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Let books be your valentine!

Posted on February 1, 2022February 2, 2022 by prhi-dev

As soon as February begins, there’s a nip in the air, something that the weatherman can’t quite comprehend. Cities turn into the sets of La La Land and romance brews in every café. Some people have even speculated to witness moonlight during the day.

For those who detest this month of love and hibernate their way through it or for those who are hopeless romantics, we have a pile of new and fresh, off-the-press, beautiful books releasing that all of us can hold in our hands this February! This pile has fiction, adventure, culture, biographies, music and more! A bit of everything to fill each day of your month with something extraordinary!

Looking for a home in your bookshelves and hearts, here they are:

Aranyak

Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay

Translated from the Bengali by Bhaskar Chattopadhyay

Aranyak, written in 1939, is a famous Bengali novel by Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay based on his long and arduous years in northern Bihar. There he came into contact with a part of the world that, even now, remains unknown to most of us. ‘Aranyak’ literally means ‘Of the Forest’. This novel explores the simple and heart-warming story of a man who gets a job as an estate manager in Bihar, and slowly falls in love with the beautiful and tranquil forest around him. The dichotomy of urban and rural life comes alive, reflecting the great love that human beings and nature can share, one that Bandyopadhyay experienced in his heart. Written by one of the greatest Bengali authors, this haunting novel is rooted in guilt and sadness but also tremendous beauty.

Singing in the Dark

K. Satchidanandan, Nishi Chawla

Singing in the Dark brings together the finest of poetic responses to the coronavirus pandemic. More than a hundred of the world’s most esteemed poets reflect upon a crisis that has dramatically altered our lives, and laid bare our vulnerabilities. The poems capture all its dimensions: the trauma of solitude, the unexpected transformation in the expression of interpersonal relationships, the even sharper visibility of the class divide, the marvellous revival of nature and the profound realization of the transience of human existence. The moods vary from quiet contemplation and choking anguish to suppressed rage and cautious celebration in an anthology that serves as an aesthetic archive of a strange era in human history.

IQBAL

Raza Mir

Also known as the ‘Poet of the East’, Allama Muhammad Iqbal earned a doctorate in philosophy from the Ludwig-Maximillian University at Munich, and wrote his most evocative poems in Urdu, a language that was not his mother tongue. His funeral was attended by 70,000 people, which included colonialists and freedom fighters, socialist atheists and Islamic fundamentalists, Indian nationalists and Muslim Leaguers, reflecting his ability to defy categorization.The book is a relatively short volume that introduces Iqbal to the millennial generation. It is written in a relatively contemporary language, similar to Ghalib: A Thousand Desires. A bulk of the book will comprise a temporal and intellectual biography of Iqbal, while the rest will include a detailed discussion of one of Iqbal’s poems, a translation of some of his well-known poems, and a sampling of some of his famous verses.

The Queen of Indian Pop

Vikas Kumar Jha

In this vivid biography, which was originally written in Hindi, Vikas Kumar Jha captures the entire arc of Uthup’s career in music. From her childhood days in Mumbai and her first gigs singing with jazz bands in Chennai’s glitzy nightclubs to her meteoric rise as India’s musical sensation and her philanthropic work, Jha covers it all and manages to weave a narrative that is colourful, inspiring and bound to keep any reader engrossed till the end. This pitch-perfect English translation, by Srishti Jha, offers the reader a front-row seat to the life and times of the inimitable Usha Uthup.

Annus Horribilis

Avinab Datta-Areng

Annus Horribilis is concerned with the violence of thinking, alone. The voices in these poems move through relationships, family, friendship, external disintegration, the labour of loving, being loved and of caring, where they are constantly confronted with the familiar turning foreign, the quotidian becoming a scene of absolute hostility, and where a word otherwise spoken easily becomes incommunicable. The book grapples with a (habitually futile) desire to communicate what should only be communicable-looking for some friend in language-that won’t lead to misunderstanding or, worse, silence. It searches for a language in which thought might survive and perhaps even reach out towards others.

Beguiled

Ruchika Soi

A true story, Beguiled starts with Gitanjali meeting Randeep Singh Taneja at a farm party in Delhi. He called himself ‘Randy’. He flirted with her; she resisted. She was a single mother, a divorcee, and Randy was five years younger. They became friends, went for walks in Lodhi Garden, had coffee in Khan Market, and he asked her hand in marriage. She refused, he beguiled her, they fell in love, and she said yes.

The couple moved to London and this is where the first signs of trouble began. Away from all that was familiar to her, Gitanjali began to notice that Randy was not all that declared to be. Random phone calls from women who claimed to either be his wife or his girlfriend, a child who called him ‘Papa’, photographs of Randy with other women, multiple cell phones…and for all this he had reasonable explanations that left her with no room for doubt. Gitanjali thought she knew her husband. That is until she hadn’t opened his cell phone and found out about the many lives he was leading across the world.

Beguiled is a dark and gripping story about a marriage gone wrong.

The Hidden Hindu

Akshat Gupta

Prithvi, a twenty-one-year-old, is searching for a mysterious middle-aged aghori (Shiva devotee), Om Shastri, who was traced more than 200 years ago before he was captured and transported to a high-tech facility on an isolated Indian island. When the aghori was drugged and hypnotized for interrogation by a team of specialists, he claimed to have witnessed all four yugas (the epochs in Hinduism) and even participated in both Ramayana and Mahabharata. Om’s revelations of his incredible past that defied the nature of mortality left everyone baffled. The team also discovers that Om had been in search of the other immortals from every yuga. These bizarre secrets could shake up the ancient beliefs of the present and alter the course of the future. So who is Om Shastri? Why was he captured? Board the boat of Om Shastri’s secrets, Prithvi’s pursuit and adventures of other enigmatic immortals of Hindu mythology in this exciting and revealing journey.

Destiny’s Child

Raghu Palat, Pushpa Palat

This is an intimate account of the extraordinary life of Parukutty Nethyaramma, who went on to become one of the most powerful rulers of the Kingdom of Cochin.

At the age of fourteen, her marriage thrust her into a hostile world. Taking on her detractors, Parukutty stubbornly and fearlessly forged ahead to become a voice none could gainsay. Despite a seventeen-year age gap, she had built a special, unshakable bond with her husband. When he was crowned the sovereign ruler of Cochin, she vowed to support and protect his position throughout her life. Theirs was an enviable partnership of two incredible equals who together went on to break many traditional norms. At a time when women were relegated to the shadows, Parukutty travelled with her husband, participated in important discussions, and even went on to rule as his proxy. She became a force to be reckoned with in her own right.

The Millennial Yogi

Deepam Chatterjee

‘How do I fight? I see failure at every juncture,’ said Jay.
‘If we divide our life the way we sort laundry, we will never find peace,’ replied Vini.

Jayshankar Prasad, or Jay, has had a shady-yet-mercurial rise in his journey as an entrepreneur, but he has little idea as to what is around the corner. On the other hand, Vini, a mystic monk, has already been there, and knows what it is like to have it all and then lose it in an instant. Greed . . . power . . . money . . . are all transitory.

In a serendipitous twist of fate, Jay crosses paths with the enigmatic Vini and thus begins a cathartic and transformative journey. The Millennial Yogi is the zeitgeist parable for anyone searching for meaning and purpose in life. With prose that is both photographic and profound, Deepam Chatterjee has crafted an extraordinary tale of loss, redemption and the fight for one’s soul in an increasingly materialistic world.

Savarkar by Vikram Sampath — Savarkar || Vikram Sampath

Savarkar: A Contested Legacy from A Forgotten Past

The Complete 2-Volume Biography of Savarkar

Vikram Sampath

As the intellectual fountainhead of the ideology of Hindutva, which is in political ascendancy in India today, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar is undoubtedly one of the most contentious political thinkers and leaders of the twentieth century. From the heady days of revolution and generating international support for the cause of India’s freedom as a law student in London, Savarkar found himself arrested, unfairly tried for sedition, transported and incarcerated at the Cellular Jail, in the Andamans, for over a decade, where he underwent unimaginable torture.

Decades after his death, Savarkar continues to uniquely influence India’s political scenario. An optimistic advocate of Hindu-Muslim unity in his treatise on the 1857 War of Independence, what was it that transformed him into a proponent of ‘Hindutva’? What was it that transformed him in the Cellular Jail to a proponent of ‘Hindutva’, which viewed Muslims with suspicion?

This two-volume biography series, exploring a vast range of original archival documents from across India and outside it, in English and several Indian languages, historian Vikram Sampath brings to light his life and works.

Something I’m Waiting To Tell You

Shravya Bhinder

After nearly losing the love of his life to a terrible accident, Ronnie realizes how much he loves Adira and what an idiot he had been to hurt her. What’s more, her overprotective mother now takes care of her, and does not like Ronnie being anywhere near her daughter.
He’s going through hell-unable to go back in time and fix things, unable to say what he missed saying to her, ‘I love you . . .’
All he wants now is a second chance, to trace his steps back into a loving relationship and win Adira over. It will not be easy because life is tough; love, even tougher.

Panchali

The Game of Dice

Sibaji Bandyopadhyay, Sankha Banerjee

A fascinating illustrated rendition of the all-consuming Mahabharata … A spectacular show of words and images dealing with love and death, loyalty and duplicity, conflict and concord, and much more …

Impelled by elemental forces of death, destruction and creation, Panchali, with electrifying visuals cinematically construed, reaches its climax: two consecutive games of dice. Marred by deceit, treachery and trickery, and fuelled by obsession, passion and rage, the gambling episode provides the preface to the coming, all-consuming Mahabharata war.

The Tiger’s Pause

The Untold Story of Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s Peace Efforts in Sri Lanka

Swami Virupaksha

As the fourth phase of the twenty-six-year-long civil war in Sri Lanka was about to begin, Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, founder of the Art of Living, visited the island nation with a singular aim: to bring peace to its citizens while trying to mediate between Prabhakaran, leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), and the government. The Tiger’s Pause chronicles Gurudev’s time in a highly strung country and also offers an exclusive look into the final chapters of Sri Lanka’s deadly conflict.

Swami Virupaksha, who spent nine years in the country expounding the Art of Living courses and organizing Gurudev’s visits, expertly charts the enormous hope of the Tamil and Sinhalese people against overwhelming misery. In prose that is both concise and empathetic, Swami Virupaksha gives readers a sweeping view of Gurudev’s endeavours towards a ceasefire agreement, and the ups and downs of a country’s quest for peace. The Tiger’s Pause is the narrative of the Sri Lankan people, and gives us a sense of what it takes to understand and address a shared trauma.

The Stone Tower

Riaz Dean

A path traversed by caravans laden with silk, spices and much more besides, the old Silk Road influenced trade, religions, cultures and economies across Europe, Asia and far beyond.
In his latest book, Riaz Dean blends the best of this region’s history and geography with ancient cartography to solve a 2,000-year-old riddle that has perplexed scholars for centuries: Where was the Stone Tower that the great geographer Claudius Ptolemy had written about? This highly significant but now-lost landmark represented the midpoint and thumping heart of the Silk Road, as merchant caravans plied their wares between the Occident and the Orient.

The $Ten Trillion Dream

The State of the Indian Economy and the Policy Reforms Agenda

Subhash Chandra Garg

India rightly aspires to be an upper-middle-income economy with its vast workforce gainfully employed
to have a decent standard of living. This, however, is a challenging proposition as India continues to
grapple with major economic policy issues. This book discusses the present state of India’s economy. It thematically explores the critical policy issues India faces today and suggests reforms for India to become a $10-trillion economy by the mid-2030s. The book presents a wide-angled and comprehensive view of the state of the Indian economy. It analyses India’s macroeconomy in the light of its evolution since Independence and covers the performance of the Indian economy on macro parameters of growth, inflation, monetary management, credit management, foreign capital inflows, fiscal management and other important macroeconomic fundamentals. Covering major sectors of the economy, such as agriculture, industry and services, the book also captures India’s progress towards becoming a digital economy.

Achieving Meaningful Success

Unleash the Power of Me!

