Shekhar 🇮🇳

अश्वं नैव गजं नैव व्याघ्रं नैव च नैव च | अजापुत्रं बलिर्दध्यात देवो दुर्बल घातक: ||

[Kaal Chiron काल्किरण @Kal_Chiron]

Tamil Nadu = Maharashtra minus MMR
Uttar Pradesh = MH - MMR - PMR
Gujarat = MH - MMR - PMR - Nashik - Nagpur

Rest of the states its not even funny hereafter. 😁

Please don’t rage bait next time about “What is Maharashtra without Mumbai” type posts.

[Shekar Iyer @SHEKARSUSHEEL]

🎼 🎶 This beautiful arati has all the top Maharashtrian singers singing... Composed by Salil Kulkarni ....Jai Ganesha🙏🙏
Absolutely mesmerizing.
Thanks Upjeet @Upjeet7 for this aarti 🙏🙏

[Rajesh Padmar @rajeshpadmar]

Celebrating Brotherhood, Rakshabandhan was celebrated in Universal Oneness programme at Madison Square Gardens, New York.

[Meghna Girish 🇮🇳 @megirish2001]

Sharing this excerpt from a whatsapp message because it is important 🙏

Gen Z or anyone else who goes for a holiday to J&K, Ladakh, North East etc must know...

It is a *strategically sensitive region* where tourism exists alongside security,

*not the other way around!!*

Military convoys do not roll because some officer woke up that morning and thought,

*“Let us ruin somebody’s holiday...”*

Movements are planned.
Routes are coordinated.
Timings matter.
Logistics matter.

*The mountains are not merely a backdrop for photographs.*

Those mountains have names written into military history.

*SOLDIERS FOUGHT THERE.… MANY OF THEM PAID THE ULTIMATE PRICE*

527 soldiers gave their lives capturing the Kargil heights so that you can move there freely.

And all these 527 were also Gen Z*

And soldiers *still serve there*.

Do not stand in front of a soldier and say:

*“I PAY YOUR SALARY.”*

No - the belief that money paid to the Republic somehow places the Republic’s uniform beneath you… is totally wrong.

*IT DOESN’T.*

Paying income tax does not give you command authority over the Armed Forces.

And that certainly does not make national security subordinate to your holiday plans.

You waited few hours.

*Somebody else stood watch for months.*

You missed part of an itinerary.

*Somebody else missed birthdays, anniversaries, children growing up, and home.*

And while you eventually drove away from Kargil,

*HE STAYED.*

So no.

*You do not pay his salary.*

*You pay your taxes.*

*The soldier pays his own taxes and also pays for your security:*

*IN A CURRENCY FAR MORE EXPENSIVE THAN MONEY.*

Jai Hind Ki Sena 🇮🇳

[Dr. Sudhanshu Trivedi @SudhanshuTrived]

लाखों दर्शकों से कहता हूँ, जाकर कोई फैक्ट-चेक करे। 1896 के कोलकाता कांग्रेस अधिवेशन में पहली बार वंदे मातरम् गाया गया, जिसकी अध्यक्षता मुस्लिम नेता रहमतुल्लाह अहमद सयानी ने की।
वहाँ से लेकर 1923 तक कभी कोई आपत्ति नहीं हुई। 1923 के अधिवेशन में तो उस समय मोहम्मद अली जौहर ने उसकी अध्यक्षता की थी उन्होंने आपत्ति की फिर भी पूरा गाया। झूठ बोलते हैं ये लोग।

मैं पूछना चाहता हूँ, 1896 से 1937 तक हर बार कांग्रेस पूरा गा रही थी, तो 1937 में क्या हुआ जो काट दिया?

मुस्लिम लीग और जिन्ना ने कहा कि आपको यह वंदे मातरम् काटना पड़ेगा, आप एक के बाद एक सरेंडर कर रहे थे। 1905 में बंग-भंग के बाद उस समय सारे हिंदू-मुसलमान एक होकर वंदे मातरम् गाते थे, मगर ये कट्टरपंथियों के आगे झुक गए।

1916 के लखनऊ कांग्रेस अधिवेशन में मुसलमानों के लिए पृथक निर्वाचन क्षेत्र माँग लिया। फिर उनकी हिम्मत और बढ़ी।
फिर 1920 में इन्होंने कहा,
टर्की का खलीफा हट गया है, तो अब हम टर्की के खलीफा के लिए आंदोलन करेंगे और महात्मा गांधी ने अली का समर्थन किया।
उनकी हिम्मत और बढ़ गई। उसके बाद जिन्ना ने कहा, मैं महात्मा गांधी को महात्मा नहीं बोलूँगा। इसलिए हर फिल्म में मिस्टर गांधी बोलता है।

