Competitive Exams     Exams are a testing time for both students and parents. The word exam produces varied reactions. Some get goosebumps and turn into a bundle of nerves, while others take it in their stride. Competitive exams take that ‘testing time’ to a whole new level. Competitive exams are usually held for admission to premier institutions like the IITs and IIMs, which are scarce in the country and are considered to be the gateways to a better life. The preparation for these exams is a long and rigorous process, and they may not always bear the desired fruit. Kota in Rajasthan is considered to be the IITJEE coaching capital. Arohi Deshpande, the country’s highest-ranked girl candidate in the 2026 IITJEE advanced exam, enjoyed the whole-hearted support of her family when they too shifted base to Kota during those crucial preparation years. Again, not all candidates will have their entire families with them. They would have to rough it out on their own ...

  Another Women's day is just around the corner. It sure feels good to have a day dedicated to you and to have so many nice things said about you.  Yet the undercurrents like a fly in an ointment remain - the atrocities, as in the rapes, the injustices, harassment. It would be Women's day every day if these atrocities ceased. On one hand, you have the Ashok Leyland advertisement, encouraging and uplifting women and on the other, you have a woman in search of a makeup artist for her soon to be wed daughter and shown pictures of only very fair girls wearing makeup.  Women's day would be more meaningful if women pledged to empower and uplift one another... says a friend.  The Dark Side of Fair. Woman is often referred to as the fairer sex. ‘How fairly am I treated?’ is the burning question in most women's minds. There are creams to brighten her skin tone and matrimonial advertisements ask for ‘fair brides.’ That’s as far as fair goes.  The Indian woman do...