Awakening Bharat Mata: The Political Beliefs of the Indian Right

by Swapan Dasgupta

The rise of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was much more than an ordinary electoral phenomenon: it brought to the fore two contrasting views of nationhood: between those who saw modern India in terms of secular republicanism and on the other hand were those who sought to blend technological modernity with the country's Hindu inheritance. The Right's ascendancy and the debates that accompanied it, anticipated many of the concerns that find reflection today in the United States and Europe.

The phenomenon of Hindu nationalism was also a profound intellectual challenge to the loose Left-liberal consensus that had prevailed in India since Jawaharlal Nehru became Prime Minister in 1947. The idea of Hindutva and the political character of the BJP have been closely scrutinised by scholars, and the impulse has been to view India's Right-wing politics as either a variant of fascism or merely a collection of sectarian prejudices.

In fact, the inspiration for the Right in India has come from multiple and often contradictory sources, including the influence of individuals such as Sarvarkar, Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, Swami Vivekananda and Sri Aurobindo, not to mention the Arya Samaj movement.

This collection is an attempt to showcase the phenomenon of Hindu nationalism in terms of how it perceives itself. Many of the concerns that drive the Indian Right are located in the country's nationalist culture. In trying to locate some of the ideas, attitudes and beliefs that define the Indian Right, Awakening Bharat Mata also seeks to identify the nature of Indian conservatism and identify its similarities and differences with political thought in the West.

This book is not about Hindu nationalism in power but as a social and political movement and its aim is to encourage a more informed understanding of an idea that will remain relevant in Indian life far beyond victories and defeats in elections.

Genres: India, Politics, History, Nonfiction, Philosophy

428 pages, Hardcover

First published May 25, 2019

Reviews

[Ajay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book is a collection of amazing essays which cover many topics. It was fun reading it. Quite an educating book.

[Kumar Anshul · Rating 5 out of 5]

A necessary reading for every right leaning Indian citizen. This book should also be read by people who associate intellectualism exclusively with the Left, while shunning the Right to be conservative, ineffectual and narrow minded.

The book is a wholesome combination of author's POV followed by a series of historical essays & speeches by Vivekananda, Savarkar, Patel, Vajpayee etc.
I really liked the chapters on Shivaji where his prowess & efforts to establish the Hindu Maratha Samrajya has been described. The last essay where S. Gurumurthy describes Hindutva as the resistive kinetic manifestation of Hinduism is also very well articulated.
The book is massive but one of its kind.

[Kavita Singh · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is a must read for a person who wants understand the beliefs of the Indian Right Wing. This This book depicts that Indian Right is not only about electoral victories but much more than that. Also, whoever detests the kind of secularism peddled by the Left in our country must read it. This book should also be read by people for whom the only intellectual lot is the left, while portraying the Right to be conservative and narrow minded. It is an Extremely informative read. Lays out the facts very well and provides passages from other readings and transcripts that provide a lot of insight into the political spectrum and viewpoints in India. This book was also written in a way that it was in easy-to-read language. I recommend it to anyone interested in this topic.

[Siddharth Gupta · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is a matter of serious concern that nationalistic or Hindutva strands of Indian freedom struggle and polity are neither researched nor written about enough. Actually it is, but from within western or communist frameworks. These contorted works serve no one, except the believers and flag waivers of these ideologies. Dog-whistling the masses on the oped columns of The Hindu against Hindutva, serve the purpose of providing small dopamine hits to the card carrying libertarian. Summarily, they serve no intellectual purpose whatsoever.

How timely is this book. Serious scholarship for popular readership is a difficult art. Yuval Noah Harari and Thomas Friedman have mastered that art. Swapan Dasgupta's book is squarely in that vein. An excellent first attempt at mapping the contours of the Hindutva ideological movement. The book is divided into two portions(although, the author's own classification is different):

Portion A - Swapan Dasgupta's own articulation of what the movement is, its components, how the people within and without see it. This portion deals with the explanation of Hindutva's idea of religion, politics, nation and community.

