Biography India

On 20 October 1962, high in the Himalayas, on the banks of the fast-flowing Nam Ka Chu, over 400 Indian soldiers were massacred, and the valley was overrun by soldiers of China's People's Liberation Army. Over the course of the next month, nearly 4,000 soldiers were killed on both sides, and the Indian army experienced its worst defeat ever. The conflict (war was never formally declared) ended because China announced a unilateral ceasefire on 21 November and halted its hitherto unhindered advance across NEFA and Ladakh.

The photographs of three young men had stood in his grandmother's house for as long as he could remember, beheld but never fully noticed. They had all fought in the Second World War, a fact that surprised him. Indians had never figured in his idea of the war, nor the war in his idea of India. One of them, Bobby, even looked a bit like him, but Raghu Karnad had not noticed until he was the same age as they were in their photo frames. Then he learned about the Parsi boy from the sleepy south Indian coast, so eager to follow his brothers-in-law into the colonial forces and onto the front line.

To a nation fed on classical music, the advent of Rahul Dev Burman with his repertoire of Western beats was a godsend. RD revolutionized Hindi film music in the 1970s, and with his emphasis on rhythm and beats, this Pied Piper of Hindi film music had young India swinging to his tunes. At the same time, this genius proved his many detractors who criticized him for corrupting popular taste wrong by composing some of the most influential raga-based songs in Hindi cinema and showing an immense comfort with all kinds of music, including Indian folk.

Deeply affected by the death of his entire platoon in the Vietnam War, Lance Corporal Brian Tibbitts embarked upon the pursuit of the real meaning and purpose of life. To his dismay, none of the major spiritual and religious texts he read could fully answer his questions, until he found Bhagavad-gita As It Is and met its author, Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, the founder of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. At the age of twenty-one, Brian Tibbitts became his disciple, and at the age of twenty-nine, became Indradyumna Swami when he entered the renounced order of life.

In 1930, the Indian people, long ruled by their British occupiers, were at a breaking point. No more could many stand the terrible demands of colonial rule. At this pivotal moment, Mohandas Gandhi, who had suffered firsthand for decades the cruelty of his oppressors, saw an opportunity to win his people's freedom. And so, Gandhi led a small band of his followers on a grueling march from his ashram in western India to the Arabian Sea. After 24 days and 241 miles under a withering sun, the marchers arrived on the Dandi seashore.

The Elements of Cricket is a cricket book unlike any other published before, an extraordinary, eccentric guide and charming visual representation of the game, from the weather and wood that make it possible to the achievements of its greatest and most famous players. The book is divided into the three parts that make up the fundamental elements of cricket: bat, ball and field. Their harmony produces cricket’s unique environment; their centuries’ long conflict provides its innovation, adaptability and vast psychological hinterland.

Gandhi. The name conjures the image of a man, unimpressive in appearance, simple in his lifestyle, who spent his life pursuing independence for India. Months after the country achieved that independence from Great Britain, Gandhi’s life ended when an assassin killed him. But Gandhi’s legacy lives on. Gandhi’s rise to political and spiritual leadership is the incredible saga of a man who, in his youth, showed no signs of greatness but who became one of the most influential men of all time.

From heading an ashram at Rajneeshpuram, Oregon, USA, in the 1980s to allegedly spearheading what is known as the largest bioterror attack in American history and spending 39 months in prison, Ma Anand Sheela's life is one that fascinates and intrigues. But who is the woman beyond the persona of the commune leader? What is Sheela like behind the sensational "tough titties" avatar?

Best-selling and Booker Prize-winning author Salman Rushdie offers incisive, often humorous takes on literature, culture, and world events in this New York Times Notable Book. In these stimulating pieces, Rushdie addresses a variety of subjects, including the death of the novel, India, soccer, and the Rolling Stones.

Explore the rich and storied culture of the Indian subcontinent. This region of the world, largely considered to be one of the cradles of civilization, has developed over a period of over 5,000 years. Consequently, this long run of history has drawn up a national history filled with intrigue, philosophy, art, architectural wonders, and the births and deaths of great men and women.