फिर उसने कहा, मैं वंदे मातरम् नहीं गाऊँगा और मैं इनको बताना चाहता हूँ, कोई दर्शक जाकर चेक करे।

6 अप्रैल 1938 को नेहरू को जिन्ना ने एक लेटर लिखा और Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Series One, Volume 22, Page Number 230 से 239 में लिखा है। क्या शर्मनाक लेटर लिखा है। लिखते हैं, हमने वंदे मातरम् हटा दिया है। पॉइंट नंबर नौ पर। फिर उसके बाद लिखते हैं, पॉइंट नंबर 12 पर, अगर आपको तिरंगे से आपत्ति है, तो हम मुस्लिम लीग के भी झंडे को बराबर सम्मान देने को तैयार हैं। और पॉइंट नंबर सात पर लिखते हैं, मुसलमानों को सरेआम गोहत्या करने का अधिकार होगा। क्या गजब का सरेंडर किया नेहरू ने।

[S Gurumurthy @sgurumurthy]

Dear Kapil

Sorry congress working committee did not decide.

Nehru wrote to Jinnah in 1938 saying Vandemataram was sung for 30 years and no one called it religious. He bemaoned Jinnah was not agreeing for even for two stanzas.

The dwarfing of Vandemataram to stanzas was a desperate attempt of the congress working committee to get the Muslim League on board to avoid partition which it failed to.

Finally it lost a third of India's land and also vandemataram

Your claim that the Constituent Assembly decided in 1950 that only the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram should be sung because the remaining stanzas contained religious references that were opposed is not right.

The Constituent Assembly record says

On 24 January 1950, Dr Rajendra Prasad expressly said there would be no formal resolution. His statement made no reference to two stanzas, religious imagery or objections from any community. Instead, he declared:

"Vande Mataram… shall be honoured equally with Jana Gana Mana and shall have equal status with it.”

The two-stanza restriction actually came from the Congress Working Committee not the Constituent Assembly in 1950.

Nehru's own Selected Works record that the CWC, meeting from 26 October-1 November 1937, while “recognising the validity of the objection raised by Muslims to certain parts of the Bande Mataram song,” recommended that “the first two stanzas only” be sung at national gatherings.

Even more revealing is Nehru's letter to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose on 20 October 1937. Nehru admitted: "the present outcry against Bande Mataram is to a large extent a manufactured one by the communalists.” Yet he added that there was “some substance in it”; days later came the CWC compromise.

So the documentary chronology is clear:

1937: Muslim objections -- CWC recognises them -- only the first two stanzas recommended.

1950: Constituent Assembly imposes no two-stanza restriction -- Rajendra Prasad instead accords Vande Mataram “equal status” and equal honour with Jana Gana Mana.

[Parimal @Fintech03]

Every EV, every solar storage system, every phone battery on Earth runs on lithium and India has almost none of it domestically.....

Lithium, cobalt, nickel all imported, all subject to global price swings and geopolitical chokepoints, the exact same vulnerability with rare earth magnets.

Dr. Vilas Shelke and Dr. Manjusha Shelke, a husband-wife scientist duo, founded a company called Rechargion Energy in 2021. Rechargion is trying to make that dependency optional by building battery cells that need none of those three metals at all.

Dr. Manjusha Shelke is also a Chief Scientist at CSIR's National Chemical Laboratory, India's premier government chemistry research institute.

This is not a garage startup pivoting into hardware, it is an official spin-off from NCL, built directly on the work of Shelke's own research group, which is why the science checks out rather than being marketing.

Sodium-ion batteries using sodium instead of lithium as the ion that moves and stores charge....

The company has patented its own hard carbon anode material, proprietary electrode materials, and sodium compounds, and this is the elegant part.....

The sodium is derived from seawater and aluminium, 2 things India has in near-infinite domestic supply, unlike lithium.

Rechargion's cells have demonstrated a cycle life of 10,000 charge cycles translating into a potential battery life of 25+ years. A typical lithium-ion EV battery today lasts ~8-10 years before serious degradation.

This is claiming ~3x that, using metals that do not need to be imported at all.

Why it is credible, not just a claim....

