DURGA BHAGWAT---CENTENARY LECTURE-L.S.SANGH
I AM DEEPLY INDEBTED TO THE LOKMANYA SEVA SANGH FOR GIVING ME AN OPPORTUNITY TO PARTICIPATE IN THE CENTENARY CELBRATIONS OF DURGA BHAGWAT.
KINDLY ALLOW ME TO BEGIN BY RECOUNTING A CHARMING STORY OF A GREAT SON OF INDIA, AN ASLI PUNEKAR-- PROF. D.D.KOSAMBI. WHY DID I CALL HIM AN ASLI PUNEKAR ?. THOUGH HE HELD THE CHAIR FOR MATHEMATICS IN THE TATA INSTITUTE OF FUNDAMENTAL RESEARCH, BOMBAY FROM 1946 FOR 16 YEARS HE WOULD TRAVEL EVERY DAY FROM HIS OWN HOUSE AT THE “BORI”COLONY IN POONA BY DECCAN QUEEN—ATTEND TO HIS LECTURES AND IN THE EVENING BOARD THE DECCAN QUEEN—AND GO BACK TO POONA. THIS WENT ON FOR SIXTEEN YEARS. LETTERS USED TO BE DELIVERED TO PROF. D.D.KOSAMBI C/O DECCAN QUEEN—INCLUDING ONE FROM SIR JOHN COCKROFT, CHAIRMAN OF THE BRITISH A.E.C. HIS SEAT WAS HIS ONLY—NO ONE DARE OCCUPY IT.
JUST LIKE PROF.KOSAMBI, LETTERS WERE DELIVERED TO DURGABAI C/O ASIATIC LIBRARY. AS A LIFE MEMBER OF THE ASIATIC LIBRARY FROM 1956 I MYSELF HAVE SEEN HER FOR OVER FORTY YEARS ENSCONCED IN A GREEN SOFA IN THE FOYER OF THIS PRESTIGIOUS LIBRARY—BETWEEN THE IMPRESSIVE STATUES OF BARTLE FRERE AND JOHN SARGENT AND MAHAMAHOPADHYAYA P.V.KANE. THIS TINY LADY—IN A NAVVARI SARI COULD BE SEEN DAILY EITHER WRITING OR LECTURING TO A SMALL BAND OF ADMIRERS, SCHOLARS AND EXPERTS FROM THE VARIOUS FIELDS OF ARTS. I HAD GUTS ONLY TO SAY”NAMASKAR” INITIALLY. AS I WORKED IN THE ADJOINING RESERVE BANK I USED TO VISIT THE ASIATIC LIBRARY DAILY AND MET HER QUITE REGULARLY.
RENOWNED LITTERATEUR, THINKER AND STAUNCH PROPONENT OF THE FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION DURGA BHAGWAT WAS BORN IN INDORE IN 1910 AND PASSED AWAY IN 2002. BESIDES BEING A WRITER AND A THINKER SHE WILL BE REMEMBERED IN THE ANNALS OF MARATHI LITERATURE AS A STAUNCH UPHOLDER OF DEMOCRACY AND FOR HER FIERY SPEECH AGAINST THE EMERGENCY AS PRESIDENT OF THE 51ST ALL INDIA MARATHI LITERARY MEET AT KARAD. SHE WAS JAILED AND THE COUNTRY RECOGNISED IN BHAGWAT THE “REAL” DURGA AND IN INDIRA GANDHI THE “ARTIFICIAL” DURGA. SHE CAMPAIGNED AGAINST THE RULING CONGRESS PARTY IN 1977 GENERAL ELECTION AND REMAINED A STAUNCH ENEMY TILL HER DEATH. SHE DECIDED NOT TO ACCEPT ANY STATE SPONSORED HONOURS ( WITH ONE EXCEPTION )AND DECLINED AN OFFER OF JNAN PEETH, THE MOST PRESTIGIOUS AWARD FOR INDIAN WRITERS.
BEFORE CHAIRING THE MARATHI SAHITYA SAMMELAN SHE WAS ELECTED CHAIRPERSON OF TAMASGIR MEET—TAMASGIRS COME TYPICALLY FROM YOUNG PROSTITUTES. SHE WAS PROUD OF THIS AND CONSIDERED IT A GREAT HONOUR.
BHAGWAT DID HER B.A FROM ST.XAVIERS COLLEGE, BOMBAY. SHE SPENT SIX YEARS IN THE JUNGLES OF MADHYA PRADESH PREPARING A THESIS ON TRIBALS. SHE IS RESPECTED FOR HER DEEP STUDY OF OUR EPICS RAMAYANA AND MAHABHARATA. SHE WAS CONFERRED THE SAHITYA AKADEMI AWARD IN 1972. A TREMENDOUS SCHOLAR, SHE WAS AN EXPERT ON ANTHROPOGLOGY, SOCIOLOGY, BUDDHIST LITERATURE. SHE WAS PROFICIENT IN A NUMBER OF LANGUAGES-SANSKRIT, PALI, BENGALI,GERMAN APART FROM HER MASTERY OVER MARATHI AND ENGLISH.
HER NOTABLE WORKS INCLUDE “PAIS”, A COLLECTION OF ARTICLES BASED AROUND RELIGIONS, THEIR LITERATURE AND PRACTICES, VYAS PARVA HER STUDY OF MAHABHARAT. SHE WAS AN EXPERT IN RELIGIOUS LITERATURE, WORKS OF MARATHI SAINTS FROM DNYANESHWAR TO TUKARAM, MAJOR WORKS OF VYASA MUNI, ADI SHANKARACHARYA. HER BOOK “RITUCHAKRA” DESCRIBING NATURE IN EACH INDIAN MONTH IS HER MOST FAMOUS WORK. HER TRANSLATION OF SIDDARTHA’S JATAK KATHA ACQUIRED GREAT POPULARITY. HER REPERTOIRE INCLUDED A COOKERY BOOK.
SHE REMAINED A SPINSTER AND WHEN ASKED ABOUT IT, SHE TOLD JAYWANT DALVI THAT SHE SPENT SEVERAL YEARS OF HER YOUTH IN RESEARCH, DURING WHICH SHE WAS VICTIM OF FOOD POISONING AND BY THE TIME SHE RECOVERED IT WAS TOO LATE.
AMONG HER IDOLS WERE VYASA MUNI, ADI SHANKARACHARYA, GAUTAMA BUDDHA, HENRY DAVID THOREAU AND SHRIDHAR VENKATESH KETKAR.
I HAVE CHOSEN TO SPEAK ON HER BOOK “THE RIDDLE IN INDIAN LIFE-LORE AND LITERATURE” WHICH WAS PUBLISHED IN 1965. ACTUALLY IT IS AN ELABORATION OF THE CHAPTER ON THE RIDDLE IN HER MARATHI BOOK”LOKATHITYACHI RUPAREKHA”—AN OUTLINE OF FOLKLORE. IT GIVES CONCISELY THE EXACT PICTURE OF THE ESSENTIAL FORMS, FEATURES AND TRENDS OF THE RIDDLE, BOTH RITUALISTIC AND LITERARY, WITH THE RELEVANT CULTURAL BACKGROUND.
THE RIDDLE INCORPORATES A QUESTION PRIMARILY AND AN ANSWER SECONDARILY. A FACT IS CONCEALED IN THE QUESTION IN THE FORM OF A METAPHOR. THE ANSWER REVEALS THE HIDDEN MEANING. CONCEALMENT IS CRUCIAL TO A RIDDLE.THE ULTIMATE PURPOSE OF THE RIDDLE IS IMPARTING KNOWLEDGE OR MORAL INSTRUCTION. THE RIDDLE HAS INFLUENCED POPULAR IMAGINATION MORE THAN ANY OTHER ORAL TRADITION. THE INDIAN TRADITION OF RIDDLES IS VERY ANCIENT, EVEN PRE-VEDIC. IT IS AN EVER-ALIVE POPULAR INSTITUTION WHICH KEEPS BOTH PEOPLE’S FAITH AND THEIR WIT PERENNIALLY GOING ON.
THE VEDIC RIDDLES ARE POETIC IN FORM AND CONTENT AND DRAW MUCH FROM THE SOURCES OF POWER, MYSTERY, BEAUTY AND LIFE ITSELF.A SAMPLE FROM THE VAJASENIYA SAMHITA.
WHO WANDERS LONELY ON HIS WAY?
WHO IS CONSTANTLY BORN ANEW?
WHAT IS THE REMEDY FOR COLD?
WHAT IS THE GREAT CORN VESSEL CALLED?
ANSWER:
THE SUN WANDERS LONELY ON ITS WAY.
THE MOON IS CONSTANTLY BORN ANEW.
FIRE IS THE REMEDY FOR COLD.
THE EARTH IS THE GREAT CORN VESSEL
BHAGWAT GOES ON TO DEAL WITH RIDDLES FROM THE MAHABHARATA ONWARDS.THE MOST FAMOUS IS THE YAKSHA PRASNA WHERE A CRITICAL SITUATION EMERGES IF THE RIGHT ANSWER IS NOT GIVEN. THUS THE FOUR PANDAVAS ARE STRUCK DEAD BY THE YAKSHA AND YUDHISHTIRA BY ANSWERING ALL QUESTIONS CORRECTLY BRINGS HIS BROTHERS BACK TO LIFE.
“PRAHELIKA” REFERS TO VERSES WHICH CONCEAL THE REAL MEANING AND SUGGEST ANOTHER AND ARE USED IN CONVERSATIONS OF THE LEARNED AND IN WITTY REPARTEES. A SAMPLE—
PAANIYAM PAATHUM ICCHAMI TVATTHAH KAMALALOCHANE
YADI DASYASI NECHHAMO NO DASYASI PIBAMYAHAM
LITERAL MEANING—
I WISH TO DRINK WATER FROM YOU, O LOTUS-EYED GIRL.
