{"title":"Ashwin Desai","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"south-african-gandhi-9780804797177","title":"South African Gandhi","description":"In the pantheon of freedom fighters, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi has pride of place. His fame and influence extend far beyond India and are nowhere more significant than in South Africa. \"India gave us a Mohandas, we gave them a Mahatma,\" goes a popular South African refrain. Contemporary South African leaders, including Mandela, have consistently lauded him as being part of the epic battle to defeat the racist white regime.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eThe South African Gandhi\u003c\/i\u003e focuses on Gandhi's first leadership experiences and the complicated man they reveal—a man who actually supported the British Empire. Ashwin Desai and Goolam Vahed unveil a man who, throughout his stay on African soil, stayed true to Empire while showing a disdain for Africans. For Gandhi, whites and Indians were bonded by an Aryan bloodline that had no place for the African. Gandhi's racism was matched by his class prejudice towards the Indian indentured. He persistently claimed that they were ignorant and needed his leadership, and he wrote their resistances and compromises in surviving a brutal labor regime out of history. \u003ci\u003eThe South African Gandhi\u003c\/i\u003e writes the indentured and working class back into history.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e The authors show that Gandhi never missed an opportunity to show his loyalty to Empire, with a particular penchant for war as a means to do so. He served as an Empire stretcher-bearer in the Boer War while the British occupied South Africa, he demanded guns in the aftermath of the Bhambatha Rebellion, and he toured the villages of India during the First World War as recruiter for the Imperial army. This meticulously researched book punctures the dominant narrative of Gandhi and uncovers an ambiguous figure whose time on African soil was marked by a desire to seek the integration of Indians, minus many basic rights, into the white body politic while simultaneously excluding Africans from his moral compass and political ideals.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Ashwin Desai","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51072416317782,"sku":"9780804797177","price":26.67,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0886\/3206\/6390\/files\/9780804797177.jpg?v=1755374921"},{"product_id":"south-african-gandhi-stanford-university-press-9780804796088-stretcher-bearer-of-empire-ashwin-desai","title":"South African Gandhi","description":"","brand":"Ashwin Desai","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52228164485462,"sku":"9780804796088","price":101.85,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0886\/3206\/6390\/files\/9780804796088.jpg?v=1767742890"},{"product_id":"reading-revolution-haymarket-books-9781608462728-shakespeare-on-robben-island-ashwin-desai","title":"Reading Revolution","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn \"Reading Revolution,\" Ashwin Desai explores the profound impact of Shakespeare's works on political prisoners during apartheid in South Africa. Published by Haymarket Books in 2014, this compelling paperback spans 130 pages, drawing connections between race relations in South Africa and the United States through the timeless themes found in Shakespeare's literature. Desai highlights how the Bard's writings served as a source of hope and inspiration for those held captive on Robben Island, an infamous prison known for housing resistance leaders. This book not only sheds light on the influence of literature in challenging oppressive regimes but also reflects on the enduring power of art in the pursuit of freedom. Whether you're a literature enthusiast, a history buff, or simply interested in the intersections of culture and politics, \"Reading Revolution\" promises an enlightening journey through the resilience of the human spirit in the face of adversity.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Ashwin Desai","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52231054164310,"sku":"9781608462728","price":20.02,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0886\/3206\/6390\/files\/9781608462728.jpg?v=1767747559"},{"product_id":"history-of-the-present-oup-india-9780199498017-a-biography-of-indian-south-africans-1990-2019-ashwin-desai","title":"History of the Present","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHistory of the Present\u003c\/strong\u003e by Ashwin Desai, Goolam Vahed.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePublished by Oxford University Press India, (2019), Hardback, 408 pages.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTopics: Africa, history, East Indians, Social conditions.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Ashwin Desai","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52240103276886,"sku":"9780199498017","price":67.9,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0886\/3206\/6390\/files\/9780199498017.jpg?v=1767762506"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.bookshop.lv\/collections\/ashwin-desai.oembed","provider":"Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}