Nearly four decades ago, Dilip Hiro's Inside India Today, banned by Indira Gandhi's government, was acclaimed by The Guardian as simply “the best book on India.” Now Hiro returns to his native country to chronicle the impact of the dramatic economic liberalization that began in 1991, which ushered India into the era of globalization. Hiro describes how India has been reengineered not only in its economy but also in its politics and cultural mores. Places such as Gurgaon and Noida on the outskirts of Delhi have been transformed from nondescript towns into forests of expensive high-rise residential and commercial properties. Businessmen in Bollywood movies, once portrayed as villains, are now often the heroes. The marginal, right-wing Hindu militants of the past now rule the nominally secular nation, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi as their avatar, one whose electoral victory was funded by big business. Hiro provides a gripping account of the role played by Indians who have settled in the United States and Britain since 1991 in boosting India's GDP. But he also highlights the negatives: the exponential growth in sleaze in the public and private sectors, the impoverishment of farmers, and the rise in urban slums. A masterful panorama, The Age of Aspiration covers the whole social spectrum of Indians at home and abroad.

Becoming someone is a learning process; and what we learn is the new values around which, if we succeed, our lives will come to turn. Agents transform themselves in the process of, for example, becoming parents, embarking on careers, or acquiring a passion for music or politics. How can such activity be rational, if the reason for engaging in the relevant pursuit is only available to the person one will become? How is it psychologically possible to feel the attraction of a form of concern that is not yet one's own? How can the work done to arrive at the finish line be ascribed to one who doesn't (really) know what one is doing, or why one is doing it? In Aspiration, Agnes Callard asserts that these questions belong to the theory of aspiration. Aspirants are motivated by proleptic reasons, acknowledged defective versions of the reasons they expect to eventually grasp. The psychology of such a transformation is marked by intrinsic conflict between their old point of view on value and the one they are trying to acquire. They cannot adjudicate this conflict by deliberating or choosing or deciding-rather, they resolve it by working to see the world in a new way. This work has a teleological structure: by modeling oneself on the person he or she is trying to be, the aspirant brings that person into being. Because it is open to us to engage in an activity of self-creation, we are responsible for having become the kinds of people we are.

The Business of Aspiration is about how consumers' shifting status symbols affect business and brand strategy. These changing status symbols, like taste, aesthetic innovation, curation or environmentalism create the modern aspirational economy. In the traditional economy, consumers signaled their status through collecting commodities, Instagram followers, airline miles, and busy back-to-back schedules. By contrast, in the aspirational economy, consumers increasingly convey status through collecting knowledge, taste, micro-communities, and influence. This new capital changes the way businesses and entire markets operate, and yet the modern aspirational economy is still an under-explored area in business and culture. The Business of Aspiration changes that. In this book, marketers will find examples, analyses and tools on how brands can successfully grow in the modern aspirational economy. The Business of Aspiration answers questions like, "what is good for my brand long-term?", "how is this business decision going to impact our culture?" or "what are the main objectives of our growth?" Marketers will learn to shift their brand narrative and competitive strategy, to create and distribute new brand symbols, and to ensure that their brand’s products and services create both monetary and social value.

Why is it getting harder to secure a job that matches our qualifications, buy a home of our own and achieve financial stability? Underprivileged people have always faced barriers, but people from middle-income families are increasingly more likely to slide down the social scale than climb up. Duncan Exley, former Director of the Equality Trust, draws on expert research and real life experiences – including from an actor, a politician, a billionaire entrepreneur and a surgeon – to issue a wake-up call to break through segregated opportunity. He offers a manifesto to reboot our prospects and benefit all.

For nearly eight decades of life, I have not witnessed a single change in the nature of humans but recognize that all humans possess the same cognitive "traits and characteristics" differentiated only by scale or degree. Environment and opportunity influence these (not nature). Briefly, this book was prompted by what I would refer to as the audacity of modernity. That is that is that somehow, modern conveniences including technology has rewarded the current generation superior to all that came before. In this writing, we will see that changing one's circumstances without a change of heart is a fool's errand. "Francesco Sardina has done a masterful job of summarizing and evaluating 6000 years of human history from the Garden of Eden to our world of COVID-19. The book is philosophical and reflective (good for us seniors) and requires us to put on our thinking caps as we read. It's an up-to-date critique of modern day society as well as ancient societies. The author notes that as a pattern nations rise and fall throughout time, and warns us that the US is no exception. In fact he shows that in spite of scientific and technological advances even now the US is showing definite signs of decline. He implies that unless we want to repeat history, we should put our houses in order and return to the basics. We should choose 'truth, goodness and beauty' over 'power mongering, sexual incontinence and treasure hoarding'. Without being pushy, the author recommends that we as a nation return to the 'virtues of honesty and integrity given in the Christian Bible'. The first half of the book covers world history from 4000 BC. The second half begins in 1940 and brings us up to the present. Skillfully woven are comments about the author's own biography. I came away thinking that this book is a must read for all members of our US Congress, as well as for all those of us concerned with the current direction of our nation. I found it rewarding to read and highly recommend it to you." -Dr. Ronald L. Trail "It took me about two months of reading on and off, but I finished reading your book "Stop! Humanity's Roots Live" this afternoon. My daughter Lisa bought a copy from Amazon after I mentioned to her that my best man from 42 years ago was now an accomplished author. She read your book cover-to-cover before leaving it with me as a gift. When I asked her how she liked it, she refused to answer and just said I needed to read it myself and make my own decision unbiased by her opinion. What a read! I must admit that early on, my expectations were mediocre at best. But it took a bit of time for me to be comfortable with your grammar and writing style (which admittedly was a bit above my pay grade). But as I got into the meat of your narrative, I absolutely enjoyed reading your book. I especially enjoyed your discussion about the "makers" and "takers" since I have thought similarly for quite some time. Many of your personal stories were familiar to me, having known you during your transition period from city slicker to farmer and land owner; however, you provided details heretofore unknown to me that occasionally brought a tear to my eye. One such detail involved early struggles with your "affliction," and another being the enduring love, motivation and support from your beautiful wife Connie. The sequence of events expounded upon on a decade-by-decade basis was easy to follow and informative to boot. Harmony ... we could use a bit more of that in our daily lives for sure. Nice job!" -Life-long distant friend, Russ Anderson

Study of the students of 9th standard in government and private schools in the Union Territory of Delhi.

It is an anthology compiled by R. R. KASTHURE, S. SARANYA.