The writers Pankaj Mishra, Mark Tully and Patrick French, as well as economist Meghnad Desai, chose their best books on India. They all try to encompass modern India’s cultural diversity and social complexity. There is some overlap. Several chose Amartya Sen’s The Argumentative Indian to explain the deep (pre-colonial) roots of Indian democracy. Several also selected India after Gandhi by Ramachandra Guha as the best introduction to understanding the recent history of the country. Sen’s book is also picked by British travel writer William Dalrymple in his choice of books on India, Ancient and Modern.
Roy Moxham looks at Indian Journeys and Victor Mallet picks books on the Ganges and the Indus in his top five books on Asian Rivers.
Economist Kaushik Basu chooses his top books on the Indian economy (and includes both The Argumentative Indian by Sen and India after Gandhi by Guha) and Brian Shoesmith chooses his best books on Indian Film. Vishakha Desai discusses the place of women in India in her best books on Asian women. Kushanava Choudhury chooses five books that inspired him as a novelist.
The best books on Mumbai, recommended by Saumya Roy
It’s one of the most densely populated, vibrant cities in the world, combining enormous wealth with dire poverty. It’s India’s financial and commercial capital, home to the glamour of Bollywood and the movie industry, but it has somehow managed to defy modernization. Saumya Roy, journalist, author and co-founder of a nonprofit that made loans to the city’s poorest entrepreneurs, recommends her favourite books on Mumbai (aka Bombay).
The best books on Contemporary India, recommended by Kapil Komireddi
As the world’s biggest democracy, India could be an inspiring example of how a multiethnic, multilingual country with many different religions can come together to form a vibrant state with equality enshrined in its constitution. But all that is in danger of going down the drain, as the country transforms into a brutally exclusionary Hindu-supremacist state under the leadership of Narendra Modi, says Kapil Komireddi, essayist and author of Malevolent Republic: A Short History of the New India. Here, he talks us through how the country got to where it is now and recommends five books that present a “comprehensive picture” of contemporary India.
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1
Ib's Endless Search for Satisfaction
by Roshan Ali -
2
My Father's Garden
by Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar -
3
Trial by Silence
by Perumal Murugan, translated by Aniruddhan Vasudevan -
4
A Lonely Harvest
by Perumal Murugan, translated by Aniruddhan Vasudevan -
5
The Far Field: A Novel
by Madhuri Vijay -
6
There's Gunpowder in the Air
by Manoranjan Byapari, translated by Arunava Sinha
The Best Indian Novels of 2019, recommended by Rana Dasgupta
The Best Indian Novels of 2019, recommended by Rana Dasgupta
India has a thriving literary community working in 22 official languages plus English, says Rana Dasgupta, the literary director of the JCB Prize: a major award for the best new novel by an Indian author. Here, he talks us through their 2019 shortlist.
The best books on Gandhi, recommended by Ramachandra Guha
Gandhi’s peaceful resistance to British rule changed India and inspired freedom movements around the globe. But as well as being an inspiring leader, Gandhi was also a human being. Ramachandra Guha, author of a new two-part biography of Gandhi, introduces us to books that give a fuller picture of the man who came to be known as ‘Mahatma’ Gandhi.
The best books on India, recommended by Pankaj Mishra
The world’s largest democracy isn’t something that has just materialised in the past 60 years, says the Indian essayist and novelist. He chooses books that illustrate India’s complex history and diverse society.
The best books on The Indian Economy, recommended by Kaushik Basu
Kaushik Basu, Professor of Economics at Cornell and former Chief Economist of the World Bank (2012-2016), says there’s a Gandhian way of evaluating society that takes account of both growth and inequality, and tells us why his job is an anthropologist’s dream come true. He picks the best books to understand India’s economy.
The best books on India, Ancient and Modern, recommended by William Dalrymple
The award-winning writer selects five books on India and says that the Mahabharata, eight times the length of the Bible, is one of the great works of literature of mankind – and every bit as good as it’s made out to be
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Stray Thoughts on Indian Cricket
by J M Framjee Patel -
2
History of Indian Cricket
by Edward Docker -
3
Patrons, Players, and the Crowd: The Phenomenon of Indian Cricket
by Richard Cashman -
4
A Corner of a Foreign Field: The Indian History of a British Sport
by Ramachandra Guha -
5
Migrant Races: Empire, Identity and K.S. Ranjitsinhji
by Satadru Sen
The best books on Indian Cricket, recommended by Prashant Kidambi
The best books on Indian Cricket, recommended by Prashant Kidambi
South Asia has become the beating heart of cricket, with wild enthusiasm for the game at every level of society. Historian Prashant Kidambi—whose book, Cricket Country, was shortlisted for the 2020 Wolfson History Prize—takes us through the history of cricket in India, from its traditional, colonial roots through to the colourful, frenetic national game of today.
The best books on India, recommended by Lord Meghnad Desai
Labour peer and professor emeritus at the London School of Economics, Meghnad Desai, marvels at the Indian people’s incredible tenacity for democracy and self-advancement since independence in 1947. He picks the best books on India.
The best books on Yoga, recommended by Liz Derow
Contrary to its popularization in Western culture, yoga isn’t just a form of fitness: its history is rooted in a long Hindu tradition shaped by great teachers in India. Here we have the best books for those who want to learn more about yoga, recommended by Liz Derow, a longtime practitioner and teacher of yoga in India and around the world.
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1
Slowly Down the Ganges
by Eric Newby -
2
Empires of the Indus: The Story of A River
by Alice Albinia -
3
The River's Tale: A Year in the Mekong
by Edward Gargan -
4
Black Dragon River: A Journey Down the Amur River Between Russia and China
by Dominic Ziegler -
5
Meltdown in Tibet: China's Reckless Destruction of Ecosystems from the Highlands of Tibet to the Deltas of Asia
by Michael Buckley
The best books on Asia’s Rivers, recommended by Victor Mallet
The best books on Asia’s Rivers, recommended by Victor Mallet
Human history has been founded on the banks of great rivers – but in the East they are increasingly the focus of bitter international and environmental dispute, says Victor Mallet, the journalist and author of River of Life, River of Death. Here he selects five brilliant books that profile Asia’s most celebrated waterways.
Kushanava Choudhury on Calcutta Influences
Can one encounter the whole universe in the streets of one city? Kushanava Choudhury, author of a new book about Calcutta, says so, and tells us how
The best books on India, recommended by Mark Tully
The veteran journalist, who has lived in India for most of his life, talks about the country’s new-found self-confidence and recommends books to better understand its history and complexities
The best books on Asian Women, recommended by Vishakha Desai
The president of the Asia Society discusses the changing role of women in Asian countries and how women have reached positions of leadership there
The best books on India, recommended by Patrick French
The author of the acclaimed India: A Portrait takes us around the world’s largest democracy, from the dance bars of Bombay to Kerala crab curry on the Southwest coast. Patrick French picks the best books on India.
The best books on Indian Film, recommended by Brian Shoesmith
Professor Brian Shoesmith chooses five books that celebrate the lavish history of the Indian film industry. He maintains that Bollywood has become a global brand — in Perth, you can even take classes in Bollywood dance.
The best books on Indian Journeys, recommended by Roy Moxham
The author and Senior Conservator of the University of London’s Senate House Library discusses books on Indian Journeys. Interesting selections that offer good insights into the authors themselves