Lady Lokasundari Raman: Her Early Life and Times

Defiance

Na Mogasale

₹495.00

Defiance

Na Mogasale

Defiance is a captivating tale of the march of globalization and its impact on the lives and times of the Santher Guthu family in Ombathkere, a village located between Mangaluru and Kasaragodu. Set in the picturesque Malabar coast of Karnataka in the late 20th Century, the novel takes the reader through four generations of the family. Ambakke, the protagonist, along with her brother Sankappa Hegde, the third-generation descendants of the family form the lifeblood of this story of human relationships in the midst of time and change. The novel is born out of deep contemplation of a community in the face of transition. There is anxiety that grips this part of Karnataka in the wake of modernity. The vast canvas of the novel and the depiction of folk culture provides a unique touch to the saga of the community. Defiance is a novel about traditions and the fear of losing out to modernity. It is about change and the desire to remain rooted.

₹495.00

Ancient Stone Riddles: Megaliths of the Indian Subcontinent

Srikumar M Menon

₹185.00

Ancient Stone Riddles: Megaliths of the Indian Subcontinent

Srikumar M Menon

Ancient Stone Riddles is an introduction to the fascinating but less-known monuments called megaliths in the context of the Indian subcontinent. The book seeks to present the current understanding among archaeologists and other researchers in a lucid manner to the general reader, while stimulating thought on the many questions that linger about these remnants from our distant past and the people and cultures that built them. It also discusses recent research about the knowledge systems possessed by the megalith builders, including the possibility that some of these monuments were erected to observe celestial cycles.

Interested customers may write to us at mup@manipal.edu about purchasing the book.

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₹185.00

Bamonn

Na D'Souza

₹255.00

Bamonn

Na D'Souza

Author: Na D’Souza Translator: S M Pejathaya

Konkani Roman Catholic Christians were converted from other groups by Goan Missionaries long back, keeping the caste system tradition to a large extent in layers such as the Bamonn, the Charodi, the Gawdi, the Nendar, the Shudra, etc. At the time of marriages and other social gatherings they continue to consider caste system norms and customs in the community. Caste system in Indian Christians is vividly described in the novel Bamonn. Christopher Pai of Kalyanpura hails from a Bamonn family and takes great pride in his ancestry. He believes in the stories about his Konkani Roman Catholic ancestors from his elders and about their being true Christians, holding on to their faith despite tremendous pressure to convert to Islam during Tipu Sultan’s regime. He also believes Bamonns are superior to other Christians in the community. After retiring from his job of a Headmaster, he refuels his obsession to retrace his roots and find out the truth about his ancestors. In his journey of self-assurance and faith, will he succeed in his mission to convince his family, his children and the community at large of his glorious ancestry and in still pride in the next generation? . . .

Interested readers may write to us at mup@manipal.edu about purchasing the book.

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₹255.00

Capturing the Cosmic Light – A Handbook of Astrophotography

Sathyakumar P M Sharma

₹670.00

Capturing the Cosmic Light – A Handbook of Astrophotography

Sathyakumar P M Sharma

Author: Sathyakumar P M Sharma

The Handbook of Astrophotography is the first book dedicated to Astronomical Imaging through modest equipment, and the first to be published in India. It is a chronicle of the techniques learnt and employed by the author and is by no means proprietary. It is assumed that the reader is equipped with the basic knowledge to use a digital camera. After showing the many methods to capture the Cosmos, the book shows how to process these images. It is designed to be a handbook and not a user manual. The author hopes that the reader will be confident in astronomical imaging and develop his/her own techniques after reading the book. Sathyakumar started Astrophotography in January 2006 with a homemade wooden star-tracking mount and a camera borrowed from a friend. He later used his homemade Newtonian reflector telescope and an inexpensive digital camera to capture photos of the Moon. With an MSc in Aerospace engineering from the University of Salford, Manchester, he joined Opticstar Ltd, as a design engineer. There he was trained on the latest of astronomical instruments available for the amateur astrophotographer and eventually purchased the Celestron C8 Schmidt cassegrain telescope and the CG-5 Equatorial mount. Currently, he uses a GSO 6 inch RC telescope and an HEQ5-PRO computerized mount as well as an Orion 80ED Apochromatic telescope for astrophotography. He also owns an Astrotrac to take wide field vistas of the Cosmos. He is now employed as a Scientific Officer at Karnataka Science and Technology Promotion Society, Department of Science and Technology, Govt. of Karnataka.

