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India Becoming: A Portrait of Life in Modern India
A New Republic Editors' and Writers' Pick 2012 A New Yorker Contributors' Pick 2012
A Newsweek "Must Read on Modern India"
“For people who savored Katherine Boo’s Behind the Beautiful Forevers .”—Evan Osnos, newyorker.com
From the author of Better To Have Gone, a portrait of the incredible change and economic development of modern India, and of social and national transformation there told through individual lives
Raised in India, and educated in the U.S., Akash Kapur returned to India in 2003 to raise a family. What he found was an ancient country in transition. In search of the life that he and his wife want to lead, he meets an array of Indians who teach him much about the realities of this changed an old landowner sees his rural village destroyed by real estate developments, and crime and corruption breaking down the feudal authority; a 21-year-old single woman and a 35-year-old divorcee exploring the new cultural allowances for women; and a young gay man coming to terms with his sexual identity – something never allowed him a generation ago.
As Akash and his wife struggle to find the right balance between growth and modernity and the simplicity and purity they had known from the Indian countryside a decade ago, they ultimately find a country that “has begun to dream.” But also one that may be moving away too quickly from the valuable ways in which it is different.
A Newsweek "Must Read on Modern India"
“For people who savored Katherine Boo’s Behind the Beautiful Forevers .”—Evan Osnos, newyorker.com
From the author of Better To Have Gone, a portrait of the incredible change and economic development of modern India, and of social and national transformation there told through individual lives
Raised in India, and educated in the U.S., Akash Kapur returned to India in 2003 to raise a family. What he found was an ancient country in transition. In search of the life that he and his wife want to lead, he meets an array of Indians who teach him much about the realities of this changed an old landowner sees his rural village destroyed by real estate developments, and crime and corruption breaking down the feudal authority; a 21-year-old single woman and a 35-year-old divorcee exploring the new cultural allowances for women; and a young gay man coming to terms with his sexual identity – something never allowed him a generation ago.
As Akash and his wife struggle to find the right balance between growth and modernity and the simplicity and purity they had known from the Indian countryside a decade ago, they ultimately find a country that “has begun to dream.” But also one that may be moving away too quickly from the valuable ways in which it is different.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2012
42 people are currently reading
1057 people want to read
About the author
Akash Kapur
6 books45 followersThanks for visiting my Author's Page and for your interest in my work. I am an Indian-American journalist and author. I write about a wide range of topics but my main interest is in human stories. I believe literature illuminates the human condition, and I love talking to people (I hate calling them "interviews"), understanding their lives, and translating their stories into the written word.
My first book, "India Becoming," captured stories from a changing and rapidly modernizing India; it tried to portray all the ambivalence and "creative destruction" of economic development. "Better to have Gone" is about love, faith, death, and the noble but often tragic--and destructive--search for utopia. It's set in the intentional community of Auroville, where I grew up, and is focused on the remarkable stories of my wife's parents, who were pioneers in the community and died in mysterious circumstances. The book was something of a personal quest for our family as we sought to unravel those mysteries.
I'm also the editor of an anthology of writing from Auroville ("Auroville: Dream and Reality"), and I've written for a number of publications in the USA, India, and UK. These include the Atlantic, the Economist, Granta, the Hindu, the New York Times, and the New Yorker. I also used to write a fortnightly "Letter from India" column for the international New York Times. Thank you again for your interest in my work.
My first book, "India Becoming," captured stories from a changing and rapidly modernizing India; it tried to portray all the ambivalence and "creative destruction" of economic development. "Better to have Gone" is about love, faith, death, and the noble but often tragic--and destructive--search for utopia. It's set in the intentional community of Auroville, where I grew up, and is focused on the remarkable stories of my wife's parents, who were pioneers in the community and died in mysterious circumstances. The book was something of a personal quest for our family as we sought to unravel those mysteries.
I'm also the editor of an anthology of writing from Auroville ("Auroville: Dream and Reality"), and I've written for a number of publications in the USA, India, and UK. These include the Atlantic, the Economist, Granta, the Hindu, the New York Times, and the New Yorker. I also used to write a fortnightly "Letter from India" column for the international New York Times. Thank you again for your interest in my work.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 78 reviews
February 24, 2012
Akash Kapur is a prolific writer who has written for several of the world's leading publications, including The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Economist and Granta. He was born in India, was educated at Harvard and Oxford, and worked in New York for over a decade before he and his wife returned to India in 2003.
Starting in 1991, India underwent a dramatic transformation in response to financial crisis, from a socialist system plagued by nepotism, corruption and underdevelopment to a Western based capitalist system, in which government and private investors worked together to create a rapidly growing economy based largely on information technology, start up companies and real estate development in large cities such as Bangalore and Chennai, and in suburbs and smaller cities.
Kapur describes the transformed country in India Becoming through the lives of several people: Sathy, the descendant of a powerful landowning family, whose influence and importance wane as his region changes from an agricultural economy to one based on real estate and the purchase of cows for consumption; his wife Banu, a well educated woman who moves to Bangalore to take advantage of better schools for their children and to work as a professional; Das, a Dalit man born in extreme poverty as a member of the untouchable class, who became an independent businessman and rose to the middle class; Hari, a young man who uses his education and knowledge of English to flourish in the booming IT based economy and finds freedom as a gay man in the city; and Selvi, a naïve young woman from a rural town who works at a call center for American credit card holders, who experiences independence and tragedy in her daily struggles.
Through them, other characters, and Kapur's personal accounts, we learn about the often devastating effects that the new India has upon individuals, towns and cities, and the environment. The country's agriculture and small farmers suffer mightily, as farmers are forced out of business and their lands are purchased by real estate developers, who employ mobs of young men to intimidate and assault those who aren't willing to sell their property. Disputes are increasingly settled by violence and murder, as the police are ineffective or collusory and village leaders no longer command respect. Cheap disposable plastic is used increasingly by residents of large cities and is burned in large landfills in smaller towns, whose residents, including Kapur, suffer from the fumes they generate. Worst of all, the plight of the most impoverished does not improve, as the new economy favors the most entrepreneurial and well educated individuals.
Kapur's initial excitement and optimism about the new India are progressively dampened with time, and many of the individuals chronicled in the book suffer as a result of the decline of global economy in the late 2000s.
India Becoming is a superb and enlightening look into the new India, whose narrative style and interesting characters captivated me from the first page onward. The people that Kapur features are mainly privileged middle class people and educated young professionals, and it is not until the end that he describes, briefly, the life of several people who live alongside the landfill that spews toxic fumes onto his community.
Starting in 1991, India underwent a dramatic transformation in response to financial crisis, from a socialist system plagued by nepotism, corruption and underdevelopment to a Western based capitalist system, in which government and private investors worked together to create a rapidly growing economy based largely on information technology, start up companies and real estate development in large cities such as Bangalore and Chennai, and in suburbs and smaller cities.
