India Revisited: Conversations on Continuity and Change

by Ramin Jahanbegloo (Editor)

Overview

In this book, Ramin Jahanbegloo converses with twenty-seven leading Indian personalities—social scientists, journalists, activists, artists, and sports persons—to gain an understanding of contemporary Indian society. Jahanbegloo, an Iranian-Canadian philosopher and Gandhi scholar, raises interesting questions about the seeming contradictions of life in India: the long history of religious tolerance juxtaposed with growing religious fundamentalism, democracy being challenged by a persistent caste system, the Indian ethos of equality contested by the low status of women, affluent urban areas that contrast with the impoverished rural tracts, among other issues. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780199087884
Publisher:	OUP India
Publication date:	07/16/2007
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	376 KB

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements     vii
Introduction: Making Sense of India     1
Being an Indian Today   Romila Thapar     9
Elements of Diversity   Kapila Vatsyayan     24
Post-Independence Evaluation   J.C. Kapoor     35
Modernity and Indian Nationalism   Partha Chatterjee     45
Gandhi and the Indian Identity   Ashis Nandy     51
The Indian Constitution: Strengths and Weaknesses   Soli Sorabji     59
Indian Democracy and Pluralism   Rajni Kothari     66
Critiquing Secularism   T.N. Madan     70
Caste in Modern India   D.L. Sheth     82
Science and Society   Surendra Prasad     106
The Indian Economy: Challenges and Uncertainties   Amit Bhaduri     112
Evaluating Education   Krishna Kumar     122
Politics and Democracy in India   M.J. Akbar     133
Buddhism and India   His Holiness   The Dalai Lama     141
Christians in India   Peter Ronald deSouza     157
Role of Parsis in Modern India   T.R. Andhyarujina     166
Challenges to Islam in India   Mushirul Hasan     173
The Indian Psyche   Sudhir Kakar     179
The Woman Question   Nivedita Menon     191
Fighting Indiscriminate Globalization   Vandana Shiva     200
Role of NGOs in People-oriented Development   Ruchira Gupta     210
The Story of Modern Indian Art   Geeta Kapur     228
Indian Classical Dance as a Genre   Sonal Mansingh     245
Evolving Architecture with an Indian Inspiration   Raj Rewal     253
Filming India   Mrinal Sen     257
Significance of Hindustani Classical Music   Madhup Mudgal     267
Cricket as an Indian Game   Prabhash Joshi     273
Notes on Interviewees     281