The U.S.-India relationship today sits at a crossroads. Over the past two decades, Washington and New Delhi have drawn steadily closer—driven by shared concerns about China, expanding economic ties, and a growing Indian diaspora in the United States.   But the partnership is also facing new uncertainties: geopolitical turbulence in the Middle East, shifting trade dynamics, and questions about the future direction of U.S. foreign policy.   At the same time, domestic politics in the United States are changing. While Indian Americans still vote overwhelmingly for the Democratic Party, a sizeable number of them changed sides and voted for Donald Trump and the Republican Party in 2024.   To help us unpack all of this, this week Milan spoke with Congressman Ami Bera in his office on Capitol Hill. Bera represents California's 6th congressional district and has been a member of the U.S. House of Representatives since 2013. He is a longtime member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, one of the most prominent voices on U.S.-India relations in Congress, and a founding member of the so-called Samosa Caucus—a group of congressional representatives of Indian origin. Milan and Rep. Bera talked about Trump’s war on Iran, the turbulence in the U.S.-India relationship, and the trade and immigration moves that have unsettled the Indian American community. Episode notes:   1.     Ami Bera, “Why I Voted for the Iran War Powers Resolution,” Ami’s Substack, March 5, 2026.   2.     Ami Bera, “Reps. Bera, Wilson Lead Bipartisan Resolution Recognizing U.S.-India Strategic Partnership,” November 17, 2025.   3.     “Can the U.S. Salvage Its Relationship with India? (with Lisa Curtis),” Grand Tamasha, February 4, 2026.  4.     “The Quiet Resilience of U.S.–India Defense Cooperation (with Sameer Lalwani),” Grand Tamasha, December 9, 2025.  

Grand Tamasha

Inside Washington: Ami Bera on Shifting U.S.–India Ties

For decades, Bangladesh has long oscillated between competitive democracy and dominant-party rule. In 2024, mass protests brought an abrupt end to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s long tenure in power, opening the door to Bangladesh’s most consequential election in more than a decade, one that returned the Bangladesh Nationalist Party to power and reshaped the country’s political landscape.   With Hasina’s fall and a new government in office, the country once again stands at a crossroads testing whether institutional reform and electoral competition can deliver lasting democratic stability.   To talk about the new political era in Bangladesh, Milan is joined on the show this week by Naomi Hossain. Naomi is Global Research Professor with the Department of Development Studies at SOAS University of London. She has researched extensively across Bangladesh and has managed large international studies spanning 20 countries in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and Europe. Naomi is the author of the acclaimed 2017 book, The Aid Lab: Understanding Bangladesh's Unexpected Success.   Naomi and Milan discuss the abrupt end to Hasina’s fifteen-year rule, the performance of the interim government under Muhammad Yunus, and the prospects for new prime minister Tarique Rahman. Plus, the two discuss the country’s immense economic challenges and the role of the military.   Episode notes: 1.        Naomi Hossain, “Ali Riaz's Big Bet,” Counterpoint, January 19, 2026. 2.        Naomi Hossain, “Dhaka pre-election diary (pt 1, possibly, of 2),” Substack, January 6-19, 2026. 3.        “How India Lost the Neighborhood (with Muhib Rahman),” Grand Tamasha, February 11, 2026. 4.        “Sri Lanka's Peaceful Revolution (with Neil DeVotta),” Grand Tamasha, January 25, 2025.

