Who is Pundit Nehru? Here he replies in his own words:
"I have become a queer mixture of East and West, out of place everywhere, at home nowhere. Perhaps my thoughts and approach to life are more akin to what is called Western than Eastern, but India clings to me, as she does to all her children, in innumerable ways; and behind me lie somewhere in the subconscious, racial memories of a hundred, or whatever the number may be, generations of Brahmans."
Writing a review of this book will be superfluous. But, not writing a short opinion will be criminal. For the past month, I have consciously taken a few hours a day to read through these 600+ pages to understand the man. With the unfathomable intellect he had, it is hard to overlook his capabilities as a passing interest. The book starts with his early life, with a lot of focus as a congress worker. He openly discusses his shortcomings and the clashes he had with Gandhiji in terms of viewpoints. Even openly admitting his aversion to Fascism to the extent of rejecting a meeting with Mussolini from a Rome airport. He was not even a communist and had clashes with the principles. He was a socialist to a great extent. The book focuses a lot on his works, views, and vision for India before he was anywhere near consideration as a prime ministerial candidate. If you read this text, you will realize to a great extent why Nehru, the prime minister, took the actions he undertook. It refers to the planning commission and constituent assembly and many such congress initiatives much earlier to their actual effect.
Everyone who wants to understand Nehru and his contribution to India must read this book.