IF YOU GIVE ME, I DO NOT DESIRE IT.
IF YOU DO NOT GIVE, THEN I DRINK.
THE SOLUTION TO THE RIDDLE IS
I WISH TO DRINK WATER FROM YOU, O LOTUS-EYED GIRL.
IF YOU ARE A SERVANT GIRL, I DO NOT DESIRE IT.
IF YOU ARE NOT A MAID-SERVANT, THEN I SHALL DRINK IT.
A VERY POPULAR RIDDLE IS “SAMASYA”. IN THE FIRST THREE LINES ONE OR MORE QUESTIONS ARE PUT—THE SOLUTION COMES IN THE LAST LINE. THE KING WOULD OFFER THE FOURTH LINE TO THE PUNDITS AND THEY WERE ASKED TO SUPPLY THE FIRST THREE LINES. THE MOST FAMOUS AND TRAGIC SAMASYA LED TO THE DEATH OF KALIDASA.
ONCE THE KING OF CEYLON KUMARASENA , A FRIEND OF KALIDASA, DECLARED A RIDDLE AND OFFERED TO GIVE A HANDSOME REWARD TO ONE WHO SOLVED IT. THE RIDDLE WAS
“KUSUME KUSUMOTHPATTHI SRUYATHE NA CHA DRISYATHE”
“ THAT A FLOWER IS BORN OF A FLOWER,IS HEARD OF, BUT NOT SEEN”.
KALIDASA, WHO WAS IN CEYLON, HEARD THE RIDDLE FROM A COURTESAN AND COMPOSED THE SOLUTION IN ONE LINE—
“BALE TAVA MUKHAMBOJE KATHAM INDIVARADVAYAM”—
O. GIRL, HOW IS IT THAT ON THE LOTUS OF YOUR FACE THERE ARE TWO BLUE LOTUSES (OF THE EYES”)?
THE COURTESAN KILLED THE POET AND WENT TO THE KING AND DEMANDED THE PRIZE.THE KING DETECTED THE KALIDASA TOUCH, FOUND OUT HOW THE RIDDLE HAD CAUSED HIS FRIEND’S DEATH AND JUMPED INTO THE FUNERAL PYRE OF THE POET AND WAS BURNT TO DEATH. KING BHOJA WAS ANOTHER KING FAMOUS FOR HIS SAMASYAS.
DURGA BHAGWAT HAS AN INTERESTING CHAPTER ON THE RIDDLE AND THE PROVERB. IN SANSKRIT AS ALSO OTHER LANGUAGES THERE ARE A LARGE NUMBER OF POEMS DESCRIBING VARIOUS GODS.
APPARENTLY THESE ARE OF FINITE GODS OF
THE EPICS AND PURANAS BUT TO THE MAN WHO
HAS RECEIVED THE “MASTER-KEY” ( GURU-KILLI )
THE MEANING WOULD BE ENTIRELY DIFFERENT.
SHE GIVES AN EXAMPLE OF A MARATHI VERSE OF JNANADEVA(13TH CENTURY),
“GOD VITTHALA QUARELLED WITH HIS CONSORT RAKHUMAI, AND WHO WILL PUT A STOP TO THEIR QUARREL NOW? IT IS I JNANADEVA, HUMBLE AT THE FEET OF NIVRITTI ( ELDER BROTHER AND TEACHER OF JNANADEVA ),WHO WILL DO IT ”.
THE MEANING OF SUCH VERSES IS NOT SO SIMPLE. NAMES AS VITHALA, RAKHUMAI ARE TO BE INTERPRETED AS BRAHMA AND MAYA AND THE NAMES OF NIVRITTI AND JNANADEVA ARE TO BE TREATED AS COMMON NOUNS MEANING RENUNCIATION AND KNOWLEDGE, RESPECTIVELY. THE VERSE WILL MEAN NOW—THE ETERNAL SOUL—BRAHMAN OR SELF—ATMAN IS ALWAYS IN CONFLICT WITH MAYA—ILLUSION WHICH CAUSES ALL DELUSION AND MAKES THINGS APPEAR DIFFERENTLY FROM WHAT IT ACTUALLY IS.
WHO WILL STOP THIS CONFLICT?
IT IS KNOWLEDGE ALONE WITH RENUNCIATION.
I HOPE THAT IN THE BRIEF TIME ALOTTED TO ME I HAVE SHOWN YOU A GLIMPSE OF THE GREAT WORK DONE BY THIS GREAT LADY, I OFFER MY SALUTATIONS TO HER AND THANK ALL OF YOU FOR A PATIENT HEARING.
P.P.RAMACHANDRAN
12-09-2009
Thursday, April 15, 2010
VINDA KARANDIKAR-- A TRIBUTE
VINDA KARANDIKAR—A TRIBUTE
Gurur Brahma Gurur Vishnu
Gurur Devo Maheshwaraha
Gurur Eva Param Brahma
Tasmai Shri Gurave Namaha
I am grateful to the Lokmanya Seva Sangh for having given me an opportunity to pay my humble tribute to my Guru. I had the privilege of studying English under Prof. Vinda Karandikar in Ramnarain Ruia College over fifty years ago. He taught us Shakespeare's "Merchant of Venice" and "Macbeth" and Lo and Behold , the characters would spring alive in our classroom, Macbeth brooding in high tension and remorse and Portia becoming a “ Daniel come to Judgement ”for the bloodthirsty Shylock. Prof.Karandikar's lectures held us spellbound and he inspired a generation of students. It is quite rarely that we come across instances of eminence being achieved simultaneously in two languages. Karandikar strode like a Colossus the twin worlds of Marathi poetry and English prose.
Govind Vināyak Karandikar (August 23, 1918 — March 14, 2010), better known as Vindā Karandikar, is a well-known Marathi poet and writer. He was the most experimental and comprehensive among all the modern Marathi poets. He was also an essayist, literary critic, and a translator. He was conferred the 39th Jnanapith Award in 2003, which is the highest literary award in India. Conferring the Award in 2006, President A P J Abdul Kalam described him as an essayist, critic and translator who has made a notable contribution to Marathi poetry and literature."His life is an example of extraordinary achievement realised through ceaseless search for aesthetic perfection,". Some of the other awards conferred on him included Keshavasut Prize, Soviet Land Nehru Literary Award, Kabir Samman, and the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship in 1996.
Karandikar was born on August 23, 1918, at Ghalval village in the present-day Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra. He was born in Ghalval village district to a poor farmer and went through times of great hardship, so much that he could complete his school and college education from Kolhapur, solely due to timely help from a well-wisher. He completed his Masters in English, and went on to settle in Mumbai, choosing teaching as his profession.
Thought provoking subjects like universal truths, mortality, scientific approach and spiritual inclination, were the core of his poetry. Vinda did a lot of experimentation with his poems and he dabbled in different types and compositions of poetry like ghazal, song, mukta suneet (free sonnet). His famous collection of poems include SwedGanga , MrudaGandha , Dhrupad and Jatak ). His collection of short essays, Sparshaachi Palav and Akashacha Arth not only show his unique style of thinking, but also his sharp wit. Parampara ani Navata , is a collection of analytical reviews, which enjoys an important place among the various critiques in Marathi literature. Vinda wrote many poems for children, different from traditional nursery rhymes. His poems for children show good understanding of children, their own little world, their imagination, their ideas and are especially touching because he has used the novel, imaginative, mystical, humorous and unique ideas of children. Ranichi Baag, Ekda Kaay Jhale, Ajabkhana, Sarkaswala, Pari Ga Pari, are some of his popular collections that enriched children's world.
Karandikar's poetic works include Svedgangā , Mrudgandha , Dhrupad , Jātak , and Virupika . Two anthologies of his selected poems, Sanhita and Adimaya were also published. He also modernized old Marathi literature like Dnyaneshwari and Amrutānubhava. Besides having been a prominent Marathi poet, Karandikar has contributed to Marathi literature as an essayist, a critic, and a translator. Karandikar was the third Marathi writer—after Khandekar and Shirvadkar-- to have won the Jnanpith award in the year 2003 for his work called Ashtadarshan (poetry). We are all aware that Vinda with Vasant Bapat and Manesh Padgaonkar, travelled all over Maharashtra, organizing thousands of poetry reading sessions.
In his book “Poems of Vinda” there is a very valuable discussion entitled “Ten Minutes With The Poet’, a dialogue between Vinda and Sadanand Bhatkal. Recalling the earliest incident in his life the poet says --“I was just a kid. I ran to my mother, to know for certain, whether I had a step-mother, whether she had tried to murder the son of a kinsman, and whether she was arrested, tried and transported for life; for that was how his playmates teased him. My mother, with tears in her eyes said it was so and added that my step-mother was a witch who deserved hanging. I found myself haunted by a deep sense of sin from which I have never been able to extricate myself”. His father, who married his mother much later, must have felt socially uprooted. The couple had five daughters and four sons. His father, who had the dignity of a village leader, imbibed the reformist zeal from Savarkar and patriotic fervour from Tilak. Villagers told us stories of his fight with a tiger, his risky plunge into a flooded river to save a woman’s life, his throwing away his idols into a well in a monotheistic mood, and his courageous facing of a social boycott for his softness to Untouchables.
Highly praised are his translations into English of Shakespeare’s “King Lear”, Aristotle’s “Poetics” and the first part of Goethe’s “Faust”. Along with A.K.Ramanujan, that eminent poet and folk-artist, he translated his own poems into English in two volumes—“Poems of Vinda” and “More Poems of Vinda”. Adverting to the art of translation of his poems into English, the poet recalls his association with A.K.Ramanujan, who for Vinda represented a happy combination of poetic genius with linguistic methodology. He gives credit to Ramanujan for his guidance. Later on he got good help from M.V.Rajadhyaksha, R.Parthasarathy and Derek Anto.
