In this episode of Guftagu, we've with us Dr Arvind Sharma, author of the book, "The Ruler's Gaze: A Study of British Rule Over India from a Saidian Perspective" Dr Arvind Sharma, longstanding professor of comparative religion at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, now takes up the Palestinian academic's groundbreaking ideas - originally put forth predominantly in a Middle Eastern context - and tests them against Indian material. He explores in an Indian context Said's contention that the relationship between knowledge and power is central to the way the West depicts the non-West. Scholarly and accessible, The Ruler's Gaze throws fresh light on Indian colonial history through a Saidian lens. According to Said, Orientalism is inextricably tied to the imperialist societies who produced it, which makes much orientalist work inherently political and servile to power. This book is a heroic attempt to translate Said’s theories on Orientalism to British scholarship on India and Hinduism and how it faithfully followed the ups and downs of British political power in India. In a quite convincing way, the book impresses on the readers that the relationship between knowledge and power is central to the way the West depicts the non-West. Arvind Sharma served in the distinguished Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and is the Birks Professor of Comparative Religion in the School of Religious Studies at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. He has authored many books and was instrumental in facilitating the adoption of a Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the world’s religions. There is a series of such amazingly curated interactions with authors and scholars on the history of the subcontinent. You can write to us on ⁠ergostudiosin@gmail.com⁠ Your support is invaluable, so please consider leaving a review on your favorite podcast platform.

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