From the Emergency to Ayodhya to Kashmir, the political and human dramas behind India’s most consequential courtroom decisions

New Delhi, 29^th October 2026: Penguin India announces the acquisition of Broken Scales by Insiyah Vahanvaty, independent journalist, commentator and scholar. The book is the account of extraordinary judges who stared down governments, the ones who blinked under pressure, and the secret conversations, unexpected alliances and lonely dissents that shaped independent India. The book will be published under Viking and will be released in April 2028.

The book takes readers into the Emergency, when the streets fell silent and thousands were jailed, and through the political upheavals around the Bangladesh war and the crises that brought Indira Gandhi’s government to the brink, including the one judge who stood entirely alone. It goes inside the Supreme Court during Ayodhya, follows Mathura, Bhanwari Devi and Nirbhaya, the women whose tragedies changed the law, and returns to Kashmir, from Partition to the events of August 2019, when the Court once again had to ask whether it would hold its ground or yield to the moment.

The Supreme Court has often been a powerful defender of liberty, and moments of retreat have again and again been followed by recovery. Judges and their judgments, as the book shows, are products of their time, shaped by political pressure, public sentiment, ideology, and the personal convictions of the judges themselves.

Speaking on the book, author Insiyah Vahanvaty said, ‘Broken Scalesbegan as a fascination for the men and women behind the black robes, the minds that have shaped the history of our country. We like to imagine that judges stand above politics, history, and human weakness. They don’t. They too are creatures of their times with their own beliefs, fears and biases. But unlike the rest of us, what they bring into the courtroom can acquire the force of law.’

Karthik Venkatesh, Executive Editor, Penguin Random House India, said, ‘Broken Scales takes the road less travelled. It is not laudatory, choosing instead to focus on the more difficult situations when the highest court in the land was seen to have retreated almost. That is always a more difficult story to tell. And that is the promise of this book.’

Milee Ashwarya, Publisher & Group SVP, Adult Publishing Group, Penguin Random House India, said, ‘A gripping account of the Supreme Court at its most tested, Broken Scales by Insiyah Vahanvaty brings alive the judges, the pressures and the moments of courage and retreat that shaped independent India.’

Broken Scales will be published in April 2028 and will be available online and in all leading bookstores.

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About Penguin Random House India

Penguin Random House India is the country’s leading trade publisher, publishing over 450 new titles every year and managing a diverse backlist of more than 3,500 books. Our publishing spans literary and commercial fiction, non-fiction, and children’s books — from politics, history, memoir, and business to health, self-help, cookery, and culture.

We are home to some of India’s and the world’s most celebrated voices — including winners of the Nobel Prize, Booker Prize, Jnanpith Award, and Sahitya Akademi Award. Several of our authors have also been honoured with the Bharat Ratna and Padma Vibhushan, reflecting the influence of their work in literature and public life.

Penguin Random House India also serves as the exclusive distribution partner for several major international and local publishers, bringing books to readers across India and the subcontinent.

MEDIA CONTACT-

Saavie | saavie@penguinrandomhouse.in | +91 85277 93252

Great books are made by great people: employee feedback validates Penguin India’s culture of trust, care, inclusion and pride

New Delhi, 28 October 2026: Penguin Random House India has been certified as a Great Place To Work® for the period October 2026 to October 2027, following its first participation in the Great Place To Work® assessment. The certification is based on anonymous feedback from employees about their experience of the workplace.

Publishing is, at its heart, a human business and therefore, for Penguin India, the recognition carries particular significance. Every book that reaches a reader is the result of the judgement, imagination, passion and persistence of people across the company. From a commissioning editor identifying an idea worth pursuing, to designers and production teams bringing it to life; from sales colleagues taking books to bookstores, to warehouse teams preparing each copy for the market; and publicists finding new and creative ways to connect authors and books with readers. Books may be what the world sees, but people are what make them possible.

That makes the responsibility of the workplace equally important: to create an environment in which people feel safe, trusted, respected and welcome; where they can contribute ideas, challenge one another, grow, and do work they are proud to put into the world.

