{"title":"Manu S. Pillai","description":"Manu S. Pillai was born in Kerala in 1990 and educated at Fergusson College, Pune, and at King's College London. Following the completion of his master's degree, where he presented his thesis on the emergence of religious nationalism in nineteenth-century India, in 2011-12, he managed the parliamentary office of Dr Shashi Tharoor in New Delhi and was then aide to Lord Bilimoria CBE DL, a crossbencher at the House of Lords in London in 2012-13. That same year he was commissioned by the BBC as a researcher to work with Prof. Sunil Khilnani on the 'Incarnations' history series, which tells the story of India through fifty great lives. \u003cem\u003eThe Ivory Throne\u003c\/em\u003e is Manu's first book.","products":[{"product_id":"rebel-sultans","title":"Rebel Sultans","description":"\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Manu S. Pillai\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003eEnglish\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardback\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher: \u003c\/b\u003eJuggernaut Books\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eImprint: \u003c\/b\u003eJuggernaut\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages: \u003c\/b\u003e336\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn 1707, when Emperor Aurangzeb went to his grave, the Mughal empire began to crack into a hundred fractured pieces. It was the lure of the Deccan that drained this conqueror's energies, putting him on a course of collision with his most threatening adversaries. The Deccan was a land that inspired wonder. A traveller here might encounter bands of European snipers available for military hire, or forbidding fortresses where African nobles scaled the heights of power. In its courts thrived Persians and Marathas, Portuguese and Georgians, presiding over a world of drama and betrayal. In Rebel Sultans, Manu S. Pillai narrates the story of the Deccan from the close of the thirteenth century to the dawn of the eighteenth. We witness the dramatic rise and fall of the Vijayanagar empire, even as we negotiate intrigues at the courts of the Bahmani kings and the Rebel Sultans who overthrew them. From Chand Bibi, a valorous queen stabbed to death, and Ibrahim II of Bijapur, a Muslim prince venerating Hindu gods, to Malik Ambar, the Ethiopian warlord, and Krishnadeva Raya on Vijayanagar's Diamond Throne, Rebel Sultans unravels a forgotten chapter in our medieval past - one that ended an empire and rewrote India's destiny.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Manu S. Pillai","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":13206693085297,"sku":"HAC-44","price":619.0,"currency_code":"INR","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0015\/0601\/7393\/products\/rebel_sultans_150_rgb_1526457622.jpg?v=1536210207"},{"product_id":"the-ivory-throne-chronicles-of-the-house-of-travancore","title":"The Ivory Throne : Chronicles of the House of Travancore","description":"\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Manu S. Pillai\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage: \u003c\/b\u003eEnglish\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher: \u003c\/b\u003eHarperCollins\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished Date: \u003c\/b\u003e14-Dec-2015\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages: \u003c\/b\u003e704\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eAge Group: \u003c\/b\u003eAdult\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn 1498, when Vasco da Gama set foot in Kerala looking for Christians and spices, he unleashed a wave of political fury that would topple local powers like a house of cards. The cosmopolitan fabric of a vibrant trading society - with its Jewish and Arab merchants, Chinese pirate heroes and masterful Hindu Zamorins - was ripped apart, heralding an age of violence and bloodshed. One prince, however, emerged triumphant from this descent into chaos. Shrewdly marrying Western arms to Eastern strategy, Martanda Varma consecrated the dominion of Travancore, destined to become one of the most dutiful pillars of the British Raj. What followed was two centuries of internecine conflict in one of India's premier princely states, culminating in a dynastic feud between two sisters battling to steer the fortunes of their house on the eve of Independence.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eManu S. Pillai's retelling of this sprawling saga focuses on the remarkable life and work of Sethu Lakshmi Bayi, the last - and forgotten - queen of the House of Travancore. The supporting cast includes the flamboyant painter Raja Ravi Varma and his wrathful wife, scheming matriarchs of 'violent, profligate and sordid' character, wife-swapping court favourites, vigilant English agents, quarrelling consorts and lustful kings. Extensively researched and vividly rendered, \u003ci\u003eThe Ivory Throne\u003c\/i\u003e conjures up a dramatic world of political intrigues and factions, black magic and conspiracies, crafty ceremonies and splendorous temple treasures, all harnessed in a tragic contest for power and authority in the age of empire.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Manu S. Pillai","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":31352855298161,"sku":"HAR-337","price":699.0,"currency_code":"INR","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0015\/0601\/7393\/products\/9789351776420.jpg?v=1580815005"},{"product_id":"the-courtesan-the-mahatma-and-the-italian-brahmin-tales-from-indian-history","title":"The Courtesan, the Mahatma and the Italian Brahmin: Tales from Indian History","description":"\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Manu S. Pillai\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage: \u003c\/b\u003eEnglish\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardback\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher: \u003c\/b\u003eWestland\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eImprint: \u003c\/b\u003eContext\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished Date: \u003c\/b\u003e24-Jun-2019\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages: \u003c\/b\u003e394\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"product-meta\" itemprop=\"brand\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eAge Group: \u003c\/b\u003eAdult\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFrom a Maratha prince who parodied caste to a Muslim deity in a Hindu temple; from a courtesan who became a warrior princess to another who sang for the gramophone; from a woman with no breasts to a goddess with three; and from an Englishman who venerated sacred Sanskrit to imperious Victoria Maharani - the essays in this collection open a window into India's past, and to a world of such astonishing richness that it is surprising how much of it has been forgotten or expunged.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTo dip into these essays is to be absorbed in India's story and reflect on the experiences of men and women whose lives were full of drama and action. We discover the advent of the railways, just as we learn about the history of Indian football; we hear of the hated Lord Curzon's love of India's monuments, even as we unravel the story of the photographer who was Jaipur's maharajah. In the hands of a consummate historian and storyteller, these men and women speak also of the concerns and perspectives of the present, showing us what was, and what might have been.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn exhilarating journey with the author of \u003ci\u003eThe Ivory Throne\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eRebel Sultans\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Courtesan, the Mahatma \u0026amp; the Italian Brahmin\u003c\/i\u003e is a retelling of history no reader will want to miss.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Manu S. Pillai","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":31352855330929,"sku":"AMA-248","price":529.0,"currency_code":"INR","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0015\/0601\/7393\/products\/9789388689786.jpg?v=1580815007"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.booksetgo.com\/collections\/manu-s-pillai\/language_english.oembed","provider":"BOOKSETGO","version":"1.0","type":"link"}