Destination India: From London Overland to India

Destination India is an account of the travels of two eminent political scientists and, as such, a compelling account of India less than a decade after independence. In the summer of 1956, Lloyd I. Rudolph and Susannne Hoeber Rudolph drove a Land Rover from London to Jaipur, recording their impression of the people, the cultures, and the landscape. Their 5000 mile journey took them 'East of Suez', across the ecological and cultural lines distinguishing Europe from Asia, and then over the Khyber into the Indian subcontinent. Part primary source, part analysis, the book also provides an account of what the Rudolphs subsequently learned over five decades of teaching and writing about India, including eleven research years in India. A concluding section, 'The Imperialism of Categories: Situating Knowledge in a Globalizing World', highlights how Western perceptions of India are often skewed. It makes the case for situated knowledge that recognizes the importance of context and contingency.