The generation that was born around the time of India’s Independence, Jawaharlal Nehru was an enchanted figure, an embodiment of the idealism that had gone into the struggle for freedom. Clearly etched on childhood’s memory is the unstinting affection and trust that India’s masses gave to their leader. So is the intense sense of urgency Panditji radiated to pull India out of the mire of poverty, ignorance and backwardness and launch her as a shining new star into the world firmament. The excitement in nation building was a heady, almost palpable sensation. It was an exercise par excellence in confidence building after nearly twohundred years of national shame and humiliation.
Nov-Dec 1988, volume 12, No 6