- In August 2025, the Automotive Research Association of India ran an independent 2 month evaluation of Rechargion's cells at its Chakan testing centre covering vibration, mechanical shock, crushing, high-temperature endurance, short circuit, overcharge, and forced discharge, under the international IEC 62660 protocol.

- Rechargion became the 1st company in India to achieve IEC 62660 compliance for sodium-ion batteries, independent, govt body verified safety testing, not a startup's own lab claims.

Rechargion is almost entirely non-VC, which is itself telling, support has come from the Union Ministry of Heavy Industries, the Indo-US Science and Technology Forum, Tata Power-backed Social Alpha, ARAI, Venture Centre Pune, and Rice University, Houston.

This is patient, institutional, science-first capital, not hype-chasing venture money.

A pilot plant installed in 2024 is already producing 10 Ah capacity cells, and the company is now building a facility to scale to 500 cells per day, moving from lab research into actual commercial manufacturing with an initial focus on India's massive electric two and three-wheeler market.

Why this matters for Bharat...

India's entire EV ambition currently rests on a mineral India does not have. If sodium-ion chemistry proves out at scale, the country's electric mobility future stops depending on lithium mines in Australia and Chile and starts depending on seawater and aluminium resources India actually controls.

A husband-wife scientist team out of a Pune government lab, quietly building the battery chemistry that could make India's EV revolution genuinely self-reliant. 🙏🙏

[मोगैंबो (बिषफोकट निऊज वाले) @kamandaal]

*पिता जी अपने सेक्युलर बेटे को कुछ समझाते हुए महाभारत का रेफरेंस दे रहे थे।...*
" बेटा, Conflict को जहाँ तक हो सके, avoid करना चाहिए !
*महाभारत से पहले कृष्ण भी गए थे दुर्योधन के दरबार में. यह प्रस्ताव लेकर, कि हम युद्ध नहीं चाहते....*
*तुम पूरा राज्य रखो.... पाँडवों को सिर्फ पाँच गाँव दे दो...*
*वे चैन से रह लेंगे, तुम्हें कुछ नहीं कहेंगे.*
बेटे ने पूछा - "पर इतना *unreasonable proposal* लेकर कृष्ण गए क्यों थे ?
अगर दुर्योधन प्रोपोजल एक्सेप्ट कर लेता तो..?

[Devashish Kulkarni @AjaatShatrruu]

१८व्या शतकात महाराष्ट्राच्या भूमीत एका अशा वादळाचा जन्म झाला, ज्याने आपल्या अदम्य पराक्रमाने आणि अजेय वेगाने संपूर्ण उत्तर भारतात धुमाकूळ घातला. ते वादळ म्हणजे थोरले बाजीराव पेशवे!

बाजीरावसाहेबांनी केवळ मोगल साम्राज्य खिळखिळं करुन सोडलं नाही तर उत्तर भारतातील अन्य सत्तांवर देखील मराठ्यांचे वर्चस्व प्रस्थापित केले. थोरल्या रायांचा पराक्रम आणि कर्तृत्व इतके अफाट आहे की मराठ्यांच्या तत्कालीन शत्रूंना (मोगल असोत वा इंग्रज) आणि अगदी आजच्या इतिहासकारांनाही (डावे असोत वा उजवे), त्यांच्या शौर्याची आणि अद्वितीय युद्धकौशल्याची दखल घेतल्याशिवाय राहता आलेले नाही.

बाजीरावांनी केवळ मराठ्यांच्या साम्राज्याचा राजकीय विस्तार केला नाही, तर उत्तर भारतात मराठ्यांच्या सांस्कृतिक अधिष्ठानाला नवी दिशा देणारा भक्कम पाया रचला. आणि म्हणूनच डॉ. जयसिंगराव पवार बाजीरावांस ‘बृहन्महाराष्ट्राचा निर्माता’ म्हणतात. डॉ. पवार लिहीतात -

“बृहन्महाराष्ट्र म्हणजे महाराष्ट्राच्या बाहेरचा महाराष्ट्र. दुसऱ्या शब्दांत महाराष्ट्राच्या बाहेर घडून झालेला मराठ्यांचा राजकीय व सांस्कृतिक विकास. नर्मदेच्या पलीकडे माळवा, बुंदेलखंड, गुजरात इत्यादी प्रदेश जिंकून आणि त्या ठिकाणी शिंदे, होळकर, पवार इत्यादी आपल्या सरदारांना नेमून बाजीरावाने मराठ्यांची केवळ सत्ताकेंद्रेच तयार केली नाहीत तर त्याबरोबर सांस्कृतिक केंद्रेही निर्माण केली. या केंद्रांचाच विकास होऊन पूढे मराठी सत्ता सर्व उत्तर हिंदुस्थानभर फैलावली. या सत्तेच्या फैलावाबरोबर मराठी राज्यपद्धती, मराठी संस्कृती, मराठी भाषा, मराठी परंपरा इत्यादीचाही प्रसार पुढे १८ व्या शतकाच्या अखेरपर्यंत होत राहिला. याचे श्रेय बाजीरावाच्या राजकीय धुरीणत्वाला दिले पाहिजे.”