Vivek Mansingh, Rachna Thakurdas

This book will be an adept lifetime mentor faithfully by your side to guide you through various stages of life. It guides you in achieving meaningful success including tremendous professional success through multidimensional and balanced life goals, which are the key to happiness and fulfilment. The book first focuses on defining the person you aspire to be through a step-by-step process to define your aspirational life goals. Then it guides you in becoming the best version of yourself and worthy of realizing your aspirations. The ideas shared are relevant to people of ages fifteen years onwards, from high school students to early and senior professionals to CEOs. It also includes insights from exclusive interviews with Ratan Tata, Narayan Murthy, Kiran Majumdar-Shaw, Sadhguru, John Chambers, Dr Devi Shetty, Rahul Dravid, Prakash Padukone, Vinita Bali, Vani Kola, and more. These distinguished people have achieved amazing success by passionately pursuing their goal-based journeys and have underlined the ideas shared in the book.

Bose

Chandrachur Ghose

There are not many Indian heroes whose lives have been as dramatic and adventurous as that of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. That, however, is an assessment of his life based on what is widely known about him. These often revolve around his resignation from the Indian Civil Service, joining the freedom movement, to be exiled twice for over seven years, throwing a challenge to the Gandhian leadership in the Congress, taking up an extremist position against the British Raj, evading the famed intelligence network to travel to Europe and then to Southeast Asia, forming two Governments and raising two armies and then disappearing into the unknown. All this in a span of just two decades.

Now, new information throws light on Bose’s intense political activities surrounding the revolutionary groups in Bengal, Punjab, Maharashtra and United Provinces, his efforts to bridge the increasing communal divide and his influence among the splintered political landscape; his outlook and relations with women; his plunge into the depths of spirituality; his penchant for covert operations and his efforts to engineer a rebellion among the Indian armed forces. With this new information, what appeared to be dramatic now becomes more intense with plots and subplots under one man’s single-minded focus on freeing the motherland and envisioning its development in a new era.

Pacey, thought-provoking and absolutely unputdownable, Bose: The Untold Story of an Inconvenient Nationalist will open a window to many hitherto untold and unknown stories of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.

Master on Masters

Amjad Ali Khan

Veteran musician and sarod maestro Ustad Amjad Ali Khan writes a deeply personal book about the lives and times of some of the greatest icons of Indian classical music. Having known these stalwarts personally, he recalls anecdotes and details about their individual musical styles, bringing them alive.

Twelve eminent musicians of the twentieth century appear in the book – Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, Amir Khan, Begum Akhtar, Alla Rakha, Kesarbai Kerkar, Kumar Gandharva, M.S. Subbulakshmi, Bhimsen Joshi, Bismillah Khan, Ravi Shankar, Vilayat Khan and Kishan Maharaj. In writing about them, Amjad Ali Khan transcends the Gharana and north-south divide, and presents portraits of these great artists that are drawn with affection, humour and warmth.

Investonomy

The Stock Market Guide That Makes You Rich

Pranjal Kamra

Are you inspired by billionaires around the world but think becoming a billionaire is too far out of your reach?
Are you confused about the behaviour of the stock market and the implications of investing in it?
Are you actually scared of investing in the stock market? If yes, then Investonomy is a must-read for you!
Investonomy not only explains modern value investing principles but also unveils certain secrets of the stock market. It busts popular myths and misconceptions as well. A thorough reading of this book will enable you to chart your own investment plans, and soon, you’ll be all set for your personal wealth-creation journey through equity investment. Investonomy is an initiative to empower existing, as well as potential, investors like you.

Why I Failed

Lessons from Leaders

Shweta Punj

Fail! And we are stamped for life. Don’t we try and run from failure all our lives? But, ‘spontaneous doing has to go through failures’. Acknowledging failure is singularly the most difficult thing to do. It takes tremendous courage to come out and say, yes, I failed. Shweta Punj chronicles sixteen leaders who have celebrated their failure as much as their success. Each story is an anatomy of failure. So whether it was the difference between ‘need’ and ‘want’ that led Abhinav Bindra to miss that winning shot, or whether it was a suicide attempt that pushed Sabyasachi Mukherjee into fully realizing his potential-these stories will encourage you to look at failure differently.

Healed

How Cancer Gave Me a New Life

Manisha Koirala

Healed is the powerful, moving and deeply personal story of actor Manisha Koirala’s battle against ovarian cancer. From her treatment in the US and the wonderful care provided by the oncologists there to how she rebuilt her life once she returned home, the book takes us on an emotional roller-coaster ride through her many fears and struggles and shows how she eventually came out triumphant.

Today, as she completes six years of being cancer-free, she shares her story-one marked by apprehensions, disappointments and uncertainties-and the lessons she learnt along the way. Through her journey, she unravels cancer for us and inspires us to not buckle under its fear, but emerge alive, kicking and victorious.

Unburden

A Book of Joyous Awakenings

Nithya Shanti, Nandini Sen Mehra

Playful Principles for Conscious Living

What if, to lead our most fulfilling life, there was nothing to acquire, nothing to accomplish, nothing to master? What if we are already home, already whole, already complete? What if, all that is needed, is to gently set down the burden?

Unburden is an invitation to examine ideas, identities and concepts that bind and limit us. We begin to access the power and potency that comes from trusting the silence underlying all thoughts and experiences.

In Nithya Shanti’s inimitable voice, discover profound teachings, simply told. Nithya shares anecdotes, exercises for self-discovery and pointers for awakening, through a distillation of timeless wisdom and contemporary discoveries, along with his own innovations from decades of intensive teaching and practice.

Disrupt and Conquer

How TTK Prestige Became a Billion Dollar Company

T.T. Jagannathan, Sandhya Mendonca

The TTK Group was founded in 1928 in Chennai (then Madras) by T.T. Krishnamachari, who later became a Union minister and held the portfolios of finance, industry and commerce for close to fifteen years.

In this book, the current chairman T.T. Jagannathan, along with Sandhya Mendonca, takes us through the journey of this extraordinary company which fought off bankruptcy and rose like a phoenix to become a highly profitable, successful entity.

Like a phoenix, the group and its constituent companies, have risen from the ashes, many times over, to stand tall and proud. This is the story of a journey that began with early success and experienced catastrophic disasters, and set about turning its fortunes around in stunning comebacks, time and again.

With invaluable business lessons, decades of experience and innovation distilled in these pages, Disrupt and Conquer is a must-read for aspiring entrepreneurs, executives and business leaders.

Everything Is Out of Syllabus

An Instruction Manual for Life

Varun Duggirala

Life seldom comes with an instruction manual or a guidebook. It’s often messy and unpredictable too. While our education may prepare us for situations covered within its set syllabus, most of life happens outside this realm and this leaves us grappling with questions around work, life and everything in between.

Hence, this book.

Varun Duggirala has survived and thrived in a system that throws curveballs at us without the tools to actually overcome them. In Everything Is Out of Syllabus, he offers answers to important questions like:

What is the true meaning of success? How can one become more creative and think outside the box?
How can we connect with people, including ourselves? And much more.
Most importantly, he tells readers what are the skills one needs to master to live a more fulfilled life that is optimized for happiness.

When Coal Turned Gold

The Making of a Maharatna Company

Partha Sarathi Bhattacharyya

Coal India Ltd (CIL) contributes to about 82 per cent of India’s coal production. In When Coal Turned Gold, former chairman and managing director of CIL, Partha Sarathi Bhattacharyya, tells the story, warts and all, of how he dealt with the Dhanbad coal mafia, how he changed the way the industry was perceived, how he dealt with the trade unions and the government and, most importantly, how he was able to script one of the greatest success stories the country had ever seen.

With this immense list, our love for books seems like one that’ll last forever. The perfect love story, what do you think?

Easy breezy books to kick off your 2022 reading goals

Posted on January 28, 2022January 28, 2022 by prhi-dev

At the end of each year we sit with our long TBR and it inevitably fills us with dread. We’re disappointed in ourselves- our expectations and our abilities that have failed them. From assignments to work to countless hours just spent on Instagram, we realise we’ve lost all the time we had genuinely kept aside for reading.

But all’s not lost. Here’s a new year, a endless to be read piles of books looking at us longingly from the shelves in our study. Which one will we finally pick? Which one of them will encourage our reading psyche instead of discouraging it? Will we finally complete it? Will we be able to pick another after this one ends?

All of these answers lie in the future and what we read today predicts what we’ll read tomorrow. So we’re here to say – lean on us and these recommendations. They’re a warm hug in winter, a kind smile in the form of a book. They will take you in and make you feel right at home.

Go through a special list we’ve put together just for you and your gentle mind and have a wonderful time reading!

Writing for My Life

by Ruskin Bond

From his most loved stories to poems, memoirs and essays, Writing for My Life opens a window to the myriad worlds of Ruskin Bond, India’s most loved author. Capturing dreams of childhood, anecdotes of Rusty and his friends, the Ripley-Bean mysteries, accounts of his life with his father and his adventures in Jersey and London among others, this book is full of beauty and joy-two things Ruskin’s writing is mostly known for.

With a comprehensive introduction, this is the perfect gift to all the ardent readers and lovers of Ruskin’s effervescent writing. A wide collection of carefully curated and beautifully designed stories, this book is a collector’s edition.

To The Bravest Person I Know

by Ayesha Chenoy

From growing up with dysfunctional families to coming of age, from dealing with heartbreak, pain and grief to learning to accept and forgive, To, the Bravest Person I Know is your guide through every difficult situation. It is modern therapy delivered to you through a series of poems and a letter in verse that runs as a footnote from the beginning to the end of the book.

The poems explore the whole construct of ‘normal’, of that which was created to make people feel less normal if they don’t fit in, to make them feel ‘abnormal’. The book tells us that depression is normal, as is fear; feeling insecure is normal, as is hurting people. And bravery is about facing all of this-it’s about facing everything life throws at you every day.

The Little Book of Encouragement

by His Holiness The Dalai Lama

His Holiness The Dalai Lama, a perennial source of inspiration, is one of the most eminent spiritual leaders in the world. Recipient of the Noble Peace Prize, His Holiness’s life and works have inspired millions of lives throughout the world. In this specially curated companion volume, His Holiness shares words of encouragement to deal with new realities in a pandemic stricken world.

That Night

Nidhi Upadhyay

What happens when an innocent prank goes horribly wrong?

Natasha, Riya, Anjali and Katherine were best friends in college – each different from the other yet inseparable – until that night.

It was the night that began with a bottle of whisky and a game of Ouija but ended with the death of Sania, their unlikeable hostel mate. The friends vowed never to discuss that fateful night, a pact that had kept their friendship and guilt dormant for the last twenty years. But now, someone has begun to mess with them, threatening to reveal the truth that only Sania knew. Is it a hacker playing on their guilt or has Sania’s ghost really returned to avenge her death?

Everything Is Out of Syllabus

An Instruction Manual for Life

by Varun Duggirala

What is the true meaning of success? How can one become more creative and think outside the box? Most importantly, he tells readers what are the skills one needs to master to live a more fulfilled life that is optimized for happiness.

Operation Haygreeva

Prabhakar Aloka

The C3 unit in the Intelligence Bureau is the node of the country’s counter-terrorism operations. At its discreet headquarters in New Delhi, intelligence officers work hard behind the scenes to thwart threats, keep track of targets and make sure the country is kept safe. When Mumbai becomes the victim of a series of horrific bomb blasts, Ravi Kumar, the chief of C3 known for his unorthodox but brilliant methods, is entrusted with the responsibility to neutralize the threat posed by a new terrorist organization called Lashkar-e-Hind.

Together with his three young recruits, Mihir, Jose and Cyrus, Ravi uncovers a plot that is much larger and threatens the very fabric of the country’s peace and stability. Through their network of agents, covert missions, tabs on the Hawala market and cultivation of contacts, they must tread carefully to protect the citizens of India. And they must do it all from the shadows, navigating the murky corridors of espionage and intelligence services.