Bangladesh’s Political Reset

We tend to think of populist leaders around the world as disruptive—skeptical of international institutions, impatient for change, and prone to upending foreign policy norms. But a new book by scholars Sandra Destradi and Johannes Plagemann argues that—while populists can have dramatic impacts on foreign policy—the extent of change depends on two key factors: the personalization of foreign policy and leaders’ ability to use foreign policy as a tool of domestic political mobilization. The book is called Populism and Foreign Policy, and it looks at transitions from non-populist to populist governments in Bolivia, the Philippines, Turkey, and India.  To talk more about the book’s findings—especially as they relate to Indian foreign policy—Sandra Destradi joins Milan on the show this week. Sandra holds the Chair of International Relations at the University of Freiburg, Germany, and she is currently serving as a DAAD long- term Guest Professor at Reichman University in Herzliya, Israel. She is the author of several articles and books on India, including the 2012 book, Indian Foreign and Security Policy in South Asia: Regional Power Strategies. Milan and Sandra discuss the definitional debates around populism, the conditional effects of populism on foreign policy, and the reasons for the Modi government’s differential approach to Pakistan and China. Plus, the two discuss why populists might express an enhanced willingness to contribute to global public goods, the limited opportunities for mobilization against multilateral institutions, and the differences between populists in the Global North versus the Global South. Episode notes: 1.     “Populism, South Asian Style (with Adnan Naseemullah and Pradeep Chhibber),” Grand Tamasha, December 18, 2024.   2.     Johannes Plagemann and Sandra Destradi, “Populism and Foreign Policy: The Case of India,” Foreign Policy Analysis 15, no. 2 (April 2019): 283–301.   3.     Sandra Destradi, “Domestic Politics and Regional Hegemony: India’s Approach to Sri Lanka,” E-International Relations, January 14, 2014.

Populism and the Politics of India’s Foreign Policy

Over the past year, Europe India relations have entered a markedly upbeat phase. What was once a diffuse partnership long on rhetoric, short on strategy now looks far more purposeful.  From the announcement on a long-delayed EU-India Free Trade Agreement to expanding cooperation on security, technology, and migration, Europe and India appear to be finally converging around a shared strategic logic. To unpack what’s driving this convergence and where its limits lie Milan is joined on the show this week by Garima Mohan. Garima is a senior fellow in the Indo-Pacific program at the German Marshall Fund based in Brussels. In this capacity, she leads GMF’s work on India and serves as convenor of the India Trilateral Forum.  Her research focuses on Europe-India ties, EU foreign policy in Asia, and security in the Indo-Pacific. She’s also the author of a new GMF report titled, “A Long Time Coming: Europe and India have discovered a strategic partnership,” published in January 2026. Milan and Garima discuss the geopolitical drivers that are bringing the EU and India closer together, Europe’s views on the limits to India’s potential, and the key takeaways from the EU-India FTA. Plus, the two discuss how Russia might derail Indo-European security cooperation and the urgent need for Europe to invest in India expertise. Episode notes: 1.     “Europe’s long-awaited free-trade deal with India,” The Economist, January 25, 2026. 2.     Garima Mohan, “As Trump takes Office, Planets Align for the EU and India,” India’s World, March 6, 2025. 3.     “Can Europe be India's Plan B? (with James Crabtree),” Grand Tamasha, September 17, 2025. 4.     “India and the Reordering of Transatlantic Relations (with Tara Varma),” Grand Tamasha, March 11, 2025. 

Europe’s Discovery of India

After years of trade skepticism, India appears to be back in the deal-making business signing new agreements, reviving stalled talks, and announcing ambitious frameworks with key bilateral partners.  A few weeks ago, the European Union and India announced a mega-trade deal that was more than two decades in the works. And just days after this news broke, the White House announced that the United States had also reached an understanding with India on trade, an issue which had sapped relations between the two erstwhile partners over the past year. To help make sense of what’s changed and what hasn’t Milan is joined on this show this week by Mark Linscott. Mark is a nonresident senior fellow on India at the Atlantic Council and a Senior Advisor with The Asia Group. He previously served as the assistant US trade representative for South and Central Asian Affairs from 2016 to 2018.  He has more than 30 years of experience working on trade and economic issues at the Commerce Department and USTR. It is my pleasure to welcome him to the show for the very first time. Milan and Mark discuss India’s new external trade posture, the geopolitics and economics of the EU-India FTA, and the timing and substance of India’s trade deal with the United States. Plus, the two discuss India’s relative positioning vis-à-vis other Asian competitors and the possible roadblocks in the way of a larger U.S.-India accord. Episode notes: 1.     Ravi Dutta Mishra, “How India’s US deal tariff advantage over Bangladesh vanished overnight,” Indian Express, February 10, 2026.   2.     Arvind Subramanian, “India may be about to become one of the world’s most open economies,” The Economist, February 5, 2026. 3.     Michael Kugelman and Mark Linscott, “What to know about the US-India trade deal,” Atlantic Council “Dispatches” blog, February 2, 2026.  4.     “Can the U.S. Salvage Its Relationship with India? (with Lisa Curtis),” Grand Tamasha, February 4, 2026.   5.     Michael Kugelman and Mark Linscott, “The India–EU trade deal is worth watching, but not overhyping,” Atlantic Council “Dispatches” blog, January 27, 2026. 

