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HarperCollins is proud to announce the publication of CHARAIVETI: An Academic’s Global Journey by Pranab Bardhan
Charaiveti is more than just a memoir—it is a sharp-eyed look at where we have been and where we may be headed, as seen through the lens of a remarkable life.
Published by HarperCollins
Paperback | Non-Fiction | Biography | 376 pp | INR 699
Available wherever books are sold | Releasing on 29th November 2023
NEW DELHI, Nov. 20, 2023 /PRNewswire/ —
“Pranab Bardhan is one of the pioneers of modern development economics. He has also had a ringside view of sixty tumultuous years and more, both for India and the field of economics. This is the story of those years, told in a voice gentle and yet incisive—like the author, always amusing and yet deeply humane.”
– ABHIJIT V. BANERJEE, Professor of Economics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
ABOUT THE BOOK
The word ‘charaiveti’, from an ancient Sanskrit hymn, means ‘keep moving’, in search of self-realization. The leading Indian economist and public intellectual Pranab Bardhan invokes this in his moving narrative of a personal and professional journey.
From his beginnings in a poor neighbourhood in Kolkata and the idyllic days in Santiniketan, from being home-schooled by his father followed by a vigorous student life at Presidency College, Kolkata and in Cambridge University, England, Bardhan rose to become one of the foremost development economists in the world. After serving on the faculty of MIT, Indian Statistical Institute and Delhi School of Economics, he finally settled at the University of California, Berkeley. In the process, he interacted closely with the likes of James Meade, Joan Robinson, Paul Samuelson, Robert Solow, James Mirrlees, Joseph Stiglitz, George Akerlof, Jerry Cohen, Jon Elster, Amartya Sen, T.N. Srinivasan, K.N. Raj, Ashok Rudra, Mrinal Datta Chaudhuri, Sukhamoy Chakravarty, Ashis Nandy and Romila Thapar.
In his memoir, he provides a fascinating account of his richly varied and widely travelled life, interwoven with thoughtful comments on politics and society both in India and abroad and on some major strands of international intellectual debates. These accounts are enlivened by a profusion of stories, anecdotes, and amusing incidents, and draw copiously from his interests in literature and films.
Witty, wise, and perceptive, Charaiveti is more than just a memoir-it is a sharp-eyed look at where we have been and where we may be headed, as seen through the lens of a remarkable life.
Pranab Bardhan says, “The conceit of writing a memoir for others’ attention is hopefully somewhat relieved in this book by the stress on observations on the politics and society in India and abroad and a discussion of more systemic issues than personal ones, along with a profusion of stories and anecdotes and amusing incidents more for the readers’ entertainment than for enlightenment.”
Udayan Mitra, Executive Publisher, HarperCollins says “Charaiveti, Pranab Bardhan’s memoir, makes for a delightful read. As we travel with Prof Bardhan from his childhood and youth in Kolkata and Santiniketan to his subsequent years of renown in Cambridge and then Berkeley, we encounter a series of interesting personalities and are regaled with one memorable anecdote after another. Charaiveti will bring hours of joy to everyone who travels with Prof Bardhan on his journey; we at HarperCollins are delighted to be able to bring this wonderful book to readers.”
PRAISE FOR THE BOOK
“Pranab Bardhan is a man of exceptionally wide scholarship, of a fiercely independent turn of mind and one who has always been deeply immersed in literature and cinema. His observations of his times, in different parts of the world, and of the many people whom he has known, are always entertaining, his insights often profound. This memoir is a joy to read.”
– JOHN HARRISS, Professor Emeritus, International Studies, Simon Fraser University
“Economist Pranab Bardhan recounts, in engaging prose, his remarkable journey from childhood in a rough Kolkata neighbourhood to the high tables of the intellectual world in the West. The persistence of inequality in the world has remained for him an abiding concern.”
– INDIRA RAJARAMAN, Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research
“Charaiveti is written with Pranab Bardhan’s customary charm and wit. In documenting his journey, he weaves together reflections on the world with recognizable themes from his academic writings and offers us insights into why he has been such an important figure in humanizing and broadening the discipline of economics.”
