'Yodha II' embraces the wide canvas of India's rich military history

Ata time when narratives, both present Land past, are being pushed to shape perceptions, apolitical writers are at a premium. Further enhancing his reputation as one of India's finest military historians, Shiv KunalVerma's second volume 'Yodha II: Illustrated Military History of India' not only sets the benchmark yet again, but in the process, further lifts the bar by another few notches.

- MAJ GEN JAGATBIR SINGH(RETD)

At a time when narratives, both present and past, are being pushed to shape perceptions, apolitical writers are at a premium. Further enhancing his reputation as one of India’s finest military historians, Shiv KunalVerma’s second volume ‘Yodha II: Illustrated Military History of India’ not only sets the benchmark yet again, but in the process, further lifts the bar by another few notches. Yodha I had covered the period from the Epics to the Uprising of 1857, while the second volume now takes us through ‘The Crown (1858) to the Kargil War (1999)’, which he had himself filmed. The combined panoramic canvas has over 1,600 stunning illustrations, paintings and photographs that bring to life the stunning and diverse spectrum of India’s military history.

Kunal was known as ‘Fauji’ while studying at the Doon School and he has more than lived up to that sobriquet as he has single-handedly made it his life’s mission to keep military history alive in this country. His earlier books include the spectacular and seminal threevolume Northeast Trilogy, books on the Assam Rifles, The Long Road to Siachen, then the book that is considered to be the most definitive work on what was India’s worst military disaster, 1962: The War that Wasn’t. This objective masterpiece (shortly to be released in Hindi as well) was followed by 1965: A Western Sunrise and Industani, all of which adds up to a rich body of work. Like all his earlier work, this latest offering is also in a class apart.

Yodha II covers a critical historical timeframe, that mainly deals with the subcontinent under the colonial boot and the post-Independence era, and the book offers insightful analyses of battles and military strategies, the images supported by text and captions that are written in an engaging narrative style with deep research and analysis.

ABOUT THE BOOK