Book Review: ‘Itihaas’ by Sridhar Rammurthy

Book Title: Itihaas: A Performance Model for Modern Leadership
Author: Sridhar Rammurthy
Publisher: Rupa Publication India
Number of Pages: 232
ISBN: 9376469313
Date Published: Jun. 1, 2026

Book Review

In “Itihaas: A Performance Model for Modern Leadership,” Sridhar Rammurthy presents a leadership framework grounded in Indian philosophical traditions, including insights from the Mahabharata, Bhagavad Gita, and Ramayana. The model emphasizes decisiveness amid uncertainty and promotes a leadership cycle that aligns inner clarity with purposeful action. Rammurthy’s extensive experience across various sectors informs his philosophy of karmic learning, advocating for leaders to engage naturally with their environments and learn from both observable outcomes and deeper, unseen influences.

Central to this model, named the Itihaas Performance Model (IPM), is the recognition that leaders often struggle not due to a lack of skills but because of inner misalignment caused by confusion and emotional barriers. Rammurthy outlines a conscious leadership cycle with seven stages: understanding the context, recognizing perceived realities, establishing intent (sankalp), confronting internal resistance (manovighna), taking action aligned with truth, observing feedback, and reinitiating the cycle with heightened awareness. This approach calls for a shift from conventional performance metrics to a focus on inner balance and moral alignment.

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The book includes transformative examples, such as IKEA’s Ingvar Kamprad and Netflix, who successfully navigated challenges through clarity and systemic innovation. Rammurthy underscores that true leadership is fundamentally about perception and the quality of mental states before decision-making. He stresses the significance of internal stillness, reflection, and the acknowledgment of cognitive biases that can obscure judgment.

In highlighting the importance of self-awareness and mental model adaptability, he encourages leaders to conduct regular perception audits, allowing them to align actions with deeper values and aspirations. The synthesis of ancient wisdom with modern science positions Rammurthy’s model as a comprehensive guide for evolving leadership practices that prioritize clarity, resilience, and transformative growth in the face of complexity.

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