Fractured Modernity

'...convincing and sophisticated intervention in current debates about the nature of modernity in India and the foundations of the Indian state.---- Barbara D Metcalf, The American Historical Review '...a highly original book of much broader significance than its ostensible focus...suggests.' -- Sandria B Freitag, H-Asia'...a substantial monograph on a largely unexplored dimension in the social history of colonial north India.' -- Tirthankar Roy, Business History Review'...this thought-provoking and original book deserves to reach a scholarly audience beyond specialists in India.' -- A Martin Wainwright, The Historian '...is a refreshing new book on the dynamics of middle class politics...a must read for those interested in the social history of North India.' -- Anshu Malhotra, Seminar '...a good book: substantively rich, theoretically well informed, and based on a variety of sources in English, Hindi and Urdu.' -- Ian J Kerr, History: A Review of New Books This book studies the rise of middle class as a social force in colonial north India.Arguing that it emerged out of 'public-sphere' politics, the author demonstrates how the making of the class was closely tied to new imaginings and constructions of class, community, nation, and gender relations.