Portrait of India

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining and informative vignettes of India
Review: Portraits of India is a collection of essays and interviews that, when taken together, provide a rich picture of India and this century of its history. Mehta has access to many of India's national treasures, including Ali Akbar Khan and Mother Theresa (before she won the Nobel Prize). In addition, he is eloquent and opinionated on many of India's historical touchstones: Ghandi, the Muslim/Hindu partition (including some great historical background on Kashmir, relevant in light of the recent seperatist stirrings there), and religion. The book is easy to read. Each of the essays is self contained and absorbable in a sitting. They are grouped together coherently to form synergistic wholes that offer insight into this enormous country