Lounge

Why Abdul Kalam Was Denied a Second Term

RK Prasad

On the eve of his birth anniversary on October 15, his former private secretary makes some startling revelations about the politics behind the scenes

Languorous Unfoldings

Somak Ghoshal

An anthology by young writers that spans Mughal nostalgia to present dystopias

Speaking from the Cloisters

Nikhita Thomas

A chronicle of the life of a nun and her fight for justice

Kamila Shamsie: The Anatomy of a Friendship

Nandini Nair

In her new novel, Kamila Shamsie moves between Karachi of the late 1980s and London of today. She speaks to Open about how childhood bonds can fray and strengthen over time

The Rewards of Ambition

Rajeev Deshpande

How India moved from coercive controls to economic freedom

Mapping the Hindu Mind

Rajshree Chandra

Understanding VD Savarkar’s political thought through his idea of history

Hilary Mantel (1952-2022): Past Perfectionist

Shylashri Shankar

Hilary Mantel (1952-2022) humanised characters from history, as she was interested in where politics met psychology, where the private met the public

In a new biography of Ambedkar, Shashi Tharoor gets a measure of the constitutionalist and nation-builder, contending that an honest survey of Ambedkar’s life and its impact needs to also look at those faults for which he can be legitimately criticised without taking away from his greatness