After taking the longest drinks breaks in history, Yahoo's columnists have returned. Our opinion section went off in December because we were changing platforms -- not on a railway station, even though it is a metaphorical journey we're on, but online, where Yahoo was shifting our content management system to WordPress. Due to all kinds of glitches, some of which still pop up here and there, our return got delayed, but if India took 28 years to win its second world cup, what's a few months between you and us?
We share Yahoo's blog platform, but please don't mistake our columns for blogs. Our pieces will still appear on a weekly schedule, and will perform to the beat of the same drummer I wrote about in my inaugural post. Blogs are awesome -- I've ridden that beast for a few years, though I really need to get back to being more regular. They give you an immediacy in tone, freshness and spontaneity: columns, on the other hand, should be a product of greater reflection, much more a finished product. In my mind's eye, you lean forward and write a blog, but sit back to write a column. (You tweet while on the run from one place to another.)
But that's a personal distinction, as well as a broad generalisation, so don't let that bother you. In this section, every day, six days a week, you will get a sparkling new piece from one of our columnists, in his own unique voice. (Or in her unique voice, which will become possible when we expand this section soon and add female columnists.) On different days, you'll get commentary on politics, economics, foreign affairs, finance, books, films, music, sport and, of course, Rajnikanth. You'll get astute political commentary and moving personal essays; insightful economic analysis and provocative polemics -- whatever your taste runs to, chances are, you'll find it here.
Here, once again, is the roster of columns to look forward to:
Anything That Moves -- Girish Shahane links culture and politics (fortnightly, Mondays)
Minority of One -- Mohit Satyanand's private take on public affairs (fortnightly, Mondays)
Corner Plot -- Ashok Malik on that great Indian obsession -- politics (fortnightly, Tuesdays)
Pax Indica -- Nitin Pai demystifies the anarchy of international relations (fortnightly, Tuesdays)
Atlas Invested: Deepak Shenoy on the world of money (weekly, Wednesdays)
Viewfinder -- Amit Varma plays around with frames of reference (weekly, Thursdays)
Dead Tree Diaries -- Sanjay Sipahimalani on the three Rs: reading, writing and Reality. (fortnightly, Fridays)
Persistence of Vision -- Jai Arjun Singh takes you on a night out to the movies. (fortnightly, Fridays)
Mirth Vader -- Anand Ramachandran discovers the power of the light side. (fortnightly, Saturdays)
Stereotypist -- Aadisht Khanna plays the boom box of absurdity (fortnightly, Saturdays)
Amit Varma, the winner of the 2007 Bastiat Prize for Journalism, is the author of the bestselling novel My Friend Sancho. He writes the popular blog, India Uncut. You can follow him on Twitter here.