Between Biases and Borderlines

Through chronicling his rise in the Indian military, Lt Gen Shakti Gurung, in Breaking the Glass Ceiling, reflects upon strategic fault lines in a crucial part of the Indian subcontinent and makes a heartfelt plea for consolidating Gorkha's identity amid dynamically changing landscapes and loyalties

- SANJEEV CHOPRA

This quote from the Nigerian author Samuel Awolumate provides the context to the title of the book—Breaking the Glass Ceiling: Memoirs of Indian Army's First Ethnic Gorkha Lieutenant General. 'As the land of my forefathers, writes Gen Shakti Gurung, Nepal will always hold a special place for me, but it is India where I was born, and where I have served, that I have laid down my heart.'

Let's face it. The overselling impression amongst those who wrote and commented on military matters was that 'Gurkha soldiers were fine and fearless troops with fierce loyalties to their Commanding officers. But imagining them as officers taking up command positions and giving strategic direction on India's critical frontiers—the LAC and the LOC—was certainly not part of the cantonment folklore. I grew up in one of them in the 1970s, and interacted with officers from across the country—Singhs, Yadavs, Josephs, Mazumdars, Kapoors, Joshis, Tripathis, Mitras, Patnaiks and Deshmukhs—but do not recall interacting with a Gurung or Lama, for they were indeed few and far between. But yes, Gurkha troops were the stuff of legend in the writings of John Masters, on Manekshaw, Gen Ian Cardozo and Probol Dasgupta, among others. So this is an important offering from a Gurkha officer, who had to face questions about his national identity, right up to his days as a participant at the National Defence College.

There were two possible ways to review this fascinating book of 371 pages. The easier option was to follow the author's narrative, and capture the space-time sequence of his life and personality—his days in Cambrian Hall (named after a peak in Wales), his pre-commission training in the NDA 'from a boy to a man, his life as an officer 'stars in my eyes, and the usual drill of a Fauji life as he picked up appointments, staff courses and prestigious assignments culminating in the position of Military Secretary, and working closely with the COAS (pre-CDS days).