Imagining Lahore: The City That Is, The City That Was

Haroon Khalid

This account of Lahore begins in the present—describing its people, communities, monuments, parks and institutions—and travels backwards to the mythological origins of the city. During the Mughal period, several succession intrigues unfolded on Lahore’s soil. It was then recast as the capital of Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s Khalsa Empire. During the British Raj it played a role both in preserving empire and as an incubator of revolutionaries and people’s movements. Khalid shows how Lahore consistently influenced the subcontinent’s political trajectory.

Penguin Viking, 304 pages, Rs 599