Manu S. Pillai
Manu S. Pillai | |
|---|---|
 Pillai in 2025 | |
| Born | 28 February 1990 |
| Alma mater | Fergusson College King's College London |
| Occupations | Writer, historian |
| Writing career | |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Popular history |
| Website | manuspillai |
Manu S. Pillai (born 28th February 1990) is an Indian writer and popular historian.[1] He is known for his works covering the history of India from late medieval through colonial times, with his debut book, The Ivory Throne, winning the Sahitya Akademi Yuva Puraskar.[2]
Early life and education
Manu S. Pillai was born in Mavelikkara, Kerala, in 1990, and grew up in Pune, Maharashtra.[3] He received a bachelor's degree in economics from Fergusson College and a master's degree in international relations from King's College London.[4] He holds a PhD in history (with a dissertation titled Rajas, Rani, Deity and Company) from King's College London.[5]
Career
Following his education, he worked with the parliamentary office of Shashi Tharoor in New Delhi and with Karan Bilimoria in London.[6][7] He also worked as a researcher on the BBC Radio 4 series Incarnations with Sunil Khilnani, which tells the story of India through fifty great lives.[8] In 2017, he became a full time author.[3][4]
Pillai's debut book The Ivory Throne: Chronicles of the House of Travancore, about Rani Sethu Lakshmi Bhay's reign as the regent of Travancore, earned him the Sahitya Akademi Yuva Puraskar in 2017.[2][9][10] As of 2019, the story was expected to be adapted into a web series by Arka Media Works.[11]
Rebel Sultans, Pillai's second work, narrates the story of the late medieval Deccan Plateau over four centuries.[4] The Courtesan, the Mahatma and the Italian Brahmin is a collection released in 2019 consisting of historical anecdotes originally published as columns in various Indian newspapers.[12]
Pillai's 2021 book False Allies concerns the rulers of princely states during the British Raj, focusing on five states whose rulers patronized and were painted by Raja Ravi Varma.[1] In Gods, Guns and Missionaries, first released in India in 2024, Pillai outlines the history of Hinduism during India's colonization by Christian European states.[13]
Bibliography
- The Ivory Throne: Chronicles of the House of Travancore. HarperCollins India, 2015. ISBN 9789351776420.
- Rebel Sultans: The Deccan from Khilji to Shivaji. Juggernaut, 2018. ISBN 9789386228734.
- The Courtesan, the Mahatma & the Italian Brahmin: Tales from Indian History. Illustrated by Priya Kuriyan. Context, 2019. ISBN 9789388689786.
- False Allies: India's Maharajahs in the Age of Ravi Varma. Juggernaut, 2021. ISBN 9789391165895.
- Gods, Guns and Missionaries: The Making of the Modern Hindu Identity. Penguin Allen Lane, 2024. ISBN 9780670093656.
References
- 1 2 Balakrishnan, Paran (28 October 2021). "Manu Pillai, the wonderkid among Indian historical writers". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 29 October 2021.
- 1 2 "Manu S Pillai, Paro Anand among winners of Sahitya Akademi awards 2017". Hindustan Times. 23 June 2017. Archived from the original on 23 June 2017.
- 1 2 Cris (21 January 2016). "Travancore surprises". Deccan Chronicle. Archived from the original on 21 January 2016.
- 1 2 3 Mallya, Vinutha (7 March 2019). "No easy answers". Pune Mirror. Archived from the original on 7 March 2019.
- ↑ Pillai, Manu S. (1 February 2023). Rajahs, Ranis, Deity, and Company: Hindu Kingship in Travancore, c. 1750-1950 (PhD thesis). King's College London. OCLC 1372429233. Retrieved 22 June 2024.
- ↑ Borges, Jane (5 January 2020). "Manu S Pillai and Dr Shashi Tharoor". Mid-Day. Archived from the original on 4 August 2021.
- ↑ OK, Anand Raj (9 July 2022). "Of childhood, writing and history's travesties: a conversation with Manu S Pillai". Gulf News. Retrieved 18 June 2026.
- ↑ "Manu S. Pillai". HarperCollins. Retrieved 18 June 2026.
- ↑ Sripathi, Apoorva (19 February 2016). "Manu Pillai's The Ivory Throne looks at the Travancore royal family". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 12 September 2017.
- ↑ Thomas, Anjali (25 January 2020). "Kerala Literature Festival: historians warn against the selective reading of the past". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 25 January 2020.
- ↑ Cris (20 March 2019). "'The Ivory Throne' is massive, had to be a web series: Producer Shobu Yarlagadda". The News Minute. Archived from the original on 22 June 2024.
- ↑ Sahasrabudhe, Aishwarya (25 June 2019). "Manu S Pillai's latest book features episodes from India's history and the lives of its prolific figures". Firstpost. Archived from the original on 17 February 2020.
- ↑ Vijaya Kumar, P. (27 November 2024). "A limited but brilliant chronicle of Hindu identity formation". Frontline. Archived from the original on 29 November 2024.