Vinda’s acceptance speech at the Jnanpith Award function is a classic example of explaining a Poet’s credo. I shall dwell on the cardinal items. The poet who wants to cope with the variety and complexity of life has no other alternative but to accept an “open view of poetry”. This accepts the possibility, usefulness and aesthetic significance of different kinds of moods, forms and styles. It does not equate “purity” with certain states odd emotions, or “beauty “with particular attributes of form. It does not belittle traditional forms and modes in its enthusiasm for experiments or dub normal moods and attitudes as essentially non-poetic. It admits ugliness, dirt, cruelty and vulgarities but refuses to worship these as deities…My poetry includes realism and fantasy, a Marxist concern with social reality and a Freudian concern with sex or the unconscious, satirical outbursts and mystical probings of the ineffable, traditional modes and new experiments. Marxism gives me one more insight into the nature of Man and Society. It becomes a part of my imaginative awareness of life. I have never conceived myself in the role of an active revolutionary. ”.
Vinda believed in an open view of life, art and literature. “As I was a Professor of English literature, my poetry was influenced by Browning, Hopkins and T.S.Eliot. The three Marathi poets who influenced me were Keshavsut, Madhav Julian and Mardhekar. In my poetry there is a diversity of ideas which reveals the influence of Marxism and Gandhism, Russell’s skepticism and Indian mysticism. For those who believe in self-consistent closed theories I am a very inconvenient poet.”
“I believe in Science, not in Religion. Long ago Bacon said “Knowledge is Power”. By knowledge I mean not only knowledge of the world without man but also the knowledge of the world within man and of the society he has brought into being. So Freud or Marx, Lincoln or Gandhi is as much a liberator of man as Darwin or Einstein….Science will create the new man who recognizes no distinctions of colour, race, religion, sex or nationality, who stands for the unity and brotherhood of mankind, who believes in freedom, equality and social justice as basic values…He will be an incurable optimist in spite of set-backs”.
All of you are aware how munificent he was. He donated over 7 lakhs of rupees—the money he earned through prizes—to arrange the Madhav Julian and R.D.Karve Memorial Lectures. During his life he donated wealth and after death he donated his body for scientific research.
Kindly allow me to conclude on a light note. I have a photograph of Vinda Karandikar with a newly wedded couple. He is all smiles and shows the bridegroom a gunny bag full of vegetables and declares –“This is what you will do after marriage!.”
( I recited two stanzas in English from Vinda’s “Dhondya The Barber”—hilarious and touching at once. I shall furnish on request.)
Thank you all for a patient hearing.
P.P.Ramachandran
26-03-2010
Gurur Brahma Gurur Vishnu
Gurur Devo Maheshwaraha
Gurur Eva Param Brahma
Tasmai Shri Gurave Namaha
I am grateful to the Lokmanya Seva Sangh for having given me an opportunity to pay my humble tribute to my Guru. I had the privilege of studying English under Prof. Vinda Karandikar in Ramnarain Ruia College over fifty years ago. He taught us Shakespeare's "Merchant of Venice" and "Macbeth" and Lo and Behold , the characters would spring alive in our classroom, Macbeth brooding in high tension and remorse and Portia becoming a “ Daniel come to Judgement ”for the bloodthirsty Shylock. Prof.Karandikar's lectures held us spellbound and he inspired a generation of students. It is quite rarely that we come across instances of eminence being achieved simultaneously in two languages. Karandikar strode like a Colossus the twin worlds of Marathi poetry and English prose.
Govind Vināyak Karandikar (August 23, 1918 — March 14, 2010), better known as Vindā Karandikar, is a well-known Marathi poet and writer. He was the most experimental and comprehensive among all the modern Marathi poets. He was also an essayist, literary critic, and a translator. He was conferred the 39th Jnanapith Award in 2003, which is the highest literary award in India. Conferring the Award in 2006, President A P J Abdul Kalam described him as an essayist, critic and translator who has made a notable contribution to Marathi poetry and literature."His life is an example of extraordinary achievement realised through ceaseless search for aesthetic perfection,". Some of the other awards conferred on him included Keshavasut Prize, Soviet Land Nehru Literary Award, Kabir Samman, and the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship in 1996.
Karandikar was born on August 23, 1918, at Ghalval village in the present-day Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra. He was born in Ghalval village district to a poor farmer and went through times of great hardship, so much that he could complete his school and college education from Kolhapur, solely due to timely help from a well-wisher. He completed his Masters in English, and went on to settle in Mumbai, choosing teaching as his profession.
Thought provoking subjects like universal truths, mortality, scientific approach and spiritual inclination, were the core of his poetry. Vinda did a lot of experimentation with his poems and he dabbled in different types and compositions of poetry like ghazal, song, mukta suneet (free sonnet). His famous collection of poems include SwedGanga , MrudaGandha , Dhrupad and Jatak ). His collection of short essays, Sparshaachi Palav and Akashacha Arth not only show his unique style of thinking, but also his sharp wit. Parampara ani Navata , is a collection of analytical reviews, which enjoys an important place among the various critiques in Marathi literature. Vinda wrote many poems for children, different from traditional nursery rhymes. His poems for children show good understanding of children, their own little world, their imagination, their ideas and are especially touching because he has used the novel, imaginative, mystical, humorous and unique ideas of children. Ranichi Baag, Ekda Kaay Jhale, Ajabkhana, Sarkaswala, Pari Ga Pari, are some of his popular collections that enriched children's world.
Karandikar's poetic works include Svedgangā , Mrudgandha , Dhrupad , Jātak , and Virupika . Two anthologies of his selected poems, Sanhita and Adimaya were also published. He also modernized old Marathi literature like Dnyaneshwari and Amrutānubhava. Besides having been a prominent Marathi poet, Karandikar has contributed to Marathi literature as an essayist, a critic, and a translator. Karandikar was the third Marathi writer—after Khandekar and Shirvadkar-- to have won the Jnanpith award in the year 2003 for his work called Ashtadarshan (poetry). We are all aware that Vinda with Vasant Bapat and Manesh Padgaonkar, travelled all over Maharashtra, organizing thousands of poetry reading sessions.
In his book “Poems of Vinda” there is a very valuable discussion entitled “Ten Minutes With The Poet’, a dialogue between Vinda and Sadanand Bhatkal. Recalling the earliest incident in his life the poet says --“I was just a kid. I ran to my mother, to know for certain, whether I had a step-mother, whether she had tried to murder the son of a kinsman, and whether she was arrested, tried and transported for life; for that was how his playmates teased him. My mother, with tears in her eyes said it was so and added that my step-mother was a witch who deserved hanging. I found myself haunted by a deep sense of sin from which I have never been able to extricate myself”. His father, who married his mother much later, must have felt socially uprooted. The couple had five daughters and four sons. His father, who had the dignity of a village leader, imbibed the reformist zeal from Savarkar and patriotic fervour from Tilak. Villagers told us stories of his fight with a tiger, his risky plunge into a flooded river to save a woman’s life, his throwing away his idols into a well in a monotheistic mood, and his courageous facing of a social boycott for his softness to Untouchables.
Highly praised are his translations into English of Shakespeare’s “King Lear”, Aristotle’s “Poetics” and the first part of Goethe’s “Faust”. Along with A.K.Ramanujan, that eminent poet and folk-artist, he translated his own poems into English in two volumes—“Poems of Vinda” and “More Poems of Vinda”. Adverting to the art of translation of his poems into English, the poet recalls his association with A.K.Ramanujan, who for Vinda represented a happy combination of poetic genius with linguistic methodology. He gives credit to Ramanujan for his guidance. Later on he got good help from M.V.Rajadhyaksha, R.Parthasarathy and Derek Anto.
Vinda’s acceptance speech at the Jnanpith Award function is a classic example of explaining a Poet’s credo. I shall dwell on the cardinal items. The poet who wants to cope with the variety and complexity of life has no other alternative but to accept an “open view of poetry”. This accepts the possibility, usefulness and aesthetic significance of different kinds of moods, forms and styles. It does not equate “purity” with certain states odd emotions, or “beauty “with particular attributes of form. It does not belittle traditional forms and modes in its enthusiasm for experiments or dub normal moods and attitudes as essentially non-poetic. It admits ugliness, dirt, cruelty and vulgarities but refuses to worship these as deities…My poetry includes realism and fantasy, a Marxist concern with social reality and a Freudian concern with sex or the unconscious, satirical outbursts and mystical probings of the ineffable, traditional modes and new experiments. Marxism gives me one more insight into the nature of Man and Society. It becomes a part of my imaginative awareness of life. I have never conceived myself in the role of an active revolutionary. ”.
Vinda believed in an open view of life, art and literature. “As I was a Professor of English literature, my poetry was influenced by Browning, Hopkins and T.S.Eliot. The three Marathi poets who influenced me were Keshavsut, Madhav Julian and Mardhekar. In my poetry there is a diversity of ideas which reveals the influence of Marxism and Gandhism, Russell’s skepticism and Indian mysticism. For those who believe in self-consistent closed theories I am a very inconvenient poet.”
“I believe in Science, not in Religion. Long ago Bacon said “Knowledge is Power”. By knowledge I mean not only knowledge of the world without man but also the knowledge of the world within man and of the society he has brought into being. So Freud or Marx, Lincoln or Gandhi is as much a liberator of man as Darwin or Einstein….Science will create the new man who recognizes no distinctions of colour, race, religion, sex or nationality, who stands for the unity and brotherhood of mankind, who believes in freedom, equality and social justice as basic values…He will be an incurable optimist in spite of set-backs”.
All of you are aware how munificent he was. He donated over 7 lakhs of rupees—the money he earned through prizes—to arrange the Madhav Julian and R.D.Karve Memorial Lectures. During his life he donated wealth and after death he donated his body for scientific research.
