"A drama as poignant as any a novelist could create—a love story that led to murder. For true-crime aficionados and followers of the troubled history of Nepal." — BooklistOn June 1, 2001, the heir to the Nepalese throne, Crown Prince Dipendra, donned military fatigues, armed himself with automatic weapons, walked in on a quiet family gathering, and, without a word, mowed his family down before turning a gun on himself. But Dipendra did not...

India is a vast country in Southern Asia and is the land of great natural diversity. A proud country that has been home to many civilizations, religions and peoples over the centuries. The earliest civilization in the Indian subcontinent grew around Harappa and Indus Valley.

Here is an authentic account of a brief, momentous event that preceded Indias Independence fifty years ago. This is a personal account by the author, a junior naval officer at the time, caught by chance at the centre of the disturbances in Bombay, and it indicates their far reaching implicationsthe historic trials in New Delhi, when Nehru was one of the defence lawyers of the Indian National Army, Gandhis philosophy of non-violence and the significance of India becoming the first Republic of ...

2017 Bentley Book Prize, World History AssociationLinking four continents over three centuries, Selling Empire demonstrates the centrality of India — both as an idea and a place — to the making of a global British imperial system. In the seventeenth century, Britain was economically, politically, and militarily weaker than India, but Britons increasingly made use of India’s strengths to build their own empire in both America and Asia. Early English colonial promoters first...

At the beginning of the 21st century, alcoholism, transnational drug trafficking and drug addiction constitute major problems in various South Asian countries. The production, circulation and consumption of intoxicating substances created (and responded to) social upheavals in the region and had widespread economic, political and cultural repercussions on an international level. This book looks at the cultural, social, and economic history of intoxicants in South Asia, and analyses the rol...

This volume focuses on the religious shrine in western India as an institution of cultural integration in the period spanning 200 BCE to 800 CE. It presents an analysis of religious architecture at multiple levels, both temporal and spatial, and distinguishes it as a ritual instrument that integrates individuals and communities into a cultural fabric. The work shows how these structures emphasise on communication with a host of audiences such as the lay worshipper, the ritual specialist, t...

Providing a comprehensive survey of cutting edge scholarship in the field of German--Indian and South Asian Studies*,* the book looks at the history of German--Indian relations in the spheres of culture, politics, and intellectual life. Combining transnational, post-colonial, and comparative approaches, it includes the entire twentieth century, from the First World War and Weimar Republic to the Third Reich and Cold War era.The book first examines the ways in which nineteenth-centu...

"The Legend of Ponnivala" is a vast, ancient epic from the Kongu region of South India, where it is known as the "Annanmar Kathai" or "Elder Brothers' Story." It is the story of three generations of a farming family who through their exploits and the intercession of the Hindu gods rise to become kings of their region. Previously only told orally by bards in the local area, it is surprisingly accurate in its accounts of historical events, and has close ties to...

This book presents a comprehensive account of the transformation of Assam's forests and ecology from early nineteenth century to the end of the twentieth century. It locates present-day ecological conflicts in the colonial era when contest over forest, land, and resource began to take new shape. Arupjyoti Saikia delineates how forest resources in Assam were mapped and intergrated with mechant capitalism since the early nineteenth century. He shows how imperial forestry practices led to cha...

Vibrant, dynamic, spirited and forceful. The contemporary women’s movement in India, which began in the late 1970s protested against the dark times, the violence and the misogyny. It also colourfully celebrated liberation, solidarity among women and breaking the shackles of patriarchy. It sang, performed and painted, to draw attention to the burning issues of the time: dowry death, widow immolation, acid throwing and rape. Over the past three decades, the women’s movement has matured and broa...

In 1909, while still in South Africa, Gandhi publicly decried the caste system for its inequalities. Shortly after his return to India though, he spoke of the generally beneficial aspects of caste. Gandhi’s writings on caste reflect contradictory views and his critics accuse him of neglecting the unequal socio-economic structure that relegated Dalits to the bottom of the caste hierarchy. So, did Gandhi endorse the fourfold division of the Indian society or was he truly against caste? In th...