This volume contains a selection of essays from the Oxford India Companion of Sociology and Social anthropology. It is designed to meet the needs of readers looking for an accessible overview of broad trends in Indian economy, polity, religion, culture and kinship structures. The Handbook has five main sections. In the first of these, the reader is introduced to the field of sociological study in India. Subsequent sections cover demographic features including ecology and urban migration; India's religious and cultural landscape; the alliance between family and state; economic structure; and politics.