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Illiberal India: Gauri Lankesh and the Age of Unreason
5 September 2017: journalist-activist Gauri Lankesh was shot to death by unidentified gunmen. The murder followed the style of previous murders of rationalists M.M. Kalburgi, Govind Pansare and Narendra Dabholkar. Gauri Lankesh was a fierce critic of the growing Hindutva faction in Karnataka and India. Her increasingly strident stance on separate religion-status for Lingayatism too won her many foes. Equally, her commentary won her admirers across the country. Fluent in Kannada and English, Lankesh was a particular threat to her ideological enemies – able to reach the influencers through a language of power and a wider audience at the grassroots through her mother tongue. In Illiberal India, senior journalist and analyst Chidanand Rajghatta examines the volatile political landscape that is the background to the murder that chilled the nation.
242 pages, Paperback
Published May 27, 2018
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October 30, 2019
I am ashamed to say that I did not know of Gauri Lankesh until she was murdered on the 5th of September 2017. Looking her up, I found that she was the latest in the line of rationalists killed by rabid right-wing fundamentalists: after Narendra Dabholkar, Govind Pansare and M. M. Kalburgi. I also found that there was virtually a conspiracy going on to eliminate all sceptics and rationalists who were vocal against caste, superstition and religious fundamentalism. What really shocked me was there were ordinary people like you and me
virtually celebrating her death
on social media! I myself unfriended and blocked a couple of people on FB, so disgusting were their posts.
I asked myself: Where is my India going?
Apparently, this is the question asked by Chidanand Rajghatta, Gauri's one-time husband and life-long friend, in this book.
I fully support the author in his views: like him, I am also shocked. But by trying to balance the book between a personal memoir and a sociological study, the book ends up being a little of both but fails to be either fully. The narrative jumps between time and space; personal anecdotes are interspersed with journalistic expositions; and there are endless repetitions. The book is highly readable; it gives good background information about Gauri's family and academics; and one learns a lot about the Veerashaiva - Lingayat schism which had a lot of bearing on the murder, and is a fascinating subject in itself.
But that's it. All the rest of the information could be gathered from newspaper reports; in fact, one would be abreast of them if one had been following the news.
It was a quick, OK read.
I asked myself: Where is my India going?
Apparently, this is the question asked by Chidanand Rajghatta, Gauri's one-time husband and life-long friend, in this book.
Back in 2005, the Nobel laureate economist Amartya Sen’s book The Argumentative Indian focused on the traditions of public debate and intellectual pluralism that characterises Indian society. But a decade later, the argumentative Indian is degenerating into an intolerant and illiberal Indian: the worst primitive and medieval instincts of India are on display across the country every single day. From vigilantes killing people who eat or speak or dress differently to taking offence at a movie based on a mythical poem to challenging Darwin’s theory of evolution, India is now a boiling vat of outrage, an outpouring that led me to write an op-ed in The Times of India about what I jocularly called the Republic of Outragestan. The India that Gauri and I knew and grew up in is changing rapidly, and it eventually claimed my dear friend’s life.This book is a memoir of sorts: the author describes his life with Gauri, their marriage and its failure, their professional ups and downs, their friends and relatives... at the same time chronicling India's slow descent into intolerance and illiberalism.
I fully support the author in his views: like him, I am also shocked. But by trying to balance the book between a personal memoir and a sociological study, the book ends up being a little of both but fails to be either fully. The narrative jumps between time and space; personal anecdotes are interspersed with journalistic expositions; and there are endless repetitions. The book is highly readable; it gives good background information about Gauri's family and academics; and one learns a lot about the Veerashaiva - Lingayat schism which had a lot of bearing on the murder, and is a fascinating subject in itself.
But that's it. All the rest of the information could be gathered from newspaper reports; in fact, one would be abreast of them if one had been following the news.
It was a quick, OK read.
May 30, 2020
The book is gripping but only in parts. Those that do not have understanding of the politics of Karnataka will struggle. The author, like his late ex-wife, the chief protagonist of this book, is unsparing, "under Congress, the country was going to dogs, but under Modi India is becoming a land of loonies". He treats all the extremists, irrespective of their social and political color with contempt :"When it comes to cowardice, you can't beat an extremist- of any religion. Lacking reason, logic, words and powers of persuasion, which are armaments of the intelligentsia, the extremist's weapon of choice is sword, a trishul......or a gun, whether it is in Khyber, Kashmir or Kanyakumari". How true.