Kindly allow me to conclude on a light note. I have a photograph of Vinda Karandikar with a newly wedded couple. He is all smiles and shows the bridegroom a gunny bag full of vegetables and declares –“This is what you will do after marriage!.”
( I recited two stanzas in English from Vinda’s “Dhondya The Barber”—hilarious and touching at once. I shall furnish on request.)
Thank you all for a patient hearing.
P.P.Ramachandran
26-03-2010
The Thread of God in My Life--R.M.Lala
The Thread of God in my Life by R.M. Lala; Penguin Books; Pages: 194; Price: Rs 399/-
************* The book under review was released by our scholar ex-President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam .He declared "When I read the book I found that the book is a book of books. You feel every page is scholarly and touches the heart. Many authors appear in the book; many poets appear in the book; many scriptures appear in the book. Every page of the book of Russi Lala indeed breathes the spirit of faith, self confidence and hope. Throughout the book, the message of Rig Veda is ringing. .. Let not the thread of my song be cut when I sing; let not my work get over before fulfillment. The book continuously shines…It revealed to me that beauty in the character is possible and harmony in the soul is possible and order in the nation is possible and peace in the world is also possible, but one thing we need and that is righteousness in the heart."
Lala is rightly famous for his biography of J.R.D.Tata and Creation of Wealth :The Tata Story, Encounters with the Eminent, For the Love of India—a biography of Jamshetji Tata. He wrote a touching book on his battle with cancer—Celebration of the Cells: Letters from a cancer patient. He was closely connected with the MRA and founded and edited Himmat Weekly which he did for ten years. In the present book Lala himself wrote “ I am not important but what has happened to me and what I have learnt from it may be," . He calls his book ”an autobiography with a difference ” because it has two parts — the first being the autobiography and the second, the values he had imbibed from it. Notable for its utter honesty the autobiography is a simple, uncomplicated narration of his life, a direct release from the heart. His tremendously variegated life offers an insight into several disciplines which ruled his life — a journalist, manager of a publishing house, an author, director of a well-known trust, founder and chairman of the Centre for Advancement of Philanthropy and his role in the Moral Re-Armament movement. Lala’s felicity of expression and grace of style combined with a fund of interesting and meaningful anecdotes, his impressive repertoire of reading religious and literary classics make this book at once scintillating and unputdownable. Fali Nariman, highly respected jurist and friend of the author for over six decades contributes a scholarly Foreword and observes with great accuracy that RM Lala takes himself lightly. Throughout the narration, he never lets the description of his tribulations bog the reader down — his parents' separation, the period of coldness in his marriage, financial troubles and his fight with cancer have been dealt with in a matter-of-fact way, without an ounce of self-pity. The influences in his life that have shaped him- figures and events in history , the anxious wait on the lawns of Bombay University as the grand clock ticked away towards India's independence, etc — all these delicious snippets enliven the book. And, though the autobiography is titled The Thread of God in my Life, a reader will also find the thread of the author's humility running through the story along with his deep faith in God. Lala says in the beginning , “A person should be ready to receive a book. The more it satisfies a need in him at a particular point in time, the greater the impact.” This book, apart from satisfying needs, will inspire in the reader the courage to meet life head-on, reassurance about the presence of a Supreme Power, the will to follow his / her inner voice and the need to build a “House of Values” and to live within it. An excerpt from the book about his fight with cancer is revealing : “At times I have wanted to flee but I know that the only way to deal with pain when it comes is to go through it and not around it. When my boat is small and the sea stormy, I need the strength that comes from a power higher than myself. The great thing about physical pain is that after it passes we forget it. When physical pain stabs us it is good to remember that 'this will also pass'. Finding a faith and cultivating friendship with my Creator was the most wonderful thing to have happened in my life. I learnt that prayer is of three types: you speak to God, next you want to listen to Him, and lastly you just like to be in His presence and converse with Him silently. The choice of books, friends and the discipline of a quiet time has kept this flame of faith alive. This desire to turn to the Lord is my most precious possession. The ability to do so follows the sincerity of the desire. It is available to all. Acceptance of the reality leads to peace of heart. Acceptance is not helplessness or surrender. It is a recognition of reality, and the starting point of a strategy for meeting a challenge. Rebellion can only make things worse. It needs a special kind of courage because whenever there is a recurrence of my problem, I know it hurts those to whom I am dear. But it should not and cannot be hidden. It is best to reveal it. So long as they see the will to stand up to it, they are reassured. The importance of attitude cannot be overemphasized. We fail to realize it adequately, but we have a choice about how we face the pressures of everyday life. We can choose to react in a positive way, doing our best, or we can make ourselves miserable repeating in our minds patterns of defeat. Hippocrates, the father of Western medical science, said that it was more important for doctors to know what sort of person had the disease than the sort of disease a person had. As a cancer survivor I might utter a word of caution. My 'fighting spirit' is not at the same level every day, or at all times during the same day. One can sometimes drift from a mood of defiance to one of stoic acceptance or even one of exhaustion with life. The question is what is your feeling at most times? And how do you pick up?”.
In sum, this is a book that is at once deep and easy of reading and laden with moral values following of which will guarantee our improvement and conquest of happiness.
P.P.Ramachandran,
12-12-2009
************* The book under review was released by our scholar ex-President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam .He declared "When I read the book I found that the book is a book of books. You feel every page is scholarly and touches the heart. Many authors appear in the book; many poets appear in the book; many scriptures appear in the book. Every page of the book of Russi Lala indeed breathes the spirit of faith, self confidence and hope. Throughout the book, the message of Rig Veda is ringing. .. Let not the thread of my song be cut when I sing; let not my work get over before fulfillment. The book continuously shines…It revealed to me that beauty in the character is possible and harmony in the soul is possible and order in the nation is possible and peace in the world is also possible, but one thing we need and that is righteousness in the heart."
Lala is rightly famous for his biography of J.R.D.Tata and Creation of Wealth :The Tata Story, Encounters with the Eminent, For the Love of India—a biography of Jamshetji Tata. He wrote a touching book on his battle with cancer—Celebration of the Cells: Letters from a cancer patient. He was closely connected with the MRA and founded and edited Himmat Weekly which he did for ten years. In the present book Lala himself wrote “ I am not important but what has happened to me and what I have learnt from it may be," . He calls his book ”an autobiography with a difference ” because it has two parts — the first being the autobiography and the second, the values he had imbibed from it. Notable for its utter honesty the autobiography is a simple, uncomplicated narration of his life, a direct release from the heart. His tremendously variegated life offers an insight into several disciplines which ruled his life — a journalist, manager of a publishing house, an author, director of a well-known trust, founder and chairman of the Centre for Advancement of Philanthropy and his role in the Moral Re-Armament movement. Lala’s felicity of expression and grace of style combined with a fund of interesting and meaningful anecdotes, his impressive repertoire of reading religious and literary classics make this book at once scintillating and unputdownable. Fali Nariman, highly respected jurist and friend of the author for over six decades contributes a scholarly Foreword and observes with great accuracy that RM Lala takes himself lightly. Throughout the narration, he never lets the description of his tribulations bog the reader down — his parents' separation, the period of coldness in his marriage, financial troubles and his fight with cancer have been dealt with in a matter-of-fact way, without an ounce of self-pity. The influences in his life that have shaped him- figures and events in history , the anxious wait on the lawns of Bombay University as the grand clock ticked away towards India's independence, etc — all these delicious snippets enliven the book. And, though the autobiography is titled The Thread of God in my Life, a reader will also find the thread of the author's humility running through the story along with his deep faith in God. Lala says in the beginning , “A person should be ready to receive a book. The more it satisfies a need in him at a particular point in time, the greater the impact.” This book, apart from satisfying needs, will inspire in the reader the courage to meet life head-on, reassurance about the presence of a Supreme Power, the will to follow his / her inner voice and the need to build a “House of Values” and to live within it. An excerpt from the book about his fight with cancer is revealing : “At times I have wanted to flee but I know that the only way to deal with pain when it comes is to go through it and not around it. When my boat is small and the sea stormy, I need the strength that comes from a power higher than myself. The great thing about physical pain is that after it passes we forget it. When physical pain stabs us it is good to remember that 'this will also pass'. Finding a faith and cultivating friendship with my Creator was the most wonderful thing to have happened in my life. I learnt that prayer is of three types: you speak to God, next you want to listen to Him, and lastly you just like to be in His presence and converse with Him silently. The choice of books, friends and the discipline of a quiet time has kept this flame of faith alive. This desire to turn to the Lord is my most precious possession. The ability to do so follows the sincerity of the desire. It is available to all. Acceptance of the reality leads to peace of heart. Acceptance is not helplessness or surrender. It is a recognition of reality, and the starting point of a strategy for meeting a challenge. Rebellion can only make things worse. It needs a special kind of courage because whenever there is a recurrence of my problem, I know it hurts those to whom I am dear. But it should not and cannot be hidden. It is best to reveal it. So long as they see the will to stand up to it, they are reassured. The importance of attitude cannot be overemphasized. We fail to realize it adequately, but we have a choice about how we face the pressures of everyday life. We can choose to react in a positive way, doing our best, or we can make ourselves miserable repeating in our minds patterns of defeat. Hippocrates, the father of Western medical science, said that it was more important for doctors to know what sort of person had the disease than the sort of disease a person had. As a cancer survivor I might utter a word of caution. My 'fighting spirit' is not at the same level every day, or at all times during the same day. One can sometimes drift from a mood of defiance to one of stoic acceptance or even one of exhaustion with life. The question is what is your feeling at most times? And how do you pick up?”.
In sum, this is a book that is at once deep and easy of reading and laden with moral values following of which will guarantee our improvement and conquest of happiness.
