P
olitics is something that very much piqued the interest of the common people. This intricate game which doesn’t follow a set of rules is sure to have a lot of clandestine incidents and affairs in store- most of the times we think in this way. Vir Sanghvi’s ‘Mandate: Will of the People’ is an ideal read for those who want to have a take on India’s recent political history without spending much time.
The book unveils many a thing that are unknown to even politically conscious people. The nuts and bolts of politics from 1971 to 2014 have been presented almost in the form a fiction and, one would find it no less intriguing than any thriller
The book has catered me with trivia that have really given me a jolt. That Indira Gandhi, the iron woman of India, was not been able to read her first speech properly, was really a news to me! She was even given the name “Gungi Gudiya” (dumb doll) by veteran leader Ram Manohar Lohia.
The effects of emergency, the riot that followed Indira Gandhi’s assassination, Rajiv era, why Shankar Dayal Sharma refused to adorn the chair of the PM, BJP’s Ram janambhumi issue- almost each and every stand-alone incident of Indian politics, having a significant role in framing the future of the country during the last forty years, have been discussed here.
A concise, unbiased, narration, along with a lucid, simple yet effective language, have definitely made the book a must-read for political enthusiasts.
Scattered Thoughts 
Now this really looks like a book tailored in my genre. I’m quite eager to try it out 🙂
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Haha…glad to know that…try it out. Hope you’ll like it… 🙂
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Vir Sanghvi is recently famous with Nira Radia in Radia Tapes Controversy. He is a veteran journalist. I’d love to know his perspectives.
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Yep, his experience speaks here in the book… 🙂
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A fair review Maniparna. I’d love to read and catch-up on stuff I may have missed. 🙂
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Sure, I think you will like it…Thanks a lot, Dilip… 🙂
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Those aspects are new to me as well…maybe because i hate politics, so never bothered much about reading anything remotely also.
But should be a good read for many of us.
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Even I’m not much into politics, Alok…. 🙂 But for a change, this is a good read… 🙂
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The Game of Thrones … in Indian politics. Looks like a lot of nepotism compiled in a book 😛
Good one by Vir Sanghvi. I knew about him just yesterday through an IB join the team contest and today you are writing about him again. 🙂
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The team contest is on another blog forum..:-P not IB.. 😀
Yes, I come to know a lot of things from this book… 🙂
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I had heard about the name given to Mrs Gandhi. This was just after she entered politics and would accompany her father on tours. Nonetheless, politics is more layered and complex than Hindi movies and I am sure the book that presents such information would make an interesting read,
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A lot of things were new to me. I agree, politics is a far more complicated thing than the way we watch it in Hindi films. Clean politics is an oxymoron, too, IMHO… 😀 😛
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Exactly! Clean Politics sounds like an excellent example of oxymoron. 🙂
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I’m not to up on Indian politics so will have to add this one to the list. I like understanding a country through it’s leaders, what it strives to create and of course all the cover ups and dodgy goings on are always interesting.
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You are right. Knowing the politics of any other country pours a deep insight into the history, economy, society, and culture of the same.
Thanks a lot, Ste…. 🙂
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