The Best of Karan Thapar

The Best of Karan Thapar
Author: Karan Thapar
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 455
Release: 2023-03-10
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 9356400423

A famed and feared interviewer, Karan Thapar is known for his astute, probing questions and his persistence in getting clear answers. In this selection of tightly focused and penetrating interviews Thapar and the people he interviews examine hot-button issues of our times: India's economic health, relations with China, independence of the judiciary, being Muslim in today's India, how the nation fares 75 years after independence. Together, these interviews provide a comprehensive view of how India regards itself and its place in the world. Naseeruddin Shah / Arundhati Roy / Farooq Abdullah / Faizan Mustafa / Harish Salve / Najeeb Jung / S.Y. Quraishi / Pronab Sen / Raghuram Rajan / Naushad Forbes / Romila Thapar / Ramachandra Guha / Palanivel Thiaga Rajan / Swapan Dasgupta / Avtar Singh Bhasin / Kanti Bajpai / Shashi Tharoor / Indra Nooyi / Mahua Moitra / Madan B. Lokur / A.P. Shah / Dushyant Dave

Devil's Advocate

Devil's Advocate
Author: Karan Thapar
Publisher: Harper Collins
Total Pages: 224
Release: 2018-07-30
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 9352779851

Sometime in the late summer of 1976, Sanjay Gandhi asked if I wanted to go flying with him... After first attempting to teach Karan Thapar to fly (not very successfully) Sanjay Gandhi took the controls and performed a series of aerobatics, not particularly dangerous but nonetheless thrilling. Once they were further away from Delhi, he became even more daring. Suddenly, he decided to scare the farmers working in the fields below by aiming the aircraft straight at them. As he dived down, they scattered and ran, fearing for their lives. At the last moment, Sanjay pulled up dramatically and waved at the bewildered farmers, clearly chuffed with the whole performance. The manoeuvre required nerves of steel and tremendous self-confidence, both of which Sanjay possessed in plenty.In Devil's Advocate, Karan dives deep into his life to come up with many such moments. Included here are stories of warm and lasting friendships, such as with Benazir Bhutto, whom he met while he was an undergraduate. He also talks about his long association with Aung San Suu Kyi and Rajiv Gandhi. However, not all friendships lasted--for example, with L.K. Advani, with whom he shared a close bond until an unfortunate disagreement over an interview caused a falling-out.The tension generated during an interview has spilled over off-screen multiple times, and Karan discusses these incidents in detail. For instance, when Amitabh Bachchan lost his cool during a post-interview lunch or when Kapil Dev cried like a baby. And there's the untold story of two of his most controversial interviews--with Jayalalithaa and Narendra Modi. While Jayalalithaa laughed it off later, the after-effects of Modi's infamous walkout have grown worse with time. Riveting and fast-paced, Devil's Advocate is as no-holds-barred as any of Karan Thapar's interviews.

More Salt Than Pepper

More Salt Than Pepper
Author: Karan Thapar
Publisher: Harper Collins
Total Pages: 272
Release: 2013-12-01
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 9350292599

Racy, fun, sharp columns from an award-winning TV journalistTV personality Karan Thapar, known for his relentless grilling of politicians on his current affairs shows, brings a sense of humour and a sharp incisive eye to his newspaper columns. This book is a selection of the best columns written by him over the last eleven years.The columns range from the authors perceptive portraits of politicians and celebrities to his reflections on the state of the media and the peculiarities of the English language. He also turns the gaze on himself-sharing with us his eccentricities, his foibles and anecdotes about himself and his family, including his late wife Nisha. There are also pieces here about his Doon and Cambridge days and vignettes from his travels to cities near and far.

Sunday Sentiments

Sunday Sentiments
Author: Karan Thapar
Publisher: SCB Distributors
Total Pages: 314
Release: 2015-06-22
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 8183284450

Written in Karan's inimitable style, the articles in this book are a real treat — racy, fun and enlightening at the same time. It is a must read for anyone who is interested in creative writing and journalism.