The employee feedback behind Penguin India’s certification points strongly to those foundations. 96% of respondents said Penguin India is a physically safe place to work; 95% said people are made to feel welcome when they join; and 94% said they are proud to tell others they work at Penguin. The organisation also scored 90% for flexibility and 84% for its culture of care. Employees reported particularly strong experiences of fairness and inclusion across gender, race, sexual orientation and other personal characteristics. Pride emerged as one of Penguin’s strongest dimensions, with the organisation scoring 94%, compared with the 92% benchmark reflected for India’s Top 100 Workplaces in the survey analysis.

Gaurav Shrinagesh, CEO- India, SEA & MENA, Penguin Random House, said, ‘Publishing is powered by people. Every book we put into the world carries the thinking, creativity, judgement and persistence of many individuals, often across several teams. So, for us, being recognised as a Great Place To Work® is particularly meaningful because this recognition comes from the experience of our own people. I am enormously proud of the results, particularly the strong sense of pride, inclusion, safety and welcome that our colleagues have expressed. But I also see this as a beginning rather than an end. The certification tells us that we are on the right path; it does not tell us that our work is finished. Our responsibility now is to keep listening, keep improving and build a workplace that earns this trust year after year.’

The assessment also provides Penguin with something less visible, but equally valuable: a way of measuring aspects of culture that can otherwise be difficult to quantify. Trust, care, belonging, fairness and pride are intangible qualities, but they have a very real effect on how people experience their working lives. The Great Place To Work® survey gives the company an independent view of where those qualities are being felt strongly and where employees expect more.

‘Culture is easy to describe; it is much harder to measure. What makes this certification valuable is that it gives us a clear view through the eyes of our employees’, says Aditi Kumar, EVP, People, Diversity and Corporate Responsibility, Penguin Random House India. ‘The high scores on safety, welcome, inclusion, flexibility and pride are incredibly encouraging because they tell us that many of the things we want Penguin India to stand for are being experienced in everyday working life. At the same time, the survey gives us areas where we need to do better. Both are equally important. Being Great Place To Work® Certified is a milestone for us, not a finish line. We want to remain curious about our people’s experience, continue the conversation and become a better workplace with every passing year.’

The assessment identified areas of opportunity alongside Penguin’s strengths, including employee perceptions around professional development, aspects of workplace dynamics, etc. Penguin India will use these findings to inform continued conversations with employees and future actions rather than treating certification as a once-a-year exercise. For Penguin Random House India, therefore, the certification is both a celebration and a commitment: a moment to recognise the people who make its books, its culture and its business possible; and a reminder that building a great workplace is work that never really stops.

*END*

About Penguin Random House India

Penguin Random House India is the country’s leading trade publisher, publishing over 450 new titles every year and managing a diverse backlist of more than 3,500 books. Its publishing spans literary and commercial fiction, non-fiction, and children’s books, from politics, history, memoir, and business to health, self-help, cookery, and culture.

Penguin Random House India is home to some of India’s and the world’s most celebrated voices, including winners of the Nobel Prize, Booker Prize, Jnanpith Award, and Sahitya Akademi Award. Several of its authors have also been honoured with the Bharat Ratna and Padma Vibhushan, reflecting the influence of their work in literature and public life.

MEDIA CONTACT-

Saavie | saavie@penguinrandomhouse.in | +91 85277 93252

New Delhi, 23^rd October 2026: Penguin India announces the acquisition of The Renegade, a collection of short stories by Veio Pou, award-winning writer and professor of English in Delhi University. Set in the northeast, the stories move between slice-of-life narratives and tales drawn from folklore and local customs, offering a vivid picture of the region’s cultural tapestry. The Renegade will be published under Penguin Eight, Penguin’s dedicated imprint for literature of the northeast India and will be released in December 2026.

The collection moves between village and city, past and present. Some stories draw on folk tales and local customs; others follow Nagas as they make their way through big cities, and others look at how modern life has reordered traditional northeastern society. At the heart of the book are ordinary people and the questions they carry – who they are, where they belong, and what they keep or lose as the world around them changes. Pou writes about these everyday lives with room for both tragedy and comedy.