Portion B - An assorted readings of various doyens of the movement. Right from Sister Nivedita to Swami Vivekanand to RG Bhandarkar. These are either isolated articles covering a topical issue of the time from the Hindutva lens like Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay's article on whether nationalism is a good thing. Or a speech by say RG Bhandarkar on social reform and specifically introducing Indian women to western education. This part is edited by Swapan Da.

CONCLUSION : India of 2021 is unrecognisable from the India of 2013. The India of 2031 will be an absolutely different entity from the India of 2021, provided the current dispensation holds on to power through this decade, which looks quite likely. No amount of finger wagging, cribbing, or psephological gymnastics can slow or reverse this change. The most doable thing, if at all, is to grasp what the ideology is and what it brings with it. Swapan Dasgupta gives a ready reckoner, to that end. My two cents - read it with a sympathetic heart and an open mind. You will be moved.

[Simple · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was sceptical while picking up this book . Had reservations that most of the things would have already been covered by my previous readings .
But The book Turned out to be different .this is the first book which has taken the philosophical thinking of the right, conservatism has been taken appropriately . Philoshoihcal thinkers like roger scruton and david Miller has been introduced to make the thinking of right even more clear .
The essays are beautiful and must been a pain taking effort by the author to choose them. The last essay by gurumurthy was a good sumup of the hindu thinking . The essays on bhiwandi riots , hindu special marriage act are a must read .
RC mukherjee quotes here and there along with his one essay will be the highlight of the book. This will intrigue more right wing thinkers to read more of RC mukherjee . The only low thing I felt was the essay of sister nivedita ,which was boring and little repetitive with other topics .

[Abhiram Aithal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read it for the included essays.

[mahesh · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Awakening Bharat Mata" is a collection of essays by eminent scholars, nationalists, and intellectuals of India. Most of the essay deal with Hindutva/Hinduism, pseudo-secularism, shortcomings of Indian history, Critical analysis of Abrahamic faith compared to Hindu dharmic views, reasons behind the emergence of the Hindutva movement and its institutions.

After reading this book I had a better understanding of Hindutva. the Undermining of Hindu customs and values by Abrahamic fundamentalists( of course communist too) under the guise of European secularism is debunked with critical analysis throughout the book. Many essays also explore the devise plans of modified Marxist history to kill the Hindu roots. These essays need to be included in our education if we want to keep alive the human's aspiration in the face of the economical and aggressive aspiration of Abrahamic faiths.

Must read for every Indian rooted in dharmic values and care for the beauty of dharmic life. It might remove our ignorance towards our own culture blinded and misled by false history and narrow-minded secularism.

[RAGHU · Rating 5 out of 5]

First, I would like to thank Indic academy for presenting me with this book as part of their thousand reviewers book club initiative.

I have a friend circle of politically aware friends, and I haven't had any deep interest in politics from my childhood, but I always wanted to know about what lies ahead in the never ending debate of left and right, and accidentally this book happened to me.

As a not very politically aware person, and person with deep belonging to any faction or ideology, this book gave me great insights into Right wing ideology and a whole brain map of minds and thought process of Right Wing believers.

I got astonished many times, like I used to feel that Narendra Modi's victory in 2014 was inevitable due to rampant corruption and scam revelations, and influence of social media on Indian youth, but after reading this book, I came to know that Modi's victory of 2014 actually happened before Independence, in microcosm, in the psyche of Indian society, and 2014 was just realization of that long war/ideological presence/journey.

The book segregated and beautifully explained various ideologies belonging to right wing itself.
The author has got the nerve of Indian right, and what drives them and motivates them, and beautifully outlines the tussle between left and right ideologies, and also put light on how Namo manages to attract enormous crowds in 2014 election rallies and many election stratagems.

