Eminent historian and author Ramchandra Guha talks about his latest book 'Speaking with Nature' about individuals who could be called India's first environmentalists, documenting noble failures, and whether environmentalists are destined to be ignored.  

First, Sanjay Kumar from Lokniti-CSDS talks with Alka Dhupkar about what a Lokniti-MIT SOG survey says about political parties' prospects in the upcoming election.  Then, co-director of Lokniti and eminent political scientist Suhas Palshikar explains why this election won't sort out the political chaos in the state. He also explains why this election will be a very high-stakes one for two leaders. 

The killing of former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddique has raised questions about the revival of gang violence in Mumbai. Rashmi Rajput, who writes on crime and investigating agencies for The Economic Times, explains the impact of the killing and how it changes things in a city that had gotten used to not hearing about extortion calls. 

Journalist Sukanya Shantha was recently thanked by the Supreme Court for her reporting on caste-based labour practices and caste-based segregation in many of India's prisons. She speaks with Alka Dhupkar and Arun George about how caste determines what you do in jails, why these practices still exist and the challenge with ending them.   

Political scientist Suhas Palshikar explains the issues with the Prime Minister turning up at the Chief Justice's residence for Ganeshotsav. He also explains the problem with judges and government employees talking about links with the RSS and what it means for the RSS to be making statements that seem to target the PM. 

Shakir Mir, who writes on Jammu and Kashmir for TOI+ and other publications, talks about why this year's assembly elections are so important in the region despite full statehood unlikely to be restored any time soon. He explains why there's so much enthusiasm for this election and which parties are expected to make an impact.

Patruni Chidananda Sastry talks to Labanya Maitra about the challenges of being a drag queen and parent and dealing with the hate that comes with publicly acknowledging one's unconventional choices.

Bina Paul - one of the founding members of the Women in Cinema Collective - talks about the fallout of the Justice Hema committee report on the Malayalam film industry. She explains why the report matters, why sexual harassment is rampant in the film industry and what needs to be done now to correct things.

Supreme Court lawyer Disha Wadekar explains the apex court's latest verdict that deals with the contentious subject of sub-quotas within reservations for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. She also decodes the Supreme Court's handling of reservations over the decades and what's worrying about multiple judgements regarding reservations. 

Vijayendra Mohanty - better known as Vimoh online - talks about why influencers and content creators are seeking clarity over a proposed law that is reportedly set to limit who can say what on platforms like YouTube and social media.   

At least 100 people have died due to heatwaves in the country this year. Aditya Pillai, who researches extreme heat-related policies at Sustainable Futures Collaborative, explains why we need to prepare for worse heatwaves in the coming years, the challenges of making plans to deal with heat and what might be the best options before us. 

Political scientist and chief editor of Studies in Indian Politics, Suhas Palshikar, had explained his and Yogendra Yadav's campaign to have their names removed from re-edited NCERT textbooks. He also explains his concerns with how the textbooks were edited and why parents should also read their kids' textbooks.

Dr Arun Gupta from Nutrition Advocacy in Public Interest explains how we need to regulate our packaged food better so that we're not just eating sugar .

At least nine people were killed when terrorists attacked a bus filled with pilgrims in Jammu's Raesi district. Shakir Mir - who writes on Jammu and Kashmir - explains the spike in terror attacks in Jammu and what security officials are saying about what they might indicate.

Patricia Mukhim, Editor of The Shillong Times, explains why it will be an uphill task to achieve peace in Manipur, a year after clashes broke out in the state. 

Political scientist Suhas Palshikar talks about the role the allies could play in the functioning of the new government, how Narendra Modi could deal with unfamiliar coalition politics and the impact on upcoming state polls. 

Senior Fellow at Centre for Policy Research and political scientist Neelanjan Sircar explains why BJP lost what it thought were its strongholds and whether the INDIA coalition had a chance at forming the government.  

TOI Plus political columnist and author Sugata Srinivasaraju decodes the 2024 poll verdict, Rahul Gandhi's success and the BJP's limited success in southern states despite a concerted push. 

Great-grandson of MK Gandhi, Tushar Gandhi talks to TOI's Alka Dhupkar about the influence of the Mahatma beyond India's borders and his enduring appeal. 

Author and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik talks about the idea of a non-biological birth across faiths, why the idea exists and how it has been used to shape history. 

Two cases - one in Pune and the other in Uttarakhand - bring to the spotlight juveniles and the criminal justice system again. Sidharth Pillai, co-founder of the Rati Foundation, talks to TOI's Ambika Pandit about the challenges of tackling online sexual abuse that involves teenagers. Then Monica Kumar from the Manas Foundation talks about why the reformation of underage accused shouldn't be ignored. And finally, Gitanjali Prasad from the Azim Premji Foundation talks about what the Pune case...

At a time the serial Heeramandi is making waves, Manish Gaekwad - who wrote the 'The Last Courtesan' - talks about chronicling his mother's life, the death of kothas in Mumbai and how his mother adapted to life after leaving the kotha.

Political scientist and author Hilal Ahmed from CSDS explains what we get wrong about the Muslim voter and what's wrong with the many preconceived notions that are there about Muslims and politics.   

The Indian cricket board is seeking a new coach for the men's cricket team as Rahul Dravid's tenure winds down. Columnist and author Anand Vasu talks about Dravid's tenure, explains who are the frontrunners to replace him, what sort of candidate the board is seeking and the benefits (and pitfalls) of being Team India's coach.