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Monday, August 11, 2025
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Book Excerpts

India doesn’t need to one-up enemies’ nuclear weapons. Its doctrine implies size doesn’t matter

In ‘Critical Mass’, R Rajaraman says India’s doctrine of Credible Minimum Deterrence shows matching the adversary’s arsenal shouldn't be the goal.

Buddhist viharas were sites of business. They weren’t just ‘monasteries’

In 'Tree & Serpent', John Guy traces the fascinating history of Buddhist art in India.

Creating a unified Sikh identity— why women have unisex names and the ‘Kaur’ surname

In ‘The Sikh Next Door’, Manpreet J Singh reframes the Sikhs, bending a few existing narratives and offering an impetus for a more nuanced understanding of the community.

A Moradabad-born hakim’s love for Sherlock Holmes and English gave birth to Urdu crime fiction

In 'Urdu Crime Fiction 1890–1950’, author CM Naim writes how Urdu readers in India were introduced to the adventurous tales of Sherlock Holmes by Muhammad Muhsin Faruqi.

Shaadi.com’s Angry Brides game has a modern, Durga-like woman battling India’s dowry problem

FirstCry, Paper Boat to Shaadi.Com, in ‘Booming Brands’, Harsh Pamnani traces the story of India’s 11 most successful startups.

Music & songs united Indians against ‘jalim’ British. Gandhi knew of this electric effect

In ‘Noncooperation in India’, David Hardiman recalls the history of India's non-violent resistance against the British Raj.

Mughal rulers didn’t make maps. British found this cartographic silence striking

In 'Empire Building', Rosie Llewellyn-Jones talks about traces the history of Indian cartography during the British years.

Tripura was almost part of Pakistan. Congress, Communists came together to stop this

In ‘Northeast India’, Samrat Choudhury chronicles the history of the region and how it became a part of the ‘imagined nation’ of India.

Abanindranath Tagore rejected European art. Promoted Hindu spirituality to convey ‘Indianness’

The artist is credited with the first formal response to European art, founding the Bengal School, which aimed to reimagine a distinctly Indian approach to visual art.

If Ghaggar was Saraswati, then Harappans were Rig Vedic people. Answer is in migrant memories

In 'The Indians', Rajesh Kochhar explores the history of Ghaggar, the lifeline of the Harappans.

On Camera

MBBS guidelines for students with disabilities reduce a life to a limb

The guidelines ask whether a student can climb stairs, but not whether the college has a ramp. They ask whether a student can bear weight, but not whether the system can bear the weight of its own prejudice.

How mining, manufacturing & power sectors weighed on India’s industrial output since January 2024

India’s industrial output growth saw a 10-month low in June, with Index of Industrial Production (IIP) growing by mere 1.5% as against 1.9% in May 2025.

Legacy of Air Chief Marshal LM Katre, the man who flew Spitfires & ushered IAF into a modern era

ACM Katre was 2nd IAF chief to die in harness. It was at a memorial lecture in his honour where IAF chief AP Singh revealed that India shot down 6 Pakistani aircraft in Op Sindoor.

Modi’s ready to risk it all for farmers. Farm reform can answer Trump with new Green Revolution

Standing up to America is usually not a personal risk for a leader in India. Any suggestions of foreign pressure unites India behind who they see as leading them in that fight.