July 15, 2018
On 5th September, 2017, journalist and activist Gauri Lankesh was shot dead at her home in Bangalore. The assassination sparked off a wave of controversy. On the one hand, there were those—who had labelled her ‘Surpanakha’ and had hated her for her feisty stance against communalist, radical forces—who celebrated Gauri Lankesh’s death. On the other, there were those—a shrinking number?—who moaned yet another sign of the growing illiberalism of India.
Chidanand Rajghatta, much-respected veteran journalist, once married to Gauri Lankesh and a lifelong friend of hers, pays a tribute to Lankesh in Illiberal India: Gauri Lankesh and the Age of Unreason—and this he achieves not merely by showing us who Gauri was or what she stood for, but what India is today, why the India of the twenty-first century was a place that brought out all the disputatiousness of Gauri’s nature.
Rajghatta does not make his book a biography of Lankesh. True, there are indications of the milieu she grew up in (her father, P Lankesh, a highly respected writer and film-maker, was also the founder of Lankesh Patrike, which Gauri made her own, as Gauri Lankesh Patrike). There are reminiscences of Gauri’s days as a student, and as a firebrand journalist in various publications. There are also a few mentions of Rajghatta’s and Lankesh’s five-year long marriage. But woven in with that history of Gauri Lankesh’s life is the history of India’s (and particularly Karnataka’s) struggle to retain a syncretic, secular past.
In the course of the book, Rajghatta explains the bases of several of the main causes that Gauri espoused. The origins and turbulent history of the Lingayats, for instance; or the controversy over the Baba Budan Giri shrine, which, from being a symbol of Hindu-Muslim amity (since the sage Baba Budan was revered and considered both Hindu and Muslim by followers of the corresponding faiths), has become more like an echo of the Babri Masjid-Ramjanmabhoomi tussle. He explains the way Tipu Sultan has gone from being a possible icon of the Indian freedom struggle to a contentious figure. He writes of love jihad, the Naxal problem, the sudden and frightening upsurge of mindless, brutal bigotry.
India’s politics, its media, its society, and its so-called ‘religiosity’ are not merely touched upon; they form a major part of the book. Rajghatta offers insights into the disturbing nature of India today, the way extremism is becoming mainstream.
What is most striking about Illiberal India is the fine balance Rajghatta manages to retain throughout the book. The balance between India as a country and Gauri Lankesh as the subject of the book. The balance between private and public, between the fact and the analysis. He reports of Gauri Lankesh’s life and death, but with heart. He brings Gauri alive, not just as an activist and journalist, but as a warm, affectionate, forthright and indomitable woman. A fine biography (of sorts), and a thought-provoking, unsettlingly sharp look at India today.
(From my review for The New Indian Express, July 15, 2018: http://www.newindianexpress.com/lifes...)
Chidanand Rajghatta, much-respected veteran journalist, once married to Gauri Lankesh and a lifelong friend of hers, pays a tribute to Lankesh in Illiberal India: Gauri Lankesh and the Age of Unreason—and this he achieves not merely by showing us who Gauri was or what she stood for, but what India is today, why the India of the twenty-first century was a place that brought out all the disputatiousness of Gauri’s nature.
Rajghatta does not make his book a biography of Lankesh. True, there are indications of the milieu she grew up in (her father, P Lankesh, a highly respected writer and film-maker, was also the founder of Lankesh Patrike, which Gauri made her own, as Gauri Lankesh Patrike). There are reminiscences of Gauri’s days as a student, and as a firebrand journalist in various publications. There are also a few mentions of Rajghatta’s and Lankesh’s five-year long marriage. But woven in with that history of Gauri Lankesh’s life is the history of India’s (and particularly Karnataka’s) struggle to retain a syncretic, secular past.
