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Melbourne Forum gives you access to the highest level of expertise and real-world lessons that our conversation leaders – all with a reputation for excellence – bring to the table under the Chatham House rule.
We are committed to providing a platform for, and the increased visibility of, diverse voices.
With varied formats (in-person or virtual; conversation leader or members engaging with each other; learning from experts or new experiences) there are multiple ways to participate.
Explore our upcoming program of events and forums.
How Ancient India Transformed The World
Non-Fiction Forum
Hosted by:
Peter Lamell
Tony Nippard
August 25, 2025 @ 5:30 pm - 7:00 pm
FreeIndia is the forgotten heart of the ancient world.
For a millennium and a half, India was a confident exporter of its diverse civilisation, creating around it a vast empire of ideas. Indian art, religions, technology, astronomy, music, dance, literature, mathematics and mythology blazed a trail across the world, along a Golden Road that stretched from the Red Sea to the Pacific.
Dalrymple draws from a lifetime of scholarship to highlight India’s oft-forgotten position as the heart of ancient Eurasia. For the first time, he gives a name to this spread of Indian ideas that transformed the world. From the largest Hindu temple in the world at Angkor Wat to the Buddhism of China, from the trade that helped fund the Roman Empire to the creation of the numerals we use today (including zero), India transformed the culture and technology of its ancient world – and our world today as we know it.
‘A superb historian with a visceral understanding of India’ says The Times
Join us on Zoom for this Non-Fiction Forum. For a more informed discussion please read the book before the event. The enjoyment of participating in these intimate member-only discussions is that everyone who attends gets to comment on the book we’ve read, exchange ideas with fellow readers and share their perspectives.
Here’s the full reading list for the year.
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