tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post6964878347954683140..comments2024-03-27T14:57:37.031+05:30Comments on Jabberwock: Dreamer, fundamentalist, prince? Sudhir Kakar's The Crimson ThroneJabberwockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10210195396120573794noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-23317263736131693132019-02-20T23:04:50.730+05:302019-02-20T23:04:50.730+05:30Thank you for an interesting review. I saw it rece...Thank you for an interesting review. I saw it recently in a book-shop and was intrigued by it. For those wondering more about Dara - do read his beautiful, famous book on the fundamental One-ness of Hinduism and Islam, 'Mingling of the Two Oceans (Samudra Sangam-Majmul Bahrain) and his translation of the Upanishads which he did with Pandits of Benaras. It found it's way into Europe which was not well-versed in Sanskrit at the time and thus reached the West. The labor of love poured into these, and particularly the introduction to 'The Mingling' are touching. The rest as we know, is history.Peacefulnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-8037804283570484032010-09-06T21:08:55.991+05:302010-09-06T21:08:55.991+05:30Nice review. Hope to read it soon. Regarding Wolf ...Nice review. Hope to read it soon. Regarding Wolf Hall, I didn’t get around to finishing it as I loaned it to my sister. But then I struggled with reading even the first few chapters and I’m not sure why. Need to get in the mood for historical fiction, I guess.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-70729941305528130282010-09-06T00:12:13.157+05:302010-09-06T00:12:13.157+05:30Regarding Sudhir Kakar becoming less admiring of D...Regarding Sudhir Kakar becoming less admiring of Dara Shikoh as he read more about him, I think that's true of a lot of historical characters. It's probably because a casual reader (as opposed to a historical researcher/ historian) will know only a bare bones outline of the character in question, and the character is likely to be outlined in sympathetic/neutral overtones (except for the historical 'villians' such as Aurangzeb)- and it's only when we read more than the flaws/character weaknesses are revealed.Ramyahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13200409540625218822noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-75722135094499976232010-09-04T16:41:49.490+05:302010-09-04T16:41:49.490+05:30And what might the history of cinema (especially &...<i>And what might the history of cinema (especially "American cinema") have been?</i><br /><br />We might have had a Spanish film industry in America. Northern America might have ended up as yet another Spanish/Portugese colony <i>a la</i> Brazil or Argentina.shrikanthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03898755392584822638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-38218950440471438042010-09-04T16:11:03.850+05:302010-09-04T16:11:03.850+05:30This is an excellent review! I think I'll read...This is an excellent review! I think I'll read it as soon as I can as well. :) Random note: For some reasons, whenever I hear Mughals and historic fiction/ metafiction in the same sentence, I'm always reminded of The Enchantress of Florence. If you have not read it, you must!! :DCarpe Diem!https://www.blogger.com/profile/03054171142717375505noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-31811501778293554162010-09-04T15:46:16.052+05:302010-09-04T15:46:16.052+05:30What if the Norman Conquest of 1066 hadn't hap...<i>What if the Norman Conquest of 1066 hadn't happened!! England under Danish/Saxon rule might have ended up as yet another remote Scandinavian country! Now there's an alternative history that might have changed the history of the Planet!</i><br /><br />Shrikanth: And how! The mind short-circuits even thinking about it. Among many other things, we wouldn't be having this blog conversation in English (assuming that all technological progress happened in the same way). And what might the history of cinema (especially "American cinema") have been?Jabberwockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10210195396120573794noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-16625445422757858562010-09-04T15:42:44.569+05:302010-09-04T15:42:44.569+05:30Ramya: hope you like it. And do pass on some histo...Ramya: hope you like it. And do pass on some historical-fiction recommendations if you have any.<br /><br />AshKash: I was at a short discussion featuring Sudhir Kakar recently, and one of the interesting things he said was that he was fonder of Dara Shikoh when he knew relatively little about him - he lost some of his admiration after he actually started researching for this book.Jabberwockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10210195396120573794noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-5173860304929529622010-09-04T15:00:07.057+05:302010-09-04T15:00:07.057+05:30In this context, portions of Khushwant Singh's...In this context, portions of Khushwant Singh's Delhi are also quite intriguing with first-person narratives of Nadir Shah, Aurangzeb etc. Aurangzeb comes off as a reluctant ruler, just fulfilling his duty ... and the rosy perceptions of Dara's image begin to fade, presenting an alternate picture of a cunning, manipulative prince. But then, we'd expect Aurangzeb to say things like that :)AshKashnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-80353156963983024282010-09-04T10:52:53.138+05:302010-09-04T10:52:53.138+05:30Great review!
I don't quite understand why his...Great review!<br />I don't quite understand why historians think Dara Shikoh's reign would've made a huge difference. I suppose the argument is that in the absence of Aurangazeb, anti-Delhi sentiment may not have taken root in other parts of the country, thus enabling a strong pan-Indian Mughal dispensation to last much longer. Alternatively, it might have even hastened the collapse of the empire and improved the opportunities for Continental traders of the 17th century.<br /><br />I've been reading GM Trevelyan's <i>History of England</i> lately. In it, the author raises the most provocative of "what-if" questions. What if the Norman Conquest of 1066 hadn't happened!! England under Danish/Saxon rule might have ended up as yet another remote Scandinavian country! Now there's an alternative history that might have changed the history of the Planet!shrikanthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03898755392584822638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-10163688397885144502010-09-04T10:52:13.356+05:302010-09-04T10:52:13.356+05:30This made for a very interesting read Jai. And I t...This made for a very interesting read Jai. And I think I am going to pick up this book - I've always been interested in historical fiction, especially that set in Mughal times, and this sounds quite fascinating.Ramyahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13200409540625218822noreply@blogger.com