ABOUT THE BOOK:
Many popularly held views about the past need to be critically enquired into before they canbe taken as historical. For instance, what was the aftermath of the raid on the Somanathatemple? Which of us is Aryan or Dravidian? Why is it important for Indian society to besecular? When did communalism as an ideology gain a foothold in the country? How andwhen did our patriarchal mindset begin to support a culture of violence against women? Whyare the fundamentalists so keen to rewrite history textbooks?The answers to these and similar questions have been disputed and argued about ever sincethey were first posed. Distinguished historian Romila Thapar has investigated, analyzedand interpreted the history that underlies such questions throughout her career; now, inthis book, through a series of incisive essays she argues that it is of critical importance forthe past to be carefully and rigorously explained, if the legitimacy of our present, whereverit derives from the past, is to be portrayed as accurately as possible. This is especiallypertinent given the attempts by unscrupulous politicians, religious fundamentalists andtheir ilk to try and misrepresent and wilfully manipulate the past in order to serve theirpresent-day agendas. An essential and necessary book at a time when sectarianism, bogus'nationalism' and the muddying of historical facts are increasingly becoming a feature of ourpublic, private and intellectual lives.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Romila Thapar is Emeritus Professor of History at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, NewDelhi. She has been General President of the Indian History Congress. She is a Fellowof the British Academy and holds an Hon D.Lit. each from Calcutta University, OxfordUniversity and the University of Chicago. She is an Honorary Fellow of Lady MargaretHall, Oxford, and SOAS, London. In 2008 Professor Thapar was awarded the prestigiousKluge Prize of the US Library of Congress, which honours lifetime achievement in studiessuch as history that are not covered by the Nobel Prize.
ABOUT THE BOOK:Many popularly held views about the past need to be critically enquired into before they canbe taken as historical. For instance, what was the aftermath of the raid on the Somanathatemple? Which of us is Aryan or Dravidian? Why is it important for Indian society to besecular? When did communalism as an ideology gain a foothold in the country? How andwhen did our patriarchal mindset begin to support a culture of violence against women? Whyare the fundamentalists so keen to rewrite history textbooks?The answers to these and similar questions have been disputed and argued about ever sincethey were first posed. Distinguished historian Romila Thapar has investigated, analyzedand interpreted the history that underlies such questions throughout her career; now, inthis book, through a series of incisive essays she argues that it is of critical importance forthe past to be carefully and rigorously explained, if the legitimacy of our present, whereverit derives from the past, is to be portrayed as accurately as possible. This is especiallypertinent given the attempts by unscrupulous politicians, religious fundamentalists andtheir ilk to try and misrepresent and wilfully manipulate the past in order to serve theirpresent-day agendas. An essential and necessary book at a time when sectarianism, bogus'nationalism' and the muddying of historical facts are increasingly becoming a feature of ourpublic, private and intellectual lives.ABOUT THE AUTHOR:Romila Thapar is Emeritus Professor of History at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, NewDelhi. She has been General President of the Indian History Congress. She is a Fellowof the British Academy and holds an Hon D.Lit. each from Calcutta University, OxfordUniversity and the University of Chicago. She is an Honorary Fellow of Lady MargaretHall, Oxford, and SOAS, London. In 2008 Professor Thapar was awarded the prestigiousKluge Prize of the US Library of Congress, which honours lifetime achievement in studiessuch as history that are not covered by the Nobel Prize.