BROTHERS BIHARI

Laloo Yadav and Nitish Kumar chalk and cheese. One a charismatic populist the other a shrewd introvert. Taken together a mesmerizing duo: heroes to some villains to others champions of the underdog yet imperious of manner; allies in youth foes in mid-life now ageing veterans. For a quarter of a century the two by turns dictated the destiny of Bihar. What do Laloo and Nitish mean to Bihar? Here for the first time a revised and updated omnibus edition of Sankarshan Thakur's widely acclaimed biographies of the men. From one of India's finest journalists this masterful narrative-part personal memoir part political portraiture part unsparing perspective-is essential reading to understand Bihar. In the lives of the two giants also lies the arresting story of one of India's largest and most challenging states.