The Courtesan, the Mahatma & the Italian Brahmin
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- Create Date：2021-08-29 08:51:52
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Manu S. Pillai
- ISBN：9390679613
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Summary
From a Maratha prince who parodied caste to a Muslim deity in a Hindu temple; from a courtesan who became a warrior princess to another who sang for the gramophone; from a woman with no breasts to a goddess with three; and from an Englishman who venerated sacred Sanskrit to imperious Victoria Maharani—the essays in this collection open a window into India’s past， and to a world of such astonishing richness that it is surprising how much of it has been forgotten or expunged。
To dip into these essays is to be absorbed in India’s story and reflect on the experiences of men and women whose lives were full of drama and action。 We discover the advent of the railways， just as we learn about the history of Indian football; we hear of the hated Lord Curzon’s love of India’s monuments， even as we unravel the story of the photographer who was Jaipur’s maharajah。 In the hands of a consummate historian and storyteller， these men and women speak also of the concerns and perspectives of the present， showing us what was， and what might have been。
An exhilarating journey with the author of The Ivory Throne and Rebel Sultans， The Courtesan， the Mahatma & the Italian Brahmin is a retelling of history no reader will want to miss。
Reviews
Guru
，
A nice little collection of short essays about some forgotten episodes of Indian History。 The first part covers the pre-British Raj era: It starts with Roberto de Nobili， the Italian missionary of the 17th century who decided to embrace the brahminical garb， Sanskrit， Telugu， and other local languages， pioneering a very different approach to spread the gospel。 Then， there are Shahuji Bhonsale's irreverent plays， set in the orthodox temple town of Thanjavur。 Kalidasa's reimagination of Shakuntala A nice little collection of short essays about some forgotten episodes of Indian History。 The first part covers the pre-British Raj era: It starts with Roberto de Nobili， the Italian missionary of the 17th century who decided to embrace the brahminical garb， Sanskrit， Telugu， and other local languages， pioneering a very different approach to spread the gospel。 Then， there are Shahuji Bhonsale's irreverent plays， set in the orthodox temple town of Thanjavur。 Kalidasa's reimagination of Shakuntala， which was wholly different from the original， but really crossed the borders and gained many European admirers too。 There are tales of Shivaji， Basava， Kabir， the Kamasutra， Dara Shikoh， Alauddin Khilji， Meenaxi， Meerabai， and several others。 The second part is "Stories from the Raj" featuring chapters from the lives of Robert "Rowdy Bob" Clive， Macaulay， Wajid Ali Shah， Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi， Mahatma Gandhi， Savarkar， Srinivasa Ramanujan's wife - Janaki， Er。 Visvesvaraya， V。K。 Krishna Menon， Jyotirao Phule， Annie Besant， and so on。 My favorite was "The Engineer and his rice bowl" - about Arthur Cotton who was instrumental in transforming the arid Godavari region into a rice bowl。 The tales are mesmerizing， introducing some hitherto unknown historical figures or revealing little-known facets of known figures。 The only issue with this eclectic selection of tales is that the author often tries too hard to add the current socio-political angle to everything。 The problem is not with his views per se， but the fact that the commentary doesn't really seem to fit into the narrative of the story。 More often than it is distracting and gratuitous - like reading an editorial in a fascinating historical tale。 。。。more
Nikitha
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I loved this book。 It's the most comprehensive set of essays I have ever read on Indian history， covering pre as well as post-British Raj。 It focuses on every part of the Indian subcontinent， including the Lakshadweep Islands。 It also lays a lot of emphasis on the stories of minorities and those that have been conveniently written out of history books。 It also gives us non-binary perspectives on people who've otherwise been painted as people who were entirely bad or good。 I loved the way the ess I loved this book。 It's the most comprehensive set of essays I have ever read on Indian history， covering pre as well as post-British Raj。 It focuses on every part of the Indian subcontinent， including the Lakshadweep Islands。 It also lays a lot of emphasis on the stories of minorities and those that have been conveniently written out of history books。 It also gives us non-binary perspectives on people who've otherwise been painted as people who were entirely bad or good。 I loved the way the essays were written， combined with satire and a gripping writing style。 This is definitely a must-read for anyone who's interested in Indian history。 。。。more
Ron Jack
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Collection of several essays by Manu Pillai。 I found the book above average。 It gave a varied perspective of Indian history - pre British Raj and post Raj。 Several of these essays have been published by the author in different newspaper columns。 I enjoyed having this all in one place。 History through short narrative writing; it helped that i was reading it during an Indian History course that i pursued in parallel from Ashoka X University。 Helped me build perspective。
Maitrey
