SSC
Who wrote the novel 'The Insider'?
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Answer: Option C — P. V. Narasimha Rao
Detailed Solution
- Narasimha Rao. "The Insider" is a semi-autobiographical political novel written by P. V. Narasimha Rao, the former Prime Minister of India. It was published in 1998.
About the novel:
- It follows the life of Anand, a young man from a rural background in south India, who rises through the ranks of the Congress party to become a Chief Minister.
- The story is set from the 1940s to the 1970s and closely mirrors Narasimha Rao's own political career, including his years as Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh (1971-1973) and his attempts at land reforms.
- It gives an inside view of Indian politics, factionalism and the working of party organisations.
About P. V. Narasimha Rao (1921-2004):
- He was born in Vangara village (now in Telangana).
- He was the 9th Prime Minister of India (1991-1996) and the first Prime Minister from south India.
- His government, with Manmohan Singh as Finance Minister, introduced the economic reforms of 1991 (liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation).
- He is often called the "Father of Indian economic reforms".
- He was a scholar who reportedly knew around 17 languages.
- He translated Viswanatha Satyanarayana's Telugu novel "Veyi Padagalu" into Hindi as "Sahasra Phan".
- He received the Bharat Ratna (posthumously) in 2024.
Other political memoirs:
- Manmohan Singh: "Changing India".
- K. Gujral: "Matters of Discretion".
- K. Advani: "My Country My Life".
- Atal Bihari Vajpayee is known for his poems.
Why not the other options?
- ✗Manmohan Singh wrote "Changing India".
- ✗Atal Bihari Vajpayee is known for his poetry collections.
- ✗K. Gujral wrote "Matters of Discretion".
Quick tip
Remember: "The Insider" = P. V. Narasimha Rao (1998, hero Anand); he translated "Veyi Padagalu" into Hindi as "Sahasra Phan"; Bharat Ratna 2024; PM 1991-96.
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Books & Authors — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Books & Authors, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers famous books and their authors, including ancient Indian texts, works of the freedom struggle, classic and modern literature, autobiographies of famous people, and recently published books by well-known personalities. Questions usually name a book and ask for its author, or the other way round. Ancient and historical books, such as Arthashastra (Kautilya), Indica (Megasthenes) and Gitanjali (Rabindranath Tagore), are tested most often. Autobiographies are another favourite, so learn titles such as 'My Experiments with Truth' (Mahatma Gandhi) and 'Wings of Fire' (A. P. J. Abdul Kalam). Practise the books and authors questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.