– TIM BESLEY, Professor of Economics and Political Science, London School of Economics
“Pranab Bardhan proves that he is not only an exceptional scholar but also an expert raconteur. He has written a fascinating memoir that is highly entertaining and full of insights about academia, economics, India—and indeed, the world at large.”
– DANI RODRIK, Ford Foundation Professor of International Political Economy, Harvard University
“In his “travels”—for that is how he describes his memoir— through fast-changing times, continents, cultures, economies and the portals of academe, or in his interactions with almost all the major economists of the time, Pranab Bardhan remains passionately engaged with the political–economic problems of India and other such “extremely unequal” developing countries: relentlessly seeking ways of redressal, and lovingly reliving and objectively unfolding his Kolkata of the 1950s.”
– SAMIK BANDYOPADHYAY, Editor, Translator and Film, Theatre and Art Critic
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Pranab Bardhan is a Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Economics at University of California, Berkeley. Educated at Presidency College, Kolkata, and Cambridge University, England, he had been a part of the faculty of MIT, Indian Statistical Institute and Delhi School of Economics before joining the University of California, Berkeley. He is the author of seventeen books, including Awakening Giants, Feet of Clay: Assessing the Economic Rise of China and India (Princeton University Press, 2011) and A World of Insecurity: Democratic Disenchantment in Rich and Poor Countries (Harvard University Press, 2022). A collection of his Bengali essays has been published by Ananda Publishers in Kolkata in 2020.
ABOUT HARPERCOLLINS PUBLISHERS INDIA
HarperCollins is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, having begun publishing in India in 1992. HarperCollins India publishes some of the finest writers from the Indian Subcontinent and around the world, publishing approximately 200 new books every year, with a print and digital catalogue of more than 2,000 titles across 10 imprints. Its authors have won almost every major literary award including the Man Booker Prize, JCB Prize, DSC Prize, New India Foundation Award, Atta Galatta Prize, Shakti Bhatt Prize, Gourmand Cookbook Award, Publishing Next Award, Tata Literature Live! Award, Gaja Capital Business Book Prize, BICW Award, Sushila Devi Award, Sahitya Akademi Award and Crossword Book Award. HarperCollins India also represents some of the finest publishers in the world including Harvard University Press, Gallup Press, Oneworld, Bonnier Zaffre, Usborne, Dover and Lonely Planet. HarperCollins India has won the Publisher of the Year Award four times at Tata Literature Live! in 2022, 2021, 2018 and 2016, and at Publishing Next in 2021 & 2015. HarperCollins India is a subsidiary of HarperCollins Publishers.
30 YEARS OF PUBLISHING IN INDIA
At HarperCollins, we believe in telling the best stories and in finding the widest possible readership for our books in every format possible. We started publishing 30 years ago in India and a great deal has changed since then, but what has remained constant is the passion with which our authors write their books, the love with which readers receive them, and the sheer joy and excitement that we as publishers feel in being a part of the publishing process.
Over the years, we’ve had the pleasure of publishing some of the finest writing from the subcontinent and from around the world, and some of the biggest bestsellers in Indian publishing history. Our books and authors have won a phenomenal range of awards, and we ourselves have been named Publisher of the Year several times. But nothing has meant more to us than the fact that millions of people read the books we publish, and somewhere, a book of ours might be making a difference to someone.
As we step into our fourth decade, we go back to that one word – a word which has been a driving force for us all these years:
Read.
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MSEED and SCOPE Global Skills University Sign Strategic Partnership to Shape the Future of Experiential Marketing Education
MUMBAI, India and BHOPAL, India, May 5, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Premium education institute MSEED (The Management School of Events and Experience Design) today partnered with SCOPE Global Skills University, Bhopal, to introduce a two-year MBA in Event Management and Experiential Marketing.
Besides boosting students academically, this association intends to equip them with the evolving demands of events and the experiential marketing ecosystem. Furthermore, the collaboration will be fueled by industry expertise and academic structure, helping students build a career in the fast-growing fields of events, entertainment, and experiential marketing.
