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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

The delight Wenger’s has been for Delhi for 100 years

Wenger's is in Block A in the Inner Circle of Connaught Place.

Updated on Jul 12, 2026 01:14 IST

Lost in translation: How India speaks English

We speak far more literally. We describe what we have to say, we search out specific adjectives that convey our meaning and perhaps this is why in the process we use too many and usually all of the superlative sort. (Photo for representation)

Updated on Jul 5, 2026 02:25 IST

Windfall for Pakistan from the peace deal

We in India tend to dismiss Shehbaz Sharif and Asim Munir as messengers, not mediators. That’s unfair.

Updated on Jun 28, 2026 02:11 IST

To drink or not, is the question of choice

In Ladakh, the new excise policy means the sale of alcohol would be extended to remote parts of the Union Territory such as Nubra, Changthang, Sham, and Zanskar. This has upset the local population.

Updated on Jun 21, 2026 01:28 IST

TMC split: The morality of lawmakers is a rarity

The rebel MLAs and MPs claim their disaffection with Mamata stretches back in time. But then, why did they choose to rebel only when she was defeated? Why not earlier? (Samir Jana/HT Photo)

Updated on Jun 13, 2026 14:09 IST

From Delhi to Lahore, what’s in a name?

In Delhi we’ve even gone to the extent of changing names several times. For example, who’s heard of Rajiv Gandhi Chowk or Indira Gandhi Chowk? And does anyone know which is which? Yet, that’s the new name of Connaught Place. The young call it CP and we all know what that stands for. (Sanjeev Verma/HT Photo)

Updated on Jun 6, 2026 15:32 IST

The discreet charm of Gymkhana Club

Consider for a moment what might replace the Gymkhana Club. It’s unlikely to be a public park accessible by everyone. (Mint Archive)

Updated on May 30, 2026 16:34 IST

Sorry, it is very British & means many things

When spoken on the street, Sorry may sound like an apology but it is, in fact, an expression of ‘the UK’s deep discomfort with accidental intimacy’. It usually means ‘excuse me’, ‘after you’ or ‘please move’ or, even, ’let’s pretend this tiny collision never happened’. (AP)

Updated on May 23, 2026 17:41 IST

Nation and its largest religious minority

If Viksit Bharat is to be achieved, India cannot afford for its 200 million Muslims to become the country’s forgotten minority. Remember, even if you deliberately try to make them unseen and unheard, they’ll always be there. (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photo)

Updated on May 16, 2026 13:38 IST

Recollecting legends and lores about India’s forces

All three salutes are performed with the right hand raised to the forehead. In the army case, the palm faces outwards. In the navy, it faces down. In the air force, it’s angled upwards. (HT Archive)

Updated on May 9, 2026 15:31 IST

In the US, a King Charles masterclass in diplomacy

Some of his asides might have made the American President wince. “On this occasion I cannot help noticing the readjustments to the East Wing,” alluding to the proposed ballroom. “I am sorry to say that we British made our own small attempt at real-estate redevelopment of the White House in 1814.” (AFP)

Updated on May 2, 2026 16:05 IST

The deferred FCRA bill calls for a quiet burial

The government has not given a clear reason why it wants to amend the FCRA bill. It simply claims it’s to ensure that the incoming foreign money does not affect national interest, public order or national security. (HT Archive)

Updated on Apr 25, 2026 17:07 IST

Peter Magyar, the Eliza Doolittle of Hungary

Peter Magyar, you could say, is the new “king of the castle”. He’s turfed out the dictator-tyrant Orban. But he is, in fact, an ordinary politician who no one ever thought would be important. (Reuters)

Updated on Apr 18, 2026 14:35 IST

A critic in Tel Aviv in the time of Israel’s war

He also excoriates the media. Because it wants to entertain and not inform, it’s chosen to ignore the devastation Benjamin Netanyahu has wrought upon Gaza. And he’s unforgiving about his prime minister. He calls his government fascist. (HT Archive)

Updated on Apr 11, 2026 15:25 IST

24 Akbar Road: Lutyen’s bungalow with a history

In 1960, it became the residence of the Burmese ambassador to India. Daw Khin Kyi and her young daughter Aung San Suu Kyi used to live there. At the time it was called Burma House. the name was given to it by then prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru. (Shutterstock)

