{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"Narayani Basu on K. M. Panikkar: India\u2019s Impossible Man","description":"Today my guest is Narayani Basu, who is a historian and the author of the latest book,&amp;nbsp;A Man for All Seasons: The Life of K. M. Panikkar. Her last book was a biography of&amp;nbsp;V.P. Menon: The Unsung Architect of Modern India.&amp;nbsp; We talked about KM Panikkar, his comparison with VP Menon, the Indian nationalist movement in the interwar years, the origins of India\u2019s diplomatic relationship with China, Pannikar\u2019s Zionism and much more.&amp;nbsp; Recorded August 1st, 2025. Read a&amp;nbsp;full transcript&amp;nbsp;enhanced with helpful links. Connect with Ideas of India Follow us on X Follow&amp;nbsp;Shruti&amp;nbsp;on X Follow Narayani on X Click&amp;nbsp;here&amp;nbsp;for the latest Ideas of India episodes sent straight to your inbox. Timestamps (00:00:00) - Intro (00:01:07) - The Elusive K. M. Panikkar (00:07:52) - Panikkar\u2019s and the Indian National Movement (00:19:32) - Panikkar\u2019s Intellectual Arc (00:26:45) - Unifying an Indian Identity (00:35:38) - India\u2019s Princely States (00:40:19) - Panikkar and China (00:54:43) - Panikkar and the 1950s (00:59:43) - Panikkar\u2019s Thought vs. His Government Work (01:08:35) - Panikkar\u2019s Blind Spots (01:15:48) - Panikkar and Today\u2019s India (01:18:27) - Outro ","author_name":"Ideas of India","author_url":"https:\/\/ideasofindia.libsyn.com","html":"<iframe title=\"Libsyn Player\" style=\"border: none\" src=\"\/\/html5-player.libsyn.com\/embed\/episode\/id\/37903935\/height\/90\/theme\/custom\/thumbnail\/yes\/direction\/forward\/render-playlist\/no\/custom-color\/88AA3C\/\" height=\"90\" width=\"600\" scrolling=\"no\"  allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen oallowfullscreen msallowfullscreen><\/iframe>","thumbnail_url":"https:\/\/assets.libsyn.com\/secure\/content\/192150910"}