At a time when experiential marketing is ‘evolving from a tactical activation to a strategic growth engine for brands’, this collaboration serves right.
Speaking on this exclusive partnership between MSEED and SCOPE, Joshua Newman, Vice-President – Marketing & Partnerships, MSEED, said, “Our focus has always been on outcomes, not just education. This partnership allows us to extend that vision by working with SCOPE Global Skills University to create a program that prepares students for real careers. From curriculum to classroom delivery and industry exposure, every aspect is designed to ensure that students graduate with confidence, clarity, and practical experience.”
The MBA program is designed to:
- Provide a recognized postgraduate qualification with a specialized focus
- Build practical skills through real-world projects and case studies
- Offering industry interaction, mentorship, and exposure
- Support students with internship and placement opportunities
Dr. Vijay Singh, Vice Chancellor of SGSU, hailed the launch as a landmark moment for the city. “This is a remarkable event not just for our university, but for the city of Bhopal. We are witnessing a paradigm shift in how specialized education is delivered in Madhya Pradesh. By launching this MBA in Event Management, we are providing our youth with a platform to master the art of execution, creativity, and management right here in their home state,” he said.
The partnership was formally cemented through the signing of an agreement between the two institutions in the esteemed presence of Mangubhai C. Patel, the current and 19th Governor of Madhya Pradesh, marking a significant milestone in the evolution of industry-integrated education in India.
For more information on events and experiential marketing, please visit our website.
Media Contacts:
For media inquiries, please contact
Tasneem Limbdiwala
tasneem@mseededucation.com
About MSEED
MSEED, a part of EVA Group, India’s one of the largest live event companies, and backed by 200 odd industry veterans, the institute brings with it deep-rooted industry expertise and real-world insights. It is a creative business institute designed for the next generation of storytellers, strategists, producers, and brand builders. The mission is not just to prepare students for jobs, but to lead industries.
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Firstsource Partners with Typeface to Launch Agentic Marketing Services
New full-stack offering turns content operations into an agentic growth engine
NEW YORK and MUMBAI, India, April 30, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Firstsource Solutions Limited (NSE: FSL) (BSE: 532809), an RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group company, today announced the launch of a new offering — Agentic Marketing Services — in partnership with Typeface, the marketing orchestration engine for the world’s leading enterprises. The offering is designed to help enterprises move from marketing ambition to scale by transforming, implementing, and operating AI-native marketing systems. It transforms marketing operations into a scalable growth engine and delivers measurable top-line revenue growth beyond operational efficiency alone.
Agentic AI is redefining how enterprises think about the customer lifecycle, and marketing content sits at the center of that transformation. Enterprises deploying AI-driven personalization are seeing up to 40% higher revenue compared to their peers. Content operations is both a growth lever and an efficiency play for CMOs: roughly 30% of CMO budgets go to content; approximately 55% of content work is manual — resizing, localization, brand compliance — while 90% of those manual workflows can be AI-enabled.
“At Firstsource, our approach has been about moving beyond traditional boundaries to build adaptive, intelligence-led ecosystems that deliver measurable outcomes. Content operations is now the most disrupted layer of the modern marketing stack, with Large Language Models reshaping the entire value chain — from ideation and production to governance and distribution — making it both the biggest near-term efficiency opportunity and the most exposed surface area in enterprise marketing,” said Ritesh Idnani, MD and Chief Executive Officer of Firstsource.
“CEOs and CMOs are not looking for a consultancy that hands off a roadmap or an agency that operates in silos — they want a partner who can transform, implement, and operate marketing systems end-to-end. By combining micro-segmentation, personalization, and deep industry context, we help clients build acquisition, engagement, and retention engines that are intelligent, compliant, and scalable. Typeface brings the AI technology to generate personalized, on-brand, compliant content at scale, and Firstsource brings deep experience in customer operations, especially in regulated industries like banking, financial services, healthcare, and retail. Together, we enable enterprises to plan, build, and run modern marketing — turning content operations into a compounding growth engine and delivering outcomes, not just effort.”
The partnership extends the capabilities announced with Typeface’s recent Marketing Orchestration Engine launch — bringing governed AI systems into full-stack marketing operations for regulated enterprises.