Kapur describes the transformed country in India Becoming through the lives of several people: Sathy, the descendant of a powerful landowning family, whose influence and importance wane as his region changes from an agricultural economy to one based on real estate and the purchase of cows for consumption; his wife Banu, a well educated woman who moves to Bangalore to take advantage of better schools for their children and to work as a professional; Das, a Dalit man born in extreme poverty as a member of the untouchable class, who became an independent businessman and rose to the middle class; Hari, a young man who uses his education and knowledge of English to flourish in the booming IT based economy and finds freedom as a gay man in the city; and Selvi, a naïve young woman from a rural town who works at a call center for American credit card holders, who experiences independence and tragedy in her daily struggles.
Through them, other characters, and Kapur's personal accounts, we learn about the often devastating effects that the new India has upon individuals, towns and cities, and the environment. The country's agriculture and small farmers suffer mightily, as farmers are forced out of business and their lands are purchased by real estate developers, who employ mobs of young men to intimidate and assault those who aren't willing to sell their property. Disputes are increasingly settled by violence and murder, as the police are ineffective or collusory and village leaders no longer command respect. Cheap disposable plastic is used increasingly by residents of large cities and is burned in large landfills in smaller towns, whose residents, including Kapur, suffer from the fumes they generate. Worst of all, the plight of the most impoverished does not improve, as the new economy favors the most entrepreneurial and well educated individuals.
Kapur's initial excitement and optimism about the new India are progressively dampened with time, and many of the individuals chronicled in the book suffer as a result of the decline of global economy in the late 2000s.
India Becoming is a superb and enlightening look into the new India, whose narrative style and interesting characters captivated me from the first page onward. The people that Kapur features are mainly privileged middle class people and educated young professionals, and it is not until the end that he describes, briefly, the life of several people who live alongside the landfill that spews toxic fumes onto his community.
June 20, 2019
A surprisingly well done part journalistic and, in part, autobiographical take on decoding India of the last couple of decades. Using development, and viewing it as a bringer of progress and creative destruction, the author weaves a vivid picture of rural and urban India featuring the every day Indians while they grapple with globalization both in the markets and their values. Recommend this as a primer to modern India.
August 3, 2013
As an English ex-pat living in Tamil Nadu I’m often asked by friends back home to describe the changes happening in India. I have always found it difficult because, whilst I can see what is happening now, I have no experience of the past to compare it to. Now I don’t need to try to explain to my friends – I can just tell them to read this book!
Mr Kapur has an engaging style of writing, informative but not overly academic, and is able to describe his characters and their lives in a truly sympathetic way. The contrasts between how he remembers India from his childhood and the reality today are striking, the rapid pace of social and economic change creating as many issues for this ‘new-returnee’ as for the people he is describing. The people he has chosen to interview come from varied walks of life and social levels and will give anyone who does not know India well a real insight into what life is like here today.
Mr Kapur’s hopes and fears for the future are a reflection of the hopes and fears of a whole country as it moves into an ever more important role on the world stage. This is a must read for anyone who wants to understand more fully the people of this new emerging nation.
Mr Kapur has an engaging style of writing, informative but not overly academic, and is able to describe his characters and their lives in a truly sympathetic way. The contrasts between how he remembers India from his childhood and the reality today are striking, the rapid pace of social and economic change creating as many issues for this ‘new-returnee’ as for the people he is describing. The people he has chosen to interview come from varied walks of life and social levels and will give anyone who does not know India well a real insight into what life is like here today.
Mr Kapur’s hopes and fears for the future are a reflection of the hopes and fears of a whole country as it moves into an ever more important role on the world stage. This is a must read for anyone who wants to understand more fully the people of this new emerging nation.
November 16, 2012
I admit, I am one of those who always judge a book by its cover. Loved the cover and the title , but was quickly disappointed.
Akash Kapur had all the potential of taking a topic such as this and turning it into a terrific read.
Instead he seemed lost and too slow to grapple with "India becoming".
He often seemed dazed as a writer, and did not enlighten me on anything I did not already know.
Nevertheless, he has tried to explain India through the eyes of the characters,possibly as he understood it, and for that I gave the book a two star rating
Akash Kapur had all the potential of taking a topic such as this and turning it into a terrific read.
Instead he seemed lost and too slow to grapple with "India becoming".
He often seemed dazed as a writer, and did not enlighten me on anything I did not already know.
Nevertheless, he has tried to explain India through the eyes of the characters,possibly as he understood it, and for that I gave the book a two star rating
August 19, 2015
I love reading a book thats pages end before my mind is done partaking in the story. Moments after finishing the last page of this book, I caught myself still staring at the cover, absorbed in the people and ideas presented. I realized I wasn't yet ready to be separated from the experience of reading it.
This book is a current "portrait" of the social, economic, political, and environmental changes that have affected people living in India. Why did I find it so compelling?... the people the author meets.... his infusion into the story itself.... and the changes that take place throughout the book that affect all of their lives (people I just couldn't not finish reading about). It is not a feel-good read. It's about (real) people living amid rapidly increasing environmental issues, and changes in global and social politics. Despite this, Kapur's writing draws you into the lives of his subjects. You are there with him/them, analyzing and experiencing the changes ("modernization") that are occurring in India (and in many ways, the world).
This book is a current "portrait" of the social, economic, political, and environmental changes that have affected people living in India. Why did I find it so compelling?... the people the author meets.... his infusion into the story itself.... and the changes that take place throughout the book that affect all of their lives (people I just couldn't not finish reading about). It is not a feel-good read. It's about (real) people living amid rapidly increasing environmental issues, and changes in global and social politics. Despite this, Kapur's writing draws you into the lives of his subjects. You are there with him/them, analyzing and experiencing the changes ("modernization") that are occurring in India (and in many ways, the world).
February 8, 2017
Hmmmm
The standard run
This book talks about how the people at the village level have been positively and negatively affected by the new opportunities and cultural imperialism of America
The author has a few subjects of his book whom he brings into the many chapters through the book to be able to bring out his story on both sides
I liked the beginning
But the book gets kind of monotonous and a little bit too detailed around the middle
I couldn't finish the book
My expectation was more about a book in popular culture and how it has affected our generation of Indians in India
Maybe another time and another day will find a way to pick up the thread and complete the book
For now
It's on the shelf
The standard run
This book talks about how the people at the village level have been positively and negatively affected by the new opportunities and cultural imperialism of America
The author has a few subjects of his book whom he brings into the many chapters through the book to be able to bring out his story on both sides
I liked the beginning
But the book gets kind of monotonous and a little bit too detailed around the middle
I couldn't finish the book
My expectation was more about a book in popular culture and how it has affected our generation of Indians in India
Maybe another time and another day will find a way to pick up the thread and complete the book
For now
It's on the shelf
February 28, 2020
The author first introduces an array of characters, through whom he describes the changes in India at the turn of the millennium. He describes the lives of his characters in great detail and here the anthropologist in him is unmistakable. Through the lives of these people, he delves into his own dilemmas about the changes faced by this vast nation. That he goes into the depths of these characters and by his own admission continues to remain in touch with some of them, touched me.
