Author and research professor Rajmohan Gandhi said that south India has largely been forgotten in history writing and other writing of our country in the last several decades and south India is distinct from other parts of the country.
Mr. Rajmohan Gandhi, grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, released his latest book ‘Modern South India: A History from the 17th Century to Our Times,’ at the inaugural function of the 30th Vijayawada Book Festival held on the dais named after Yaddanapudi Sulochana Rani, on Swaraj Maidan premises named after Navabharat Prakash Rao, in the city on Tuesday.
Speaking on the occasion Mr. Gandhi said, “North India will know about south India when they read this book because south India has largely been forgotten in the history writing and other writing of our country in the last 50-60 years. Also, south Indians will learn about their neighbouring States.”
“Some people may ask if south India is more than the geographical term. It has a meaning very distinct from the west, east and north Indian parts. There is indeed something cultural, social and even ideological about south India which is more than just a technical term as per my understanding,” he said.
Theme of unity
Quoting poet Sri Sri’s lines about people, Mr. Gandhi said that south Indian poets and writers have uniquely expressed the precious notion that people are one and they constitute the land.
Chief Electoral Officer R.P. Sisodia said though it seems like the book is dying a natural death in the world of electronic devices, those who know the value of books also know that it has no competition. He said that books give greater scope for the imagination of the readers unlike videos or any visual representation that restricts one’s imagination. Mr. Sisodia said that literature is what an author writes out of his mind and anything that is written to serve the need of certain readers is not literature.
Deputy Assembly Speaker Mandali Buddha Prasad presided over the function. Telugu writer K. Enoch, Mayor Koneru Sreedhar, Collector B. Lakshmikantham, Mr. Rajmohan Gandhi’s wife Usha, and Hyderabad Book Fair Society president J. Gowrishankar were among those present.