In the course of the book, Rajghatta explains the bases of several of the main causes that Gauri espoused. The origins and turbulent history of the Lingayats, for instance; or the controversy over the Baba Budan Giri shrine, which, from being a symbol of Hindu-Muslim amity (since the sage Baba Budan was revered and considered both Hindu and Muslim by followers of the corresponding faiths), has become more like an echo of the Babri Masjid-Ramjanmabhoomi tussle. He explains the way Tipu Sultan has gone from being a possible icon of the Indian freedom struggle to a contentious figure. He writes of love jihad, the Naxal problem, the sudden and frightening upsurge of mindless, brutal bigotry.
India’s politics, its media, its society, and its so-called ‘religiosity’ are not merely touched upon; they form a major part of the book. Rajghatta offers insights into the disturbing nature of India today, the way extremism is becoming mainstream.
What is most striking about Illiberal India is the fine balance Rajghatta manages to retain throughout the book. The balance between India as a country and Gauri Lankesh as the subject of the book. The balance between private and public, between the fact and the analysis. He reports of Gauri Lankesh’s life and death, but with heart. He brings Gauri alive, not just as an activist and journalist, but as a warm, affectionate, forthright and indomitable woman. A fine biography (of sorts), and a thought-provoking, unsettlingly sharp look at India today.
(From my review for The New Indian Express, July 15, 2018: http://www.newindianexpress.com/lifes...)
July 4, 2020
A fascinating book about what led to gauri lankesh's assassination in 2017. The author, gauri's ex husband, doesn't simply look at her death from the perspective of the rise of right hindu nationalist extremism. He furthers the investigation through Gauri's immersion in local Karnataka politics, specially the movement for rationalism, Lingayat vs Veershaivas, the flaring up of communal conflict when it came to the celebration of Tipu Sultan Jayanti and Baba budan giri temple conflict.
At the same time, the author focuses on his own relationship with Gauri and how they remained great friends despite their divorce. This was extremely significant for the way their politics and ideologies diverged, and how that didn't deter them from respecting each other as people. What I found even more interesting was that the author didn't try to hide his views in any way(some of which quite problematic vis a vis Kashmir, Pakistan, and terrorism), presenting them in the way Gauri perceived them as well.
Through tracking their respective journeys as journalists, the author also traces the complications of politics in Karnataka, and how far right extremism is breaking up its otherwise syncretic fabric. The transitions are not smooth, and there's a fair amount of name dropping but it's a good beginning that understands the specificity of why gauri lankesh was assassinated and how political blame game continues to flare up communal extremism and left vs right politics.
At the same time, the author focuses on his own relationship with Gauri and how they remained great friends despite their divorce. This was extremely significant for the way their politics and ideologies diverged, and how that didn't deter them from respecting each other as people. What I found even more interesting was that the author didn't try to hide his views in any way(some of which quite problematic vis a vis Kashmir, Pakistan, and terrorism), presenting them in the way Gauri perceived them as well.
Through tracking their respective journeys as journalists, the author also traces the complications of politics in Karnataka, and how far right extremism is breaking up its otherwise syncretic fabric. The transitions are not smooth, and there's a fair amount of name dropping but it's a good beginning that understands the specificity of why gauri lankesh was assassinated and how political blame game continues to flare up communal extremism and left vs right politics.
October 24, 2019
#illiberalIndia book by Chidanand Rajghatta is a 224 pages of name calling exercise of hate
Rajghatta clearly believes in Left ideology which drives media, text books, college syllabus etc in India where the lies/hate probably gets amplified like in an echo chamber.
Author seemed to shoot off the shoulders off late Gauri Lankesh.
Rajghatta clearly believes in Left ideology which drives media, text books, college syllabus etc in India where the lies/hate probably gets amplified like in an echo chamber.
Author seemed to shoot off the shoulders off late Gauri Lankesh.
August 10, 2018
There are not many books that I finish reading in one sitting. This was one such book, and the reason is many. ‘Illiberal India’ – Gauri Lankesh and the Age of Unreason is written by Gauri’s lifelong friend and ex-husband Chidanand Rajghatta (Chidu). I bought it from the fresh books on the stand. I believe it was released in May this year. Just so you know, this is not an “I am Gauri Lankesh” book but it is a “This was Gauri Lankesh” Book.
