The New World Disorder And The Indian Imperative

Soon after his elevation to the post of General Secretary of the Communist Party of China, Xi Jinping rapidly consolidated power at home and expanded China's influence in the international system. His desire to achieve the 'China Dream' by the middle of the century has seen him steadily erode the norm of 'collective leadership' at home and has made China's presence across Eurasia and the Indo-Pacific more expansive. He has determinedly set about reshaping the world order for the benefit of his Communist Party. Samir Saran and Akhil Deo offer a retrospective reading of how this came to be-tracing the key policy shifts that have come to define China in the Xi Jinping Era. From the creation of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank to the Doklam standoff, they identify pivotal decisions and events that have shaped China's engagement with the world-and how global powers, especially India, have responded to the Middle Kingdom's rise.

With more than 150 million people, Muslims are the largest Indian minority but are facing a significant decline in socio-economic as well as political terms - not to say anything about the communal waves of violence that have affected them over the last 25 years. In India's cities, these developments find contrasted expressions. While Muslims are everywhere lagging behind, local syncretic cultures have proved to be resilient in the South and in the East (Bangalore, Calicut, Cuttack). In the Hindi belt and in the North, Muslims have met a different fate, especially in riot-prone areas (Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Jaipur, Aligarh) and in the former capitals of Muslim states (Delhi, Hyderabad, Bhopal, Lucknow). These developments have resulted in the formation of Muslim ghettos and Muslim slums in places like Ahmedabad and Mumbai. But (self-)segregation also played a role in the making of Muslim enclaves, like in Delhi and Aligarh, where traditional elites and the new Muslim middle class searched for physical as well as cultural protection through their regrouping. This book supplements an ethnographic approach of Muslims in 11 Indian cities with a quantitative methodology in order to give a first hand account of an untold story.

'One of the most strikingly lyrical voices writing about the lives of Indian women' -- Amitav Ghosh 'Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni turns the Ramayana around by telling it in the voice of Sita ... this inversion is a gift - it presents us a with a way to know an already well-known story better and to love an already beloved story more' -- Arshia Sattar 'This inspired evocation of the goddess Sita is an epic song of strength and solidarity told with joy and intensity. It brings to life the personalities and predicaments of the Ramayana' -- Namita Gokhale 'Among the many, many Ramayanas there are now even - thankfully - some "Sitayanas", but I know of none with the special magic that Chitra Divakaruni ... brings to the telling' -- Philip Lutgendorf 'Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni's Sita ... is an epitome of courage and self-respect, showing a path for all women. While weaving a familiar story, Chitra provides deep and surprising insights' -- Volga 'An incomparable storyteller' -- Denver Post 'Divakaruni's stories are irresistible' -- The New York Times Book Review 'Divakaruni's storytelling talents put her right up there with the best' -- Miami Herald 'In recasting the Ramayan as a love story Divakaruni accords Sita parity with Ram, revealing her innate strength. By giving primacy to her thoughts and feelings this also becomes the private tale of Shri and Shrimati Ramchandra Raghuvanshi, two wonderful people who loved each other but who broke up. To readers well-acquainted with that tragedy of modern times, the failed marriage, it will appeal. The ending, however, surpasses all expectations.' -- The Sunday Standard 'The success of both The Palace Of Illusions and The Forest Of Enchantments hinges acutely on the skill with which Divakaruni deploys the narratorial voice.' -- Mint 'The Forest of Enchantments is one of the simplest and most beautiful retellings of Sage Valmiki's epic.' -- Jetwings 'Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni does justice to the women of Ramayana ... The Forest of Enchantments is not just a retelling of a much-told epic, rather it is a book that tells it like it is - balanced and non-judgmental.' -- Huffpost 'A work ... of pluralities and possibilities ... This is the Sitayan we will give to our daughters, that they may imbibe Sita's strength, and even more proudly to our sons, who will learn how a woman is to be treated' -- The Wire 'Banerjee is markedly feminist ... Her spin on the most pivotal moment of Sita's life, the agnipariksha episode, is a moment of feminist brilliance. Her Sita answers all the questions we would have had when listening to the Ramayana while leaving us with plenty of food for thought.' -- The New Indian Express 'Divakaruni's retelling reminds her readers that the Ramayana, besides being a morality tale, is a love story at its heart' -- Huffpost 'Divakaruni and her women characters are a formidable pair' -- The Wire The Ramayana, one of the world's greatest epics, is also a tragic love story. In this brilliant retelling, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni places Sita at the centre of the novel: this is Sita's version. The Forest of Enchantments is also a very human story of some of the other women in the epic, often misunderstood and relegated to the margins: Kaikeyi, Surpanakha, Mandodari. A powerful comment on duty, betrayal, infidelity and honour, it is also about women's struggle to retain autonomy in a world that privileges men, as Chitra transforms an ancient story into a gripping, contemporary battle of wills. While the Ramayana resonates even today, she makes it more relevant than ever, in the underlying questions in the novel: How should women be treated by their loved ones? What are their rights in a relationship? When does a woman need to stand up and say, 'Enough!'

