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We take it for granted that some historical figures becomeheroes, and others do not. Chandragupta Maurya evolved from obscureruler to contemporary national icon. The key moment in the makingof this Indian hero was a meeting by the banks of the River Indusbetween Chandragupta and Seleucus, founder of the Seleucid empireand one of Alexander the Great's generals, in c.305-3 BC.This significant event was a moment of peace-making at the end ofconflict. But no reliable account exists in early sources, and itis not even clear which ruler was victorious in battle. Thisuncertainty enabled British and Indian historians of the nineteenthand twentieth centuries to interpret the sources in radicallydifferent ways. With Chandragupta representing India and Seleucusstanding in for Britain, British scholars argued that Seleucusdefeated Chandragupta, while Indian academics contended theopposite.

The writing and reception of history fundamentally influenceshow we engage with the past, and the evolving colonial andpost-colonial relationship between Britain and India is crucialhere. In India, the image of Chandragupta as an idealised hero whovanquished the foreign invader has prevailed and found expressionin contemporary popular culture. In plays, films, televisionseries, comic books and historical novels, Chandragupta is thepowerful and virtuous Hindu ruler par excellence. The pathto this elevated standing is charted in this book.

Emperors. --- Chandragupta Maurya,