Sach Kahun Toh by Neena Gupta

 

'Sach Kahun Toh' is a very candid autobiography of Neena Gupta. Her initial years, a young girl of a middle-class girl of Karol Bagh, New Delhi, getting a degree from the National School of Drama, landing up in Mumbai, struggling in film city, and ending up with just B Class roles in movies are very well described by her. It is heartening to read about the struggles of not-so-successful actors in Film City, hoping to get cast as heroine one day, surviving on doing minor roles, ad films, supporting roles, etc. The entire life of her, in the first person, is beautifully described in utmost honesty. 

She chose to give birth to her daughter born out of her relationship with West Indies Cricketer Vivian Richards. That created a kind of image that was not so good for her career. However, she moved on relentlessly, surviving as a single mother of a girl in the world of glamour. She ultimately got cast as 'heroine' in the movie 'Badhai Ho', where she played the role of a woman who becomes the mother of a child, quite late in life. 

Unlike her image of a  'Bad' girl, she comes out a quite simple, average, honest woman whom we come across every day. 

Just about 300 pages, it is an extremely readable book. 

Patient Assassin by Anita Anand

 'Patient Assassin' by Anita Anand is a very well-researched book on Shaheed Udham Singh. The author has painstakingly covered the journey of Sher Singh (original name) from Sunam till his death in London as Ram Mohammad Singh Azad. The author has brought out many hidden or less talked about facets of the life of Udham Singh. Losing his parents and a brother in infant years, brought up in an Orphanage in Amritsar, service of British in the First World War,  travel to England and brief stay, move to the USA, getting his purpose of life after coming in contact with Gadhar Party leaders in the USA, his marriage to Lupe Singh and brief family life, journey across Europe, return to the USA, smuggling of arms and ammunition along with the journey to India, arrest by police, spending five years in Multan jail, landing again in England, under surveillance by UK police, ultimately achieving his aim by killing Sir Michel O'Dwayer, ex-Governor of Punjab who ordered brutal opression on people of Punjab leading to a massacre in Jallianwala Bagh and killing many more innocents in nearby towns like Gujranwals by attacking them by air strafing and bombardment through aircraft is given in exhaustive detail backed by documents pulled out of archives, interviews and the author's visits to the places connected with the life of Udham Singh. 

Udham Singh lived the life of an ordinary man but massacre at Jallianwala Bagh and martyrdom of Shaheed Bhagat Singh changed the course of his life. As per the author, there is no convincing proof of Udham Singh being present in Jallianwala Bagh or taking an oath to avenge it. He was in Punjab or probably in Amritsar on the day of the massacre. He considered Shaheed Bhagat Singh his 'Guru' but could never meet him. Their paths never crossed. He was found of good things in life. He was not a devout Sikh, as seen in a few pictures of him. He wanted to be more famous than his 'Guru' Shaheed Bhagat Singh and often boasted of doing 'much bigger thing'. On that day he wanted to kill a few more important personalities like England's Secretary of state to India, ex-Governor of Bombay, another Ex-Governor of Punjab, present in the Caxton Hall to attend the lecture. The pistol he carried was of .45 caliber whereas the bullets fired through it were of .44 caliber and he was not aware of it. He did injure two of them.  

British downplayed his patriotic cause of killing and portrayed him as a mere killer. They were afraid of its aftermath and repercussions as well as morale-boosting effects on hardliners of the Indian Freedom Movement. His trial lasted for just two days and was given the least coverage. Krishna Menon was his junior defense lawyer but he hardly participated in the proceedings. Udham Singh's speech at his trial was not allowed to be published in the newspapers. However, news passed to India and he was hailed as a hero who avenged Jallianwala Bagh massacre. 

This book, consisting of 300 pages, can be easily identified as the authority on the life of Udham Singh. It is extremely readable and one marvels at the research work carried out by Anita Anand, an Indian Origin journalist, based in the UK whose grandfather was in Jallianwals Bagh on 13 April 1919, a few hours before the massacre took place.

Besides the above, I think, to us, The Indians, use of the word 'assassin' for Shaheed Udham Singh is umbrage. 

A Chequered Brilliance : The many lives of V K Krishna Menon by Jairam Ramesh

 

        This book, A Chequered Brilliance : The many lives of V K Krishna Menon by Jairam Ramesh, is 700 pages long and widely drawn from correspondence between Krishna Menon and other contemporary personalities and other documents from history. Like his earlier book, Intertwined Lives of Indira Gandhi and P N Haksar, this too, is a very well-researched book. The sheer volume may deter you from reading it but once you start reading you find it very captivating.

       V K Krishna Menon had been largely portrayed as a villainous character because of the 1962 debacle but his brilliance as a diplomat was formidable. He was most feared and disliked by western diplomats due to his sheer brilliance in debating contentious issues. Diplomats from the USA hated him. He was feared by Paki Diplomats. His 8 hours-long address to the UN on the Kashmir issue is a record.   

    He lived a life of a spartan. He had nearly 12000 books in his library. He drank many cups of tea during the day and the tea leaves of a particular brand were imported from England. He did not keep good health. He had bouts of anger, depression, sickness, and even Neuro disorders but he kept working at the hectic face. He underwent two operations of brain one just before the war of 1962.   He drove his juniors to the breaking point.  He had a queer habit of collecting toys. He was the holder of large properties in Kerla. In his will, he bequeathed all his properties to the Nation.   

Born in Krala to a wealthy family, he moved to England for higher education. Here he met his enter Harold Laski and developed leftist leanings. China considered him as a friend. In fact few months before the 1962 war, he had a long meeting with the Chinese Foreign Minister in Geneva. 

His speeches used to full of wit, sarcasm, satire, and biting into the arguments of the opponent. He was a misfit as Defence Minister but could have made a very good Foreign Minister. Jawaharlal Nehru had a very soft corner for him and Nehru often sought his opinion on wide-ranging issues.       

He was considered Nehtu's alter ego. He represented India in UNO for many years. Before Independence, he was in the UK for many years and did a stellar job in organizing like-minded Britishers to lobby for the Independence of India by establishing an organisation named India League. He was High Commissioner of India in the UK up to 1957. It was during his time that a Jeep Scandal took place. It was largely due to trust imposed by him in an Englishman who promised to supply jeeps that he suffered embarrassment. It also shadowed Nehru's Govt. But as we see the documents produced in book and parliament debates, later on, it was found as more of a procedural lapse by officials who did not draw the contract properly. 

    He was a Member of Parliament twice for Bombay. Later when he was denied the ticket by Indira Gandhi he fought election twice from the same constituency but lost. Later he became MP from Midnapur, Bengal with the support of Communists. Later he was MP from his home Trivandrum,  Kerala. He drew token one rupee salary as High Commissioner. He was a teetotaler. He was always dressed in the finest suits.  

    The book is a must-read by those who wish to understand politics and India's worldview of the Nehruvian years.