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A Sixth of Humanity and the Dreams of a Nation

    Grand Tamasha | 22 October 2025 | 1h 22m | Listen Later | Podcasts | Spotify
    Interview with Devesh Kapur and Arvind Subramanian about their book A Sixth of Humanity: Independent India’s Development Odyssey. Explores the unique challenge of managing four concurrent transformations – state-building, economic growth, social change, and nation-building – all under a system of universal suffrage. Highlights how India’s precocious democracy both aided nationhood and hindered the rule of law, leading to a scarcity economy that stifled private enterprise. Examines the divergence in performance across Indian states, noting that while some regions achieved rapid growth, others suffered from deep institutional failures. Warns that the social trust and accommodation necessary for future progress are currently under threat, requiring a return to cooperative governance to address modern challenges like climate change and human capital development.

    Audrey Truschke on India: 5,000 Years of History on the Subcontinent

      Asian Review of Books | 14 August 2025 | 0h 42m | Listen Later | Podcasts | Spotify
      Interview with Audrey Truschke about her book India: 5,000 Years of History on the Subcontinent. Discusses the history of the Indian subcontinent and its diverse peoples in global context – from antiquity to today.

      David Engerman on Apostles of Development: Six Economists and the World They Made

        New Books in Economic and Business History | 17 July 2025 | 0h 47m | Listen Later | Podcasts | Spotify
        Interview with David Engerman about his book Apostles of Development: Six Economists and the World They Made. Recounts the work of six economists, all former classmates at Cambridge University, who reflected and shaped international development from the mid-1950s to the 2010s.

        Rohit Krishnan: Hope for India, Hope for the AGI Era

          The Hope Axis by Anna Gát | 17 May 2025 | 0h 58m | Listen Later | Podcasts | Spotify
          Interview with Rohit Krishnan discussing Indian and American culture, the Get Shit Done mentality of Indian entrepreneurs, predictions for the Indian diaspora, his experiences with LLMs, and the surprising ways his children use AI. Draws from his Substack Strange Loop Canon.

          Rajmohan Gandhi Reflects on India’s Founding Fathers

            Ideas of India | 8 May 2025 | 1h 39m | Listen Later | Podcasts | Spotify
            Interview with Rajmohan Gandhi about his biographies of prominent Indian founding fathers: Vallabhbhai Patel, Mohandas Gandhi, C. Rajagopalachari (Rajaji), and Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan. Explores their differing perspectives on secularism, federalism, and economic freedom, highlighting the complexities and debates among these leaders. Emphasises that despite their competing visions on certain details and pace of change, these figures shared a fundamental commitment to equality and democratic rule in the new Indian republic. Discusses the challenges faced in preserving these ideals in both historical and contemporary India, including the importance of non-coercion and pluralism.

            Bishnupriya Gupta on An Economic History of India – Part II

              On Humans | 24 February 2025 | 0h 30m | Listen Later | Podcasts | Spotify
              Part II of an interview with Bishnupriya Gupta about her book An Economic History of India. Discusses the legacy of British colonialism in independent India; why India fell behind the economic miracle of East Asian countries like China; the successes and challenges of India’s democracy in shaping its economic future; and what happened to inequality in India during independence.

              Bishnupriya Gupta on An Economic History of India – Part I

                On Humans | 14 February 2025 | 1h 07m | Listen Later | Podcasts | Spotify
                Part I of an interview with Bishnupriya Gupta about her book An Economic History of India. Discusses the origins of modern India by focusing on politics, poverty, and the experience of ordinary Indians; Indian vs English living standards in 1600; the impact of British colonialism on India’s economy; the railways; The Great Famines of Bengal; what both imperial apologists and Indian nationalists get wrong about the British rule; the impact of China and India’s contrasting approaches to education on economic development; and more.