Itihaas Gawaah Hai

In this episode we discuss the ill effects of just controlling monetary policy without any clear policy measures to counter the downsides. We discuss the transition from Economic Liberalization to Economic Nationalism: Trumponomics and Brexit.

In this episode I share the origin of Environment conversation, the barriers, the implications of having GDP as a metric, and the problem of terrorism in the current world.

In this episode, I talk about European Union, Russia in Post Cold War, and Economic Liberalization and its impact on Third World Countries.

Disintegration of USSR marks one of the seismic events in the global politics. It marked the end of Cold War and marked the beginning of a multipolar world.

In this episode, I talk about the reasons behind the oil crisis and how it challenged the Keynesian Economics and the emergence of Neo-Liberal Economics as the result.

In this episode, I talk about the freedom of colonies in South-East Asia and Africa including China and Vietnam.

The episode focuses on the immediate and long-term causes of the Cold War and talks about the various hotspots and conflicts related to the Cold War across the world.

We discuss the aspect of USA's rise to global economic and political domination.

This is quick revision episode on the causes of WW I and WW II.

We discuss the causes of the rise of Nazi Party and Hitler in Germany and Hitler's foreign policy that ultimately led to WW II.

We discuss the conditions that led to the rise of Mussolini and his economic and foreign policy approach after coming to power.

We discuss the constructive reaction to the great depression and also steps taken to tackle the depression by Britain and France, which did not bear results due to the lack of economic coordination.

This episode discusses the step through which Article 370 was abrogated.

We discuss the important post-independence events in Kashmir and Article 35(a) and various amendments that were made to it after 1954.

We discuss the instrument of accession for Kashmir and the context surrounding it. We discuss the now abrogated Article 370.

In this episode, we discuss the change in Pakistan's approach after 1971, its role in the Afghanistan War (79-89), and the diplomatic situation at present.

We talk about the basis of Pakistan's formation and the first 23 years after the formation.

The episode discusses the rise of Communal Politics and the demands of a separate state based on religious identity.

We discuss Stalin's economic model and his ideas about strengthening Soviet Russia. We also discuss the reasons for the great depression.

We discuss the Russian Revolution and the role of Lenin in bolstering the revolution.

We discuss the reasons for the failure of the Paris Peace Conference and the implementation of Wilson's 14-Pt Program.

We discuss the nature of Paris peace conference and its aims along with all the treaties that were signed between the two sides, sowing the seeds of discontent and war in the long term.

We look at the impact of WWI on the European society and discuss how the seeds of the second world war and great depression were sown in the first world war.

We discuss the roots of the Iran - Israel conflict and how the tactics used by Britain in the first world war and later by America after the second world war played a role in deepening this conflict.

Here we discuss the long-term and immediate reasons that ultimately precipitated WWI. We also discuss if Germany solely responsible for the war as stated in Treat of Versailles and if the war was avoidable.

We briefly look at all the factors that will ultimately lead to World War I.

We discuss the factors that contributed to Neo Imperialism after 1870. We discuss Division of Africa, Dutch Culture System in Indonesia, Neo-Imperialism of USA.

We discuss the european occupation of Latin America, Africa, and Asia between 16-18th Century and how these continents were exploited to fuel the commercial capitalism in Europe. We also discuss reasons due to which the form of imperialism shifted after 1870

In this episode we discuss the remaining aspects of Marxist thoughts and its impact on European society.

In this episode we discuss the ideas of one of the greatest thinkers of modern times, Karl Marx, who was also called as the Rousseau of 19th century.

Worth listening on its own this episode will help you see many underlying patterns in today’s world.

Socialism as a though rose due to inaction of middle class to provide lower classes any representation. It gained strength after industrial revolution, that created a separate labor class.

Both Russia and Japan adopted a very specific model of indistrialization that led to some interesting consequences in the history. We discuss both in this episode.

As Britain underwent an industrial revolution, nations around the world prepared to industrialize to compete with the cheaper British products. We discuss the challenges and factors that supported the industrialization of USA and Germany.

We discuss the social, political, cultural, and economic impact of Industrial Revolution in Britain. We also discuss the demands of Middle Class and Lower Class and how the British parliament responded to these demands.

We discuss the reasons for industrial revolution in Britain and why it did not happen in some other nations of Europe.

We discuss the destructive impact of nationalism and look at the formation of the new nations from the declining ottoman empire. European countries wanted to benefit from this decline and that competition will sow the seeds of WWI.

In this episode, we discuss the unification of Germany and the factors that played a significant role. We discuss the role of Otto Von Bismarck in the unification and its impact on the politics of Europe.

We discuss the challenges in the process of unification, the ideas that provided impetus for unification, and the personalities that played a major role in it.

