Life & Arts: News & Insights

Arts

Art SG propels Singapore to creative big leagues

New art fair puts city-state on map for galleries and collectors alike

15 April 2023

Action-packed Vietnamese revenge thriller "Furies" (2023) is set in the criminal underbelly of 1990s Ho Chi Minh City, where three female vigilantes team up to smash a crime syndicate to smithereens. (Courtesy of Netflix)

Arts

Netflix spotlight falls on Southeast Asian films

Hit Indonesian picture spurs streaming giant's commitment to local content

14 April 2023

Japanese author Haruki Murakami felt the time had come to transform his original short story into a full-length novel.

Interview

Murakami on new book: 'Time came for rewrite' of 1980 story

'The City and Its Uncertain Walls' is Japanese author's first novel in six years

13 April 2023

Former junior idol Kauan Okamoto speaks in Tokyo on April 12.

Society

Former J-Pop idol accuses late music mogul of widespread sex abuse

Kauan Okamoto says Johnny Kitagawa possibly assaulted over 100 trainee idols

13 April 2023

Rugby fans gather for the Hong Kong Sevens tournament on April 1. The city's citizens have increasingly few reasons to cheer these days.

Tea Leaves

Hong Kong's 'new normal' is anything but

City retains its business buzz as political freedoms wither

12 April 2023

A Chin midwife holds the baby of a Chin refugee moments after it was delivered in a clinic near refugee camps at the India-Myanmar border in India's Mizoram state on Jan. 15. (All photos by Valeria Mongelli)

Life

Myanmar's border midwives deliver hope to refugees

Underequipped teams help minority women fleeing violence

12 April 2023

Trailblazing Japanese musician Ryuichi Sakamoto, pictured here in 1987, leaves behind a rich trove of recordings and other creative output for his fans to explore.

Life

The real musical magic of Ryuichi Sakamoto

Reflections on late Japanese composer-musician's artistic journey and legacy

8 April 2023

Lata Mangeshkar, pictured here in Mumbai in 2008, sang in 36 languages, including Dutch, Russian, Fijian, Swahili and English as well as many others spoken in India.

Books

Book review: Lata Mangeshkar -- the immortal voice of India

Biography offers a comprehensive analysis of the famous singer's life and work

7 April 2023

Boating in Ban Rak Thai: Located near the Myanmar border, the remote Thai village was not on the author's travel itinerary, but it proved to be a delightful discovery. (Shutterstock)

Tea Leaves

No-reservations travel sets you free

Ditching travel planning turns out to be a liberating experience in Thailand

5 April 2023

Rohingya women and children rest on the beach after their boat landed in Aceh province, Indonesia, in February 2023. Many women and girls from this ethnic minority group flee Myanmar and Bangladesh by boat only to find new perils await.

Books

Book review: How the world is failing Rohingya refugees

Kaamil Ahmed's 'I Feel No Peace' exposes prejudice and lack of interest

5 April 2023

Ryuichi Sakamoto, who passed away on March 28, absorbed music from all directions, including classical, rock and jazz. He was also politically active, becoming involved in social action throughout his life.

Obituaries

Ryuichi Sakamoto, defiant musical innovator, sought meaning of sound

Multifaceted Oscar winner dismantled barriers in search of 'people's music,' social justice

3 April 2023

Ryuichi Sakamoto was the first Japanese composer to win the Academy Award for Best Original Score, for the 1987 film "The Last Emperor." (Photo obtained by Nikkei)

Obituaries

Ryuichi Sakamoto, Japanese musician and Oscar winner, dies at 71

He won award for 'The Last Emperor' and co-founded Yellow Magic Orchestra

2 April 2023

The risks of openly criticizing Thai politicians and government employees has not discouraged game developer Opendream's founder, Patipat Keng Susumpow, from tackling taboos.

