The July monsoon spring edition of ‘Afternoons with an Author’ will host authors : Amb K.V. Rajan and Atul K Thakur, the authors of Kathmandu Chronicle – Reclaiming India-Nepal Relations.
Amb K V Rajan, India’s Former Ambassador to Nepal and co-author of the book is retired as Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India. During his forty years of diplomatic service, Mr Rajan was entrusted with diverse responsibilities which covered political, economic, cultural, academic, media-related and multilateral work. As India’s longest serving Ambassador to Nepal (1995 to 2000), he has unmatched personal experience of Nepal and understanding of various aspects of India-Nepal relations. Rajan is a frequent speaker in India and abroad on international issues. He is the author of several articles and Editor of an anthology The Ambassadors Club.
Co-author Atul K Thakur is a policy professional, columnist and writer. As an author/editor, Atul worked on ‘India Now and in Transition’ his second widely acclaimed book. In 2013, he edited ‘India since 1947: Looking Back at a Modern Nation.’ In 2021, he curated and edited (with Nepal’s Former Finance Minister Mr Madhukar SJB Rana), An Alternative Development Paradigm for Nepal. He has extensively written for The Kathmandu Post, The Hindu, Firstpost, News18, The Indian Express, Financial Express, The Economic Times, DailyO, Mail Today, The Pioneer, Tehelka, Outlook and others. As a public intellectual and industry insider, he plays an important role in shaping India-Nepal economic cooperation.
The authors will be in conversation with Utpal Kumar, author of Bharat Rising: Dharma, Democracy, Diplomacy. Currently Utpal works as Opinion Editor, News18 and Firstpost. In his two decades of journalistic experience, he has worked with several media houses, starting with The Pioneer newspaper in New Delhi to Hindustan Times, Mail Today and the NewsX-The Sunday Guardian.
Dr Sanjeev Chopra, Festival Director of Valley of Words, shall moderate the session.
