In this episode, historian Dr. Priya Satia talks about the evolution of the discipline of history, how Indian nationalists shaped British intellectual movements, and why historians need to speak truth to power.

‘In Perspective’ is The Swaddle’s podcast series where academics reveal little-known facts about Indian history, society and culture.

Notes:

00:00:58:04- Why do you say that the discipline of history itself has enabled the process of colonization by making it “ethically thinkable?”

00:05:03:11- What are some instances of moments of crisis where historians intervened?

00:09:57:19- How did the Indian nationalist movement (like Gandhi, Tagore and Nehru) shape British social history?

00:18:14:18-  What are the problems with how the 1947 Partition of India took place? How did it lay the groundwork for the tensions between India and Pakistan that we see till today?

00:27:11:07- How was gun trade an essential aspect of the emergence of industrial capitalism in Britain? How was this relevant for the colonized world like South Asia?

00:33:58:23- How has the discipline of history become devalued in the formulation of state policies? Why is it important that we consult historians in policy-making?