21st July 2023, New Delhi: The Chambers, India’s very first exclusive business club, presented a Rendezvous with award-winning author Amitav Ghosh to celebrate the launch of ‘Smoke and Ashes’ – one of the most important and keenly anticipated works of non-fiction this year, published by HarperCollins India.
‘Smoke and Ashes – A Writer’s Journey Through Opium’s Hidden Histories’ explores the immense effect the opium trade has had on world history and how opium continues to impact our lives today.
Commenting on his new masterpiece, Amitav Ghosh said, “My new book, Smoke and Ashes: A Writer’s Journey Through Opium’s Hidden Histories, is based on the enormous quantities of material I accumulated while researching the trilogy of novels I wrote between 2005 and 2015. When I started writing the novels I thought they would be mainly about the transportation of indentured workers from India to Mauritius in the early nineteenth century. But in the course of my research, and much to my surprise, I stumbled upon a different trade in a precious commodity that was being carried in large quantities from India to China—opium!”
Commenting on the occasion, Mr. Satyajeet Krishnan – Area Director – Operations and General Manager – Taj Mahal, New Delhi said, “Taj Mahal, New Delhi is honoured to curate a Rendezvous with one of the most prominent names in literature – Amitav Ghosh. Smoke and Ashes is at once a travelogue, a memoir and an excursion into history, both economic and cultural. We are pleased to craft exclusive experiences for our esteemed members and patrons.”