Yuktahaar

by Munmun Ganeriwal

Have you ever wondered why diets just don’t seem to work? In Yuktahaar, celebrity nutritionist Munmun Ganeriwal argues that the reason why none of the diets in the past have seemed to work is because they focused on the wrong cause-you, the reader. While we may continue to have a fling with low carb, vegan, low fat diets and everything in between but a long-lasting solution may never be found if we do not shift our focus from ‘you’ to ‘them’-the human-gut microbiome connection.

In this book, Munmun gives an actionable 10-week holistic program that encourages a gut balancing lifestyle, consisting of season-wise meal plans, recipes, exercise routines, sleep hygiene tips, and yoga practice. The book also charts actress Taapsee Pannu’s phenomenal physical transformation while working with Munmun. With a focus on combining traditional, regional Indian foods with evidence-backed tips, Yuktahaar will transform your relationship with food and rebalance your gut for a leaner and healthier you.

On The Open Road

by Stuti Changle

Myra wants to quit her job.
Kabir is looking to resign from the board.
Sandy just dropped out of college.

Discover yourself within these restless twenty-somethings as they stand on the cusp of making life-changing decisions. Battling their inner demons and societal taboos, they wish to live life on their own terms. Their passion brings them together and with nothing but Ramy’s travel blog as their guiding star, they set out on the open road to follow what they desire.
But their journey entails a devastating personal loss, an undying fear and a host of obstacles. Will they be able to realize their shared dream? Or will they succumb to the hardships on their road to freedom?

The Book of Hope

by The Better India

The Book of Hope is perfect for a nation that refuses to give up. Curated by The Better India, these are stories of resolve, love, faith, entrepreneurship, and compassion that will uplift your spirit. These stories serve as a pick-me-up when you’re feeling down, or when you need a reminder that in the end, we’ll make it through.

This book is an archive of a nation’s collective goodness. Stories are what connect us and remind us that hope is always possible, and the lives of these ordinary Indians will surely inspire you.

Here’s our wholesome list of easy reads for you to begin with. Which will be one of your firsts this year?

Let our January books lead you beyond inspiration!

Posted on January 17, 2022January 27, 2022 by kgoba

The Roman god Janus, his two faces looking back into the past and the future, embodied endings and beginnings. This makes him the perfect namesake for the first month of the year.
Halfway through January, we want to know: are you excited about 2022, or are you already feeling tired?
Our January TBR pile is all about moving beyond the spark of New Year Resolutions. From heartwarming memoirs to tongue-in-cheek satire to history from a never-before-seen perspective, each story has the essence of a journey, complete with its ups and downs. We are sure they will inspire you into movement, accept the unexpected, and help you map out your 2022.

bachelor dad — Bachelor Dad || Tusshar Kapoor

Written in a frank, fun, no-holds-barred and incisive first-person narrative, Tusshar reveals interesting childhood anecdotes, the process of raising a child as a single man in India, how the search for the perfect soulmate doesn’t stop after having a child and finally how, his son, Laksshya, changed his life forever.

brahma purana 1 — The Brahma Purana Vol. 1 || translated by Bibek Debroy

brahma purana 2 — The Brahma Purana Vol. 2 || translated by Bibek Debroy

A double-volume translation, this is a fresh new rendition of one of the oldest Puranas. Reading almost like a travel guide, it celebrates temples and sites related to Vishnu, Shiva and Devi as it focuses on places like modern-day Odisha and Rajasthan. Brimming with insight and told with clarity, this luminous text is a celebration of a complex mythological universe populated with gods and mortals, providing readers with an opportunity to truly understand Indian philosophy.

gandhi's assassin — Gandhi’s Assassin || Dhirendra K. Jha

Dhirendra K. Jha’s spectacular study lays bare Godse’s relationship with the organizations that influenced his worldview and gave him a sense of purpose. The book draws out the gradual hardening of Godse’s resolve and the fateful decisions and intrigue that eventually led to, in the chaotic aftermath of India’s independence in 1947, Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination.

The internet cannot be avoided, but our relationship with it can change.

The Art of Bitfulness helps create healthy boundaries between you and the floodgates of the internet. It offers new strategies to reclaim your time, privacy and attention. This book is all about how to live with tech, not how to live without it.

The goal is not to spend less time on your devices; it is to spend your time on your devices better.

pamela gale malhotra — From the Heart of Nature || Pamela Gale-Malhotra

In Kodagu, Karnataka, years of illegal logging and poaching had ravaged the land and decimated the wildlife. Today, with the forests and the ecosystem restored, and the wildlife protected, the SAI sanctuary is a treasure trove of a rich variety of indigenous trees and plants, and a refuge for numerous rare and threatened species of animals, some found nowhere else on the planet. In this deeply fascinating and inspiring personal narrative, Pamela recounts how she connected and communicated with animals and trees at both physical and spiritual levels, and how the only way to save humanity is through understanding and preserving Nature.

little book — A Little Book of India || Ruskin Bond

Drawing on his own memories and impressions of this unique land, Bond talks fondly about the diverse elements that make up this beautiful land that has been his home for 84 years. From India’s rivers and forests to literature and culture, sights, sounds and colours, A Little Book of India is an amalgamation of the physical and spiritual attributes of our homeland and takes you on a journey filled with nostalgia and devotion.

conversations — Conversations || B.N. Goswamy

From Ananda Coomaraswamy to the Art of Calligraphy, The Meaning of Silence to Farid-ud-din Attar’s great Sufi parable of the Conference of the Birds, among others, Goswamy invites the general, but generally interested and literate, readers to enter, through these pieces, the field of the arts and savour its pleasures. Definitive, engaging, and comprehensive, Conversations promises to be a truly accessible primer on art in India and South Asia.

boys don't cry — Boys Don’t Cry || Meghna Pant

When Maneka Pataudi is arrested as the prime suspect for the murder of her ex-husband, she reveals a chilling tale of marital abuse and neglect.
But is her confession the truth or a lie? Is she telling the story as a victim or a perpetrator? And, is it better for women to kill for love or be killed for it?
Based on a true story (mostly), Boys Don’t Cry is a gripping, compelling and courageous novel that takes you behind the closed doors of a modern Indian marriage.

girl in glass — The Girl In The Glass Case || Devashish Sardana

The serial killer known as the Clipper has enjoyed nine years of infamy as India’s most notorious butcher—until he is cast aside by the media in favour of the sick new slayer, the Doll Maker. The Clipper turns his fury into blood-soaked revenge to capture the top spot. As corpses start to pile up, Simone Singh, assistant superintendent of police, fights to maneuver the Doll Maker into a clever trap. But the Clipper is hell-bent on striking first and regaining the crown with his most grisly murder yet.
Can Simone take down the two serial killers and stop the psychotic competition before it gets out of hand?

tell me how — Tell Me How To Be || Neel Patel

As the one-year anniversary of her husband’s death approaches, Renu Amin is binge-watching soap operas and simmering with old resentments. She can’t stop wondering if, thirty-five years ago, she chose the wrong life. In Los Angeles, her son, Akash, has everything he ever wanted, but as he tries to kickstart his songwriting career and commit to his boyfriend, he is haunted by the painful memories he fled a decade ago. When his mother tells him she is selling the family home, Akash returns to Illinois, hoping to finally say goodbye and move on.
Together, Renu and Akash pack up the house, retreating further into the secrets that stand between them. And when their pasts catch up to them, mother and son must decide between the lives they left behind and the ones they’ve since created. The inaugural pick for Lilly Singh’s book club, Tell Me How to Be is the love story of a mother and son each trying to figure out how to be in the world.

in an ideal world — In An Ideal World || Kunal Basu

Altaf Hussein, a young Muslim student, has been abducted from his college hostel. The divide between Liberals and Nationalists invades the Sengupta household in Kolkata when Joy, a bank manager, and Rohini, his schoolteacher wife learn the shocking news that their only son Bobby has become a leader of the Nationalist students and is implicated in Altaf’s disappearance.
Out to solve the mystery of Altaf, Joy and Rohini discover conspiracy and hate, forbidden love and exceptional courage, come face to face with a world caught between the real and the ideal. But will they succeed in absolving their son of the heinous crime? Will Altaf be found after all? Or will they, and this fractured nation, pay the ultimate price for harbouring a fractured heart?

a place in my heart — A Place in My Heart || Anupama Chopra

National Award-winning author, journalist and film critic Anupama Chopra writes about fifty films, artistes and events that have left an indelible impression on her and shaped her twenty-five-year-long career. A smorgasbord of cinematic delights to ‘spark joy’ A Place in My Heart is a testament to Chopra’s enduring love for all things cinema.

The Art and Science of Frugal Innovation comes at a time when the world is grappling with unprecedented issues, including the Covid-19 pandemic that has left all humanity in the eye of the storm. In this book, Malavika Dadlani, Anil Wali and Kaushik Mukerjee deftly explore the scientific underpinnings and social gains of frugal innovations. They also explain how these frugal innovations can help the world overcome a variety of obstacles. While differentiating between frugal and low-cost innovations, this straightforward book also picks the common thread between the two and demonstrates how durable solutions to problems can be found through scientific planning and systematic testing.

Rebels Against the Raj tells the story of seven people who chose to struggle for a country other than their own: foreigners to India who across the late 19th to late 20th century arrived to join the freedom movement fighting for independence from British colonial rule. Through these entwined lives, wonderfully told by one of the world’s finest historians, we reach deep insights into relations between India and the West, and India’s story as a country searching for its identity and liberty beyond British colonial rule.

the muslim vanishes — The Muslim Vanishes || Saeed Naqvi

If we take Ghalib and his myriads of followers out of the equation, will Hindustan be left with a gaping hole or become something quite new? The Muslim Vanishes, a play by Saeed Naqvi, attempts to answer that question.
A Muslim-free India, as a character speculates naively in the play, would be good for socialism, since what the 200 million Muslims leave behind would be equitably shared by the general population. Meanwhile, another character, a political leader, is traumatized by the sudden disappearance of the Muslim voter base and the prospect of a direct electoral confrontation with the numerically stronger Dalits and other backward classes.
In this razor-sharp, gentle and funny play, Saeed Naqvi draws on a mix of influences to spring an inspired surprise on us, taking us on a journey into the realms of both history and fantasy.

small is big — Small Is Big || Amit Agarwal

An organization becomes an iconic brand by retaining only 3 per cent of its products.
A CEO gets more done by organizing ten-minute focused meetings.
A tired person transforms his life by embracing one micro habit of waking up at 5 a.m.
These choices say YES to a small set of things that matter and say NO to everything else. Using extensive research, life experiences, and hands-on exercises, this book reveals the Small Is Big source code and outlines how to apply it.

In Leadership to Last, Geoffrey Jones and Tarun Khanna interview iconic leaders in India who have demonstrated leadership to last. There are leaders from South Asia and other emerging markets as well to illustrate that the ideas Indian entrepreneurs speak about are echoed by their counterparts in the Global South. The authors corroborate how these stories are less about building a get-rich-quick organization and much more about triggering a foundational and institutional change in society. Ratan Tata, Anu Aga, Adi Godrej, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Devi Shetty and Rahul Bajaj, to name a few, inspire awe by displaying audacity of intent, the humility of demeanour and steadfastness of purpose.

rise of bjp — The Rise of the BJP || Bhupender Yadav, Ila Patnaik

The Bharatiya Janata Party is an idea that was seeded into the minds of nationalist Jana Sangh leaders when they began to envision India after Independence. In this book, senior BJP leader and cabinet minister Bhupender Yadav and leading economist Ila Patnaik come together to trace the BJP’s journey from its humble roots, through ups and downs and to eventually getting 303 seats in Lok Sabha in 2019 and becoming the world’s largest political party. The Rise of the BJP tells us the inside story of how one of the most powerful political parties makes decisions, implements ideas and executes policy.

Penguin Transform: Meet The New You In 2022

Posted on January 12, 2022 by soarora

As we enter into the new year, some of us would want to focus on our physical health and wellbeing while the others may want to foray into new avenues related to wealth and prosperity. The list of resolutions is surely going to be a long one, but don’t put down your pen just yet as Penguin India through its new programme – Penguin Transform has another point of action on the cards for the people who like the employees at Penguin expect 2022 to be the year of great transformation.

