** NOTE TO LISTENERS: This week, we are releasing a special “flash episode” of Grand Tamasha to recap India’s recently concluded 2026 state assembly elections. As usual, we will still be publishing a new Grand Tamasha episode next Tuesday, May 12 at 9 pm ET, Wednesday 6:30 am IST. It’s safe to say that India’s 2026 state assembly elections have scrambled many of the assumptions that have long shaped our understanding of Indian politics. The BJP has finally captured West Bengal after decades of trying, secured a third consecutive victory in Assam, and made modest, but important gains in Kerala. With its allies, it also retained the union territory of Puducherry. In Tamil Nadu, meanwhile, the upstart TVK—led by the enigmatic actor Vijay—has disrupted a political duopoly that has defined the state for decades. At a deeper level, across these elections, familiar assumptions about welfare, identity, institutions, and opposition politics have suddenly been called into question. To make sense of these results—and what they might tell us about the road to 2029—Milan is joined today by two of the sharpest observers of Indian politics and political economy. Neelanjan Sircar is an associate professor at Ahmedabad University and one of the country’s leading scholars of Indian politics. He has spent years studying party organizations, welfare politics, and electoral change across states—including West Bengal and Assam. Yamini Aiyar is a Senior Visiting Fellow at the Saxena Center for Contemporary South Asia and the Watson Institute at Brown University. She was previously president and CEO of the Centre for Policy Research, and is a leading expert on the Indian state, welfare delivery, and democratic accountability. Milan, Yamini, and Neelanjan discuss the BJP’s historic win in West Bengal, the demise of the Trinamool Congress of Mamata Banerjee, and the Election Commission of India’s controversial revision of the electoral rolls. Plus, the trio discuss the rupture in Tamil politics, the Congress’ lone victory in Kerala, and the BJP’s strategy for 2029. Episode notes: Samanth Subramanian, “From Sea to Saffron Sea: Neelanjan Sircar,” Equator, May 6, 2026. Roshan Kishore, “Terms of Trade: And then there were none,” Hindustan Times, May 4, 2026. Neelanjan Sircar and Bhanu Joshi, “Party has left the building: The rise of parallel politics in Bengal,” Hindustan Times, May 4, 2026. Neelanjan Sircar, “Verdict Bengal: Decisive win in a divided state,” Hindustan Times, May 4, 2026. Bhanu Joshi, “DMK’s defeat proves it: Welfare is the floor, elections have moved to the ceiling,” Indian Express, May 4, 2026. Neelanjan Sircar and Bhanu Joshi, “Beyond numbers, how West Bengal's voter roll revision is redrawing citizenship lines,” Hindustan Times, April 29, 2026. Bhanu Joshi and Neelanjan Sircar, “In Bengal hinterland, poll victory might hinge on ground visibility,” Hindustan Times, April 23, 2026.
