Culture

From artisans in two rural Indian villages come a huge share of the Hindu world’s sacred bracelets

Text by Rachel Kwek Synthetic fabrics are ubiquitous in modern clothes but many of Asia’s traditional garments were made of natural fabrics that do not...

CENTURIES after Columbus’ crews brought it out of the Caribbean to Europe, the habit of smoking cigars has evolved into a global culture. Colonialism took it along to regions afar. In Indonesia, for instance, it was the Dutch who brought it in, and since then, a number of cigar factories have been established since the early 20th century.

As elders pass on and youth surrender to the tide of modernisation, the once-proud villages who lived off the land are surrendering their diligently preserved traditions for basic food and healthcare

Visionaries who believe in making the world a better place and have made efforts to do so

Farmers transplant bright green rice seedlings onto grids drawn on the rich, ankle-deep mud. A few fields away, a water buffalo lazes in its...

The 7th lunar month sees incense and food left on sidewalks in Asia, but experts and Taoist believers cannot agree on why or how the practice came to be.

AS BODIES JOLT AND NERVES JANGLE through rush-hour traffic, commuters may see an exploding volcano, a famous family of cartoon ducks traipsing through a...