Stream Now: Amitav Ghosh in Conversation with Shekhar Gupta | The Lecture

On 15th July at Delhi’s India International Centre, we were honoured to launch Amitav Ghosh’s keenly anticipated book uncovering the hidden histories of opium and the Empire: Smoke and Ashes. In conversation with eminent journalist Shekhar Gupta, Ghosh talked about India-China relations and how our civilisation has been driven into wars by an ordinary-looking flower.

Watch now:

We’re at #TheLecture with @GhoshAmitav!

Unraveling the history and relevance of the opium plant and colonialism, we’re also celebrating the launch of Ghosh’s latest, #SmokeAndAshes today.

Tune in to read #liveupdates from the event below.#READWithHarperCollins pic.twitter.com/HUXagUASUf

— HarperCollins (@HarperCollinsIN) July 15, 2023

Celebrating the publication day of @GhoshAmitav’s keenly anticipated new book, #SmokeAndAshes.
With @jilpanz, @GhoshAmitav, @ShekharGupta and @Udayanmitra65.#TheLecture #READWithHarperCollins pic.twitter.com/MnDf9kOlSZ

— HarperCollins (@HarperCollinsIN) July 15, 2023

‘Even today if you look at the list of ingredients at most across-the-counter-medication, opium features. We are very far from being free from opium.’@GhoshAmitav on the contemporary absent presence of opium across the world, as documented in his new book, #SmokeAndAshes.… pic.twitter.com/FU3JkOCPgg

— HarperCollins (@HarperCollinsIN) July 15, 2023

In conversation with @ShekharGupta, @GhoshAmitav discusses the hidden histories of opium trade and the history of the Empire.

To know more about this obscure history, read #SmokeAndAshes—out wherever books are sold today!#TheLecture pic.twitter.com/ajy38ouTuW

— HarperCollins (@HarperCollinsIN) July 15, 2023

“The idea of history as a purposive journey is so deeply entrenched in the contemporary imagination that it would probably have remained unshaken long into the future, if not for ongoing contemporary disasters, like America’s current opioid crisis, and, even more significantly,… pic.twitter.com/6qII1xGWWG

— HarperCollins (@HarperCollinsIN) July 15, 2023

.@GhoshAmitav talks about how Purvanchal, the heartland of North India was exploited by the East India Company for its labour and opium production capacity.#TheLecture

Watch more to get a sneak peek into #SmokeAndAshes: pic.twitter.com/jmiGFCyHIM

— HarperCollins (@HarperCollinsIN) July 15, 2023

‘This is the story of the human propensity for evil but also the human propensity for fragility… This humble looking flower has outsmarted us at every turn…’@GhoshAmitav on his keenly anticipated book #SmokeAndAshes, that unravels the powerful influence of opium on our world.… pic.twitter.com/ja6IWLPC0n

— HarperCollins (@HarperCollinsIN) July 15, 2023