Idea Of India

On Jawaharlal Nehru's birth anniversary, let's remember his vision for India

Nehru, of course represented the clearly understandable notion of modernity, but was Gandhi merely ‘traditional?’ More importantly, are tradition and modernity so monolithic? Are they really situated in such a flat binary?

The key pointers from Smriti Irani's speech: She took BJP out of the shadows of ambiguity

As performances go, Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani’s was impressive. On display during her debate in Parliament was a lot of anger, a sense of personal hurt and of course, her skill at clever oratory. She summoned the right material — some not directly connected to the issues at hand, but good enough to be props for a strong argument — to take on her detractors. She stood her ground emphatically.

Aylan Kurdi's death has held a mirror to the real face of Europe

The Idea of Europe as the ultimate defender of human rights has taken a beating in the way the continent has handled the West Asian refugee crisis. That it needed a child lying dead on the seashore to prick Europe's conscience tells us a lot

Why the idea of India as a 'civilisational' state will simply not fly

Many people in India want to debunk the western idea of the nation-state and replace it with the concept of a "civilisational state." But ambiguity is the only virtue of this state. It does not stand for anything.

Nehru and Idea(s) of India: Separating fact from fiction

Nehru was all-in-all, an intellectual par excellence, a great leader but was as human as can be. Attributing super human qualities and originality to him constitutes the fallacy of projection.

Individual vs community: Why the 2 ideas of India must and will coexist

The primary tension in the idea of India is to whether to see the country as a federation of communities or one that gives individuals a zone of freedom, says Pratap Bhanu Mehta. But is it useful to see the two ideas as being in conflict?

Identity politics: Why liberal is really illiberal in India

Should India be a salad bowl nation, where each community wears its identity on its sleeve, or a melting pot, where there is one common identity? Well, we don't have to choose. But the liberals have an illiberal answer, and it won't work.

Assam violence, Bangladeshis, and multiple states of denial

Assam, the North-East and the Bangladeshi influx should reawaken us to India's historical role in creating the state-nation and genuine unity in diversity.