The Bengalis

This book talks about the experiences of hunter and conservationist Jim Corbett, during his years in the United Provinces, or what is now known as Uttarakhand. Here we see a different side to Corbett, not as the intrepid hunter of big cats but a man who blends seamlessly with the mountain folk of Northern India. Join him in his adventures and feel the thrills of hunting; follow him into dense forests as he encounters a dreaded dacoit who has a heart of gold; and enjoy the tales of love, loyalty, and resilience of simple villagers.

In this memoir, narrated in Karan Thapar's trademark incisive style, the author relates different stories from his life, from personal anecdotes about his childhood, college days and marriage to his encounters with various well-known personalities in the course of anchoring his TV shows. Find out about Karan Thapar's friendship in university and later with Benazir Bhutto; his short-lived yet memorable stint as a foreign correspondent with The Times under the tutelage of Charles Douglas-Home; his entry into news television; and more.

Extolled for his extraordinary courage and sacrifice, Bhagat Singh is one of our most venerated freedom fighters. He is valourised for his martyrdom, and rightly so, but in the ensuing enthusiasm, most of us forget, or consciously ignore, his contributions as an intellectual and a thinker. He not only sacrificed his life, like many others did before and after him, but he also had a vision of independent India. 

A natural storyteller and raconteur in his own right - just listen to Paddle Your Own Canoe and Gumption - actor, comedian, carpenter, and all-around manly man Nick Offerman (Parks and Recreation) brings his distinctive baritone and a fine-tuned comic versatility to Twain's writing. In a knockout performance, he doesn't so much as read Twain's words as he does rejoice in them, delighting in the hijinks of Tom - whom he lovingly refers to as a "great scam artist" and "true American hero".

It is a time of violence as well as calm. Men of peace are spreading the message of the Buddha even as monks are being tortured in the dungeons of Pataliputra. In Magadha, all talk is about the impending war against Kalinga. While King Ashoka plots the movements of his ships and cavalry, Queen Asandhimitra broods over the growing unrest in the kingdom. There is only one man they can both trust to take them through this period of uncertainty and looming danger: the enigmatically named Brahmin, skilful spymaster and custodian of Magadha’s best-kept secrets. 

Truth Eternal is a masterpiece of our time. It illuminates the science of existence itself: shedding new light on consciousness, the mind, the soul and Vedic wisdom and our relationship with the cosmos. This book beautifully describes the origins of the universe and our place in it, challenging our beliefs and ushering in a new era of spiritual enquiry.

The Ramayana, one of the world's greatest epics, is also a tragic love story. In this brilliant retelling, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni places Sita at the centre of the novel: this is Sita's version. The Forest of Enchantments is also a very human story of some of the other women in the epic, often misunderstood and relegated to the margins: Kaikeyi, Surpanakha, Mandodari. A powerful comment on duty, betrayal, infidelity and honour, it is also about women's struggle to retain autonomy in a world that privileges men.

Seventy years have passed since the Partition, and a momentous event now recedes in memory. Generations have grown up outside the shadow of the communal killings and mass displacement that shaped the contemporary history of the subcontinent. Despite being born into a family affected by the Divide, artist and oral historian Aanchal Malhotra too had thought little about the Partition until she encountered objects that had once belonged to her ancestors in an Undivided India. 

The Ramcharitmanas is undoubtedly one of the greatest lyrical compositions in Hindi literature. Writing in the 16th century, Tulsidas chose to pen verses in Awadhi rather than Sanskrit, thus breaking with literary tradition and, importantly, making Lord Ram more relatable to the lay person. Pavan K. Varma, author of the best-selling Adi Shankaracharya: Hinduism’s Greatest Thinker, has selected some of the most evocative stanzas - offering a succinct commentary for each - that capture the very core of the original. 

Three Nobel Prize winners. Two Bharat Ratnas. Three Knights of the British Empire. A Pulitzer Prize winner. A two-time Best of the Bookers winner. An Abel Prize winner. A Pritzker Prize winner. A Fields Medallist. Two Fukuoka Prize winners. A Turner Prize winner. Two Praemium Imperiale recipients. A double Academy Award winner. Many Padma Vibhushans and Padma Bhushans. But that is not why these people are really here. They are here because they, as Indians and people of Indian origin, have had extraordinary achievements and have inspired a generation of Indians.

How different will people's lives be if they approach success the same way the medical profession does, as if it were a matter of life and death? What can medicine teach us about beating the odds? In our jobs and our work lives, do we genuinely do the best we can? Gynaecological endoscopic surgeon Dr Rakesh Sinha, a two-time Guinness World Record holder for his surgeries, draws lessons from his own profession to elaborate on success in simple, easy-to-understand steps.

 In 1526, when the nomadic Timurid warrior-scholar Babur rode into Hindustan, his wives, sisters, daughters, aunts and distant female relatives travelled with him. These women would help establish a dynasty and empire that would rule India for the next 200 years and become a byword for opulence and grandeur. In Daughters of the Sun, we meet remarkable characters like Khanzada Begum who, at 65, rode on horseback through 750 kilometres of icy passes and unforgiving terrain to parley on behalf of her nephew, Humayun....

Ajay has lost his wife and is deep in depression. No amount of medication or therapy seems to help him as he struggles with his grief. He has only one wish - he wants to immortalize his wife. Then, he meets Anisha, who is shocked at Ajay’s hatred towards God. How can a person hate God? Where would that hatred lead him? Anisha is ready to judge Ajay harshly, when a simple, caring and guileless gesture changes her perception of him. So begins the journey of two people who are poles apart. A journey which will change their outlook towards life.

Love, laughter and a happily ever after have been some of the goals that we rush to achieve throughout our lives. But in trying to live, we forget to love; in trying so hard to be content, we forget to laugh. Our mind holds the key to some of the best gifts life has to offer, and this audiobook helps us unlock them. Live, Love and Laugh is a guide to applying the principles of yoga for understanding the human mind and character. 

The 19th century was an exciting time of initiative and enterprise around the world. If John D. Rockefeller was creating unimagined wealth in the United States that he would put to the service of the nation, a Parsi family with humble roots was doing the same in India. The Tatas is a tribute to a line of visionaries who have a special place in the hearts and minds of ordinary Indians. Written by seasoned journalist Girish Kuber, this is also the only book that tells the complete Tata story spanning almost 200 years.