Updated on Apr 4, 2026 16:21 IST

One loser in the Gulf war is President Trump

When Iran began to target the Gulf States, hitting hotels, airports, financial centres, and even, residential buildings, in addition to American diplomatic premises, Trump said he didn’t think Iran would do this. He said he’d been taken by surprise. (Reuters)

Updated on Mar 28, 2026 14:47 IST

A 1977 Janata moment in Nepal’s political life

Balendra Shah, who’s only 35, will be Nepal’s new prime minister. it was his image and personality that captivated Nepal. (REUTERS)

Updated on Mar 21, 2026 16:39 IST

Beware the ides of March, but don’t fear the inevitable

In 44 BC, the ides of March took on a new meaning. Ignoring warnings from his wife Calpurnia and a soothsayer — if you go by Shakespeare’s version — Caesar insisted on going to the Senate, where he was stabbed to death. (Wikimedia Commons)

Updated on Mar 14, 2026 17:47 IST

Fallacy of parental consent in marriage

As recently as 2021, the Supreme Court in the Laxmibai Chandaragi B case ruled that “the consent of the family or the community or the clan is not necessary once the two adult individuals agree to enter into a wedlock and that their consent has to be piously given primacy”. (HT Archive)

Updated on Mar 7, 2026 16:18 IST

The prince and the police: A British tale

I dare say Andrew himself could never have believed this is what he would face. The photograph of him slumped at the back of a police car, shaken and shocked, reflects he can hardly believe what’s happened. (Reuters)

Updated on Feb 28, 2026 16:15 IST

When cricket becomes war minus the shooting

There is an important point to remember about sport. The opposing side are not your adversaries. They are certainly not your enemies. They are merely opponents as keen to win the game as you are to defeat them. (Reuters)

Updated on Feb 21, 2026 16:03 IST

The confusion about GM products in our markets

Indian cotton, as we know, is genetically modified. Therefore, again, to the extent to which its oil contains GM traces they have already entered our food chain and diet. (HT Archive)

Updated on Feb 14, 2026 17:17 IST

The Shakespeare in our everyday speech

Shakespeare’s impact on English is so vast and wide that all of us end up quoting him, probably several times a day, without realising it. This also means that the simplest of things we say could actually have a rich and vaunted past. (Wikimedia Commons)

Updated on Feb 7, 2026 17:26 IST

Mark Tully: A child of India, voice of Indians

From the meanest rural hamlet to the grand portals of Rashtrapati Bhawan, his name was recalled before that of the corporation he served. (AP)

Updated on Jan 31, 2026 17:35 IST

Passing the taste test in the nation’s Capital

One of the joys of ’Table for Four...’ is that often it includes recipes of some of the dishes the authors have most enjoyed. It also has pieces by highly rated restaurateurs like Rohit Khattar, Ritu Dalmia and Marut Sikka. (HT Archive)

Updated on Jan 24, 2026 15:59 IST

Why I consider 13 to be my lucky number

Historically, the significance of 13 stretches back into the mists of time. Most people believe it has Biblical connotations. (AP)

Updated on Jan 17, 2026 18:34 IST

Myanmar’s junta and a farce of an election

The silence from New Delhi suggests India has no reservations if Gen Aung Hliang continues to rule. If that’s true, it would be unbecoming of the world’s largest democracy. (via REUTERS)

Updated on Jan 10, 2026 16:50 IST

Spin in speech lights up the conversation

I can’t help but feel that there is something wondrous about being in 2026. It’s like a journey into a future I once thought was far far away. (AFP)

Updated on Jan 3, 2026 16:10 IST

When what’s said isn’t what’s meant

when an Englishman says, “Sorry, could you say that last bit again,” it actually means he hasn’t heard a word of what you were saying. Or if he says, “I hear what you’re saying.” he’s, in fact, telling you he completely disagrees. (REUTERS)

Updated on Dec 27, 2025 14:52 IST

Keeping a date with the oddest happenstances

It was on the 21st of December in 1972, when I was just 17, that I met my first witch. It was at the Christmas fair on Hampstead Heath, a sort of mini winter wonderland. (AP)

Updated on Dec 20, 2025 15:26 IST

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