While in the end he seems to inevitably reconcile with the change, the middle portion of the book seems to meander aimlessly to me. Perhaps that was the point, but I lost steam and had to hold on to complete it.
While in the end he seems to inevitably reconcile with the change, the middle portion of the book seems to meander aimlessly to me. Perhaps that was the point, but I lost steam and had to hold on to complete it.
July 3, 2024
India Becoming is a thoughtful analysis of India's development in modern years. It is told from an interview perspective and follows multiple individuals through their lives; rarely are these lives interconnected in any capacity outside of their immense struggles within this formative period of time for India's social and economic stature. Reading this book, I felt connected to the individuals it discusses. I felt as though I knew them and their struggles very well personally. I even cried toward the end. Akash Kapur effectively connects his readers to India and its people. He mentions he does not want to tell the cliché story of a depressing India, but he does not want to perpetuate the idea of an uplifted nation, a new cliché. Kapur does a phenomenal job at creating a middle between the two extremes. I wish more authors discussed a nation from the perspective that Kapur discusses India; I would read every book cover to cover.
Kapur moved from his home in India to America and created a life for himself there; he and his wife felt settled. Then, thinking America was at a standstill and seeking action, Kapur returned to India in 2003. He travels between rural and urban India as he interviews various individuals from various backgrounds. He meets people who feel connected to India's new culture and its old one. He discusses their religious affiliations, environmental concerns, and social structure. Many vital figures are discussed, each having their own identity within India. Sathy appears to be his best companion. I found the author confiding in him more than any other character, mainly towards the end, as he calls attention to India's lack of care for its environmental concerns.
The book follows their lives through many years, and the reader knows each character's innate weaknesses or flaws (their Achilles' heels). Time and time again, the author calls attention to the issue of monetary status and how it has changed India's landscape physically and socially. He mentions how they cut down century-old fruit trees to pave roads; this connects rural and urban India but at the cost of their traditional values.
I'd like to discuss the book's title: India Becoming. This title is skillfully crafted by Kapur and represents India exceptionally well. He discusses the slogan utilized in the elections of 2004: "India Shining.". Raising awareness that this slogan did not accurately represent every individual in India and only highlighted its urban roots, the author seemingly criticizes it. This is where I began to ponder the title he chose; it felt similar, yet so much more descriptive. I really kept this in mind as I continued to read the book. "Becoming" is an interesting word choice, and I needed help understanding where he got it from. Upon finishing the book, I now understand. India is changing in nearly every capacity, which is exceptionally clear through the characters that Kapur depicts and their stories he tells. Nothing is solely traditional, yet nothing is exclusively modern. India is entirely in action, and it is developing right now. Its ways are changing, and it is becoming something new. It has yet to arrive; it continuously makes progress and then regresses slightly, especially within the economy and how society views the cate system. There is a nation of unrest, yet a stillness in the night. It is becoming a new India that combines its traditional values with a modern approach to civilization. The title is representative of the book and the nation. Kapur describes characters and their lives in great detail; he tells us the story of who they are becoming through the years. Intentionally, he paints a picture of change. Take Sathy, for example, a man who could practically symbolize the value of tradition. He is now living with his wife, away from his village. The same village he spent his entire life protecting, and that protected him; he previously chose his village over his family, but he has since changed his mind and turned a new leaf. This is impressive and very relevant in the sense of depicting a broken values system that is becoming something new, just as Sathy is becoming someone new. He is adapting to the changes placed in front of him. The author does an impeccable job of displaying the values of India this way. They feel so different and disconnected, but somehow this title truly encompasses it all.
Family and loyalty are other core values within India. Even the most modernized couple, Veena and Arvind, want to have children. In the slums of Dharavi, a father and son sift through garbage together, looking for valuables. The idea of doing things together, staying together, and maintaining loyalty unite Indians across the nation. There is a lot there to unpack that he did not necessarily do. But I also think he did a great job depicting a universal value. Loyalty to traditions is something that has been lost. Society no longer values a traditional approach because a better, shinier one has come about. The author depicts that they become blindly loyal to this idea of a new India, a new life, a better one (seemingly). Loyalty is displayed in many forms here, through family and personal values. This theme runs very strongly through the entire book, and the author paints each character in a way where the theme is applicable to their very individualized life.
The greatest strength of India Becoming is the author's personal feelings and comments throughout it. Obviously, it is told from his perspective, and his bias will be present, but throughout the book, apart from his bias as an author, he provides commentary. Towards the end, he discusses his own frustrations with India and his environmental concerns regarding his family and their health. I enjoyed understanding Kapur's life and feelings. At one point, he mentions how he agreed with Vinod's political views in certain situations, and in others, he did not. It gives the book a great lens as the reader can understand the interviewee and the interviewer. The book's format is excellent because he chooses to include himself in his narrative. He does not subjectively discuss India passively; he actively pursues knowledge and has a changing perspective in line with his interviewees and their lives. He is one of them. He also struggles to continue living in rural India, although he is compelled toward it. He fears his family will not be healthy, but he also cannot bring himself to leave this place that is closely tied to his heart. As much as I understand the characters, I understand the author, which is why I understand the characters so well. The readers are given a complete perspective, and I feel free of the author's interactions because he also chooses to include his own feelings.
I reflected on India's economy, culture, and society while reading this book. Historians break down intricate historical events into abbreviated investigations that epitomize the event and its role in society. This is not to say that historians omit details of history; instead, they dissect the components of history and relate them to one another.
Kapur moved from his home in India to America and created a life for himself there; he and his wife felt settled. Then, thinking America was at a standstill and seeking action, Kapur returned to India in 2003. He travels between rural and urban India as he interviews various individuals from various backgrounds. He meets people who feel connected to India's new culture and its old one. He discusses their religious affiliations, environmental concerns, and social structure. Many vital figures are discussed, each having their own identity within India. Sathy appears to be his best companion. I found the author confiding in him more than any other character, mainly towards the end, as he calls attention to India's lack of care for its environmental concerns.
The book follows their lives through many years, and the reader knows each character's innate weaknesses or flaws (their Achilles' heels). Time and time again, the author calls attention to the issue of monetary status and how it has changed India's landscape physically and socially. He mentions how they cut down century-old fruit trees to pave roads; this connects rural and urban India but at the cost of their traditional values.
