In photos | 12 moments from 2020 India won't forget

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JANUARY: Towards the end of the month, India recorded its first case of covid-19 in a woman from Kerala, who was studying in Wuhan, China, the epicentre of the outbreak. It led to an exodus back home of Keralites from Wuhan, most of them medical students, and an increased monitoring of cases in the southern state.

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FEBRUARY: Alongside covid-19, another virus was spreading its wings all over India: that of communal hatred. February saw the termination of the Shaheen Bagh protests against unequal citizenship laws and an eruption of violence in Delhi, one of the worst riots to shake up the city in recent memory.

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MARCH: By the third month of the year, covid-19 was a painful reality in our daily lives. The Central government put the entire country under one of the strictest lockdowns in the world on a short notice. People were urged to stay home and beat vessels to express their appreciation for the essential workers.

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APRIL: The English poet TS Eliot called April the cruellest month. And sure did it bring scenes of horrific suffering from across the country, as millions of migrant labourers began to walk back home from the cities they worked in, which were now locked down. With little money and having to traverse vast distances under excruciating weather conditions, hundred perished or were severely injured.

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MAY: Summer brought in another devastation in the form of Cyclone Amphan, which caused widespread damage along the eastern coast, especially in West Bengal and Bangladesh.

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JUNE: As the year hit its halfway mark, more bad news poured in. Actor Sushant Singh Rajput's death by suicide led to an outpouring of public sympathy, people came out on the streets to protest against the tragic circumstances of the star's passing. It was followed by intense media coverage of those allegedly suspected by the police, including Singh's bereaved live-in partner Rhea Chakraborty and actor Deepika Padukone.

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JULY: As the number of people infected by covid-19 touched 1 million in India, efforts to test and screen increased around the country.

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AUGUST: Even as the number of covid cases continued to surge, it was business as usual for some. The foundation stone of the projected Ram temple was laid under the aegis of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Ayodhya, accompanied by an elaborate 'bhoomi puja', at the formerly disputed site of Babri Masjid.

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SEPTEMBER: On 14 September, a Dalit woman was gang-raped by four upper-caste men in the Hathras district of Uttar Pradesh. After fighting for her life for two weeks, she died in Delhi, and was cremated by the police without seeking the consent of her family. The police denied this allegation, but public protests broke out all over India.

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OCTOBER: The number of infections wasn't falling but the economy was ailing worse than ever. So, October saw a gradual unlocking of the country, as people ventured out embracing the 'new normal' of masks and hand sanitisers.

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NOVEMBER: As the country began to open up, so did cinemas in some states by following stringent safety protocols, such has having workers in full PPE sanitising every nook and cranny before a show.

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DECEMBER: In spite of the air being thick with death and disease, Santa still did come this year, wearing mask and gloves, bearing the gift of hand sanitiser. 'Bye, bye, 2020.

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Zahraa Sayed Ahmed, an entreprenuer who produces rose water and rose flavourings harvests Damascena (Damask) roses. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP)

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Zahraa Sayed Ahmed produces a syrup from Damascena (Damask) roses, at her house in the village of Qsarnaba. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP)

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Zahraa Sayed Ahmed produces jam from Damascena (Damask) roses, at her house in the village of Qsarnaba. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP)

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A worker pours syrup on a tray of traditional rose-infused dessert Kunafa, at a shop in Byblos in Lebanon. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP)

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A worker pours syrup on a bun as she sells traditional dessert Kunafa, at a shop in Byblos in Lebanon. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP)

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A woman serves a drink made of rose syrup at a house in Byblos in Lebanon. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP)

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This picture shows Damascena (Damask) roses that are used for essential oils, sweets and cosmetics, in the village of Qsarnaba in Lebanon. The oil derived from the famed Damask rose --- named after the ancient city of Damascus located just across the mountain range separating Lebanon and Syria -- is a staple of in cuisines of the Middle East and perfumers around the world. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP)

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Dried Damascena (Damask) rosebuds are used to make herbal tea, at a house in Byblos in Lebanon. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP)

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Workers drop their bundles of Damascena (Damask) at a warehouse where they are paid based on their harvest, in the village of Qsarnaba in Lebanon. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP) (AFP)

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Zahraa Sayed Ahmed carries Damascena (Damask) rosebuds to produce rose water, syrup, tea and jam, at her house in the village of Qsarnaba. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP)

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Located in a renovated 1921 home, Daspan House (right) offers peace and tranquility, while being the perfect base from which to explore Jodhpur (left). (File photo)

