With India turning 66 recently, the timing of the launch of “India Since 1947: Looking Back at a Modern Nation” could not have been more apt. Edited by Atul Kumar Thakur, the Niyogi Books publication takes stock of the country’s journey so far.
An attempt to look at modern Indian history, the book is a collection of 30 incisive essays from India’s leading scholars and young writers on topics as varied as politics, economy, cinema and literature.
The launch was held at India International Centre and followed by a panel discussion. The panel consisted of veteran leader Jagmohan, economist Bimal Jalan, author-journalist Prem Shankar Jha and senior journalist B.G Verghese. ‘Where Indian democracy has gone wrong?’ (Prem Shankar Jha), ‘criminalisation of politics’ (Bimal Jalan), ‘How article 370 fosters separatism in J & K’ ( Jagmohan) were some of the pertinent topics discussed at the book launch.
This is Thakur’s first book as an editor. On being asked how the idea struck him, Thakur answered, “I was working for a different book which was a solo non-fiction when I decided to convince experts for a measured volume that can deal with modern history…The basic aim of editing this volume was to offer a contrast to the monotonous interpretations of history.”
For Atul, the themes of the essays bear more relevance than the stature of their authors.
As a freelancer, Thakur has written columns for more than 30 newspapers and magazines. He is currently working on another non-fiction volume.
The book is available at all leading book stores.