In this episode, we discuss the European revolts of the 1820s, 1830s, and 1848, which impacted all the regions in Western, Central, and Eastern Europe in different ways and produced some interesting long-term consequences.

We discuss some benefits and limitations of the Metternich system in Europe and the factors that posed challenges. We discuss how factors like liberalism, nationalism, and industrial revolution gave way to modern nationalism and how it impacted Europe.

In this episode, we discuss the arrangements made to counter the impact of the French Revolution on the existing order. We discuss the critical steps taken to restore the map of Europe, emphasize balance of power, and suppress ideas such as liberalism and Nationalism.

We summarize the French Revolution by talking about the causes, some of the key trends, criticism levelled against the French Revolution, and the legacy of the French Revolution.

We discuss the rise of napoleon along with some administrative, social, economic, and religious reforms he made during his rule and his eventual fall.

This episode discusses two phases of the French Revolution—Radical Republicanism (1792-94) or Reign of Terror and Moderate Republicanism (1794-99)—by the end of which Napoleon Bonaparte had risen to leadership.

The episodes talks about the reasons the french revolution had different phases and discusses the first phase of the revolution between 1789-1791.

We discuss the major events in the region during the 20th century and the regional and global political equation.

In this episode, we compare the situation of Jewish community in the medieval time from the economic and social standpoint. We also look at the changes during the Modern Period that finally led to the push for the creation of separate Jewish state in the Middle East.

In this episode, we explore how religion and politics interact and look at it from the perspective of Christianity in the first few centuries after the Christ. Christianity in Rome, Persia, and in between the conflict between the two.

This episode explores the importance of Jerusalem in the three religions - Judaism, Christianity, and Islam - and their connection with the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.

The French Revolution was a landmark in the history of Europe and the world. We discuss some of the critical political, social, and economic reasons that led to the French Revolution, and we also look into the reasons for the French Revolution being more radical than the American Revolution.

In this episode, we discuss the American Civil War - its causes and effects, and we briefly evaluate the role of Abraham Lincoln in the abolition of slavery, winning the war, and ensuring that the USA stays undivided as a union.

In this episode, we discuss the reasons why the American Revolution became an inspiration for Europe and later for the world and some of its limitations. We then discuss the factors that inspired the American Constitution and its salient features.

In this episode, we discuss in detail the long-term social, economic, and political reasons and the immediate reasons and series of events leading to the American Revolution and the independence of the 13 colonies from Britain.

In this episode, we discuss how the American Revolution was based on extending the European agenda during the Enlightenment and had similar economic, political, and social themes. We also discuss why British Americans were the first to revolt against the monarchy. We conclude by discussing the nature of the American Revolution.

In this episode, we conclude our discussion on Enlightenment by discussing the ideas of German thinker Immanuel Kant. We discuss the pluralistic nature of the Enlightenment era, how it became the harbinger of modernism in Europe, and the limitations of the Enlightenment era.

This episode is dedicated to one of the most radical and extraordinary thinkers of the 18th century and human history. Also called the Karl Marx of the 18th century, Rousseaou profoundly influenced art, religion, politics, philosophy, economics, education, and religion, and his ideas reverberated throughout the 19th and 20th centuries and continue to influence even today.

This episode focuses on Enlightenment and the key governing factors behind Enlightenment. We discuss the difference between Renaissance and Enlightenment and then discuss the Enlightenment's Political, Economic, and Social ideas. We also discuss, in short, some of the opposition to enlightenment thought towards the end of the 18th century and the beginning of the 19th century.

This episode discusses the social and political changes resulting from Commercial Capitalism. We discuss the rise of national boundaries and powerful monarchies across European nations. We discuss the 30-Year War and the Treaty of Westphalia, which created an international system that will impact the world in the coming centuries.

With this episode, we conclude the series on Uniform Civil Code. A huge thank you to lectures by Vikas Divyakirti Sir. 

This episode discusses important Personal Law and Protection cases and key Supreme Court and High Court judgments. This episode also discusses the misleading narratives propagated by divisive forces either in the name of recommendations of the Law Commission or by saying that UCC is an RSS-driven agenda. 

In this episode, we look at the Articles in the constitution that form the basis of the arguments of the two sides - one that supports UCC and the other opposing it. We will go deeper into the nuances of these articles to determine the solidity of arguments on both sides. We will look at an important case and the court's judgment on it, which impacted the progress of UCC in India. 

We discuss Muslim Personal Law for Criminal Cases, which isn't operational in India after the 1860 IPC and CrPC, through which Criminal Code was made uniform. After that, we go into Muslim Personal Law for Civil Marriage, Divorce, and Succession cases.

