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5th out of 60 books
—
18 voters
The Idea Of India
The key book on India in the postnuclear era, with a new Introduction by the author.Our appreciation of the importance of India can only increase in light of the recent revelations of its nuclear capabilities. Sunil Khilnani's exciting, timely study addresses the paradoxes and ironies of this, the world's largest democracy. Throughout his penetrating, provocative work, he
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Published
(first published January 1998)
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Khilnani traces predominantly late colonial and early post-independence Indian history in an effort to discover what it is that defines "being Indian." He is strongly sympathetic to Nehru and promotes a similar idea of nationality that India's former prime minister would have espoused. What he does not manage to do convincingly is communicate from whence this idea of India derives, and why it deserves to be defended. In fact, it becomes abundantly clear through this work how diverse and disparat...more
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A smart, engrossing political history of India. I'm not sure if Khilnani's analysis is always perfectly on-point (though I'm no expert, there were occasional observations or readings of his that felt a little off to me) but it is on the balance very well-considered and exceptionally well-argued. This as as much a history text as it is as a critique of the Indian government and to that end I found it an informative reminder of how India has gotten where it is today -- for better and for worse.
The book doesn't directly answer the critical question: What is the idea of India? However, it lays bare certain dimensions of the idea that enables the reader to have a reasonably good idea of the idea. A well researched book on what could be the idea of India. Given the complex matrix of Indian history and the present day existence, it is indeed difficult to articulate in black and white such an idea but one can comprehend and perhaps appreciate it as one walks through the pages of the book.
What makes India tick? How can this nation with so many languages, religions, cultures, etc. survive as a country after 60 years? Interesting thoughts, sometimes a bit dull.
The writer's proximity to the first family is well known;glosses over the excesses of the first family; and governance failures of Nehru;a pro Nehru-Gandhi view of India
The idea of India is good book on India, but not a great book. Not Discuss recent event and too much sympathy to Nehru and his policies.
His style is a tad too dry. I went through the first half very quickly, and then came to a complete halt. I must have read 5 other books in the meanwhile...
Seemed very 'textbook'y, without much of personal relationship to the topic. The author would have done better if he had interspersed the narration with some anecdotes/stories.
I don't know if he made a point at the end of it all.
Seemed very 'textbook'y, without much of personal relationship to the topic. The author would have done better if he had interspersed the narration with some anecdotes/stories.
I don't know if he made a point at the end of it all.
Super. Not for beginners, but fantastic ur-text for other essentially Nehruvian-republican histories of independent India such as 'India for Gandhi.' Scholarly, lucid.
A must-read for any Indian seeking to explore the roots of Indianness.
A very interesting assessment of all things that go into the making of India as a country. Though written about 15 years ago, a lot of what Khilnani has to say is relevant today. The book also offers some insight into the thinking behid Nehruvian economics and politics. Recommended read!
Concise and incisive.
Clear, well-written, and describes or explains important characteristics of Indian politics, government, and society that are somewhat opaque to those not from India. Khilnani's appreciation of Nehru is readily apparent, and he occasionally ventures into counterfactual speculation about specific points in republican Indian history, though not irresponsibly. While it's not a long book and can be read quickly, it probably bears taking a bit more time to digest Khilnani's points.
read part of this for an evergreen class: India Politics of Dance; Dance of Politics.
Interesting in parts, but otherwise incredibly Congress and Nehru-obsessed.
It was alright.
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