Life

Takayuki Kato believes ostriches are the answer to more sustainable meat. (Photo by Tadanori Yoshida)
Food & Beverage

Forget wagyu, pass the ostrich: Eco-friendly delicacy gains in Japan

Low-fat fowl wins fans during pandemic thanks to farm-to-table app

22 August 2020
Enatsu the ace takes on home run star Sadaharu Oh in April 1969.
Life

Lessons from a Japanese baseball maverick

Yutaka Enatsu would have wowed America if he had played in the MLB

21 August 2020
Chinese smartphone maker Vivo had been the official sponsor of the Indian Premier League. (Photo courtesy of the Board of Control for Cricket in India)
Media & Entertainment

Chinese sponsor's exit opens up IPL cricket deal for India unicorn

Dream11 replaces Vivo for highly coveted title after smartphone maker is forced out

19 August 2020
Chef Bobby Chinn sips from a bowl of laksa, a spicy noodle soup dish popular in Singapore's hawker centers.
Life

Asia's traveling TV chef mulls his next move

Bobby Chinn foresees an automated food world with no place for celebrity cooks

17 August 2020
Customers make a toast through a transparent partition at Kichiri Shinjuku, an izakaya in Tokyo. 
Food & Beverage

Japan's 'izakaya' pubs seek ways to survive in the COVID-19 era

Virtual dining and drive-through yakitori are becoming new norms for customers

15 August 2020
A tatami suite with artwork by Samiro Yunoki in the Ace Hotel Kyoto. Designed in 1926, the building has been renovated and extended by Japanese architect Kengo Kuma.
Life

Ace Hotel builds on a Kyoto legacy

Company tapped an all-star cast of creatives for its first Japanese venture

14 August 2020
George Town's upscale Eastern & Oriental Hotel has started pairing spicy local Baba Nyonya food with sparkling Franciacorta rose. (Photo by Kit Yeng Chan)
Life

Malaysian foodies develop taste for Italian wine

Paired with local dishes, signature labels make inroads into an improbable market

12 August 2020
Divers clean reefs off the coast of the Thai island of Koh Phangan. (Photo courtesy of Stefan Follows)
Life

Conservation activists urge post-pandemic tourism reset in Thailand

They warn economic reboot could exacerbate environmental problems

7 August 2020
Bangkok in late April: The coronavirus pandemic has left sex workers across Asia struggling to make ends meet. (Photo by Akira Kodaka)
Coronavirus

Sex workers from Singapore to Bangkok feel COVID chill

With no income or safety net, many turn to online jobs that 'pay far less'

5 August 2020
A drawing of the elusive pink-headed duck. Once found across India, Bangladesh and northern Myanmar, it has not been spotted in the subcontinent since 1949. (Henrik Gronvold) 
Life

A bird spotter's guide to Myanmar

Country pins post-coronavirus tourism hopes on rare and endangered birds

5 August 2020
Chaitali Puri, center, and her groom Nitin Arora, left, at their scaled-back wedding in New Delhi on May 2. The couple celebrated the day with only 15 guests, instead of the planned 400. (Courtesy of Chaitali Puri and Nitin Arora)
Life

Pandemic slims the big fat Indian wedding

COVID-19 social distancing rules prompt boom in pared down online marriages

3 August 2020
As movie theaters remain closed due to the coronavirus pandemic, film producers in India are turning to online premieres of new releases. (Nikkei montage/Source images courtesy of Amazon Prime Video, Netflix and Disney Plus Hotstar)
Business Spotlight

Digital Bollywood: Can Amazon and Netflix save Indian cinema?

