The Seduction of Delhi
The Seduction of Delhi

Author: Abhay K.

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2017-06-19

Total Pages: 91

ISBN-13: 9386606631

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Delhi has been widely described as a dry, energy draining place, even a hermaphrodite...the authors attempts in the book to prove otherwise. At first glance, his short, epigrammatic poems might appear just flaccid snapshots or single-boned vignettes of an outsider in a mad and sprawling metropolis known these days for its infamous gang rapes. But a closer look reveals how the poet steps back to withdraw his self into a cocoon, to gain an artistic poise and to empower each and every item, object, relic, monument and figure - a distinct voice and color. Lal Quila, Jantar Mantar, a flower girl, an auto rickshaw, Connaught Place, a house maid, Rahim, Jamun tree, Ghalib or Dara Shikoh walk with their first person personas in the lanes of Delhi conjuring a memorable recital, a jam that defines the essence of this legendary city...'Seduction of Delhi' is an artistic triumph in many ways...”

The Seduction of Place
The Seduction of Place

Author: Joseph Rykwert

Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA

Published: 2004

Total Pages: 337

ISBN-13: 0192805541

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What do our cities say about us? What have we made them, and how ought they to be? How has our vision of the city evolved over time, and can we really influence change and effect improvements?In this vibrant cultural history of the city, Joseph Rykwert explores the great cities of the modern world, examining their fabric and assessing how successfully they have met the needs of their inhabitants. From the teeming city centres of the industrial revolution to the exclusive gated suburbs ofthe 21st century, from the Parisian boulevards of Haussmann to the 'green' architecture of Emilio Ambasz, Rykwert charts the complex story of the growth of the city, setting architectural development firmly within a political, economic, social, and cultural context.Drawing on examples from Brasilia to Islamabad, Shanghai to Houston, Rykwert presents a fascinating analysis of urban growth, arguing forcefully that as voters and consumers we need to consider the economic, social, and cultural implications of developments and demonstrate our resistance to them ifnecessary. The arguments over the future of the Ground Zero site in Manhattan encapsulate the conflicting demands of civic pride and public utility set against private gain that vie for dominance in the 21st century, and exemplify the choices that, as citizens, we must all eventually make.

Raj Rhapsodies: Tourism, Heritage and the Seduction of History
Raj Rhapsodies: Tourism, Heritage and the Seduction of History

Author: Maxine Weisgrau

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2016-03-23

Total Pages: 283

ISBN-13: 131707162X

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Heritage is a prized cultural commodity in the marketing of tourism destinations. Particular aspects of heritage are often more actively promoted, with others played down. The representation of heritage in tourism as static and timeless, derived since time immemorial from a distant past, is seductive. In Asia, a major part of the tourism market lies in the sale and consumption of highly orientalized images and versions of culture and history. In India’s marketing discourse, the state of Rajasthan symbolizes the nation in its heritage-laden, traditional and most authentic form. These images draw heavily on the British period in India - the Raj. In one sense, this vision of Rajasthan is ennobling, highlighting moments of cultural pride. In another sense, it demeans, by omitting and obscuring salient features of contemporary life. This fascinating book explores the cultural politics of tourism through interdisciplinary perspectives. Carol E. Henderson and Maxine Weisgrau demonstrate that tourism heritage privileges elite histories that recapitulate colonial relationships, compelling non-elites to collude in these narratives of subordination even as they advance their own alternative visions of history.

Building Histories
Building Histories

Author: Mrinalini Rajagopalan

Publisher: University of Chicago Press

Published: 2017-03-01

Total Pages: 271

ISBN-13: 022633189X

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Building Histories offers innovative accounts of five medieval monuments in Delhi—the Red Fort, Rasul Numa Dargah, Jama Masjid, Purana Qila, and the Qutb complex—tracing their modern lives from the nineteenth century into the twentieth. Mrinalini Rajagopalan argues that the modern construction of the history of these monuments entailed the careful selection, manipulation, and regulation of the past by both the colonial and later postcolonial states. Although framed as objective “archival” truths, these histories were meant to erase or marginalize the powerful and persistent affective appropriations of the monuments by groups who often existed outside the center of power. By analyzing these archival and affective histories together, Rajagopalan works to redefine the historic monument—far from a symbol of a specific past, the monument is shown in Building Histories to be a culturally mutable object with multiple stories to tell.

