A special edition with a new introduction
On 21 November 2007, the city of Kolkata came to a rude, screeching halt as a virulent mob of religious fanatics took to the streets. Armed with a fatwa from their ideologues, the mob demanded that Taslima Nasrin leave the city immediately. While the Kolkata Police stood watching, mere dumb witnesses to such hooliganism, a morally, intellectually and politically bankrupt Left Front government, tottering under the strain of their thirty-year-old backward-looking rule, decided to ban her book and drive her out of Kolkata, a city she has always considered her second home.
This inextricable nexus of petty political conspiracies, vote bank politics and minority appeasement saw her being hurriedly shifted, first to Jaipur and then to New Delhi, only to be confined to an obscure ‘safe house’ in an undisclosed location and left to face incessant pressure from senior officials and politicians to leave India. Dark, provocative and at times surreal, Exile is a moving and shocking chronicle of Taslima Nasrin’s struggles in India over a period of five months, set against a rising tide of fundamentalism and intolerance that will resonate powerfully with the present socio-political scenario.
Archives: Books
Six Minutes of Terror
7/11: the day Mumbai came to a standstill
The Mumbai train bombings on 11 July 2006 were one of the deadliest attacks the city had seen after the 1993 blasts. The terror strike aimed to cripple the city by disrupting its lifeline-the local train network. A series of seven explosions in a span of only six minutes at seven railway stations rocked the financial capital of India, killing 189 and injuring over 800.
Six Minutes of Terror is the first investigative book that presents a blow-by-blow account of the events that led to the onslaught.
It profiles the people involved in the blasts and describes how the plot was unearthed by the police. Superbly researched with painstaking detail, the book tries to delve into the minds of the home-grown terrorists-who wreaked unprecedented havoc and claimed innocent lives-ten years after the horrifying attacks.
The Turn of the Tortoise
It is said of India that it is the country of the future-and will remain so
In The Turn of the Tortoise, distinguished journalist T.N. Ninan addresses a range of contemporary questions as only he can-looking at why the economy lost steam, the emerging trends in politics, the Chinese shadow over India, and the relationship between the state and the citizen. He asks whether manufacturing can be made a success story, what the size of the neo-middle class is, who the aam aadmi really is, and if it is possible to put an end to extreme poverty now. And finally, the big question-has India’s turn finally come?
This wide-ranging book is an attempt to understand, through data and analysis, where India stands today, why it has emerged the way it has, and what the next ten years might bring. For anyone interested in India and its future, this is essential and enlightening reading.
Mr Oliver’s Diary
Crazy Times With Uncle Ken
The perfect bag of eclectic tales on wholesome, troublesome fun.
Ruskin Bond’s effortless and timeless storytelling will leave readers wanting more.
Includes 12 engaging adventure stories for kids
‘Uncle Ken was one of those people who went through life without having to do much, although a great deal seemed to happen around him.’
Who doesn’t like an eccentric uncle? Ruskin Bond certainly does. Whenever Uncle Ken arrives at Grandma’s house, and he does frequently, there is trouble afoot! Watch bumbling and endearing Uncle Ken stumble through the pages of this collection as he drives his car into a wall, is mistaken for a famous cricketer, troubled by a mischievous ghost, chased by a swarm of bees and attacked by flying foxes. Be it the numerous bicycle rides with the author or his futile attempts at finding a job, Uncle Ken’s misadventures provide huge doses of laughter.
A classic for readers old and new, Crazy Times with Uncle Ken returns with brand-new illustrations to reacquaint you with old friends, and will have you chuckling and doubling up by turns.
Khajuraho
An updated version of the critically-acclaimed Divine Ecstasy: The Story of Khajuraho, this is an eye-opening book on one of India’s most fascinating heritage sites and is indispensable reading for all those interested in rediscovering India’s cultural past. Includes 67 photographs.
Savaging The Civilized
This evocative and beautifully written book brings to life one of the most remarkable figures of twentieth-century India. Verrier Elwin (1902-64) was an anthropologist, poet, Gandhian, hedonist, Englishman, and Indian.
Savaging the Civilized reveals a many-sided man, a friend of the elite who was at home with the impoverished and the destitute; a charismatic charmer of women who was comfortable with intellectuals such as Arthur Koestler and Jawaharlal Nehru; an anthropologist who lived and loved with the tribes yet who wrote literary essays and monographs for the learned.
Savaging the Civilized is both biography and history, an exploration through Elwin’s life of some of the great debates of our times, such as the impact of economic development, and cultural pluralism versus cultural homogeneity. For this new edition, Ramachandra Guha has added a long new introduction, stressing the relevance of Elwin’s work to current debates on adivasis, Naxalites, and Indian democracy.
Goras and Desis
The story of corporate India is linked to managing agencies, an organizational form dominant in the subcontinent from 1875 until its abolition in 1970 that allowed entrepreneurs to promote diverse companies while exercising disproportionate control over cash flows. This is the definitive economic history of Indian companies through the lens of managing agencies, whether controlled by goras or desis.
The Sleep Solutions
Sleep is a complex phenomenon, and even though we spend one-third of our lives sleeping, there’s still very little that we know about it.
In this path-breaking book, Dr Manvir Bhatia, one of the country’s top sleep specialists, sheds light on the fascinating connection between sleep and the brain, beauty and weight, among other things.
From delving into common sleep problems and weird phenomena observed, like sexsomnia, narcolepsy and sleep apnea, to the specific tools needed to ensure good sleep, The Sleep Solution is the go-to book for all your sleep-related problems.
The Athlete in You
What good is a great-looking Ferrari that cannot race?
What good is a smartphone with low battery life?
What good are great-looking sports shoes that cannot last a marathon?
These are just good-looking objects with low or zero performance. The same goes for our body.
A diet plan may help you lose weight; a gym routine may help you with a great-looking physique-but that does not necessarily translate into a stronger, healthier you. In fact, you may not even need the gym; you can pick a sport you enjoy, even something as simple as running. Take charge of your health and achieve your fitness goals in a way that improves not just the way you look, but also your performance and quality of life-just like an athlete!
This book will help you eat, exercise, think, look and most importantly, perform like an athlete.
There is an athlete in all of us, and it is time to bring that athlete out.