Shortlisted for the Cundill History Prize “Remarkable and pathbreaking...A radical rethink of colonial historiography and a compelling argument for the reassessment of the historical traditions of Hindustan.” —Mahmood Mamdani “The brilliance of Asif’s book rests in the way he makes readers think about the name ‘Hindustan’...Asif’s focus is Indian history but it is, at the same time, a lens to look at questions far bigger.” —Soni Wadhwa, Asian Review of Books “Remarkable...Asif’s analysis and conclusions are powerful and poignant.” —Rudrangshu Mukherjee, The Wire “A tremendous contribution...This is not only a book that you must read, but also one that you must chew over and debate.” —Audrey Truschke, Current History Did India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh have a shared regional identity prior to the arrival of Europeans in the late fifteenth century? Manan Ahmed Asif tackles this contentious question by inviting us to reconsider the work and legacy of the influential historian Muhammad Qasim Firishta, a contemporary of the Mughal emperors Akbar and Jahangir. Inspired by his reading of Firishta and other historians, Asif seeks to rescue our understanding of the region from colonial narratives that emphasize difference and division. Asif argues that a European understanding of India as Hindu has replaced an earlier, native understanding of India as Hindustan, a home for all faiths. Turning to the subcontinent’s medieval past, he uncovers a rich network of historians of Hindustan who imagined, studied, and shaped their kings, cities, and societies. The Loss of Hindustan reveals how multicultural Hindustan was deliberately eclipsed in favor of the religiously partitioned world of today. A magisterial work with far reaching implications, it offers a radical reinterpretation of how India came to its contemporary political identity.

The decade from the 2008 global financial crisis to the 2020 coronavirus pandemic has seen a real transformation of the world order. The very nature of international relations and its rules are changing before our eyes. For India, this means optimal relationships with all the major powers to best advance its goals. It also requires a bolder and non-reciprocal approach to its neighbourhood. A global footprint is now in the making that leverages India's greater capability and relevance, as well as its unique diaspora. This era of global upheaval entails greater expectations from India, putting it on the path to becoming a leading power. In The India Way, S. Jaishankar, India's Minister of External Affairs, analyses these challenges and spells out possible policy responses. He places this thinking in the context of history and tradition, appropriate for a civilizational power that seeks to reclaim its place on the world stage.

‘Picture abhi baaki hai...’ If there’s one experience that unites India, it is cinema. In Reel India, award-winning film critic Namrata Joshi journeys through the interiors of the country intimately chronicling little-known accounts about the nation’s incessant obsession with the movies. In Lucknow, she encounters a Shah Rukh Khan fan who has embraced an alternate reality in which he lives and breathes the star. In Wai, she finds an entire economy fuelled by the film industry as the town transforms into a film set. An activist filmmaker in Odisha demonstrates how he teaches local tribal people the basics of his craft, empowering them to train the spotlight on issues threatening their habitat and livelihood. From the fever pitch of the ‘first day first show’ in makeshift halls to the rivalries of regional cinema, this is India’s immersion in the movies like it’s never been seen before. Filled with real-life stories that are as fascinating as the revelations and insights they offer, Reel India raises the curtain on the starry-eyed dreams and big-screen passions that live on after the final ‘cut’ is announced.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A READ WITH JENNA BOOK CLUB PICK! • A "gripping thriller with compassionate social commentary" (USA Today) about three unforgettable characters who seek to rise—to the middle class, to political power, to fame in the movies—and find their lives entangled in the wake of a catastrophe in contemporary India. Jivan is a Muslim girl from the slums, determined to move up in life, who is accused of executing a terrorist attack on a train because of a careless comment on Facebook. PT Sir is an opportunistic gym teacher who hitches his aspirations to a right-wing political party and finds that his own ascent becomes linked to Jivan's fall. Lovely—an irresistible outcast whose exuberant voice and dreams of glory fill the novel with warmth and hope and humor—has the alibi that can set Jivan free, but it will cost her everything she holds dear. Taut, symphonic, propulsive, and riveting from its opening lines, A Burning is an electrifying debut.

After decades of imperfect secularism, presided over by an often corrupt Congress establishment, Nehru's diverse republic has yielded to Hindu nationalism. India is collapsing under the weight of its own contradictions. Since 2014, the ruling BJP has unleashed forces that are irreversibly transforming the country. Indian democracy, honed over decades, is now the chief enabler of Hindu extremism. Bigotry has been ennobled as a healthy form of self-assertion, and anti-Muslim vitriol has deluged the mainstream, with religious minorities living in terror of a vengeful majority. Congress now mimics Modi; other parties pray for a miracle. In this blistering critique of India from Indira Gandhi to the present, Komireddi lays bare the cowardly concessions to the Hindu right, convenient distortions of India's past and demeaning bribes to minorities that led to Modi's decisive electoral victory. If secularists fail to reclaim the republic from Hindu nationalists, Komireddi argues, India will become Pakistan by another name.

On the eve of the battle of Panipat, Zahiruddin Muhammad Babur gathers his forces to fight the formidable Lodhi Sultan and regain Hindustan, the land of riches that his ancestor Temur once ruled. His confidence is boosted by his pride in the martial skills of his beloved son and heir, Humayun. But little do the father and son know that their biggest threat lies not in the fields of war, but within the intricate web of relationships they have woven around themselves-Babur with his wives, who are constantly engaged in games of one-upmanship, and Humayun with the alluring concubine Sona. Can Babur really trust anyone, even those who are closest to him? Will the Mughals be able to defeat their enemies, both outside and within? Babur: Conqueror of Hindustan narrates the story of the first Mughal emperor, Babur-poet, warrior, writer, lover, aesthete and inspiring general-and the gentle yet valiant prince, Humayun. An evocative narrative laced with searing passion and intriguing politics, this book brings to vibrant life the era of the mighty Mughals.