ABSTRACT

Contemporary India: The Basics provides readers with a clear and accessible guide through the richness, diversity and complexity of twenty-first century India. It explores the reality of the country’s cultural diversity which creates both harmony and tension. Covering issues the country faces both domestically and on the global stage, this book analyzes the political, social, cultural and economic landscape of India and investigates how the future might look for India. The book addresses key questions such as:

  • How has India risen to be a major economic power?
  • What role does sectarianism play in the world’s largest democracy?
  • How do caste and gender affect the structure of Indian society?
  • What is the domestic and international impact of Bollywood?

Featuring maps, discussion questions and suggestions for further reading, this is the ideal introduction to India for those who are new to the study of this most fascinating and complex of countries.

chapter 1|14 pages

Introduction

chapter 2|23 pages

Discovering India

chapter 3|23 pages

India’s ‘argumentative’ culture

Democratic institutions and the party system

chapter 4|32 pages

“A million mutinies”

State-society relations in India

chapter 5|22 pages

India’s economy ‘unbound’

From state control to liberalization

chapter 6|23 pages

“Mother of a hundred sons” no more

The changing status of women

chapter 7|24 pages

Is India still ‘an emerging power’?

An overview of foreign relations

chapter 8|28 pages

Toward ‘a better world’

Impact of India’s soft power