Re-discovering the Grand Old Man of India

Dinyar Patel’s biography of  Dadabhai Naoroji has won this year’s prestigious Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay NIF Book Prize

By Hameed Ashraf | NT

Bengaluru: The biography of Dadabhai Naoroji, ‘“Naoroji: Pioneer of Indian Nationalism’ by Dinyar Patel has won the Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay New India Foundation (NIF) Book prize this year. The foundation selected Patel’s work from a shortlist of six books that covered a wide range of themes and subjects in non-fiction writing about India. Patel, a professor of history at the SP Jain Institute of Management and Research in Mumbai, was presented with the prize at an event held here at Bangalore International Centre (BIC).

The Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay NIF Book Prize was instituted in 2018 and is considered as one of India’s mostprestigious literary awards. Manish Sabharwal, Executive Vice Chairman, Teamlease and Trustee, NIF, said, “Naoroji: Pioneer of Indian Nationalism, is a book that illuminates the life and legacy of Dadabhai Naoroji as a key figure in the history of India’s movement towards Independence. This is one of the most keenlyresearched works on Patel.”

The book is a definitive biography of the nineteenthcentury activist, among the founders of the Indian National Congress and the first Indian-origin British MP. Dadabhai Naoroji is also cited as an inspiration for Jawaharlal Nehru and Mahatma Gandhi, who called him the ‘Father of the Nation’.

“For this elegantly written and superbly crafted biography, Dinyar Patel has discovered and delved into an incredible range of archival sources. He has produced a work of fine scholarship that also has enormous appeal for the general reader,” said Niraja Gopal Jayal of King’s India Institute, London.

The book examines Naoroji’s life in modern India’s political history. A staunch critic of British colonialism, Naoroji also secured ties with anti-imperialists around the world and established ‘Swaraj’ or self-rule as India’s objective.

“I’m very honoured and humbled to receive the Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay NIF Book Prize. It is particularly pleasing since Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay and Dadabhai Naoroji had much in common,” said Dinyar Patel. “They greatly facilitated India’s engagement with the wider world: Naoroji through his decades of work in Great Britain, and Chattopadhyay through her extensive world travels, including time in the United States. Both individuals’ legacies of progressivism, open-mindedness, and inclusive patriotism are much needed in India and the world at large today,” he added.

When asked what the country’s first nationalist would think of the India of today, Dinyar said, “It is quite an understatement to say that nationalism has been in the news for the past few years, both here in India and elsewhere. While today’s rightwing nationalism is starkly different from the original Indian nationalism, it is nevertheless instructive to explore historical origins and understand what motivated someone like Dadabhai Naoroji to be amongst the first generation of Indians known as nationalists,” he said.

The prize is named after Chattopadhyay, who contributed significantly to the freedom struggle, to the women’s movement, to refugee rehabilitation and to the renewal of Indian theatre and handicrafts. The award celebrates non-fiction literature on modern and contemporary India from writers of all nationalities and comes with Rs 5-lakh cash award and a citation.