I am sure some would be offended by the title. But it says ‘Illiberal’ India and not ‘intolerant’ India. Not Yet!!…. The importance of the book and the title is that India is still tolerant but if it slips off the liberal path, it won’t take much long for intolerance to sweep through every nook and corner of life. This is the case not just about India, but every other country that hill let go and not take care of liberal thought.
And for people taking offense, Well I think it has become the trend now among the religious and non religious camps equally. The world will be a much better place when people stop taking offense.
Illiberal India is about Gauri Lankesh, written by someone who knew her best. It is the story of idealism, relationships, advocacy and friendship of two people in the backdrop of the past several decades of socio-political-journo scene. It is about Gauri, the friend, the amazing human being, the activist, the advocate for secularism and the fearless fighter she was. It is a very personal narrative more than anything like a political or social commentary. But when it is about Gauri, probably one cannot detach the two aspects completely.
For me personally the fluent easy prose and the knowledge into a lot of what was happening made it such a compelling read. To be honest before reading I did not know much about the Veerashaiva and Lingayat camps and how their existence in different forms impacted the voting nexus. Also how hope idealists bestow on new leaders crumble as they become sucked into the political web in the nation. How everything boils down to winning and vote banks. Above all it is the narrative of the past 30 plus years as Gauri and Chidu agreed, disagreed and yet loved, lived and worked in their chosen field of Journalism. It is also about the need to have the rational thought in life.
Personally I also became aware of a lot of literature that I have missed reading. The book touched many a personal chord for me, may be because I lived in Karnataka for a few years, and always have that love for the place.
I think it is important that this book was written because if not I would not have been able to know Gauri as the person she was, beyond the statements put forward by both her allies and adversaries. It is not an “i am gauri lankesh” book but a “This was Gauri Lankesh” Book
https://vinodnarayan.com/2018/08/09/i...
I am sure some would be offended by the title. But it says ‘Illiberal’ India and not ‘intolerant’ India. Not Yet!!…. The importance of the book and the title is that India is still tolerant but if it slips off the liberal path, it won’t take much long for intolerance to sweep through every nook and corner of life. This is the case not just about India, but every other country that hill let go and not take care of liberal thought.
And for people taking offense, Well I think it has become the trend now among the religious and non religious camps equally. The world will be a much better place when people stop taking offense.
Illiberal India is about Gauri Lankesh, written by someone who knew her best. It is the story of idealism, relationships, advocacy and friendship of two people in the backdrop of the past several decades of socio-political-journo scene. It is about Gauri, the friend, the amazing human being, the activist, the advocate for secularism and the fearless fighter she was. It is a very personal narrative more than anything like a political or social commentary. But when it is about Gauri, probably one cannot detach the two aspects completely.
For me personally the fluent easy prose and the knowledge into a lot of what was happening made it such a compelling read. To be honest before reading I did not know much about the Veerashaiva and Lingayat camps and how their existence in different forms impacted the voting nexus. Also how hope idealists bestow on new leaders crumble as they become sucked into the political web in the nation. How everything boils down to winning and vote banks. Above all it is the narrative of the past 30 plus years as Gauri and Chidu agreed, disagreed and yet loved, lived and worked in their chosen field of Journalism. It is also about the need to have the rational thought in life.
Personally I also became aware of a lot of literature that I have missed reading. The book touched many a personal chord for me, may be because I lived in Karnataka for a few years, and always have that love for the place.
I think it is important that this book was written because if not I would not have been able to know Gauri as the person she was, beyond the statements put forward by both her allies and adversaries. It is not an “i am gauri lankesh” book but a “This was Gauri Lankesh” Book
https://vinodnarayan.com/2018/08/09/i...
January 23, 2019
I wanted to read a biography of Gauri Lankesh. I knew very little about her when her murder hit the news. I wanted to understand a little more about the person who seemed to be a fierce critic of the Hindutva faction in Karnataka. This book is not for someone who wants to know more about Gauri as a person and what drove her to be the activist she was. However, it does offer a friend and an erstwhile partners' insight into her life and times but often times it works a commentary of the politics of their times rather than offer any real glimpse into her life.
I took more time than i should have because, like me, if you are unfamiliar with the politics of Karnataka, there is a lot of background reading that you should do to piece this together.
Chidanand's politics and worldview are very different from Gauri's. That comes through in the book. At places, it took away from Gauri's legacy for me because of the apparent skepticism in the tone.
