30 January - 3 February 2025 | Hotel Clarks Amer, Jaipur

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Ali Khan Mahmudabad

Ali Khan Mahmudabad

Ali Khan Mahmudabad teaches history and political science at Ashoka University, India. He is a political scientist, historian, writer, columnist and an occasional poet. He completed his MPhil and PhD from the University of Cambridge. He has travelled extensively in the Middle East and writes a fortnightly column for the Urdu national daily Inqilab. He also writes for a number of English-language magazines and newspapers.

Session

The Break of Dawn

Ali Khan Mahmudabad in conversation with Saif Mahmood
Political scientist, academic and author Ali Khan Mahmudabad's translation of Khan Mahboob Tarzi's Aghaaz-e-Sahr or The Break of Dawn, is a tribute to a time when Indians of across class, caste and creed came together to protect their homeland. Translated into English from the original Urdu, this thriller-romance fiction is based around the events of 1857. Ali Khan Mahmudabad's translation of this evocative text provides deep insight into our past and helps us context our present. Khan Mahboob Tarzi (1910- 1960) was a prolific author who wrote over a hundred novels on history, politics, science-fiction, romance and erotica. Mahmudabad teaches history and political science at Ashoka University and writes a fortnightly column for the Urdu national daily Inqilab. In conversation with author, commentator and lawyer Saif Mahmood, he discusses the process of translating this important work which brings alive the true spirit of nationalism and the essence of belonging.