Aleph Olio Series
One of the meanings of the word ‘olio’ is ‘a miscellany’. The books in the Aleph Olio series contain a mélange of the finest writing to be had on a variety of Indian themes—the great cities, aspects of Indian culture and civilization, uniquely Indian phenomena. Filled with insights and haunting evocations of a country of unrivalled complexity, beauty, tragedy and mystery, each Aleph Olio book presents India in ways that it has seldom been seen before.
Love and Lust: Stories and Essays
The powerful stories and sketches in this volume probe the mysteries of love and the perils and ecstasies of sexual desire.
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Notes from the Hinterland: Stories and Essays
The country’s small town and villages have often inspired its finest writing and this is exemplified by the stories and the true-life accounts in this book.
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In A Violent Land
‘In a Violent Land’ contains some of the best fiction and non-fiction that has been written on the violence that permeates every layer of Indian society. Rising out of fault lines of religion, caste, gender, language, class and geopolitics, this brutality has scarred the country for centuries now.
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The Essence of Delhi
The Essence of Delhi captures the ‘riches and horrors’ (in William Dalrymple’s phrase) of the myriad cities of Delhi, beginning with the first one established by Suraj Pal, a Tomar Rajput, at the edge of the Aravalli Hills.
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The Book of Indian Kings
The Book of Indian Kings comprises stories and essays about some of the greatest rulers and statesmen in the history of India. Beginning with an essay on one of the country’s iconic rulers, the Mauryan emperor Ashoka, by our greatest living historian, Romila Thapar, this volume brings together some of the finest writers of our time on a glittering array of monarchs, including Salman Rushdie on Emperor Akbar, Khushwant Singh on Maharaja Ranjit Singh, William Dalrymple on Bahadur Shah Zafar, Rajmohan Gandhi on Tipu Sultan, Jadunath Sarkar on Chhatrapati Shivaji, and Manu S. Pillai on Krishnadeva Raya.
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