As part of the Penguin Transform programme, Penguin India has curated a list of 12 international titles to be read over 12 months that promise to transform your outlook on life. On the journey that you undertake with the 12 books, you would find characters from works of fiction who would resonate with you, who would make you laugh and cry but would also teach you valuable lessons along the way about the different definitions of love and friendship, what it means to be independent and free and to live in a world that is ever changing. Along with fiction, there are also widely recognized non-fiction titles that will make your mind reel with new information and your heart soar with new knowledge. At the end of the journey, you are sure to meet a better version of yourself.

Here are the 12 titles and a little something put together by the Penguin employees about why you should pick them up ASAP!

Forty Rules of Love

“I read this book for the first time when it had just come out. I think it was 2010. At that time the book didn’t do anything for me. I didn’t get the goosebumps I was assured of by the bookshop owner from whom I bought the book. I was a cynic at that time in my life and maybe didn’t give this book the attention and love it deserved. I picked it up again recently and saying that I was blown away by it would be an understatement. The book made realize how being in love and having faith could make you feel vulnerable but can also lend you the greatest strength. How loving someone changes you always for the better even if the journey is full of thorns and the only rose in sight is the colour in front of your eyes that is keeping you in thrall even after what was once love is long gone. Yes, the book has a lot of references about Rumi and his poetry and yes, all the rules listed in the book are beautiful but what is more beautiful is that with every reading of the book, you are bound to learn something new.” – A Penguin Employee

Zen and the Art of Simple Living

“I am not religious, but I always like to read up on things that help me understand the art of mindfulness and I cannot stress the importance of it enough especially given the tumultuous times we live in. While there is a storm raging outside, all we can do is find some peace and quiet within. This book has helped me align my day around small, meaningful activities like neatly organizing things to clear my head, planting a flower, and watching it grow that have brought me immeasurable happiness and peace. There is something for everyone. With about 100 suggested activities, I feel anyone can work towards finding happiness while leading a simple life with this book” – A Penguin Employee

Think Again

“I have to admit I am a big Adam Grant fan. You see his comments and thoughts on Twitter, and you realize this guy is way ahead of us in terms of how he thinks about things and to be honest, all of us could gain a little from his insights about people’s minds. Did you guys see his post about introverts? How they are just pro-quiet and not antisocial? Or the one about greatest antidote to fear being grounded hope? Anyhow, this book is a must read and it invites us to let go of views that are no longer serving us well and prize mental flexibility, humility, and curiosity over foolish consistency” – A Penguin Employee

Midnight Library

“I suffer from depression and anxiety and this book was almost like a warm hug for me. It tries to answer the question I think all of are grappling with mental health issues or no mental health issues – “What is the best way to live?” Full of heart and quick wit, this book moved me deeply and helped me fight some of my inner demons. It is definitely worth all the hype.” – A Penguin Employee

Breath

“This book came as a complete surprise. We may think we know everything there is to know about breathing but that sadly just isn’t true. Breathing incorrectly, a habit most of us are prey to, has adverse effects on the health of our internal organs, our immunity and can even cause allergies. James Nestor in this book writes about his travels around the world to discover the hidden science behind ancient breathing practices to figure out what went wrong and how to fix it.” – A Penguin Employee

A Wrinkle in Time

“You talk about this title, and I am instantly taken back to my school days. I agree many of us would have read this gem of a book when we were young but not enough of us have read it and that is why I fought for this title to be on this list. As adults, sometimes we forget how it was to be young and carefree, to have loved our family with the purest of hearts and to have supported and fought for the ones we love no matter what” – A Penguin Employee

Normal People

“This was a joy to read. I saw myself and my husband in many of the passages in the book. Something as simple as a conversation can change you forever – that is exactly what I have experienced in my own life too. Normal People is a story of mutual fascination, friendship, and love. It takes us from that first conversation to the years beyond, in the company of two people who try to stay apart but find they can’t.” – A Penguin Employee

Girl, Woman, Other

“This book broke me and them put me back together – all in the span of a week. The story where the best friend becomes infatuated with the charismatic and domineering alpha woman and gets trapped in the relationship hit me right in the solar plexus. The other stories were equally engaging and wonderful. I cannot praise this book enough” A Penguin Employee

Thinking Fast and Slow

“Please read this book if you haven’t already. The world would start making so much more sense once you do. Why is there more chance we’ll believe something if it’s in a bold type face? Why are judges more likely to deny parole before lunch? Why do we assume a good-looking person will be more competent? The answer lies in the two ways we make choices: fast, intuitive thinking, and slow, rational thinking. This book reveals how our minds are tripped up by error and prejudice (even when we think we are being logical), and gives you practical techniques for slower, smarter thinking” A Penguin Employee

12 Rules for Life

“There are many rules in this book like fixing your posture, improving your own game instead of others etc. All of them have a deep and relevant rationale behind them. My favourite is – Care for yourself like you would for someone who you are responsible for. Written by acclaimed clinical psychologist Jordan Peterson, it is a truly enlightening read. Make sure you have it on your 2022 TBR. “- A Penguin Employee

When Breath Becomes Air

“I have heard people say that you really must look death in the face before you can truly start appreciating life. I could never bring myself to accept this until I read this book. Through the experience of Paul Kalanithi, who one day he was a doctor treating the dying, the next a patient struggling to live, I found a new perspective on my life. I practice gratitude every day now for the precious moments I get to spend with my family, especially my kids. I cannot thank this book enough and I know that I would be going back to it more often than not.” – A Penguin Employee

Educated

“All the people I know are so privileged, including me. It is funny how lightly I took my own education till I read this book. I am what I am today because of the education I received, and we forget that there are so many in the world who are denied this transformative experience because of prejudice and beliefs rooted in misogyny. What more can I say about this book but the fact that even Barack Obama has sung its praises.“ – A Penguin Employee

Leadership or Management? Both. Transform explains why!

Posted on December 22, 2021 by mdwivedi

Leadership and Management. What comes to your mind when you think about these concepts?

We often read about being successful, but how often do we really think about making the people around us successful? That is exactly what Transform, Chandramouli Venkatesan’s latest and final book talks. It also aims at helping people navigate people management and how intricately it’s connected to being successful professionally, as well as flourishing socially.

The word ‘management’ often has a one-dimensional approach for a majority of people However, Chandramouli explains how it’s irrevocably connected with another aspect of success: good leadership. They are both different sides of the same coin. Managing is the art of impacting people while being involved directly, and leading is the art of impacting people without being directly involved. They are mutually inclusive and even though they can be executed independently, the best results can only be achieved when they are practiced simultaneously.

Catalyst by Chandramouli Venkatesan — Catalyst||Chandramouli Venkatesan

In Catalyst, Chandramouli’s first novel, there was a great emphasis on career management and life management. It had crucial insights about the important strategies and decisions people take to move forward in their respective careers. Catalyst focused on helping people win where it matters- the second half of their careers. Moreover, it also took into account life management, and how success is not limited to professional boundaries. Excelling both personally and professionally is possible.

front cover Get Better at Getting Better — Get Better at Getting Better|| Chandramouli Venkatesan

Get Better at Getting better was the sequel and the second guide in this series, and eloquently talked about improving consistently. While it’s great to be good, you can always be better, and even hack the process of getting better. With a heavy emphasis on improving one’s skills, capabilities, judgements, communication, and decision-making abilities effectively, it talked about how to grow rapidly as a professional and remain relevant.

Getting Better Continuously, Career Management, and Life Management are three out of the four of the author’s pillars when it comes to effective management. They focus on bettering themselves to excel and have an inward approach. However, management and leadership are functions that involve people. Hence these three pillars and their success depend on the fourth and final concept: People Management.

Transform book cover — Transform||Chandramouli Venkatesan

Transform, the ultimate guide to lead and manage, is an insightful and interactive read for anyone struggling or striving to be better at being a good leader and manager. By keeping leading and managing as pre-conditions instead of mutually exclusive alternatives, Transform puts into perspective the importance of being good at both. With revelations and key learnings in all four sections, it helps managers who aren’t leaders and leaders who are struggling to be good managers understand how the two are connected through their own experiences.

Transform stands out from the long list of books on people management by facilitating two-way communication instead of a jargon-rich monologue. With exercises to improve self-awareness and steps to create practical action plans, it also takes into account that different things can work for different people. People management is the pillar that supports the other three, and according to Chandramouli, “It is not important whether you are a leader or a manager, what is important is whether you are leading and managing.”

Renew the way you approach success at the workplace and in life and evolve into a more self-aware professional with Transform!

Our December Books Are The Perfect Gift For You!

Posted on December 6, 2021 by kgoba

December is already here and it feels like it’s getting colder day by day. As daylight wanes faster and our breath spews fog like dragon breath, there’s nothing that distracts us from the winter quite like the perfect read.

Wrap your hands around a cup of your favourite hot drink, tuck yourself into your favourite blanket, and scroll through to find your next favourite book!

December books — Swami Vivekananda || Sankar

What did Swami Vivekananda recommend about the eating of vegetarian and non-vegetarian food?
Which of these did Swamiji enjoy the most: his mother’s chorchori, his father’s pulao or his own khichuri?
Was he fond of spicy food, sweets, or ice cream?

While many thinkers wonder at Swamiji’s immense enthusiasm for teaching Indian cooking, yet it is not quite clear why no complete book about our culinary-enthusiast monk Vivekananda has ever been published in any language. Swami Vivekananda: The Feasting, Fasting Monk is the humble, illumination of a thousand faceted diamond by Sankar.

You probably know Seema Goswami from her weekly columns for the Brunch and Hindustan Times. In Madam Prime Minister she imports her witty style into a novel centring on Asha Devi, a 29-year-old woman who becomes the leader of the country. Her predecessor’s (who is also her father) assassination, a volatile coalition and inevitable sexism are only some of the shadows hanging over her legacy as India’s youngest Prime Minister. Madam Prime Minister is a must-read for those who enjoy political drama with high stakes.

Originally written in Italian, Marco Moneta’s book is a unique work of non-fiction about an intriguing figure from Indian history. Venetian Nicolò Manucci’s life in the subcontinent is a chronology of seminal events. From being a chief artilleryman in Dara Shukoh’s battle against Aurangzeb to joining Rajput general Jai Singh against Shivaji, Manucci shifted gears when he became court physician for Aurangzeb’s son, future Mughal Emperor Shah Alam. Later in his life, Manucci’s in-depth knowledge regarding the Mughal Court would serve him as playing a crucial role in diplomacy between the Mughals and European authorities.
A Venetian at the Mughal Court offers a fascinating perspective into a famous historical period, with its focus on an unlikely protagonist.

Is it even the holiday season if we don’t feel guilty about eating Christmas plum cakes?
Award-winning nutritionist Munmun Ganeriwal would say otherwise.
In Yuktahaar: The Belly and Brain Diet, Ganeriwal argues that the reason why none of the diets in the past have seemed to work is that they focused on the wrong cause—you, the reader. While we may continue to have a fling with low carb diets, vegan diets, low-fat diets, and everything in between, a long-lasting solution will be far from our reach until we shift our focus from ‘you’ to ‘them’ I.e., the human-gut microbiome connection.
Munmun gives an actionable 10-week holistic program that encourages a gut balancing lifestyle, mainly consisting of food, exercise, sleep hygiene, and neural retraining. It is a three-phased program that focuses on improving the balance and diversity of our microbial community. This book will make sure you have your cake and eat it too!

Awarded the Padma Shri, the Padma Bhushan and the OBE, Dr Tehemton Erach Udwadia is widely regarded as the father of laparoscopy in India. From 1951, during his years as a medical student, to the present day, he has not only witnessed first-hand the avalanche of surgical progress but has also seen lives saved as a result of these advances, be it a disposable plastic syringe or a liver transplant.
More Than Just Surgery is a warm personal account of people, incidents, mentors, failures and absurdities against the backdrop of surgery.

