Bloomsbury to Publish Laxminama Monks, Merchants, Money and Mantra by Anshuman Tiwari & Anindya Sengupta
A first-in-its approach, Laxminama documents the interplay of business and religion in Indian history dating since 4,000 years, focusing on the role of religion beyond worship and business beyond profit. Anecdotal in its narrative, this is a book on people, places, products and ideas that defined India as a society
Three crucial forces that have been almost equally responsible for shaping human civilization so far. Yet, the politics of empire has dominated history and popular discussion. Irrespective of the political upheavals, however, India has always been an open market—welcoming traders from faroff lands, promising them a fair bargain.
Indian entrepreneurs since ages had developed their own sophisticated institutions and wide communitybased networks. This open, liberal and robust ‘bazaar economy’ thrived unhindered till the advent of European trading companies, who brought with them the notions of monopoly and state controls. Business in India blossomed in tune with liberal religious thought and Indian intellectual tradition always fostered the spirit of
questioning.
Laxminama is an account of how the country’s open market and its liberal religious outlook have nurtured each other throughout the centuries. Told through a medley of stories, this is the saga of India’s socioeconomic power that has characterized not only the country’s vibrant pluralistic society but also much of global history. An untold narrative of India’s geographies, products and pioneers this is an unforgettable album of heroes, who championed game-changing ideas at the intersection of faith and enterprise.
Helpful for those who would like to understand the present in a historical context as well as those interested in history from the perspective of the present.
The book will appeal to various religious groups, a large variety of students (graduates, professionals such as MBA and Journalism students), those who are generally interested in non-fiction across the country (particularly Gujarat, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Kerala, Andhra, Odisha, Bengal and Uttar Pradesh as it captures stories from these places) and abroad (China, South East Asia, London and New York).
Author Biography
Anshuman Tiwari is the editor of India Today, Hindi. A recipient of the prestigious Ramnath Goenka Award and WAN-IFRA International Award for investigative journalism, he is an acclaimed journalist credited with over 2,000 columns in Hindi and English across various media publications. Tiwari has worked with major media brands such as Dainik Jagran, Dainik Bhaskar and Amar Ujala in various editorial capacities. A Chevening Fellow, he has authored several research papers and is the author of Arthaat, a collection of his economic writings in Hindi. He also has a blog by the same name.
Anindya Sengupta is a civil servant based in New Delhi. A student of history from Presidency College, Kolkata, he is interested in history and geography in equal measures and loves to travel in search of stories, unknown and long forgotten.