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About the BookAN EASY-TO-UNDERSTAND BUT LAYERED INTRODUCTION TO LORD RAM AS A GOD AND AS A MANThe Ramcharitmanas is undoubtedly one of the greatest lyrical compositions in Hindi literature. Writing in the sixteenth century, Tulsidas chose to pen verses in Awadhi rather than Sanskrit, thus breaking with literary tradition and importantly making Lord Ram more relatable to the layperson. Pavan K. Varma, author of the best-selling Adi Shankaracharya: Hinduism's Greatest Thinker has selected some of the most evocative stanzas-offering a succinct commentary for each-that capture the very core of the original.While centring the philosophical aspect of the Ramcharitmanas-the immutability of the soul over the merely corporeal; the transience of worldly pleasures; the placing of wisdom above knowledge-The Greatest Ode to Lord Ram describes a devoted son, a loving sibling, a committed lover, an ideal ruler and also a human, almost bereft of divinity. Indeed, Ram is a god and a man; he is comprehensible.Tulsidas's seminal work employs a unique poetic linguistic tool that unravels even the most profound concepts with utmost simplicity, blending philosophy with breath taking verse. Varma's compelling new selection and commentary achieves this effect by combining the aesthetics, romance and imagery of the original work with the unadulterated spirituality that sparkles through the conduct of a great god.About the AuthorDiplomat-writer Pavan K. Varma is the author of several best-selling books including The Great Indian Middle Class, Being Indian, Adi Shankaracharya: Hinduism's Greatest Thinker and his latest release The Great Hindu Civilisation. He was an MP in the Rajya Sabha between 2014 and 2016. Earlier, he was Advisor to the Chief Minister of Bihar, with the rank of Cabinet minister. He was India's Ambassador in several countries including Bhutan, also Director of the Nehru Centre in London, Official Spokesperson of the MEA and Press Secretary to the President of India. He was conferred an Honorary Doctoral Degree for his contribution to the fields of diplomacy, literature, culture and aesthetics by the University of Indianapolis in 2005. He was also conferred the Druk Thuksey, Bhutan's highest civilian award by His Majesty the King of Bhutan in 2012. In 2018, on the instructions of His Holiness the Shankaracharya of Sringeri he was conferred an Honorary Doctorate by Sri Sharada Institute of Indian Management. He is currently a Distinguished Professor at Symbiosis International University. He is also a well-known columnist and TV personality. Pavan K. Varma lives in Delhi and can be contacted at pavank.pa@ outlook.com and on Twitter @PavanK_Varma.

About the BookTHE BATTLE FOR MENTAL HEALTHCARE IN INDIA PIECED TOGETHER FROM THE PAGES OF HISTORYWith new insights into the human mind there is a better understanding of its disorders. Mental illness has ceased to be perceived as a mysterious malady and science offers accepted methods of diagnosis and treatment. In most countries, the mentally ill have the same rights as any other citizen. They live a life of dignity and with meaning. The days of forced confinement are gone, so too is the spectre of shame and of stigma.In India, the reform in mental healthcare began in the early 20th century, during British rule. What was it that prompted this move? Which were the new ideas that took root? Who were the people that pushed for change? How did political events and especially the World Wars and Partition affect progress? What changed when Indian doctors and administrators took over the management of mental hospitals? What did all of this mean for the treatment and care of the mentally ill?Daman Singh looks for answers to these questions in this intriguing account of a little-known battle spanning a century and more.About the AuthorDaman Singh is the author of two previous novels: Nine by Nine and The Sacred Grove. She has also written three works of non-fiction: The Last Frontier: People and Forests in Mizoram (1996), Strictly Personal (2014), a memoir of her parents Manmohan Singh and Gursharan Kaur, and Asylum: The Battle for Mental Healthcare in India (2021). She lives in Delhi with her husband and dog.

About the BookA SEARING ACCOUNT OF 1984, PACKED WITH STORIES AND MEMORIES.'I want sukh, peace, ' said Shanti. She had watched her three sons, one of them an infant, and husband torched alive by marauding mobs. The sixty-five-year-old Sikh woman from a west Delhi slum said that the police had inserted a stick inside her.The distraught man spoke a single sentence but repeated it twice in chaste Punjabi: 'Please give me a turban. I want nothing else.'In the aftermath of Indira Gandhi's assassination in 1984, 2,733 Sikhs were burnt, stabbed, beaten and otherwise hunted to their deaths across Delhi. Many of them were children. Several hundreds were killed elsewhere in the country. Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay uses personal histories to expose the truth of a state-sponsored riot: the thousands of lives that were destroyed, the cruel apathy of subsequent governments, the lack of reparations, the denial of justice. Poignant and raw, Sikhs: The Untold Agony of 1984 lays bare the innards of one of the most shameful episodes of sectarian violence in post-Independence India.About the AuthorNilanjan Mukhopadhyay embarked on a career in journalism in the early 1980s and is best known for his reportage and analysis of the rise and growth of Hindu organisations, their politics and agitations. He is among the first journalists to track the emergence of the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid conflict from the late 1980s. He has followed, and written about, the political and electoral emergence of the BJP and its allies from that period.He is the author of The Demolition: India at the Crossroads (1994), one of the first books on the Ayodhya discord and the rise of Hindutva. He is also the author of Narendra Modi: The Man, the Times (2013), The RSS: Icons of the Indian Right (2019) and The Demolition and the Verdict: Ayodhya and the Project to Reconfigure India (2021). He is a regular columnist in, and contributor to, several leading newspapers and web portals, and a well-known commentator and host on Indian television news and video channels. An unabashed college dropout, he lives in India's National Capital Region.

