The idea of india is a 1997 non fiction book by sunil khilnani which describes the economic and political history of india in the fifty years since partitionit focuses in particular on the role that the national ideal of democracy has played in indias evolution the book is also noted for its treatment of the personality and actions of jawaharlal nehru in the development of the country. The indian idea is that a nation may endure differences of caste creed colour conviction culture cuisine costume and custom and still rally around a consensus and that consensus is around . Moreover the idea of shaheen bagh ignited and became the idea of india for hundreds because the women sitting in protest spoke a language that came from the compassion of the matriarch. The old idea of india emerged from the work of british colonial administrators and european scholars motivated by the demands of the raj pseudoscience and racial prejudice the british dismantled indias schools and created a new system of colleges and universities using english as the medium of research and instruction. The old idea of india emerged from the work of british colonial administrators and european scholars motivated by the demands of the raj pseudoscience and racial prejudice the british dismantled indias schools and created a new system of colleges and universities using english as the medium of research and instruction