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A collection of essays about stories from before the British Raj， during the Raj and a short essay about post-Independence India。 The stories do not have any inherent order， nor are they necessarily related。 I especially loved the stories from the second section。 I would have loved if there was some amount of temporal ordering to the stories。 Also， why is sentence construction so hard？ Certain sentences were extremely complicated， and unnecessarily long。 Other than that， this is a good one！
Samikshan Sengupta
，
I honestly don't like Manu S。 Pillai's prose。 It seems replete with grandiose vocabulary， encompasses magnificent topics， but has very little SOUL。The language is "journalistic" （not that all journalists write in this fashion， but yeah。。。）。 But one thing， you CANNOT deny Mr。 Pillai。 The sheer wealth of assorted information ！！！In this book， Manu S。 Pillai has chosen close to 30 different stories， all pertaining to India， spread across a wide timeline。 Some of them are before the British Raj， some I honestly don't like Manu S。 Pillai's prose。 It seems replete with grandiose vocabulary， encompasses magnificent topics， but has very little SOUL。The language is "journalistic" （not that all journalists write in this fashion， but yeah。。。）。 But one thing， you CANNOT deny Mr。 Pillai。 The sheer wealth of assorted information ！！！In this book， Manu S。 Pillai has chosen close to 30 different stories， all pertaining to India， spread across a wide timeline。 Some of them are before the British Raj， some during the Raj & some after。。。 Each one of them is thoroughly enjoyable & highlights the author's depth of diverse studies。 Although， as I said earlier， I am not a fan of the writing， which tastes like choco-chip biscuit with just too many choco-chips & even nuts & raisins without much dough， the book is a MUST-READ for every Indian & every person who wants to know India ！！！The underlying theme， the much-vaunted "unity among diversity" is also quite evident in the book。 Altogether a happy read， would look forward to more。。。 :） 。。。more
Nivan Bagchi
，
3。5 Courtesan Mahatma and the Italian Brahmin reads like a novelized Amar Chitra Katha but to his credit， unlike comic strips， Pillai conjures up equally colorful， moving and infinity accessible portraits of episodes from India's profuse history， with words alone。 His elegant prose will enchant you to binge read the novel if you have the faintest interest in the subjects on offer。 The level of pleasure one derives from the work is contingent on one's expectations。 Its not a serious work of schol 3。5 Courtesan Mahatma and the Italian Brahmin reads like a novelized Amar Chitra Katha but to his credit， unlike comic strips， Pillai conjures up equally colorful， moving and infinity accessible portraits of episodes from India's profuse history， with words alone。 His elegant prose will enchant you to binge read the novel if you have the faintest interest in the subjects on offer。 The level of pleasure one derives from the work is contingent on one's expectations。 Its not a serious work of scholarship and the inherent structure also creates a roadblock。 Due to the cramped nature of each chapter， there is simply no space for the narrative to penetrate deeper into the subject matter。 But， the allure of the book lies in the tid-bits of information that lend a new dimension to familiar figures。 Whether it's Curzon's love for monuments or Alauddin Khilji's timidness with respect to his wife and mother-in-law， everything seems fascinating。 Some reviewers have criticised Pillai for cherry picking this obscure dimensions because that fiddles with the idea of a character that they have in their own minds。 Pillai must be smirking because that's the point。 Favourite Chapters: "The Woman with no Breast""Maratha Prince's Morality Play""Periyar in the Age of Anti-Nationals" 。。。more
Bharadwaaj Rajan
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Short pieces， interesting insights， broad range of topics， given the breadth of the subcontinent。 Enjoyed this one
Nishant Bhagat
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Manu S。 Pillai is fast becoming one of the best writers of Indian history。 There is something so enjoyable about the way he crafts his narratives that he makes history cool。 I just loved the way he has taken subtle swipes throughout the book at the current state of the country。 But the highlight for me is his essay on 'If Gandhi had lived'。 Fittingly it is the last chapter of this book and it is so poignantly written。 It makes you really think up a lot of 'what if' scenarios of Indian history。In Manu S。 Pillai is fast becoming one of the best writers of Indian history。 There is something so enjoyable about the way he crafts his narratives that he makes history cool。 I just loved the way he has taken subtle swipes throughout the book at the current state of the country。 But the highlight for me is his essay on 'If Gandhi had lived'。 Fittingly it is the last chapter of this book and it is so poignantly written。 It makes you really think up a lot of 'what if' scenarios of Indian history。In terms of what this book is all about， I must say it felt like reading a history tabloid。 Some news are juicy， some spicy， some bitter while some others totally bland。 Having said that， I would still recommend this book & the author to anyone who who needs to break that 'history' block in their heads。 It was a fun read！ 。。。more
jennet wheatstonelllsl
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Kz
Nikhil Baisane