India’s Return to the Trade Game

Over the past few years, South Asia has witnessed a striking wave of mass protests toppling governments and upending long-standing political arrangements in countries ranging from Bangladesh to Nepal and Sri Lanka. These upheavals are often explained in terms of domestic factors—such as corruption, economic mismanagement, and democratic backsliding.  But in a recent Foreign Affairs essay titled “The Folly of India’s Illiberal Hegemony,” the scholar Muhib Rahman argues that there is a larger regional story at play—one that implicates not just local leaders, but also India and the United States. The essay challenges the assumption that India’s regional leadership has been a stabilizing force and asks whether New Delhi’s choices have instead helped create openings for China across South Asia. To talk more about the essay, Muhib joins Milan on the show this week. Muhib is a Perry World House Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania. His research sits at the intersection of international security, emerging technologies, and the politics of the Global South. He has served as a Postdoctoral Associate at Cornell University and holds a Ph.D. in Government from the University of Texas-Austin. Muhib and Milan discuss India’s illiberal hegemony in its neighborhood, the downturn in Bangladesh-India ties, and the enabling role of the United States. Plus, the two discuss the drivers of the “India Out” phenomenon in countries ranging from Nepal to the Maldives and how China is positioning itself to take advantage. Episode notes: 1.     Muhib Rahman, “Bangladesh’s Quiet Pivot to China,” The National Interest, October 27, 2025.   2.     Muhib Rahman, “Explaining Trump’s Surprising Turn to Pakistan,” War on the Rocks, October 1, 2025. 3.     “Why Washington Is Wooing Pakistan (with Uzair Younus),” Grand Tamasha, October 1, 2025.  4.     “Sri Lanka's Peaceful Revolution (with Neil DeVotta),” Grand Tamasha, January 29, 2025.

How India Lost the Neighborhood

U.S.-India relations were once described as one of Washington’s MOST important strategic bets in the twenty-first century. But over the past year, that partnership has come under serious strain buffeted by trade disputes, sharp rhetoric, and deep disagreements over Pakistan and Kashmir.  In the current print edition of Foreign Affairs, Lisa Curtis and Richard Fontaine argue that this rupture is not just another rough patch, but rather a potentially consequential turning point. The essay, “America Must Salvage Its Relationship with India or Risk Losing a Global Swing State,” makes the case that how Washington manages its ties with New Delhi in this moment will have lasting implications for the Indo-Pacific balance of power, U.S. credibility in Asia, and competition with China.  To talk more about this new piece, Lisa joins Milan on the show this week. Lisa is Director of the Indo-Pacific Security Program at the Center for a New American Security. She is a foreign policy and national security expert with over 20 years of service in the U.S. government including at the National Security Council, CIA, State Department, and Capitol Hill. Most recently, Lisa served as Senior Director for South and Central Asia at the National Security Council from 2017 to 2021.  Milan and Lisa discuss the “fit of presidential pride and pique” that has derailed bilateral ties, President Trump’s repeated desire to mediate between India and Pakistan, and the sudden revival in U.S.-Pakistan ties. Plus, the two discuss America’s strategic competition with Beijing, what it will take for Washington to remedy its trust deficit with New Delhi, and the long-term consequences of a sustained rupture between the United States and India.