छत्रपती शिवाजी महाराजांच्या ‘हिंदूपदपादशाही’ साठी आयुष्य वेचणाऱ्या व मराठ्यांच्या इतिहासातील सर्वात ‘बहुजनाळलेल्या’ या रणमार्तंड पेशव्याला त्यांच्या जन्मदिनानिमित्त त्रिवार वंदन💐

[VatsRohit @KesariDhwaj]

As someone who's seen India change from what it was in 80s and 90s, I see a shift happening in the Indian society.

The focus of our parent's generation born in 40s and 50s was the proverbial 'Roti, Kapda aur Makaan'. With 'English Education' added to the mix. This generation in most cases was the first one to build assets like a house.

Then came our generation - The economic growth post 1991 had a big positive impact on our generation as it expanded opportunities and the 'English Education' that our parents had invested in with so much effort paid off. Our generation built a good life for themselves but there was an issue - our lives were like gated societies which are spic and span inside with all amenities but situated amongst larger broken governance and infrastructure on the outside.

What we're witnessing now is loosely akin to Maslow's hierarchy of needs.

Our generation is in 40s and 50s with younger ones still in their 30s. Most of us have put in about 20+ years of work behind us. We've built the life that we wanted to.

But now, we as a whole have reached a stage where people are now finally asking for improvement in things outside of the controlled environment of their gated societies. More so, the younger lot after us who has grown up in an India which is at its best since independence.

After roti, kapda, makaan, people are now questioning about roads, electricity, cleanliness, administration and government accountability etc. The overton window has shifted. People's aspiration is now more than mere survival. And in a world connected through cheap internet, people see good things in foreign countries and then question why the same can't be done in India.

Overall, this is a very good development. If politicians feel their seats are dependent upon ensuring proper municipal funtionality, you will see it happening.

[Amit Shah @AmitShah]

Modi govt destroyed the ISI-backed terror group Shahzad Bhatti Network ahead of Independence Day and thwarted its plans for subversive attacks by arresting more than 200 operatives.

Indian security forces ripped apart the network by launching coordinated operations across different locations in 14 states upholding a brilliant example of India's zero-tolerance towards terrorism.

Substantial recoveries, including IEDs, grenades bearing Pakistan Ordnance Factory markings, pistols, live cartridges, and CCTV cameras used for espionage, were made from the ISI-funded group. The network was involved in several terrorist activities.

[Dr. Deepessh Divaakaran (Dr. DD) @md_deepesh]

Sometimes, the loudest protest begins...
After the problem has already been solved.

That is when you stop following slogans.
And start following the timeline.

Before you decide who the villain is...
Read the timeline.

Because dates don't shout.
They don't trend.
They don't protest.

They simply expose the truth.

May 3.
NEET examination.
Within four days, the NTA detected fraud.

The very next day, it informed the police.
The investigation began.

The Government cancelled the May 3 examination.

May 12.
The Ministry of Education filed a written complaint.
The CBI registered the case.

Special investigation team (SIT) were formed immediately.

May 15.
Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan addressed the nation.

He apologised.
Accepted moral responsibility.

Announced the re-NEET schedule.

Then came the bigger announcement.

From next year,

Major national examinations would move towards
computer-based, multi-encrypted testing (CBT).

A permanent safeguard.
Not another temporary fix.

Meanwhile,
The CBI moved fast.

Arrests began.
The network expanded.

Soon, 13 accused were behind bars.

June 21.
Fresh NEET examination conducted successfully.

July 16.
Results declared.

Now students wait for counselling.

But this story is bigger than one examination.

Paper leaks are not new.

Every student preparing next year will carry the same anxiety.
I am with students.

Now comes the real question.

If the examination was cancelled...
The re-exam was conducted...
The results were declared...
The investigation was underway...
And structural reforms were already announced...

