Resisting the Raj
CHANDRIKA KAUL appraises a celebratory study of seven western men and women who threw their weight behind India’s struggle for freedom from British colonial rule
In his new study, Ramachandra Guha provides seven biographies of “whiteskinned heroes and heroines”, selected on the grounds that they “decisively changed sides, identifying completely with India, meeting Indians on absolutely equal terms as friends and lovers, and as comrades on the street and in prison too”. Overall, his book is a passionate paean of praise and, though there is much to admire in his protagonists, such an approach runs the risk of not offering a sufficiently nuanced “warts and all” picture, especially given its biographical format.
Guha’s stated objective is to tell “a new (or new-ish) story”. On that basis, the first “rebel” featured is a surprising choice, because Annie Besant is one of the best-known British champions of India. Several earlier biographers have extolled her contribution towards the project of Indian “regeneration” based on a blend of the traditional and the modern. Though initially eschewing politics, she became a staunch supporter of Indian home rule, and was even elected the first female president of the Indian National Congress.
Other rebels discussed include journalist Benjamin Guy Horniman, who believed freedom of press knew no racial or national boundaries. Guha also examines Samuel Evans Stokes, an American Quaker who left the church and immersed himself in all things Indian, marrying a Christian woman of Rajput origin, changing his name to Satyanand and joining Mahatma Gandhi and the nationalist movement.
Another Englishwoman, Madeleine Slade, also features. Given the byname Mira Behn by Gandhi, she became his adopted “daughter”; a constant presence in his life and work, she is widely known from her depiction in the film Gandhi, made with her collaboration.
Guha also recounts the inspirational story of American missionary Ralph Richard (Dick) Keithahn (supported for some of the time by his wife, Mildred), who served rural communities in south India both before and after independence. The book concludes with the story of Catherine Mary Heilemann, who travelled from London to Udaipur in 1932 to work in a new schooling experiment inspired by Robert Baden-Powell, founder of the Scout movement. Later joining Gandhi’s circle, she was active in social and environmental work.
I enjoyed reading these well-written and -researched narratives, particularly the last quarter of the volume in which Guha carries the stories forward into post-colonial India. He believes that these figures’ lives “may yet be relevant for India’s future” and sets them up as role models. This is a laudable endeavour, but a rather daunting prospect given that, in his analysis, the “rebels” all come across as super-men and women. Above all else, for Guha this book offers “a morality tale for the world we currently live in”.
Annie Besant is one of the best-known British champions of India, and
Yas eNected the first feOaNe president of the Indian National Congress