Chandigarh prof delves into Nayantara Sahgal’s work in new book
Professor Maninder Sidhu released her book "Nayantara Sahgal: A Century of Political Insights" at the Government Museum and Art Gallery in Chandigarh. The book provides a comprehensive critical re-reading of Sahgal's works and includes her engagement with historical events and political dilemmas linked to the colonial, anti-post-neo-/colonial discourse in India. The launch was followed by a discussion between the author and prominent 20th-century thinkers and writers.
The head of the department of English and Centre for Research at Post Graduate Government College for Girls, Sector 11, professor Maninder Sidhu, on Friday released her new book, titled “Nayantara Sahgal: A Century of Political Insights” at the Government Museum and Art Gallery, Sector 10.
The book was launched by Lovely Professional University chancellor Ashok Mittal, Ashoka University chancellor Rudrangshu Mukherjee, Chandigarh University chancellor Satnam Singh Sandhu, Chitkara University pro-chancellor Madhu Chitkara and Hindustan Times executive editor Ramesh Vinayak.
Speaking on the occasion, Sidhu said, “Sahgal has witnessed different ideologies and regimes unfold and shape modern Indian and world history for nearly a century. Her writings capture the political ebb and flow and remain a vital link in the history-fiction tradition, particularly in the post-colonial domain.”
The launch was followed by a discussion between the author and Mukherjee on the manner in which the book captures the political and historical aspects of Sahgal’s works and analyses it alongside the works of prominent 20th century thinkers and writers like VS Naipaul, Salman Rushdie and Arundhati Roy.
Published by Taylor and Francis Group, the book is a comprehensive critical re-reading of Sahgal’s works and includes her fictional and non-fictional engagement with historical events and political dilemmas linked to the colonial, anti-post-neo-/colonial discourse in India.
It pays particular attention to representation of historical events such as the freedom movement, Partition, Emergency, reorganisation of the state of Punjab, naxalism and nationalism.
