Operation Sindoor mix: Surprise, optics and audacity define Indian strikes

Everybody in Pakistan, and indeed in India, knew strikes were a matter of not 'whether' but 'when'. The Modi govt utilised these 14 days after Pahalgam to build an impression that there was no hurry

Many analytical takeaways and lessons will emerge from Operation Sindoor in the course of time. Who knows, if there are more episodes left in this story, and what the next might be. 

For now, let’s follow our familiar three-example rule and examine some standout points from the operation. 

The first, of course, is how one secures surprise when the other side has been in a most heightened state of alert for 14 days, fully mobilised, assets airborne, missiles locked and loaded. 

The second — the optics, packaging and headline management for India’s riskiest moment in a generation. 

And third, the