Can the U.S. Salvage Its Relationship with India?

2026 is shaping up to be a hectic political year in India. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has appointed the relatively unknown Nitin Nabin to take over as party president. The BJP and its opposition challengers are gearing up for high-stakes assembly elections in five states later this spring. And the Election Commission of India (ECI) is in the midst of a controversial revision of India’s gargantuan electoral rolls. To discuss these and the country’s other key political stories, Sunetra Choudhury—the national political editor of the Hindustan Times—joins Milan to kick off the fifteenth season of Grand Tamasha. The two sat down for a special episode recorded live in HT’s New Delhi studio.  Listeners will know Sunetra from her past appearances on the podcast, as well as from her reporting for the Hindustan Times—and, of course, from her book Black Warrant, which has since been adapted into a hit Netflix crime drama of the same name. Sunetra has over two decades of reporting experience and was the recipient of the Red Ink award in journalism in 2016 and the Mary Morgan Hewett award in 2018. Milan and Sunetra discuss the prevailing political winds in Delhi, the BJP’s surprising new president, and the long shadow of the 2025 Bihar assembly elections. Plus, the two discuss the upcoming state elections, the inner turmoil within the Congress Party, and the ECI’s controversial “special intensive review.” Episode notes: “Interpreting the 2025 Bihar Verdict (with Roshan Kishore),” Grand Tamasha, November 19, 2025. “How India’s Women Are Redefining Politics (with Ruhi Tewari),” Grand Tamasha, November 5, 2025. Sunetra Choudhury, “NDA's landslide win will cause ripples far beyond Bihar,” Hindustan Times, November 15, 2025.

The State of Indian Politics in 2026

Grand Tamasha is Carnegie’s weekly podcast on Indian politics and policy co-produced with the Hindustan Times, a leading Indian media house. For six years (and counting), host Milan Vaishnav has interviewed authors, journalists, policymakers, and practitioners working on contemporary India to give listeners across the globe a glimpse into life in the world’s most populous country.Each December, Milan looks back at the conversations we’ve hosted during the course of the year and selects a handful of books that stayed with him long after our recording wrapped. This year’s selections span biography, history, and political economy—but they share a common thread: Each offers a bold reinterpretation of India at a moment of profound political and social churn.In keeping with this tradition, here—in no particular order—are Grand Tamasha’s top books of 2025.  A Sixth of Humanity: Independent India’s Development OdysseyBy Devesh Kapur and Arvind Subramanian. Published by HarperCollins India. Believer’s Dilemma: Vajpayee and the Hindu Right’s Path to Power, 1977–2018By Abhishek Choudhary. Published by Pan Macmillan India. Shattered Lands: Five Partitions and the Making of Modern AsiaBy Sam Dalrymple. Published by HarperCollins India. Taken together, these books showcase the breadth of scholarship animating debates on India and South Asia today. They remind us that the region’s past remains contested, its present deeply complex, and its future still uncertain. I hope you find these conversations as stimulating and inspiring as I did.One final note here: As you consider your year-end charitable giving, we hope you will choose to support Grand Tamasha. This season, you might have noticed that we’ve expanded into video, allowing listeners to watch full-length conversations on YouTube. Listener contributions sustain the costs of production, research, and distribution—especially as we expand our video offerings. The podcast receives no external funding beyond what our audience generously provides, and contributions from U.S.-based supporters are fully tax-deductible. We would be grateful for whatever support you can offer. Please visit https://donate.carnegieendowment.org/for more information on how you can give.On behalf of the entire team, we hope you have a wonderful holiday season. Thanks for listening to the show—and see you in the new year. Episode notes: 1. “The Forgotten Partitions That Remade South Asia (with Sam Dalrymple),” Grand Tamasha, October 29, 2025. 2. “A Sixth of Humanity and the Dreams of a Nation (with Devesh Kapur and Arvind Subramanian),” Grand Tamasha, October 22, 2025. 3. “Vajpayee and the Making of the Modern BJP (with Abhishek Choudhary),” Grand Tamasha, September 3, 2025. 4.  Milan Vaishnav, “Grand Tamasha’s Best Books of 2024,” Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, December 17, 2024. 5.  Milan Vaishnav, “Grand Tamasha’s Best Books of 2023,” Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, December 19, 2023. 6.  Milan Vaishnav, “Grand Tamasha’s Best Books of the Year,” Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, December 20, 2022.