Four Belgian Malinois puppies raised by an ex-serviceman, N. K. Kuruppu, who end up in four different life situations; an old man and a younger man who play a game of death notices cut out from newspapers; two men who argue about the inexplicable change of character of an old-time rowdy with fatal consequences; a nurse and her boyfriend who travel to Kerala with the body of her father who died in Bangalore.
Hareesh’s Adam presents nine unusual stories that explore the more difficult of human emotions—lust, anger, jealousy, vengeance, greed—in a non-judgemental yet detached manner. With an irreverent and sarcastic tone, Hareesh makes these stories invigorating and pushes the craft of the short story to new and refreshing realms.

A Place in My Heart is a blend of recommendations and remembrances, nostalgia and narratives. National Award-winning author, journalist and film critic Anupama Chopra writes about fifty films, artistes and events that have left an indelible impression on her and shaped her twenty-five-year-long career. Including stories about, Super Deluxe and the Cannes Film Festival, this memoir is a testament to Chopra’s enduring love for all things cinema.

A month or so before Christmas 2008, Kia Scherr lost her husband and teenage daughter to the horrific Mumbai terrorist attack at the Oberoi. In a second, her life was clouded with grief, and since then, it has been a convoluted journey of resilience and recovery.
In Forgiveness is a Choice, Scherr peels back the many layers of personal bereavement. She moves beyond the incident, focusing on the reality of dealing with sorrow that rears its ugly heads in myriad forms. A tender and understanding guide on getting a grip and taking life one day at a time.

Why do the Gorkha soldiers of 4/5 GR attack a heavily defended enemy post with just naked khukris in their hands?
Does Pakistan find out the real identity of the young pilot who, after having ejected from a burning plane, introduces himself as Flt Lt Mansoor Ali Khan?
What awaits the naval diver who cuts made-in-India labels off his clothes and crosses into East Pakistan with a machine gun slung across his back?

1971 is a deeply researched collection of true stories of extraordinary human grit and courage that shows you a side to war that few military histories do.

The C Squadron 45 Cavalry waged an attack on the Pakistani army that brought the latter to its knees.
On 21 November 1971, the two warring armies clashed in a tank versus tank battle at Garibpur. In one fell swoop, the 3 (Independent) Armoured Squadron, consisting of fourteen American M-24 Chaffee tanks, was destroyed and two infantry battalions badly mauled, followed by the shooting down of three Sabre F-86 jets for the loss of two PT-76 tanks. The biggest attack planned by General AAK Niazi to teach the Indians and the Mukti Bahini a lesson had gone up in smoke.
The Burning Chaffees is a thrilling war account of the victorious battle by Brigadier BS Mehta.

Even twenty-five years after he stepped down as prime minister, H.D. Deve Gowda has remained relevant in Indian politics. Despite this long, arduous yet fascinating journey that began in a poor peasant household in the plains of Hassan, there has been no comprehensive assessment of his life and work. This biography endeavours to professionally fill the gap.
The book’s narrative is instructed by Gowda’s rich parliamentary record, archival material and interviews conducted with people associated with him at various stages of his life. The layered narrative is further nuanced by Gowda’s own voice and gargantuan memory. When Gowda became prime minister, many people intuitively registered that Indian democracy had not been rigged or captured by elites and dynasts, and there was indeed space in the system for a self-made person, with no godfathers, to rise. Gowda’s story generated hope then and continues to do so today.

Eden is the garden of happiness that humanity was cast out of when Adam and Eve, the first human couple, disobeyed the one true God and ate the fruit of the forbidden tree.
This is the essence of Abrahamic lore that emerged over 3000 years ago in the Near East, blossomed in the Middle East, and has since spread to every corner of the world in three forms: Judaism, Islam, and Christianity.
In his uniquely Indian style of storytelling, intimate but not irreverent, Devdutt Pattanaik introduces the readers to the many tales of angels, demons, prophets, patriarchs, judges and kings. It also retells stories from Mesopotamian, Egyptian and Zoroastrian mythologies that influenced Abrahamic monotheism in its long 5000-year-old history.

Simone Singh, assistant superintendent of police, would rather spend her days locking up criminals than apologizing for her lack of social skills. And she refuses to let anyone stand in the way of her pursuit of the Doll Maker, a ruthless serial killer who dresses up little kids as Barbie dolls and displays their bodies in glass cases.
Another serial killer, the Clipper, who enjoyed nine years of infamy as India’s most notorious butcher, erupts into an all-consuming rage when he is cast aside by the media in favour of the sick new slayer-the Doll Maker. The Clipper turns his fury into blood-soaked revenge to capture the top spot. As corpses start to pile up, Simone fights to manoeuvre the Doll Maker into a clever trap. But the Clipper is hell-bent on striking first and regaining the crown with his most grisly murder yet.
Can Simone take down the two serial killers and stop the psychotic competition before it gets out of hand?
The Girl in the Glass Case is a jaw-dropping psychological crime thriller. If you like determined heroines, nail-biting twists and chilling serial murderers, then you’ll love this rollercoaster ride.

Karnali Blues, the first novel by the Nepali writer Buddhisagar (b. 1981), was published in Nepali by Fine Print in 2007.
The story draws us into young Brisha Bahadur’s world, a backwater district of a country that is about to undergo radical social, political and cultural change. We share his dreams, his games and his mischief, his loves, his hopes and his fears. We meet the wealth of characters who surround him: the schoolmates, shopkeepers, tea sellers, teachers, policemen, porters, drunkards and rogues of his childhood and youth, and the staff and patients of the hospital where his father lies dying.
With some of the most authentic characters captured by prose, Karnali Blues is a father-son narrative that transcends time and language.

‘Barkat’ means abundance. An abundance of blessings and auspiciousness. Where there is no dearth and there is no scarcity, a much bigger word that cannot be done justice in translation.
Born in the small town of Amritsar, Vikas Khanna grew up to be an international chef and fulfilled his dream of getting a Michelin Star. He narrates how his grandmother infused in him the values of sharing food, while the langars of the Golden Temple showed him that community kitchens are perhaps the only way to ensure no one goes hungry.
From these values developed around food, he got the goal and the grit to build one of the world’s largest food drives called ‘Feed India’ during the COVID-19 lockdown.
This deeply personal and heart-touching narrative is a testimony of one man’s vision to showcase Indian culture and the intrinsic value of sharing food to the world.

We hope you found something to keep you busy this holiday season!

Our November books are here to warm you up!

Posted on November 9, 2021 by malika

Warm greetings, fellow bibliophiles!

November is a month full of traditions and festivals, and we want to add to the celebrations with our carefully curated list of exciting new recommendations. This month, we are enthralled to share a mesmerising list of books that engulf experiences, warmth, and the essence of belonging. Focusing on people and real stories, the recommendations for this month have been chosen to remind you what it means to be human. Get ready to go on a journey as you scroll, and grab a piping hot cup of coffee for the ride!

November books — Women of Influence||Rajni Sekhri Sibal

Women of Influence is a compilation of the untold stories of ten women IAS officers who have walked the extra mile and made a difference despite facing major pressures in governance. Having worked in the civil services for thirty-seven years, Rajni Sekhri Sibal has been in a unique position to see things at close quarters, which is why she presents narratives that provide an insight into the challenges of being a woman IAS officer, and also highlight episodes where the protagonist displays immense courage and commitment during the most difficult of times. The narratives are inspiring tales of ten strong and efficient women of substance, and their extraordinary careers wherein they made a difference.

A Place in My Heart is a many-splendored thing. It is a celebration of the power of storytelling. It is also an account of a life lived in the Bollywood trenches. National Award-winning author, journalist and film critic Anupama Chopra writes about fifty films, artists and events that have left an indelible impression on her and shaped her twenty-five-year-long career. A Place in My Heart is a blend of recommendations and remembrances, nostalgia and narratives. Above all, it is a testament to Chopra’s enduring love for all things cinema.

Perumal Murugan’s Resolve is both a cultural critique and a personal journey: in his hands, the question of marriage turns into a social contract, deeply impacted by the ripple effects of patriarchy, inequality and changing relationships to land and community. In this deceptively comic tale that savagely pierces the very heart of the matter, translated with deft moments of lightness and pathos by Aniruddhan Vasudevan, Perumal Murugan has given us a novel for the ages.

Legendary musician Annapurna Devi’s life has been shrouded in mystery. The only people whom she met and communicated with were her disciples who used to visit her for music lessons, which included some of the greatest musicians our era has seen, including Pandit Nikhil Banerjee, Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, Ustad Bahadur Khan, Aashish Khan, Dhyanesh Khan, Nityanand Haldipur and Basant Kabra, to name a few. Full of anecdotes and untold stories, this is her life story as told by her to her disciples over a while, giving valuable insights into their Guru Ma’s personality, music and teachings.

The Odd Book of Baby Names FC — The Odd Book of Baby Names||Anees Salim

Written with the lightness of comedy and the seriousness of tragedy, the playfulness of an inventive riddle and the intellectual heft of a philosophical undertaking, The Odd Book of Baby Names is Salim’s most ambitious novel yet. Layered with multiple perspectives and cadences, each tale recounted in sharp, tantalizing vignettes, this is a rich tapestry of narratives and a kaleidoscopic journey into the dysfunctional heart of the Indian family.

When Charulata Srinivasan returns from the US to Mumbai following the unexpected death of her brother, Ravi, in an accident, she stumbles on something that suggests a more sinister game is in play. With her suspicions that Ravi may have been murdered dismissed by the police, Charu has no choice but to turn to Ravi’s best friend, David, and retired-policeman-turned-detective Anand to help her piece together the truth.

Is Yogi Adityanath India’s next Prime Minister in the making? His unprecedented rise in the Bharatiya Janata Party and his over-the-top campaigns and displays of his photograph along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s on billboards, among many other moves, seem to suggest his political ambition.

Tracing his early life, entry into electoral politics and elevation to the position of the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state, this book evaluates many untold stories of Yogi Adityanath.

Bestselling author Shonali Sabherwal’s latest book is for anyone looking to start meditating. With a detailed guide and a focus on Vipassana, it shows you how to control the highs and lows in life and take charge of your happiness. It teaches you how to occupy a state of equanimity and be present in the moment through an ancient technique used by the Buddha for enlightenment. Lift yourself on this journey from misery to happiness, from defilement to purity, from bondage to liberation and from ignorance to enlightenment. Turn your life around through Vipassana.

Sleeping Like a Baby serves as the ultimate bedside companion for parents, packed with all the modern tools you need to build a stronger connection with your children and enable age-appropriate sleep for their optimum growth. The book does the seemingly impossible: blending traditional wisdom and the latest research, it gives us a revolutionary approach to achieve longer naps, better night sleep with fewer wakings, a happier baby and more joy and rest as a family, without resorting to fraught practices like ‘sleep training’. Endorsed by some of the most eminent child sleep experts and written in a style that is deceptively simple and accessible, Sleeping Like a Baby is the final word on responsive and restful sleep for caregiver and baby. All night long.

This nerve-wracking novel is set in a verdant village of Central Travancore in Kerala, which, though unique in many ways, is no exception to the daily truths of life in India. The characters in this story are at the mercy of their universe, which, unfortunately, does not discriminate between the good, the bad and the ugly. In the end, they have nobody but themselves, and their relationships with each other, to fall back on. Poignant and perceptive, the story of Chamor will haunt you for a long time.

The Force Behind the Forces FC — The Force Behind the Forces||Swapnil Pandey

The Force Behind the Forces is a collection of seven true stories of eternal love, courage and sacrifice. Written by an army wife, Swapnil Pandey, this book brings to light moving stories of unimaginable valour in the face of broken dreams, lost hopes and shattered families. It proves that bullets and bombs can only pierce the bodies of our soldiers, for their stories will live on in the hearts of these brave women forever, women who have dedicated their lives to the nation, without even a uniform to call their own.

