By Sunil Kumar

A brilliant book that is patriotic to the core. Wonder why such books were not recommended and ridiculed by the establishment. The reason-they want deracinated, pliant socialist ruffians who just conform to the establishment way of unquestioning obedience.

With a country that has nearly every establishment, road and infrastructure still named after the N-G family, it is now wonder that they do not want people to read true patriots who have to spend 15 years in the cellular jail, 12 years in house arrest. In contrast, Nehru and Gandhi were in British prisons for a considerably lesser time in a much better ambiance. ‘Hindutva’ -the mere essence of Hinduism which is tolerant, syncretic and patriotic as evidenced by Savarkar’s writings himself has been unfortunately vilified and equated to bigger evils such as Nazism or the barbarity of Islamic fundamentalism.

The language is a bit archaic given the time frame, but surely we need to read such texts before forming an opinion on the writer.

For my part, like many in India, brought up on the carefully cultivated PR image of the genial, avancular ‘Chacha’ with his Discovery of India or Glimpses of World History, never made aware of profound thinkers like Savarkar due to establishment neglect.

Aravindan Neelakandan with his deep analytic study ‘Hindutva’, J Sai Deepak’s books and other historical tomes have made me more aware of Savarkar’s world-view. The man was prescient and had the courage of his convictions despite overwhelming odds and everything stacked against him. Whatever your personal affiliation may be, if there’s a certain degree of genuine respect for India and Indic civilisation, worth reading at least once