History for Peace and the Department of Liberal Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at MAHE-Bengaluru successfully completed the first Peace Ambassadors programme with three final year students of History – Aditya Sunil, Avishi Agarwal, and Yash Bhattacharjee. The essays here trace their individual journeys through different historiographical traditions and the ways in which these encounters transformed their understanding of history—from grand narratives centred on rulers and nations to...

These essays are a part of the first History for Peace Ambassadors programme with the Department of Liberal Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at MAHE-Bengaluru. They have been written by the three peace ambassadors Aditya Sunil, Avishi Agarwal and Yash Bhattacharjee. For a complete report on the programme click here. Introduction Historical films often become our first and most enduring encounter with the past beyond the pages of a textbook. Whether we are history enthusiasts, film...

This talk was delivered at the annual conference 'On History and Literature' held in Calcutta in July 2025. I came to history through stories. My father gave me a copy of Kamala Subramaniam’s retelling of the Mahabharata, published by the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, its cover dyed saffron, with a picture of Vyasa dictating the great epic to Ganesha. I remember my seven-year-old-self, sitting on the terrace in the winter sun, having carted up a dhurrie and a plate of oranges, weeping copiously...