King of Bollywood
King of Bollywood

Author: Anupama Chopra

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing

Published: 2007-10-02

Total Pages: 272

ISBN-13: 0446508985

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Here is the astonishing true story of Bollywood, a sweeping portrait about a country finding its identity, a movie industry that changed the face of India, and one man's struggle to become a star. Shah Rukh Khan's larger than life tale takes us through the colorful and idiosyncratic Bollywood movie industry, where fantastic dreams and outrageous obsessions share the spotlight with extortion, murder, and corruption. Shah Rukh Khan broke into this $1.5 billion business despite the fact that it has always been controlled by a handful of legendary film families and sometimes funded by black market money. As a Muslim in a Hindu majority nation, exulting in classic Indian cultural values, Shah Rukh Khan has come to embody the aspirations and contradictions of a complicated culture tumbling headlong into American style capitalism. His story is the mirror to view the greater Indian story and the underbelly of the culture of Bollywood. "A bounty for cinema lovers everywhere." --Mira Nair, Director, The Namesake and Monsoon Wedding "King of Bollywood is the all-singing, all-dancing back stage pass to Bollywood. Anupama Chopra chronicles the political and cultural story of India with finesse and insight, through fly-on-wall access to one of its biggest, most charming and charismatic stars." -- Gurinder Chadha, director of Bend it Like Beckham "The "Easy Rider Raging Bull" of the Bollywood industry and essential reading for any Shah Rukh Khan fan." --Emma Thompson, actress "Anu Chopra infuses the pivotal moments of Shah Rukh Khan's life with an edge-of-your-seat tension worthy of the best Bollywood blockbusters." --Kirkus

Royal Patronage, Power and Aesthetics in Princely India
Royal Patronage, Power and Aesthetics in Princely India

Author: Angma Dey Jhala

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2015-10-06

Total Pages: 250

ISBN-13: 1317316568

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Investigating the aesthetics of the zenana – the female quarters of the Indic home or palace – this study discusses the history of architecture, fashion, jewellery and cuisine in princely Indian states during the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

Secularism in India
Secularism in India

Author: Domenic Marbaniang

Publisher: Lulu Press, Inc

Published:

Total Pages: 187

ISBN-13:

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Historical account of the origin of Secularism and its development in India. This book was originally the MPhil thesis of the writer submitted to ACTS Academy in 2005.

Urnabhih: A Mauryan Tale of Espionage, Adventure and Seduction
Urnabhih: A Mauryan Tale of Espionage, Adventure and Seduction

Author: Sumedha Verma Ojha

Publisher: Roli Books Private Limited

Published: 2014-10-14

Total Pages: 376

ISBN-13: 9351940527

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Misrakesi comes to the newly-formed Mauryan court with a mission-to avenge the death of her sister. However, an encounter with Chanakya, the man she had planned to kill, sets her on an unexpected path...She lands the highly-coveted job of a spy, masquerading as a dancing girl. In a kingdom fraught with intrigue, Misrakesi must always remain one step ahead. With the help of her handsome but arrogant chief Pushyamitra, she must concoct the perfect blend of sweetness and seduction to vanquish the enemies of the state. But when she is sent to subtly conquer a powerful neighboring kingdom, she might be in for more than what she bargained for. Will she succeed in her mission? Or more importantly, will she even survive to tell the tale? Meticulously researched, this historical page-turner packs in romance, political intrigue, and mystery to make for a racy read.

The New India
The New India

Author: K. Chowdhury

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2011-01-31

Total Pages: 404

ISBN-13: 0230117090

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This book looks critically at various constructions of the Indian citizen from 1991 to 2007, the period when economic liberalization became established government policy. Examining differing images of citizenship and its rules and rituals, Chowdhury sheds light on the complex interactions between culture and political economy in the New India.