Interested readers may write to us at mup@manipal.edu about purchasing the book.

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₹670.00

Just a few pages: Some Memories of Saraswati Bai Rajwade

Deepa Ganesh, Vaidehi

₹210.00

Just a few pages: Some Memories of Saraswati Bai Rajwade

Deepa Ganesh, Vaidehi

Author: Vaidehi, Translator: Deepa Ganesh

This book is a coming together of two women writers of modern Kannada literature; one from its early period, the other, a contemporary. Saraswati Bai Rajwade, the early writer, became a fable, a mythology, leaving behind only the shadows of her writing. Vaidehi, the contemporary writer, reinvents Rajwade from the folds of history and gives her a life in the present. Saraswati Bai Rajwade was born into a poor family in the Dakshina Kannada of yore. By chance, she stepped into theatre and later into films. But all the glory that came to her unexpectedly, vanished just as suddenly. She later became the wife of a rich and high official, travelled abroad and underwent immense suffering. In her pain and loneliness, she took to books and also began to write and attained glory as a writer. In the last years of her life, she returned to a life of austerity and anonymity. Vaidehi has collected bits and pieces from her life and writing, presenting before us a unique tapestry. In this tapestry, Vaidehi?s perceptions criss-cross with Rajwade?s life and writing. Art does not reside in the object, but in its close encounter with life. This work unfolds before us as a grand illustration of such twin narratives.

Interested readers may write to us at mup@manipal.edu about purchasing the book.

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₹210.00

A Bond So Sacred

Usha Rajagopalan

₹450.00

A Bond So Sacred

Usha Rajagopalan

A Bond So Sacred tells the story of Raman, a satyagrahi, who adopts Kokila, an orphan. He leaves the five year old in the care of his mother while he plunges into the freedom struggle. His nationalist fervour, however, clashes with his love for Amina, his charming neighbour who wants parental approval to their marriage. Raman’s mother is as staunch a Brahmin as Amina’s father is a Muslim. Will Raman be able to get their consent? The joy of India becoming an independent nation is marred by Gandhiji’s death. Raman’s fellow satyagrahis have gone their ways and he finds himself with no role to play in a rapidly changing country. Meanwhile, Kokila, his protégée, has her own battles to fight. As the years bring them together again, Kokila discovers truths about Raman that she would never have imagined. She is forced to confront the ghosts of the past, his and hers.

₹450.00

Reliving the memories of an Indian forester: Memoir of S Shyam Sunder

Shiv Someshwar

₹450.00

Reliving the memories of an Indian forester: Memoir of S Shyam Sunder

Shiv Someshwar

Editor: Shiv Someshwar

Shyam Sunder’s memoir is a series of vignettes, from numerous comedic to a tragic few. The life narrated is varied and never short of excitement – being ten yards from a charging tusker or a foot away from a King Cobra; defying orders of the chief minister; being hauled up for contempt of the high court, and discussing with Indira Gandhi the best way to eat avocados. Possessed of wit and passion, the narration lays bare the hubris of popular discourse on noble forest livelihoods, and unflinchingly narrates neglect of rural communities, as well as of forests, at times by the callous imposition of rules and regulations.

Interested readers may write to us at mup@manipal.edu about purchasing the book.

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₹450.00

Valmiki Ramayana – Critical Essays

M R Parameswaran

₹250.00

Valmiki Ramayana – Critical Essays

M R Parameswaran

This book critically engages with several important events and statements found in Valmiki’s epic poem, the Ramayana composed over 2500 years ago. Though certain methods were followed to preserve the Vedic texts, no serious methods were adopted to preserve the text of Ramayana. The poem spread to all parts of India and beyond through narrators of the epic who sometimes added their own explanatory verses to conform to local customs and traditions. In the second half of the 20th century, scholars at the Baroda Oriental Research Institute, after many years of labour and examination of over 2000 different manuscripts, compiled what is now accepted as the most reliable version of the poem. Based on this critical edition, a condensed English version by Dr Parameswaran was earlier published by the Manipal University Press. In the present book, Dr Parameswaran reviews the critical interpretations of scholars like Sheldon Pollock, R P Goldman and Wendy Doniger and has analytic responses to many unanswered questions. About the book: Dr M R Parameswaran has taught Mathematics as well as Sanskrit at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada. His work Studies in Srivaishnavism, has been well received by academic scholars and Srivaishnavas.

₹250.00