Dhankhar launches ‘The Unbecoming Identity’
However, keeping the grace and decorum of the high constitutional office he had held, Dhankhar did not speak.
The brainstorming sessions at the Jaipur Literature Festival 2026 will begin on a spirited note here on Thursday, January 15. Scholars, writers, journalists and audiences will revisit historic events, examine errors and actions during the Vietnam War, listen to inspiring stories of Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales, and question the country’s current pursuit of higher GDP growth.
In the opening session at the Charbagh, Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Fredrik Logevall will be seen in conversation with Sam Dalrymple on his award-winning work Embers of War, which narrates the fall of an empire and the making of America’s Vietnam.
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In a sweeping narrative of power, ambition and fatal misjudgment, Logevall’s book reveals how the United States was drawn into the Vietnam War. Drawing on newly accessible diplomatic archives, he traces the path that led France and later the US into deadly miscalculations and missed opportunities. Illuminating hidden histories of Indochina, the gripping account also explores the collisions that reshaped Southeast Asia.
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In a parallel session at the Front Lawn, Booker Prize–winning author Kiran Desai will discuss her novel The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny, shortlisted for the 2025 Booker Prize. The book unfolds as an epic yet intimate story of modern love, filial duty and generational longing.
At once philosophical, comic and uncanny, Desai navigates the complexities of class, race and legacy, capturing the elusive quest for happiness in a globalised world. In conversation with Nandini Nair, she explores how these entwined stories reflect the quiet radicalism of chance connections.
At another session at Surya Mahal, noted economic thinkers Arun Maira and A.K. Bhattacharya will be in conversation with Mohit Satyanand on Maira’s book Reimagining India’s Economy. Questioning the country’s current chase for higher GDP figures, Maira’s work lays out a roadmap towards a more equitable society. Maira is a management consultant and former member of the Planning Commission of India.
Editorial Director of Business Standard and senior economic journalist AK Bhattacharya, author of the India’s Finance Ministers series, critically evaluates key economic and fiscal policy decisions taken by successive governments since Independence. Together, the speakers will reflect on the shortcomings and future direction of the Indian economy.
In another session, Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales will be in conversation with Anita Anand on his book The Seven Rules of Trust, an inspiring guide to building accountability, creativity and institutions that endure over time.
The 2026 edition of the Jaipur Literature Festival, presented by Vedanta, will be held from January 15 to 19, 2026. Bringing together leading voices from literature, politics, science and the arts, the Festival will continue to foster powerful literary discourse and engage with the most pressing global themes, an organisers’ spokesperson said.
“The Festival remains an empowering space for informed intellectual dialogue, where ideas are debated and stories are shared,” the spokesperson added.
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