In this episode, we discuss the Acts and Laws that govern the Christian, Parsi, Jews, and Tribal citizens of India. In our discussion, we will take a look at prominent cases and judgments in the Supreme Court and High Court to reinforce the idea that the purpose of the Uniform Civil Code is to remove discrimination against certain sections of society based on religion and gender while preserving diverse practices.  We also discuss the special case of the Goa Civil Code and the clauses. 

In this episode we will discuss the timeline of the introduction of Hindu Code Bill and its implementation into four separate acts: The Hindu Marriage Act of 1955, Hindu Succession Act of 1956, Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act of 1956, and Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act of 1956.

In this episode, we look at the recommendations of the first three law commissions that led to the codification of civil and criminal laws in India. We also look at the partnership of Hindu social reformers such as Raja Ram Mohun Roy and Ishwarchand Vidyasagar in addressing some of the social ills in Hindu society with the help of the British governors of their times. 

In this episode, we understand the meaning of the phrase "Uniform Civil Code" by looking at the meaning of each word by referring to what is written in our constitution. We also discuss the approach we can adopt while there are heated and, in many cases, divisive debates going around us. 

This episode will discuss the fundamental social and technological reasons behind the Renaissance. We will talk about the Protestant Reformation and the religious, political, and economic reasons that fueled the Reformation that led to the fall of the Universal Church system in Europe. We will end with a discussion on how all of this contributed to the emergence of the Monarchy and the Middle Class in Europe. 

This episode focuses on the critical impacts of the discoveries: the Americas and the trade route to India. We explore how the changes in production and distribution methods led to the fall of feudalism and the rise of the middle class in Europe. We will also discuss the Renaissance in the context of the economic and social changes mentioned and the characteristics of the Renaissance. 

This episode explores feudalism as a political, social, and economic arrangement. We also explore the primary reasons for the arrival of modern times in Europe. Here we look at developments in agriculture, the Crusades' impact, and the Byzantines' fall in 1453, leading to a commercial/business revolution in Europe. 

In this episode, we discuss factors behind the rise of Islam and its rapid spread worldwide that resulted in a global Islamic empire from the 7th to 15th century AD. We discuss the Universal Church System that was formed after the 8th century AD and became an essential aspect of the Holy Roman Empire.

We cover the time from the Neolithic Age (10000 BC) to the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the formation of the Holy Roman Empire in 800 AD. We focus on the major themes here without going too much into depth.

In this episode, we discuss India's post-independence foreign policy by talking about the major influences on India's post-independence policy on the global stage. We talk about the key aspects of India's foreign policy, including the Cold War context, relationships with Pakistan and China, India's involvement in major international disputes, and the Non-Aligned movement.

In this episode, we discuss the economic challenges, geopolitical situation, and influences that led to the creation of Nehru's model. We will look at the details of the plan, its strength, and its limitation.

We discuss the challenge of ensuring the unity of a nation with 22 official languages and the discussion and debates revolving around it. We also discuss the idea of social justice and the steps taken to ensure it post-independence India.

In this episode, we delve into the challenge of securing economic, social, and cultural justice for our country's people, including farmers, laborers, women, and lower castes who have suffered greatly throughout colonial times. We examine how our constitution was designed to ensure that political freedom envisions a path to social and economic justice for the masses.

We discuss 2 out of the 7 big topics that India as a newly independent nation faced post-independence. We discuss the impact of the Refugee Crisis and partition riots on our constitution, people, and foreign policy and we talk about the accession of princely and their merging into the Union of India. 

In this episode, we discuss in detail the international, national, and British context due to which the British decided to leave India. We also discuss the key events that led to India's independence and the unfortunate reality of partition and the formation of Pakistan.

We assess the impact of World War II on British policy and the national movement. We look at Quit India Movement in the context of the growing demands by Congress to provide more control and participation in decision-making. We discuss the August Proposal and Cripps Mission in this context. 

In this episode, we discuss the environment in the 1930s, during which communalist awareness and fire became more extensive and laid the base for the unfortunate reality of partition.

In this episode, we discuss the 1935 Government of India Act by focusing on some key clauses of the act. We will discuss the internal tug-of-war between the left wing and right wing within Congress on the issue of participating in the 1937 elections. Finally, we will discuss the achievements and limitations of the governments formed in 6-8 provinces after the elections. 

In this episode, we discuss how the Congress socialist party formed to push the ideas of socialism within Congress and helped organize peasant and worker movements under the aegis of Congress. We discuss the Karachi, Lucknow, Faizpur, and Haripura sessions of Congress that were influenced by socialist ideas. We discuss the Tripuri Session of Congress and the separation between S C Bose and INC. 

We talk about the rise of socialism and communism in the context of various national and international influences. We discuss Marxism, Socialism, and forms of socialism and communism. We use the context to understand the formation of CPI by MN Roy and the progress and limitations of the CPI. 

