The elephant, the tiger, and the cell phone : Reflections on India : The emerging 21st-century power

Over the past twenty-five years, India has moved from a largely impoverished, underdeveloped country to an innovative, fast-changing society. This entertaining and informative book shows how and why. Interest in India has never been greater. Here Shashi Tharoor, one of the subcontinent?s most respected writers and diplomats, offers precious insights into this complex, multifaceted land, which despite its dazzling diversity of languages, customs, and cultures remains?more than sixty years after its founding?the world?s largest democracy. He describes the vast changes that have transformed this once sleeping giant into a world leader in science and technology, a nation once poverty-stricken that now boasts a middle class of over 300 million people?as large as the entire population of the United States. Artfully combining hard facts and statistics with opinion and observation, Tharoor discusses the strengths and weaknesses of his rapidly evolving homeland in five areas?politics, economics, culture, society, and sports?and takes a fresh look at the world?s oldest civilizations and most populous countries In his critically acclaimed previous work, India: From Midnight to the Millennium and Beyond, Shashi Tharoor, one of India's most respected writers and diplomats, traced the country's history from late colonial times through its first fifty years of independence. Interest in the subcontinent has never been greater, and this new work offers precious insights into this complex, multifaceted land, which despite its dazzling diversity of languages, customs, and cultures remains more than sixty years after its founding the world's largest democracy. Documents the transformation of India from a largely underdeveloped region into an innovative society, profiling it as one of the world's scientific and technological leaders while providing insight into its political, economic, and cultural climate.