I remember reading the columns of the author Tavleen Singh in Indian Express as college going student in Visakhapatnam. This was in early and mid nineties when India was at crossroads and there was a discernible change in the political and economic environment in the country. The young were quite excited about the future as liberalization had started to benefit the middle class and the educated. I lived in the south of the country where Indian Express was one of the leading newspapers but I often found its tone distinctly cynical. It is true that there was corruption and mis governance in the country and perhaps no other newspaper exposed or wrote about it more than Indian express. Tavleen wrote a column in the paper often criticizing the government on lack of development and corruption. While the columns were good, there came a point when I grew weary of all the cynicism. This was the nineties and I was in my twenties eager to conquer the world. I wanted to read about development and what the economy had to offer to my generation. At some point of time , I decided to stop reading Indian Express and hence Tavleen's column. For some reason, perhaps unfair, my mind had an image of Tavleen as a writer who tended to be cynical and criticized everything.On this account, When I saw this book in a shop at the Bangalore Airport, I almost did not pick it up. But the subject was of immense interest to me as I have been reading up a lot on Indian history and try to get my hands on anything that covers fresh ground. I am glad I picked up this book. It is very well written and an interesting read as the author takes us through the events of the seventies and eighties in Delhi based on her experience as a journalist. The best part is the glimpse that she provides of the inner circle of the political elite in Delhi against the backdrop of the events unfolding at a national scale from the emergency to the Rajiv's assassination. The political analysis of the prime ministerial tenure of Rajiv and how it changed the politics in India is remarkable. The author actually suggests that it was the mistakes by Rajiv that led to both the Kashmir problem flaring up and the resurgence of the BJP was a result of his goofy political moves. All this tied with a close up of the personal interactions with the Gandhi family and other people around them makes for some good reading. A must read for anyone who is interested in learning about the political backdrop to contemporary India and what lends credence to it is that it is written by a journalist and is not an autobiography of one of the political leaders of the time. This book definitely encourages me to read some of the other works of the author. Unputdownable.. This is political history of India being told in the most lucid narrative. The book spoke about the evolution of Indian politics and also touched subtly on the changing face of Indian journalism. But what inspired me most was Tavleen's fierce independent persona and her no-nonsense fight to establish truth and diverse points of view in a ruthless sycophant bastion of political journalism.
What do You think about Durbar (2012)?
Excellent read. Specially if you want to understand the politics of 70's and 90's
—ejohnson319
