‘[A] searing, heartfelt account’
SHIV AROOR, journalist and bestselling author
‘Impeccable narration and in-depth research are the hallmarks of this book’
MAJOR GAURAV ARYA (RETD), editor-in-chief, Chanakya Forum
‘Turning the pages of Nagrota Under Siege is like reporting on the horrors of the Nagrota terror strike all over again. A must-read’
GAURAV C. SAWANT, managing editor and anchor, India Today TV and Aaj Tak
On 29 November 2016, the Nagrota Army Base in Jammu and Kashmir was attacked by a group of terrorists. The highly trained and heavily armed terrorists had infiltrated from across the LoC and gained entry from the forest behind the camp. Firing mercilessly to cause maximum damage, they were on a revenge mission after the Indian Army’s successful surgical strikes on terror camps just two months earlier. The Indian Army personnel inside the camp played a crucial role in securing the lives of those present in the family accommodations as well as the camp, and many bravely laid down their lives. Nagrota Under Siege is the story of grit, courage and unmatched bravery.
Who Dares Wins is an inspiring autobiography chronicling the extraordinary journey of ‘Kargil War Hero’ Lt Gen YK Joshi who rose from a modest background to become a General in the army. Through gripping narratives of personal struggles, decisive moments on the battlefield, and the responsibilities of leadership, this book explores the resilience, discipline, and determination needed to overcome life’s toughest challenges.
More than just a memoir, it is a guide for the youth, illustrating how unwavering focus, hard work, and integrity can turn even the most improbable dreams into reality. It offers a window into the values that define true leadership and a life devoted to service. Inspirational and heartfelt, this book is a tribute to the human spirit and a call to serve with courage and purpose.
Candid, evocative and emotional, Who Dares Wins is not merely a soldier’s story but a testament to the power of hope and perseverance, inspiring readers to rise above their circumstances and aspire to greatness.
In a one-of-a-kind attempt, India Before The Ambanis deepens the history of modern Indian business by looking at stories of individual enterprise, talent and vision to reflect on the larger milieu and context of business activity. Adopting a narrative non-fiction format, the book focuses on individual protagonists who shaped business in India, focusing largely on western India which by the middle of the 19th century had emerged as the major commercial, financial, and industrial hub. The book takes its cue from several pioneering studies on business and economic history, especially of India, to put together a narrative that is as much about individuals with fire in their belly, as it is about the larger context in which they laboured, innovated and dared to dream big.
Few arenas in the annals of legal history have witnessed as profound a transformation as the realm of gender equality within the armed forces.
In Her Defence: Ten Landmark Judgments on Women in the Armed Forces is an anthology of essays and commentaries, in layperson terms, contributed by jurists, judges and academics on landmark constitutional court decisions of India that made a difference or brought about a positive change for women in the uniformed forces.
It is envisaged as not just a book, but a testament to the resilience, determination and legal triumphs of women who have paved the way for greater gender inclusivity and parity within India’s armed forces.
Meticulously curated to illuminate the pivotal judgments that have shaped the trajectory of women’s participation in the armed forces of India, this book stands as a cornerstone and embodiment of the judiciary’s unwavering dedication to upholding the principles of equality and justice.
When European missionaries first arrived in India in the sixteenth century, they entered a world both fascinating and bewildering. Hinduism, as they saw it, was a pagan mess: the worship of devils and monsters by a people who burned women alive, performed outlandish rites and fed children to crocodiles. But soon it became clear that Hindu ‘idolatry’ was far more complex than white men’s stereotypes allowed, and Hindus had little desire to convert.
But then, European power began to grow in India, and under colonial rule, missionaries assumed a forbidding appearance. During the British Raj, Western frames of thinking gained ascendancy and Hindus felt pressed to reimagine their religion. This was both to fortify it against Christian attacks and to resist foreign rule. It is this encounter which has, in good measure, inspired modern Hinduism’s present shape. Indeed, Hindus subverted some of the missionaries’ own tools and strategies in the process, triggering the birth of Hindu nationalism, now so dominant in the country.
In Gods, Guns and Missionaries, Manu S. Pillai takes us through these remarkable dynamics. With an arresting cast of characters—maharajahs, poets, gun-wielding revolutionaries, politicians, polemicists, philosophers and clergymen—this book is ambitious in its scope and provocative in its position. Lucid and exhaustive, it is, at once, a political history, a review of Hindu culture and a study of the social forces that prepared the ground for Hindu nationalism. Turning away from simplistic ideas on religious evolution and European imperialism, the past as it appears here is more complicated—and infinitely richer—than popular narratives allow.
A newly independent country acquires its first heavy bomber from an Aircraft Graveyard and flies it for two decades!
A young Flight Lieutenant flies a daring dawn attack on a heavily defended Pakistani Airfield in the 1965 War and returns safely. Only to perish in a crash a week later.