Grand Tamasha’s Best Books of 2025

Despite a year marked by tariff battles, confusion over Washington’s China policy, and the shock of the 2025 India–Pakistan war, one part of the U.S.–India relationship has held firm: bilateral defense cooperation. The two sides recently announced a new defense framework, are deepening links between their private sectors, and are boosting military-to-military ties. To review the state of the U.S.-India defense relationship and to help unpack the secrets of its success, Milan is joined on the show this week by Sameer Lalwani. Sameer is a senior advisor with the Special Competitive Studies Project and a non-resident senior fellow with the German Marshall Fund. Sameer and Milan discuss how the U.S.-India defense partnership has survived the general tumult in the relationship, the significance of a recently signed defense framework agreement, and the future of defense co-production and co-development. Plus, the two discuss Inda’s lessons learned from Operation Sindoor and whether China still serves as the glue that keep these two powers together. Episode notes: 1. Sameer Lalwani, “Don’t Call it a Comeback: Why US-India Relations are Due for a Rebound,” Special Competitive Studies Project, November 20, 2025. 2. Sameer Lalwani and Vikram J. Singh, “How to Get the Most Out of the U.S.-Indian Defense Partnership,” War on the Rocks, February 11, 2025. 3. “Why Washington Is Wooing Pakistan (with Uzair Younus),” Grand Tamasha, October 1, 2025. 4. “From Convergence to Confrontation: Trump’s India Gambit (with Ashley J. Tellis),” Grand Tamasha, September 24, 2025. 5. “Can Europe be India's Plan B? (with James Crabtree),” Grand Tamasha, September 17, 2025. 6. “How This India-Pakistan Conflict Will Shape the Next One (with Joshua White),” Grand Tamasha, May 21, 2025. 7. “Operation Sindoor and South Asia’s Uncertain Future (with Christopher Clary),” Grand Tamasha, May 14, 2025.

The Quiet Resilience of U.S.–India Defense Cooperation

This year, the non-profit Educate Girls became the first Indian organization ever to receive the Ramon Magsaysay Award often called Asia’s Nobel Prize. The foundation recognized the group for its groundbreaking work enrolling out-of-school girls, improving learning outcomes, and shifting social norms in some of India’s most underserved communities. It’s a remarkable milestone for an NGO that began in rural Rajasthan and now reaches millions of households across the country. To discuss the challenges and the opportunities surrounding girls’ education in India, Milan is joined on the show this week by Gayatri Nair Lobo, the CEO of Educate Girls. Gayatri has more than 25 years of experience across the consulting and development sectors. Before joining Educate Girls, she led the ATE Chandra Foundation and the India School Leadership Institute. She has also held senior roles at Dalberg Advisors and Teach For India. Milan and Gayatri discuss the origins of Educate Girls, the supply and demand-side barriers to girls’ education, and the launch of the world’s first Development Impact Bond. Plus, the two talk about the use of tools like randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and machine learning in delivering education and how to forge lasting partnerships with state governments. Episode notes: 1. “A Blueprint for India’s State Capacity Revolution (with Karthik Muralidharan),” Grand Tamasha, May 23, 2024. 2. “Understanding the Delhi Education Experiment (with Yamini Aiyar),” Grand Tamasha, January 22, 2025.3. “How India’s Women Are Redefining Politics (with Ruhi Tewari),” Grand Tamasha, November 5, 2025.4. “Rohini Nilekani on the Secret to Successful Governance,” Grand Tamasha, October 5, 2022.