Speaking on the book, author Veio Pou said, ‘This collection of stories grew from a set of ideas I’ve been grappling with for some time, mostly those related to the existential realities of individuals in society. Needless to say, it was a huge task to dwell on the everydayness of my characters as they navigate the maze of living in a multifaceted cultural landscape. But it was a rewarding experience of swinging from one subject to another, traversing time and distance.’

Karthik Venkatesh, Executive Editor, Penguin Random House India, said ‘Veio Pou’s is a unique voice, and this collection is likely to strike a chord with all lovers of good literature. The stories sparkle with good writing and unusual turns of phrase, and feature both tragedy and comedy, all narrated with great dexterity.’

Milee Ashwarya- Publisher & Group SVP, Adult Publishing Group, Penguin Random House India said, ‘The Renegade by Veio Pou is a spectacular collection of short stories from the North East, bringing to life the region’s rich folklore, myths and traditions. A perfect fit for Penguin Eight, our imprint for works from the region, the book offers readers a vivid glimpse into the lives and the world of the Naga community. I hope this remarkable collection is read and reviewed widely across the country.’

The Renegade will be published in December 2026 and will be available online and in all leading bookstores.

*END*

About Penguin Random House India

Penguin Random House India is the country’s leading trade publisher, publishing over 450 new titles every year and managing a diverse backlist of more than 3,500 books. Its publishing spans literary and commercial fiction, non-fiction, and children’s books, from politics, history, memoir, and business to health, self-help, cookery, and culture.

Penguin Random House India is home to some of India’s and the world’s most celebrated voices, including winners of the Nobel Prize, Booker Prize, Jnanpith Award, and Sahitya Akademi Award. Several of its authors have also been honoured with the Bharat Ratna and Padma Vibhushan, reflecting the influence of their work in literature and public life.

MEDIA CONTACT-

Saavie | saavie@penguinrandomhouse.in | +91 85277 93252

Following his debut novel, Ramjee Chandran brings the city’s sweeping history to the front and asks a simple question: why is Bengaluru here at all?

New Delhi, 12^th October 2026: Penguin India announces the acquisition of Bengaluru by Ramjee Chandran, reputed journalist and author. The book tells the story of how the city came to exist in a place that, at first, seemed to have little reason for one. It will be published under Viking, Penguin India’s imprint, and will be released in November 2026.

From prehistoric settlements and ancient trade routes to the great kingdoms of South India, the book follows the forces that slowly drew people, commerce and power to this spot. The Western Gangas, Cholas, Hoysalas and Vijayanagara rulers shaped the region, Kempe Gowda turned it into a great market town, and the contests between Marathas, Mughals, Wadiyars, Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan made it a prize worth fighting for. The arrival of the British then created another city beside the first, setting Bengaluru on the road to its modern identity.

But this is not only a story of rulers and battles. Chandran traces the roads and trade routes, forts and markets, tanks and temples, and the merchants, soldiers, farmers and migrants who made a city possible. It is the story of the generations who made, lost, rebuilt and reinvented Bengaluru, a city that had already lived several lives by Independence.

Speaking on the book, author Ramjee Chandran said, ‘I began this book with a simple question: why is Bengaluru here at all? The answer took me through thousands of years of people, trade, ambition, conflict and chance. But somewhere along the way, the excavation turned inward. Writing the history of Bengaluru became an archaeological dig into myself, uncovering layers of memory, belonging, and identity that I had scarcely known were there.’

Karthik Venkatesh, Executive Editor, Penguin Random House India, said, ‘There are city histories and then there are histories of a city giving full historical context by viewing the city as part of the greater whole. Bengaluru by Ramjee Chandran falls in the latter category. Deeply researched, this is a book like no other. We are confident that this book will have a lasting impact on the city history genre itself.’

Milee Ashwarya, Publisher & Group SVP, Adult Publishing Group, Penguin Random House India, said, ‘A fascinating portrait of a city that has continually reinvented itself, Bengaluru by Ramjee Chandran brings alive the history, character and spirit of a city that has become synonymous with the aspirations of modern India.’

