Asim Ali

Political researcher and columnist writing on democracy, nationalism, political economy and popular culture in South Asia.

Selected Essays

The Diplomat
Democracy Disfigured: India’s Political Devolution
1 June 2025
Frontline
No Muslim, no Hindutva
24 September 2025
Frontline
AAP’s fall in Delhi: A failure of political imagination
14 February 2025
Frontline
Power to the people: India’s democracy needs a subaltern revival
21 March 2024
The Guardian
Ignore lofty claims about The Kerala Story
1 June 2023
Newslaundry
Why it’s silly to forcefit ‘love-vs-hate’ narrative on Pathaan
29 January 2023
Newslaundry
Don’t trust Muslims, leftists or secularists
15 March 2022
The Diplomat
The Making of Brand Modi
1 April 2021
The New York Times
Modi Lost in Delhi. It Doesn’t Matter.
12 February 2020
The Telegraph
Specific syndrome: The crisis in South Asian democracy is structural
17 August 2024
The Telegraph
A familiar template
25 October 2025
The Telegraph
A different ball game
26 November 2022
The Telegraph
Imprisoned minds
29 October 2022
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