Furrows in a Field FC — Furrows in a Field||Sugata Srinivasaraju

H.D. Deve Gowda has been in public life for nearly seven decades. Despite his long, arduous yet fascinating journey that began in a poor peasant household in the plains of Hassan, there has been no comprehensive assessment of his life and work. This biography endeavours to professionally fill the gap.The book’s narrative is instructed by Gowda’s rich parliamentary record, archival material and interviews conducted with people associated with him at various stages of his life. The layered narrative is further nuanced by Gowda’s voice, gargantuan memory, a close reading of the time when he made history and the currents of destiny that preceded it. When Gowda became prime minister, many people intuitively registered that our democracy had not been rigged or captured by elites and dynasts, and there was indeed space in our system to rise for a self-made person with no godfathers. It generated hope and continues to do so.

Yogesh Moolchandani, a disreputable builder, is dead. All the signs say suicide but there was nothing wrong with his life. He had just cracked a deal and things were looking hale and hearty for him. CCTV footage from the night of his death shows him crashing into a toll booth at a speed of 180 km per hour on the Bandra-Worli Sea Link. The dealer he had purchased his car from had received five missed calls from him just five minutes before the time of the alleged crash. As the authorities try to find out why Yogesh was calling his car dealer frantically, the plot begins to thicken. Who, or rather what killed Yogesh Moolchandani?

The seventh volume in the ambitious Rethinking India series, Being Adivasi: Existence, Entitlements, Exclusion looks at the process of development and how it clashes with the rights of the Adivasis. Persistent problems faced by the Adivasis-land alienation, indebtedness, vanishing minor forest products from government forests and displacement from their ancestral lands-led to their impoverishment. The Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act and the Forest Land Rights Act (FRA) enacted by the previous governments were decisive steps towards the empowerment of the Adivasis. However, at present, the implementation of these provisions has taken a back seat. This volume of the Rethinking India series presents the views of the Adivasis and the Denotified Communities on the process of development and its clash with their rights.

November book — Undocumented||Rejimon Kuttappan

Our complicated and fragile global economy relies on the unacknowledged labour of a subterranean network of undocumented migrant workers. Despite them providing vital support to host economies, governments continue to turn a blind eye to these migrants’ woes without any consequences. In the absence of documents to speak for them, their human rights are systematically abused, their voices are ignored, and their existence is refuted.

In Undocumented, journalist and migrant-rights researcher Rejimon Kuttappan brings to light the lives of these oft-ignored migrants through stories of six Indians in the Arab Gulf, and through them, voices the plight of millions more. Delving into both personal and national histories to establish where we are and how we got here, the author lays bare the lives of people betrayed by their own into human trafficking, into poverty, and into exile in a land that only glimmers with promise.

The Bangladesh Liberation War was nearing its bloody end when Colonel Ashok Tara, then a twenty-nine-year-old major, was assigned the task of rescuing Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s family which was being held hostage by the Pakistani Army. Ashok Tara, unarmed, entered the lion’s den and negotiated with the hostile soldiers for the release of Bangladesh’s Father of the Nation and his family that included a young Sheikh Hasina.

The Lone Wolf is Ashok Tara’s story, charting the course of his celebrated yet quiet life as a member of the armed forces. Neha Dwivedi’s writing expertly captures our hero’s humble beginnings, his life-altering experiences, and offers a blow-by-blow account of a seminal event in Southeast Asian history. As much as it is the story of Colonel Ashok Tara’s bravery, it is also the story of a bleak-yet-victorious period of Bangladesh’s quest for freedom.

Brands are everywhere. We may love them, or despise them, or even disparage them, but we can’t be indifferent to their invasive presence in our lives. Today, brand managers, fresh out of campus, are either clueless about what they are supposed to do; or are besieged with baggage from the past that handicaps them from expressing their point of view. This book aims to take all kinds of brand custodians on an enriching journey, so they can delight consumers, generate revenue for their company and positively impact their careers.

Transform focuses on people management, which the author demonstrates is a very important pillar of success. That is because leadership and managing are the means, while the end impact is what they do to people. Insightful and practical, Transform is a comprehensive book on leadership and management that covers all important concepts while giving practical implementation techniques for each.

Our October books will knock your socks off!

Posted on October 7, 2021 by prhi-dev

Hola fellow-readers!

We are back with some new recommendations to add to your already overflowing TBR piles. This month, we have a list that we are super-excited to share with you because of how diverse and varied it is. No matter what kind of books you love, there’s something here for you, we promise.

This is going to be slightly long (but so worth it). We’d suggest keeping your hot chocolate ready. And now get cracking!

Passionate About Baking

Deeba Rajpal

A home baker for over 20 years, food stylist and photographer Deeba Rajpal put her passion to the test when she decided to blog about her adventures in the kitchen.

Inspired by her blog, this book is a collection of some of her most loved chocolate dessert recipes for every kind of indulgence. With healthy, tasty yet easy-to-make chocolate delights — from tarts, tea cakes and cupcakes to cookies, traybakes and cakes for special occasions — and simple tips and tricks, Deeba shows you how working with chocolate can be oh so fun!

The Nutmeg’s Curse

Amitav Ghosh

Before the 18th century, every single nutmeg in the world originated around a group of small volcanic islands east of Java, known as the Banda Islands. As the nutmeg made its way across the known world, they became immensely valuable – in 16th century Europe, just a handful could buy a house. It was not long before European traders became conquerors, and the indigenous Bandanese communities – and the islands themselves – would pay a high price for access to this precious commodity.

Amitav Ghosh argues that the nutmeg’s violent trajectory from its native islands is revealing of a wider colonial mindset which justifies the exploitation of human life and the natural environment. Written against the backdrop of the pandemic and the Black Lives Matter protests, The Nutmeg’s Curse offers a sharp critique of Western society, and reveals the profoundly remarkable ways in which human history is shaped by non-human forces.

Sunrise Over Ayodhya

Salman Khurshid

On 9 November 2019, the Supreme Court, in a unanimous verdict, cleared the way for the construction of a Ram temple at the disputed site in Ayodhya.

As we look back, we will be able to see how much we have lost over Ayodhya through the years of conflict. If the loss of a mosque is preservation of faith, if the establishment of a temple is emancipation of faith, we can all join together in celebrating faith in the Constitution. Through this book, Salman Khurshid explores how the greatest opportunity that the judgment offers is a reaffirmation of India as a secular society.

Actually … I Met Them

Gulzar

From Bimal Roy to Satyajit Ray, R.D. Burman, Kishore Kumar, Ritwik Ghatak, Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Pandit Ravi Shankar, Pandit Bhimsen Joshi, Mahasweta Devi and Samaresh Basu, among others, in this fascinating book, Gulzar Saab goes down memory lane to bring to light his relationship with the doyens of cinema, music and literature, who he had known and worked with over a long period of time.

Chatty, anecdotal and deeply personal, this book of memories will chronicle Gulzar Saab’s life and career through different eras of Indian cinema as he successfully transcended commercial and critical arts.

Stars in My Sky

Divya Dutta

In her second book, award-winning actor Divya Dutta recounts her experiences with some of the stalwarts of Bollywood who played a significant role in her film journey. She talks about the inspirations they have proved to be in her life through what they did for her and what she learnt from them. From winning an acting scholarship with Sonali Bendre to sharing a vanity van with Juhi Chawla and her bond with Shabana Azmi, she tells it all with rare candour and humility.

p-book-cover — The Book of Hope || The Better India

The Book of Hope

The Better India

This book is an archive of a nation’s collective goodness. Stories are what connect us and remind us that hope is always possible, and the lives of these ordinary Indians will surely inspire you. These are the experiences of real people who found love, overcame loss, worked towards achieving their dreams, or those who bravely fought against societal norms. This book is a testament to the fact that anyone can do it - even you.

Operation Haygreeva

Prabhakar Aloka

The C3 unit in the Intelligence Bureau is the node of the country’s counter-terrorism operations. When Mumbai becomes the victim of a series of horrific bomb blasts, Ravi Kumar, the chief of C3 known for his unorthodox but brilliant methods, is entrusted with the responsibility to neutralize the threat posed by a new terrorist organization called Lashkar-e-Hind.

Pitch Perfect

Srimoyi Bhattacharya

A decade ago brands relied on mainstream media and celebrities to endorse them, but now each brand needs a sound strategy that involves traditional media, social media, influencers, micro-influencers, celebrities across all strata, and offline and online communities. So, for everyone that’s in this game – whatever side they’re on – the playing field has become complex and competitive, and this is where Srimoyi Bhattacharya comes in to help you get your Pitch Perfect.

With inputs from Srimoyi’s top clients, her network of editors, industry experts, and business heads, Pitch Perfect is a must-have bible on brand building and communication for anyone interested in winning the Indian consumer.

An Actor’s Actor

Hanif Zaveri and Sumant Batra

More than forty years after his death, Sanjeev Kumar remains a role model for all aspiring actors. Entirely unselfconscious of his image as a star, he would often be cast as the father figure to a number of his contemporaries, most famously Sharmila Tagore in Mausam (1975) and Amitabh Bachchan in Trishul (1978), or as the elderly Thakur in Sholay (1975) and yet leave an indelible mark with his presence and his acting prowess.

Hanif Zaveri and Sumant Batra’s biography provides a glimpse of the star’s personal and professional lives, taking off from the traditional business of the Zariwalas, his romantic involvement with some of Hindi cinema’s biggest names, his lifelong battle with loneliness and his glittering achievements on screen.

The Home Stretch

Sanjay Dattatri

In their twilight years, people increasingly rely on friends and family to get through the day. In Indian homes, it is not unusual to see adult children sandwiched between parenting and caregiving obligations, with both young children and elderly parents in the house.

The Home Stretch is an empathetic, handy guide that seeks to simplify caregiving and equip readers with the tools and guidance required to build a safer, happier and more comfortable life for the elders around them. From tips on maintaining their health and independence to taking care of the bedridden, the book covers a wide range of topics

to meet the progressively complicated needs associated with caring for ageing loved ones.

On the Open Road

Stuti Changle

Discover yourself within the restless twenty-somethings, Myra, Kabir and Sandy as they stand on the cusp of making life-changing decisions. Battling their inner demons and societal taboos, they wish to live life on their own terms. Their passion brings them together and with nothing but Ramy’s travel blog as their guiding star, they set out on the open road to follow what they desire.

But their journey entails a devastating personal loss, an undying fear and a host of obstacles. Will they be able to realize their shared dream? Or will they succumb to the hardships on their road to freedom?

On the Open Road is an inspirational story of three ordinary individuals who refuse to give up on themselves.

Writing for My Life

Ruskin Bond

With a comprehensive introduction, this is the perfect gift to all the ardent readers and lovers of Ruskin’s effervescent writing.

Sita

Bhanumathi Narasimhan

Sita, the beloved princess of Mithila, is one of the most revered women in Indian history; so well known, yet probably the least understood. At every crossroad of her life, she chose acceptance and grace over self-pity. Her life was filled with sacrifice yet wherever she was, there was abundance. It was as if she was carved out of an intense longing for Rama, yet she had infinite patience. In every situation she reflected his light and he reflected her love.

In this poignant narration, Bhanumathi shows us the world through the eyes of Sita. We think what Sita thinks, we feel what she feels, and for these few special moments, we become a part of her.

The Custodian of Trust

Rajnish Kumar

It began from a modest house in one of the narrow lanes of the old city of Meerut. From being a probationary officer in the State Bank of India (SBI) in 1980 to its Chairman in 2017, Rajnish Kumar had an amazingly interesting journey in which he saw the many changes in India’s banking sector that greatly impacted the country and its economy.

In the aftermath of demonetization, the YES Bank fiasco, the crisis in Jet Airways and NPLs, among others, The Custodian of Trust is a candid memoir by the former Chairman of India’s largest commercial bank. Anecdotal, engaging and evocative, this book is an unputdownable memoir of a former banker.

The Origin Story of India’s States

Venkataraghavan Subha Srinivasan

The story of the birth of India’s states is the story of the birth and continuing rebirth of India, the nation. It is a story that everyone in India must know, from young to old.

This rigorously researched book lays out the fascinating political and historical circumstances of the birth of India’s states and union territories.

Making a Difference

Alok Ranjan

Making a Difference comes as a handy guidebook for IAS aspirants in the country. It includes everything from the motives to join the IAS to the written exam to the personality test to the training required. The book also talks about the myths and realities about the IAS – interesting sections include questions about integrity, how citizens perceive the IAS, and what is the IAS’ relationship with the political executive of the government.

