Pramod Thomas is a senior correspondent with Asian Media Group since 2020, bringing 19 years of journalism experience across business, politics, sports, communities, and international relations. His career spans both traditional and digital media platforms, with eight years specifically focused on digital journalism. This blend of experience positions him well to navigate the evolving media landscape and deliver content across various formats. He has worked with national and international media organisations, giving him a broad perspective on global news trends and reporting standards.
West Indies' twin T20 World Cup-winning captain Darren Sammy will become an honorary citizen of Pakistan and receive the Nishan-e-Haider in March 2020, reports said.
Reports said his application of honorary citizenship has been forwarded to the president of the country.
Darren Sammy is currently in Pakistan to lead Peshawar Zalmi in Pakistan Super League's fifth season.
Born in Micoud, Saint Lucia, Sammy made his One-Day International (ODI) debut against Bangladesh in 2004.
He was the first person from the island of St Lucia to play international cricket.
Peshawar Zalmi's owner helped Sammy in the whole process and is hopeful that the Caribbean all-rounders application to get accepted soon.
“We have requested for the honorary citizenship of Pakistan for Daren Sammy. The application is currently at President’s table. I request the PCB chairman to put in a good word for Sammy, so it can be approved. Sammy’s voice notes were too emotional for Pakistan when PCB was trying to hold the PSL season 2 finale in Lahore,” Javed Afridi said.
Sammy has been associated with PSL since it's inception. He was also one of the first international cricketers to gave his nod to play in Pakistan when the cricket resumed in the country.
“For me, love is in the heart. It is an action and a feeling. For me whether I have a passport or not, I think my contribution to this country is all from within. I don’t need a passport to associate myself with this country,” Sammy said.
“It is not just me but all of the guys that have come here and showed there support, be it the World XI or other teams, have played a massive role in bringing back international cricket to Pakistan.”
Members of rescue teams help stranded people cross a water channel using a makeshift bridge at an area affected by the deadly flood caused by sudden, heavy rain in Chasoti town of Kishtwar district, Indian Kashmir, August 15, 2025. (Photo: Reuters)
RESCUE teams in Indian Kashmir used shovels and earthmovers on Friday to search for survivors under boulders and debris, a day after sudden floods triggered by heavy rain killed at least 60 people and left 200 others missing.
Floodwaters and mudslides hit the village of Chasoti on Thursday, sweeping away pilgrims who had gathered for lunch before trekking to a popular religious site. This is the second such disaster in the Himalayas in just over a week.
"We heard a huge sound and it was followed by a flash flood and slush. People were shouting, and some of them fell in the Chenab River. Others were buried under the debris," said Rakesh Sharma, a pilgrim who was injured.
On Friday, bags, clothes and other belongings lay caked in mud among broken electric poles, as rescue workers used ropes and crossed makeshift bridges to search for survivors.
At least 60 people were killed, more than 100 injured and 200 still missing, Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir Omar Abdullah told reporters.
The Himalayas are prone to floods and landslides, and scientists say the intensity and frequency of these events may be rising due to climate change.
The Machail Yatra pilgrimage leads to the high-altitude Himalayan shrine of Machail Mata, dedicated to one of the manifestations of Goddess Durga. Pilgrims trek to the temple from Chasoti, where the road ends.
Thursday’s floods came just over a week after a similar incident in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand.
"Nature has been testing us. In the last few days, we have had to deal with landslides, cloudbursts and other natural calamities," Prime Minister Narendra Modi said during a speech on the country’s 79th independence day.
The Indian Meteorological Department defines a cloudburst as an intense downpour of over 100 mm of rain in an hour, which can cause sudden floods and landslides, particularly in mountainous regions during the monsoon.
In Nepal, at least 41 people have died, 21 are missing and 121 injured in floods, landslides, heavy rains and hailstorms since the start of the monsoon in June, according to the country’s disaster management authority.
In Pakistan, more than 50 people were killed overnight in rain-related incidents in the mountainous north, rescue officials said on Friday. Flooding and collapsing roofs caused the deaths.
In Pakistan-administered Kashmir, eight people were killed, including six members of one family buried in their home. Evacuation operations were underway for stranded domestic tourists.
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Jay Singh Sohal on Mandalay Hill in Burma at the position once held by Sikh machine gunners who fought to liberate the area
ACROSS the Asian subcontinent 80 years ago, the guns finally fell silent on August 15, the Second World War had truly ended.
Yet, in Britain, what became known as VJ Day often remains a distant afterthought, overshadowed by Victory in Europe against the Nazis, which is marked three months earlier.
That oversight does a disservice to the millions who fought, died, and suffered in Asia and the Far East. Among them were the staunch Indian Army soldiers Britain had drawn from the sub-continent to form the backbone of the Allied ground forces in the Asia-Pacific theatre of war.
