Rufus Beck

With its mixture of languages, religions, cultures and landscapes, India is a country of superlatives: over 1 billion people live close together here. 80% of Indians are Hindus, and with just under 14% Muslims, India has the third largest Muslim population in the world after Indonesia and Pakistan. The Hindu bathing festival 'Kumbh Mela' brings together more than 70 million pilgrims every 12 years, more people than anywhere else. The Indian film industry produces over 1000 feature films every year, putting even Hollywood in the shade. In the meantime, India has embarked on a rapid journey into the future, but has by no means put its past aside. The India audiobook shines a light on the incredibly complex past and present of India, which does not seem to be a single country, but an entire continent! The charismatic actor Rufus Beck takes the listener into a colourful, fascinating world: to world-creating Hindu gods, wise natives, holy elephants, bathing pilgrims, temples of gold and monuments of love as well as to the megacities of Delhi, Bangalore and Mumbay. India experts Peter Pannke and Lisa Fehrenbach have compiled myths, facts, sensations and quotes and embedded them in over 50 examples of music from Indian culture, including the unique ragas for special times of the day and year.