An immersive portrait of the lives of the British in India, from the seventeenth century to Independence Who of the British went to India, and why? We know about Kipling and Forster, Orwell and Scott, but what of the youthful forestry official, the enterprising boxwallah, the fervid missionary? What motivated them to travel halfway around the globe, what lives did they lead when they got there, and what did they think about it all? Full of spirited, illuminating anecdotes drawn from long-forgotten memoirs, correspondence, and government documents, The British in India weaves a rich tapestry of the everyday experiences of the Britons who found themselves in “the jewel in the crown” of the British Empire. David Gilmour captures the substance and texture of their work, home, and social lives, and illustrates how these transformed across the several centuries of British presence and rule in the subcontinent, from the East India Company’s first trading station in 1615 to the twilight of the Raj and Partition and Independence in 1947. He takes us through remote hill stations, bustling coastal ports, opulent palaces, regimented cantonments, and dense jungles, revealing the country as seen through British eyes, and wittily reveling in all the particular concerns and contradictions that were a consequence of that limited perspective. The British in India is a breathtaking accomplishment, a vivid and balanced history written with brio, elegance, and erudition.

A collection of papers that interprets afresh, known facts about the early period of Indian history up to the end of the first millennium AD. The papers discuss several associated themes such as society and religion, social classification and mobility and the study of regional history. A useful reference book for postgraduate students of History.

In this fascinating account of one of the least known parts of South Asia, Eaton recounts the history of the Deccan plateau in southern India from the fourteenth century to the rise of European colonialism. He does so, vividly, through the lives of eight Indians who lived at different times during this period, and who each represented something particular about the Deccan. In the first chapter, for example, the author describes the demise of the regional kingdom through the life of a maharaja. In the second, a Sufi sheikh illustrates Muslim piety and state authority. Other characters include a merchant, a general, a slave, a poet, a bandit and a female pawnbroker. Their stories are woven together into a rich narrative tapestry, which illumines the most important social processes of the Deccan across four centuries. This is a much-needed book by the most highly regarded scholar in the field.

A Social History of Indian Football covers the period 1850-2004. It considers soccer as a derivative sport, creatively and imaginatively adapted to suit modern Indian socio-cultural needs - designed to fulfil political imperatives and satisfy economic aspirations. The book is concerned with the appropriation, assimilation and subversion of sporting ideals in colonial and post-colonial India for nationalist needs. The book assesses the role of soccer in colonial Indian life, to delineate the inter-relationship between those who patronised, promoted, played and viewed the game, to analyse the impact of the colonial context on the games evolution and development and shed light on the diverse nature of trysts with the sport across the country. Throughout this book, soccer is the lens that illuminates India's colonial and post-colonial encounter. This volume was previously published as a special issue of the journal Soccer and Society.

Cultural History Of India Has Been Divided Into Three Parts To Discuss Various Aspects Of Development Of Indian Culture. It Talks About How Religions Such As The Vedic Religion, Buddhism, Jainism, Saivism And Vaisnavism Aimed At Securing Social Harmony, Moral Upliftment, And Inculcated A Sense Of Duty In The Individual. The Development Of Indian Art And Architecture Was A Creative Effort To Project Symbols Of Divine Reality As Conceived And Understood By The Collective Consciousness Of The People As A Whole. The Book Also Focuses On Social Intuitions, Educational Systems And Economic Organisation In Ancient India. Finally, The Book Discusses The Dietary System Of Indians From Pre-Historic Times To C. 1200 A.D. The Basis For Inclusion Of Food And Drinks In The Book On Indian Culture Is That Ancient Indians Believed That Food Not Only Kept An Individual Healthy, But Was Also Responsible For His Mental Make Up.According To The Author, It Is Of Utmost Importance That The Present Generation Imbibe Those Elements Of Indian Culture Which Have Kept India Vital And Going Through Its Long And Continuous History .Cultural History Of India Is An Extremely Useful Journal On Indian History And Culture For All Readers, Both In India And Abroad. It Is Therefore A Must-Read For All Interested In Indias Proud Past, Which Forms The Eternal Bed-Rock Of Its Fateful Present And Glorious Future. It Is An Academic Book Very Useful For Student Of History Aspiring For I.A.S.

Are Indian women powerful mother goddesses, or domestic handmaidens trailing behind men in literacy, wages, opportunities, and rights? Have they been agents of their own destinies, or voiceless victims of patriarchy? Behind these colorful over-simplifications lies the reality of many feminine personas belonging to various classes, ethnicities, religions, and castes. This two-volume set looks at Indian history from ancient to modern times, revealing precisely why ideas of gender rights were not static across eras or regions. Raman's work is a reflection on the various ways in which women in a non-Western culture have developed and expressed their own feminist agenda. Are Indian women powerful mother goddesses, or domestic handmaidens trailing behind men in literacy, wages, opportunities, and rights? Have they been agents of their own destinies, or voiceless victims of patriarchy? Behind these coloful over-simplifications lies the reality of many feminine personas belonging to various classes, ethnicities, religions, and castes. This two-volume set looks at Indian history from ancient to modern times, revealing precisely why ideas of gender rights were not static across eras or regions. Raman's work is a reflection on the various ways in which women in a non-western culture have developed and expressed their own feminist agenda. Individual chapters highlight the enduring legacies of many important male and female figures, illustrating how each played a key role in modifying the substance of women's lives. Political movements are examined as well, such as the nationalist reform movement of 1947 in which the ideal of Indian womanhood became central to the nation and the push for independence. Also included is a survey of women in contemporary India and the role they played in the resurgence of militant Hindu nationalism. Aside from being an engaging and readable narrative of Indian history, this set integrates women's issues, roles, and achievements into the general study of the times, providing a clear presentation of the social, cultural, religious, political, and economic realities that have helped shape the identity of Indian women.

Contributed seminar papers.

The Book Deals With All Aspects Of Social And Cultural History Of India Since 1556 In Detail And In A Simple Lucid Manner. The First Five Chapters Of The Book Make A Quick Survey Of The Social And Cultural History Of India From Mughals To The 19Th Century. The Next Five Chapters Deal With Indian Islam, Growth Of New India, Regeneration Of Indian Society, The Freedom Struggle And March Of Free India.Overwhelming Stress Has Been Laid On Social And Cultural Affairs Throughout This Book. An Attempt Has Been Made To Describe How Men And Women Lived And Thought And How Their Lives Influenced By The Great Figures That Have Passed Were Of Human History. The Descriptions Are Brief And Accurate. The Chapter On The Freedom Struggle Takes Readers Back Again To British India Where The Intense Struggles Were At Length Fought Out During The British Period With Its Far Reaching Results For Good And Ill.The Book Would Be Of Great Value To The Students As Well As The Teachers. Even A Laymen Would Enjoy Reading The Book Because Of Its Simple Style.

Jumbos and Jumping Devils is a pioneering exploration of the social history of circus in India over the last 150 years. It presents a wide variety of amazing tales ranging from the blooming and evolution of circus acrobatics in early twentieth-century Malabar to the sensational legal battles following the ban of wild animals and children from the circus ring in the twenty-first century. Alongside extensive fieldwork and interviews, the author has used memorabilia including photographs, notices, posters, letters, diaries, unpublished autobiographies, private papers, and recollections of the circus community to chronicle the hitherto untold story of the Indian circus. The book paves the way for a new sociocultural analysis of performance genres and popular culture in the subcontinent against several overlapping contexts. These include the remaking of caste and gender identities, transformation of physical cultures and bodies, interventions of the colonial and postcolonial states, and emergence of new transregional and transnational spaces.