Phenomenal read if you’re trying to understand the nature of BJP’s rise and staying power in India。 Disclaimer: I helped the author with data insights for this bookThe book does 3 things: First， it takes a data-driven approach to understanding how the BJP has expanded its social coalition。 Second， it quantifies the speeches and official statements made by different political parties to understand who talks more about what topics。 And thirdly， it draws from a deep well of interviews from party in Phenomenal read if you’re trying to understand the nature of BJP’s rise and staying power in India。 Disclaimer: I helped the author with data insights for this bookThe book does 3 things: First， it takes a data-driven approach to understanding how the BJP has expanded its social coalition。 Second， it quantifies the speeches and official statements made by different political parties to understand who talks more about what topics。 And thirdly， it draws from a deep well of interviews from party insiders and academics to understand the internal workings of the party。I recommend reading this one chapter at a time， instead of reading it cover to cover。 5 main takeaways:1。 Political parties often get their start with effectively counter-positioning， but must build efficient organisational structures and processes to have staying power2。 What brings voters into your tent and what keeps them there are not generally the same。 As a BJP leader said， “Identity politics gives the flywheel initial velocity， but efficient disbursement of welfare is what keeps it spinning”3。 The use of digital – particularly for micro-messaging to different communities – is a superpower when it comes to targeting different messages to different audiences4。 Direct bank transfers and other ways to efficiently disburse welfare = more political goodwill for the same welfare spend5。 Welfare spending cannot be sustained without real economic growth。 Reliance on welfare spending and increased need for defence spending in the face of declining growth is the biggest challenges for the BJP right now 。。。more