“India is everything that Iran is not. The two countries may have cultural similarities, but it is much easier being a philosopher here,” says Jahanbegloo, who is also the Rajni Kothari Professor of Democracy at the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies. “This book is an attempt to explain what India is. Indians are possibly the last remaining metaphysical people on earth who are at ease with tradition and modernity,” he says.
While Thapar talks about “Being an Indian Today” in the 280-page book, the Dalai Lama speaks about “Buddhism and India”, Mansingh about Indian classical dance, and Sudhir Kakar about the Indian psyche. “These are categories that I consider important and the conversations have my thoughts along with those of the experts,” says Jahanbegloo, who has been working on the project for two years now, travelling across the country to meet people. Up next are two more publications on India: Spirit of India and Conversations with Sudhir Kakar, scheduled for release next year. Jahanbegloo, who had earlier written Conversations with Isaiah Berlin, is known for his love for dialogue in books.
This is, however, the end of his stint in India — he is packing his bags to take up the post of associate professor at the University of Toronto early next year. “I’m looking forward to that. But I’ll keep visiting India,” he says. And will he return to Iran? “I wouldn’t mind returning to Iran even if there is a threat of another imprisonment. An independent thinker in Iran who takes responsibility for the marginal status thrust upon him is like an acrobat walking a tightrope, though,” he says, with a disarming smile.