Want to know what books Ramachandra Guha recommends on their reading list? We've researched interviews, social media posts, podcasts, and articles to build a comprehensive list of Ramachandra Guha's favorite book recommendations of all time.
1
Life and time of Gandhi's son, translated from Gujarati. basic on Mahatma Gandhi and also the basis on a new tilm, Gandhi My Father more Life and time of Gandhi's son, translated from Gujarati. basic on Mahatma Gandhi and also the basis on a new tilm, Gandhi My Father less 
Ramachandra GuhaIt’s a factual account. It’s written by a scholar who wants to tell you the truth in an unadorned, factual, dispassionate way. But I think it’s very effective for not being overwritten or overblown or excessively hyperbolic or judgmental. (Source)
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3
Dennis Dalton's classic account of Gandhi's political and intellectual development focuses on the leader's two signal triumphs: the civil disobedience movement (or salt satyagraha) of 1930 and the Calcutta fast of 1947. Dalton clearly demonstrates how Gandhi's lifelong career in national politics gave him the opportunity to develop and refine his ideals. He then concludes with a comparison of Gandhi's methods and the strategies of Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, drawing a fascinating juxtaposition that enriches the biography of all three figures and asserts Gandhi's relevance to... more Dennis Dalton's classic account of Gandhi's political and intellectual development focuses on the leader's two signal triumphs: the civil disobedience movement (or salt satyagraha) of 1930 and the Calcutta fast of 1947. Dalton clearly demonstrates how Gandhi's lifelong career in national politics gave him the opportunity to develop and refine his ideals. He then concludes with a comparison of Gandhi's methods and the strategies of Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, drawing a fascinating juxtaposition that enriches the biography of all three figures and asserts Gandhi's relevance to the study of race and political leadership in America. Dalton situates Gandhi within the "clash of civilizations" debate, identifying the implications of his work on continuing nonviolent protests. He also extensively reviews Gandhian studies and adds a detailed chronology of events in Gandhi's life. less Ramachandra GuhaHis work is absolutely grounded in primary research. Unlike other Gandhi scholars, Dalton does not restrict himself to the collected works. Dalton, while he knows Gandhi’s collected writings very well, also looks at contemporary newspapers and what they were saying about Gandhi. He also looks at what Gandhi’s political rivals and adversaries were writing. The other interesting thing about... (Source)
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4
Louis Fischer, Mahatma Gandhi, Kano Gandhi | 4.26
Additional Photographs Taken By D. G. Tendulkar. more Additional Photographs Taken By D. G. Tendulkar. less Ramachandra GuhaFischer is a journalist and a keen observer. He deals less in analysis and more in description … The book conveys the essential humanity of Gandhi and his down-to-earth character. He lived in this simple village community, with bad food and no modern conveniences at all. I really like this book because it’s Gandhi from close up. (Source)
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5
Ramachandra GuhaI think the book is useful in that it provides a firsthand account of Gandhi by someone who is a scholar and a writer. Bose is not just a starry-eyed naïve disciple, but someone who is himself a thinker and has an analytical mind. He wants to probe deeply into his subject’s moods and anxieties. (Source)
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6
Breaking new ground in scholarship, Niraja Jayal writes the first history of citizenship in the largest democracy in the world India. Unlike the mature democracies of the west, India began as a true republic of equals with a complex architecture of citizenship rights that was sensitive to the many hierarchies of Indian society. In this provocative biography of the defining aspiration of modern India, Jayal shows how the progressive civic ideals embodied in the constitution have been challenged by exclusions based on social and economic inequality, and sometimes also, paradoxically, undermined... more Breaking new ground in scholarship, Niraja Jayal writes the first history of citizenship in the largest democracy in the world India. Unlike the mature democracies of the west, India began as a true republic of equals with a complex architecture of citizenship rights that was sensitive to the many hierarchies of Indian society. In this provocative biography of the defining aspiration of modern India, Jayal shows how the progressive civic ideals embodied in the constitution have been challenged by exclusions based on social and economic inequality, and sometimes also, paradoxically, undermined by its own policies of inclusion.
"Citizenship and Its Discontents" explores a century of contestations over citizenship from the colonial period to the present, analyzing evolving conceptions of citizenship as legal status, as rights, and as identity. The early optimism that a new India could be fashioned out of an unequal and diverse society led to a formally inclusive legal membership, an impulse to social and economic rights, and group-differentiated citizenship. Today, these policies to create a civic community of equals are losing support in a climate of social intolerance and weak solidarity. Once seen by Western political scientists as an anomaly, India today is a site where every major theoretical debate about citizenship is being enacted in practice, and one that no global discussion of the subject can afford to ignore." less Ramachandra GuhaThe best book to understand how and why the CAA and the NRC depart from the founding ideals of the Indian Republic is Niraja Jayal's "Citizenship and its Discontents". Both cheerleaders and critics of the CAA will be educated and instructed by it.
https://t.co/7cTO0PGEPd (Source)
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7
The amazing inter-cultural correspondence (1919-1940) between two cultural icons of the twentieth century, Nobel laureates from the East and the West: the Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941) and the French novelist, playwright, and biographer, Romain Rolland (1866-1944), has remained undiscovered for far too long.
This work brings together, for the first time in English, these letters and telegrams that are among the finest exchanges of thought between the East and the West, and script the intellectual history of that period. It is also the story of a profound friendship,... more The amazing inter-cultural correspondence (1919-1940) between two cultural icons of the twentieth century, Nobel laureates from the East and the West: the Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941) and the French novelist, playwright, and biographer, Romain Rolland (1866-1944), has remained undiscovered for far too long.
This work brings together, for the first time in English, these letters and telegrams that are among the finest exchanges of thought between the East and the West, and script the intellectual history of that period. It is also the story of a profound friendship, where Tagore and Rolland unlock their hearts to each other. The book also records the differences of opinion and misunderstandings between the two outstanding humanists of contemporary history, who often felt isolated in their own countries, on serious issues like Gandhi and Fascism. It comprises Rolland's correspondence with the radical Saumyendranath Tagore, and the whole debate on the Tagore-Mussolini controversy.
This majestic and serene correspondence, comprising 46 letters and telegrams, along with three dialogues between the two at various times, as well as letters by Rathindranath Tagore and others, is a journey towards the imaging of a different world which would create the possibility of a new space outside cultural hegemony. Edited and annotated by one of India's foremost French scholars, it is one of the most important quests for an alternative discourse in the last century.
less Ramachandra GuhaThese quotes are from a fascinating book on the friendship between Tagore and the French/European writer Romain Rolland, edited by Chinmoy Guha (no relation of mine!):
https://t.co/fenPtgzmW9 (Source)
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