Whisper to Me Your Lies

Novoneel Chakraborty

Ekantika Pakrashi has just lost the love of her life. Preliminary reports suggest it was no accident. Her boyfriend was murdered in cold blood and the modus operandi resembles that of India’s most notorious serial killer of the 1990s: the Cellotape Killer. He was never caught, and if this indeed was him, then he had resurfaced after twenty-one years. Ekantika swears to find the killer and get an emotional closure, but what she doesn’t know is that in the process she may end up wounding herself irreversibly.

Whisper To Me Your Lies is a fast-paced, chilling crime thriller and a poignant tale of a girl’s single-minded obsession to find out who altered her life. And why.

Whose Samosa is it Anyway?

Sonal Ved

In this book, accompany Sonal Ved on a journey of taste through the various timelines across the Indian subcontinent. We go from the banks of the Indus in 1900 bc to the great kingdoms of the north many centuries later; from the time of the Mauryans to when the Mughal Sultanate reigned supreme.

On this trip discover answers to such questions as What are the origins of chutney or of the fruit punch, and how are they connected to India? The author takes us through the food history and traditions from the mountains in Kashmir to the backwaters of Kanyakumari; from the ports of the Bay of Bengal to the shores of the Arabian Sea, where traders and travellers arrived from the world over. And, finally, we find out whose samosa it truly is . . .

Job Search Secrets

Sagarika Verma, Subir Verma

When it comes to finding a job, qualification, experience and talent are important attributes. However, all these come to a naught if one is not able to locate the right job, find the people who can help, figure out the right time to pitch and identify the most effective approach. This book provides the much needed guidance on how to get your dream job quickly and easily. It is a step-by-step guide and practical manual with exercises and free tools which anybody can use to find their dream job faster.

The Fractured Himalaya

Nirupama Rao

Why did India and China go to war in 1962? What propelled Jawaharlal Nehru’s ‘vision’ of China? Why is it necessary to understand the trans-Himalayan power play of India and China in the formative period

of their nationhoods? The past shadows the present in this relationship and shapes current policy options, strongly influencing public debate in India to this day.

Nirupama Rao, a former Foreign Secretary of India, unknots this intensely complex saga of the early years of the India-China relationship. The Fractured Himalaya looks at the inflection points when the trajectory of diplomacy between these two nations could have course-corrected but did not. It also turns the searchlight on the key personalities involved-Jawaharlal Nehru, Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai and the 14th Dalai Lama-and their interactions as the tournament of those years was played out, moving step by closer step to the conflict of 1962.

Competing Nationalisms

Rajshree Chandra

As a member of the Congress and of the Hindu Mahasabha; as a Hindu nationalist who wanted to combine religion with civic virtues; as a Gandhian and an ‘ascetic nationalist’ seeking freedom in a political world, Jagat Narain Lal’s life becomes a mirror for the times in which a mix of religiosity, spirituality and ritual could not be separated from either the social or the political field. His life and times give us a glimpse into the intersecting, contesting and mutating idioms of nationalism. In his anxieties, vulnerability, negotiations and truth-telling, we glimpse Indian nationalism’s own fraught relationship with questions of identity, faith and nationhood.

In leafing through her grandfather’s life, page by yellowed page, Chandra presents not just his political biography but, in a sense, a personal biography of Indian nationalism as well.

10 new audiobooks to listen to right now!

Posted on October 1, 2021October 1, 2021 by malika

Bookworms can sometimes have too much on their plate, have sore eyes or just be in a situation where reading is impossible. But you know what? Don’t let that get you down because we’ve got the perfect answer to your prayers. Be it while doing chores or travelling or simply being too tired to read, audiobooks will have your back. Here are ten of the newest audiobooks we’ve just released. We’re certain you won’t want to hit pause on any of these!

Audiobook — Corporate Divas||Sonia Golani

Corporate Divas

Eighteen extremely talented and determined women have balanced the home and the boardroom with equal aplomb, setting standards in the corporate world for all to follow. Corporate Divas offers inspiring insights into what motivates and sustains India’s leading corporate women. Through a series of in-depth conversations, this book reveals the unconventional styles and the secret mantras they use to achieve phenomenal success in their professions. A riveting and an uplifting listen, it is an indispensable resource for anyone striving to build the right attitudes for success in today’s highly competitive global environment.

The Vijay Mallya Story

Giriprakash’s book, titled The Vijay Mallya Story, is an intriguing story of the life of Vijay Mallya, an Indian industrialist with a history of ground breaking success. He was given numerous titles, like the King of Good Times, The Liquor King of India, King of Good Thrones, and many more. The making of this industrial tycoon, his success story, the story of his decline with the downfall of Kingfisher, and a lot of important events from his life are presented in the book.

Vijay Mallya is a name that has been heard with relation to a lot of important and prime events, be it through his presence in Indian parliament, being an owner of IPL team Royal Challengers, Bangalore, or being an industrialist. Giriprakash has included lesser-known facts and stories from the professional events of Mallya’s life in this book. Mallya had three decades of success with numerous businesses. The book not merely includes the professional life of Mallya but also of his childhood events, the business acumen he was born with, and how he shared his relationship with his father. The book explains how his skills and the business-dealing abilities got him a long period of unmatched success, while the fall of Kingfisher has been a break in his reign.

The author has done in-depth research on Mallya’s life, and the major and minor events of his business life with some interesting details of his young days are all

Roses Are Blood Red: Even True Love Has a Dangerous Side

“I’ll gift you a love story that every girl desires, but few get to live.”

He’d told me once. And boy, did he stick to his words! Vanav Thakur is the most perfect boyfriend that any girl can have. He ticks every box you can ever have for your Mr. Right. Trust me on this. He cares for me, respects me, never objectifies me, never says no to me for anything, understands me, is progressive, and has no shadow of any male chauvinism in him. Sometimes, I wonder if I really deserve him. My parents, like me, had no option but to accept him as my boyfriend. Everything was hunky-dory, and I thought I would be that one girl who would never have any relationship hiccup until I stumbled upon the reason behind his perfection.

I’m Aarisha Shergill, and my life is about to get ripped apart because I should have known some things should be left alone.

Is love capable of healing the deep wounds that love itself creates within you?

Mysteriously thrilling in its essence, Roses Are Blood Red is the haunting story of a passion and eternal love.

The Mind of a Consultant

Management consulting is seen as a glamorous profession. Behind the mystique are the consultants who put in extraordinary effort, synthesize great problem-solving skills, and display fine personal attributes that enable them to capture the attention and respect of their clients. This book opens up to that world through the story of Samanta Thomas, a character based on countless excellent consultants, through whom we get inside the very mind of a consultant and their journey. As you traverse the journey of a management graduate growing to a partner in a top consulting firm, The Mind of a Consultant helps you understand various key skills that makes a successful consultant. The real-life experiences of consulting leaders bridge the gap between concepts and practical insights.

Problem-solving, management models, financial acumen, client management, leadership, networking, and work-life integration – this book hands you the tools to professional career success in a hands-on and easy-to-understand manner.

Life in the Uniform: The Adventures of an IPS Officer in Bihar

Amit Lodha is a decorated IPS officer holding the rank of inspector general. But before he rose the ranks in the service, he was an IIT graduate who was struggling to find his true purpose.

In this book, Lodha tells us how he turned his life around and studied for the UPSC exams. He also tells us how he trained to be an officer and had the most memorable beginning to his career, in Bihar. Punctuated with his signature humour and adventure-packed stories on everything from solving a kidnapping to handling a mob, Life in the Uniform gives us a chance to experience an IPS officer’s life through his own eyes.

My Olympic Journey

Chronicling the stories of 50 of India’s leading Olympians for the first time ever in one comprehensive edition, Digvijay Singh Deo and Amit Bose bring you the games through the eyes of some of the best sportspersons in the country. These first-person accounts of Olympic medalists from 1948 till 2012, such as Balbir Singh, Leander Paes, Karnam Malleswari, Abhinav Bindra, and Sushil Kumar, and pioneers like Milkha Singh, P. T. Usha, and Anjali Bhagwat, reveal their hopes, superstitions, grit, and challenges. Their experiences and interactions are sure to make you laugh and shed a tear and, most importantly, open your eyes to the struggles they had to endure to reach the Olympics.

These personal stories give a close-up view of what it means to represent India at the most prestigious sporting event in the world, making you a part of the soaring glory and shattering disappointment that only an Olympic Games can deliver. With photos from the personal archives of each athlete, this is a front-row seat to the privileged Olympic experience.

Ground Scorching Tax

On 1 July 2017, Goods and Services Tax (GST) became a reality. The government hailed it as the biggest tax reform of independent India which would herald a new freedom for the nation and unify it with ‘One Nation One Tax’. Some of the claims made by the government were that GST would bring about ease of doing business; increase tax collection; lower inflation; increase GDP growth by one to two percent; and check the black economy.

More than a year later, we have more questions than answers.

Why did the economy slow down?
Is the government likely to collect more taxes?
Why have prices continued to rise?
Why has Malaysia withdrawn GST?

Turns out that problems with GST are both transitional and structural. To correct for these, there have been a few hundred notifications and orders from the government which have added to the confusion.

In this book, well known economist Arun Kumar explains the reality behind GST. Known for not pulling any punches, the author explains why GST is a double-edged sword for the common man, why it will increase inequality across sectors and regions, why it will hurt small businesses – everything the government does not want you to know.

Shadow City

When Taran N. Khan first arrived in Kabul in the spring of 2006 – five years after the Taliban government was overthrown – she found a city both familiar and unknown. Falling in with poets, archaeologists, and filmmakers, she begins to explore the city, and, over the course of several returns, discovers a Kabul quite different from the one she had expected.

Shadow City is an account of these expeditions, a personal and meditative portrait of a city we know primarily in terms of conflict. With Khan as our guide, we move from the glitter of wedding halls to the imperiled beauty of a Buddhist monastery, slip inside a beauty salon and wander through book markets. But as these walks take us deeper into the city, it becomes clear that to talk of Kabul’s various wars in the past tense is a mistake.

Part reportage and part reflection, Shadow City is an elegiac prose map of Kabul’s hidden spaces – and the cities that we carry within us.

Across The Line

A tale of borders and beliefs shaped by the games people play.

The year: 1947. New Delhi. Cyril Radcliffe’s hands are clammy, partly from the heat but mostly from the enormity of the task assigned. Mopping the sweat off his brow, he picks up his pen, draws a deep breath – and a dark line.

Rawalpindi. A barbaric frenzy of rioters fills the streets, disrupting a game of pithoo between Toshi and her brother, Tarlok, shattering their lives unimaginably.

The year: 2008. Rawalpindi. Cricket-crazy Inaya is sneaking out behind her father’s back for net practice when she discovers that she is not the only one in her family keeping a secret.

New Delhi. Jai accidentally stumbles upon an old, hidden away diary in his kitchen. The date of its last entry: August 17, 1947.

As Jai and Inaya’s unlikely worlds collide, another story unfolds. A story that started with the drawing of a line. A story that shifts the truth in their lives.

Karma

A much-used word, karma is loosely understood as a system of checks and balances in our lives, of good actions and bad deeds, of good thoughts and bad intentions. A system that seemingly ensures that at the end of the day one gets what one deserves. This grossly oversimplified understanding has created many complexities in our lives and taken away from us the very fundamentals of the joy of living.

Through this book, not only does Sadhguru explain what karma is and how we can use its concepts to enhance our lives, he also tells us about the sutras, a step-by-step guide to navigating our way in this challenging world. In the process, we get a deeper, richer understanding of life and the power to craft our destinies.

Happy listening!

This fall’s book haul

Posted on September 1, 2021September 1, 2021 by malika

Yes, we have made it to September, said goodbye to ‘hot girl summer’ and prepared ourselves for the lazy season. But before you go asking people to wake you up when September ends, you have to see all the amazing book releases you’d miss if you chose the Sleeping Beauty life. Our latest literary haul has the potential to keep you occupied until next fall. If you take our advice into consideration, we’d suggest you settle down with a strong cup of your favourite caffeinated beverage instead, because you’re going to want to stay awake for this months reading recommendations.

