mahmudabad case raises many questions (PTI)

Updated on May 31, 2025 06:14 pm IST

Kashmir, Kashmiris, and the politics of retribution

A woman cries as she stands outside her house damaged by Pakistani artillery shelling, at Salamabad village in Uri ,north of Srinagar (Waseem Andrabi /Hindustan Times)

Updated on May 24, 2025 07:10 pm IST

The double life of an academic and murder mystery writer

His other great skill lies in descriptions. He’s not florid. Certainly not verbose. In fact, he’s precise, pointed and very particular in the way he paints a scene

Published on May 17, 2025 07:09 pm IST

Portrait of Pope Francis: His life, message, legacy

He was a very liberal Catholic Pope but he was still a Catholic Pope (REUTERS)

Published on May 03, 2025 07:04 pm IST

Revealed: The mystery that Agatha Christie was

British writer of crime and detective fiction, Dame Agatha Christie (1891 - 1976). (Photo by Walter Bird/Getty Images) (Getty Images)

Published on Apr 26, 2025 08:35 pm IST

Farooq Abdullah and the predicament of Kashmir

Dulat is very insightful of a conundrum that separates Kashmiri politics from the rest of the nation (AFP)

Published on Apr 19, 2025 10:30 pm IST

Calls to make Doon co-ed ignore its identity, history

A co-educational format would fundamentally alter the school’s identity as well as its founder’s mission. That’s why Eton and Harrow have not changed

Published on Apr 12, 2025 09:00 pm IST

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