Archive · 23 Aug 2026
Samanth Subramanian Finds Hidden Politics in Everyday Stories
Samanth Subramanian has written a book made from many journalistic stories.
The stories look at ordinary subjects and show the bigger ideas hidden inside them.
One story explains how cables under the sea help the Internet work.
It also shows why those cables can be fragile and important.
Another story follows young people shown in a 1967 film about India.
Many of them later moved abroad, even when that once seemed unlikely.
The book also discusses political hopes and worries among different generations.
One chapter describes Lalit Modi’s role in making the Indian Premier League successful.
Samanth Subramanian’s book gathers articles examining the hidden connections behind seemingly ordinary news events.
Its final story explores undersea Internet cables, their construction, vulnerabilities and geopolitical importance.
In “Midnight’s Grown-Ups,” Subramanian revisits people featured in the 1967 film I Am 20 and traces their later lives.
The book examines political optimism and uncertainty in India across generations, including young protesters at Jantar Mantar.
A chapter on Lalit Modi argues that the IPL’s success depended heavily on his audacity and ability to present money as cricket.
- Who
- Writer-journalist Samanth Subramanian, along with people and subjects examined in his articles.
- What
- A review of Subramanian’s book, a collection of journalism about politics and meaning hidden in everyday stories.
- When
- The collection draws on articles published over several years; the film I Am 20 was made in 1967 and Subramanian found it on YouTube in 2013.
- Where
- The stories include India, the ocean seabed and locations connected by undersea Internet cables.
- Why
- Subramanian uses routine news events and subjects to reveal wider political, social and technological connections.
- Author
- Samanth Subramanian
- Book format
- A compilation of articles published in various publications over the years
- Featured technology
- Undersea cables that carry Internet traffic
- Film revisited
- I Am 20, a 19-minute film from 1967
- Film discovery
- Subramanian found I Am 20 on YouTube in 2013
- Sports subject
- The Indian Premier League and Lalit Modi
- Political setting
- Jantar Mantar is cited in connection with youth protests