This is one of the key books on modern India, acclaimed as the definitive account, & now republished with a new introduction. ” The Idea of India” was originally published to mark the 50th anniversary of India`s independence & has since established itself as a uniquely valuable & authoritative book on a key subject. At the heart of India`s self-image since independence has been `the idea of India`
- modern, technocratic, egalitarian, secular
- but the tensions between the idea & the reality have become almost intolerable. This book shows how. Reviews: ”A splendid
- & timely
- book... Spirited, combative & insight-filled... Khilnani has woven a rich analysis of contemporary India & its evolution since indepence. I am inclined to agree with [him] on the robustness & staying power of the secular idea of India”. (Amartya Sen, ” Times Literary Supplement”). ”A masterful rebuttal to all cultural romantics & religious chauvinists...[A] splendid book about definitions of the Indian nation”. (Ian Buruma, ” New York Review of Books”). ” Especially brilliant is Khilnani`s attempt to understand the changing nature of India by studying its urban constructs”. (Chitra Divakaruni, ” Los Angeles Times”).