Publisher : Notion Press (4 October 2022)
Language : English
Paperback : 130 pages
ISBN-13 : 979-8887498782
Order your copy: Here
(Thank you author and the publisher for sending across this book.)
Without roots, a tree cannot survive. And without branches, a tree cannot thrive. A tree’s beauty may lie in its branches, but its strength always lies in its roots. A man without knowledge and appreciation of his heritage is just like a tree without roots.
Cultural capital is the biggest asset of a country like India. Our culture is our brand. It is the gene and lifeblood of this nation. Once we lose that, we lose ourselves and who we are.
Culture during Crisis is a celebration of India’s ancient wisdom, heritage and legacy; in short, it’s a celebration of brand India.
How much do we know about our country?
Its history, culture, and evolution of its thousands of years old civilization?
A long time ago, probably during my school days, I was told something about rivers and civilizations, that both should learn to navigate through mountains and plains, or else both will die over time.
Namrata Kohli, the author of “culture during crisis”, tried to answer such questions. Apart from being an author, she is the advisor of CCRT, the Ministry of Culture, and is an expert in her field.
Months-long lockdown during the pandemic, gave lots of Indians an opportunity to introspect and learn more about their own heritage, and ancient knowledge, that lost its importance over time. Rules or niyama, which have their roots in rationality and science just get passed on from generation to generation and are merely tagged as “traditions”.
As the author points out, the current ongoing cultural scenario is like a giant hotch of both Indian and Western culture. While there’s no wrong in western culture, continuous ignorance towards our own is leading it to slow death. The conscious choice that we make daily basis, rejecting native culture, is in fact leading to its rapid decline. This mentality is actually destroying the livelihood of indigenous artisans’ community and cottage industry.
According to the 2018 UNESCO report, 42 languages in India were heading toward extinction. Most of these are tribal languages. And it's not just the death of language, with its death the ballads and crafts are dying too.
In her book, the author highlighted the positive changes that are happening and stresses the fact that heritage is our identity and we, as Indian, cannot be casual about it.
About the author
Writer, Author, and Journalist Namrata Kohli has been associated with several national and international media in the past two decades. She started her career with The Times of India group and has written across Economic Times, Education Times, Saturday Times, Sunday Review, Times Property, MagicBricks. At HT Media Ltd, she curated content for lifestyle supplement HT Premium Homes as Editor Consultant. She is currently associated with Business Standard as a Contributing Editor.
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