Press Release

Separate Myths from history on Social Media with Don’t Forward That Text by Amit Schandillia

HarperCollins India is proud to announce the upcoming publication of

DON’T FORWARD THAT TEXT

Separating Myths from History on Social Media

by Amit Schandillia

Releasing on 2nd December 2022

Rs 399 | 328pp

 

About the Book

Did Aryabhatta invent the zero?

Was Urdu always ‘Muslim’?

Is Hindu Atheism really an oxymoron?

With access to vast amounts of knowledge just a click away, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to distinguish verifiable information from fake news and made-up history. The sheer volume of untrustworthy information out there often overwhelms even the most earnest seekers among us. The line between history and myth is being deliberately-often maliciously-blurred. Old superstitions are making a comeback and new ones are being manufactured on an industrial scale-a dangerous trend that has far-reaching ramifications.

Don’t Forward That Text! attempts to stanch this phenomenon. Amit Schandillia has chosen some of the most common pieces of historical misinformation and debunked them with logic, reason and irrefutable research. Prepare to be surprised and inspired-and find out who really invented the zero!

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Talking about the book, Amit Schandillia says, ‘As history becomes the news ideological battleground and the line between fact and fiction blurs, my work comes as an attempt to separate the proverbial wheat from the chaff for the inquiring minds. If you enjoy the thrill and suspense of a mystery novel but find history boring and mundane, this is for you.’

Prema Govindan, Senior Commissioning Editor, Literary, at HarperCollins India adds, ‘In a world of false narratives and unverified information beginning to lodge themselves unshakeably in people’s minds, Amit is a lone warrior whose Twitter threads are a source of much consternation for those plying alt-facts. From little-known, happy-making titbits from Indian history to things Indians have been wrongly taking credit for, Amit’s book has it all. This is the wholesome, engaging book on Indian popular history you’ve been waiting for.’

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Praise for the Book

‘Amit’s book will be of immense help to sift actual fact from fiction.’ – S. Irfan Habib, historian, author of Jihad or Ijtihad and To Make the Deaf Hear

‘In this age of post-truth madness, one can read this book for some much-needed sanity and clarity.’ – Akashi Banerjee, satirist and political commentator

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About the Author

Amit Schandillia is a language enthusiast and history communicator, with a background in computers and finance. Besides language, Amit has a long relationship with history, and has produced hundreds of popular Twitter threads on the subject, both Indian and otherwise. Of particular interest to him is the making of history accessible to laypersons by breaking down stories into thrilling, enjoyable reads. Amit also authors India Uncharted, an audio series on Indian history, with Storytel.

 

For review copies, interviews, excerpts or more information, please write to: sohela.singh@harpercollins.co.in

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