Online premieres offer glimmer of hope for studios struggling in pandemic

31 July 2020
Cai Wanzi has dedicated herself to spreading the garden lifestyle from her Beijing home throughout China with books, exhibitions, an audio course and even world garden tours. (Courtesy of Cai Wanzi)
Life

China's 'Garden Queen' spreads joy of nature even during lockdown

Cai Wanzi teaches listeners through her podcast and led tours to global gardens

29 July 2020
A portrait of a young Kashmiri girl in traditional attire by artist Hina Arif. Hina started to make paintings of Kashmiri architecture and people to help preserve the local culture, which she believes the central government is trying to wipe out. (Safina Nabi) 
Arts

Kashmiri women use art to resist India's tightening laws

From painting to traditional poetry, they fight against New Delhi's takeover

27 July 2020
One of the large dining rooms at Ukiyo, a ryotei, or high-end Japanese restaurant that also provides entertainment, in Niigata Prefecture. (Courtesy of Ukiyo)
Life

'Kaiseki' cuisine slips down Japan's post-pandemic menu

As restaurants close, acclaimed culinary tradition faces radical changes

25 July 2020
One of Fruitfull's virtual dining events in full swing. The dishes were developed by Michelin-starred chefs, including Garima Arora of Bangkok's Gaa. (Courtesy of Fruitfull) 
Life

COVID-19 inspires chefs to create virtual dinners and remote cocktails

From tasting menus in Bangkok to wine pairing in Tokyo, coronavirus spurs innovation

24 July 2020
Jun Kit Man, founder of the British East Asian-focused publication Resonate, has conducted research on why this minority appears unengaged with politics. (Courtesy of Jun Kit Man)
Life

British Chinese, long low-profile, worry about place in UK society

They have faced increased racism in the coronavirus-era as Trump has blamed China

22 July 2020
Performing as Maya the Drag Queen, Bangalore-based Alex Mathew addresses gender equality and transgender empowerment through adaptation of folk tales. (Courtesy of Alex Mathew)
Arts

India's drag queens put politics front and center

Their performances carry messages against Hindu nationalism and gender oppression

17 July 2020
A durian party in Singapore in 2018. The spiky fruit is a celebrated summer delicacy in parts of Southeast Asia, with flavors that can range from creamy custard to bitter, boozy liquor. (Courtesy of 99 Old Trees)
Life

Southeast Asia celebrates durian at parties, festivals and buffets

Despite poor reputation in Western media, fruit pleases palates across region

15 July 2020
Sydney’s officially designated Thai Town is only the second in the world after the one in Los Angeles. (Courtesy of the Thai Town Business and Community Association)
Life

Inside Sydney's 'Little Bangkok'

Australia's Thais transform demographics and make headlines amid crisis

13 July 2020
YouTube star Xiaogao Jie, or Sister Gao, invites viewers to make cold noodles. Her channel, Sister Gao's Magic Ingredients, has attracted 1.8 million subscribers since its launch in 2016. (Screen grab from YouTube)
Life

Sister Gao is YouTube's breakout Chinese cookery star

Her motherly tone and familiar dishes have comforted expats during coronavirus lockdown

10 July 2020
Transgender rocker Shika Corona, center, strikes a pose with her bandmates Yon, left, and Gemma in the Malaysian garage punk unit TingTongKetz. (Courtesy of TingTongKetz)
Life

Meet Malaysia's LGBTQ punk rockers

Lockdown threatens social progress, especially for trans performers

8 July 2020
From left: Studio Ghibli director Hayao Miyazaki, Dentsu's Ryoichi Fukuyama and then-Ghibli executive Steve Alpert in Vienna while promoting "Princess Mononoke." (Courtesy of Stone Bridge Press)
Arts

New book goes inside Studio Ghibli with Hayao Miyazaki

Steve Alpert worked there for 15 years and knew major players

6 July 2020
A traditional inn at Matsue's Tamatsukuri hot springs: The city hopes its charms will convince more people to settle here. (Photo from Matsue Travel Association's Facebook page)
Business trends

With hot springs and yoga, Matsue creates a teleworkers' paradise

Three-day trials to give big-city dwellers a taste of less stressful life

5 July 2020
Travel guides on Southeast Asia from Lonely Planet, Moon Guides, Rough Guides, Insight Guides and Reise Know How. (Tom Vater)
Life

Guidebooks in the age of COVID-19

Travel writing industry faces challenges even after lockdown restrictions ease

1 July 2020