Author: Rishvanth Reddy Mucheli

  • Episode 6: A History of Economic Policy in India

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    Rishvanth Reddy Mucheli
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    In this episode, I am in conversation with Rahul De, to discuss the key ideas in his book ‘A History of Economic Policy in India: Crisis, Coalitions and Contingency’. Rahul takes us through the meaning of economic history and the need for studying it. He situates industrial development in colonial India and its integration with…

  • Episode 5: The Life and Times of George Fernandes

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    Rishvanth Reddy Mucheli
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    In this episode, I am in conversation with Rahul Ramagundam to talk about his book, ‘The Life and Times of George Fernandes’. George was a rare individual in politics, who did not care about his self-image or about leaving behind a legacy. His life was his legacy. In 1984, in a note exchanged with Jaya…

  • Jealousy by Chalam (Translated from Telugu)

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    Rishvanth Reddy Mucheli
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    I and Chalapathy Rao are good friends. While we were studying B.A, one evening Chalapathy Rao suddenly turned deeply sympathetic to the hardships of widows and grew fondness towards them. He firmly resolved to marry no one but a widow. When his maternal uncle had come to offer his daughter’s hand in marriage, he rebuked,…

  • Parayi Pettu Panthirukulam: A Reflection of Kerala Society

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    Rishvanth Reddy Mucheli
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    The society of Kerala reflects a unique social configuration that is vibrant, diverse and tolerant of various cultures. The hateful ‘othering’ finds little space in the state. The occasional communal tensions emerge not because of hatred towards other communities but in regard to one’s own community. Three major religions flourished in this land and the…

  • Archives: A Case for LawFing

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    Rishvanth Reddy Mucheli
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    When I visited the Navakarnataka bookstore last Saturday, I chanced upon a small book titled ‘A Case for LawFing’, written and edited by S. R. Gautham. This is a “collection of humorous titbits and anecdotes relating to Law and Lawyers”. Though there is no further information about the author, in a newsletter ‘Communique’, which is…

  • Archives: The Confluence: A Play by Suri V. Subramanyam

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    Rishvanth Reddy Mucheli
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    During my visit to the Select Book Shop on Brigade Road, Bangalore, I found a slim copy of The Confluence: A Play by Suri V. Subramanyam. Without even looking for any details, I just brought that book because it’s a very small book (6 pages) and I would need something to read in a single…

  • Every vote counts?

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    Rishvanth Reddy Mucheli
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    Sometimes even just ‘1’ vote will matter a lot. Based on Assembly elections data from 1962 till now (taken from TCPD), 7 MLAs won with a margin of only ‘1’ vote. It means 7 people who could have become MLAs did not because someone from their kith and kin would not have taken voting very…

  • Two tall-tales on B.R. Ambedkar

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    Rishvanth Reddy Mucheli
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    Myth making is an integral part of political science and politics, especially when it comes to immortalising famous personalities. To keep the memories of notable people alive, we share stories about them, and their remarkable messages and acts. Sometimes we create stories and myths about them. Though those tall tales are not real, they have…

  • Idea of Forgetfulness

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    Rishvanth Reddy Mucheli
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    One day, in the early years of Independence, Jagat Narain Lal and Syed Mahmud (both senior members of the Congress Party and part of Bihar Cabinet) were travelling in a train, along with B.N. Azad, the editor of the newspaper ‘The Indian Nation’. During that journey, Jagat Babu and Syed Mahmud began an interpretative dialogue…

  • Wit and Humour of Rajaji

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    Rishvanth Reddy Mucheli
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    One of the greatest tragedies for the disciplines of history and political science in India is the fact that we have less biographies about the people we study about. What we have are (a) hagiographies that are uncritical and hero-worshipping in their content and bizarre in their prose, (b) good and quality biographies focusing only…