P.P.Ramachandran,
12-12-2009
R B I GOVERNORS SPEAK
Perspectives on Central Banking—Governors Speak ; Published by Reserve Bank of India; Pages 498 ; Price Rs. 1400/-
************************************
The Platinum Jubilee of an Institution is the most appropriate occasion to review its genesis, growth and prospects. This has been eloquently achieved by the book under review which was released by Dr Manmohan Singh, himself a Governor of RBI (1982—1985). Undoubtedly, this book will provide an appreciation of the Reserve Bank’s chequered history and its role in nation building.
Reserve Bank of India occupies a unique and distinctive place in the Indian banking and financial system. It is the monetary authority and central bank of the country and has been assigned wide powers and responsibilities to overview, develop and regulate the financial system. It was set up in 1935 under the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934. Initially, its objective was, as the Preamble to the Act states, “ to regulate the issue of bank notes with a view to securing monetary stability in India and generally to operate the currency and credit system of the country to its advantage”. After Independence, the ownership of the Bank was transferred to the Government and it was assigned a developmental role as well, besides that of the regulator of the financial system. It is the banker to banks and also regulates the activities of banking, non-banking companies and the financial institutions in the country.
The main functions of RB I is issue of bank notes, transaction of government business, managing public debt, undertaking of transactions in foreign exchange as Controller of foreign exchange, keeping of cash reserves of banks, granting loans and advances to scheduled commercial banks and co-operative banks, granting of loans to other financial institutions, granting of advances to Governments, controlling credit and acting as the Regulatory and Supervisory Authority.
This compendium of key speeches of RBI Governors is the Reserve Bank of India’s tribute to its past leaders. Seventy-five years is a relatively short span for an institution. Even so, this journey from 1935 has been eventful for the Reserve Bank, shaping not only its intellectual evolution but also securing its preeminent position in the economic policy of the country. This period has witnessed momentous changes - a paradigm shift in economic ideology, ever new perspectives on economic development, growing aspirations of people, path-breaking financial innovations and game changing technological breakthroughs. All these are changes which influenced the Reserve Bank, and changes to which the Bank has responded in its own unique way.
The major events during these 75 years included several important developments both on the national scene and on the international front. Internationally, the aftermath of the Great Depression of the 1930s ; the Second World War and the consequent challenges of war financing ; the establishment of the new International monetary system in 1944 ; the rule of the gold standard and the rude oil price reverberations of the 1970s ; the Third World debt crisis of the 1980s ; the Asian crisis of the mid-1990s and most recently the global financial turmoil.
Within the country we began with the launching of five-year plans; and the stark challenges posed by the most ambitious and gigantic experiments in economic development, the after-effects of the two wars in the 1960s, the devaluation of the rupee in 1966, bank nationalisation in 1969, the balance of payments crisis of the early 1990s and the follow on path-breaking economic reforms that marked a paradigm shift in our economic policy. The Reserve Bank has played its role admirably in addressing these developments, responding to them with sensitivity, professionalism and integrity.
The high esteem in which the Reserve Bank is held today owes much to the intellectual leadership and vision of successive Governors. The speeches in this compendium are a testimony to that. They mark a journey through time and provide a glimpse into the ideas, issues and concerns that were inextricably intertwined with the Reserve Bank over this period.
The wide-ranging themes covered by the speeches - monetary policy, external sector management, issues in the financial sector and the real economy, economic development and poverty reduction, regulation of banks and financial markets and challenges of managing economic policy in a globalizing environment – indicate clearly the role played by the Reserve Bank and its continued commitment to public good.
The basic objectives of economic policy have remained roughly the same, growth with stability and social justice. The Reserve Bank has played a very important role in drawing the attention of our country to make our credit system more sensitive to the needs of our farmers and our rural community. It was instrumental in setting up a whole lot of institutions and diversifying the financial system. The more inclusive financial system that we now have owes a great deal to the innovative ideas emerging from the Reserve Bank.
RBI had 22 Governors from the first Australian Osborne Smith to the latest Dr.Duvvuri Subbarao. The terms of Governors have varied from eight years to just 22 days. Some Governors did not make a speech and the book under review has 32 speeches by 18 Governors. The speeches and the quotes are embellished with the track history of India’s economy. Obviously, in a brief review, one cannot cover all the speeches. We select a few. The first Indian Governor C.D. Deshmukh’s speeches are noted for their extraordinary clarity, felicity of expression and grace of style. His lecture on “Central Banking in India : A Retrospect” is a racy account of the evolution of the Bank, the deliberations at Bretton Woods,, the pow-wows between the Finance Member and the Reserve Bank authorities on the inflationary situation following depression, the rupee-shilling ratio, his own appointment as Governor. Deshmukh’s description of his predecessor James Taylor is worth recalling, “His intelligence was like a lambent flame which illumined everything that it touched and purged it of dross, and he had a catholicity of interest, a breadth of outlook and a warm humanity which I have seldom seen equalled ”.
Shri P.C.Bhattacharyya was the Governor during whose tenure the Indian rupee was devalued. In his B.F.Madon Memorial lecture on “Monetary Policy and Economic Development” he offers a masterly analysis of the objectives of monetary policy so devised that distribution of credit conforms to the pattern of investment. Monetary policy, stressed the Governor, must concern itself with the appropriate qualitative influence on productive activity. It is an inalienable aspect of the State’s intervention in the economic process and must naturally be attuned to the larger economic objectives of the State.
Perhaps the most visionary Governor is the present Prime Minister. During Dr Manmohan Singh’s tenure, comprehensive legal reforms of the banking sector led to the introduction of a new chapter in the Reserve Bank of India Act. His speech on “Indian Banking System in the Seventh Five Year Plan” is a thorough analysis of the problems faced by the banking industry, the challenges and the opportunities and the need to change structures, systems, procedures and work practices that will ensure that the banks discharge successfully their expanded responsibilities.
We are led to the groves of academe as we read the two speeches of Dr C.Rangarajan, a distinguished member of I I M. The M.G.Kutty memorial lecture on “Autonomy of Central Banks” is a scintillating analysis of the background to autonomy of central banks in foreign countries. We are then led on, step by step, typical of an I I M professor, about the Indian experience from the days of Sir Jeremy Raisman, nationalization and its aftermath, the Chakravarty Committee report, etc. Autonomy, declared Dr.Rangarajan, is not unrestrained. In a democratic set up it can and will always be subject to policy directives either from the Government or the legislature.
A heartwarming lecture included in the volume is the one given by Dr.Y.V.Reddy to the villagers of Karamchedu originally delivered in Telugu. He explained in simple terms “What RBI means to the Common Person”. Using simple terms the Governor advised the villagers what they can expect from such a powerful institution. This shows the human face of RBI.
This compendium provides an appreciation of the Reserve Bank’s eventful history and its contribution to nation building. It also highlights the need for the Reserve Bank to pursue the frontiers of knowledge even as it remains sensitive to the core concerns of the emergent market economy, but one which is still home to crores of poor people.
P.P.Ramachandran,
22-02-2010
************************************
The Platinum Jubilee of an Institution is the most appropriate occasion to review its genesis, growth and prospects. This has been eloquently achieved by the book under review which was released by Dr Manmohan Singh, himself a Governor of RBI (1982—1985). Undoubtedly, this book will provide an appreciation of the Reserve Bank’s chequered history and its role in nation building.
Reserve Bank of India occupies a unique and distinctive place in the Indian banking and financial system. It is the monetary authority and central bank of the country and has been assigned wide powers and responsibilities to overview, develop and regulate the financial system. It was set up in 1935 under the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934. Initially, its objective was, as the Preamble to the Act states, “ to regulate the issue of bank notes with a view to securing monetary stability in India and generally to operate the currency and credit system of the country to its advantage”. After Independence, the ownership of the Bank was transferred to the Government and it was assigned a developmental role as well, besides that of the regulator of the financial system. It is the banker to banks and also regulates the activities of banking, non-banking companies and the financial institutions in the country.
The main functions of RB I is issue of bank notes, transaction of government business, managing public debt, undertaking of transactions in foreign exchange as Controller of foreign exchange, keeping of cash reserves of banks, granting loans and advances to scheduled commercial banks and co-operative banks, granting of loans to other financial institutions, granting of advances to Governments, controlling credit and acting as the Regulatory and Supervisory Authority.
This compendium of key speeches of RBI Governors is the Reserve Bank of India’s tribute to its past leaders. Seventy-five years is a relatively short span for an institution. Even so, this journey from 1935 has been eventful for the Reserve Bank, shaping not only its intellectual evolution but also securing its preeminent position in the economic policy of the country. This period has witnessed momentous changes - a paradigm shift in economic ideology, ever new perspectives on economic development, growing aspirations of people, path-breaking financial innovations and game changing technological breakthroughs. All these are changes which influenced the Reserve Bank, and changes to which the Bank has responded in its own unique way.
The major events during these 75 years included several important developments both on the national scene and on the international front. Internationally, the aftermath of the Great Depression of the 1930s ; the Second World War and the consequent challenges of war financing ; the establishment of the new International monetary system in 1944 ; the rule of the gold standard and the rude oil price reverberations of the 1970s ; the Third World debt crisis of the 1980s ; the Asian crisis of the mid-1990s and most recently the global financial turmoil.
Within the country we began with the launching of five-year plans; and the stark challenges posed by the most ambitious and gigantic experiments in economic development, the after-effects of the two wars in the 1960s, the devaluation of the rupee in 1966, bank nationalisation in 1969, the balance of payments crisis of the early 1990s and the follow on path-breaking economic reforms that marked a paradigm shift in our economic policy. The Reserve Bank has played its role admirably in addressing these developments, responding to them with sensitivity, professionalism and integrity.
The high esteem in which the Reserve Bank is held today owes much to the intellectual leadership and vision of successive Governors. The speeches in this compendium are a testimony to that. They mark a journey through time and provide a glimpse into the ideas, issues and concerns that were inextricably intertwined with the Reserve Bank over this period.