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The Johri is a beautiful boutique hotel in a restored haveli in Old Jaipur, and offers a range of experiences.  (File photo)

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The grand Narendra Bhawan in Bikaner is known for its curated meal experiences, which give you reason enough to stay indoors all day.  (File photo)

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At the Six Senses spa located in the 14th century Fort Barwara, a range of relaxing massages and spa therapies are on offer during the summer months. (File photo)

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Dileep Kothi in Jaipur is another restored family home that is an escape from crowds of tourists (File photo)

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Enjoy music and dance performances by traditional artists at Suryagarh, Bikaner (File photo)

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Formula One F1 - Monaco Grand Prix - Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo, Monaco - May 26, 2023 Red Bull's Sergio Perez during practice. (REUTERS)

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Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands steers his car during the Formula One first practice session at the Monaco racetrack, in Monaco, Friday, May 26, 2023. The Formula One race will be held on Sunday. (AP)

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Formula One F1 - Monaco Grand Prix - Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo, Monaco - May 26, 2023 Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton during practice.  (REUTERS)

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McLaren driver Lando Norris of Britain pulls onto the track during the Formula One first practice session at the Monaco racetrack, in Monaco, Friday, May 26, 2023. (AP)

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Mercedes' British driver Lewis Hamilton enters his car in the pits during the first practice session of the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix at the Monaco street circuit in Monaco, on May 26, 2023. (AFP)

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Formula One F1 Monaco Grand Prix: Haas' Kevin Magnussen during practice. (REUTERS)

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Formula One F1 - Monaco Grand Prix: Ferrari's Charles Leclerc during practice on Friday. (REUTERS)

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The collection was presented at a villa in Cannes 

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The ‘La Vacanza’ (Italian for ‘vacation’) includes perfectly cut tailoring and evening gowns, bikinis and terry cotton beachwear 

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‘La Vacanza ranges from metallic miniskirts and sexy bikinis, to butterfly rings and printed  pieces inspired by the Versace SS ’95 collection,’ says Dua Lipa in the press note.

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‘I love the summer and for me this collection celebrates the very best of that time of year. Gorgeous colors,  fun prints, and light silhouettes. Dua loves fashion, I love music,’ says Donatella Versace, in the note. This  collection marks the first time the fashion house has opened up the design process to a collaborator in this way. 

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(FILES) Aerial view of a boat stranded in the dried bed of Alhajuela Lake during the summer drought, in the Colon province, 50 km north of Panama City, on April 21, 2023. (AFP)

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(FILES) Water depth indicators sit on dry land at Pykes Creek Reservoir in Ballan, Australia, some 60 kilometers west of Melbourne on November 14, 2006. More than half of the world's largest lakes and reservoirs are dwindling and placing humanity's future water security at risk, with climate change and unsustainable consumption the main culprits, according to a study by University of Colorado Boulder researchers. (AFP)

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A dry cracked bed surrounds the artificial Vernago lake, in Vernago, near the Val Senales glacier, northern Italy, Monday, April 17, 2023. (AP)

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These photos provided by NASA Earth Observatory shows the Aral Sea is visible on Aug. 25, 2000, left, and on Aug. 21, 2018 between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. (NASA Earth Observatory via AP)

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(FILES) A lone flipper sits on a dried boat dock sitting at the bottom of the Stuart Fork arm of Trinity Lake during an ongoing drought in Trinity Center, California, on October 15, 2022. (AFP)

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FILE - A man stands on a hill overlooking a formerly sunken boat standing upright into the air with its stern buried in the mud along the shoreline of Lake Mead at the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Jan. 27, 2023, near Boulder City, Nev. (AP)

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(FILES) The receding reservoir waters behind the Sidi Salem dam, the largest embankment dam in Tunisia, northwest of Testour in the country's north, on April 6, 2023. (AFP)

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Djibril Djimo; and Johnny Depp (right) during the premiere of the film 'Jeanne du Barry' at the 76th international film festival, Cannes, southern France, on 16 May (Scott Garfitt/Invision/AP)

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Guan Xiaotong chose Valentino for her first day at Cannes (Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)

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Helen Mirren matched her hair to her Del Core gown at Cannes on 16 May (Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP)

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Alessandra Ambrosio's hooded Elie Saab gown made quite a statement (Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP)

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Esha Gupta in a Nicolas Jebran ensemble at the opening ceremony and the premiere of the film 'Jeanne du Barry' at the 76th international film festival, Cannes, southern France, on 16 May (Scott Garfitt/Invision/AP)