I'd like to discuss the book's title: India Becoming. This title is skillfully crafted by Kapur and represents India exceptionally well. He discusses the slogan utilized in the elections of 2004: "India Shining.". Raising awareness that this slogan did not accurately represent every individual in India and only highlighted its urban roots, the author seemingly criticizes it. This is where I began to ponder the title he chose; it felt similar, yet so much more descriptive. I really kept this in mind as I continued to read the book. "Becoming" is an interesting word choice, and I needed help understanding where he got it from. Upon finishing the book, I now understand. India is changing in nearly every capacity, which is exceptionally clear through the characters that Kapur depicts and their stories he tells. Nothing is solely traditional, yet nothing is exclusively modern. India is entirely in action, and it is developing right now. Its ways are changing, and it is becoming something new. It has yet to arrive; it continuously makes progress and then regresses slightly, especially within the economy and how society views the cate system. There is a nation of unrest, yet a stillness in the night. It is becoming a new India that combines its traditional values with a modern approach to civilization. The title is representative of the book and the nation. Kapur describes characters and their lives in great detail; he tells us the story of who they are becoming through the years. Intentionally, he paints a picture of change. Take Sathy, for example, a man who could practically symbolize the value of tradition. He is now living with his wife, away from his village. The same village he spent his entire life protecting, and that protected him; he previously chose his village over his family, but he has since changed his mind and turned a new leaf. This is impressive and very relevant in the sense of depicting a broken values system that is becoming something new, just as Sathy is becoming someone new. He is adapting to the changes placed in front of him. The author does an impeccable job of displaying the values of India this way. They feel so different and disconnected, but somehow this title truly encompasses it all.
Family and loyalty are other core values within India. Even the most modernized couple, Veena and Arvind, want to have children. In the slums of Dharavi, a father and son sift through garbage together, looking for valuables. The idea of doing things together, staying together, and maintaining loyalty unite Indians across the nation. There is a lot there to unpack that he did not necessarily do. But I also think he did a great job depicting a universal value. Loyalty to traditions is something that has been lost. Society no longer values a traditional approach because a better, shinier one has come about. The author depicts that they become blindly loyal to this idea of a new India, a new life, a better one (seemingly). Loyalty is displayed in many forms here, through family and personal values. This theme runs very strongly through the entire book, and the author paints each character in a way where the theme is applicable to their very individualized life.
The greatest strength of India Becoming is the author's personal feelings and comments throughout it. Obviously, it is told from his perspective, and his bias will be present, but throughout the book, apart from his bias as an author, he provides commentary. Towards the end, he discusses his own frustrations with India and his environmental concerns regarding his family and their health. I enjoyed understanding Kapur's life and feelings. At one point, he mentions how he agreed with Vinod's political views in certain situations, and in others, he did not. It gives the book a great lens as the reader can understand the interviewee and the interviewer. The book's format is excellent because he chooses to include himself in his narrative. He does not subjectively discuss India passively; he actively pursues knowledge and has a changing perspective in line with his interviewees and their lives. He is one of them. He also struggles to continue living in rural India, although he is compelled toward it. He fears his family will not be healthy, but he also cannot bring himself to leave this place that is closely tied to his heart. As much as I understand the characters, I understand the author, which is why I understand the characters so well. The readers are given a complete perspective, and I feel free of the author's interactions because he also chooses to include his own feelings.
I reflected on India's economy, culture, and society while reading this book. Historians break down intricate historical events into abbreviated investigations that epitomize the event and its role in society. This is not to say that historians omit details of history; instead, they dissect the components of history and relate them to one another.
June 10, 2020
Book Report India Becoming
Name of the book: India Becoming
Author: Akash Kapur
Date: 4/17/20
Main Characters: Akash Kapur, Sathy,
Characters who I like and reasons: My favorite character is Sathy because of his choice to keep working his fields and not modernize. Although I do not agree with his ideas I still find that it is honorable for him to go the harder way.
Summarize with 3 sentences :
India Becoming is a story of a rapidly modernizing India and traditional India colliding. Members of the higher classes struggle to keep their traditional power while the caste system is being uprooted. The younger generation leaves behind their tradition in favor of an Americanized India.
Most impressive sentences or parts and reasons What you feel or learn from this book :
The biggest thing that I learned from India Becoming is that our current social or economic climate or status does not mean that we will be rich or poor forever. Another important message I received is to always keep up with modernization and technology because if we do not it is impossible to catch up.
My judgment: India Becoming is an amazing book that combines hundreds of different stories and perspectives to paint a picture of what India is like today.
Whom you can recommend and why: I can recommend India Becoming to anyone who has an interest in how cultures our dealing with modernization and technology.
Name of the book: India Becoming
Author: Akash Kapur
Date: 4/17/20
Main Characters: Akash Kapur, Sathy,
Characters who I like and reasons: My favorite character is Sathy because of his choice to keep working his fields and not modernize. Although I do not agree with his ideas I still find that it is honorable for him to go the harder way.
Summarize with 3 sentences :
India Becoming is a story of a rapidly modernizing India and traditional India colliding. Members of the higher classes struggle to keep their traditional power while the caste system is being uprooted. The younger generation leaves behind their tradition in favor of an Americanized India.
Most impressive sentences or parts and reasons What you feel or learn from this book :
The biggest thing that I learned from India Becoming is that our current social or economic climate or status does not mean that we will be rich or poor forever. Another important message I received is to always keep up with modernization and technology because if we do not it is impossible to catch up.
My judgment: India Becoming is an amazing book that combines hundreds of different stories and perspectives to paint a picture of what India is like today.
Whom you can recommend and why: I can recommend India Becoming to anyone who has an interest in how cultures our dealing with modernization and technology.
January 28, 2016
The book is a appreciative/critical take on the situation that India is in today from a point of view of a person who spent majority of his life in India, considerable part in the West, returning back again in search of social stability and career opportunities at the same time.
In this book, Akash Kapur takes very basic examples some heavy and to a point depressing to empathise the nature of growth in India is closer to the phrase "All that glitters is not gold".
The book raises several aspects that contribute to Indian growth as well as its depredation; many political, some social and economical. Akash describes India's advent as a 'roller-coaster' ride that might be in full-throttle and is exciting but at the same time seems to have lost its control.
"The first step to solving a problem is realising there is one". Maybe through his words, Akash tries to wake up his fellow citizens and realise the nature of country's development and act accordingly.
Beautifully put forward! A must read for every individual who seeks/is contributing in the country's future.
In this book, Akash Kapur takes very basic examples some heavy and to a point depressing to empathise the nature of growth in India is closer to the phrase "All that glitters is not gold".
The book raises several aspects that contribute to Indian growth as well as its depredation; many political, some social and economical. Akash describes India's advent as a 'roller-coaster' ride that might be in full-throttle and is exciting but at the same time seems to have lost its control.
"The first step to solving a problem is realising there is one". Maybe through his words, Akash tries to wake up his fellow citizens and realise the nature of country's development and act accordingly.
