Book Review: Imagining India - Nandan Nilekani

Among the leaders and pioneers of the much feted and praised IT company, Infosys, Nandan Nilekani has given a window into his thought processes in this book.

A reader will have to acknowledge the clarity of thoughts that have gone into covering an extraordinarily wide swath of topics. This includes, among the many others, a very intense perspective on the English language and its undeniable love-and-hate relationship with Indians since the beginning of colonial rule, the analysis of democracy and its evolution in India and a scathing critique of our universities as they degenerated into getting into the center of politics rather than being the cradle of new ideas, opportunities, and movements to rejuvenate the national life.

While reading the book, among the many impressions that the reader may get is the immense sense of hope for India, sometimes in comparison with China and other countries . This happens while describing the potential demographic advantages available currently to India, and also  the challenges in converting such potential into realistic scenarios.

Mr. Nilekani could have considered giving more space to the huge challenges that were faced by leaders other than Nehru in the decades immediately after independence, a more perspective view on the growth and success of non-IT companies in the same phase as Infosys and maybe viewpoints on the various strains of violence, terrorism and insurgency affecting the Indian state.

Readers would come to understand the big challenges that come with big numbers, which are more the norm than the rarity in our national space. As a people, we are frequently accustomed to hearing about a large population, large contradictions in terms of empowerment by education, and empowerment by political means or even the wide variations in wealth distribution. One of the realizations that this book will definitely give to its readers is the enormity of challenges that have been faced by leaders and politicians and the immense hard work and faith in a national concept that has kept converting such challenges into windows of opportunity.

The narrative gives much hope to readers by the end of the book and especially for the Indian readers that corporate leaders of the calibre of Nandan Nilekani have their head and heart in the right place and salso provide the inspiration for similar successes to be actually replicated across all fields of national life.