The wide-ranging themes covered by the speeches - monetary policy, external sector management, issues in the financial sector and the real economy, economic development and poverty reduction, regulation of banks and financial markets and challenges of managing economic policy in a globalizing environment – indicate clearly the role played by the Reserve Bank and its continued commitment to public good.
The basic objectives of economic policy have remained roughly the same, growth with stability and social justice. The Reserve Bank has played a very important role in drawing the attention of our country to make our credit system more sensitive to the needs of our farmers and our rural community. It was instrumental in setting up a whole lot of institutions and diversifying the financial system. The more inclusive financial system that we now have owes a great deal to the innovative ideas emerging from the Reserve Bank.
RBI had 22 Governors from the first Australian Osborne Smith to the latest Dr.Duvvuri Subbarao. The terms of Governors have varied from eight years to just 22 days. Some Governors did not make a speech and the book under review has 32 speeches by 18 Governors. The speeches and the quotes are embellished with the track history of India’s economy. Obviously, in a brief review, one cannot cover all the speeches. We select a few. The first Indian Governor C.D. Deshmukh’s speeches are noted for their extraordinary clarity, felicity of expression and grace of style. His lecture on “Central Banking in India : A Retrospect” is a racy account of the evolution of the Bank, the deliberations at Bretton Woods,, the pow-wows between the Finance Member and the Reserve Bank authorities on the inflationary situation following depression, the rupee-shilling ratio, his own appointment as Governor. Deshmukh’s description of his predecessor James Taylor is worth recalling, “His intelligence was like a lambent flame which illumined everything that it touched and purged it of dross, and he had a catholicity of interest, a breadth of outlook and a warm humanity which I have seldom seen equalled ”.
Shri P.C.Bhattacharyya was the Governor during whose tenure the Indian rupee was devalued. In his B.F.Madon Memorial lecture on “Monetary Policy and Economic Development” he offers a masterly analysis of the objectives of monetary policy so devised that distribution of credit conforms to the pattern of investment. Monetary policy, stressed the Governor, must concern itself with the appropriate qualitative influence on productive activity. It is an inalienable aspect of the State’s intervention in the economic process and must naturally be attuned to the larger economic objectives of the State.
Perhaps the most visionary Governor is the present Prime Minister. During Dr Manmohan Singh’s tenure, comprehensive legal reforms of the banking sector led to the introduction of a new chapter in the Reserve Bank of India Act. His speech on “Indian Banking System in the Seventh Five Year Plan” is a thorough analysis of the problems faced by the banking industry, the challenges and the opportunities and the need to change structures, systems, procedures and work practices that will ensure that the banks discharge successfully their expanded responsibilities.
We are led to the groves of academe as we read the two speeches of Dr C.Rangarajan, a distinguished member of I I M. The M.G.Kutty memorial lecture on “Autonomy of Central Banks” is a scintillating analysis of the background to autonomy of central banks in foreign countries. We are then led on, step by step, typical of an I I M professor, about the Indian experience from the days of Sir Jeremy Raisman, nationalization and its aftermath, the Chakravarty Committee report, etc. Autonomy, declared Dr.Rangarajan, is not unrestrained. In a democratic set up it can and will always be subject to policy directives either from the Government or the legislature.
A heartwarming lecture included in the volume is the one given by Dr.Y.V.Reddy to the villagers of Karamchedu originally delivered in Telugu. He explained in simple terms “What RBI means to the Common Person”. Using simple terms the Governor advised the villagers what they can expect from such a powerful institution. This shows the human face of RBI.
This compendium provides an appreciation of the Reserve Bank’s eventful history and its contribution to nation building. It also highlights the need for the Reserve Bank to pursue the frontiers of knowledge even as it remains sensitive to the core concerns of the emergent market economy, but one which is still home to crores of poor people.
P.P.Ramachandran,
22-02-2010
The Art of Costume Designing--Bhanu Athaiya
The Art of Costume Designing by Bhanu Athaiya; Published by Collins ; Pages 188 ; Price Rs.2500/-
*********************
Who can forget the bewitching angels Vyjayanthimala in “Amrapali” and Waheeda Rehman in “Guide”—both in costumes inspired by classical sculptures? Vyjayanthimala adorned in her role as “Amrapali ’ swept all of their feet by the vibrant costume inspired by Ajanta and complemented by an artistic hairdo and ornate jewellery. Who created this magic?. Bhanu Athaiya.
Richard Attenborough, celebrated producer of “Gandhi” in an affectionate Foreword to the book under review writes, “Bhanu Athaiya is the revered doyenne of Indian costume designers….For the benefit of future generations of filmmakers, film-lovers and designers, it is important to landmark the work done by someone with a such knowledge, vision and passion.” He wrote that while it took him 17 long years to set up “Gandhi”, his dream film, it took him just 15 minutes to make up his mind that Bhanu Athaiya was the right person to create the many hundreds of Indian costumes that the film required.
She was the first Indian to bag the Oscar for her work in Attenborough’s “Gandhi”. She annexed the Lifetime achievement Award at the South Asian International Festival in 2005 as also the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009. Her work has been displayed in the Festival of India, New York. She bagged twice National Awards for costume designing for “Lekin” and “Lagaan”
Athaiya hails from Kolhapur—where her forefather’s book “Rukmini Swayamwar ” was prescribed as Sanskrit reading in the Rajaram College of Kolhapur University. It is revealing to note that the prize she won for the best essay—a princely amount of Rs 30/- was spent on viewing seven times Walt Disney’s “Fantasia”, famous for its waltz of flowers.
Bhanu comes from a privileged family -- her father was a man of leisure, indulging his artistic passions and interests while encouraging his large family of a wife and seven children to do the same. It was this encouragement that led Bhanu out of her sprawling house in Kolhapur to the city of Bombay, in order to pursue her passion -- studying art at the J.J. School of Arts. "Travelling to Bombay was very exciting for me. It had been a dream for a long time, and I felt like it was finally happening. I made the journey with my art teacher from Kolhapur, who had convinced my mother to send me," recalls Bhanu. She annexed a gold medal from the J.J.School of Arts. She secured a French Government scholarship and went to Paris to study art, culture and cinema.
The next milestone in Bhanu's life was her job at a magazine called Eve's Weekly, where her fashion illustrations would appear in each issue, making her a known name. When its editor opened a boutique, she asked Bhanu to try designing dresses She discovered her flair for designing clothes and her success as a designer soon led to her switching career paths.Guru Dutt asked her to design clothes for his films, start with C.I.D. in 1956 ; there was no turning back for her from then on. She worked for five Guru Dutt films. Meanwhile Bhanu was designing a lot of creations for the boutique. Her customers included actresses Kamini Kaushal and Nargis.
Beginning her career in costume designing over half a century ago she has created a world of her own that set the standards for costume design in Bollywood cinema. She has done costume designing for 131 films beginning with “C.I.D” and ending with “Swades”. She has prepared costumes for six films of Raj Kapoor. Recalling her association with Raj Kapoor, Athaiya writes: ‘One day Nargis decided to take me to R.K. Studio to introduce me to Raj Kapoor. We travelled to Chembur in her car. As we entered the spacious studio, the first thing I noticed was a huge Shiva statue. Then the car took a left turn and moved towards a small cottage, which was Raj-saab’s private cottage. At that time, work on ‘Shri 420′ was in progress and I was asked to design costumes for actress Nadira, who was playing a vamp…I gave her an unconventional look.’
She has assisted a galaxy of directors---to name a few—Raj Kapoor, Guru Dutt, B.R.Chopra, and Ashutosh Gowariker. Among her most memorable output was designing for Waheeda Rehman in “Guide”, Mumtaz in “Brahmachari” and Zeenat Aman in “Satyam,Shivam,Sundaram”.
Bhanu Athaiya has traced the journey of fashion through films with which she has been associated. She has undoubtedly been a catalyst in defining the contours of Indian fashion. “I knew India and its clothes inside out. I went on a sketching tour as an art student and even spent 10 months in Paris where I visited all the cabaret joints, including Moulin Rouge,” she said. Some of her significant expressions that have indeed become a landmark for Indian films include, the looks that she gave to Helen in “Teesri Manzil ”, in the song “O Haseena Julfon Waali”, or the drunk look of Meena Kumari in “ Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam ’. She was able to give Meena Kumari an endearing look even when the canvas of expression had a Black & White base.
The book under review is the tale of her tryst with creativity in design. We begin with the utterly fascinating world of black and white world of cinema and graduate to the scintillating world of Technicolour—heavyweights like “Sangam”, “Ganga Jumna” and “Lagaan”. Her pinnacle is of course “Gandhi” which fetched the first-ever Oscar for an Indian.
This book is a poem in beauty which is at once bewitching and highly informative. She unravels the mystery of how she tackled period pieces which demanded research of extraordinary dimension and total comprehension of Indian mores and traditions. Costume designing gives an actor complete confidence in the role he or she has to play by creating the mood and take the captive audience to a wholly different and distinct time and clime. What is essential is organization, artistry, discipline, gifted imagination and patient research---in all of which there is no peer to Athaiya. The costumes she has designed range from the colourful Rajasthani attire set against the desert backdrop, to the typical dress of villagers in the Gangetic plains and the Himalayas. She brought renown for India in the world of International cinema. She got National awards for two films—Lekin and Lagaan.
One entire chapter is dedicated to the magic of jewellery, which has a hold on Indians and our Gods and Goddesses. Hema Malini in “Sanyasi” is dressed in resplendent jewellery from head to toe and looks like an Apsara descended from heavens above. No wonder Manoj Kumar was ensnared!. Waheeda Rehman is unforgettable in “Reshma and Shera” in her colourful bandhni oddhna and ghagra typical of Rajasthan. Moghul royalty is completely captured by Athaiya in “Jodhaa Akbar”. The kilangi jhumki, and other jewellery of this era are brought out in all glory and authenticity. Athaiya has spent hours hunting for period piece jewellery in Hyderabad and other places. “Jewellery is the penultimate touch in the adornment of attire.” writes Athaiya.