Two wartime foes, one of whom shoots down the other in air combat, meet later as friends in life.
These and other compelling human-interest stories form the backbone of Air Warriors, an anthology of untold stories from the Indian Air Force. From the fascinating story of the inception of the Thunderbolts to how fifty-seven people were flown out from Car Nicobar after the 2004 Tsunami in a single Avro rescue mission authorised to fly only twenty-five passengers, the book is told from the viewpoint of the actual protagonists against the backdrop of day-to-day life in the Indian Air Force.
A promising visual and intellectual delight, When the Turquoise Waters
Turned Dark provides a fresh perspective on the colonial history of one of India’s greatest historical and
natural landscapes, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Crafted with? stunning photography
and presented with a meticulously researched narrative, this book is an immersive exploration of the
islands’ past. The images capture picturesque landscapes, architectural ruins and the diverse local population, giving a visual history and a narration on the present of the archipelago. Readers will journey through time, discovering the islands’ strategic importance during colonial times, the impact of various foreign powers that ruled the islands and the stories of the people who shaped the course of the islands’ history. The blend of visual splendour and historical insights makes this book an essential addition to the bookshelves collections of history enthusiasts, photographers and anyone interested in India’s
colonial history.
In defiance of the stereotypes trotted out by yesterday’s pundits, modern India’s rise is both unusual and unexpected. It is unusual because some of the sharpest economic improvements are being observed in those sections of Indian society which were thought to be the most disadvantaged: women, oppressed castes and rural India. It is unexpected because of the widespread view. Until a couple of years ago, India’s democratic construct was inferior to China’s single-party state.
In Behold the Leviathan: The Unusual Rise of Modern India, Saurabh Mukherjea and Nandita Rajhansa provide a gripping picture of how 1.5 billion Indians are combining to spectacular effect to create a range of social and economic outcomes which have no precedent in any emerging economy. For example, India now has as many chess grandmasters as the United States, and the expertise of its scientists has guided India’s space modules to the dark side of the moon, a feat no other country has achieved.
In this zeitgeist-defining book, the authors have also explored, through pathbreaking research, why the vast majority of India’s companies are struggling to grow their profits even as a small minority of these companies have gone on to build globe-girdling franchises worth tens of billions of dollars.
Written over two years, during which the authors crisscrossed India hundreds of times and interviewed over fifty of the country’s leading thinkers in business, policymaking, media, and academia, Behold the Leviathan has been hailed by the cognoscenti as ‘a firecracker of a read,’ challenging decision-makers, policymakers, and opinion leaders to reevaluate their long-standing perceptions of India’s development.
That the Mughals were fond of the good life is well known, especially their penchant for exquisite food and divine drinks. But what was the food in the imperial kitchen actually like? This book offers some answers.
Alwan-e-Nemat (Colours of the Table), the sixteenth-century Persian manuscript offers a rare taste and glimpse into Mughal Emperor Jehangir and queen Nur Jehan’s kitchen. Meticulously calligraphed on 155 pages of cream-coloured paper with a painted blue margin, it is possibly the first book in the world to be devoted entirely to recipes and methods of processing and serving food. It is also the only manuscript that highlights the unique contribution of Empress Nur Jehan.
Originally in Persian, this manuscript has been translated into English for the first time opening the doors to a treasure trove of unique recipes and culinary techniques that were authentically Mughal. From the Naan-e-Khamaaj Khasa, bread made in traditional style to the Qalya Naranj, deep fried tangerines in spicy lamb curry to the Gulgula Khasa, Deep fried dumplings floated in sugar syrup, this book has nearly 120 original mughal recipes along with detailed cooking techniques and helpful hints making it a rare collectible.
It has long been contended that the Indian Constitution of 1950, a document in English created by elite consensus, has had little influence on India’s greater population. Drawing upon the previously unexplored records of the Supreme Court of India, A People’s Constitution upends this narrative and shows how the Constitution actually transformed the daily lives of citizens in profound and lasting ways. This remarkable legal process was led by individuals on the margins of society, and Rohit De looks at how drinkers, smugglers, petty vendors, butchers, and prostitutes—all despised minorities—shaped the constitutional culture.
The Constitution came alive in the popular imagination so much that ordinary people attributed meaning to its existence, took recourse to it, and argued with it. Focusing on the use of constitutional remedies by citizens against new state regulations seeking to reshape the society and economy, De illustrates how laws and policies were frequently undone or renegotiated from below using the state’s own procedures. De examines four important cases that set legal precedents: a Parsi journalist’s contestation of new alcohol prohibition laws, Marwari petty traders’ challenge to the system of commodity control, Muslim butchers’ petition against cow protection laws, and sex workers’ battle to protect their right to practice prostitution.
Exploring how the Indian Constitution of 1950 enfranchised the largest population in the world, A People’s Constitution considers the ways that ordinary citizens produced, through litigation, alternative ethical models of citizenship.
