https://madrasmedley.com/tags/biography/ Recent content in biography on Madras Medley Hugo -- gohugo.io en-us © Copyright notice Sat, 29 Jul 2023 10:09:06 -0700 https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/doglapan/ Sat, 29 Jul 2023 10:09:06 -0700 https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/doglapan/ Doglapan, the famous expression from Ashneer Grover of Shark Tank India fame, is also the name of his autobiography. True to his on-screen character, Asheneer gives us a very candid and engaging peek into his life and his journey from being a ‘refugee’ to one of India’s most prominent startup founders and an inspiration to many. First, kudos to Ashneer for making this book an easy and accessible despite having a lot of financial jargon. https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/genghis-khan/ Wed, 19 Oct 2022 20:58:43 -0700 https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/genghis-khan/ When we hear ‘Genghis Khan,’ it brings different images to one’s mind, with most depictions portraying him as a fierce warrior and ruthless tyrant from Mongolia who, at one point in time, ruled the world. We think of the thousands of people he butchered, the vast swathes of territories he conquered, and the influence he has on the planet to this day, with 1 in 200 people alive today still considered his direct descendants. https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/why-i-am-atheist/ Sun, 22 May 2022 22:06:16 -0700 https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/why-i-am-atheist/ Why I am an Atheist is a short essay written by Bhagat Singh where he talks about his journey to becoming an atheist. Although he grew up in a religious household, his time in college during the non-cooperation movement made him skeptical about the existence of God. By reading further, he strengthened his conviction until he finally convinced himself that there does not exist an omnipresent supreme being who created and controlled the universe. https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/master/ Mon, 01 Nov 2021 18:43:14 -0800 https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/master/ Sports biographies and autobiographies are always a fun read, and as a tennis fan, I have enjoyed reading tennis biographies in the past, most notably Andre Agassi’s and Rafael Nadal’s. But the story that every tennis fan and casual observer of the sport this millennium has been waiting for is that of the tennis legend Roger Federer. The Master, by Christopher Clarey, a noted sports journalist, is one of the most well-written biographies of its time and was a joy to read. https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/born-a-crime/ Mon, 10 Jun 2019 22:41:14 -0800 https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/born-a-crime/ I am not a huge fan of Trevor Noah as a comedian, but after reading his coming-of-age story, Born a Crime, it won’t be remiss to say I’m a fan of his writing. Born a Crime is a spellbinding tale about Trevor’s childhood years growing up in Apartheid and post-Apartheid South Africa, but it is as much a tale of his mother as it is of him. Having not read a lot about South Africa or Apartheid, I found the narration riveting, funny, crazy, and touching. https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/ashoka/ Sat, 02 Jun 2018 22:33:36 -0800 https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/ashoka/ Ashoka the Ungreat looks at the life and times of Ashoka and paints a perspective opposed to the mainstream narrative which is that of a just and peaceful ruler. What gives this perspective credence is the evidence is based on the same triad of the Rock edicts, Ashokavadana and the Sri Lankan texts on which contemporary historians base their claim for Ashoka’s ‘greatness’. However, only the parts which suit their narrative have been taken into consideration, while the others which describe Ashoka’s tyranny, religious zealousness and incongruencies between the edicts and the texts have been ignored. https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/ramanuja/ Fri, 03 Nov 2017 19:05:51 -0800 https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/ramanuja/ A primer on the life of the Sri Vaishnava philosopher, Ramanuja, with an introduction to Vishishtadvaita and its differences with Sankaracharya’s Advaita. Ramanuja was a great integrator, and his success lies in combining the devotional aspect of the Azhwars, with the Vedantic Upanishads. As an introductory book, it helped clarify some basic doubts I had on the origins of Vaishnavism. However, the philosophical aspects were hard to comprehend, which, in retrospect, was expected. https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/elon-musk/ Fri, 22 Sep 2017 19:05:15 -0800 https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/elon-musk/ For quite some time I’ve subscribed to the view that Elon Musk is the greatest mind of the 21st century. SpaceX, Tesla, Solar City and the rest of his companies have been groundbreaking and pushed the limits of human capability, and we owe it to his singular capability to state the impossible and achieve it. My curiosity to learn how it all began, and what makes Musk, Musk, led me to read this excellent biography by Ashlee Vance. https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/basha/ Sun, 12 Mar 2017 19:04:38 -0800 https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/basha/ Reading a third person’s view on Rajinikanth is always an enjoyable experience. The fan in every Tamilian glows proudly as someone effuses praise on the Superstar’s humility, punctuality, dedication and his respect for people and the art itself. On this occasion it is right from the horse’s mouth, Suresh Krissna, director of his smash hit Baasha, who takes us through his experience of directing Rajni in 3 of his most memorable films - Annamalai, Veera and Baasha. https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/ramanujan/ Sat, 19 Dec 2015 18:13:17 -0800 https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/ramanujan/ Refer to post. https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/playing-it-my-way/ Wed, 01 Apr 2015 18:13:17 -0800 https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/playing-it-my-way/ Sachin’s autobiography was one book I had a lot of expectations on, as an avid fan and book reader. While the fan in me was delighted to read about his exploits on and off the field, the book reader in me was a tad disappointed, because the narration made it seem like a summary of his professional career, from Sachin’s perspective. However, given the length of his career and the number of important moments in them, I feel the book has done a good job overall, in being honest and keeping the reader interested till the very end. https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/steve-jobs/ Thu, 26 Feb 2015 18:13:17 -0800 https://madrasmedley.com/book-reviews/steve-jobs/ I was a big fan of Apple and it’s products and Steve Jobs, prior to reading this book. While my awe for the company and its products has gone up a notch, my perspective on Steve Jobs has changed significantly. Walter Isaacson beautifully traverses through the life of the greatest businessman of our times, and as we go along his journey from being an adopted son, to a college dropout experimenting with LSD and Zen culture, to founding Apple with the ‘other’ Steve, being kicked out, starting NeXT, Pixar, and then returning for a second stint at Apple which transformed it into the world’s most valuable and creative company, we learn about jobs innate sense of design, his obsession to have total end to end contorl on all of his products, his vision, and the pleasure he takes from developing products which are at the interestion of art and technology.