In her latest book, Nightmarch, which she will talk about at this event, Alpa Shah offers a profound understanding of why some of India’s poor have shunned the world’s largest democracy and taken up arms to fight for a fairer society in one of the most intractable and under-reported rebellions.

Nightmarch refers to a seven-night trek that Shah happened to undertake with these communist guerrillas while living as an anthropologist in their tribal strongholds in eastern India for several years. 

In this event Shah discusses revolution and freedom with Neel Mukherjee, author of A State of Freedom and the Man Booker Prize shortlisted The Lives of Others.

Neel Mukherjee is the critically acclaimed author of three novels: A State of Freedom (2017), The Lives of Others (2014), and A Life Apart (2010).

Alpa Shah (@alpashah001) is Associate Professor (Reader) of Anthropology at London School of Economics and leads the Programme of Research on Inequality and Poverty. She is the author of the just published Nightmarch: Among India’s Revolutionary Guerrillas, author of In the Shadows of the State, co-author of Ground Down by Growth and presented India’s Red Belt for BBC Radio 4’s ‘Crossing Continents’.

Beverley Skeggs (@bevskeggs) is a feminist sociologist and the Academic Director of the Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity based in the International Inequalities Institute.

Anthropology ( @LSEAnthropology) is the comparative study of culture and society. We ask big questions about what we have in common, and what makes us different.

The International Inequalities Institute (@LSEInequalities) at LSE brings together experts from many LSE departments and centres to lead critical and cutting edge research to understand why inequalities are escalating in numerous arenas across the world, and to develop critical tools to address these challenges.

Twitter Hashtag for this event: #LSENightmarch

Podcast 

A podcast of this event is available to download from Revolution and Freedom: Nightmarch among India's revolutionary guerrillas.

Podcasts and videos of many LSE events can be found at the LSE Public Lectures and Events: podcasts and videos channel.