An in-depth account of Narendra Modi and Hindu nationalism, and its implications for India today
Since 2014, India’s politics and global image have been dominated by Narendra Modi, its Hindu nationalist prime minister. For many decades merely a fringe movement, Hindu nationalism came to the centre stage of Indian politics in the 1990s and is now in the ascendant under Modi’s leadership. But how has Modi acquired such a cult of personality, and how will this nationalism ultimately shape the world’s largest democracy?
In this definitive account of contemporary India, Sumantra Bose traces the evolution of Hindu nationalism from its origins in the 1920s to the present. While it has not always been the dominant force in Indian politics, Hindu nationalism now poses a potentially existential threat to the country’s democracy and institutions, with Modi as its icon. Taking into account the inconclusive 2024 election, Bose explores the implications of Modi’s narrow victory—and considers what the future will hold for his party and the nationalist movement.