So in this background, no instrumentality like diplomacy, intelligence, perception management, media, use of soft power, influencing minds of the people, that have become new instruments of the statecraft.

Amrit realized that despite being neighbours, the vast majority of Indians and Pakistanis didn’t know much of each other. In light of this, Amrit wanted to work on humanizing the India-Pakistan relationship. He thought of using technology and social media (with their vast reach) to take this initiative forward and break stereotypes.

India plans to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its "victory" over Pakistan in the 1965 war with a series of events, including a "grand carnival". But critics say it is in bad taste and a waste of money, writes the BBC's Geeta Pandey in Delhi.

Hashtags around race like #icantbreathe #Blacklivesmatter found their way into many feeds, pushed themselves into wider view, and forced a reckoning. [...] African-American struggles have inspired and tactically informed anti-caste activism. But could Dalit-Bahujan Twitter exert a similar force, in India?

One Indian rapper is taking on corporate giant Unilever with an environmental protest song set to the tune of Nicki Minaj’s “Anaconda.” Chennai-born rapper Sofia Ashraf partnered with the grassroots organizing campaign Jhatkaa to create the video “Kodaikanal Won't,” calling on the corporate giant to clean up its mess and pay restitution to workers of the thermometer factory that was responsible for a giant toxic waste dump in the Indian city.

Friends Beyond Borders is a virtual peace building course wherein an Indian and a Pakistani has been paired to be “Indo-Pak E-Pals”. Through this eight-week interactive course, the fellows are guided by a mentor who gives them weekly plans/activities based on a curriculum designed to familiarize them with the ‘other’, its culture, society, politics and the existence of divergent narratives.