There were also various mesmerizing essays that span from pre-independent era to Ayodhya moment, giving deep insights on various topics ranging from importance of martial arts to family values.

Coming to the writing style and positives and negatives.-

The book gave me a plethora of political jargon, which I can showcase now.
The reading was a little tough, and sometimes require lot of Google search, but I found all the research and brain storming to be worth it.

[Sridhar · Rating 4 out of 5]

The seeds of modern day ‘Hindu India’ were sown many decades ago. And every tree which has grown from then tiny seed , now casts a forlorn shadow on this mighty nation. The author presents a bipartisan view of iconic lectures and debates - and leaves the reader to connect with current state of the nation.

From Swami to Poets. From Politicians to Presidential address. The book highlights some very poignant seeds of thought.

[SR · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are on right side of political spectrum , read this book to understand its version in modern india (to an extent). If you are on left then read it to understand and see through the other eyes. There are not many intellectuals on right wing who can articulate their thoughts and philosophies to english reading audience. For that reason, this book is unique and deserves attention from anyone with political opinions. The book itself though, is a tough one to read. Its not lucid. Its grandiloquent and arcane for most part. However with some patience and labor one can get through it.

With a written material encompassing roots of Hindu nationalism or rather the only nationalism left in modern india, it is surely thought provoking, reflective of erudition on authors part. Not the whole story though. its absurd sometimes in authors choice of voices to represent right wing, downright abhorrent in few cases (sister Nivedita, Nirad C chaudary etc ). With such range of views , it one one hand makes a good case for diversity within right wing while on other a good case for lack of intellectual depth. I was hoping for stronger grounds i guess.

For this i gave 4 star to the book.

However, do i see myself enlightened ? Do i see coherent and cogent arguments ? Yes and no. The honesty and patriotism in the book is many times betrayed by the display of communalistic and disingenuous arguments for hindu supremacy. This is an irreconcilable difference in our view of worlds but that is not all it is. Its also a lack of cosmic perspective where you make up your identity by remembering that , end of the day, we all are on a pale blue dot in both time and space. Under that light, some of the passions exhibited by hindu identity look downright stupid. Its necessary to employ a sociological comprehension of our history and grow our hearts and mind. I did not see any evidence of weight to those realities. Everything apparently stems from one version of history heavily dependent on pride in one’s 2000 year heritage. Whether one likes it or not, that heritage is also susceptible to superstition, corruption, ignorance.

Hence , i end up seeing this anthology as a voluble material filled with equivocation on exclusiveness of hindus. It did never achieve its intended impact of convincing the logical reader, if thats what it tried.

This is not to say that author was unintelligent. It seems to be that his predilection for hindu religion has clouded his commitment to secularism ( again its not clear how much the author cared for secularism. He was both arguing against it and suggesting it was there in us already). Constantly conflating those two ideas , resorting to false dichotomy regarding hindu nation and hinduism , author labors to convince himself of righteousness of right.

He does make good case of communalism by both right and left , for and against muslims, for and against hindus (the latter being a lip-service and sporadic). Such efforts are nevertheless laudable as it encourages discourses.
All in all, my time is worth spent.

[P R · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extremely informative read. Lays out the facts very well and provides passages from other readings and transcripts that provide a lot of insight into the political spectrum and viewpoints in India.

This book was also written in a way that it was in easy to read language. I recommend it to anyone interested in this topic.

[Guruprasad · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful collection of articles which are based on Indian Right-Wing Ideology from people of various field , so many interesting things to learn in this book , if anyone is interested in Indian politics I would highly recommend to this book .

[Sriram Venugopal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awakening Bharat Mata is a collection of writings/speeches by various Hindu/Hindutva visionaries over the last 150 years. A very good reading on the importance of the inherent culture of this country to prevail and the need for Hindutva.

