About the book
In 1893, when Mohandas Gandhi set sail for South Africa, he was abriefless lawyer who had failed to establish himself in India. In thisremarkable biography, Ramachandra Guha argues that the two decadesthat Gandhi spent in the diaspora were the making of the Mahatma. It washere that he forged the philosophy and techniques that would ultimatelydestroy the British Empire.Based on archival research in four continents, this book explores Gandhi'sexperiments with dissident cults, his friendships and enmities, and hisfailures as a husband and father. Gandhi Before India tells the dramaticstory of how he mobilized a cross-class and inter-religious coalition,pledged to non-violence in their battle against a racist regime.Deeply researched and beautifully written, this book will radically alter ourunderstanding and appreciation of modern India's greatest man.
About the author
Ramachandra Guha was raised in Dehradun and educated in Delhi andKolkata. Now based in Bangalore, he has previously taught at Yale,Stanford, Oslo, and the London School of Economics. He has pioneeredthree distinct fields of historical inquiry: environmental history (as in TheUnquiet Woods, 1989), the social history of sport (A Corner of a ForeignField, 2002), and contemporary history (India After Gandhi, 2007). His mostrecent book is a collection of essays, Patriots and Partisans, published byPenguin in 2012. His other books include Savaging the Civilized: VerrierElwin, His Tribals, and India (1999).
Guha's awards include the Leopold-Hidy Prize of the American Societyfor Environmental History, the Sahitya Akademi Award, and the PadmaBhushan. His books and essays have been translated into more thantwenty languages. In 2008, and again in 2013, Guha featured on Prospectmagazine's list of the world's most influential thinkers.