Beautifully put forward! A must read for every individual who seeks/is contributing in the country's future.
March 3, 2014
Readers have to endure a lot of vapid philosophizing in this book's initial pages (mostly about the multiple Indias, traditional and modern, now in sometimes uncomfortable coexistence) before they can finally sink their teeth into the good stuff: a series of vignettes about real people and real experiences in the author's South Indian countryside surroundings. Some more unnecessary moralizing and symbolism starts creeping in near the end (a frail but beautiful flower is spotted rising from a garbage pile, only to reveal itself as fake and made of cloth), but so long as the book stays grounded in chronicling the lives of actual people, it's a worthwhile read.
November 12, 2017
Insightful and thought provoking, Akash writes about the euphoria of a fast changing country and the woes that this development has bought in the lives of many a commoner. He aptly captures the less talked about rural impact of this modernization with abandonment of familial occupations and lands and social structure upheaval as a collateral effect. His observations that the whole country is affected by a kind of “social Darwinism”, a me-centered sense of privilege replacing the last generations collective consciousness are spot on! The change is eminent, here’s hoping that it’s smooth sailing after the initial turmoil!
December 19, 2018
A very good book written by an Indian-american author. This book explains the changes India is going thru with a book gathering statements of several persons the author speaks with. These persons, from different social status with different lives are interviewed by the author, several times, in different situations, explaining how they had to adapt (some of them were not able even if they tried) to the new India.
This book gives us a different idea of India; one of the interesting things is the fact that the author lived in the US for some years, enabling him to look at his own country from outside, having different perspectives, which helped a lot in the construction of this book.
This book gives us a different idea of India; one of the interesting things is the fact that the author lived in the US for some years, enabling him to look at his own country from outside, having different perspectives, which helped a lot in the construction of this book.
August 31, 2022
Engaging, thought-provoking book. Though it bordered on dense and stiff, it remained a narrative with interesting, if not quite dynamic, characters. At times, Kapur’s perspective of India encompasses the entire country, though a chunk of the north and all of the northeast and central are not visited. I appreciate a book where the reader must rest between each chapter because it’s a deep story on its own. I’ve recommended to some friends!
November 4, 2018
It is a book "Fire Alert" that should be read.
I was shocked by the pessimistic chapter on pollution in India, on absurd consumerism. The author tries to be positive in conclusion when he talks about the duality of the end and rebirth of the cycle that defines India. I think he's forcing himself to believe it.
I was shocked by the pessimistic chapter on pollution in India, on absurd consumerism. The author tries to be positive in conclusion when he talks about the duality of the end and rebirth of the cycle that defines India. I think he's forcing himself to believe it.
November 1, 2017
3.5 stars really. Decent book, compelling cast of real life characters in 2000-2010 india. Not enough focus on the facts of the past for me, more waxing nostalgic, but a good character study.
February 19, 2019
This read a bit like an unfinished draft in places, but overall a heartfelt portrait of India in the midst of upheaval. Good for seeing both sides of the modernisation coin.
June 25, 2019
Interesting enough read about the modernization of India and the people it effects.
March 1, 2021
Did not like the overly chatting style which is not backed by data
Read
November 2, 2023the most boring book i have ever read in my life
December 10, 2023
“People are lost,” Sathy says. “They no longer know who they are. All the money has taken them away from themselves.”
September 10, 2016
This review was written for an early reviewer program
In India Becoming, Akash Kapur uses the extended personal essay format to explore ways globalization is shaping people's lives and social relationships in south India. He focuses tightly on fewer than a dozen people, including a middle-aged zamindar (agricultural gentry) and his urban wife; a young, gay businessman; a Dalit (lowest caste) on the rise in the new economy; two or three young women striking out in the city; an attorney that fights for economic justice. Their stories unfold over a period of several years, as Kapur wrestles with the ways rapid development is both destroying the landscape and social structures where he grew up, and opening up new vistas of opportunity.
Substantively, the social changes Kapur describes -- respect for raw wealth replacing respect for traditional hierarchies; dislocation of farming and traditional trades in the new market economy; greater individual freedom, but with a tremendous cost for those on the bottom -- reminded me of accounts of the United States in the Gilded Age, overlapping (especially for women and gay men) elements of the sexual revolution that overtook the US in the 1960s. Kapur doesn't himself mention parallels with American or British history. Instead, the United States is invoked (by multiple characters) as a static idea, an archetype of materialist consumer culture to which some Indians aspire and from which others are repulsed. Still, for a reader versed in American history, some of the individual stories will feel strikingly familiar.
India Becoming is very carefully constructed - just how carefully becomes clear as the book unfolds, as themes of social change, violence, self-deception, and ambition appear over and over again. The story is anchored by two men who are fighting losing battles: the zamindar, trying to manage his farmland and protect his villagers; and the attorney fighting for social justice. Near the middle of the book, at a key pivot point, Kapur asks the attorney how he can face injustice everyday without losing himself to rage. His answer: "The anger you feel is justified...but if you want to make a change, you have to swallow anger..These people [his clients] can't afford that anger. It could drag down their lives and families. They can't express anger, they can't feel it, or it would burn out of control." It's an insight that resonates through the rest of the book.
Perhaps that's why Kapur's ultimate conclusion feels so unsatisfactory. All along, Kapur uses the technique of casting himself as a slightly naive everyman, and presenting his own reactions to India as an evolution, from 'development is great!' to 'development is destroying everything', to 'which India is real?' to 'surprise! they're *both* real'. Given that Kapur has a PhD in social anthropology from Harvard and a doctorate in law from Oxford, there's no way he's actually this naive. The book shows the corrosive self-deception required by the current path of development, the costs being imposed on the urban and rural poor. Then, in the last two pages, after facing the moral crisis head on, here's how he resolves it: "This duality, this delicate dance between destruction and creativity, between tearing down and building up, was what defined the Indian condition at the start of the 21st century....The show was still unfolding. I resolved just to sit back, stop trying to figure out what I thought of it -- and enjoy it....A world was dying. I resolved to hold on to this conviction: that ineluctably, if at times haltingly, a new world was rising to take its place." That's just lame. Kapur could have it all - welcoming change, but calling for its rewards to be more fairly distributed - but instead he settles for mush.
Apart from the equivocal ending, the book is great. Well drawn portraits, a knack for asking people the right follow-up questions, the right degree of authorial presence -- it's all there. As an added benefit, it focuses on south India, which has been underrepresented in general audience books on India's ongoing transition.
November 25, 2012
This is a wonderful work of non-fiction by the author. First of all, it is pertinent to note what this work is not. This work is not a masterpiece on anthropology or on the socio-economic polity of contemporary India. It is not a comparative historical analysis. By professional and technical standards of academics, it may not even qualify as a scholarly work.
