Frontline Conversations

In an exclusive interview for Frontline Conversations, noted Israeli journalist and author Gideon Levy talks to Frontline's Bashir Ali Abbas about the Gaza conflict and potential solutions to the crisis. Levy further discusses Israel’s ceasefire violations, the US’ influence, Gaza’s future, Hamas’ role, and the fading two-state solution. Gideon Levy, the internationally acclaimed journalist and au...

In this interview, legendary filmmaker Goutam Ghose talks to Frontline’s Suhrid Sankar Chattopadhyay about “Raahgir”, a visually stunning yet logistically challenging film. He discusses the challenges of shooting in remote terrains and explores the film’s deeper themes of humanity, compassion, and endurance. “Raahgir” was inspired by a short story by Prafulla Roy and driven by Ghose’s quest to exp...

Mohan Kumar, a former Indian Ambassador to France, is currently Dean, Strategic and International Initiatives, and a professor of diplomatic practice at O.P. Jindal Global University. As India’s lead negotiator first at the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and then at the WTO in crucial areas such as intellectual property rights, services, dispute settlement, and the environment, he h...

In this exclusive interview, Rohan Pethiyagoda, a well-known scientist and public policy advocate in Sri Lanka, talks to senior journalist Nirupama Subramanian about Adani Green Energy’s recent decision to withdraw from its controversial wind energy project in Sri Lanka. In their conversation, Pethiyagoda and Subramanian discuss the wind power project, its environmental impact, Sri Lanka’s energy...

Zakia Jafri, who fought an over two-decade-long legal battle to secure justice for the victims of the 2002 Gujarat riots, died at the age of 86 in Ahmedabad on February 1. Her husband, former Congress MP Ehsan Jafri, was among the 69 people who were killed inside Gulberg Society, a Muslim neighbourhood in Ahmedabad, during the riots. “Out of hundreds of Gujarat cases, Zakia Jafri’s was the one tha...

On September 20, 2024, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin said the State government planned to hold an international conference and install a life-size statue of the archaeologist John Marshall, who announced the discovery of the Indus Valley Civilisation through excavations at Harappa and Mohenjo-daro exactly a century ago. In January 2025, CM Stalin announced a $1 million prize for experts or...

Ahead of the Delhi Assembly election scheduled on February 5, 2025, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Jasmine Shah’s book, The Delhi Model: A Bold New Road Map To Building a Developed India, was released in New Delhi. It is an insider’s account of the making of the “Delhi model” of governance, which according to the AAP was conceptualised by its party chief, Arvind Kejriwal, in consultation with other...

In an exclusive interview for Frontline Conversations, former Railway Board member K. Balakesari tells Senior Associate Editor R.K. Radhakrishnan that the hurry to electrify the railway track was misguided as the “pollution is just being moved along the tracks”. In a freewheeling interview, Balakesari shares his insights on the availability of electric locomotives, political considerations influen...

Rollo Romig, American journalist, essayist, and critic, has spent considerable time in South India since 2013 and his first book, I Am on the Hit List: Murder and Myth-making in South India, takes its title from the late activist and journalist Gauri Lankesh’s own darkly prescient inclusion of herself in a self-prepared list of potential targets of Hindu right-wing elements. The book begins with h...

In this comprehensive interview, former Indian Foreign Secretary and Ambassador to Moscow, Kanwal Sibal delivers an expert analysis of the recent assassination of Russian General Igor Kirillov and its implications for the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Speaking with veteran diplomat-turned-journalist Amit Baruah, Sibal provides unique insights from an Indian perspective on the escalating tensions, Weste...

Najma Heptulla is one of India’s longest-serving parliamentarians, holding the record for the longest stint as Deputy Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha. Her granduncle was Dr Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, a key freedom fighter and independent India’s first Union Education Minister. She was close to the Nehru-Gandhi family, working in Indira Gandhi’s inner circle and maintaining a strong relationship with...

In this important interview, former Indian Ambassador Talmiz Ahmad talks about how Syria changed forever in 2024. He explains the fall of Assad's government, Israel's new military moves, and what it all means for peace in West Asia.