Ambitious and encyclopaedic in scope, this is a first-of-its-kind book that presents the history of media and entertainment in India -- from the times of the Indus Valley Civilization right up to the twenty-first century. The book starts with an examination of the origins, looking at a wide array of aspects such as: the state of entertainment during Harappan and Vedic times, including details from the Natyashastra; the early drama, music and dance of Kalidasa; the development of ragas; musical instruments and early folk traditions; the genesis of classical dance forms; developments through the ages, including in the Mughal period, in the southern kingdoms, in the north-east, and under the Marathas and the British. Independence onwards, the book takes a decade-wise look at the evolution of newspapers, cinema, music, television, dance, theatre and radio. The author, himself a film producer, director and lyricist who has worked in the entertainment industry all his life, brings his unique perspective to bear on the subject. This pioneering work is a must-read not just for the students and practitioners of the arts and media but also for their lay consumers.

This book delineates the role that Pakistan should play in the largely anarchic world of the twenty-first century in order to best serve the country’s long-term national interests. Its main aim is to lay down the parameters within which Pakistan’s grand strategy should be formulated, taking into account the evolving global and regional security environment and Pakistan’s historical experience. Provided here is an in-depth analysis and critical evaluation of the past record of Pakistan’s foreign policy within this context, bringing out its successes and failures, strengths and weaknesses. Based on these analyses, a comprehensive approach is recommended for safeguarding Pakistan’s national security and promoting its prosperity utilizing a strategy that is a marked departure from the military-dominated, uni-dimensional policies the country has followed thus far. Besides providing guidelines to Pakistan’s policy makers and intelligentsia, this book will be of interest to academics, foreign observers, and general readers in understanding the constraints and parameters within which Pakistan – a de facto nuclear-weapon state of 190 million people at the cross-roads of South Asia, Central Asia, and the Persian Gulf – must operate to safeguard its national interests in the turbulent times ahead.

Decolonizing Global Mental Health is a book that maps a strange irony. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Movement for Global Mental Health are calling to ‘scale up’ access to psychological and psychiatric treatments globally, particularly within the global South. Simultaneously, in the global North, psychiatry and its often chemical treatments are coming under increased criticism (from both those who take the medication and those in the position to prescribe it). The book argues that it is imperative to explore what counts as evidence within Global Mental Health, and seeks to de-familiarize current ‘Western’ conceptions of psychology and psychiatry using postcolonial theory. It leads us to wonder whether we should call for equality in global access to psychiatry, whether everyone should have the right to a psychotropic citizenship and whether mental health can, or should, be global. As such, it is ideal reading for undergraduate and postgraduate students, as well as researchers in the fields of critical psychology and psychiatry, social and health psychology, cultural studies, public health and social work.