Army and Nation by Steven I. Wilkinson

Army and Nation is a book focussed on the Indian army and its relationship with the civil leadership of India. The book mostly explores the ethnic composition of the Indian army and the early reforms carried out by the Congress after Independence. It also contrasts these two factors with the Pakistani army and the larger…

The Discovery of India by Jawaharlal Nehru

I recently finished reading ‘The Discovery of India’ written by the first Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru.  The book in the image above is my Dad’s book from around 30 years ago which made reading it a unique experience. The print was clean and only a five to six lines in the whole book…

The Invisible Life of Addie Larue by V.E Schwab

This was the first contemporary fiction I read in a couple of years, on the recommendation of a friend. It did not disappoint. The Invisible Life of Addie Larue was tragically mystical and beautifully written. Thematically, it spoke to me and the characters were phenomenally deep and memorable. Two major aspects of this book stand…

Pakistan or the Partition of India by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar

This book written by B.R. Ambedkar analyses one of the most complex problems faced by India before independence. The question of partitioning India is such a divisive problem that it will always leave one side dissatisfied with the outcome. It has no simple solution and the questions it throws up are fundamental and uncomfortable. Some…

India’s Founding Moment : The Constitution of a Most Surprising Democracy by Madhav Khosla

I wanted to learn about the conception of the Indian Constitution. I found this book which explored the major predicaments faced by the constituent assembly and the thought process behind the structure of the constitution. It is an interesting book that explores the dilemmas faced by the founding fathers while writing a constitution for a…

Annihilation of Caste by B.R. Ambedkar

Annihilation of Caste is a thought provoking book which dissects Hinduism and lays out a sharp, unapologetic critique of it. There were sections of this book where I was laughing at how audacious the ideas were and how offensive the language would have been to a deeply religious Hindu. It is hard to believe that…

The Gulag Archipelago by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

I read ‘The Gulag Archipelago Volume I’ about six months ago. Unfortunately, I did not write a review at the time and therefore this review may not capture all my detailed thoughts on this book. I should re-read this book in the future and would like to read volume II at some point. Despite the…

What Makes Re:Zero Special

Picture Credits: wallpaperaccess.com At the moment the anime eclipsing all other anime is ‘Attack on Titan’. It is currently airing part one of it’s final season. This season is capitalizing on all the build up of the previous seasons and is delivering a stellar finale. Despite its exploits, one anime is holding it’s own with…

Cricket: The Beauty in a Draw

The test match at Sydney ended a couple of days ago. It will be remembered for one of the greatest example of resilience shown in cricket, especially in recent history. Draws aren’t a norm in test cricket these days. There used to be a time about a 15 years ago when Draws were regular. So…

Contrasting Slavoj Zizek with Jordan Peterson

I first watched Slavoj Zizek when he debated Jordan Peterson in ‘The debate that was not’. Most of the debate was Slavoj and Jordan discussing their commonalities than actually debating on their differences. Yet as personalities both these individuals are starkly different.   Slavoj challenged a few of Jordan Peterson’s rules, especially about personal responsibility.…