India Is Broken: A People Betrayed, Independence to Today

Ashoka Mody, Charles and Marie Robertson Visiting Professor in International Economic Policy Join us for a book talk with Professor Ashoka Mody. Challenging prevailing narratives, Mody’s new book, India is Broken, contends that India’s post-independence leaders, starting with its first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, failed to confront the country’s true economic problems, and sought easy solutions instead. As popular frustration grew, and corruption in politics became pervasive, India’s economic growth has increasingly relied on unregulated finance and environmentally destructive construction. The rise of a violent Hindutva has buried all prior norms in civic life and public accountability. Combining statistical data with creative media, such as literature and cinema, to create strong, accessible, people-driven narratives, this book is a meditation on the interplay between democracy and economic progress, with lessons extending far beyond India. Mody proposes a path forward that is fraught with its own peril, but which nevertheless offers something resembling hope.