Capital

The Eruption of Delhi

By: Rana Dasgupta

Narrated by: Dana Hickox

In Capital, Commonwealth Prize-winning author Rana Dasgupta examines one of the great trends of our time: The expansion of the global elite. Capital is an intimate portrait of the city of Delhi, which bears witness to the extraordinary transmogrification of India's capital. But it also offers a glimpse of what capitalism will become in the coming, post-Western world. The story of Delhi is a parable for where we are all headed.

The boom following the opening up of India's economy plunged Delhi into a tumult of destruction and creation: Slums and markets were ripped down, and shopping malls and apartment blocks erupted from the ruins. Many fortunes were made, and in the glassy stores nestled among the new highways, customers paid for global luxury with bags of cash. But the transformation was stern, abrupt and fantastically unequal, and it gave rise to strange and bewildering feelings. The city brimmed with ambition and rage. Violent crimes stole the headlines.

In the style of V. S. Naipaul's now-classic personal journeys, Dasgupta shows us this city through the eyes of its people. With the lyricism and empathy of a novelist, Dasgupta takes us through a series of encounters - with billionaires and bureaucrats, drug dealers and metal traders, slum dwellers and psychoanalysts - which plunge us into Delhi's intoxicating, and sometimes terrifying, story of capitalist transformation. Together these people comprise a generation on the cusp, like that of Gilded-Age New York: Who they are, and what they want, says a tremendous amount about what the world will look like in the rest of the 21st century.

Interweaving over a century of history with his personal journey, Dasgupta presents us with the first literary portrait of one of the 21st century's fastest-growing megalopolises - a dark and uncanny portrait that gives us insights, too, as to the nature of our own – everyone's - shared, global future.

©2014 Rana Dasgupta (P)2014 Gildan Media LLC

Critic reviews

"A grim picture of a city run by oligarchs and the 'new black-money elite', where success depends on 'influence, assets, and connections'. This book is highly recommended for anyone looking for background information on Delhi.… The author’s account of the downside of the post-1991 free-market economy and the pursuit of self-interest above all serves as a cautionary tale, doing for Delhi what Suketu Mehta’s Maximum City accomplished for Mumbai.” ( Library Journal)

“A sincere, troubling look at India’s wrenching social and cultural changes.” ( Kirkus Reviews)

One of the best books I have read

It gave me much needed context about the city. To make sense of the city- you must get this book.

Fascinating insight into Delhi

Is there anything you would change about this book?

Sadly this insightful assessment of modern Delhi is diminished by poor narration. Mispronunciations abound.

Another excellent book ruined by awful narration

Why is a book about the capital of India being read by someone incapable of pronouncing a single Indian name or word correctly?

Great book, poor reading.

What made the experience of listening to Capital the most enjoyable?

In-depth, vividly written look at the culture and urban geography of capitalism in Post-liberalization Delhi. Great historical context.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The Mughals. Because it sounds like it was a nice place before colonialism and neoliberal capitalism destroyed it.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Dana Hickox?

Someone who pronounces words correctly. By which I mean English words (too many wrong pronunciations to count). Also, someone who sounds invested in what s/he is reading. If poor readings bother you, consider purchasing the non-audio version.

RUINED BY READER

Is there anything you would change about this book?

A different reader, one who can pronounce Indian words. More importantly, one who can read with intelligence and has read the book before he starts reading. Each sentence he "recites" ends with an iamb or a trochee. Many voices speak in this fascinating book, but the reader differentiates none, young or old, male or female.... A mess.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

The book is fascinating. Those who know Delhi, particularly those who were fortunate enough to visit it before the turn of the millennium, and then later, will find it compelling -- accurate and distressing.

How could the performance have been better?

See above.

Do you think Capital needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

Sure, one of these years. It takes the history of the great Capital City up to today.

Any additional comments?

I am returning this book, and buying a hard copy where I can at least tell who is speaking, and understand the meaning of the narrative.

Brutal insight into the ways of Delhi’s elites

Deep and wide. Opens slowly but sharpens with each circle of the gyre. (Wish someone had pointed the narrator to the right pronunciation of names and places)