Afterness: Home and Away

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I frequently think of certain events during my long lifetime. I have happy memories of my carefree and happy childhood, followed by an unpromising and indifferent decade of school, in stark contrast to the subsequent heady and exciting years of higher education. I fondly remember some of my older relatives, who were dedicated leftists, and one of them even went on to become the mayor of Patna, for two terms. I used to be fascinated listening to the stories of Prahlad, who owned the barbershop across our street, a staunch communist and the election agent for my relative, the mayor. Amongst my prized possessions were several free, hardbound copies of books on Marxism, distributed by the Soviet Embassy. I spent a brief, delusional spell, formally, as a leftist president of my college union.

In 1947, newly independent India was in thrall of Pandit Nehru and the Indian National Congress. In my very young days, politics seemed to happen in distant Delhi, while the rest of the world was recovering from the ravages of the war. Socialism, self-reliance and non-alignment were the clarion call of our leaders, as well as the newly independent, former colonies. The trauma of the communal riots due to the partition of India remains an indelible scar, marking the end of British colonial rule.

Comparatively, Bombay (now Mumbai) was insulated, and preoccupied with trade and commerce. The liberation of Hyderabad from the Nizamshahi was the extension of India's Independence movement, and Goa was liberated not long after.