[Satwik Agrawal · Rating 4 out of 5]

A curated collection of essays/speeches of early conceptualizations of modern Hindutva.
Swapan tries to remain objective and isn't explicitly unkind to unbelievers. The lack of propaganda is applaudable. The selections are thought-provoking and an interesting exercise in what-could-have-been as well as what-could-become.
The little rhetoric there is stays within the quoted sections and isn't forceful enough to try to convert dissidents and does a good job educating its adherents.
4/5, would recommend.

[Anuraag Sharma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Underrated.

VERY UNDERRATED!

[E.T. · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book is subtitled - "The political beliefs of the Indian Right".
Abhinandan Sekhri of Newslaundry summed up the political beliefs of the Indian Right in one word - minority-bashing.
"This collection is an attempt to showcase the phenomenon of Hindu nationalism in terms of how it perceives itself." - I am a bit worried by what I saw showcased. While the book did have some interesting articles on what is wrong with Indian secularism and histiography, what really struck me is the lack of any positive ideology - unless u consider whataboutery positive.
On the Indian Right-wing/Hindu Nationalism, I think Decolonizing The Hindu Mind: Ideological Development Of Hindu Revivalism was a much better read.
Also, would recommend The Indian Conservative : A History of Indian Right-Wing Thought.

[Bhabani Sankar Mishra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great compilations of essays from modern father of Indian/Hindu revivalists. Must read for all Indians.

[Preetam Chatterjee · Rating 5 out of 5]

#Binge Reviewing my previous Reads # Hindutva, Indic

There are certain books that announce themselves not only as contributions to a political debate but as declarations of legitimacy. Swapan Dasgupta’s *Awakening Bharat Mata: The Political Beliefs of the Indian Right* is one such book. Published in 2019, it is not merely a collection of essays or a work of commentary; it is a carefully curated anthology meant to serve as a canon for a tradition that has often been caricatured or dismissed in the mainstream academic discourse of modern India.

By gathering voices that span more than a century—from V.D. Savarkar to Syama Prasad Mookerjee, and from Deendayal Upadhyaya to the present—Dasgupta sets out to prove that the Indian Right is not a passing aberration but a serious ideological current with depth, coherence, and continuity.

At first glance, the book looks deceptively simple: a series of writings from key figures of the Hindu Right, framed with introductions and contextualising commentary. But its ambition is far greater. Dasgupta’s project is, in many ways, an intellectual act of reclamation. For decades, the Right in India has been spoken about rather than listened to. It has been branded as communal, majoritarian, fascist, or worse.

What Dasgupta does here is take the Right’s own words — often polemical, sometimes profound — and arrange them in such a way that they speak as a tradition, not as isolated rants or stray provocations. He builds, in effect, a syllabus for anyone who wants to understand how the Indian Right imagines India.

The first thing that strikes the reader is Dasgupta’s tone. Unlike many works on the Right that are either celebratory hagiographies or fiery denunciations, Dasgupta writes with the practiced lucidity of a columnist. His introductions to each section are calm, polished, explanatory rather than confrontational. He wants his reader — who may not be a sympathiser — to lower their guard. “Here,” he seems to say, “is what these thinkers actually wrote. Read them for yourself, without the noise of second-hand polemics.”

This framing is crucial, because the very notion of an “Indian Right” is contentious. The Left and the liberal centre have long claimed the mantle of reason, secularism, and intellectual seriousness. The Right, by contrast, has often been portrayed as anti-intellectual, a politics of muscle and mob rather than of mind. Dasgupta takes direct aim at this caricature. His anthology insists that the Indian Right is not a sudden eruption but the product of a long historical conversation: one that wrestles with identity, selfhood, modernity, nationalism, and the civilisational idea of India.

The book’s selections take us through the genealogy of Right thought. Savarkar looms large, of course — his articulation of Hindutva as a cultural and civilisational identity remains foundational. But Dasgupta is careful not to make this merely a one-man show. He includes Syama Prasad Mookerjee, the founder of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, whose speeches reveal a pragmatic blend of nationalism and opposition to Nehru’s centralism. He highlights Deendayal Upadhyaya’s “Integral Humanism”, an attempt to articulate a philosophical alternative to both Western liberalism and Marxism.