I also found the editing very problematic because the narration jumps back and forth and keeps making the same points again for no apparent reason. It was repetitive and came across as lacking a clear thought process.
If you want to know more about Gauri Lankesh, you can give this a miss. But if you want to understand the drivers of Karnataka's Hindutva politics, give this a try.
I took more time than i should have because, like me, if you are unfamiliar with the politics of Karnataka, there is a lot of background reading that you should do to piece this together.
Chidanand's politics and worldview are very different from Gauri's. That comes through in the book. At places, it took away from Gauri's legacy for me because of the apparent skepticism in the tone.
I also found the editing very problematic because the narration jumps back and forth and keeps making the same points again for no apparent reason. It was repetitive and came across as lacking a clear thought process.
If you want to know more about Gauri Lankesh, you can give this a miss. But if you want to understand the drivers of Karnataka's Hindutva politics, give this a try.
March 24, 2019
"Illiberal India", written by Gauri Lankesh's ex-husband, provides an insight into the firebrand journalist-activist and her fight against bigotry and fanaticism that eventually led to her assassination. This is also a powerful narrative about recent Indian history and extremism becoming mainstream in 21st century India.
November 1, 2024
This felt like the history lesson on Karnataka I never got.
Excellent writing, read it in 2 sittings.
Excellent writing, read it in 2 sittings.
July 5, 2020
Gauri Lankesh : Written Words Never Die
--------------------------------------------------------------------
When Modi mania becomes a popular mantra, when fascist fury becomes part of daily discourse, when distorted news becomes the mantra of mainstream media, when religious fundamentalism blinds people, I get disgruntled, disenchanted, disturbed, but somewhere, deep inside me hope lives.
- Gauri Lankesh
Illiberal India, Gauri Lankesh and the age of unreason is an okay kind of book which tells us in bits and pieces about the woman who was shot dead in September 2017 because of her relentless activism against injustice and bigots.
For the detailed review you can visit -
https://dontbignorant.in/illiberal-in...
--------------------------------------------------------------------
When Modi mania becomes a popular mantra, when fascist fury becomes part of daily discourse, when distorted news becomes the mantra of mainstream media, when religious fundamentalism blinds people, I get disgruntled, disenchanted, disturbed, but somewhere, deep inside me hope lives.
- Gauri Lankesh
Illiberal India, Gauri Lankesh and the age of unreason is an okay kind of book which tells us in bits and pieces about the woman who was shot dead in September 2017 because of her relentless activism against injustice and bigots.
For the detailed review you can visit -
https://dontbignorant.in/illiberal-in...
February 25, 2020
Interesting insights into life of Gauri Lankesh.
The book touches very interesting topics related to Karnataka and Lingayat “religion” that I didn’t know before and I am glad that I know now.
The book is more about Karnataka history, Lingayat religion and recent deeds by chaddis than life of Gauri. Though the book throughout is a fast and good read, some of the times author jumps from topic to unrelated topics making it harder to stay focused.
Having read “Shivaji kon hota” by Govind Pansare, I can relate to how murders of these rationalists are related. They were dangerous to the right wing brain washing that is happening in the country.
This book also can be a good gift for those brain washed, self centered, self proclaimed nationalists.
The book touches very interesting topics related to Karnataka and Lingayat “religion” that I didn’t know before and I am glad that I know now.
The book is more about Karnataka history, Lingayat religion and recent deeds by chaddis than life of Gauri. Though the book throughout is a fast and good read, some of the times author jumps from topic to unrelated topics making it harder to stay focused.
Having read “Shivaji kon hota” by Govind Pansare, I can relate to how murders of these rationalists are related. They were dangerous to the right wing brain washing that is happening in the country.
This book also can be a good gift for those brain washed, self centered, self proclaimed nationalists.
June 20, 2021
This books talks less about the growing illiberal-ism in India and more about the personal relationship between the author and Gauri. More about the politics in India could have been mentioned along with their past. The book has talked in length about Lingayats, which was one good thing. Only the last two pages were more relevant to the book. It basically felt like an expanded version of his tribute to Gauri (which is also present after the chapters). I feel that being an Indian in the US, gave him not so in-depth knowledge on the growing intolerance in India. Overall, the ending of the book could have been better and more relevant content could have been added instead of their personal lives.