This is an outstanding book, as evocative as it is colourful and is the complete guide to costume design during the last fifty years in Bollywood. That Athaiya’s fame rests not only for “Gandhi” but her variegated creations of extraordinary artistry for five long decades becomes abundantly clear as one turns the pages of this luscious book.
P.P.Ramachandran,
7-04-2010
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Who can forget the bewitching angels Vyjayanthimala in “Amrapali” and Waheeda Rehman in “Guide”—both in costumes inspired by classical sculptures? Vyjayanthimala adorned in her role as “Amrapali ’ swept all of their feet by the vibrant costume inspired by Ajanta and complemented by an artistic hairdo and ornate jewellery. Who created this magic?. Bhanu Athaiya.
Richard Attenborough, celebrated producer of “Gandhi” in an affectionate Foreword to the book under review writes, “Bhanu Athaiya is the revered doyenne of Indian costume designers….For the benefit of future generations of filmmakers, film-lovers and designers, it is important to landmark the work done by someone with a such knowledge, vision and passion.” He wrote that while it took him 17 long years to set up “Gandhi”, his dream film, it took him just 15 minutes to make up his mind that Bhanu Athaiya was the right person to create the many hundreds of Indian costumes that the film required.
She was the first Indian to bag the Oscar for her work in Attenborough’s “Gandhi”. She annexed the Lifetime achievement Award at the South Asian International Festival in 2005 as also the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009. Her work has been displayed in the Festival of India, New York. She bagged twice National Awards for costume designing for “Lekin” and “Lagaan”
Athaiya hails from Kolhapur—where her forefather’s book “Rukmini Swayamwar ” was prescribed as Sanskrit reading in the Rajaram College of Kolhapur University. It is revealing to note that the prize she won for the best essay—a princely amount of Rs 30/- was spent on viewing seven times Walt Disney’s “Fantasia”, famous for its waltz of flowers.
Bhanu comes from a privileged family -- her father was a man of leisure, indulging his artistic passions and interests while encouraging his large family of a wife and seven children to do the same. It was this encouragement that led Bhanu out of her sprawling house in Kolhapur to the city of Bombay, in order to pursue her passion -- studying art at the J.J. School of Arts. "Travelling to Bombay was very exciting for me. It had been a dream for a long time, and I felt like it was finally happening. I made the journey with my art teacher from Kolhapur, who had convinced my mother to send me," recalls Bhanu. She annexed a gold medal from the J.J.School of Arts. She secured a French Government scholarship and went to Paris to study art, culture and cinema.
The next milestone in Bhanu's life was her job at a magazine called Eve's Weekly, where her fashion illustrations would appear in each issue, making her a known name. When its editor opened a boutique, she asked Bhanu to try designing dresses She discovered her flair for designing clothes and her success as a designer soon led to her switching career paths.Guru Dutt asked her to design clothes for his films, start with C.I.D. in 1956 ; there was no turning back for her from then on. She worked for five Guru Dutt films. Meanwhile Bhanu was designing a lot of creations for the boutique. Her customers included actresses Kamini Kaushal and Nargis.
Beginning her career in costume designing over half a century ago she has created a world of her own that set the standards for costume design in Bollywood cinema. She has done costume designing for 131 films beginning with “C.I.D” and ending with “Swades”. She has prepared costumes for six films of Raj Kapoor. Recalling her association with Raj Kapoor, Athaiya writes: ‘One day Nargis decided to take me to R.K. Studio to introduce me to Raj Kapoor. We travelled to Chembur in her car. As we entered the spacious studio, the first thing I noticed was a huge Shiva statue. Then the car took a left turn and moved towards a small cottage, which was Raj-saab’s private cottage. At that time, work on ‘Shri 420′ was in progress and I was asked to design costumes for actress Nadira, who was playing a vamp…I gave her an unconventional look.’
She has assisted a galaxy of directors---to name a few—Raj Kapoor, Guru Dutt, B.R.Chopra, and Ashutosh Gowariker. Among her most memorable output was designing for Waheeda Rehman in “Guide”, Mumtaz in “Brahmachari” and Zeenat Aman in “Satyam,Shivam,Sundaram”.
Bhanu Athaiya has traced the journey of fashion through films with which she has been associated. She has undoubtedly been a catalyst in defining the contours of Indian fashion. “I knew India and its clothes inside out. I went on a sketching tour as an art student and even spent 10 months in Paris where I visited all the cabaret joints, including Moulin Rouge,” she said. Some of her significant expressions that have indeed become a landmark for Indian films include, the looks that she gave to Helen in “Teesri Manzil ”, in the song “O Haseena Julfon Waali”, or the drunk look of Meena Kumari in “ Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam ’. She was able to give Meena Kumari an endearing look even when the canvas of expression had a Black & White base.
The book under review is the tale of her tryst with creativity in design. We begin with the utterly fascinating world of black and white world of cinema and graduate to the scintillating world of Technicolour—heavyweights like “Sangam”, “Ganga Jumna” and “Lagaan”. Her pinnacle is of course “Gandhi” which fetched the first-ever Oscar for an Indian.
This book is a poem in beauty which is at once bewitching and highly informative. She unravels the mystery of how she tackled period pieces which demanded research of extraordinary dimension and total comprehension of Indian mores and traditions. Costume designing gives an actor complete confidence in the role he or she has to play by creating the mood and take the captive audience to a wholly different and distinct time and clime. What is essential is organization, artistry, discipline, gifted imagination and patient research---in all of which there is no peer to Athaiya. The costumes she has designed range from the colourful Rajasthani attire set against the desert backdrop, to the typical dress of villagers in the Gangetic plains and the Himalayas. She brought renown for India in the world of International cinema. She got National awards for two films—Lekin and Lagaan.
One entire chapter is dedicated to the magic of jewellery, which has a hold on Indians and our Gods and Goddesses. Hema Malini in “Sanyasi” is dressed in resplendent jewellery from head to toe and looks like an Apsara descended from heavens above. No wonder Manoj Kumar was ensnared!. Waheeda Rehman is unforgettable in “Reshma and Shera” in her colourful bandhni oddhna and ghagra typical of Rajasthan. Moghul royalty is completely captured by Athaiya in “Jodhaa Akbar”. The kilangi jhumki, and other jewellery of this era are brought out in all glory and authenticity. Athaiya has spent hours hunting for period piece jewellery in Hyderabad and other places. “Jewellery is the penultimate touch in the adornment of attire.” writes Athaiya.
This is an outstanding book, as evocative as it is colourful and is the complete guide to costume design during the last fifty years in Bollywood. That Athaiya’s fame rests not only for “Gandhi” but her variegated creations of extraordinary artistry for five long decades becomes abundantly clear as one turns the pages of this luscious book.
P.P.Ramachandran,
7-04-2010
History in the Making--Kulwant Roy Archives
History in the Making : The Visual Archives of Kulwant Roy; Published by Harper Collins ; Pages 336 ; Price Rs. 4999/-
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This is a magnificent coffee-table book
containing a priceless collection of photographs by Kulwant Roy from the 1930s to 1960s. The prints and negatives of these photographs remained forgotten in boxes for over twenty-five years after his death in 1984. The world must be thankful to their inheritor Aditya Arya, a photographer himself, for making it available. Arya, while cataloguing them, stumbled upon a rare and valuable visual archive, including many unpublished pictures, of a momentous era in India’s history. Some of these unusual pictures relate to Muslim League meetings, INA trials, the signing of the Indian Constitution, as well as significant post-Independence milestones such as the building of the Bhakra Nangal Dam. Indivar Kamtekar, eminent historian provides an illuminating text. All those who wish to pierce the veil behind India’s ‘tryst with destiny’ must dip into this classic volume.
Author Adita Arya graduated in history from St.Stephen’s College, Delhi and plunged into professional photography. He has acquired expertise in the world of advertising and corporate photography.His works have been exhibited the world over and his photographs have been published by renowned global journals. He is the author of
“ The Land of the Nagas ”, a photographic documentation of the Naga people and the first-ever exhaustive visual study of the masterpieces of Buddhist art at the Aichi monastery in Ladakh. Indivar Kamtekar is a name to reckon with in the field of teaching. He teaches modern history at the Jawaharlal Nehru University and has been a faculty member of the Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta, and a fellow of the Indian Institute of Advanced Study at Shimla. For his doctoral thesis from Cambridge he selected the end of British rule in India.
Kulwant Roy was an Indian photographer, who was born in Lahore in 1914. As the head of the "Associated Press Photographs" he secured several iconic images of the Indian independence movement and the early years of the Republic of India. He joined the Royal Indian Air Force and specialised in aerial photography. After relinquishing his link with the RIAF, he moved to Delhi in 1940 and set up a studio, which later expanded into a full-fledged agency, in the Mori Gate district of Old Delhi. This area was to become an important centre of Press Photographs in the country. He followed Mahatma Gandhi , for a number of years, in his travels around India in a third-class train compartment; this endowed him with an insider status that meant that he was permitted to record many crucial events of and major participants in the independence movement, including Jinnah, Nehru and Patel—surely the dream of any photographer. Roy covered Jacqueline Kennedy's visit in 1962 to India and India's war with Pakistan in 1965.