Rewriting India’s Education Story, One Girl at a Time

India and the United Kingdom have spent decades trying to define their post-colonial relationship part partnership, part rivalry, and often, part courtship. Today, that relationship is being recast amid trade talks, tech cooperation, and geopolitical shifts. The two sides recently signed a landmark trade agreement and officials in London and New Delhi are sounding a new tone of optimism about what the two countries might do together specially in a post-American world.  To talk more about the new era in ties between the UK and India, Milan is joined on the podcast this week by Avinash Paliwal. Avinash is a Reader in International Relations at SOAS University of London. He is the author of two books, My Enemy’s Enemy – India in Afghanistan from the Soviet Invasion to the US Withdrawal and India’s Near East – A New History. In 2024-25, he was seconded to the UK Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office where he covered ‘India and South Asia’.  Milan and Avinash discuss the troubled history between the two powers, the transformation of the relationship in recent years, and their emerging trade and technology links. Plus, the two discuss the Indian diaspora in the United Kingdom, frictions around Russia and Pakistan, and the impact of rising nativism in the UK. Episode notes: 1.  Avinash Paliwal, “India’s bilateral diplomacy: A quiet rehaul of India-UK relations,” Grand Tamasha, November 5, 2025. 2. “The Past, Present, and Future of India’s Near East (with Avinash Paliwal),” Grand Tamasha, November 20, 2024. 3. “What the Taliban Takeover Means for India (with Avinash Paliwal),” Grand Tamasha, September 15, 2021. 4. “Can Europe be India's Plan B? (with James Crabtree),” Grand Tamasha, September 17, 2025. 5. “India and the Reordering of Transatlantic Relations (with Tara Varma),” Grand Tamasha, March 11, 2025.

Beyond the Raj: Recasting the India-UK Partnership

Bihar has once again delivered a political drama worthy of its reputation record turnout, sharp debates over the voter rolls, a decisive victory for the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), and a fresh round of questions about whether the opposition has what it takes to displace Modi and the BJP. The NDA anchored by Nitish Kumar and his Janata Dal (United), together with the BJP and other allies, secured a landslide victory by winning 202 out of 243 seats in the state assembly. The opposition, for its part, saw little change in its vote share from 2020, but could only muster 35 seats. To work through the elections and their larger meaning for India’s political economy, Milan is joined on the show today by the Hindustan Times data and political economy editor Roshan Kishore. Over the past several months, Roshan and his team have consistently put out the most thoughtful data and analysis on the trends in Bihar. Milan and Roshan discuss the resilience of the JD(U)–BJP alliance, the polarization in the electorate, and the dissonance within the opposition alliance’s campaign. Plus, the two discuss the Election Commission of India (ECI)’s controversial review of electoral rolls, the impact of upstart Prashant Kishor and his Jan Suraaj Party, and what the elections portend for India’s political economy beyond November. Episode notes: 1. Roshan Kishore and Abhishek Jha, “Not conspiracy, political economy explains Bihar results,” Hindustan Times, November 18, 2025. 2. Nishant Ranjan and Roshan Kishore, “The resurrection of ‘coalition of extremes’ in Bihar,” Hindustan Times, November 15, 2025.3. Abhishek Jha and Roshan Kishore, “How did Bihar go from a 2020 cliff-hanger to a 2025 landslide?” Hindustan Times, November 15, 2025.4. Roshan Kishore, Abhishek Jha, and Nishant Ranjan, “Three key takeaways from Bihar results,” Hindustan Times, November 15, 2025.5. Roshan Kishore, “Bihar election results: Twelve Ds that explain the Bihar results,” Hindustan Times, November 14, 2025.6.  “A Sixth of Humanity and the Dreams of a Nation (with Devesh Kapur and Arvind Subramanian),” Grand Tamasha, October 22, 2025. 7. Neelanjan Sircar, “The Welfarist Prime Minister: Explaining the National-State Election Gap,” Economic and Political Weekly 56, no. 10 (March 2021).