These inclusions matter. They remind us that the Indian Right is not merely about slogans and electoral campaigns; it has its own ideological scaffolding. Upadhyaya’s writings, for example, may not be widely read today outside the Sangh ecosystem, but they represent a serious attempt to imagine an indigenous model of development rooted in dharmic thought. Similarly, Mookerjee’s opposition to Article 370 or his views on national integration are not just political stances of the 1950s but part of an ongoing conversation about unity and diversity in India.

Dasgupta’s curation also highlights the diversity within the Right. While there is a common thread of cultural nationalism, the emphases differ. Savarkar is fiery, uncompromising, almost revolutionary in tone. Upadhyaya is philosophical, trying to balance tradition and modernity. Mookerjee is a constitutionalist, focused on parliamentary politics. By placing these voices side by side, the book allows us to see the Right not as a monolith but as a tradition with internal debates.

To appreciate the significance of *Awakening Bharat Mata*, one must understand the asymmetry of Indian political discourse. For decades after independence, the Nehruvian consensus dominated both politics and academia. The Indian Left had its own canon — Marx, Lenin, Gramsci, D.D. Kosambi, E.M.S. Namboodiripad. The liberal centre had its canon too — Nehru’s *Discovery of India*, Gandhi’s *Hind Swaraj, and Tagore’s humanist writings. But the Right was left in the margins, either demonised or ignored.

Dasgupta’s book is an attempt to correct that imbalance. By compiling and contextualising right-wing thought, he is in effect saying: “Here is our canon. Engage with it. Criticise it, if you must, but stop pretending it does not exist.” This is an act of legitimacy-building, of claiming intellectual respectability for a tradition long treated as anti-intellectual. And in the context of Indian politics today, when the Right is electorally dominant, the importance of such legitimacy cannot be overstated.

The greatest strength of the book is its accessibility. Dasgupta writes with clarity, never descending into jargon or polemic. His introductions provide just enough context to make the writings intelligible to a modern reader, without overshadowing the original texts. The selections themselves are judicious — neither overwhelming in length nor overly truncated.

Another strength is the very act of curation. By gathering these texts in one place, Dasgupta makes it possible for readers — especially younger ones — to engage directly with the sources rather than rely on caricatures. For a student of Indian politics, this anthology is invaluable: it provides primary texts that can be read, debated, and critiqued.

But appreciation need not be uncritical. The book has its blind spots, and the most significant is what one might call the sanitisation problem. In seeking to legitimise the Indian Right, Dasgupta understandably highlights its most intellectual and respectable strands. He foregrounds Upadhyaya’s philosophical musings, Mookerjee’s parliamentary speeches, and Savarkar’s civilisational arguments. What he largely leaves out is the rawer, more exclusionary rhetoric that has also been part of the Right’s history.

This is not dishonesty — no anthology can include everything — but it is curation with a purpose. The Right presented here is the Right as it would like to be remembered: cultured, thoughtful, responsible. The danger is that readers unfamiliar with the street-level realities of Hindutva politics may come away with an overly sanitised picture.

Yet perhaps this is precisely the point. Dasgupta is not writing as a neutral academic but as a participant in the ideological struggle of our times. His aim is not to provide a warts-and-all history but to showcase the best of the Right, to build its canon. In that sense, *Awakening Bharat Mata* should be read not as a neutral textbook but as a manifesto of intellectual legitimacy.

And as such, it succeeds. The Indian Right today is not merely a political force but a cultural one. To understand it, one must engage with its intellectual roots. Dasgupta’s anthology provides that entry point. Whether one agrees with the ideas or not, one cannot deny their historical significance.