August 30, 2018
Memories of a companionship..
A heartening account of a cherished relationshop with deeply loved person. Chidanand Rajghatta shares his memories of Gauri Lankesh contextulising it with the drift that India has made over the last two three decades, keeping sentimentalism at bay while honestly recollecting their times together.
A heartening account of a cherished relationshop with deeply loved person. Chidanand Rajghatta shares his memories of Gauri Lankesh contextulising it with the drift that India has made over the last two three decades, keeping sentimentalism at bay while honestly recollecting their times together.
September 3, 2020
Albeit the provocative title, this book has explained some nice instances of Karnataka's history.
But there are a lot of verbatim repetitions all over the book. The contents of chapters are not coherent with the theme described by the chapter name. Towards the end it reads like the author was just trying to fill up more pages with little content.
But there are a lot of verbatim repetitions all over the book. The contents of chapters are not coherent with the theme described by the chapter name. Towards the end it reads like the author was just trying to fill up more pages with little content.
November 14, 2018
It's really a bold move to stand up for freedom we diversity. The author has nicely described every aspect of Gauri's life, Giving the readers true sense of empowerment. Really glad that I chose this book to read. People like Gauri inspired the humanity in humans.
January 3, 2019
Moving. Personal. Dark. Humorous. All too real. - A lovely tribute to Gauri.
They killed Gauri, or so they thought.
They killed Gauri, or so they thought.
April 19, 2019
An easy read that moves seamlessly between Karnataka Politics and Gauri Lankesh's life, written by an insider in both realms.
June 20, 2019
Gives an insight on Gauri's life and her struggles.
March 30, 2020
Illiberal India: Gauri Lankesh and the Age of Unreason Book by Chidanand Rajghatta.A book which you will not put down till you finish it.
Illiberal India a memoir by Chidanath Rajghatta Ex husband of fearless journalist Gauri Lankesh.
Gauri Lankesh was born to Mr Lankesh one of famous director and a journalist in Karnataka. She and Rajghatta meet in college and got married. Their marriage life was short span but friendship exist till she got shot down by goons of fundamentalist. She was one of mentor for author and wise versa.
The book gives a light on lingayath movement and vaishavis also gives a details on Tipu sulthan and fundamentalists. Book discuss about the tipu jayathi(Tipu was born in Bangalore which is the place near to BIAL also had plan to name airport as tipu sultan airport).Also discuss regarding Tipu Sulthan series which was telecasted in dooradarshan in 90’s and controversy regarding it. Gives us light on emergency time , Ayodya issue etc.
Also after discussing about lingayath movement he also discuss regarding the God man Saibaba and his criticism by Abraham kavoor.
The history of BJP from morarji Desai cabinet to present is also discussed in it.how VP Singh with support of BJP and communist formed government and how it got dismantled are discussed.
The book provides us a detailed story of there college,family, divorce,job, life and support of each other after divorce.
Illiberal India a memoir by Chidanath Rajghatta Ex husband of fearless journalist Gauri Lankesh.
Gauri Lankesh was born to Mr Lankesh one of famous director and a journalist in Karnataka. She and Rajghatta meet in college and got married. Their marriage life was short span but friendship exist till she got shot down by goons of fundamentalist. She was one of mentor for author and wise versa.
The book gives a light on lingayath movement and vaishavis also gives a details on Tipu sulthan and fundamentalists. Book discuss about the tipu jayathi(Tipu was born in Bangalore which is the place near to BIAL also had plan to name airport as tipu sultan airport).Also discuss regarding Tipu Sulthan series which was telecasted in dooradarshan in 90’s and controversy regarding it. Gives us light on emergency time , Ayodya issue etc.
Also after discussing about lingayath movement he also discuss regarding the God man Saibaba and his criticism by Abraham kavoor.
The history of BJP from morarji Desai cabinet to present is also discussed in it.how VP Singh with support of BJP and communist formed government and how it got dismantled are discussed.
The book provides us a detailed story of there college,family, divorce,job, life and support of each other after divorce.
June 11, 2018
Review Coming Up Soon.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews