Description: This book argues that the formation of distinctive regional identities shaped and strengthened ideas of the Indian nation and the rise of nationalism in the early 20th century.
Brief description: Aryendra Chakravartty is Associate Professor of History at Stephen F. Austin State University, USA. He has published several peer reviewed essays in journals such as Modern Asian Studies, Indian Historical Review and Indian Economic and Social History Review. He is currently President of Society for Advancing the History of South Asia (SAHSA), an affiliate of the American Historical Association (AHA).
Review Quotes:
"A unique cultural history of late colonial Bihar, this book explores a range of materials from the rise of the Patna Museum and the Didarganj Yakshi to various debates about the ancient past that showcase the complex interplay between regional and national identity in the land where the Mauryan Empire was born." --Neilesh Bose, University of Victoria, Canada
"Bihar in Colonial India is a major contribution to the field of South Asian Studies. The author draws from a wide range of interdisciplinary scholarship on the historical, social, cultural, religious, political, linguistic, and archeological aspects of Bihar to explain the symbiosis of Bihari and Indian national identity." --Leah Reynolds, Texas State University, USA