To Kulwant Roy’s utter dismay, he noted that a new breed of aggressive young photojournalists acquired dominance. He heartily disliked this and hung up his camera and faded into obscurity. "No one knew him or his past," Arya said. Roy was a frequent visitor to Arya's parents' home in New Delhi, having known Arya's mother's family from Lahore. But by the time Arya was old enough to remember him, Roy was a poor and lonely man. "He never wanted me to be a photographer because of the hardships and the fact that one has to live a life a bit like a vagabond," Roy died of cancer, virtually penniless and with no children of his own and left Arya his photo collection. Arya is now dedicated to restoring Roy to what he sees as his proper place in the annals of Indian photojournalism. Roy sold many of his photographs to international news agencies during his lifetime and some of them are now found in archival collections, but they are rarely credited with his name. "For me making sure people know his name is as important as making sure they know his pictures," declared Arya. Arya believes that some of the images - for instance a picture of a loin-clothed Gandhi descending from a third-class rail car - could become as iconic as the vintage India photos taken by the celebrated Margaret Bourke-White and Cartier-Bresson. Again, Nehru's hand curled tenderly around grandson Rajiv's neck, Gandhi and Jinnah arguing in 1939, Nehru and Ghaffar Khan strolling in Shimla-these nuggets of history were captured through photographs by Kulwant Roy from 1940 to 1960.
Roy thoughtfully selected frames that attempt to capture moments of time that will make one pause, and revive hidden memory. This is an ultimate treasure trove for anyone, who loves photography. There are a wide range of rare exhibits from Roy's collection. He captured various moods, showing glimpses of political leaders in different facets of life. He, with his photographs, threw light on last years of British rule but didn't get the recognition. Moreover, he captured off-the-cuff moments of great leaders making them approachable figures. Roy's photos depict rare glimpses of pre and post -Independence era and freedom fighters who have endured many years of conflict. We have rare photographs of the visit of Gandhi to meet Khan Abdul Ghafar Khan in the North East frontier province, visit of Sir Stafford Cripps to India in 1941, Simla Conference in 1945 , Muslim League meetings, fund raising by Gandhiji , building of Bhakra dam and visits of dignitaries.
The Nationalist movement is covered by tracing mainstream politics through portraits .Wonderful images of Mahatma Gandhi collecting money from a woman for Harijan fund, Mahatma Gandhi addressing members of INA at Harijan colony Delhi have been captured by Roy .
It is a mystery when a news photographer, makes history from deadline to deadline, never really knowing when he might take a photograph that will determine how an entire era is remembered. Consider the famous photograph of Jawaharlal Nehru, Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel at a Congress meeting in 1946. Gandhi, looking into the middle distance, is, as ever, talking mainly to himself; Nehru and Patel, one on either side, straining to listen in, Nehru looking intently at his mentor’s mouth, and Patel’s face showing the effort it took for him to lean over at an uncomfortable, forty-five-degree angle. Could Roy have dreamt when he took it that it would be the most memorable representation of those strained relationships? It was chosen as the basis for a commemorative stamp after Patel died.
Turning the pages of this majestic volume holds a lesson for us and that is that great men influenced history but they did not control it. Manmohan Singh in his Foreword has rightly written “..History in the Making takes us back in time to a momentous and inspirational chapter of our past. The images captured by photojournalist Kulwant Roy bring alive the years which saw the birth of an independent India. Kulwant Roy’s photographs are sources as well as products of India. I hope that more such visual archives are brought to light and given the recognition and importance they richly deserve”.
One tragic note. Roy travelled to Japan, Hong Kong, USA, Panama, Brazil and various European countries. The negatives and prints of photographs taken there were mailed back to his address in Delhi but were never delivered. A shattered man, he spent the next few years looking for the negatives and prints in garbage dumps and open spaces around Delhi.
We welcome such breath-taking books as also the India Photo Archive Foundation, which has been established to identify, preserve and document photographic legacies like the output of Kulwant Roy. It will contribute towards creating a culture of dialogue on diverse narratives of photographic archives which are landmarks of history.
P.P.Ramachandran,
25-03-2010
************************
This is a magnificent coffee-table book
containing a priceless collection of photographs by Kulwant Roy from the 1930s to 1960s. The prints and negatives of these photographs remained forgotten in boxes for over twenty-five years after his death in 1984. The world must be thankful to their inheritor Aditya Arya, a photographer himself, for making it available. Arya, while cataloguing them, stumbled upon a rare and valuable visual archive, including many unpublished pictures, of a momentous era in India’s history. Some of these unusual pictures relate to Muslim League meetings, INA trials, the signing of the Indian Constitution, as well as significant post-Independence milestones such as the building of the Bhakra Nangal Dam. Indivar Kamtekar, eminent historian provides an illuminating text. All those who wish to pierce the veil behind India’s ‘tryst with destiny’ must dip into this classic volume.
Author Adita Arya graduated in history from St.Stephen’s College, Delhi and plunged into professional photography. He has acquired expertise in the world of advertising and corporate photography.His works have been exhibited the world over and his photographs have been published by renowned global journals. He is the author of
“ The Land of the Nagas ”, a photographic documentation of the Naga people and the first-ever exhaustive visual study of the masterpieces of Buddhist art at the Aichi monastery in Ladakh. Indivar Kamtekar is a name to reckon with in the field of teaching. He teaches modern history at the Jawaharlal Nehru University and has been a faculty member of the Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta, and a fellow of the Indian Institute of Advanced Study at Shimla. For his doctoral thesis from Cambridge he selected the end of British rule in India.
Kulwant Roy was an Indian photographer, who was born in Lahore in 1914. As the head of the "Associated Press Photographs" he secured several iconic images of the Indian independence movement and the early years of the Republic of India. He joined the Royal Indian Air Force and specialised in aerial photography. After relinquishing his link with the RIAF, he moved to Delhi in 1940 and set up a studio, which later expanded into a full-fledged agency, in the Mori Gate district of Old Delhi. This area was to become an important centre of Press Photographs in the country. He followed Mahatma Gandhi , for a number of years, in his travels around India in a third-class train compartment; this endowed him with an insider status that meant that he was permitted to record many crucial events of and major participants in the independence movement, including Jinnah, Nehru and Patel—surely the dream of any photographer. Roy covered Jacqueline Kennedy's visit in 1962 to India and India's war with Pakistan in 1965.
To Kulwant Roy’s utter dismay, he noted that a new breed of aggressive young photojournalists acquired dominance. He heartily disliked this and hung up his camera and faded into obscurity. "No one knew him or his past," Arya said. Roy was a frequent visitor to Arya's parents' home in New Delhi, having known Arya's mother's family from Lahore. But by the time Arya was old enough to remember him, Roy was a poor and lonely man. "He never wanted me to be a photographer because of the hardships and the fact that one has to live a life a bit like a vagabond," Roy died of cancer, virtually penniless and with no children of his own and left Arya his photo collection. Arya is now dedicated to restoring Roy to what he sees as his proper place in the annals of Indian photojournalism. Roy sold many of his photographs to international news agencies during his lifetime and some of them are now found in archival collections, but they are rarely credited with his name. "For me making sure people know his name is as important as making sure they know his pictures," declared Arya. Arya believes that some of the images - for instance a picture of a loin-clothed Gandhi descending from a third-class rail car - could become as iconic as the vintage India photos taken by the celebrated Margaret Bourke-White and Cartier-Bresson. Again, Nehru's hand curled tenderly around grandson Rajiv's neck, Gandhi and Jinnah arguing in 1939, Nehru and Ghaffar Khan strolling in Shimla-these nuggets of history were captured through photographs by Kulwant Roy from 1940 to 1960.
Roy thoughtfully selected frames that attempt to capture moments of time that will make one pause, and revive hidden memory. This is an ultimate treasure trove for anyone, who loves photography. There are a wide range of rare exhibits from Roy's collection. He captured various moods, showing glimpses of political leaders in different facets of life. He, with his photographs, threw light on last years of British rule but didn't get the recognition. Moreover, he captured off-the-cuff moments of great leaders making them approachable figures. Roy's photos depict rare glimpses of pre and post -Independence era and freedom fighters who have endured many years of conflict. We have rare photographs of the visit of Gandhi to meet Khan Abdul Ghafar Khan in the North East frontier province, visit of Sir Stafford Cripps to India in 1941, Simla Conference in 1945 , Muslim League meetings, fund raising by Gandhiji , building of Bhakra dam and visits of dignitaries.
The Nationalist movement is covered by tracing mainstream politics through portraits .Wonderful images of Mahatma Gandhi collecting money from a woman for Harijan fund, Mahatma Gandhi addressing members of INA at Harijan colony Delhi have been captured by Roy .
It is a mystery when a news photographer, makes history from deadline to deadline, never really knowing when he might take a photograph that will determine how an entire era is remembered. Consider the famous photograph of Jawaharlal Nehru, Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel at a Congress meeting in 1946. Gandhi, looking into the middle distance, is, as ever, talking mainly to himself; Nehru and Patel, one on either side, straining to listen in, Nehru looking intently at his mentor’s mouth, and Patel’s face showing the effort it took for him to lean over at an uncomfortable, forty-five-degree angle. Could Roy have dreamt when he took it that it would be the most memorable representation of those strained relationships? It was chosen as the basis for a commemorative stamp after Patel died.
Turning the pages of this majestic volume holds a lesson for us and that is that great men influenced history but they did not control it. Manmohan Singh in his Foreword has rightly written “..History in the Making takes us back in time to a momentous and inspirational chapter of our past. The images captured by photojournalist Kulwant Roy bring alive the years which saw the birth of an independent India. Kulwant Roy’s photographs are sources as well as products of India. I hope that more such visual archives are brought to light and given the recognition and importance they richly deserve”.
One tragic note. Roy travelled to Japan, Hong Kong, USA, Panama, Brazil and various European countries. The negatives and prints of photographs taken there were mailed back to his address in Delhi but were never delivered. A shattered man, he spent the next few years looking for the negatives and prints in garbage dumps and open spaces around Delhi.
We welcome such breath-taking books as also the India Photo Archive Foundation, which has been established to identify, preserve and document photographic legacies like the output of Kulwant Roy. It will contribute towards creating a culture of dialogue on diverse narratives of photographic archives which are landmarks of history.
P.P.Ramachandran,
25-03-2010
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