About the BookA SENSITIVE AND EYE-OPENING ACCOUNT OF THE LIVES OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES AND THOSE AROUND THEM'I am the mother of a child who did not fit the school system, a child who was disabled by it. She was a child who made "errors", "mistakes" that the school system was unforgiving of. We were told by the principal of an alternative school that they could not possibly admit "this kind of child". My daughter went from being a child to "this kind of child" in that one moment.'When she started working on the book, it was Srilata's daughter who was its protagonist. But soon, she realised that there was no way she could stop with her daughter's story. With each step ahead (or back), she became acutely aware of the larger story of the things we frame as 'disability'.'I have learnt that disability is profoundly political, that it is heartbreakingly social.'In This Kind of Child Srilata brings together first-person accounts, interviews and short fiction which open up for us the experiential worlds of persons with disabilities and those who love them. The book offers a multi-perspectival understanding of the disability experience its emotional as well as imagined truth, both to the disabled themselves as well as to those closely associated with them.'1 have learnt that stories are always bigger than they seem at first-bigger, wider and deeper.'At the heart of this book is inter-being and the question: What does it mean to love and accept yourself or someone else fully?About the AuthorK. Srilata is a poet, fiction writer, translator and academic. She was a writer in residence at Sangam House, India, Yeonhui Art Space, Seoul and the University of Stirling, Scotland.Srilata's novel Table for Four,(Penguin, India) was longlisted in 2009 for the Man Asian Literary Prize. Her books include five collections of poetry, the latest of which The Unmistakable Presence of Absent Humans was published by Poetrywala, Mumbai. Srilata has also edited the anthologies The Rapids of a Great River: The Penguin Book of Tamil Poetry, Short Fiction from South India (OUP), All the Worlds Between: All the Worlds Between: A Collaborative Poetry Project Between India and Ireland (Yoda) and Lifescapes: Interviews with Contemporary Women Writers from Tamilnadu (Women Unlimited).Formerly a professor of literature at 11T Madras, Srilata is now Director of the Centre for Creative Writing and Translation at Sai University, Chennai. Srilata was recently awarded an IFA Arts Practice grant to work on a manuscript of poems based on the Mahabharata canon.

About the BookA POWERFUL BOOK THAT DETAILS THE DEATH AND THE SUBSEQUENT INVESTIGATION OF THE MURDER OF ONE OF THE RISING SUPERSTARS OF PUNJABI HIP-HOP.On 29 May 2022, Punjabi rapper Sidhu Moosewala left his haveli in Moosa for a quick ride to his aunt's house in the neighbouring village. He was never to return home. The singer was ambushed and gunned down by six assailants. He was only twenty-eight.The news of his death spread like wildfire; fans thronged to his village in Mansa district to pay their last respects. Others mourned him on social media. An icon for many, the rebellious young man had also been a controversial figure. There were allegations that he promoted gun culture and violence, and rumours that he had ties with certain gangs. With his sudden and violent death, the questions about his life became louder-as also those around his death. Who had killed Moosewala? Everyone wanted to know.As the police made arrests and the investigation started in earnest, a story began to emerge-one of old enmities, uncomfortable truths, disgruntled youths and the violence that simmers in Punjab, just below the surface of everyday life. In this gripping and fast-paced book, seasoned crime reporter Jupinderjit Singh closely follows the investigation into Moosewala's death and also offers us glimpses into the man he was behind the mask of celebrity. The story of the slain singer and those behind his murder, this book is also a rumination on the growing unrest in Punjab.About the AuthorJupinderjit Singh is an award-winning journalist, specialising in crime reporting for The Tribune in Punjab. He has authored five books two of which have been translated into Hindi. He is known for discovering the lost pistol of Shaheed Bhagat Singh that was used to kill a British police officer in 1928. He was awarded the Prem Bhatia Young Journalist Award in 2005. He is a fellow with the Centre for Science and Environment and a FIDE-rated chess player and coach. He is also a motivational speaker.