A significant majority of Allied troops who fought against Japan in southeast Asia were from Commonwealth nations, the largest contingent came from modern day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal. These brave men represented every faith and culture, every region, and stepped forward to do their righteous duty.
They were met with some of the fiercest fighting of the war in the harshest conditions, from searing jungles, through monsoons and horrific diseases. Their sacrifices were immense and their example inspiring, but their heroism has never been as prominent in popular narratives on the Second World War as those who fought equally bravery for our freedom in Europe.
It is high time that was addressed, and during this 80th anniversary year of VJ Day, we are changing it.
As a trustee of the Commonwealth War Graves Foundation and a veteran deeply invested in commemoration, I’m proud that we are using this moment to go beyond the act of commemoration to educate and redress historical disparity. Our For Evermore Tour shines a light on the diverse global forces from across the Commonwealth who helped secure victory in Asia. We’re hosting education and community events in Hong Kong, Kenya, Singapore, and Thailand, nations whose people fought and fell under the Southeast Asia Command banner. We are sharing their stories as central chapters of our shared history.
The reasons why this part of the story has been oft neglected are complex. The war in Asia was longer and more complicated than its European counterpart. It lacked a singular turning point like D-Day or the liberation of Paris. And many of the soldiers who fought there came from colonial armies. After all, the Second World War was an imperial conflict in which extant empires mobilised global resources to fight. The heroism of brown and black men did not fit neatly into Britain’s post-war narrative and the subsequent movement for independence across many of her colonies.
And, at Rangoon War Cemetery paying respects to those who fought to free Burma
That disconnect is still keenly felt today, with Savanta polling showing that half of those identifying as Asian agree greater education is needed on war zones outside Europe.
But the narrative is being challenged. As a migrant community, the start of our story, and contribution to Britain, is not fresh off the boat in the 1950s and 60s, but rather on farflung battlefields where our forebears spilt blood in the name of King and this country.
The Indian Army under the British was the largest volunteer force the world had ever seen. By 1945, more than 2.5 million people from the subcontinent were in uniform. They fought across the globe, from North Africa to Italy, but their role in Asia was pivotal. Be it Kohima or Imphal, Mandalay or Rangoon, Malaya or Hong Kong.
One such brave was 29-year-old Naik Nand Singh, a Sikh from Mansa, Punjab, who in March 1944 led a section near Maungdaw up a steep ridge under heavy machine gun fire to capture a trench. Despite sustaining injuries, including to his face, he crawled alone to capture a second and third.
Another is 23-year-old Naik Fazal Din, a Punjabi Muslim from Hoshiarpur, whose unit came under attack in Meiktila in March 1945. Despite being stabbed by a Japanese sword, the mortally wounded soldier fought on to subdue several enemy combatants while rallying his men.
And who could forget Subadar Netra Bahadur Thapa of the 5th Royal Gurkha Rifles? In June 1944, with his post under siege, he led his men through the night and refused to retreat despite being wounded. At dawn, with only two men left alive, he charged the enemy and died in handto-hand combat. But he delayed the enemy long enough for reinforcements to arrive.
All three received the Victoria Cross, joining 18 other VC recipients from the Indian Army; men who are commemorated on the Rangoon Memorial, which I had the privilege of paying my respects at on a visit to the battlefields of Burma a decade ago.
These are but a mere glimpse of tales of individual gallantry, which alongside many thousands more stories of the brave weave together to form a tapestry of devotion to duty, discipline and sacrifice.
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) works tirelessly to ensure their legacy is not lost to time. It maintains the graves and memorials of more than 580,000 Commonwealth service personnel who died during the Second World War, including over 15,000 between VE and VJ Day. It also commemorates 68,000 civilians, whose deaths remind us that the cost of war extends far beyond the battlefield.
Through the charitable arm of the Foundation, we are expanding education, digitising archives, and working with communities to uncover forgotten stories. In Kenya, one project helps veterans share memories of fighting alongside Indian units in Burma, while another brings British schoolchildren face-to-face with the legacy of war through digital storytelling and site visits. Earlier this year, I was privileged to witness the unveiling of a new memorial in Cape Town dedicated to the South African Labour Corps. Many more initiatives to remember the forgotten are planned.
These efforts matter. Two out of five people (42 per cent) who identify as Asian say learning about the human cost of war through personal and veterans’ stories worldwide has more impact than reading history books or watching films. That is why the CWGC is investing in storytelling – not only to inform, but also to move and connect.
