The author J Nandakumar, the National Convenor of Prajna Pravah, a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)- affiliated organisation, is a multifaceted personality. He has dedicated his entire life to the nation’s cause and unmasked the savage face of CPI (M) at the national level through his relentless campaign against the Marxist party’s murder politics.
The book, Struggle for National Selfhood, Past, Present, and Future, effectively showcases the colonial influences on the present conception of nation and the means of being called a developed individual, which ignores the Bharatiya notion of society as well as of individualism. Nandakumar shows how Bharat derives its soul from an ancient spirituality and culture despite its vast geography and diversities in the socio-cultural landscape of our country. Prominent personalities and scriptures paved the way for the holistic development of this great nation with a broader vision to be the torchbearer for the world.
Bharat’s struggle for freedom gave birth to various movements and organisations under the guardianship of Bharatiya leaders such as Anushilan Samiti, Hindu Mela, Abhinav Bharat and Indian National Congress, which shaped and fought for the notion of Bharat’s aspirations to be an independent nation. In this entire journey, we suffered some scars which are still visible and would further be remembered in terms of our complex ideological differences.
The book also presents an intellectual perspective by revisiting the Bharatiya system of education and its ambassadors like Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose, CV Raman and Meghnad Saha. Moving into another hall of mirrors, the author tries to present our art and culture in layers of historical evolution as stalwarts like Dada Saheb Phalke who chose the medium of cinema to showcase the essence of nationalism to his countrymen. But with time it seems to have deteriorated by the Left-liberal cabal with their colonial rhetoric to show Hindu dharma in a demeaning way.
On May 12, 2020, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi launched the AatmaNirbharta, the Swadeshi paradigm, to achieve economic self-reliance. Aatma means Soul. The campaign has more to it than mere economic agenda. It would lay the foundation for the ideological foundation of an economic transition for a new Bharat. It has four pillars: Swabhimani Bharat, Sasakta Bharat, Sangathit Bharat and Ekatma Bharat. The primary idea behind this campaign is to create a confident Bharat that is proud of its Dharmic values and prepare it to play its civilisational role in the comity of nations.
This book effectively showcases the colonial influences on the present conception of nation and the means of being called developed which ignores the Swadeshi notion of Bharat. In the book, Nandakumar argues that there’s still a section that is trying to undermine our socio-cultural values through various means to spread the false narrative of Bharat’s history but in parallel of that there is now an emerging proportion in various areas, who consecutively are looking forward to rejuvenate the Bharatiya Sanskriti in various spheres of our society. This book made an attempt to explore and bind all the lost pages of our glorious history.
(The writer is a PhD candidate in the Academy of International Studies at Jamia Millia Islamia)