Then what exactly is the endgame of this protest?

If the demand is...
"Remove the Minister."

Then what?
What comes next?
What reform is on the table?
What solution replaces the one already announced?

These are fair questions.

Another one is equally important.

Who loses the most...
If encrypted, computer-based (CBT) examinations,
make organised paper leaks almost impossible?

Students?

Or those who profited from the old system?
Coaching Mafia?
Corrupted Academicians?
Tainted Beuraucrats?

Or those who is taking advantage of students emotions.
Bhim Army?
Aam Aadmi Party?
Congress?
Communist Party?

One fact cannot be ignored.

If technology shuts the door on organised paper leaks...
An entire illegal ecosystem stands to lose.

That is why the real battle is bigger than one Minister.
Or even one Government.

Goverments will come and go.
Party will win and loose.

But this nation will remain.
And it should at any cost.
Bigger than one Leader or person.

It is about one question.

Will India finally dismantle the business model...
Built on stealing honest students' hard-earned opportunities?

That... is the fight worth having.

[Dr Mouth Matters @GanKanchi]

Her daughters, one is a Pilot, one is flight-steward, one is nurse in Singapore and 4th one is a Teacher. After giving them Education, she is still working to keep herself fit and independent.
They came to greet on her Birthday.🙏🏼

[पाटील™ @patilji_speaks]

सर्व मानसिक रुग्ण दवाखान्यातच नसतात, काही आपल्या जवळपासही असतात.

एक व्यक्ती ऑटोरिक्षामध्ये बसून एका ठिकाणी चालला होता. ऑटो ड्रायव्हर आरामात ऑटो चालवत होतो. तेवढ्यात एक कार अचानक पार्किंगमधून निघून रोडवर आली. ऑटो ड्रायव्हरने जोराचे ब्रेक लावले आणि कार-ऑटोचा अपघात होता-होता राहिला. कारचालकाची चूक असूनही तो रागामध्ये ऑटो ड्रायव्हरला घालून-पाडून बोलू लागला.

ऑटो ड्रायव्हर कारचालकावर क्रोधीत झाला नाही आणि त्यालाच सॉरी म्हणून पुढे निघून गेला. ऑटोमध्ये बसलेल्या व्यक्तीला कार चालकाचे वर्तन पाहून खूप राग आला होता आणि त्याने ऑटो ड्रायव्हरला विचारले- तू त्या कार चालकाला काहीही न बोलता तसेच कसे काय जाऊ दिले? त्याची चूक असूनही तो तुला किती वाईट बोलून गेला. आपले नशीब चांगले म्हणून आपण वाचलो अन्यथा आता दवाखान्यात असतो.

ऑटोवाला म्हणाला, साहेब अनेक लोक गार्बेज ट्रक( कचऱ्याचा ट्रक) प्रमाणे असतात. हे लोक खूप कचरा आपल्या डोक्यात घेऊन फिरत असतात. ज्या गोष्टींची आयुष्यात काहीच गरज नाही त्या गोष्टी मेहनत करून जोडत राहतात उदा. क्रोध, घृणा, चिंता, निराशा इ.

अशा लोकांच्या डोक्यात कचरा जास्त असतो आणि हे आपले ओझे कमी करण्यासाठी इतरांवर हा कचरा फेकण्याचा शोधात राहतात. यामुळे मी अशा लोकांपासून दूर राहतो आणि दुरूनच स्मितहास्य करून त्यांना वाटी लावतो. कारण अशा लोकांनी फेकलेल्या कचऱ्याचा मी स्वीकार केला तर मीसुद्धा कचऱ्याचा एक ट्रक बनेल आणि स्वतःसोबतच जवळपास असलेल्या लोकांवरही कचरा फेकत राहील.

मला असे वाटते की, आयुष्य खूप सुंदर आहे. यामुळे जे आपल्याशी चांगले वागतात त्यांना धन्यवाद म्हणा आणि जे लोक वाईट वागतात त्यांना मोठ्या मनाने माफ करा. आपण हे नेहमी लक्षात ठेवावे की, सर्व मानसिक रुग्ण फक्त हॉस्पिटलमध्ये नसतात तर काही आपल्या जवळपासही फिरत राहतात.

लाइफ मॅनेजमेंट नियम
पहिला नियम - शेतामध्ये बी पेरले नाही तर निसर्ग ती जमीन गवताने(घासफूस)भरून टाकतो. याचप्रमाणे आपण डोक्यामध्ये सकारात्मक विचार भरले नाही तर नकारात्मक विचार आपली जागा बनवतात.

