Thinking–Being

At a time when the choice is between getting assassinated or getting falsely arrested and facing the ‘legal’ process as punishment these two books tell us to continue to think fearlessly, and think of a different future.

This pack includes:

A Stake in the Nation: Selected Speeches by B.R. Ambedkar (MRP: Rs 399)

Who is an Indian? Who is a nationalist? Who is antinational? This selection of speeches, from 1930 to 1956, shows Dr B.R. Ambedkar as the most original among the architects of modern India as he asks and answers such difficult questions. Whether he was dealing with the British or the Congress, his commitment to equality and justice for minorities remained steadfast. These twenty speeches tell us a story jettisoned by narratives that valorise a Hinduised ‘idea of India’. Ambedkar addresses various publics: dalit workers in Nashik, British lawmakers in London, the Non-Brahmin Movement in Madras, parliamentarians in Delhi and college students in Jalandhar. He speaks of democracy, labour, minority rights, communalism, brahminism, constitution-making and foreign policy. The prose spans different registers of reason and affect—lyrical and polemical, combative and poignant.

The Way I See It: A Gauri Lankesh Reader (MRP: Rs 399)

Gauri Lankesh was the definitive activist-journalist, someone whose head and heart worked as one to encompass her life. Gathered here is a selection from Gauri’s writings, spanning languages, publications and the length of her career. It flags the unfinished work and uphill struggles that remain her legacy, but also preserves her companionable voice for us to cherish, a talisman and inspiration. She was taken away from us in the middle of life, of living busily, large-heartedly, and with a clear gaze on the world—the qualities that animate this collection.