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Synopsis This collection of Prem Bhatia's writings covers the social and political documentation of the 'Middle Period' of India's post-independence history. His unique knowledge and acquaintance of the luminaries of that period (1987-1994) provide richly varied and often highly entertaining insights, of value to both the historian and lay person. But even a decade back public perception of, and tolerance for, the guardians of the state was radically different. Because of an intimate, almost cosy, familiarity with their background, their habits and peccadilloes, weaknesses and strengths, Prem Bhatia introduced the reader to his subjects' mindsets, taking for granted his or her involvement and curiosity. How much has changed and how little has changed. Twelve years ago, in 1990, writing about communal rioting, Prem Bhatia pondered on the overriding national mood which he read as a mixture of depression and anger. The difference between the killings in Ahmedabad, Aligarh, Kanpur, Meerut and the Partition in 1947 was that the present "does not arise from deep religious feelings but from a spirit of revenge by proxy. He linked this lawlessness to a deep-rooted malaise in the fabric of society, and especially within the tentacles of political life.