Society

Thai game 'Corrupt' helps kids think about sensitive social issues

Developer Opendream's apps focus on taboo topics like bribery and sex

2 April 2023

Reijiro Izumi, left, president of the tea-ceremony-focused Sabie Cultural Institute, sits in the Jakuin tea room in Kyoto. (Photo by Keiichi Furukawa)

Arts

Sony unit puts virtual twist on teaching traditional tea ceremony

New tea room eyes 'evolutionary future' for Japanese cultural touchstone

2 April 2023

Chiune Sugihara issued visas to Jews, some of whom had no travel documents at all, allowing them to flee the Nazis through the Soviet Union. (Photo courtesy of the Japan Society)

Arts

Concert to commemorate 'Japanese Schindler' set for New York

WWII diplomat in Lithuania helped thousands of Jews flee Nazi regime

1 April 2023

A Karenni child carries a pail in a camp for internally displaced people in Kayah state, eastern Myanmar, in July 2022. Many people in the region were forced to flee their villages when fighting erupted following the military takeover in February 2021.

Life

Myanmar's 'forgotten people' bear brunt of war

Conflict sheds light on the Karenni, who have sought autonomy for 75 years

31 March 2023

A satisfying nasi campur meal -- a platter of brown rice served with seven different vegetable dishes -- on the Indonesian resort island of Bali. (All photos by Charukesi Ramadurai)

Tea Leaves

How vegans are stirring Southeast Asia's food scene

Search for sustainability and the pandemic are making diners think again

29 March 2023

Calligrapher Mohammad Ghalib, 60, creates a work for a customer in the bookshop where he works in the Old Delhi district of the Indian capital. (Photo by Mehran Bhat)

Arts

The last Urdu calligrapher of Delhi

Technological and political pressures threaten centuries-old Indian art form

29 March 2023

Gordon Moore holds a silicon wafer at Intel headquarters in Santa Clara, California, in 2005.

Obituaries

Gordon Moore, a chip pioneer who set the stage for Google, Apple

Intel co-founder's prediction on chip innovation guided Silicon Valley

26 March 2023

Bengaluru's new Museum of Art & Photography, widely known as MAP, is the first privately funded art institution in south India. (Courtesy of Orange & Teal)

Arts

MAP signals a new direction for Indian museums

Groundbreaking Bengaluru institution opens with challenging show

24 March 2023

"Music lets us relate to other people at any time, under any circumstance, and reminds us of who we were in those moments. That's the biggest power music has," BTS member Jimin said in a recent written interview with Nikkei.

Interview

For BTS's Jimin, music transcends language barriers

South Korean singer releases solo album that peers deep into his soul

24 March 2023

Katsushika Hokusai's "Under the Well of the Great Wave off Kanagawa" was sold for $2.76 million at Christie's in New York on March 21. (Photo courtesy of Christie's)

Arts

Hokusai's 'Great Wave' print sells for record $2.8m in New York

Iconic image by Japanese artist fetches more than quadruple Christie's projected price

23 March 2023

A selection of vintage clothes on sale at Grapefruit Moon in Tokyo's Koenji neighborhood. (All photos by Abi Buller)

Tea Leaves

How Japan rekindled my love affair with clothes

People who struggle to think beyond Uniqlo should try adding something unique

22 March 2023

The shape of things to come? Polygon House, Karuizawa, Nagano prefecture, Makoto Yamaguchi, 2003. (Courtesy of Makoto Yamaguchi/Photo © Koichi Torimura)

Arts

The changing face of Japanese homes

Interior design is adapting to the circumstances of the post-pandemic world

22 March 2023

In "The Price of Time: The Real Story of Interest," author Edward Chancellor brings the potentially dry subject of interest rates to life with a wealth of anecdotes and walk-on characters both famous and obscure. (Nikkei montage/Photos by Grove Atlantic and Edward Chancellor)

Books

Book review: The funny business of central banks and money supply

'The Price of Time' comes as incoming BOJ Gov. Kazuo Ueda in celebrity spotlight

20 March 2023