For me, commemoration is personal. As a British Army veteran and founder of the UK’s first national Sikh war memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum – created to ensure my community’s sacrifices in the First World War are recognised far and wide – I volunteer with the CWGC to ensure all who served are remembered equally, whatever their background, faith, or rank. That matters more now than ever. In an age of identity debates and fragmented politics, commemoration highlights our shared heritage and values in the face of oppression, and has the power to unify.
This VJ Day, let us tell the whole story. Let us honour those from across the Commonwealth who served, fought, and sacrificed for our freedoms. Let us share and teach their stories, and reflect on where we would be without their contribution 80 years ago. They helped shape modern Britain and deserve to be remembered in all their glory – for evermore.
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Sholay turns 50 with global 4K comeback and untold stories
Fifty years have passed since that dusty road in Ramgarh first brought us Jai, Veeru, Basanti, Thakur, and a villain whose name still sends a shiver. It’s a film you don’t just watch, you inherit. Parents pass it to kids like a family heirloom. Every rewatch is a homecoming, yet it still surprises you.
And now, as 15 August 2025 marks its golden jubilee, Sholay is not just being remembered, it’s being reborn. Here’s how its fire still crackles, half a century on.
Sholay turns 50 with global 4K comeback and untold stories Instagram/rameshsippy47
1. Global 4K debut in Toronto
The Film Heritage Foundation’s painstakingly restored 4K version will premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on 6 September 2025. A packed 1,800-seat Roy Thomson Hall will watch it in never-before clarity. The question on every Indian fan’s lips: “When’s it hitting home screens here?”
2. “Yeh Dosti” hits the UK stage
A full-scale musical and dance tour by LuvEntertainment is bringing Sholay’s beats to life across Hayes, Leicester, Coventry, and beyond. Think “Mehbooba Mehbooba” with blazing lights and live choreography. Like nostalgia, but with stage pyrotechnics.
3. The ending we were never meant to see
For decades, the true climax, Thakur kicking Gabbar to death, was a whisper among film buffs. Censors chopped it out in 1975. In June 2025, the Bologna festival unveiled it to a stunned audience.
4. Casting “what-ifs” and wild sets
Danny Denzongpa was first choice for Gabbar before schedules clashed. Amitabh Bachchan was billed fourth. Dharmendra allegedly bribed lighting crew to prolong romantic takes with Hema Malini. Meanwhile, Jaya Bachchan quietly shot her scenes while pregnant.
5. The jaw-dropping pay scale
Bachchan got £9,400 (₹1,00,000). Dharmendra, the top earner, got £14,100 (₹1,50,000). British stuntmen made £470 (₹50,000) each for the train heist scene, a sum that, at the time, could buy a small flat in Mumbai.
6. From flop to phenomenon
When it released, Sholay had slow ticket sales and mixed reviews. Javed Akhtar admitted he kept watching it himself, worried. Then word-of-mouth turned it into India’s highest-grossing film for nearly 20 years.
7. The records that won’t die
Five years straight at Mumbai’s Minerva Theatre. Over 25 crore footfalls worldwide. Proof that sometimes, the audience just needs time to catch up to genius.
8. Blood, sweat, and real bullets
Basanti’s tanga chase? Twelve days in scorching heat. Some action scenes used actual bullets for “authenticity”, Dharmendra’s idea. The first cut ran over four hours before it was trimmed for release.
9. Gabbar’s roots in reality
Amjad Khan modelled him on 1950s Chambal Valley dacoits. His gravelly “Kitney aadmi the?” didn’t just enter pop culture, it became shorthand for suspicion in Indian households.
10. Writers who never looked back
Javed Akhtar hasn’t rewatched Sholay since its 70mm re-release. His reasoning: “Those lost in their history have no hope for their future.” It’s a sentiment that keeps the film alive, we remember, even if its creators have moved on.
You don’t talk about Sholay like any other film. You talk about where you first saw it. You talk about watching it with people who aren’t here anymore. You talk about quoting its lines at weddings, in classrooms, in WhatsApp groups.
Fifty years later, it’s still more than cinema. It’s part of our vocabulary, our memory, our muscle. And as its 4K rebirth travels the world, Sholay reminds us: some friendships, some enemies, and some stories never fade.
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King Charles records a VJ Day message in the Morning Room of Clarence House, in London. (Photo: Reuters)
UK MARKED the 80th anniversary of VJ Day on Friday with a national remembrance service, tributes to veterans, and commemorations across the country.
In a recorded six-minute message, King Charles paid tribute to the “courage” of veterans and civilians who made sacrifices to end World War II.
He said the conflict remained a reminder that “war’s true cost extends beyond battlefields, touching every aspect of life, a tragedy all too vividly demonstrated by conflicts around the world today.”
The king referenced the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which led to Japan’s surrender on August 15, 1945. “In the war’s final act, an immense price was paid by the citizens of Hiroshima and Nagasaki — a price we pray no nation need ever pay again,” he said.