*END*

About Penguin Random House India

Penguin Random House India is the country’s leading trade publisher, publishing over 450 new titles every year and managing a diverse backlist of more than 3,500 books. Its publishing spans literary and commercial fiction, non-fiction, and children’s books, from politics, history, memoir, and business to health, self-help, cookery, and culture.

Penguin Random House India is home to some of India’s and the world’s most celebrated voices, including winners of the Nobel Prize, Booker Prize, Jnanpith Award, and Sahitya Akademi Award. Several of its authors have also been honoured with the Bharat Ratna and Padma Vibhushan, reflecting the influence of their work in literature and public life.

MEDIA CONTACT-

Saavie | saavie@penguinrandomhouse.in | +91 85277 93252

Originally published in Marathi by Shafi Pathan, translated into English by Vikrant Pande

New Delhi, 7^th October 2026: Penguin India announces the acquisition of Tukaram, the biography of IAS officer Tukaram Mundhe, currently serving as Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The book, originally written in Marathi by Shafi Pathan, noted Marathi journalist and writer will now reach English readers in a translation by prolific translator Vikrant Pande.

The book follows Tukaram Mundhe from a financially difficult childhood in rural Maharashtra to his success in the UPSC examinations. It explores the experiences that shaped his character and his early years in civil services, where his insistence on transparent, rule-based administration brought resistance and controversy.

At its heart, Tukaram is about ambition, resilience, integrity and the cost of standing by one’s principles. In Vikrant Pande’s translation, a story that has already resonated deeply with Marathi readers will now be available to English readers for the first time.

Speaking of the book, author Shafi Pathan said, ‘I am originally from Nagpur, where I spent 25 years working in the print media. During my long journey in journalism, senior IAS officer Tukaram Mundhe was posted twice in Nagpur to lead its administration. As a media representative, this gave me a rare opportunity to observe his fearless style of functioning from very close quarters. His unwavering resolve to work tirelessly for public welfare, without bowing down to any pressure, always deeply inspired me. However, his absolute commitment to honesty often became a source of immense trouble for him. It was a struggle so intense that he had to face 25 transfers in a span of just 20 years. As a journalist, witnessing Mundhe’s relentless struggle used to deeply disturb me. This very restlessness drove me to dive deep into the roots of his uncompromising nature. What emerged from that intense research cemented my decision to write his biography. I have taken an objective look at his journey, right from his challenging childhood to becoming an IAS officer, alongside his pathbreaking decisions and his fierce insistence on public service. The Marathi edition has resonated incredibly well with readers, creating a milestone record in Marathi literature. As an author, I am fully confident that this book will receive the same immense love and appreciation from readers in its English edition as well.’

Translator Vikrant Pande said, ‘To write the story of Tukaram Mundhe is a privilege in itself, though I am merely translating the original work done by Shafi. It will help the story to reach across India and abroad. What attracted me to the biography was the inspirational journey which Tukaram Mundhe took to achieve his dream job as an IAS officer. He has not stopped at that and continues to work tirelessly to do what is right and what needs to be done. The story of his life will not only inspire many who wish to take up a career as an IAS officer but for anyone who believes doing the right thing matters, even if it comes at a personal cost. It is an example one can follow as a citizen of India. I wish we have hundreds of such people who collectively can transform India. They are our heroes and have full support of the citizens.’

Gurveen Chadha, Executive Editor, Ebury Press and Penguin Veer, Penguin Random House India, said, ‘Tukaram is much more than the story of an IAS officer. It is a compelling account of a man shaped by hardship, who overcame formidable odds through sheer determination and built a career guided by an unwavering commitment to public service. What makes his story particularly fascinating is the tension between personal conviction and the realities of administration. Shafi Pathan brings together the many chapters of Mundhe’s life to create an inspiring and thought-provoking portrait of a civil servant who has consistently chosen to stand by his principles, and we are delighted to bring this remarkable Marathi biography to a wider English-language readership.’

Tukaram will be published under Ebury Press in January 2027 and will be available online and in all leading bookstores.

*END*

About Penguin Random House India

Penguin Random House India is the country’s leading trade publisher, publishing over 450 new titles every year and managing a diverse backlist of more than 3,500 books. Our publishing spans literary and commercial fiction, non-fiction, and children’s books — from politics, history, memoir, and business to health, self-help, cookery, and culture. 

