Vol. 2005No. 049Millennium turn
The India you were born into
Friday18 February2005
18 February 2005 offers a small historical doorway — telecommunications, set against a country where growth accelerated while new debates over rights, infrastructure and urban life reshaped the public agenda.
Change dateThe Front Page
India in a connected century
Growth, security and technology shape the national story
India was adapting to a more connected economy and society while facing significant questions of security and development.
India in Numbers
A snapshot of India when you were born.
In february 2005, a litre of petrol cost Loading… and a local phone call cost Loading….
Interpolated placeholder between benchmark years; replace with annual UN WPP estimate before publication. Not a census count. Source: current India population working dataset.
Prices from the month you were born, listed the way the kirana shop would have written them.
- The Hindu archive
- National archival records
- Press and public memory
04 · Sport
India on the field in 2005
Moment of the year · Cricket
India hosts a landmark cricket series against Pakistan
The rivalry remained one of the year's major sporting stories.
200505 · Cinema & music
What India was watching and humming
The film everyone queued for that month, and the song that played from every cassette player that year.
NO ENTRY
Year 2005
Film of the year · 2005
No Entry
Also in theatresBunty Aur Babli · Sarkar · Rang De Basanti · Apaharan · Parineeta · Iqbal
Song of the year · 2005
"Kajra Re"
Also on the radio"Dus Bahane" · "Aankhon Mein Teri" · "Kya Mujhe Pyaar Hai"
$ cat science-and-technology-2005
The mobile internet arrives
What science and technology looked like in India in 2005.
Mobile adoption accelerates
India's telecom market entered a period of rapid subscriber growth.
Technology moves closer to daily life
Computing, communication and consumer electronics were gradually moving from specialist institutions toward ordinary homes, offices and public life.
Faces of 2005
Manmohan Singh
Enacted the Right to Information (RTI) Act and launched the MGNREGA social security scheme.
Sania Mirza
Became the first Indian woman to win a WTA singles title (Hyderabad Open) and reached the 4th round of the US Open.
P. Chidambaram
Introduced key tax reforms and fiscal responsibility frameworks as Union Finance Minister.
M. S. Dhoni
Scored 183 not out against Sri Lanka in Jaipur, setting a world record for the highest score by a wicketkeeper in ODIs.
Sachin Tendulkar
Broke Sunil Gavaskar's record by scoring his 35th Test century against Sri Lanka in Delhi.
Amitabh Bachchan
Won national acclaim for his role as a teacher in the film 'Black'.
09 · BEYOND INDIA
Beyond India
Before the internet put the world in our pockets, news from abroad arrived through telegrams, radios, television sets and eventually phones.
London bombings
7 JUL
Suicide bombers attack London's public transport system, killing 52 people.
2005, circled in red
The year India turned 58.