The Nation in War: A Study of Military Literature and Hindi War Cinema explores the notions of nation and nationalism as they emerge in war narratives, specifically military literature and war films in popular Hindi cinema. This book is an interesting examination of how the discourses of military literature and war films construct the subject, namely “nation”. The Indian nation faces a multi-pronged attack from neighbouring countries that seek territorial aggrandizement, the forces of liberalization (economic and cultural), and from secessionist forces within the nation. In the face of such an attack, a plethora of discourses engages seriously in constructing an idea of the Indian nation and reinforcing the notion of an Indian identity. The nation may have come into existence as a political entity in August 1947, but the nation as a cultural, social, and economic entity is constantly in the making. The Nation in War addresses concerns such as: What narrative modes are deployed to create consensus for war? How do war narratives further the statist agenda? What is the link between the war waged by the national army and that by the insurgents? How do war narratives construct women as national subjects? These questions, and more, are addressed using theoretical insights from various disciplinary positions, such as feminist, postcolonial and film studies. The book will be of interest to scholars of cultural studies, film studies, feminist studies, political science and sociology.