दुसरा नियम - असा आहे की, ज्याच्याकडे जे आहे तो तेच वाटत राहतो. सुखी माणूस सुख, दुःखी माणूस दुःख, ज्ञानी माणूस ज्ञान, भ्रमित माणूस भ्रम आणि भयभीत माणूस भय वाटत राहतो.

तिसरा नियम - जो स्वतःवरच प्रेम करू शकत नाही, कायम दुःखी आणि आजारी राहणे पसंत करतो त्याला इतरांचे सुख तरी कसे भावणार. तो इतरांवर निर्व्याज प्रेमही करू शकत नाही

[Āyudhika @Ayudhika1310]

Every year, millions of devotees walk hundreds of kilometres in one of the world's greatest spiritual pilgrimages.

Sant Tukaram Maharaj's Palkhi departed from Dehu on 7 July 2026 (yesterday), while Sant Dnyaneshwar Maharaj's Palkhi begins from Alandi on 8 July 2026 (today). Both journeys reach Pandharpur for Ashadhi Ekadashi.

The sacred padukas (silver footprints) of the saints are carried in the palkhis, allowing every pilgrim to symbolically walk with the saints themselves. All are equal before the Almighty.

The Wari is a living expression of Sanatana Dharma. Here, caste, wealth, and social status disappear.

This clip shows raw chanting of "Dynanoba Tukaram" which will give you goosebumps 🥹. Just dissolve in this Naama Smarna!

Leaving you with this divine feeling...

Shubh Ratri 🙏🏽

[पुणे शहर वाहतूक पोलीस @PuneCityTraffic]

दि. ०९/०७/२०२६ रोजी पुणे शहरामध्ये श्री. संत ज्ञानेश्वर महाराज व श्री. संत तुकाराम महाराज या दोन्ही पालखींचे आगमन होणार आहे. पालखी आगमन मार्गावरील रस्ते बंद करण्यात येणार आहेत त्याबाबत प्रसिद्धी पत्रक...

[The Seeker @TheSeeker268]

It's a shame no major film has been made about Biju Patnaik. He lived a life that sounds almost fictional:

In 1938, he flew his entire wedding procession by aircraft to Rawalpindi for his marriage to Gyanwati Sethi (who became the first Indian woman to hold a commercial pilot’s license, and the couple later flew daring missions together.)

While serving in the Royal Indian Air Force (including as head of Air Transport Command), he secretly ferried freedom fighters like Jayaprakash Narayan, Ram Manohar Lohia, and Aruna Asaf Ali to their hideouts. He also airdropped 'Quit India' leaflets to Indian troops while evacuating British families.

The British once jailed him for transporting nationalist leaders and distributing anti-British literature but also honored him for bravery in evacuating civilians from Japanese-occupied Burma.

During WWII, he flew daring missions delivering arms and supplies to Soviet forces in Stalingrad, and over the treacherous 'Hump' route to China in
support of Chinese Nationalist forces against the Japanese.

In July 1947, he and his wife flew a Dakota into Indonesia, landed on an improvised airstrip while evading Dutch anti-aircraft fire, rescued Prime Minister Sutan Sjahrir, refuelled using abandoned Japanese fuel, and flew him safely to India via Singapore.

A couple of months later, during the Pakistani invasion of Kashmir, he airlifted one of the first Indian troops into Srinagar.

The same year he founded Kalinga Airlines, one of India's earliest private airlines.

As Odisha CM post-1962 India-China war, he secretly visited CIA headquarters at Langley to forge a covert India-US partnership against China, which led to the Aviation Research Centre (ARC) at Charbatia, which supported U-2 recon missions over Tibet.

He was also a legendary administrator and statesman, laying much of the foundation of Odisha's industrial empire (mines, ports, heavy industries etc).

When he passed away, Indonesia observed 7 days of state mourning. Russia observed 1 day. He remains the only person in Indian history whose body was draped in the national flags of 3 nations - India, Indonesia, and Russia.

Few public figures have left such a footprint.

His extraordinary life needs to be brought to the big screen.

[Aashish Chandorkar @c_aashish]

@SandeepParekh “Nothing will ever be attempted, if all possible objections must be first overcome.”

- Samuel Johnson

[Sanjeev Sanyal @sanjeevsanyal]

@SandeepParekh Always ask if the critic has ever built anything of lasting value