Tharoorosaurus

Tharoorosaurus
Author: Shashi Tharoor
Publisher: Penguin Random House India Private Limited
Total Pages: 338
Release: 2020-09-01
Genre: Reference
ISBN: 9353059518

Shashi Tharoor is the wizard of words. In Tharoorosaurus, he shares fifty-three examples from his vocabulary: unusual words from every letter of the alphabet. You don't have to be a linguaphile to enjoy the fun facts and interesting anecdotes behind the words! Be ready to impress-and say goodbye to your hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia!

As I Like it

As I Like it
Author: Karan Thapar
Publisher:
Total Pages: 232
Release: 2018
Genre: English language
ISBN: 9788183284660

Modi's India

Modi's India
Author: Christophe Jaffrelot
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Total Pages: 656
Release: 2023-04-11
Genre: History
ISBN: 0691247900

A riveting account of how a popularly elected leader has steered the world's largest democracy toward authoritarianism and intolerance Over the past two decades, thanks to Narendra Modi, Hindu nationalism has been coupled with a form of national-populism that has ensured its success at the polls, first in Gujarat and then in India at large. Modi managed to seduce a substantial number of citizens by promising them development and polarizing the electorate along ethno-religious lines. Both facets of this national-populism found expression in a highly personalized political style as Modi related directly to the voters through all kinds of channels of communication in order to saturate the public space. Drawing on original interviews conducted across India, Christophe Jaffrelot shows how Modi's government has moved India toward a new form of democracy, an ethnic democracy that equates the majoritarian community with the nation and relegates Muslims and Christians to second-class citizens who are harassed by vigilante groups. He discusses how the promotion of Hindu nationalism has resulted in attacks against secularists, intellectuals, universities, and NGOs. Jaffrelot explains how the political system of India has acquired authoritarian features for other reasons, too. Eager to govern not only in New Delhi, but also in the states, the government has centralized power at the expense of federalism and undermined institutions that were part of the checks and balances, including India's Supreme Court. Modi's India is a sobering account of how a once-vibrant democracy can go wrong when a government backed by popular consent suppresses dissent while growing increasingly intolerant of ethnic and religious minorities.

Gujarat, the Making of a Tragedy

Gujarat, the Making of a Tragedy
Author: Siddharth Varadarajan
Publisher: Penguin Books India
Total Pages: 476
Release: 2002
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780143029014

This book is intended to be a permanent public archive of the communal violence in Gujarat in early 2002. Drawing upon eyewitness reports from the English, Hindi and regional media, citizens and official articles by leading public figures and intellectuals, it provides an account of how and why the state was allowed to burn.

The Battle of Belonging

The Battle of Belonging
Author: Shashi Tharoor
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2020
Genre: East Indians
ISBN: 9788194735380

The author summarizes India's liberal constitutionalism, exploring the enlightened values that towering leaders like Gandhi, Nehru, Tagore, Ambedkar, Patel, Azad, and others invested the nation with.

Tehelka as Metaphor

Tehelka as Metaphor
Author: Madhu Trehan
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2009
Genre: Celebrities
ISBN: 9788174365804

In March 2001, the website Tehelka broke Operation West End, the biggest undercover news story in Indian journalism.Using spycams and masquerading as arms dealers, Tehelka's reporters infiltrated the Indian government, bribed army officers,gave money to the president of the ruling party and the defence minister's close colleague right in the defence minister's residence. This eventually forced both the minister's resignations. In a rigorously researched and searing authentic account of the Tehelka expose and its aftermath, Madhu trehan does a forensic study of the imperatives at the root of it, the characters and heroes and villans of the story, and of how the system got back:by obfuscating, by attempting to destroy Tehelka and its investors. Trehan shows how the goverment used instruments of democracy to destroy the investors without leaving any footprints.In the style of Roshomon, the story is related by numerous participants of the same incidents and, of course,none of the stories tally. With exhuastive personal interviews, this is a must-read for anybody who wants to understand modern India- or even better, modern international journalism.