“AI only transforms marketing when it’s embedded into the workflows that drive real customer outcomes,” said Abhay Parasnis, Founder & CEO of Typeface. “Firstsource brings deep industry expertise and operational rigor in highly regulated environments. Together, we’re helping enterprises turn AI ambition into operational reality, embedding governed intelligence into the systems that power durable growth.”
While Typeface provides the orchestration layer that unifies brand intelligence, AI agents, and enterprise systems, Firstsource brings the operational expertise and insights to enable effective decision making and implement and run these systems in complex, regulated environments. Together, they redesign how growth is driven — focusing on the moments, segments, and mechanisms that truly move the needle — enabling enterprises to shift from fragmented activity to scalable, revenue-led execution.
Industry view
“In retail, seasonality and micro-segmentation are where revenue is won or lost. Every peak moment demands thousands of personalized variants across marketing, service, and customer operations — and the retailers who get this right see real movement on acquisition, conversion, and retention, not just efficiency. What makes the Firstsource–Typeface offering different is that it is not another tool — it is an operating capability. Pairing agentic AI with embedded marketing operations is exactly what retailers need to move from broad campaigns to true lifecycle-driven engagement. For the industry, this is a meaningful step-change in how growth gets engineered.”
– Dave Kimbell, Ex-CEO Ulta Beauty; Firstsource Advisory Board Member
“Healthcare payers sit on a real paradox: a huge share of member communication is locked inside PHI and claims workflows where the rules are clear and rightly strict — but the biggest lever on affordability lives outside that envelope, in how payers engage members on wellness, prevention, plan literacy, and proactive disease management. That is a white-space opportunity the industry has barely touched. This is where marketing AI services can genuinely move the needle. With micro-segmentation and agentic content, payers can reach the right member with the right nudge at the right moment — entirely within compliant, non-PHI pathways — and shift the engagement model from acquisition and retention to lifelong wellness. That is how you make healthcare more affordable, improve member experience, and strengthen the economics of the plan at the same time. The Firstsource–Typeface offering is one of the few capabilities purpose-built to operate at that intersection of compliance, personalization, and outcomes.”
– Paul Sanford, Ex-EVP Operations, Cigna Group; Firstsource Advisory Board Member
About Firstsource
Firstsource Solutions Limited, an RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group company (NSE: FSL) (BSE: 532809), is a global intelligence partner to enterprises across healthcare, banking and financial services, communications, media, technology, retail, and utilities. Its inch-wide, mile-deep practitioners work collaboratively to reimagine business process management.
With operations across the US, UK, India, Philippines, Mexico, Romania, Trinidad & Tobago, South Africa, and Australia, Firstsource combines over twenty-five years of domain expertise with an agent-first delivery model to design, build, and operate intelligent enterprise operations. Through its Intelligence That Operates promise—powered by Kairos, the operating system that makes it real—the company unifies consulting, implementation, and operations into a single full-stack engagement and underwrites outcomes, not effort, turning deep domain intelligence into a compounding operational advantage for firms in the world’s most regulated industries. (www.firstsource.com)
About Typeface
Typeface is a marketing orchestration engine for the world’s leading enterprises, coordinating brand intelligence, AI agents, and enterprise systems across cross-channel marketing operations. Built for large organizations, Typeface combines shared brand intelligence, governed agent workflows, and deep enterprise integration at scale — connecting seamlessly with platforms like Salesforce, Microsoft, and Google — to help teams scale what works without sacrificing quality or control. Trusted by Fortune 500 companies, Typeface enables organizations to operationalize AI inside real marketing workflows, turning brand standards, approvals, and performance signals into coordinated systems that improve over time. Typeface is backed by Lightspeed, GV, Salesforce Ventures, Madrona, Menlo, and M12, and has been recognized by Fast Company, Gartner, TIME, LinkedIn, and Adweek as a leader in AI for marketing. Learn more at www.typeface.ai.
