I would totally agree with the author. Its strange to the extent of shocking one's wits to hear people's idea of India being the same as what it must have been in the early 19th century. I work in a London based law firm where once a partner shared his itinerary details concerning India. I was shocked at the kind of things he expected to see in the modern Indian cities and with utmost respect i had to remind him that though India was a land of extremes where people and rich stayed together, incomes of some of the rich when combined was sufficient to buy most of the London based companies.
