Weekend Bookshelf: Top 4 reads from cop's memoirs to Bollywood lyrics

With rains washing off the shore and our windows the time is ripe to find a cozy corner and get lost in the world of a great book We have curated a selection of four books spanning political history an actual cop adventure a spiritual retreat and anecdotes from Bollywood of a different generationPrakash Singh Memoirs of a Top Cop Unforgettable Chapters Rupa Rs 395Dubbed an icon by the former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh retired BSF directorgeneral and prolific writer Prakash Singh did much for the nationrsquos security in his official capacityPolitics without the police is impotent Police without politics would lack a sense of direction With this statement Singh offers his readers glimpses of the foundations of our police setups before delving into other functional aspects of policingFrom uneasy equations with politicians to combating insurgency and securing the states in the northeast to defending the borders in Punjab and JampK to transborder operations the top cops autobiography also traces his journey as an IPS officerA ringside view of the engrossing world of law enforcement explained in the words of a seasoned officer this book is an insightful account of not only combatting insurgency and executing transborder operations in the constant effort to secure the nation but also of treading the tight rope the connects the police system and the politicians and their interestsWith regard to introducing reforms in police and its farreaching impact on society Singhs takehome message is that the person donning the uniform also powers through his personal realm given the complexities of our citizenryWilliam Gould Santosh Dass and Christophe Jaffrelot Ambedkar in London Rupa Rs 995Heres a welldocumented chronicle of the lesserknown time of life in London of the man hailed as the father of Indias ConstitutionBR Ambedkars political ideas have not ceased to inspire and mobilise people to this day His views on caste labour women education and peoples rights and representation have resonated not only in the country but also around the worldThis compilation explores Ambedkars Londonbased studies and publication in the early 1920s allowing for a periscopic view of the global significance of Ambedkarrsquos ideas William Gould concludes that Ambedkar is immortalised as a single historical figure whose wider political significance is unmatchedThe coauthors of the book are William Gould Professor of Indian History at the University of Leeds Santosh Dass a former civil servant and human rights campaigner who has been calling for the outlawing of castebased discrimination in the UK and Christophe Jaffrelot Professor of Indian Politics and Sociology Kingrsquos College LondonSwami Mukundananda Spiritual Secrets From Hinduism Essence of the Vedic Scriptures Rupa Rs 295India stands out in the world map as the land of spirituality and divinity sparking curiosity and fascination for its ancient knowledge system especially HinduismAncient rishis and sages are said to have had wisdom revealed to them and the buildup of knowledge that thus took place has enriched the heritage of IndiaSages and scholars put together their wisdom in sacred texts which we know as the Vedic scriptures Also included in this body of knowledge apart from the Vedas are the Puranas epics such as the Ramayana and Mahabharata the Brahma Sutras and similar textsIn the quest for the ultimate reality and absolute truth many have been drawn to India and several people even dedicated their lives to this land The understanding of Hinduism that seems to largely prevail among the masses however is arguably vague Bringing clarity to the discourse this book helps one understand the essence of the Vedic scripturesThe author Swami Mukundananda a product of IIT Delhi and IIM Calcutta is a globally acclaimed spiritual guru and authority on mind management He renounced his earlier life of social and material success and embraced monkhoodSameer Anjaan and Shuja Ali Lyrics by Sameer Stories Behind the Iconic Songs Rupa Rs 295For an entire generation Sameer Anjaan is synonymous with popular Bollywood numbers most notably the title track of DhoomBut who knew that Shravan of the music director duo NadeemShravan had first refused to let a debutant Ajay Devgn enter the recording studio because he was convinced that he wasnt hero material Only after Sameer intervened did Shravan relent and allow the nowacclaimed actor inAlso the immensely popular title track of Dhoom would never have seen the light of day but for Sameer because Aditya Chopra had rejected its signature tuneAs interesting as the stories of Bollywood films are the stories behind the making of those stories are just as interesting and intriguing With up to 50 such stories woven around some of the topmost hits of Sameer and the recounting of disagreements between music composers and film directors the coauthors one of whom is the lyricist himself and the other accomplished screenwriter and director Shuja Ali provide exclusive glimpses of the making of some of Sameers most iconic compositions in over three decadesSameer Anjaan holds a Guinness World Record with more than 640 films and 4500 songs to his credit and is the recipient of multiple laurels including three Filmfare trophies and the Shaheed Bhagat Singh AwardAlso Read Your ultimate antiquarian trail in MumbaiThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever