Alexander Nevsky

The last marshal of the Soviet Union Dmitry Yazov, who participated in a coup against then USSR leader Mikhail Gorbachev in 1991, has died. Yazov died in Moscow at the age of 95 following a "serious and prolonged illness". He was defence minister between 1987 and 1991 and a year after awarded the rank of marshal.

The almost 600-year-old artwork depicting three angels is one of the most recognisable Russian masterpieces in the world. Last month, however, President Vladimir Putin handed over the historic icon to the Russian Orthodox Church, the latest sign of the tightening alliance between the Kremlin and religious leaders.

Since succeeding President Boris Yeltsin in the waning hours of 1999, Putin has transformed Russia from a country emerging from economic collapse to a pariah state that threatens global security. Following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine that has become Europe's biggest conflict since World War II, Russia has been heavily sanctioned by the West and is turning to other regimes like China, Iran and North Korea for support.

Nabarun Bhattacharya and Q ��� author and auteur ��� talk about the box-office rat race, films as guerrilla warfare and how refined mediocrity is killing art