Bloomsbury India

India and Her Futures is a collection of essays by one of India’s most prolific public intellectuals, Gopalkrishna Gandhi. As a former public servant, diplomat and scholar, his contribution to thinking about South Asian and world history is a debt many owe him. Reflecting on a wide canvas, including India’s culture, diversity and the richness of its literary and intellectual history, Gandhi has been a committed loyalist of the essay as a form of expression through decades of writing for news dailies and monthly magazines. These curated essays from his larger oeuvre have allowed him the precision of form to express the urgency and vitality of its varied subjects. Written with unparalleled fluency and clarity of expression, here are meditations on foreign policy and India’s place in the world, burning domestic political and social issues, biographical homages, chronicles on the making and unmaking of India, reflections on Indians who birthed the modern democratic republic, fundamental ideas of India and appraisals of key public institutions of India. Here is a once-in-a-generation writer, a uniquely gifted voice one looks to and will continue to consult to make sense of the India we have come to inhabit and an India to come.

The deep faith of Mughal kings in astrology has been hidden in plain sight, ignored by those who failed to understand its relevance. The evidence lies in original sources: commissioned biographies like Humayunnama and Akbarnama, autobiographies such as Baburnama and Tuzuk-i-Jahangir, records of imperial correspondence and court documents. This belief went back to pre-Islamic cultural roots and the bloodlines of Chengiz Khan, descendant of the mother goddess Alanqoa. Akbar created the formal position of Jotik Rai, or royal astrologer, a post held for a century by Brahmin pundits from Benares who were gifted their weight in gold and silver as reward for an accurate forecast. In 1542 Humayun, then a hunted fugitive without hope, became certain that the Mughal empire would be reborn after reading his son Akbar’s horoscope. Humayun wore clothes of different colours each day, as prescribed by planetary positions. Astrology was part of statecraft. In one instance, Akbar’s astrologer convinced him to march against Kashmir’s ruler Yousaf Shah Chak in 1586 when his commanders advised that the army’s passage through the mountains might be ruinous. Jahangir issued coins with a zodiac theme. Shahjahan took pride in the title Sahib-i-Qiran-i-Sani, or Lord of the Two Conjunctions. Even Aurangzeb set aside his religiosity when it came to astrologers—they fixed the time of his two coronations. At the age of seventy-seven, Aurangzeb told his son Bahadur Shah that every single occurrence in his tempestuous life had been predicted in the horoscope cast at his birth. Every Mughal prince consulted astrologers to fix the auspicious time for the day’s appointments.

In today’s fast-paced world, reciting the Hanuman Chalisa offers solace and inner strength, reminding us of perseverance and selfless service. This fresh, lyrical translation by diplomat and poet Abhay K breathes new life into the classic, making its profound wisdom accessible to modern readers while preserving its spiritual essence. Whether seeking courage, focus, or divine connection, this rendition bridges ancient devotion with contemporary relevance—a must-read for devotees and seekers alike.

Beautiful young Anushka Khan is a privileged South Delhi wife. Her perfect world turns upside down when she awakens in the hospital, beaten and bruised, her body overrun with prescription drugs and alcohol. Her husband, the nawab Akbar Khan, is missing, suspected of murdering their friend Rajiv Pant at their palatial home in the swanky Sainik Farms. As Anushka makes a slow recovery, trying to piece together her memories of the haadsaa that fatal night, she must contend with ACP Kamala Jha, a diligent young police officer. Jha is focused on uncovering the truth hidden in a web of misleading theories and dirty secrets. Was Anushka having an affair with Rajiv? Was Akbar involved in shady hawala dealings? Was there another man present that evening? What really happened that hot July night in Sainik Farms? Bestselling author Vish Dhamija’s latest thriller, Haadsaa, is a maze of deception, leaving you questioning whom to trust.

Do you know why Narendra Modi’s mother, Heeraben, did not go to his sister’s wedding? Do you know whom among all her children Heeraben loved the most? Why did she start crying after seeing Modi during the Emergency? The book you hold in your hands answers these questions and more. It is a vivid portrayal of the relationship between Narendra Modi and his mother, Heeraben, and the role she played in his life building his character. You will get to know how Heeraben always encouraged Narendra and respected his decisions. Whether it was her son’s decision to traverse the Himalayas or his decision to enter politics, she always supported him even though his father, Damodar Das, held a contrary point of view. But she shied the limelight and did not share any stage with Narendra Modi even after he became chief minister of Gujarat or prime minster of India.

In this lucid and enlightening account, Nityananda Misra takes the reader on a whirlwind journey through the modern Kumbha Mela, the largest pilgrimage and the biggest festival in the world attended by crores of people. The book details the origin and symbolism of the Kumbha Mela, its dates and venues, and its awe-inspiring organization that has been called a wonder of modern-day management. It provides a personal close-up view of the visitors at the largest human gathering on earth—the sadhus, the kalpavasis, the tirthayatris, and members of new-age Hindu movements. The author sheds considerable light on the cultural aspects (literature, arts, and music) of the Kumbha and argues how the mela is perhaps the most diverse and inclusive human gathering and how the tradition is immortal, as if made so by the nectar of immortality which is believed to have spilled on the sites of the Kumbha Mela. Throughout the book, the author shows how diverse participants come and work together at the Kumbha Mela following the spirit of sangacchadhvam (“come together”)—a spirit that permeates the mela in his view. The author captures his personal experience too in Prayaga, Nashik, and Ujjain, leaving an anecdotal touch to the narrative. The final chapter presents an overview of the upcoming Kumbha Mela in Prayaga in 2025..