Then, what is this work? At a glance, it appears to be nothing but a collection of narrative about the lives of certain characters that the author has identified and picked for his study. To some readers this book may appear to be along version of a magazine article, reading akin to a documentary script. It chronicles the changes in the lives of certain people over a period of time, with the author acting as the interviewer or the host of the documentary. However, the foregoing will be a very superficial understanding of the author's attempt to understand the changes in contemporary India. In the prologue, the author quotes R.K. Narayan–“America and India are profoundly different in attitude and philosophy. Indian philosophy stresses austerity and unencumbered, uncomplicated day-to-day living. America's emphasis, on the other hand, is on material acquisition and limitless pursuit of prosperity." He goes on to quote further “a typical American works hard and earnestly, acquires wealth and enjoys life".
This differentiation is pretty much the crux based on which the author has chronicled the lives of some characters in this book. All of these characters are in some way or the other hugely impacted by the sudden leapfrogging of India from its not so distant “Third World" stature into a self-proclaimed emerging superpower. So sudden has been this change by leapfrogging, that it has left most middle-class Indians too busy to care about anything other than personal growth with emphasis on material acquisitions, things which were not earlier available or attainable.
Material acquisitions by itself, at best, can be a means to an end but not the end itself. This is where most middle-class Indians seem to be getting it wrong, in that materialism and consumerism have become an end upon itself. This confounded reality, as a result, has led to wide-ranging changes in the “Indian way of life". The "me first" attitude is giving birth to a sense of carelessness in most, and chauvinism, intolerance, impatience and goondaism in many, people across the spread of India. The author does also mention some of the good that such change has brought, in terms of women emancipation and a sense of upliftment amongst the lower castes and classes.
Overall, the theme and the central point of this book is extremely pertinent, relevant and topical. The concerns raised by the author about India becoming a very different place than what it used to be merely a decade and a half back, with rampant corruption, a race for material pursuits, increasing number of people drunk with power through their suddenly acquired status and wealth, scant regard for environment and pollution etc., are clear, precise and specific issues of important singled by him. The author does not provide any answers or solutions to any of these problems, and in all fairness the author cannot be expected to have such answers. He makes it amply clear that this book is merely his attempt at chronicling what he has perceived over the past decade, and his attempt to ward off his disillusions and disenchantment of a romantic and nostalgic India of the yore, by reconciling himself to the fact that we are living in changing times, and eventually things will hopefully change for the better and arrive at an equilibrium. It is important to clarify that this book is by no means America or West bashing; if anyone is answerable for these avoidable excesses, it is Indian themselves.
Then, what is this work? At a glance, it appears to be nothing but a collection of narrative about the lives of certain characters that the author has identified and picked for his study. To some readers this book may appear to be along version of a magazine article, reading akin to a documentary script. It chronicles the changes in the lives of certain people over a period of time, with the author acting as the interviewer or the host of the documentary. However, the foregoing will be a very superficial understanding of the author's attempt to understand the changes in contemporary India. In the prologue, the author quotes R.K. Narayan–“America and India are profoundly different in attitude and philosophy. Indian philosophy stresses austerity and unencumbered, uncomplicated day-to-day living. America's emphasis, on the other hand, is on material acquisition and limitless pursuit of prosperity." He goes on to quote further “a typical American works hard and earnestly, acquires wealth and enjoys life".
This differentiation is pretty much the crux based on which the author has chronicled the lives of some characters in this book. All of these characters are in some way or the other hugely impacted by the sudden leapfrogging of India from its not so distant “Third World" stature into a self-proclaimed emerging superpower. So sudden has been this change by leapfrogging, that it has left most middle-class Indians too busy to care about anything other than personal growth with emphasis on material acquisitions, things which were not earlier available or attainable.
Material acquisitions by itself, at best, can be a means to an end but not the end itself. This is where most middle-class Indians seem to be getting it wrong, in that materialism and consumerism have become an end upon itself. This confounded reality, as a result, has led to wide-ranging changes in the “Indian way of life". The "me first" attitude is giving birth to a sense of carelessness in most, and chauvinism, intolerance, impatience and goondaism in many, people across the spread of India. The author does also mention some of the good that such change has brought, in terms of women emancipation and a sense of upliftment amongst the lower castes and classes.
Overall, the theme and the central point of this book is extremely pertinent, relevant and topical. The concerns raised by the author about India becoming a very different place than what it used to be merely a decade and a half back, with rampant corruption, a race for material pursuits, increasing number of people drunk with power through their suddenly acquired status and wealth, scant regard for environment and pollution etc., are clear, precise and specific issues of important singled by him. The author does not provide any answers or solutions to any of these problems, and in all fairness the author cannot be expected to have such answers. He makes it amply clear that this book is merely his attempt at chronicling what he has perceived over the past decade, and his attempt to ward off his disillusions and disenchantment of a romantic and nostalgic India of the yore, by reconciling himself to the fact that we are living in changing times, and eventually things will hopefully change for the better and arrive at an equilibrium. It is important to clarify that this book is by no means America or West bashing; if anyone is answerable for these avoidable excesses, it is Indian themselves.
May 8, 2013
India’s dizzying economic growth is one of the stories of the first decade of the 21st century. But what is “India Becoming”? In this thought-provoking book Akash Kapur avoids the trap of coming up with an easy answer.
In 2003, Kapur returned to India after a decade in the USA and England with a degree from Harvard and an Oxford Rhodes Scholarship under his belt. He had left India in 1991 at the age of only sixteen when the country looked doomed to economic failure after limping through two difficult decades; in contrast the USA was riding a wave of seemingly unstoppable growth and basking in the glory of its Cold war victory. But by 2003 everything was different – India was tagged as a BRIC, and on the cusp of a spurt of economic development that has transformed the lives of millions. Noticing his friends in India casting off their careers while in New York he watched people clinging on to theirs, he decided to return to the country of his birth.
Facing his own bewildering challenge of reintegration, Kapur began to write about a dozen or so characters in and around Tamil Nadu. What emerges is an intriguing series of snapshots highlighting the opportunities and the challenges that development brings and showing how his characters' lives are changing as a result - what they as individuals are "becoming."
But what of the social impact of all this development? At the heart of the book is an investigation into how family and social relations in India, for so long the lifeblood of a complex and interwoven society, are being transformed. Kapur’s diverse characters illustrate this. There’s Sathy, the 41-year-old inheritor of a small family country estate, grasping for the certainties of a more structured past as he tries to make sense of the new fluidity; Hari, a young boy whose education takes him from a small village to Chennai and on to London, and who finds it easier to come to terms with his new found wealth than with his homosexuality; Veena, the super-confident middle manager who gets a high from power, thrives on urban life, and seeks out unconventional relationships. All these characters have to live with the social consequences of their decisions: Sathy’s reluctance to leave his family estate threatens to estrange him from his more forward-looking wife, Hari’s mounting debts lead to the slow disintegration of relations with his family, Veena’s cancer diagnosis forces her to consider what – and who – really matters to her.
