FLASHBACKS FROM THE FREEDOM FIGHT

LIFE, in its earliest form, began without any concept of houses or territory. It slowly evolved into buildings we now call home and lands we claim as ours. But for centuries, what was ours was ruled by foreigners. Natives lived like slaves in their own country. Millions who fought the freedom struggle are only mentioned in passing.

- SONU M KOTHARI

Why were these individuals' lives undocumented? The reasons could be plenty. S Ambujammal's autobiography, Nan Kanda Bharatham, refers to many such rebels. "I stopped the count after 65, I am sure there are more than a hundred names she has recorded in her book," says Sriram V, a historian and an author, who has translated this work to English as The India I Saw.

The book was launched in the city on Friday at Srinivasa Gandhi Nilayam, an institution established by the freedom fighter in association with the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH). Nan Kanda Bharatham is a recounting of Ambujammal's life from the 1920s to 1973 when this biography was published.