The Elephant, The Tiger, and the Cell Phone: Reflections on INDIA - The Emerging 21st-Century Power [Hardcover]

Shashi Tharoor (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 19, 2007

Interest in India has never been greater. Here Shashi Tharoor, one of the subcontinentÕs most respected writers and diplomats, offers precious insights into this complex, multifaceted land, which despite its dazzling diversity of languages, customs, and cultures remainsÑmore than 60 years after its foundingÑthe worldÕs largest democracy. He describes the vast changes that have transformed this once sleeping giant into a world leader in science and technology, a nation once poverty-stricken that now boasts a middle class of over 300 million peopleÑas large as the entire population of the United States! Artfully combining hard facts and statistics with opinion and observation, Tharoor discusses the strengths and weaknesses of his rapidly evolving homeland in five areasÑpolitics, economics, culture, society, and sportsÑand takes a fresh look at the worldÕs second most populous country.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Bewildering diversity is the very essence of India, observes novelist and columnist Tharoor (The Great Indian Novel) in this engaging collection of essays, which tries to reconcile the country's clashing traditions with progress and liberalism. Hinduism's promiscuous openness to other beliefs and cultures makes it a model of secular tolerance, he argues, though Hindu fundamentalist bigotry is his favorite target. Tharoor also insists that ancient Indian science anticipated quantum mechanics, and praises his home state of Kerala for raising female literacy rates. (In a rare nostalgic note, he mourns the demise of the sari, then fences with a backlash of critical e-mail responses from pants-wearing women.) Most of all, he celebrates India's compatibility with the global economy, a stance that occasionally shades into business boosterism. Many pieces are drawn from Tharoor's columns and feature quick, sketchy takes on Indian cultural touchstones, from political corruption to Bollywood to cricket; his themes tend to be repeated rather than developed. But Tharoor's ready wit-an Indian without a horoscope is like an American without a credit card-and sympathetic insight combine in a fascinating portrait of Indian society. (Oct.)
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About the Author

Shashi Tharoor was one of the youngest undersecretary generals of the United Nations in the organizationÕs history. He is currently the chairman of Dubai-based Afras Ventures. The author of a dozen books, both fiction and nonfiction, he lives in New York City. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 512 pages
• Publisher: Arcade Publishing; 1st Ed. edition (September 19, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1559708611
• ISBN-13: 978-0670081455
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.3 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,022,217 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great book for non Indians too, February 13, 2008

By 

Julio "juliocuervo" (Buenos Aires, Argentina) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Elephant, The Tiger, and the Cell Phone: Reflections on INDIA - The Emerging 21st-Century Power (Hardcover)

I wanted to know a bit more about Indian culture and Indian history and I love this book. It's so well written. You must have some basic knolwedge of Indian history to understand it though. If you don't know who Nehru was and what the "partition" was you need to read some books before this one.
The book helped me to discover many facets of the Indian culture and society: the importance of secularism (and the current threats), the basic tenets of hinduism, the difference between north and south, the passion for cricket, the odd habit of changing cities' names, the use of the sari (or the lack of use), etc.
I strongly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in knowing more about India.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Must read for NRIs, December 3, 2007

By 

New Dad (Aurora, CO United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Elephant, The Tiger, and the Cell Phone: Reflections on INDIA - The Emerging 21st-Century Power (Hardcover)

This book is a must read for Non Resident Indians. Mr. Tharoor has perfectly portrayed India in a way NRIs would manifest their experiences of their home country. Though the book is not targeted only for Indians, it has few historical & personal references that only a true Indian can understand.

The book starts with little bit of Indian history talking about "People who made my India" that includes noted Indians from all sects including politics, cricket & bollywood. The author also provides a glimpse of India's culture (spirituality, traditional family values) & tourism (experiences at Ajanta & Ellora caves, Ayurvedic resort in Kerala) followed by India's progress in this 21st century (call centers, cellphone surge). Since Mr. Tharoor has been associated with the United Nations, the facts about India's growth, outlined in the book, truly suggest that India is the 21st century's emerging power.

I really enjoyed the chapter on India's cricket legend, Sunil Gavaskar, who was my hero too when growing up. It is nostalgic the way Mr. Tharoor has written about the "little master".

This is a must read for all Indians living outside their own home country.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pleasant Patriotism, April 5, 2008

By 

Prithvi Karthikeyan - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Elephant, The Tiger, and the Cell Phone: Reflections on INDIA - The Emerging 21st-Century Power (Hardcover)

I adore Tharoor's erudite and amusing writing. This book feels like home with its loving description of all that matters - cricket, family, community, cinema, history, religion and politics - in that order. The author's pet theme is the ostensibly unwieldy yet absurdly functional pluralism fed by a range of coalition memberships - geographies, cricket solidarities and common political antipathies.

I love that Tharoor describes his India as an individual experience rather than an objective concept. Tharoor subtly endorses the thumping progressive new Indians with his metaphor of an elephant who became a tiger - suggesting provocatively that the vulgarly ostentatious 'five star culture' is more authentic than the discreet opulence of the club culture. However, his intense nostalgia quite clear in the subtext of every syllable - the longing for the old names Madras and Bombay, the self-conscious diginity of Nehruvian democracy and the portrayal of St. Stephens as a modern Nalanda of sorts!

Yet, there is nothing fatalistic or too precious about Tharoor - he denounces superstition and horsocopes and doesn't mind writing that as a man he'd like to see women in elegant saris. It's the sort of nice nationalism that warms one without being too jarring or jingoistic.