Jaipur Bytes

Avni Doshi’s Booker shortlisted novel Burnt Sugar, published as Girl in White Cotton in India, is a vivid and unsettling account following the complex relationship between a mother and daughter. Tracing the  fragile line between familial devotion and deception the tale evocatively brings up the subjective nature of truth and the reality of toxic relationships. In conversation with author and poet Janice Pariat, they examine the roots of this compelling and raw narrative and unravel its questions of identity, love and trauma.

The seeds of the storming of the Capital were sown, and shown to the world, early in President Trump’s Presidency with his chest-thumping belief in what commentators have called “dangerous” nationalism. Scholar and critical theorist Homi K. Bhabha, a believer in a more benign and inclusive world view, evaluates how you address these actions rooted within the fabric of chaos, discontent and “uncivil unrest”. A session that analyses the growing instances of neo nationalism around the world also discusses how this narrative is trying to redefine democracy, political power, public ethics and success in troubling terms, fueled by conspiracy theories. Bhabha is the Anne F. Rothenberg Professor of the Humanities at Harvard University. His work explores postcolonial theory, cultural change, and power. His books include Nation and Narration and The Location of Culture. In conversation with Sanjoy K. Roy, Bhabha delves on this new era of politics and what it entails for our future.

Douglas Stuart in conversation with Paul McVeigh. Glasgow-born Douglas Stuart’s 2020 Booker prize-winning debut novel Shuggie Bain evokes the  essence of addiction, parenthood, courage and love. Following the bond between a son and his mother, fractured by alcoholism, poverty, aspiration and human misery. The novel graphs an intimate, devastating  yet ultimately hopeful journey through their lives.  Stuart began his career in fashion design before moving onto writing. His other work includes the short stories Found Wanting and The Englishman. In conversation with writer and playwright Paul McVeigh, Stuart unravels the thought and process behind bringing this heartbreaking story out into the world.

Celebrated satirist, critic and writer Craig Brown’s Baillie Gifford Prize winning recent biography One Two Three Four: The Beatles in Time is a serendipitous retelling of the chance merger of four elemental figures. An enchanting mix of history, autobiography, interviews and fan letters, it brings forth a fitting tribute to a band whose words echo through homes even today. Through a kaleidoscopic mix of narratives, the book also presents a look into the lives of those around them who were engulfed and impacted by their astounding success and tragedy. Brown is the only person to have won three different Press Awards, for best humorist, columnist and critic, in the same year.  Known for his riveting parodies in Private Eye, he is also the author of Ma’am Darling: 99 Glimpses of Princess Margaret, The Tony Years and One on One among many others. In conversation with writer and broadcaster Bee Rowlatt, Brown takes us through the story of four men who represented not just a cultural milieu but also timeless music and fervent fame.

Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni and Priya Atwal have both evoked the spirit of the beautiful Maharani Jindan Kaur through fiction and fact. Kaur was regent of the Sikh Empire from 1843 until 1846.  She was renowned for her energy and strength of purpose with the Governor General Dalhousie writing of her, “She has the only manly understanding in the Punjab”. Divakaruni has previously authored the celebrated books The Palace of Illusions, Mistress of Spices and The Forest of Enchantment. Her latest book is The Last Queen. Atwal's recent book, Royals and Rebels: The Rise and Fall of the Sikh Empire, showcases the centrality of female agency within the expansion of Sikh sovereignty. In conversation with Navtej Sarna, author of several works of fiction and non-fiction including The Exile, a novel based on the life of Maharaja Duleep Singh, the last Sikh King and son of Maharani Jindan, the three authors bring alive a fascinating tale of the splendour and downfall of a mighty kingdom, court intrigue, colonial deception and greed,  as well as  motherhood and feminine strength.

“India lives in her villages,” said Gandhi. Although agriculture is the most important sector of the economy, accounting for close to 16 %of the GDP and providing employment to much of the nation's workforce, rural-urban distances and divides continue to grow. The incomprehension between those who contribute to growing our food and those who consume it widens by the day. All political parties claim to represent the farmer but the tiller of the soil is mute and invisible in the process of decision making. Climate change further impacts the uncertainties that farmers face. An engaged panel speaks of the paradoxes of policy and the complex issues involved in bringing about much-needed reforms and discusses the signposts ahead. Kota Neelima is an Indian author, researcher, artist and political commentator, specialising in rural distress, gender and her work focuses on the condition of women farmers, farmer suicides and peripheries of democratic societies. Economist, author and columnist Surjit Bhalla is currently the Executive Director for India at the International Monetary Fund. Dushyant Dave is a senior advocate and former president of the Supreme Court Bar Association. Sanket Upadhyay is an anchor and Executive editor at NDTV.

Best-selling author and historian Ben MacIntyre’s latest work Agent Sonya is an exhilarating narrative whfich unravels the life of Ursula Kuczynski Burton, code name- Agent Sonya, the spy behind some of the most dangerous espionage operations of the twentieth century. Her escapades included a failed assasination on Hitler, spying on the Japanese and other covert missions for Moscow. MacIntyre’s other books include Agent Zigzag, Operation Mincemeat and A Spy Among Friends. In conversation with Swapan Dasgupta, he discusses the life and times of a lover, mother, soldier and spy.

A powerful narrative on the stark realities of climate change, We Are the Weather: Saving the Planet Begins at Breakfast by Jonathan Safran Foer takes a hard-hitting look at the day-to-day human contribution to the unfolding environmental catastrophe. Weaving personal stories, facts and metaphors, he also analyses what motivates some people to sacrifice short-term comfort for the sake of the long term preservation of our climate by eliminating animal-based products from their diet. In conversation with journalist Jeffrey Gettleman, he delves on the changes that each one of us can make to mitigate this crisis.

The recurrence of pandemics is an unfortunate reality in human history. Leaving a devastating trail of suffering and death, they disappear from public memory until such time that the demons surface again. Academic and author Chinmay Tumbe in his recent book, Age of Pandemics (1817-1920): How They Shaped India and the World, chronicles the many facets of the cholera, plague and influenza pandemics, which claimed over 70 million lives between 1817 and 1920 with India being the epicentre in all these episodes. In the first truly global treatment of one of the worst pandemics of all time, Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How It Changed the World, author and science journalist Laura Spinney delves into lesser known details of that forgotten disaster. In conversation with surgeon and author Ambarish Satwik, they touch upon the science and psychology of pandemics and lessons from the past that may make us better understand the potential onset of zoonotic diseases in the future.

Democracy has many faces, many lives, subject to change, investigation, reform. In The Retreat of Western Liberalism, Edward Luce makes a larger statement about the weakening of western hegemony and the crisis of liberal democracy, of which Donald Trump and his European counterparts are not the cause, but a terrifying symptom. He warns of the dangerous ignorance of the West regarding its own socio-political trajectory, and its arrogance towards society's economic losers, insisting that we cannot move forward without a clear diagnosis of what has gone wrong. In her bookTwilight of Democracy, staff writer for The Atlantic, Anne Applebaum stirs a deeper inquiry into the nature of democracy and the rising appeal of an age-old blend of nationalism and autocracy. Fuelled by the discourse of conspiracy theory, political polarization and the 21st century use of social media, she charts the rising era of illiberalism and antidemocratic trends within the West. The two talk to Suhasini Haidar who is the diplomatic and national editor at The Hindu.