Like all countries, Kapur muses, India too will have to live with the social impact of its citizens’ thirst for economic growth. In the closing pages he wonders aloud if the human impact of the last decade has just been “collateral damage… the losses Indian society had to bear – was willing to bear – in order to enjoy its new prosperities.”
It is a suitably ambiguous ending. The conundrum, Kapur implies in this fascinating book, is whether India will follow America and enter a state of “always becoming, never being.”
In 2003, Kapur returned to India after a decade in the USA and England with a degree from Harvard and an Oxford Rhodes Scholarship under his belt. He had left India in 1991 at the age of only sixteen when the country looked doomed to economic failure after limping through two difficult decades; in contrast the USA was riding a wave of seemingly unstoppable growth and basking in the glory of its Cold war victory. But by 2003 everything was different – India was tagged as a BRIC, and on the cusp of a spurt of economic development that has transformed the lives of millions. Noticing his friends in India casting off their careers while in New York he watched people clinging on to theirs, he decided to return to the country of his birth.
Facing his own bewildering challenge of reintegration, Kapur began to write about a dozen or so characters in and around Tamil Nadu. What emerges is an intriguing series of snapshots highlighting the opportunities and the challenges that development brings and showing how his characters' lives are changing as a result - what they as individuals are "becoming."
But what of the social impact of all this development? At the heart of the book is an investigation into how family and social relations in India, for so long the lifeblood of a complex and interwoven society, are being transformed. Kapur’s diverse characters illustrate this. There’s Sathy, the 41-year-old inheritor of a small family country estate, grasping for the certainties of a more structured past as he tries to make sense of the new fluidity; Hari, a young boy whose education takes him from a small village to Chennai and on to London, and who finds it easier to come to terms with his new found wealth than with his homosexuality; Veena, the super-confident middle manager who gets a high from power, thrives on urban life, and seeks out unconventional relationships. All these characters have to live with the social consequences of their decisions: Sathy’s reluctance to leave his family estate threatens to estrange him from his more forward-looking wife, Hari’s mounting debts lead to the slow disintegration of relations with his family, Veena’s cancer diagnosis forces her to consider what – and who – really matters to her.
Like all countries, Kapur muses, India too will have to live with the social impact of its citizens’ thirst for economic growth. In the closing pages he wonders aloud if the human impact of the last decade has just been “collateral damage… the losses Indian society had to bear – was willing to bear – in order to enjoy its new prosperities.”
It is a suitably ambiguous ending. The conundrum, Kapur implies in this fascinating book, is whether India will follow America and enter a state of “always becoming, never being.”
July 29, 2020
Pondicherry fascinates me and aside from Life of Pi, began, before the boat ride, in Pondicherry, few books (to my knowledge) exist on the subject. Of course Auroville is famous, but I have been more curious about the French in the area. This, just a brief note on how I discovered this book. When I found India Becoming by Akash Kapur - who was born there, I had some hope of more on the city, but instead I discovered a truly, beautifully written, portrait of life in Modern India. Southern India on the East Coast.
Akash Kapur is a notable writer with a long list of kudos and credits from his time in the US as a student and later as a magazine writer. This book is his return to his 'hometown" and his conversations and observations about the subtle and obvious changes, 'The New India', has stolen from the 'old" India; traditions, values and outlooks that seem to need restoration on some level. I loved this book. His interactions with local personalities and their entrenched experiences are stunning. Things I could never have known; some very forward thinking and others that are just sad; especially those sunken by India's enchantment with the free market, globalization and the diminished 'old ways" that are fast disappearing. Lovers of India, Indophiles and the very curious will find this book a very rare look into an area that has become India's Silicon Valley - to the commingled joy and sadness of many who live there and struggle amidst the wealth hi-tech has brought. The chapters that covered Bandra in the Mumbai north were shared in such sadness and the loss of incomes from family lands in Tamil Nadu, from the land grabs of developers was far from uplifting.
If you are as fascinated by India as I am you will truly love this book. If it is a new fascination, you could not begin your journey with a better guide. And I loved the cover. What could be more evocative of this fabulous, confusing, appealing land but a white Ambassador Car.
Akash Kapur is a notable writer with a long list of kudos and credits from his time in the US as a student and later as a magazine writer. This book is his return to his 'hometown" and his conversations and observations about the subtle and obvious changes, 'The New India', has stolen from the 'old" India; traditions, values and outlooks that seem to need restoration on some level. I loved this book. His interactions with local personalities and their entrenched experiences are stunning. Things I could never have known; some very forward thinking and others that are just sad; especially those sunken by India's enchantment with the free market, globalization and the diminished 'old ways" that are fast disappearing. Lovers of India, Indophiles and the very curious will find this book a very rare look into an area that has become India's Silicon Valley - to the commingled joy and sadness of many who live there and struggle amidst the wealth hi-tech has brought. The chapters that covered Bandra in the Mumbai north were shared in such sadness and the loss of incomes from family lands in Tamil Nadu, from the land grabs of developers was far from uplifting.
If you are as fascinated by India as I am you will truly love this book. If it is a new fascination, you could not begin your journey with a better guide. And I loved the cover. What could be more evocative of this fabulous, confusing, appealing land but a white Ambassador Car.
November 4, 2012
Reading this book was part of my class and despite the fact that it reads easily I got quite frustrated with the author at the beginning. There were too much of nostalgia, idealization, blank and general descriptions and sentances at the beginning.
It seemed to have too much of „pop culture” and „americanization” painting things in black and white. It was hard for me to agree with the references about author’s good eye for details. What I saw were general sketches of people and places concentrating on the dreams, hopes, expectations, fears, frustation and feelings of the characters and himself. There were plenty of room for imagination, associations and general concepts. I felt manipulated. I thought the book is doing great in market. But step by step more layers of the book became visible and I started to accept the authors approach of picturing dreams, expectations, mood and fears.
Those are the driven forces behind the processes that have lead to changes in the contemporary India – chase of „American dream”, emerge of the cities as the totems to global capitalism and change in the spirit of nation.
It has lead to complex and contradictory nature of India - social and economical emancipation for many which often requires millions to remain economically and environmentally subjugated. It questions many hegemonic ideas and myths regarding development and how it affects urban fabric of the city and most importantly lives of people. It also made me think about my home country – Latvia which during the last 20 years have experienced many of the changes pictured in the book. I have to thank author for that and finish with the quote from the book – „The same things that make us happy today might make us miserable tomorrow”.