King Charles also praised the cooperation between nations during the war, saying those who served “proved that, in times of war and in times of peace, the greatest weapons of all are not the arms you bear, but the arms you link.” He vowed the “service and sacrifice” of those who “saw the forces of liberty prevail” would “never be forgotten” and urged people to be “vigilant guardians of the values they bequeathed to us.”
The National Service of Remembrance at the National Memorial Arboretum was attended by the king, Queen Camilla, prime minister Keir Starmer, the Japanese ambassador, and dozens of veterans aged 96 to 105 who served in East Asia and the Pacific.
The event included a two-minute silence at noon, a flypast featuring the Red Arrows and historic Spitfire and Hurricane aircraft, and performances by military bagpipers at The Cenotaph, Edinburgh Castle, and the arboretum.
On Friday evening, landmarks including Buckingham Palace, the Houses of Parliament, the Tower of London, and the White Cliffs of Dover were to be illuminated.
Earlier, Starmer hosted a reception at Downing Street for veterans. “Our country owes a great debt to those who fought for a better future, so we could have the freedoms and the life we enjoy today,” he said. “We must honour that sacrifice with every new generation.” He also noted that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, whom he hosted on Thursday, is “fighting for the same values as we were fighting for.”
In Japan, Emperor Naruhito expressed “deep remorse” on the anniversary of the nation’s surrender. Tens of thousands of people visited Tokyo’s Yasukuni Shrine, which honours 2.5 million mostly Japanese soldiers who died since the late 19th century, as well as convicted war criminals.
(With inputs from agencies)
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Modi announced the launch of 'Mission Sudarshan Chakra' to develop an indigenous air-defence system to protect vital installations and respond to any enemy threat. (Photo: Reuters)
INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi on Friday (15 August) said India will focus on achieving self-reliance in energy and defence, vowing to protect the country’s interests “like a wall”.
Delivering his Independence Day address from the Red Fort in Delhi, Modi spoke as India faces pressure from the United States over crude oil imports from Russia and the threat of higher tariffs.
"Self-reliance is the foundation of developed India," he said after a military flypast showered flower petals on the crowd. "Freedom becomes meaningless if someone becomes too dependent on others."
The US has said it will raise import tariffs on India from 25 per cent to 50 per cent by August 27 if New Delhi does not change crude suppliers. Ties between the two countries have been strained by Washington’s call for India to stop buying Russian oil, a key source of revenue for Moscow during the Ukraine conflict.
India has said it “stands ready” to support efforts to end the Ukraine war and backs a summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday.
"We know that we remain dependent on many countries to meet our energy needs," Modi said. "But to build a truly self-reliant India, we must achieve energy independence."
US secretary of state Marco Rubio, in a message on India’s Independence Day, called relations between the two countries “consequential and far-reaching” and said both sides aim to “ensure a brighter future”.
Launch of ‘Mission Sudarshan Chakra’
Modi announced the launch of “Mission Sudarshan Chakra” to develop an indigenous air-defence system to protect vital installations and respond to any enemy threat. He did not elaborate on the system, but urged scientists and engineers to develop fighter jet engines, semiconductor chips and other military technologies within the country.
"We will have India-made semiconductor chips in the market by the year's end," he said, adding that India was also working on building a space station and a “defence shield” in the next decade.
Modi linked the defence mission to Krishna’s Sudarshan Chakra, saying it reflects how India draws on its cultural heritage for modern innovations. He said the mission would ensure rapid and precise responses to threats and strengthen offensive capabilities.
Pakistan threat and water treaty suspension
The announcement came days after Pakistan Army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir was reported to have hinted at targeting Indian assets along the border in the event of a conflict.
Modi also referred to the four-day conflict with Pakistan in May, saying, "India will give a befitting reply to any other misadventure by the enemy," and reiterated India’s suspension of its cross-border water sharing treaty with Pakistan.
"India has decided that blood and water will not flow together," he added.
Push for domestic jet engine production
Modi urged young innovators to develop jet engines domestically. The call comes amid delays in a proposed deal between Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and US firm GE Aerospace for co-producing jet engines for India’s next-generation combat aircraft.
India’s earlier effort to develop an indigenous engine, the Kaveri project launched in 1989 for the Light Combat Aircraft programme, has yet to be completed despite over Rs 2,000 crore spent on it.
Indigenous weapons and Operation Sindoor
Modi also hailed Operation Sindoor, launched after the April 22 Pahalgam attack, as proof of India’s capacity to act independently using indigenous weapons.
"When economic selfishness is rising day by day... we must not just sit and worry about the crisis but instead focus on our strengths," he said.