September reads — The Elephant in the Womb||Kalki Koechlin

The Elephant in the Womb

Motherhood is the greatest job in the world…right?

In this unique graphic narrative, we finally have that candid, funny and relatable book on pregnancy and parenting that mothers, expectant mothers, and anyone even thinking about motherhood have been waiting for. Actor and writer Kalki Koechlin opens up about so much that we don’t talk about-the social stigma of abortions and unmarried pregnancies, the toll that pregnancy takes on a body, the unacknowledged domestic labour of women, the emotional rollercoaster of giving birth, bouts of postpartum melancholy, the unsolicited parenting advice from every corner, and of course the innumerable moments of joy and delight in bringing a real little person into this very weird world.

With whimsy and compassion, with uproariously funny art and spellbinding honesty, The Elephant in the Womb blends the deeply private with the blazingly political. It’s an eye-opener for anyone who has ever thought that pregnancy was all about the glow and that motherhood was all about fulfilment. From fixing broken parts to enduring untimely farts, Koechlin’s nuanced prose-gorgeously illustrated by Valeriya Polyanychko-tells us the bare-faced truth about the physiological discomfort and manic expectations that make it a bittersweet experience.

With a combination of personal essays and think-pieces, journal entries captured in real time, reflections and anecdotes, this is the motherload!

The Blind Matriarch

The blind matriarch, Matangi-Ma, lives on the topmost floor of an old house with many stories. From her eyrie, she hovers unseeingly over the lives of her family. Her long-time companion Lali is her emissary to the world. Her three children are by turn overprotective and dismissive of her. Her grandchildren are coming to terms with old secrets and growing pains. Life goes on this way until one day the world comes to a standstill-and they all begin to look inward.

This assured novel records the different registers in the complex inner life of an extended family. Like
the nation itself, the strict hierarchy of the joint-family home can be dysfunctional, and yet it is this home that often provides unexpected relief and succour to the vulnerable within its walls.

As certainties dissolve, endings lead to new beginnings. Structured with the warp of memory and the weft of conjoined lives, the narrative follows middle India, even as it records the struggles for individual growth, with successive generations trying to break out of the stranglehold of the all-encompassing Indian family.

Ebbing and flowing like the waves of a pandemic, the novel is a clear-eyed chronicle of the tragedies of India’s encounter with the Coronavirus, the cynicism and despair that accompanied it, and the resilience and strength of the human spirit.

On A Wing and a Prayer

What would you do if your life turned upside down overnight?

Witnessing the devastation of 9/11 before his eyes and narrowly escaping death, Kushal’s life was never going to be the same again. Suddenly, all his pursuits felt meaningless and he felt a void within him like he had never felt before-until one day, when he reluctantly decided to spend an afternoon with a spiritual master in New York City.

From being a Wall Street trader immersed in the material world to embarking on a quest to find answers to life’s biggest questions, Kushal Choksi writes about his doubts, struggles and revelations on a spiritual path as a left-brained sceptic.

On a Wing and a Prayer is one such (true) account of one man finding himself on a fifteen-year long journey shadowing the spiritual leader Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

The Lovers of Rampore

In The Lovers of Rampore, Ashok Chopra delves into the many mysterious forms of love thus introducing a mystic quality to the everyday lives of his characters. From the thrills of lust to the joys and fears of genuine commitment, to the exploration of desire and dispassion that exist in all relationships, this is the story of love in all its different manifestations.

Raja Rajvendra Veer Bahadur Singh married Rani Padmakshi Devi Singh, a woman thirty-three years younger to him, after losing his first wife. Theirs is a love built on respect, trust and the desire to support each other against all odds. In Rampore, their son, the dashing Yuvraj, is curiously averse to the very ideals his parents’ marriage embodies, choosing instead the path of instant gratification. In Mumbai, we’re introduced to Vikram Desai-an enigmatic architect whose principles, charm and persona change the course of all those whom he interacts with.

Ashok Chopra weaves a contemporary Bayeux tapestry of richly detailed stories which are mature, slow-burning and strum with a quiet passion that cuts across class, gender, and age, fundamentally altering the way we perceive love. In doing so, he also challenges society’s archaic understanding of the bonding between people.

10 Steps to the Boardroom

There is no linear path to reach the top. In today’s day and age, when there is so much competition and nepotism that is being spoken about, one has to wonder: Does talent and merit have a chance? In my opinion, they do. So how does one knock on the door of success and reach the boardroom?

This book takes you through the crucial ten steps you need to climb as you progress in your career to reach the top via the author’s own personal journey. Each chapter deals with one specific quality that a CEO is required to have and is accompanied with a worksheet next to it that will help you chart your growth. Peppered with wisdom and experience, each story will help you understand the implications of your decisions and the right career stage that one should look at making a move. An absolute must-have for anyone looking to make a mark in their corporate career.

The Battle of Rezang La

On 18 November 1962, the Charlie Company of the 13 Kumaon Battalion, Kumaon Regiment, fought a Chinese attack at Rezang La Pass in Ladakh, India. The company comprised 120 soldiers and was led by Maj. Shaitan Singh. Of these soldiers, 110 were martyred in the attack.

The Indian search party, which visited the battlefield on 10 February 1963, made a startling discovery-the frozen bodies of the men who had died were still holding guns in their hands, having taken bullets on their chests. One PVC (Param Vir Chakra), eight VCs (Vir Chakras), four SMs (Sena Medals) and one M-in-D (Mentioned-in-Dispatches) were awarded to the soldiers of the Charlie Company, making it one of the highest decorated companies of the Indian Army to this day. The valour of the Charlie Company not only successfully stopped China’s advance, but it also resulted in the Chushul airport being saved, thereby preventing a possible Chinese occupation of the entire Ladakh region in 1962. According to reports, a total of 1300 Chinese soldiers were killed trying to capture Rezang La. The Charlie Company was an all-Ahir company, and most of the soldiers who fought the battle at 18,000 feet came from the plains of Haryana. The Battle of Rezang La is their story.

Yogiplate: The Basics of Sattvik

Ayurvedic diet varies by body type, a person’s nature, their lifestyle and the food they grew up eating. Nobody knows that better than Radhavallabha Das, who cooked for thousands of devotees and monks at the ISKCON ashram in Mumbai and the adjoining Govinda’s restaurant.

In Yogiplate, he teaches us how to identify our unique body type, lists the vegetables, fruits, grains and spices that will suit us, and e xplains how sāttvic food nourishes the body, mind and inner soul. Written in a conversational style, Radhavallabha shows us how to pair the correct ingredients, avoid the ones that are harmful to us, and focus on the oil, salt and water that we use for cooking.

This book will teach you how to tailor a unique diet that will form the foundation of a happy and healthy life.

The Unforgiving City and Other Stories

From the Karnataka Sahitya Akademi winner Vasudhendra comes a powerful collection of stories that shock, move and amuse by turns. As the characters struggle to find their feet in a fast-changing India, they mirror our unspoken dilemmas, torn loyalties and the loss of innocence.

In the extremely popular ‘Red Parrot’, an innocuous image from childhood returns to haunt a man when he visits his idyllic hometown. In ‘Recession’, the desire for a child leads a couple down unexpected paths. In other stories, a young woman in love rethinks her future when buried family secrets are suddenly revealed; a boy learns that insomnia may be the symptom of something more ominous; lonely apartment residents discover the thrills and perils of social media.

Deftly crafted with gentle wit and a lightness of touch, each gripping story exposes the deepest contradictions of modern life. The fluid translation retains the flavour and nuances of the original Kannada, creating a rich reading experience.

Sita

In her, we find someone who is so divine yet so human.

In this poignant narration, Bhanumathi shows us the world through the eyes of Sita. We think what Sita thinks, we feel what she feels, and for these few special moments, we become a part of her. And perhaps, through this perspective, and Sita’s immortal story, we will discover the true strength of a woman.

Passionate about Baking: Everything Chocolate

A home baker for over 20 years, food stylist and photographer Deeba Rajpal put her passion to the test when she decided to blog about her adventures in the kitchen. Soon, her simple yet delectable dessert recipes accompanied by beautiful, evocative imagery struck a chord with people across the globe, turning her blog, Passionate about Baking, into one of the most popular blogs in the country.

Good Genes Gone Bad

The field of biotechnology has evolved over the past four decades, developing medicines which are curing diseases. But this journey of success has been tough and arduous, built upon the shoulders of major failures.
Good Genes Gone Bad highlights seven such colossal failures in drug development-all of which culminated in the development of novel drugs-weaving together various analogies through the stories and thus allowing the reader to understand complex biological phenomena. These stories include treatment of medical conditions such as genetic clotting disorder (haemophilia), childhood-diarrhoea (rotavirus vaccine), preventing HIV infection, activation of the immune systems to treat cancer, gene therapy for treatment of diseases caused by gene-defects/mutations, cell therapy for treatment of leukaemias, and finally the success of Biocon’s approval of the first biologic drug for breast cancer.
Written by the former R&D head of Biocon, India’s largest pharmaceutical company, Good Genes Gone Bad is a fascinating look at the complex world of medicine and drug development, providing the readers with a sense of magnitude of challenges and the extent of difficulty that it takes to make novel medicines.

Economist Gandhi

The Political Economy of the Mahatma, Its Roots and Relevance.

This book is a refreshing take on Gandhi’s economic philosophy. It provides insights into the hidden facet of Gandhi’s personality, and his thoughts on economics and capitalism. The book captures aspects of Gandhi’s thinking usually missed by those who are sure they know Gandhi.

This is probably the first book on Gandhi that claims that Gandhi was not against business and capitalists. In fact, the author maintains that Gandhi was a Baniya by caste, and this is what explains Gandhi’s positive approach towards business, trade and wealth.

Kathmandu Dilemma

The first two decades of the new millennium have witnessed a dramatic socio-political transformation of Nepal. A violent Maoist insurgency ended peacefully, a new constitution abolished the monarchy and established a secular federal democratic republic. Nevertheless, political stability and a peace dividend have both remained
elusive. Nepal is also buffeted by changing geopolitics, including the US-China contestation for influence
and the uneasy relationship between India and China.

As a close neighbour, India has been deeply associated with the seminal changes in Nepal, and the bilateral relationship has seen many twists and turns. Partly a memoir, this book examines India’s perspective on these developments, in the context of the civilizational and economic underpinnings of the India-Nepal
relationship, as well as issues that continue to prevent this relationship from exploiting its full potential. Though there are several Nepalese accounts that deal with this subject, there are few from an Indian point of view. Kathmandu Dilemma fills this gap.

A Thousand Cuts: An Innocent

In 2010, T.J. Joseph, a professor of Malayalam at Newman College, Kerala, framed an innocuous question for an internal examination that changed his life forever. Following a trumped-up charge of blasphemy, members of a radical Islamist organization set upon him in public, viciously maiming him and chopping off his right hand. His memoir, told with amazing restraint and wry humour, is the moving tale of his life and family as they went through hell and beyond. Here’s the extraordinary story of a man who survived dismembering only to be betrayed by his
own Church. Let alone stand by him, it robbed him of his livelihood and isolated him from his community, driving Joseph’s long-suffering wife to melancholia and eventual suicide. Joseph’s story is one of fortitude, will power, forgiveness and compassion, told with rare wit that will make readers chuckle through their tears.
This is a tale that will leave the reader seething, weeping and smiling by turns.

Eternal Echoes

Beautifully designed, Eternal Echoes is a compilation of poems by Sadhguru between the time period of 1994 and 2021. These poems cover every aspect of his life and travels. There are poems on nature, environment, human nature, the experiences, and resonances he has felt during these three decades and many more. These poems seem simple at first. However, as one reads, one begins to understand the hidden layers within. The words and meanings linger on…

This book is a very special collector’s item for all the followers of Sadhguru that they can savour for years to come. It is also perfect as a gift to loved ones

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