Reading *Awakening Bharat Mata* is, for someone not already immersed in Right thought, an exercise in empathy. One may disagree with Savarkar’s vision of cultural nationalism, but one cannot deny its passion or its historical impact. One may find Upadhyaya’s Integral Humanism vague or utopian, but one must acknowledge its attempt to articulate a philosophy beyond imported ideologies. One may critique Mookerjee’s politics, but one must admit his role in shaping post-independence debates.

The act of reading, in this sense, is not endorsement but understanding. Dasgupta invites us to listen to these voices as they understood themselves, not as they have been portrayed by opponents. In doing so, he reminds us that intellectual traditions cannot be wished away; they must be engaged with.

In today’s India, where the Right is not only electorally dominant but also culturally assertive, this book matters as more than an anthology. It is a declaration: that the Right has an intellectual tradition, that it deserves to be read, and that it can claim a place in the history of ideas. For too long, political discourse in India has been trapped in binaries — secular vs communal, liberal vs reactionary. Dasgupta’s book, by curating the Right’s intellectual heritage, complicates those binaries.

It also serves a pedagogical purpose. For students, researchers, and curious readers, it provides access to primary texts that are otherwise scattered or hard to find. It enables debate at a higher level — not about caricatures but about ideas.

*Awakening Bharat Mata* is not a flawless book. It sanitises, it curates selectively, and it advocates more than it critiques. But within those limits, it achieves something important: it gives the Indian Right its intellectual canon. It insists that the Right be taken seriously as a tradition of thought, not merely as a politics of passion.

In that sense, it is both a book and a gesture. As a book, it provides texts, context, and accessibility. As a gesture, it signals the maturation of the Indian Right from a political force to an intellectual one. And for that reason, it deserves to be read appreciatively, even by those who may disagree with its ideas.

To awaken Bharat Mata, in Dasgupta’s telling, is not merely to raise slogans or win elections. It is to articulate a vision of India rooted in its own cultural and civilisational identity, and to claim that vision as part of the legitimate spectrum of political thought. One may argue with it, resist it, even oppose it. But after Dasgupta’s anthology, one can no longer pretend it does not exist.

[Jagdish · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awakening Bharat Mata: A Look at the Indian Right Wing

Swapan Dasgupta's "Awakening Bharat Mata: The Political Beliefs of the Indian Right" is a multifaceted book offering a glimpse into the ideological landscape of the Indian right wing. It's crucial to remember, however, that the book doesn't offer a traditional narrative but rather functions as a curated collection of essays and speeches.

The book presents a range of voices, including historical figures like Swami Vivekananda and Vinayak Savarkar, alongside contemporary figures like Atal Bihari Vajpayee and S. Gurumurthy. This allows readers to gain a broad understanding of the various strands of thought within the Indian right wing.

Dasgupta provides historical context for the emergence and evolution of right-wing thought in India. This helps readers understand the factors that have shaped these ideologies over time. By including primary source material, the book allows readers to engage directly with the ideas and arguments of prominent figures within the Indian right wing. This can be particularly valuable for those seeking to understand the movement beyond its media portrayal.

As with any curated collection, the selection of essays and speeches inevitably reflects the editor's perspective. Readers should be aware of this potential bias and consider seeking out additional resources to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the Indian right wing. While the book presents diverse viewpoints, it primarily focuses on presenting the arguments of the right wing. It offers limited critical analysis or engagement with opposing perspectives.

"Awakening Bharat Mata" provides a valuable resource for anyone interested in understanding the complexities of the Indian right wing. However, it's important to approach the book with a critical eye, acknowledging its limitations and seeking out additional perspectives to form a well-rounded understanding of this complex political landscape.