Interpreting the 2025 Bihar Verdict

How do non-state armed groups act when the state seeks not to crush them but to tolerate their activities? This is the central question of a new book by the political scientist Kolby Hanson titled, Ordinary Rebels: Rank-and-File Militants between War and Peace. Kolby is an assistant professor of government at Wesleyan University, and his new book looks at how state toleration fundamentally transforms armed groups by shaping who takes up arms—and which leaders they follow. The book draws on a range of innovative surveys and in-depth interviews tracing four armed movements over time in Northeast India and Sri Lanka. The book looks not so much at what armed groups do when they fight, but what they do when they don’t. To talk more about his new book, Kolby joins Milan on the show this week. They discuss what it means to be a “likely” recruit of an armed group, the complex political economy of India’s northeast, and the way in which state toleration operates on a spectrum. Plus, the two discuss the prospects for long-term peacebuilding in South Asia and how Kolby’s new book sheds light on the troubling January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Episode notes: 1. Paul Staniland, Ordering Violence: Explaining Armed Group-State Relations from Conflict to Cooperation (Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 2021). 2. “The Past, Present, and Future of India’s Near East (with Avinash Paliwal),” Grand Tamasha, November 20, 2024. 3. “Paul Staniland on the Surprising Decline in Political Violence in South Asia,” Grand Tamasha, October 7, 2020. 4. “Binalakshmi Nepram on the Realities of India’s Oft-Forgotten Northeast,” Grand Tamasha, June 3, 2020.

Understanding South Asia’s “Ordinary Rebels”

For much of India’s democratic history, the woman voter has either been invisible or ignored at times she has been spoken for, but very rarely listened to. A new book by the journalist Ruhi Tewari argues that this is no longer the case and seeks to understand why women have emerged from the political shadows. What Women Want: Understanding the Female Voter in Modern India draws on years of journalism and field reportage to trace the rise of the woman voter from 1947 to the present day. Ruhi is a journalist with nearly two decades of experience covering politics, policy and their intersection for leading Indian media organizations. She’s developed a reputation for being a savvy political reporter who spends quality time in the field understanding what makes voters, politicians, and parties tick. Ruhi joins Milan on the show this to talk more about her new book. They discuss the “subtle but steady shift” in how women voters are perceived, the narrowing gender gap in voter turnout, and the distinctive voter behaviour of India’s women. Plus, Ruhi and Milan discuss the proliferation of “pro-women” welfare schemes and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s unique ability to connect with the woman voter. Episode notes:1. Milan Vaishnav, ed. How Indian Voters Decide (Washington, DC: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 2025). 2. Anirvan Chowdhury, “How the BJP Wins Over Women,” Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, April 26, 2024.3. Rithika Kumar, “What Lies Behind India’s Rising Female Voter Turnout,” Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, April 5, 2024. 4.Milan Vaishnav, “Indian Women Are Voting More Than Ever. Will They Change Indian Society?” Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, November 8, 2018. 5. Milan Vaishnav and Jamie Hintson, “Will Women Decide India’s 2019 Elections?” Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, November 12, 2018. 6. “Taking On India's Patriarchal Political Order (with Soledad Artiz Prillaman),” Grand Tamasha, October 22, 2024.

How India’s Women Are Redefining Politics

Each week, Milan Vaishnav and his guests from around the world break down the latest developments in Indian politics, economics, foreign policy, society, and culture for a global audience. Grand Tamasha is a co-production of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and the Hindustan Times. And you are listening to Season 4. This is an HT Smartcast Original.

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Grand Tamasha

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