We are home to some of India’s and the world’s most celebrated voices — including winners of the Nobel Prize, Booker Prize, Jnanpith Award, and Sahitya Akademi Award. Several of our authors have also been honoured with the Bharat Ratna and Padma Vibhushan, reflecting the influence of their work in literature and public life.

Penguin Random House India also serves as the exclusive distribution partner for several major international and local publishers, bringing books to readers across India and the subcontinent.

MEDIA CONTACT-

Saavie | saavie@penguinrandomhouse.in | +91 85277 93252

Penguin India introduces beautifully designed, pocket-sized format books priced at just ₹125

New Delhi, 6^th October 2026: Penguin Random House India today announced the launch of Penguin Pockets, an exciting new series of compact sized books created to bring timeless literature to a wider and new generation of readers across India. Priced at just ₹125, each book is sized to literally fit into a pocket, making it easy to carry everywhere and reach for at any time.

India has one of the youngest populations in the world, and for many young readers, price still decides whether a book gets bought. Penguin Pockets was conceptualized with that in mind. It’s a compact, affordable format that brings timeless literature within easy reach, without compromising design, quality, or reading experience. The books are easy to carry, easy to gift, and easy to discover, made for life on the move.

The series launches with sixteen titles that span languages, geographies and centuries. Readers can pick up Hindi classics such as Usne Kaha Tha by Pandit Chandradhar Sharma Guleri, Panch Parmeshwar aur Anye Kahaniyan by Premchand, Niti Shatak by Bhartrihari, Pita Ke Patr by Jawaharlal Nehru and Hind Swaraj by Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi alongside global favorites including The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran, Animal Farm by George Orwell, The Art of War by Sun Tzu, Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, White Nights by Fyodor Dostoevsky, Gitanjali by Rabindranath Tagore, The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Stenvenson, The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy and Letters from a Father by J. L. Nehru. Each book has been chosen for its ability to hold up to a first-time reader and a lifelong one in equal measure.

Designed as much for collecting and gifting as for everyday reading, Penguin Pockets brings a distinctive new format to some of literature’s most enduring works. The compact format lends itself naturally to collecting, with covers designed to sit well together on a shelf, and the price point makes it possible to gift a book on a whim.

Speaking on Penguin Pockets, Manoj Satti, Senior Vice President, Sales, Product and Marketing, Penguin Random House India said, ‘Publishing must keep adapting to how people discover, buy and experience books. With Penguin Pockets, we wanted to create new entry points into reading by removing every barrier between a reader and a great book: the cost, the size, even the intimidation of picking up a book for the first time. India gives us enormous reason for optimism, and Penguin’s long relationship with generations of readers gives us the confidence to invest not only in people who read today, but also in those who can become readers tomorrow. Our ambition is to keep finding new ways to bring more people to books. These are books you can slip into your pocket, share with a friend, or start collecting one at a time. Our hope is that Penguin Pockets becomes the first step into a lifelong reading habit for millions of young Indians.’

Penguin Pockets will be in stores and online across India by the end of October 2026.

*END*

About Penguin Random House India

Penguin Random House India is the country’s leading trade publisher, publishing over 450 new titles every year and managing a diverse backlist of more than 3,500 books. Our publishing spans literary and commercial fiction, non-fiction, and children’s books — from politics, history, memoir, and business to health, self-help, cookery, and culture.

We are home to some of India’s and the world’s most celebrated voices — including winners of the Nobel Prize, Booker Prize, Jnanpith Award, and Sahitya Akademi Award. Several of our authors have also been honoured with the Bharat Ratna and Padma Vibhushan, reflecting the influence of their work in literature and public life.

Penguin Random House India also serves as the exclusive distribution partner for several major international and local publishers, bringing books to readers across India and the subcontinent.

