Jinnah – Beyond the Pages
‘Muhammad Ali Jinnah’ – a name that we know little about beyond his life as the founder of Pakistan. Jinnah’s career as a barrister and a lawyer is an extremely impressive one, and one that isn’t well-known to us.
As I wrote this article, so many details about this leader, who is now remembered as the ‘Quaid-e-Azam’ of Pakistan, came to light. From his campaigning for the creation of a secular India to his demand for the creation Pakistan, Jinnah’s life and story is a fascinating journey and makes for a riveting read!
Click on the icon below to read about – “Jinnah – Beyond the Pages…”
Kaala Pani – A Prisoner’s Worst Nightmare
“Kaala Pani”, the name itself sends chills down your spine, doesn’t it?
Even this spine-chilling name doesn’t do justice to the torture and harsh conditions that the prisoners here were exposed to.
Opened in 1906, the Cellular Jail (or “Kaala Pani”), is located far away from the Indian mainland on the tiny island of Andaman and Nicobar. The Jail was established to provide such extreme kind of torture to those Indians who had either murdered someone or committed a crime equally gruesome.
But even these horrifying crimes did no justice to what the prisoners here were put through. Torture, flogging, extreme exhaustion and complete destituteness of hope were a part of daily life in Kaala Pani.
Since the jail was far away from the centre of the Indian Revolution, everything that the inmates here suffered through, went unknown and unheard of.
Among the other freedom fighters who were imprisoned here, were a few well-known ones like – Vinayak Savarkar, who has a cell here named after him, his brother Babarao Savarkar and Sushil Dasgupta.
Click on the icon below to read more about the horrors of Kaala Pani.
BRITAIN’S WORST FAILURE – The Bengal Famine of 1943
During the course of the 150 years that the British ruled over the Indian subcontinent, they were accused of committing several atrocities against Indians – racial discrimination, lathi charges, and the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre of 1919.
However, we tend to forget one of the worst of the lot – The Bengal Famine of 1943 which consumed the lives of around 3 million people.
What is unique about this famine, is that unlike the 6 other major famines that had struck India during the reign of the British, the one in 1943, was a result of policy failure on part of Winston Churchill’s War Time Cabinet, and not natural factors.
Click on the icon below to read more about the shocking conditions that prevailed in Bengal in 1943.
SPECIAL ISSUE: KASHMIR – The Scarred Beauty
Kashmir – probably the most beautiful yet the most disturbed region in the Indian subcontinent. Why?
Well, the answer to that question has a lot of variations.
Even before the Partition of India in 1947, the state of Jammu and Kashmir continued to remain a centre
of conflict.
This article will explore Kashmir’s history right from 304 BCE, when Ashoka came to power, up until the relatively recent 1949 UN resolution.
Click on the icon below to delve into the rich, yet lesser-known history of Kashmir!
THE EMERGENCY OF 1975 – India’s Darkest Era
The 21-month span between 1975 to 1977, is widely hailed as the ‘Darkest Period in Indian History’. The reason? A sudden proclamation of Emergency by the Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
During these months anybody who spoke against the government was jailed, mass forced sterilization campaigns were carried out and the freedom of the press was curbed. These 21 months saw a dictatorial-like regime in India, something never seen before in the modern history of the country.
But that is not it. India was a witness to many more such atrocities during this dark era, most unheard of…
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The Black Hole Horror of Calcutta
The late 16th and early 17th century clearly showed the development of British and French control in India. During this time, the roles were slightly reversed with the Indians in much more control than the British.
On one such day in the year 1756, a horrendous event took place, which is now infamously known as the Black Hole Horror of Calcutta. This event took place exactly 264 years ago on the sinister night of 20th June, 1756.
Click on the icon below to unfold the events that transpired that eerie night…
Durga Devi Vohra – The Forgotten Revolutionary
Date: 19th December 1928;
Location: Lahore Railway Station, British India.
A man is seen boarding a train with his wife and son, along with their servant trudging along behind.
Nothing seems out of the picture, does it? Not if you knew the back story.
This ‘couple‘ was actually the freedom fighters Bhagat Singh, Durgawati Devi and her son, along with Rajguru. Never heard the name Durgawati Devi before, have you?
She too, just like Bhagat Singh, was a freedom fighter, only forgotten by us…
Click on the icon below to know more about this remarkable woman, and her difficult journey as a child, mother, wife and above all, a revolutionary.
Subhash Chandra Bose – Dead or Alive?
23rd August 1945, news of Bose’s sudden death breaks out in British India. However, the Viceroy of India, along with a lot of other Indians, refuses to believe it. Questions and theories start floating across the entire country.
Why would the great Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose fake his own death? What was he hiding? What really happened to him on the fateful afternoon of 17th August 1945?
This continues to be one of the biggest questions that haunts India till date.
Click on the icon below to read more about the theories surrounding Subhash Chandra Bose’s death, as I attempt to unravel this mystery…
‘Man of peace’ – Lal Bahadur Shastri
When someone asks you what’s so special about the 2nd of October, what would your answer be? Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday, of course!
But most of tend to forget about another extremely significant figure who was born on this very day – Lal Bahadur Shastri. Independent India’s Second Prime Minister, was born on this day in 1904 in Mughalsarai, Uttar Pradesh. Unfortunately, in less than 2 years, he passed away due to a supposed ‘heart attack‘, a theory which his wife and family refused to believe in, giving rise to a lot of suspicion and subsequently – several controversial theories.
Even today, his death remains clouded in mystery. But, what is even sadder, is that while everybody celebrates Gandhi Ji on the 2nd of October, very few remember this exceptional man.
Click on the icon below to read more about the ‘Man of Peace’ – Lal Bahadur Shastri, and to access a rare unseen footage from his funeral…
Bhagat Singh – The Young Revolutionary
On 28th September, 1907, in a small village in Punjab, British India, Bhagat Singh was born to a family of revolutionaries, who inculcated in him, from the very start, the spirit to fight and revolt.
As fate would have it, Bhagat Singh went on to become one of the youngest martyrs of the Indian Independence Movement, who was hung alongside his comrades – Sukhdev and Rajguru, on this day – 23rd March, 1931.
On account of ‘Shaheed Diwas’ which marks the 90th death anniversary of these young martyrs, I present to you – ‘Bhagat Singh – The Young Revolutionary’.
Click on the icon below to read more about the lives of these great men and their accomplices…
1947 – A Bittersweet Year
The Partition of 1947 is still considered to be one of the most violent massacres and exodus in the history of the world.
With over 2 million people displaced and millions more dead, Independence for the two nascent countries came at a very heavy price.
Click on the icon below to unfold the events that led to the 1947 Partition and for footage that dates 74 years back…
