Book Review

History and astronomy are always considered poles apart, but eminent physist Biman B Nath of Raman Research Institute, Bangalore considers them as opposite sides of a coin. In his debut novel “Nothing is Blue” he has blended the two in a unique mixture, with the ancient Nalanda University in its backdrop. Set in the ancient seat of learning, the novel deals with the travels of the famous Chinese traveler Xuanzang (Hiuen Tsang) in Nalanda and its surrounding area. Read more…

2. Missing Varrun by Amar Agarawala:

Amar Agarwala’s debut novel Missing Varrun is a full life story of a Calcutta based charted accountant Vedant (1966 – 2049) spanning well into the future. It is also a love story that crosses all barriers of time and culture. Vedant, a brilliant chartered accountant of Calcutta falls in love with Amaya, a Spanish girl of Sindhi origin, fifteen years younger than he. Amar Agarwala is a practicing Chartered Accountant and a Company Secretary. He also posses a degeree in Law and also a MBA. Presently Agarwala has more than more than 25 years of teaching experience in various fields and is pursuing a doctorate degree. Read more…

3. Mouse Charmers by Anuradha Goyal:

Anuradha’s Mouse Charmer is not just a bag full of information on the digital pioneers, but the story of India’s successful digital entrepreneurs put together in the most systematic and innovative way. Anuradha, herself a pioneering blogger from India and has been successfully running three blogs for over a decade. In her book she shares the behind the scenes stories of successful digital enterprises like Flipkart, Zomato, Make My Trip, Indibloggers, etc. Anuradha covered 12 digital entrepreneurs classifying them under 3 broad categories of Commerce, Content and Connectors, with 4 enterprises featuring in each. Read more…

4. The Lost Generation by Nidhi Dugar Kundalia:

The book titled The Lost Generation, is a chronicle of India’s dying profession. Authored by Nidhi Dugar Kundalia the book covers 11 vanishing profession across the length and breadth of the country. From the rudaalis of Rajasthan to the boat makers of Bengal and from the ittar wallahas of Hyderbad to the kabootarbaaz of Delhi, Nidhi has done an extensive field work. She has also made inroads into the Naxal infested areas of Jharkhand to track the Gonda artist. Apart from doing extensive field work the author also went through series of books, journals and papers on related topics. The long list of bibliography and notes are first hand proof of Nidhi’s extensive paper works. Read more…

5. Patachutra of Odisha and Jagannath Culture by Anita Bose:

The book Patachitra of Odisha and Jagannath Culture by Anita Bose explores the story behind the patachitras of Raghurajpur. The book is the culmination of Anita’s two decades of nurturing her creative pursuits. Anita’s book not only deals with the details of patachitra but also provides the details of its connection with the Jagannath Culture. The book starts with the origin of the name of heritage village of Raghurajpur and then moves on to the representation of Jagannath Culture through different forms of patachitras. Probably the most interesting part of the book deals with the details of equipment used by the patachitra artist. The thematic classification of the patchitra has been done in different categories followed by several other sub categories. Read more…

6. Indian Paper Money, Illustrated Guide Book by Sk Imtiaj:

An extensive cataloging of Indian paper currency from the Presidency Notes of British India right to the present day. The self published, almost 500 page, books comes in with a jacket and high quality colour prints of notes. The photos contains extensive coverage on water marks, finer details and the serial numbers. The book has a extensive coverage on Persian Gulf Issue and Haj Pilgrim Issue note along with Hyderabad State Notes. There is also extensive coverage of Portuguese and French India note. There have been extensive coverage on split, mule and star note series. This part is extremely useful for serious collectors. Sk. Imtiaj is a Professor of Electronics and Communication and fascinated about Indian coins and notes. He is a collector himself and has done extensive research on Indian Paper Currency. Last but not least Imtiaj is a friend and colleague.. Read more…

7. Red Fort, Remembering the Magnificiet Mughals by Debasish Das:

Book review of Red Fort, remembering the magnificent Mughals by Debasish Das is a book on Red Fort, Delhi. The book deals with detail history of the Red Fort. The book provides vivid descriptions on the forts layout and the subsequent that has happened over the centuries. It focuses on the fort activities covering royal courts and daily life within the fort walls. It focuses on royal family politics to hierarchy of harem ladies. The foreign invasion and the change of course of history that the fort has witnessed and more aspects of the Red Fort. Read more…

8. Ramayana, Footprints in South Asian Culture and Heritage by Anita Bose:

During her stay in Thailand Anita Bose was surprised to see that the Indian epic of Ramayana was an integral part of the Thai culture. During her five years stay in Bangkok, Thailand Anita volunteered as a guide at the National Museum of Bangkok, which housed a Ramayana gallery. During her stint as a volunteer guide in the museum a month long Ramayana Festival in Bangkok changed Anita’s concept of Ramayana. The international festival had participants from eight countries, including India. Her travels and research resulted in the book titled Ramayana, Footprints in South Asian Culture and Heritage. The book covers extensive info on Ramayana practice in south east Asian countries of Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Loas, Cambodia and Myanmar. Read more…