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Home / Columns / Soumya Bhattacharya

Soumya Bhattacharya

Soumya Bhattacharya

Soumya Bhattacharya is the editor of Hindustan Times, Mumbai. He is the author of five books of fiction, non-fiction and memoir.

Articles by Soumya Bhattacharya

Traffic back in Delhi, even in non-peak hours

An estimate shows that the ITO intersection has been recording around 400,000 vehicles during peak hours.

Updated on Jun 25, 2021 19:31 IST

The Lion King tells me that entitlement is everything

After a final showdown, Simba emerges supreme. He is the new lion king. It all feels right and good. But what exactly has Simba done to deserve this?

Updated on Jul 23, 2019 13:21 IST

Gun Island by Amitav Ghosh: A gripping parable for our times

Amitav Ghosh’s Gun Island is as much an etymological mystery as a compelling study of illegal migration.

Updated on Jun 8, 2019 12:58 IST

Review: The Assassination of Indira Gandhi; The Collected Stories of Upamanyu Chatterjee

Delhi riots, November 1984.

Updated on Jun 8, 2019 04:53 IST

Review: Autumn Light by Pico Iyer

Mount Fuji, the highest mountain in Japan viewed from the Chureito Pagoda in Yamanashi prefecture. A Zen master quoted in Iyer’s book says that in Zen practice, when you see a mountain, you become the mountain.

Updated on May 24, 2019 16:31 IST

Spinoff by Soumya Bhattacharya: Manchester City and Liverpool’s ace rivalry

A Premier League match between Manchester City and Liverpool in January.

Updated on May 30, 2019 12:49 IST

In an epic year for the English Premier League, a look at its transformation

Liverpool's Mohamed Salah celebrates scoring their second goal against Chelsea on April 14. The English Premier League is in for a frenzied finish.

Updated on Apr 20, 2019 10:57 IST

Spinoff by Soumya Bhattacharya: The two faces of sporting greatness

Like all great rivals, the two men inspire each other to ever-greater heights season after season. And yet they couldn’t be more different. Ronaldo comes across as a snarling, primal, elemental, almost atavistic creature. You may or may not like him, but he wrenches admiration out of you.

Updated on Mar 23, 2019 15:15 IST

Courting greatness: In the legend of Federer, the numbers are just the beginning

The Swiss great defeated Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas in the ATP Dubai Championship, to win his 100th title. A fifth of these are majors. He’s won 29 titles in his thirties alone.

Updated on Mar 9, 2019 13:36 IST

The unexpected outcome sets sport apart from other fields of popular culture: Spinoff by Soumya Bhattacharya

James Buster Douglas (right) defeated Mike Tyson at Tokyo Dome stadium, Japan , in 1990, leaving everyone surprised. The unexpected outcome brought an end to Tyson’s dominance in world boxing.

Updated on Feb 22, 2019 17:59 IST

Spinoff by Soumya Bhattacharya: The sports fan and his embrace of torment

A tense Arsenal supporter during a match against Tottenham Hotspur in December last year.

Updated on Feb 9, 2019 11:37 IST

Spinoff by Soumya Bhattacharya: There’s no better time to be a sports fan

A great deal of mutual respect underpins the relationship between tennis players Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.

Updated on Jan 27, 2019 10:24 IST

The agony and ecstasy of a sports fan

Arsenal fans celebrate in the stands at Wembley stadium, London.

Updated on Jan 11, 2019 16:48 IST

Because idols can’t err. Or can they?

The fame of successful sportspersons such as Cristiano Ronaldo blind their followers in to believing that their icons can’t do any wrong.

Updated on Dec 15, 2018 12:15 IST

On top of the game: age and injuries no bar

(left) Novak Djokovic of Serbia with Rafael Nadal of Spain and Roger Federer of Switzerland during the ATP Heritage Celebration in New York, 2013.

Updated on Nov 30, 2018 15:01 IST

What MS Dhoni can learn from Mithali Raj

Left: Mithali Raj, captain of the Indian women’s cricket team; MS Dhoni, former captain of the Indian cricket team

Updated on Nov 21, 2018 14:43 IST

Kohli & Co: Swagger is no substitute for success

The margins are fine in elite sport. The ability to discern a turning point, win it, and change the narrative of a game is the hallmark of all great teams. This current India team has consistently failed to do that outside Asia.

Updated on Nov 4, 2018 08:29 IST

The 2018 World Cup has seen a renewal in the quality of football

South Korea fans inside the stadium before the match. The Asian nation defeated Germany -- making the European football powerhouse exit the FIFA world cup in group stages for the first time in last 80 years.

Updated on Jun 28, 2018 14:12 IST

A royal wedding like no other: Diana would have approved

In this frame from video, Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan Markle exchange vows during their wedding ceremony at St. George's Chapel in Windsor Castle in Windsor, near London, May 19. Even the vows the couple exchanged were different from what they had been when Diana married Charles.

Updated on May 22, 2018 13:48 IST

Review: The Only Story by Julian Barnes

Of passion in English suburbia: A street in a suburb of Birmingham, UK.

Updated on May 18, 2018 13:12 IST

Ronaldo’s goal shows how sport can transcend tribalism in its ability to share joy

Cristiano Ronaldo (C) scores during the UEFA Champions League quarter-final first leg football match between Juventus and Real Madrid, Turin, Italy, April 3, 2018

Updated on Apr 7, 2018 15:46 IST

Chandigarh stalking case shows one person’s fight against the system can pay off

Varnika with her father Varinder Singh Kundu, Panchkula, August 7, 2017

Updated on Aug 13, 2017 15:32 IST

Review: Doctor Socrates by Andrew Downie

Legend: Scotland’s John Wark marks Brazilian captain Socrates at the 1982 World Cup Finals in Seville, Spain on June 18, 1982.

Updated on Jun 3, 2017 03:30 IST

‘...the end of a couple is like a death...’; Review of Exit West by Mohsin Hamid

Refugees at the Idomeni camp on the Greek Macedonia border on March 11, 2016

Updated on May 5, 2017 14:33 IST

Review of The Clothing of Books by Jhumpa Lahiri: A meditation on book covers

Reading from cover to cover: Children immersed in their books at Green School in Badung, Bali, Indonesia.

Updated on Mar 18, 2017 03:24 IST

‘Arsene Out’: Why it’s time for Arsene Wenger to call it a day

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger during his side’s UEFA Champions League match against Bayern Munich.

Updated on Feb 17, 2017 11:22 IST

Could this be the greatest India team of all time?

Virat Kohli has won 15 of his first 23 Tests as skipper; only Steve Waugh won more – 17 – after his first 23 Tests as captain.

Updated on Feb 14, 2017 11:58 IST

Serena vs Venus: The most amazing sister act in history shows America what it is

United States' Serena Williams, right, celebrates after winning the Australian Open championship in Melbourne on Saturday. She beat sister Venus Williams 6-4, 6-4

Updated on Jan 28, 2017 13:00 IST

‘At Presidency, we sought and found worlds within words’

Alumni of Presidency University participated in a rally to mark the bicentenary celebrations of the Hindoo College, Kolkata, which was renamed Presidency College in 1855. The college, affiliated to the University of Calcutta, was given the status of an independent University in 2010. the institute .

Updated on Jan 19, 2017 15:03 IST

The consummate storyteller; Review of The Pigeon Tunnel by John le Carre

John L Carre offering his whippet a grape, circa 1990.

Updated on Dec 24, 2016 06:54 IST

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