It seemed to have too much of „pop culture” and „americanization” painting things in black and white. It was hard for me to agree with the references about author’s good eye for details. What I saw were general sketches of people and places concentrating on the dreams, hopes, expectations, fears, frustation and feelings of the characters and himself. There were plenty of room for imagination, associations and general concepts. I felt manipulated. I thought the book is doing great in market. But step by step more layers of the book became visible and I started to accept the authors approach of picturing dreams, expectations, mood and fears.
Those are the driven forces behind the processes that have lead to changes in the contemporary India – chase of „American dream”, emerge of the cities as the totems to global capitalism and change in the spirit of nation.
It has lead to complex and contradictory nature of India - social and economical emancipation for many which often requires millions to remain economically and environmentally subjugated. It questions many hegemonic ideas and myths regarding development and how it affects urban fabric of the city and most importantly lives of people. It also made me think about my home country – Latvia which during the last 20 years have experienced many of the changes pictured in the book. I have to thank author for that and finish with the quote from the book – „The same things that make us happy today might make us miserable tomorrow”.
February 24, 2012
Initially, this book reminded me of Siddhartha Deb's The Beautiful and the Damned without the grit, but as some of the story-lines matured -- and Kapur got more involved with the people he was writing about -- I was drawn in.
Kapur sets out to tell two parallel stories in this book: “One is a story of progress,” he writes, the other, “of the destruction and disruptions caused by the same processes of development.” Kapur’s own feelings about India are overwhelmed by flavorless nostalgia but fortunately, to make his point, Kapur largely focuses on recounting the stories of the wide-ranging characters he meets rather than dwelling on his own observations.
As his influence and status wanes, Sathy, a rural landowner, wants simply to hold on to comforting rhythms of the old India (much to the annoyance of his progressive wife, who runs her own consulting business in Bangalore). Hari, a high-flying young IT worker, flourishes in the city but struggles with his homosexuality, and later, as the boom economy readjusts, his debt. Selvi, a small-town girl who moved to the city to take a call center job is caught in the scandals of her single female roommates. Veena, an ambitious divorcee, must balance her desire for a career and independence with her desire for children and a family. Jayavel, a cow broker (whose story also appears in a New Yorker article by Kapur), must learn to redefine himself as his profession becomes obsolete.
Their stories are what give the book its texture and insight, and make it a valuable investigation of the effects of India’s fast-paced change on the land and its people.
Kapur sets out to tell two parallel stories in this book: “One is a story of progress,” he writes, the other, “of the destruction and disruptions caused by the same processes of development.” Kapur’s own feelings about India are overwhelmed by flavorless nostalgia but fortunately, to make his point, Kapur largely focuses on recounting the stories of the wide-ranging characters he meets rather than dwelling on his own observations.
As his influence and status wanes, Sathy, a rural landowner, wants simply to hold on to comforting rhythms of the old India (much to the annoyance of his progressive wife, who runs her own consulting business in Bangalore). Hari, a high-flying young IT worker, flourishes in the city but struggles with his homosexuality, and later, as the boom economy readjusts, his debt. Selvi, a small-town girl who moved to the city to take a call center job is caught in the scandals of her single female roommates. Veena, an ambitious divorcee, must balance her desire for a career and independence with her desire for children and a family. Jayavel, a cow broker (whose story also appears in a New Yorker article by Kapur), must learn to redefine himself as his profession becomes obsolete.
Their stories are what give the book its texture and insight, and make it a valuable investigation of the effects of India’s fast-paced change on the land and its people.
May 31, 2012
Akash Kapur grew up in India and the United States; in 2003, finding America stagnant and India in the middle of something new and exciting, he relocated back to India. India Becoming is largely anecdotal, as he follows the stories of various people he has gotten to know: Sathy, from an old zamindar (landlord) family, whose wife is more comfortable in the economic boom of Bangalore; Veena, an ambitious woman trying to balance her own ambitions with cultural expectations; Hari, a young gay man struggling to be comfortable with his identity in a traditional culture; Jayvel the cow broker, seeing his field become obsolete; and Selvi, a young woman come from the country to work in one of the many booming call centers. Kapur teeters between celebration and critique, admiring the energy in the new India at the same time he deplores the environmental and social costs of India's deregulation and economic boom. As a result, the book feels somewhat wishy-washy; every time I expected him to bear down on some social problem, he instead flipped things around and saw the other side. An interesting book, but unfocused.
I received this book as part of LibraryThing's Early Reviewers Program.
I received this book as part of LibraryThing's Early Reviewers Program.
January 10, 2017
I've read this book in preparation for a 3 month field research. The writer has given an interesting journey through an ever changing country. He manages to switch his perspective to multiple sides of the coin, showing the rich and the poor and their good and bad experiences.
It poses an interesting question to what growth actually means and has seriously influenced my approach to concept of innovation, which will be the core concept of my project.
However, in my view the book misses the proportions to which these changes are happening. A sparesome guess towards numbers was the writers guess of toxic smoke emitting garbage dumps that he aproximated on 'ten thousands perhaps hundreds'.
While the writer deliberately put himself on the demarcation line of the worlds, what I sought was a more general trends approach. This is my reason for 'only' 3 stars. Still the book has provided me with insights that may prove unexpectingly valuable.
It poses an interesting question to what growth actually means and has seriously influenced my approach to concept of innovation, which will be the core concept of my project.
However, in my view the book misses the proportions to which these changes are happening. A sparesome guess towards numbers was the writers guess of toxic smoke emitting garbage dumps that he aproximated on 'ten thousands perhaps hundreds'.
While the writer deliberately put himself on the demarcation line of the worlds, what I sought was a more general trends approach. This is my reason for 'only' 3 stars. Still the book has provided me with insights that may prove unexpectingly valuable.
August 30, 2012
I received a copy of India Becoming: A Portrait of Life in Modern India by Akash Kapur from a giveaway on Goodreads.
Kapur is an adept writer whose first person accounts of his return in adulthood to India bring life and depth to this novel. The story flowed fairly well, and showed the readers two faces of India. Poverty and opulence abounds, with almost no middle ground. You see pieces of old India woven with a new, wealthy, technological India. The Author seeks to understand these changes by speaking and visiting with a variety of individuals, from a cow seller to a village leader, to a homosexual man, to a reluctant female. All of their stories add up to help the Author understand the changes to his "Modern India"
This was an interesting book to read, and it gave me more insight into what India was, and what it is becoming.
Kapur is an adept writer whose first person accounts of his return in adulthood to India bring life and depth to this novel. The story flowed fairly well, and showed the readers two faces of India. Poverty and opulence abounds, with almost no middle ground. You see pieces of old India woven with a new, wealthy, technological India. The Author seeks to understand these changes by speaking and visiting with a variety of individuals, from a cow seller to a village leader, to a homosexual man, to a reluctant female. All of their stories add up to help the Author understand the changes to his "Modern India"
This was an interesting book to read, and it gave me more insight into what India was, and what it is becoming.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 78 reviews