[Neha Nagar · Rating 3 out of 5]

A brilliant book tracing the rise of Hindu Nationalism with the assorted articles by different authors. In the first part, author put forward his views regarding change in narrative at the political level. He traces the rise of BJP and modification in their strategy to emerge as a formidable force. He quotes Aurobindo and Radha Kumud Mukerjee on their view of Nationalism. He narrates how introduction of secularism in the Constitution ignored the Hindu Dimensions of the national movement.He also mentions about the swatantra party who stood as an example of a secular right wing tradition in India that catered to the Hindu Right.He lucidly captures the energence of Hindu Narrative with the rise of BJP in 2014.
In the second part, the author put forth the readings by various right wing authors which have been airbrushed by the so called left "intellectuals". Articles by Jadunath Sarkar, Anand K Coomaraswamy, R C Majumdar Sita Ram Goel and V D Savarkar is a treat to read. Their views still hold relevant and open our eyes to the disruption prevailing in our history, society, education. The last article by S Gurumurthy sums up the theme of the book imparting power to the foundation of Hindu Nationalism. He talks about hindutva being the kinetic force which sustains and protects the Hindu Dharma. He beautifully explains its necessity and the need of decolonizing our mind to uphold the Hidu Dharma.
An interesting peak into the right wing idea of India which was somehow overlooked under the weight of 75 yrs if secularism.

[Dinesh Vijayakumar · Rating 5 out of 5]

As Indians, we have always been presented with one kind of opinion when it becomes to nation-building from the liberal left. Almost the entire educated elite has succumbed to secularism without deep understanding of India's history and cultural heritage. It was left to interpretation by each individual as secularism was foreign and imported from the Western world where Christianity dominates. Political parties in India which identify itself as flag-bearers of secularism have in fact skewed it heavily against Hindus, causing resentment among the educated lot. Every educated Hindu is a victim of such mentality as we have been constantly exposed to these pseudo-secular ideas from the western world where we are made to feel inferior. This colonial hangover is still with us and we confuse Indian Right with the Right wing of the Western systems which is blatantly wrong.

This book has enlightened me to new schools of thought which has shaped the ideological underpinnings of Indian Right. One can see why this has come to influence the political discourse these days. And the journey has just begun.

[John Doe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Book is below average by Swapan Dasgupta's standards. First chapter was merely reiterating very commonly known facts. The second and third chapters though did have a significant content, but it felt like Swapan wrote it in one go!

After the three chapters, there were works from prominent Nationalists which were reproduced. Though it was informative, but some of the works were plain unreadable - not because of the difficult language, but because of the pathetic writing style. One example is the first article of Sister Nivedita, it seemed like she was using the commas only for the sake of it.

But regards where due, the research and literature produced in general has been of very high standards. The second and third chapters reflected the razor sharp mind of the author to synthesize information from multiple sources into a single concentrated form. Some of the works reproduced where also very eye-opening. Example the works of M.G Ranade, Bankimchandra, R.C Majumder were all a reflection of groundbreaking thinking.

[Nitin Nair · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd rate it higher just for the sheer spectrum of Indian right-wing essays and extracts. Especially for introducing me to Nirad Chaudhari and Girilal Jain, who's writings I will get in to next. And for re-introducing me to Naipaul. Savarkar also comes across as a decent writer. Unfortunately, the book brings to the fore the paucity of good writing and clear thinking in the Indian right wing space.

[Aman Srivastava · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had read in school that Swami Vivekananda had gone to Chicago and gave a brilliant speech at the World’s Parliament of Religions. In a way, this book goes deeper into what he said there; and sets the context in which he was saying it.

[Girish Querido II · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quintessential handbook for Indic wing!

[Harshil Mehta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okayish, difficult to read, bunch of essays, Swapan's PoV is not significantly included.
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Book is okayish in the reading. In first three chapters, author set good amount of context of Right wing of India but in the later parts, it just includes bunch of essays by prominent right wingers of India. I don't understand why only those essays have been selected. Book lacks significant PoV of Dasgupta.
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Essays in book have too much poor writing style which make them arduous to read, at least for me. For example, Sister Nivedita's article. Long paragraphs and over use of commas makes reading boring. I wouldn't recommend this book to some person who is unknown to Indian right wing.