Debashis Paul's book I Have Autism and I Like to Play Good Bad Tennis offers a window into the world of challenges and joys of parenting. The "I "in the title refers to his son Noel, who was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder at the age of three and a half.Paul writes "Younger parents of children with autism must understand how to recalibrate their own ambitions and priorities in life; how to let go of the urge to vicariously achieve their goals through their kids." The book is replete with examples of how he learnt about the gap between his expectations and his son's needs, especially when it came to sports. For the father playing was about winning whereas the son was focused only on enjoying himself.Noel did not care to impress or defeat, so he did not mind playing "bad tennis."The author's experience of raising Noel taught him that children with autism "may not be able to form emotional and empathetic ties with friends."As a result, these children feel the need to "lean heavily on their parents, siblings or other family members and their teachers to play the role of the proverbial friend, philosopher, and guide." What makes the book so grounded is the author's refusal to make things look pretty to inspire readers.A moving anecdote in the book has to do with Noel at a Dussehra celebration. The effigies of Ravana, Meghnada, and Kumbhkarana were being burnt to depict the triumph of good over evil, and attendees at the event were cheering. Noel was aghast that people could revel in the act of burning someone (even if inanimate). The author notes: "The incident troubled him greatly. Noel's problem was always with the idea of violence, irrespective of its form." Noel ended up teaching his father- who grew up playing with toy guns - that symbolic violence was also a form of violence and must be condemned." Even if it is enacted as part of a religious or festival ritual. I cannot recommend this book enough - Noel is someone you should get to know.- Extract from the review by Chintan Girish Modi, a freelance writer, journalist, HINDUSTAN TIMES DELHI APRIL 29,2023.The layered narrative of the book shows that the book is much more than a memoir- a celebration of life itself, a humble request for inclusivity, an attempt to alter the general view of autism, and most importantly, a handy guide to parents of neurodiverse as well as neurotypical children. Each chapter in the book reflects his belief that Noel's story can change the way people view neurodivergent individuals. Noel's wit sparkles through and his profound observations make one ponder over the social norms and ways of the world.Paul has multiple objectives in writing this book two of which are to help people with parenting ideas and to show everyone that, with sensible and compassionate mentoring, a child on the autism spectrum can blossom beautifully. The author's personal style of storytelling, complemented by appropriate life events which highlight his learnings, the theoretical as well as practical notes, makes the book accessible to different kind of readers. And it does all this while painting a moving portrait of an endearingly different mind.- Extract from the review by Nalini Ramachandran, a children's book author, and graphic novelist, based in Mumbai, THE HINDU (Literary Review) MAY 28, 2023.

A SUCCINCT ACCOUNT OF THE PROGRESS OF THE HINDU CIVILISATION AND ITS CURRENT CRISISWhat do we mean by the Hindu civilisation? What are the texts and legacies that moved it forward from one century to another? How much of it has to do with inherited religious beliefs and how has the politicisation of these beliefs changed the prism through which Hindus view themselves and others, especially those identifying with different belief systems?These are the questions the author sets out to answer with this potted history of the Hindu world, in the context of changing empires and leaderships, through colonisation and conquest, leading up to the present challenges presented by the proponents of Hindutva. Direct, hard-hitting and wise, this is an invaluable treatise for our times.About the AuthorPavan K. Varma is a writer-diplomat and was till recently an MP in the Rajya Sabha. He was earlier Advisor to the Chief Minister of Bihar, with the rank of Cabinet minister.He has been India's Ambassador in several countries, also Director of the Nehru Centre in London, Official Spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs, and Press Secretary to the President of India. Author of over a dozen successful books, Pavan K. Varma was conferred an honorary doctoral degree for his contribution to the fields of diplomacy, literature, culture and aesthetics by the University of Indianapolis in 2005. He was also conferred the Druk Thuksey, Bhutan's highest civilian award, in 2012.

THE FIRST AUTHORITATIVE BIOGRAPHY OF INDIA'S CURRENT PRIME MINISTEROn 26 December 2012, Narendra Modi was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Gujarat for the fourth time, to extend his record tenure in office. Even then, his name prompted extremes of hate-filled anger or outright adulation. Since then, despite polarising Gujarat and India in more ways than one, he continues to do what it takes to survive in a democracy: win elections.Written by veteran journalist and writer, Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, after several in-depth interviews, meticulous research and extensive travel through Gujarat, this book reveals hitherto unknown aspects of Narendra Modi's psyche: as a six year-old boy selling tea to help out his father and distributing badges and raising slogans at the behest of a local political leader, abandoning his family and wife in search of his definition of truth, being initiated into the RSS as a fledgling who ran errands for his seniors, and finally, his meteoric rise after 2002.Narendra Modi: The Man, The Times is the definitive biography of a man who may have challenged the basic principles of a sovereign, secular nation, but emerged as an undisputed and larger-than-life leader.