'Rathore's earlier books had shed new light on Dr Ambedkar's source materials for his innovative interpretation of Buddhism, as well as his previously unknown direct authorship of the Preamble to the Indian Constitution. In Becoming Babasaheb, Rathore once again uncovers totally new facts about Babasaheb's extraordinary life and times.'

- Prakash Ambedkar, lawyer, president of the Vanchit Bahujan Aaghadi party and grandson of Dr B.R. Ambedkar

'Rathore's first volume is a meticulously researched account of Ambedkar's early life as a student in Bombay, New York and London, his struggles against poverty and caste discrimination, and his emergence as a scholar, barrister and leader of the Dalits. Rathore's signal achievement is to present Ambedkar in flesh and blood, and not allow his admiration for the man to slip into hagiography.'

- Partha Chatterjee, Professor Emeritus of anthropology, Columbia University

'Aakash Singh Rathore's biography is outstanding for the way in which he interweaves the personal and the political to reveal the making of one of India's greatest leaders. He, thus, gives the reader a far richer and more vivid understanding of the man and the events that unfolded around him. By his rigorous checking of sources and aligning of chronologies, Rathore also clears up many prevalent misconceptions. His book is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand some of the central developments of the twentieth century that shaped India as it has come to exist today.'

- Tony Joseph, journalist and author of Early Indians: The Story of Our Ancestors and Where We Came From

'Scholarly biographies based on archival sources are rare in India. Rathore's first of a two-volume account of Dr Ambedkar's life is a notable exception. He deserves huge appreciation for this endeavour, which sheds fascinating new light on arguably the most highly educated and intellectually gifted of our founding fathers' generation.'

- Jairam Ramesh, member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha) and author of The Light of Asia: The Poem That Defined the Buddha

'Becoming Babasaheb is essential reading for anyone interested in joining the global movement for caste abolition. Accessible and finely researched, it humanizes Dr Ambedkar while providing new detail to the incredible hurdles he faced as he worked tirelessly to end caste. The empathy of Aakash Singh Rathore's biography is unparalleled and enriches our understanding of Ambedkar as a giant of history-but also as a very human leader, who became larger than life through his courage, brilliance, integrity and persistence. It is credit to Rathore that he holds all of the complex strands of Ambedkar's intellectual and political life so deftly that the book can offer new insights for both the expert and the new reader of Ambedkar's legacy alike. Buy Becoming Babasaheb for yourself and for a young person you care about, for it introduces Ambedkar to a new generation at a time when his lessons are more important than ever.'

- Thenmozhi Soundararajan, executive director of Equality Labs and author of The Trauma of Caste: A Dalit Feminist Meditation on Survivorship, Healing, and Abolition

'Rooted in extensive archival research, Becoming Babasaheb follows Ambedkar's personal and intellectual development on his path to becoming one of India's greatest statesmen. In clear and wonderfully descriptive writing, Aakash Singh Rathore's first volume brings Ambedkar-the subjugated village child, the brilliant student, the rising leader-to life.'

- Shashi Tharoor, member of Parliament for Thiruvananthapuram (Lok Sabha) and author of Ambedkar: A Life

Aakash Singh Rathore is a philosopher of international repute and the author of nine books, including the bestselling Ambedkar's Preamble: A Secret History of the Constitution of India (2020). He has also edited over a dozen books ranging from political philosophy and law to literature and religion, including B.R. Ambedkar's the Buddha and His Dhamma: A Critical Edition (2011) and, more recently, B.R. Ambedkar: The Quest for Justice (a box set of five volumes, 2021). His Hegel's India was shortlisted for the Non-Fiction Book of the Year at the Tata Literature Live! Book Awards 2017.

 Professor Rathore has taught politics, philosophy and law at premier institutions such as Jawaharlal Nehru University and the University of Delhi (in India), UPenn and Rutgers University (in the US), the University of Toronto (Canada), Humboldt University, Berlin (Germany) and LUISS University, Rome (Italy). He is International Fellow at ETHOS, Rome, and was previously Fellow at the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla.

 Rathore serves as the series editor for the fifteen-volume ‘Rethinking India' book series (2020–23) and was the co-editor (with Ashis Nandy) of its first volume, Vision for a Nation. He is also the series editor for ‘Religion and Democracy: Reconceptualizing Religion, Culture, and Politics in Global Context' (published since 2015) as well as the long-running international book series, ‘Ethics, Human Rights and Global Political Thought' (published since 2011).

 Professor Rathore is also one of India's top-ranking Ironman triathletes. He tweets at @ASR_Metta.