TODDY TO TEQUILA : The Story of Alcohol in India

Author: Sandhya Mulchandani

Brand: Juggernaut

Binding: Hardcover

Number Of Pages: 256

Release Date: 19-01-2026

Details: Alcohol in India has never been just a drink; it has also been a ritual, a taboo, a temptation and a tool of power. Toddy to Tequila uncovers the deeper story, of how alcohol evolved alongside India itself.
From Vedic altars and tribal stills to Mughal durbars, colonial taverns and today’s sleek distilleries, alcohol has been worshipped and banned, taxed and outlawed, served in earthen pots and showcased in jewelled goblets. It has served as sacred libation, social glue, political weapon and economic engine, reflecting the shifting currents of faith, class and authority.
Tracing millennia of myth, medicine, empire and society, this book dismantles persistent notions about Indians and drinking, revealing instead a patchwork of traditions unique to the subcontinent. At its core are the people who brewed, celebrated, condemned and controlled alcohol: gods and ascetics, kings and soldiers, women distillers and reformers.
India’s history of alcohol is ultimately a history of India itself.

EAN: 9789353456771

Package Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.4 x 1.0 inches

Languages: English