‘India…has an information space packed with numerous sources and agents – from politicians and activists to profiteers and extortionists – all competing for attention and legitimacy in a growing information market…Whom does one believe?’
The political manipulation and simplification of information about a dizzyingly complex society have fashioned certain ‘truths’ about India. These truths have resulted in the creation of major religious and caste identities, which have been the defining features of the country’s politics and history for over 200 years.
An unsparing study of how this situation has come about, The Truth about Us explores answers to crucial questions: Is India a homogenous Hindu nation sprinkled with minorities, or a pluralistic, heterogeneous one? Is our knowledge of the inequalities in our society founded on facts or perceptions? What are the real origin stories of India’s social categories, and how are they being constructed and challenged today?
At a time when India is in the throes of an existential debate, convulsed by contesting claims over identity and history, Hindutva and Dalit consciousness, nationalism, and freedom of speech, and the rights and realities of minorities, this deeply provocative book is urgent reading for every thinking Indian.
AUTHOR NOTE
Sanjoy Chakravorty has written several acclaimed books on critical issues. The Price of Land: Acquisition, Conflict, Consequence was shortlisted for the Crossword Prize in 2013; The Other One Percent: Indians in America was awarded the Choice Outstanding Academic Title in 2017; Fragments of Inequality and Made in India are groundbreaking works on vital subjects. He is the author of one novel, The Promoter, and is working on two edited collections, on land and Delhi. He teaches at Temple University and splits his time between Philadelphia and Kolkata. For more visit https://sanjoychakravorty.com/
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