MEDIA CONTACT-

Saavie | saavie@penguinrandomhouse.in | +91 85277 93252

A journalist’s investigation into the hidden link between the food we grow and the toxic air we breathe

New Delhi, 1^st October 2026: Penguin Viking, an imprint of Penguin India, announces the acquisition of The Nitrogen Bomb by journalist and author Jacob Koshy. Part science, part history and part political investigation, the book shows how nitrogen, the gas that feeds the world, ends up as the smog we breathe.

As Delhi and the Indo-Gangetic Plain brace for another winter of toxic haze, The Nitrogen Bomb points to how Nitrogen, that made modern farming possible, also pollutes rivers and groundwater, damages ecosystems and adds to the particulate matter in our air.

Koshy follows nitrogen from the labs where fertilizer was invented to the farms, factories and political battles that shaped how India eats. With fertilizer supply now under strain after the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the book arrives when the question of how we feed our country, and what that costs our air, can no longer wait.

Speaking on the book, Archana Nathan, Senior Commissioning Editor, Penguin Random House India, said, ‘This is narrative nonfiction at its finest. Wonderfully researched and compellingly told, The Nitrogen Bombtraces humanity’s journey to the present moment, one defined by climate change and severe air pollution, through the lens of a single, extraordinary element. Koshy brings together science, history and reportage to illuminate a crisis we can no longer afford to look away from. I can’t wait for more readers to discover this timely and important book as we brace ourselves for yet another season of bad air.’

Milee Ashwarya- Publisher & Group SVP, Adult Publishing Group, Penguin Random House India said, ‘The Nitrogen Bomb by Jacob Koshy is a timely and valuable addition to the Penguin Random House India list. As we struggle to breathe through several months of the year, confronted with rapidly worsening air pollution and an urgent lack of effective solutions, this brilliant new book helps us understand how we got here. A deeply relevant book for our times, The Nitrogen Bomb is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand one of the defining environmental challenges of our age.’

Author and Journalist Jacob Koshy said, ‘As the history of countries moving from ‘developing’ to ‘developed’ shows, prosperity has a price. We may gripe, but we have made our peace with the air pollution of transport, industry and other such symbols of ‘development’. What we eat, and how we produce it, demands its own accounting. Nitrogenous fertilizers, so essential to humanity and seemingly harmless, turn out to be a feast with a toxic aftertaste, and one that is intimately bound to India’s air pollution crisis, though largely unacknowledged. I am delighted that Penguin Viking is publishing this story, which I have pieced together over many months. I hope it moves readers towards a greater sensitivity to the complexity of the biosphere we collectively inhabit.’

The book is scheduled for publication in October 2026 and will be available for pre-orders soon.

*END*

About Penguin Random House India

Penguin Random House India is the country’s leading trade publisher, publishing over 450 new titles every year and managing a diverse backlist of more than 3,500 books. Its publishing spans literary and commercial fiction, non-fiction, and children’s books, from politics, history, memoir, and business to health, self-help, cookery, and culture.

Penguin Random House India is home to some of India’s and the world’s most celebrated voices, including winners of the Nobel Prize, Booker Prize, Jnanpith Award, and Sahitya Akademi Award. Several of its authors have also been honoured with the Bharat Ratna and Padma Vibhushan, reflecting the influence of their work in literature and public life.

MEDIA CONTACT-

Saavie | saavie@penguinrandomhouse.in | +91 85277 93252

India’s nationwide young authors challenge returns bigger, with two categories, two books, and an exclusive publishing bootcamp with Penguin authors and editors.

New Delhi, 18 September 2026: Big Red Education, in partnership with Penguin India, one of the leading publishers in the country, proudly announces the launch of the second edition of the National Young Authors Challenge (NYAC), a global short story competition for students in Grades 5–12. Building on the success of its inaugural edition, the challenge returns this year with a larger platform designed to discover, develop, and celebrate India’s next generation of young storytellers.

The first edition of NYAC brought together more than 1000 students from 65+ schools across 45+ cities in India, receiving over 1200 story submissions from aspiring young writers across the country. The inaugural challenge saw the top 50 stories by young authors in an exclusive short story collection published by Penguin, while the next 50 selected stories were showcased on the official Penguin India website, highlighting the immense creative potential of young storytellers across India.

