Life & Arts

Kim Tae-han performs some of his favorites, including parts of Wagner's "Tannhauser." (Courtesy of Queen Elisabeth Competition)
Arts

South Korean baritone hits high note with surprise European win

Kim Tae-han first Asian male opera singer to clinch Queen Elisabeth prize

15 June 2023
Many English expressions from the British colonial era live on in India, not always for the better.
Tea Leaves

Why India should euthanize English euphemisms

Polite terms are too often used to hide cruel reality or outdated values

14 June 2023
With "Mad Fate," director Soi Cheang taps into Hong Kong's fascination with the macabre, returning to the milieu with which he first turned heads. (Courtesy of Makerville)
Arts

Soi Cheang and the art of darkness

Maverick Hong Kong filmmaker honored by the city he celebrates in his movies

11 June 2023
Canal No. 1 was completed in the Meiji era (1868-1912) was built to revive Kyoto, which had fallen on hard times after the capital was relocated to Tokyo. (Photo by Kazuki Kagaya)
Travel & Leisure

Lake Biwa Canal Cruise in Japan adds multilingual app

Trip down historic canal offers tourists new way to enjoy Kyoto area

11 June 2023
Now starring in the Netflix action movie "Blade of the 47 Ronin," Japanese actor Chikako Fukuyama says, "As an Asian woman, I feel the time is just right to work in Hollywood." (Photo by Albert Halim)
Arts

Smashing down walls for Asians in Hollywood

Japanese actor Chikako Fukuyama's long journey from Nagoya to Los Angeles

10 June 2023
Local chefs are helping raise awareness -- and the popularity -- of indigenous Taiwanese cuisine. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Embers Restaurant, Bulaubulau, John Krich)
Life

Taiwan chefs go back to island's roots

Foraged and indigenous cuisine moves up the menu

8 June 2023
Ivan Menezes, seen here in October 2022, was instrumental in the "Keep Walking" campaign for Johnnie Walker whisky when he was Diageo's marketing chief. 
Obituaries

Diageo's India native boss Ivan Menezes dies at 63

Longtime CEO drove sales surge and sustainability push at spirits king

7 June 2023
Thingyan revelers celebrate in Yangon: Government atrocities and oppression didn't stop people from letting loose during the New Year water festival. (Photo by Monica Mang)
Tea Leaves

To laugh or not to laugh on Yangon's mean streets

In post-takeover Myanmar, life goes on despite the background horror

7 June 2023
"Xi seeks a China separate from the world and yet connected with it," write Andrew Cainey and Christiane Prange in "Xiconomics."
Books

Book review: China's de-risking strategy

Xi Jinping's economic policy approach has implications for multinationals

5 June 2023
One of the oldest surviving Naga headhunters poses for a photo in Hongphoi, a remote village in the northeastern Indian state of Nagaland. (Photo by Sudha Madhavan)
Life

Exploring the changing face of India's Nagaland

Unique tour spotlights both tradition and modernity in state once known for headhunters

3 June 2023
Police seize exhibits from the June 4th Museum in Hong Kong in September 2021. A new museum has been set up in the U.S.
Hong Kong security law

Tiananmen museum to open in U.S. ahead of crackdown anniversary

Hong Kong authorities continue to snuff out commemorations

2 June 2023
Adike chogaru, the syrup produced when young betel nuts are boiled, can be used to make a dye to produce a range of colors, from brown to pink, garnet and beige. (Photo by Shailesh Swarga)
Life

Indian textile industry finds fresh use for betel nut

Natural dye more sustainable option than alternatives harvested from wild

2 June 2023
G-Yu Creative CEO Yupharet Eakturapakal points to the strategic approach taken by South Korea to promote its culture overseas, calling on Japan to do the same. (Photo by Shinya Sawai) 
Media & Entertainment

Thailand's Japan Expo organizer urges J-pop to look outward

G-Yu Creative's CEO insists Japanese culture can win more popularity

1 June 2023
Poker machines glimmer at a pub in Sydney. With the exceptions of Las Vegas in the U.S. and China's special administrative territory of Macao, no other place offers Australia's array of gambling options.
Life

Australia's gambling addiction extends far beyond high rollers

Poker machines pull in piles of cash for pubs and clubs

1 June 2023
Each dawn, a man sells produce from his truck on the same street corner, where rich and poor neighbors intermingle. (All photos by Lien Hoang)
Tea Leaves

Saving Vietnam's street life from prosperity

Some cities are designed for loneliness. Ho Chi Minh City is made for community

31 May 2023
An old woman walks by a mosaic rocket at an elementary school with only 16 students in Tanegashima.  (Kyodo)
Life

Japan's 'rocket island' grapples with demographic change

'Graying' Tanegashima is a microcosm of the national economy

28 May 2023
Rice fish have become popular pets in Japan because of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly among city dwellers with busy schedules and little space. 
Life

Pandemic craze for Japan's 'medaka' rice fish keeps up steam

Colorful pets are easy to keep and breed, and can sell for over $3,000 each

27 May 2023
In "Tiger Stripes" 12-year-old girl Zaffan, played by Zafreen Zairizal, goes through carefree puberty until she discovers that her body is morphing in terrifying ways. (Courtesy of Ghost Grrrl Pictures)
Arts

New generation of Malaysian filmmakers wins accolades abroad

Cannes award for 'Tiger Stripes' follows victories at Udine for 'Abang Adik'

27 May 2023
Thailand's remote Koh Mak island boasts the hallmarks of a tropical paradise. (Photos by Ron Emmons unless specified otherwise)
Life

Thai island makes a virtue of simplicity

Koh Mak may be a model for sustainable tourism

26 May 2023
Efforts to elevate the quality of Thai coffee have helped create a flourishing cafe culture in the northern city of Chiang Mai and improve the livelihoods of local farmers, many of whom belong to ethnic minority groups. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Getty Images, Denis Gray)
Life

Thailand adds quality coffee to its export menu

Specialty brews include one made from beans found in elephant feces

25 May 2023
Tina Turner during a concert at the Arrowhead Pond arena in Anaheim, California, in December 2000.
Obituaries

Tina Turner, the 'queen of rock 'n' roll,' dies at 83

Legendary singer with powerful voice dominated Top 40 list in 1980s

25 May 2023
Blackpink performs at the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards in Newark, U.S., in August 2022. Half of the songs on the South Korean group's latest album have entirely English-language lyrics, while the others are a mix of Korean and English.
Tea Leaves

Has K-pop's global march lost rhythm?

Musical arm of the cool Korean wave is only marking time

24 May 2023
Workshop participants view possibly looted works at the Asian Art Museum in Berlin in March. Researchers estimate that hundreds of porcelains, bronzes and picture scrolls held by German museums may be implicated. (Photo by Jens Kastner)
Arts

German museums dig into legacy of Boxer Rebellion looting

Joint review of holdings with Chinese scholars to lead to return of artifacts

22 May 2023
Lee Xian Jie, right, chats with locals at his restaurant next to the house he is renovating in Wakayama prefecture. (Photo by Takaki Kashiwabara)
Life

Japan's empty old rural houses attracting overseas buyers

Foreign ownership of abandoned homes may change local attitudes

21 May 2023
In "The Long Reckoning: A Story of War, Peace, and Redemption in Vietnam," author George Black has produced a groundbreaking work with a message of hope and reconciliation. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by George Black, Getty Images)
Books

Books: War and redemption in Vietnam, 60 years after Agent Orange

George Black's 'The Long Reckoning' charts the lasting impact of chemical use

18 May 2023