SPROUT: a social geography of Rajasthan Yemuna Sunny

S
prout: A Social Geography of Raj
as-
than
is a fascinating study of how
geography plays a pivotal role in
shaping and reshaping of spatial and
social formations. The book focuses on
the constant struggle of different groups
of people for appropriating space, the
tussle between capital and labour in
determining the social structures as well
as practices and the relation between
“the social and the spatial.”
The book is groundbreaking in terms
of its presentation, the way it illuminates
ideas and events with the clarity of a
schoolbook. By using graphics, illustra-
tions, pictorial maps and dialogues, it
opens up a new way of approaching and
understanding geography which ties up
with Sunny’s claim of building on “the
informal spaces of reading that should
be available to the people” (in acknowl-
edgement). The book is thus heavily
driven and informed by a sense of social
justice, and is indeed, a pioneering work
of its kind on Rajasthan in particular,
and geographical studies in India at
large. Deviating from the general trend
of geographical reading with its focus on
the physical landscape, Sunny tries to
show how the processes of production
and distribution of a region determine
the social formations.



https://www.eklavya.in/pdfs/Books/Reviews/Review_Redefining_Social_Geography_of_Rajasthan.pdf