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Shaping Future-Ready School Leaders: Woxsen University Leads Design Thinking Initiative for Principals
HYDERABAD, India, April 30, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The School of Arts and Design at Woxsen University, in collaboration with the Public-School Principals’ Association (PSPA), conducted a Principal Leadership Programme on April 27, bringing together 30 principals from leading schools across Hyderabad for an immersive, design-led learning experience focused on rethinking leadership in contemporary education.
Participating institutions included Delhi Public School, Sloka International School (Tukkuguda), Jain Heritage Cambridge School, AVN Vida International School, CMR School (Medchal), and Gitanjali High School, among others. Designed as a hands-on, studio-based workshop, the programme moved beyond traditional formats, enabling participants to engage in collaborative problem-solving, systems thinking, and real-world leadership challenges.
The programme was delivered by Woxsen’s Centre for Learning Design (CLD) and the David Dunne Design Thinking Lab, and was guided by the university’s ERS (Ethics, Responsibility and Sustainability) framework, reflecting an integrated and purpose-driven approach to leadership development.
Through guided design thinking exercises, principals explored new approaches to decision-making, innovation in school ecosystems, and building student-centric learning environments. The interactive format encouraged peer exchange and practical application, making the experience directly relevant to institutional leadership.
Rajendra Prasad, President of the PSPA, said, “The School Principals’ Leadership Workshop at Woxsen University was well organized and delivered with great impact. The sessions were highly engaging and insightful, and the programme received overwhelming positive feedback from participants for both its content and overall experience.”
Dr. Ashok Pandey, Member of the PSPA Leadership Team, shared, “An inspiring day at the picturesque Woxsen University campus, engaging with exceptional school leaders committed to designing the schools of tomorrow.”
Dr. Adity Saxena, Dean, School of Arts & Design, said, “This programme is aligned with Woxsen’s core pillar of Ethics, Responsibility and Sustainability, reinforcing our commitment to purpose-driven education. We see our role as bridging ideas, institutions, and impact in education, and we are grateful to PSPA and Rajendra Prasad for this meaningful collaboration.”
The initiative reflects Woxsen University’s commitment to strengthening the school education ecosystem in Telangana by building leadership capacity and fostering future-ready thinking among educators. Following the workshop, the PSPA leadership team engaged in a strategic discussion with Dr. Adity Saxena to explore future collaboration opportunities.
Building on the momentum of the programme, Woxsen University and PSPA are exploring the launch of a structured Principal Leadership Certificate Programme. The proposed initiative aims to institutionalize leadership development for school heads and further strengthen the region’s education ecosystem through sustained, practice-oriented engagement.
About Woxsen University, Hyderabad
Woxsen University, located in Hyderabad, is one of the first private universities in the state of Telangana, India. Renowned for its 200-acre state-of-the-art campus and infrastructure, Woxsen University offers new-age, disruptive programs in the fields of Business, Technology, Arts & Design, Architecture, Law, and Liberal Arts & Humanities. Woxsen also houses Asia’s largest Sports Infrastructure, spread over 60 acres. With 175 Global Partner Universities and a strong industry connect, Woxsen is recognized as one of the top universities for Academic Excellence and Global Edge. Woxsen has also secured the QS Business Masters World Ranking 2025, Rank #9 All India, Top 100 B-Schools by Times B-School Ranking 2025, Rank #6, Asia Pacific, Bloomberg Best B-School, and features in India’s Best B-Schools beyond IIMs by Dalal Street Investment Journal 2025, in 4th consecutive year. Woxsen is ranked as one of the Top Professional Colleges in India by Outlook I-CARE for its undergraduate programs, securing All India Rank 12 among the Top 130 BBA Private Institutes, All India Rank 20 among the Top 160 B.Tech Private Institutes, All India Rank 3 among the Top 25 Design Private Institutes, and All India Rank 3 among the Top 30 B. Arch Private Institutes.
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MSEED and SCOPE Global Skills University Sign Strategic Partnership to Shape the Future of Experiential Marketing Education
MSEED and SCOPE Global Skills University Sign Strategic Partnership to Shape the Future of Experiential Marketing Education
Firstsource Partners with Typeface to Launch Agentic Marketing Services
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