Leila Seth was the first woman to top the Bar examinations in London, the first woman judge of the Delhi High Court, and the first woman to become chief justice of a state High Court. She was appointed as a judge in 1978 and retired as Chief Justice of Himachal Pradesh in 1992.

This thrilling narrative, with its wealth of little-known facts takes the listener on a journey through the life of independent India’s first law minister, a formally converted Buddhist who wholeheartedly dedicated himself to initiating various movements for the social and political betterment of the Dalit community. This book presents a fascinating outlook on Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar’s political aspirations and promises to be an engaging and enrapturing story.

Death Served Cold is a painstakingly researched collection of true, blood-curdling accounts of gruesome murders committed by India’s most dangerous women over the last three decades. These stories explore the dark recesses of the female psyche and challenge popular stereotypes by revealing shocking excesses of sadism and aggression rarely associated with women.

Munoz provides new insight into Benazir Bhutto’s unprecedented rise and an unflinching, minute-by-minute narrative of the assassination itself. With impeccable research, Munoz also situates Bhutto in the decades-long history of U.S.-Pakistan relations and the emergence of global terrorism, pinpointing her death as the moment when those relations changed forever. The result is a gripping narrative of Pakistan’s turbulent political realities and the death of its leading politician.

Kristin Dickerson left her 15-year career as a TV journalist to answer a divine calling heard in the middle of a newscast: “You’re doing this wrong.” In that moment, she realized she had a platform to share the best of humanity, but on that day, she was sharing the worst. Seven months later, she and her husband, Peter, left their jobs and donated most of their belongings to go on a pilgrimage to some of the holiest places in the world. This book is the journal Kristin wrote during their travels. It is also her testimony, which shares stories about her journey back to God.

Baba Cesare - l'asceta italiano protagonista di questo libro - dopo un'esistenza ordinaria si è avvicinato al mondo dei sadhu indiani. Il suo percorso è molto diverso da quello che potremmo immaginare noi occidentali. Folco Terzani ha riconosciuto in lui un autentico cercatore, intimamente libero: un uomo abitato da una sete di assoluto, capace di spogliarsi di tutto per seguire una chiamata.

There are not many Indian heroes whose lives have been as dramatic and adventurous as that of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. That, however, is an assessment of his life based on what is widely known about him. These often revolve around his resignation from the Indian Civil Service, joining the freedom movement, to be exiled twice for over seven years, throwing a challenge to the Gandhian leadership in the Congress, taking up an extremist position against the British Raj, evading the famed intelligence network to travel to Europe and then to Southeast Asia.

In story format, US Marine Corps veteran and yoga teacher Rishi Eric Infanti outlines the parallel of his marine corps experiences and his journey as a yoga teacher. He threads the eight limbs of yoga from Patanjali's Yoga Sutras and his seven-week exposition to Mysore, India, to deepen his understanding and practice of yoga, Ayurveda, and fine art as vehicles for healing.

Dr Kalam, who was India's 11th president and has been a scientist and a teacher, has written more than 20 books. Ranging from inspirational and spiritual thoughts, to autobiographical reflections, to his vision statements for a developed India, these works bear the imprint of a mind that is deeply reflective. For the first time, some of the most thoughtful, inspiring and educative of these writings have been compiled in one place in The Righteous Life.

या पुस्तकात जगातील स मोठी लोकशाही अस्तित्वात कशी आली या घटनेचा मानवी पैलू सांगण्याचा प्रयत्न लेखकाने केला आहे. चमकदार उदाहरणं आणि सखोल संशोधनानं समृद्ध अशा या पुस्तकासोबत बीबीसी रेडिओ सीरिज4 या मालिकेच्या माध्यमातून लेखकाने अध्यात्म क्षेत्रातील भगवान बुद्धांपासून ते भांडवलशहा धीरूभाई अंबानींपर्यंत 50 भारतीय जीवनांचा आढावा घेतला आहे.