Historian Ira Mukhoty's latest book, The Lion and The Lily: The Rise and Fall of Awadh, challenges long-held views about the fall of the Mughal Empire and the rise of British rule in India. Through her focus on the kingdom of Awadh, Mukhoty reveals a complex narrative of regional courts resisting British imperialism while engaging in international diplomacy. In an interview with Anirudh Kanisetti...

On September 2, the West Bengal government passed the Aparajita Woman and Child (West Bengal Criminal Laws Amendment) Bill, 2024, apparently in response to the gruesome rape and murder of a young doctor in Kolkata's R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital. Since then, the Bill has been universally panned as regressive, unconstitutional, and anti-feminist, with activists calling it nothing more than...

The prolific author Sudeep Chakravarti’s 10th book, Fallen City, is about Delhi, where two children, Geeta and Sanjay, were brutally murdered in 1978. He places the crime in a socio-political context. Chakravarti’s own life is as interesting as his work and he has just emerged after three years in Dhaka, where he set up a South Asia study department at a university. In an interview with Frontline,...

In this insightful edition of Frontline Conversations, veteran journalist Saba Naqvi engages in a candid discussion with political scientist Ashish Ranjan about the recent electoral developments in Haryana and Jammu & Kashmir. The conversation delves into the intricacies of caste dynamics, social engineering, and the changing political landscape in these regions. Key topics covered include: The cl...

The Justice Hema Committee report released in August shed light on the widespread and persistent nature of sexual harassment in the Malayalam film industry. The report’s revelations have sparked a host of reactions, dividing both the industry and the society at large. The Women in Cinema Collective (WCC), a group of women from the industry initially formed in response to a female actor being abduc...

In a scathing indictment of the Indian film industry, Bengali actor Sreelekha Mitra has once again thrust into the spotlight the pervasive issues of misogyny, exploitation, and abuse of power that have long plagued Bollywood and regional cinema alike. Speaking exclusively to Frontline, Mitra, known for her roles in hits like Hothat Brishti and Aschorjo Pradip, pulls no punches as she recounts her...

From Maratha reservations to Mumbai's development and from farmer welfare to alliance dynamics, Sunil Tatkare, prominent NCP leader and Lok Sabha MP from Raigad, decodes Maharashtra's shifting political landscape in a candid conversation with Frontline's Amey Tirodkar. In this revealing interview, Sunil Tatkare offers unprecedented insights into the State's political transformation since the parli...

Direct. Unfiltered. Controversial. Mumbai BJP president Ashish Shelar breaks his silence on the Dharavi redevelopment deal, answers tough questions about Adani, and reveals the BJP-led Mahayuti's game plan for Mumbai's 36 seats. In this hard-hitting Frontline interview, Shelar tackles everything from vote banks to Metro lines, from Uddhav Thackeray to urban renewal. Shelar speaks on the burning is...

In this exclusive interview with Frontline's Amey Tirodkar, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray shares his candid views on Maharashtra's political landscape ahead of the crucial Assembly elections. The first from the Thackeray family to contest elections, he discusses his party's agenda, the MVA alliance, and his vision for Maharashtra's development. Aaditya Thackeray addresses crucial topics...

In the context of the Hema Committee report that rocked Malayalam cinema and beyond, actor and director Revathi talks about the changing film industry in this interview with Frontline. She discusses the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC), a group she helped start in 2017 after a serious incident in the Malayalam film industry. The WCC aims to fix long-standing problems in the industry. Revathi has w...

As Jammu and Kashmir prepares for its first Assembly elections in a decade, CPI(M) leader and People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) spokesperson Mohammed Yousuf Tarigami discusses the political landscape following the abrogation of Article 370. In an exclusive interview with Frontline, Tarigami addresses the challenges facing the region, including the downgrading of statehood, concerns o...

In this wide-ranging and insightful interview, renowned political analyst and activist Yogendra Yadav offers a penetrating look at the current state of Indian politics and society. Speaking to Frontline, Yadav draws on his unique perspective as both a commentator and participant in the political process to analyse some of the most pressing issues facing India today. In the 2024 general election, h...

A former Union Minister of Minority Affairs, K. Rahman Khan’s political career spans more than five decades, starting in Karnataka before moving to the national arena. He became a member of the Rajya Sabha in the 1990s, serving four consecutive terms. During this time, he headed two joint parliamentary committees, leading to the amendment of the Waqf Act of 1995. He also served as the Deputy Chair...