We discuss the revolutionary nationalist activities in the 1930s and the ideas of Bhagat Singh. We also discuss the influence of socialist and communist ideals on Revolutionary Nationalism and their contribution to the national movement. 

In this episode, we discuss how the great depression exposed the deficiencies of capitalism and its impact on different social classes and the psyche of people in third-world countries and colonies across the world. In that context, we discuss Civil Disobedience Movement and Gandhi-Irwin pact. We talk about the second roundtable conference and the communal award aimed at providing separate electorates to Dalits in India. 

In this episode, we discuss the broadening base of the Indian National Movement that saw participation and increased activity from farmers across the country. We also discuss the labor strikes and trade unions as the result of awareness of the socialist and communist ideas. We discuss the work done for the upliftment of untouchables and lower caste and their participation in the national movement. Finally, we talk about women's right to vote and the work done by Dr. Sarojini Naidu.

In this episode, we discuss the phase between 1924-29. We discuss how Gandhi dedicates 4-5 to spreading creative village programs across the villages of India, which plays a role in broadening the base of Congress. We also discuss the constitutional politics of the Swaraj party. We talk about the Simon Commission and how its opposition led to Nehru Report, which the All India Muslim League opposes. 

In this episode, we discuss the context behind the Khilafat Movement and the inclusion of Khilafat as an agenda item along with Swaraj and justice for Punjab wrongs. We discuss how although the short-term idea was to bring Hindus and Muslims together to fight against the imperial power, in the long-term it strengthened the staunch elements within All India Muslim League and pushed the non-communal leaders to the margins. 

We look at Gandhi's initial movements conducted personally, which exposed the national leaders and common people across the country to his methods. These initial strikes and demands and the non-violent civil disobedience approach helped set the base for future movements. They laid the foundations for his rapid rise in the national movement. 

In this episode, we focus on the rapid rise of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi in the Indian National Movement and the factors behind it. We analyze it in the context of World War I, in the context of the politics and prevalent political instruments of that time, and in the context of the low-energy phase of Congress, which seemed a little helter-skelter. 

In this episode, we discuss the impact of WWI on the Indian Nationalist movement. We discuss the Ghadar Movement and its contributions to the nationalist movement and to revolutionary nationalism. We also discuss the Home Rule Movement led by Tilak and Annie Besant and the role it played in making Swaraj the key demand. These movements provided energy to the national movement at the time when Congress was in a low-energy phase. In the context of WWI and the Home Rule League we discuss the Montagu Chelmsford Act of 1919.

In this episode, we discussed the Shimla Delegation of 1906 and the formation of Muslim League in the same year. We discuss how different elements and events such as Morley-Minto Reform of 1909, Partition of Bengal proposal of 1905, Lucknow Pack of 1916 played a role in deepening the communal consciousness in the National Movement. 

We discuss the idea of communalism and how it took birth and grew as a parallel thread to nationalism in the Indian national movement. We discuss the reasons behind the rise of communal awareness on both Hindu and Muslim sides. We also discuss the role of British policy in the rise of communalism.

This episode discusses the split in congress between Moderates and Extremists leadership after the Surat session in 1907. We also discuss the impact of the split and the change in policies of the British, and the rise of Revolutionary Nationalism to fill the vacuum, and keep the nationalistic fervor alive.  

These episodes cover the period from 1895 - 1911. We discuss how Lord Curzon's policy unknowingly provided inspiration and a new direction to the Nationalist Movement. We explore the difference between the point of view and politics of Moderates and Extremists. We also discuss Swadeshi Movement in the larger context of the extremist phase of Congress.

We discuss the formation of the Indian National Congress,  the 'safety-valve' theory, and the moderate phase of the Indian National Congress. We discuss the social base of congress at this time, which was largely elite, and thus it impacted the issues they raised with the British Government. 

This episode discusses the reform movements led by Islamic leaders and their impact on the national movement. I also discuss why women's issues were key agenda items during this time and the three phases of the women's reform movement in the national conversation. 

This episode covers one of the four threads of reform movements. 

Hindu Reform Movements 
Muslim Reform Movements 
Women Empowerment 
Caste Reform

We discuss the contributions of Raja Ram Mohun Roy, Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, Ramakrishna Paramhansa, and Swami Vivekanands.

In the previous three episodes, we covered the idea of Indian Nationalism,  farmer, and tribal movements as a part of proto-nationalism, and the War of India's Independence of 1857. 

This episode focuses on the Social and Religious reform movement that gave rise to Modern Indian Nationalism and became the root of the rise of the Indian National Congress. We discuss the reasons, limitations, and contributions of this movement to India's nationalism.