Truth, love & a little malice: An autobiography

An excellent slow read which goes tedious at the end but that's fine, it's an autobiography after all. Of someone who lived a hundred years and was privileged enough to be around and in the thick of things - someone in his 30s at the time of independence and in 80s when the next century took its turn. Lots of love and malice and I will take the author's word on the truths proclaimed. The middle is the best, just like the life maybe. Because the end and start either we don't live enough or rush and forget. Very different from his Train to Pakistan, but interestingly different.

I didn't rate it 5 due to few reasons. I'd mention one of them. Author's like for Sanjay Gandhi and in a twisted way emergency. Yes, he hasn't mentioned it directly but it shows. In the end he shows how he was just a privileged son, of a privileged father, who didn't have to do much to get things in life and hence his liking to autocratic people and imagining there are gross corrections needed made in the world and the few with power and privilege are magically capable of doing that or even specially ordained to. In fact I think it was just the naivety of the author. His “let them eat cake” moment. I actually felt pity on author for that.

But the book nevertheless is quite good and of course the accounts produced as well, quite honestly at that I'd say.