Inside the RSS Archive: What Their Own Records Reveal | Dr. Shamsul Islam
In this episode of Nous Network, Ali Javed speaks with Dr. Shamsul Islam, a leading scholar of religious nationalism whose work critically examines the ideological foundations of the RSS, Hindutva, and the politics of the Hindu Rashtra. Drawing on decades of archival research, Dr. Islam explains how the RSS imagined nationhood, how it positioned itself during the freedom movement, and how its ideas on identity, culture, and power continue to shape India today.
The conversation explores key themes: the evolution of Hindutva ideology, the RSS’s relationship to the Two-Nation Theory, its distancing from anti-colonial struggles, and the long-term project of reshaping Indian society through education, culture, and everyday life. Dr. Islam also discusses the implications of replacing constitutional values with a hierarchical social vision rooted in the Manusmriti.
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