For the forgotten
THE WEEK|August 01, 2021
In a new book, THE WEEK’s R. Prasannan writes about India’s battles in World War II
PRADIP R. SAGAR
For the forgotten

THE WEEK has always been at the forefront of every battle—literally. After bringing out special issues commemorating World War I, the 1965 war, the 1971 war, and the Kargil war over the last few years, the magazine has now come out with a book on India’s battles in World War II. Receiving a copy of the book from the Senior Coordinating Editor R. Prasannan, Army Chief Gen. M.M. Naravane said that it was of utmost importance that stories of India’s battles be “told with a human touch to the younger generation in the language that they understand”.

Human touch is what makes this book different from other histories of the war. Anecdotal description of the gallantry shown by Indians in multiple campaigns as well as interesting details of the political developments that were taking place parallelly within India make the book read like a thriller. Did you know, for example, that Viceroy Irwin who signed a pact with Mahatma Gandhi did not have a left hand, Wavell wrote poetry on the battlefield, Stafford Cripps was a vegetarian, and that it was a Jewish officer who managed the war economy of India and ensured that India got a place in shaping the post-war economic order?

The book sent General Naravane on a reverie about his uncle, Lieutenant Anant S. Naravane, who had fought the Italians in North Africa and had been taken, prisoner. He was one of the first Indians to be commissioned in the regiment of artillery. Taken prisoner in the battle of Bir Hakeim, he was sent to Camp PG63 where he had, as fellow prisoners, the future Indian Army chief, General Paramasiva Prabhakar Kumaramangalam, and future Pakistan Army chiefs, General Yahya Khan and General Tikka Khan.

This story is from the August 01, 2021 edition of THE WEEK.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the August 01, 2021 edition of THE WEEK.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM THE WEEKView All
Divides And Dividends
THE WEEK India

Divides And Dividends

Contrasting narratives on the scrapping of Article 370 define the elections in Jammu and Kashmir

time-read
4 mins  |
May 19, 2024
Playing it cool
THE WEEK India

Playing it cool

Everybody knows what 420 means in the Indian context. But in American parlance it is something very different: four-twenty or 4/20 or April 20 denotes cannabis celebration; its cultural references are rooted in the hippie culture of the 1960s and 1970s.

time-read
2 mins  |
May 19, 2024
The heroine's new clothes
THE WEEK India

The heroine's new clothes

Who else but Sanjay Leela Bhansali could bring on a wardrobe reset like the one in his just-dropped period piece—an eight-part Netflix series called Heeramandi?

time-read
2 mins  |
May 19, 2024
AI & I
THE WEEK India

AI & I

Through her book Code Dependent—shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction—Madhumita Murgia gives voice to the voiceless multitudes impacted by artificial intelligence

time-read
4 mins  |
May 19, 2024
Untold tales from war
THE WEEK India

Untold tales from war

Camouflaged is a collection of 10 deeply researched stories, ranging from the world wars to the 26/11 terror attacks

time-read
2 mins  |
May 19, 2024
Hair force
THE WEEK India

Hair force

Sheetal Mallar, in her photobook Braided, uses hair as a metaphor to tell a story that is personal yet universal

time-read
2 mins  |
May 19, 2024
THE WHITE TIGER GAVE ME CONFIDENCE IN MY ABILITIES
THE WEEK India

THE WHITE TIGER GAVE ME CONFIDENCE IN MY ABILITIES

The first time Adarsh Gourav made an impression was in Ramin Bahrani's 2021 film The White Tiger, a gripping adaptation of Aravind Adiga's Booker-winning novel.

time-read
4 mins  |
May 19, 2024
The art of political protest
THE WEEK India

The art of political protest

The past doesn’t always remain in the past. Sometimes, it emerges in the present, reminding us about the universality and repetitiveness of the human experience. Berlin’s George Grosz Museum, a tiny gem, is a startling reminder that modern political and social ills are not modern. Grosz lived through World Wars I and II, shining a torch into the heart of darkness in high-ranking men and women—who were complicit in the collapse of the world as they knew it.

time-read
2 mins  |
May 19, 2024
REFUELLING DYING SATELLITES
THE WEEK India

REFUELLING DYING SATELLITES

A Chennai company is making waves in the world of space tech startups

time-read
6 mins  |
May 19, 2024
DIVERSITY IN UNITY
THE WEEK India

DIVERSITY IN UNITY

THE SOUTH ASIAN COMMUNITY IN THE US HAS SEVERAL THINGS IN COMMON, BUT WHEN IT COMES TO THE UPCOMING ELECTIONS, THERE ARE WIDELY DIFFERING OPINIONS AND FEELINGS

time-read
5 mins  |
May 19, 2024