This year, NYAC comes back with two categories: Grades 5–8 and Grades 9–12, with distinct story plot themes for each category, the best of which will be published by Penguin Random House India as an anthology. The Top 50 stories from each category will be published, allowing 100 young authors to see their work in print. In addition, the next 100 stories from each category will be showcased on Penguin India’s official website, extending the opportunity for young writers to gain recognition for their work.

Taking the experience beyond the competition, every participant will also have access to an exclusive 8-hour publishing bootcamp led by Penguin authors and editors. The bootcamp will introduce students to the craft of storytelling, editing, developing a manuscript, and the publishing process, offering them an opportunity to learn directly from professionals in the literary and publishing world.

The National Young Authors Challenge is led by Big Red Education, an India-based education firm known for creating transformative learning experiences and opportunities for high school students. With its expanded categories, two-book publishing opportunity, national recognition, and immersive publishing bootcamp, National Young Authors Challenge 2.0 aims to take young writers one step closer to seeing their stories become part of the literary world. For more information about the challenge, participation details, categories, and submission guidelines, visit the official TNYAC 2.0 website.

END

About Big Red Education

Founded in 2016, Big Red Education is an India-based education firm offering transformative learning experiences beyond the classroom. Through its programs, initiatives, and partnerships, the organisation creates opportunities for students to explore their interests, develop practical skills, and engage with real-world challenges. Its work is focused on preparing young people to think creatively, communicate effectively, innovate, lead, and make a meaningful impact on a global stage.

About Penguin Random House India

Penguin Random House India is the country’s leading trade publisher, publishing over 450 new titles every year and managing a diverse backlist of more than 3,500 books. Its publishing spans literary and commercial fiction, non-fiction, and children’s books, from politics, history, memoir, and business to health, self-help, cookery, and culture.

Penguin Random House India is home to some of India’s and the world’s most celebrated voices, including winners of the Nobel Prize, Booker Prize, Jnanpith Award, and Sahitya Akademi Award. Several of its authors have also been honoured with the Bharat Ratna and Padma Vibhushan, reflecting the influence of their work in literature and public life.

From the author of The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari and The 5AM Club comes one of his most timely books yet—now available for pre-order. The book is set to be released on 2nd February 2027.

As artificial intelligence transforms how we work, think, create and communicate, Robin Sharma is asking a more urgent question: as machines become more human, are human beings becoming more like machines? In his highly anticipated new book, The Robot and the Gardener: Being Fully Human in an Artificial Age, the worldwide bestselling author returns to the parable form to explore what no algorithm can replace—love, courage, imagination, craftsmanship, wonder, conscience, friendship and the ability to live with an open heart.

Now available for pre-order, the book arrives at a defining cultural moment. But this is not an anti-AI book—or simply a book about technology. Sharma expands the idea of an “artificial world” to encompass filters, algorithms, manufactured identities, endless comparison and performative living, asking whether our pursuit of speed, efficiency and technological power is quietly distancing us from the things that make life deeply human.

Short, literary and story-driven, The Robot and the Gardener also marks a striking creative departure for Sharma. Moving away from the more instructional style of The 5AM Club, he embeds his ideas within a spare, universal story designed to be read in just one or two evenings—and remembered long afterwards. With the accessibility and philosophical spirit of timeless parables such as The Alchemist, Siddhartha and The Little Prince, it explores love, ambition, mortality, courage, belonging and meaning through the lens of the artificial age.

For Sharma’s millions of readers around the world, the new release signals both a return to the storytelling form that made The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari a phenomenon and an evolution into urgent new territory. At its heart lies a deceptively simple question with enormous relevance for how we work, lead, parent, create and live today:

As the world becomes more artificial, how will we become more human?

Pre-orders for The Robot and the Gardener are now open.

About Robin Sharma

Robin Sharma is the internationally bestselling author of The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari, The 5AM Club, The Wealth Money Can’t Buy and other global bestsellers. One of the world’s most influential voices on leadership, personal mastery and human potential, his work has inspired millions of readers across countries and cultures.

For any additional queries, please write to Vyoma Trivedi.

Email: VTrivedi@penguinrandomhouse.in

Phone: 9987486999