Jaffrelot argues that the trend towards lower-caste representation in national politics constitutes a genuine "democratization" of India and that the social and economic effects of this "silent revolution" are bound to multiply in the years to come.

Chiefly on the partition of Punjab, 1947.

At 18, musical prodigy Janaki Venkatakrishnan escapes her father’s plans for an arranged marriage, fleeing her village for the bright lights of Bombay. She leaves behind a gaggle of gossip-mongering old women, but also her younger sister Mallika, who is forced to take care of their increasingly unhinged father. But ten years later, when Janaki announces her return and demands a meeting with Mallika, the buried past is once again excavated. In a span of seven days, memories and misgivings, innocence and wisdom, everyday truths and family secrets are laid bare as the two sisters prepare to face each other, and their childhood experiences, once and for all. Ameen Merchant’s poignant and ambitious debut novel, at once intensely imagined and sensitively nuanced, shines an unsparing light on the complex subject of family obligations and sibling relationships.

Sometimes a Secret Must Remain Hidden to Keep the Peace... AN AGE-OLD SCROLL IS DISCOVERED in the hidden chambers of the Taj Mahal. The journalist who finds the ancient artifact is murdered. His feisty widow Manzil is suddenly burdened with the deadly secret, the contents of which could rock the nation. She becomes the most wanted person in the country. Threatened by fanatics, confronted by archaeologists, coerced by the police and under surveillance by a political organization with a hidden agenda, Manzil can trust no one.

The original (shorter) edition of this key historical reference to Indian silent cinema has been unavailable for years. This revised and expanded version has been edited by original author and former National Film Archive of India (NFAI) director Suresh Chabria. He has brilliantly and painstakingly pieced together a definitive historiography of Indian silent film that would have been all but lost were it not for his efforts.