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Fairly interesting anecdotes but could've been edited to make them more erudite and entertaining。 Fairly interesting anecdotes but could've been edited to make them more erudite and entertaining。 。。。more
Wriju Ghosh
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I love Manu Pillai's work。 This is truly an assorted Indian History published as weekly articles in Mint Lounge Took some time to finish as I was enjoying one at a time。 I love Manu Pillai's work。 This is truly an assorted Indian History published as weekly articles in Mint Lounge Took some time to finish as I was enjoying one at a time。 。。。more
Pooja
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Awesome overview on Indian history。。 must read。。
Tamanna Mooshahary
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As a student of history （a looooooooong time ago） I had thought that the brief tales and tit-bits from history would be interesting。 But instead， I found that Part I was just a hotch-potch of different events and persona from history。 I felt as if it was probably hastily written and to just give a small glimpse of who or what is being talked about。 The part II redeemed the book slightly for me as the probably it dealt with stories from the Raj that felt more relatable。 I particularly enjoyed sto As a student of history （a looooooooong time ago） I had thought that the brief tales and tit-bits from history would be interesting。 But instead， I found that Part I was just a hotch-potch of different events and persona from history。 I felt as if it was probably hastily written and to just give a small glimpse of who or what is being talked about。 The part II redeemed the book slightly for me as the probably it dealt with stories from the Raj that felt more relatable。 I particularly enjoyed stories pertaining to Kerala。 。。。more
Lakshmi Narasimhan
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Intriguing for history buffs like me。 Broke a lot of myths about history。 Highly recommend。。
Anusha
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Nice collection of stories around historical figures。 I particularly liked that the author brought forth so many women。 Apart from that， the stories are not just focused on the Mughals but really a variety of figures。 There is a lot of grey in these characters and that brings about balance in the narrative。
Rahul
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Assorted stories from the varied history of India， served in bite size chunks to savour。 Some of them are sweet， some salty， a few unpleasant and majority are nostalgic！Enjoyed this。
Anubhav Jalan
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The book is a series of small chapters spanning across almost 800-900 years but having small and succinct chapters about the key characters of their time and how those protagonists impacted the history in their own unique ways。 Book also traces as to how India （or many sub India’s within it） and its subcultures have changed across centuries。 Lot of anecdotes especially from Southern region is an eye opener for someone from North。 This book is the way history should be taught in our schools inste The book is a series of small chapters spanning across almost 800-900 years but having small and succinct chapters about the key characters of their time and how those protagonists impacted the history in their own unique ways。 Book also traces as to how India （or many sub India’s within it） and its subcultures have changed across centuries。 Lot of anecdotes especially from Southern region is an eye opener for someone from North。 This book is the way history should be taught in our schools instead of forcing us to memorise those dates and events。 。。。more
Anjani
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Absolutely loved it。
Sujith Ravindran
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Just finished reading Manu Pillai's third book The Courtesan， the Mahatma and the Italian Brahmin。 Having read his other two books I took this book with a lot of expectations。 This book is an anthology of articles that the author has written in various magazines。 Since I have not read any of those articles most of the content was new to me。 Some stories related to Nangeli， Italian Brahmin， Savarkar， Periyar， Phules and so on was very interesting。 I felt the main theme of most of these tales is t Just finished reading Manu Pillai's third book The Courtesan， the Mahatma and the Italian Brahmin。 Having read his other two books I took this book with a lot of expectations。 This book is an anthology of articles that the author has written in various magazines。 Since I have not read any of those articles most of the content was new to me。 Some stories related to Nangeli， Italian Brahmin， Savarkar， Periyar， Phules and so on was very interesting。 I felt the main theme of most of these tales is to emphasize the plurality of Indian culture， "a civilization with no single origin" and to criticize the drive towards confirmation in the name of nationalism。 This the author has brought out clearly in the afterword。 Good book to read if you have not read those articles。 。。。more
Neha Nowshath
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This book is a collection of essays and interesting stories from Indian History。 Its very well structured and a wonderful read。
Raji
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This is a wonderful collection of pieces， collated from Manu Pillai’s various columns in newspapers。 For a long time， this languished on my desk because I would complete an essay and then go off to read another book。 But a couple of days ago， I started another piece， intending to put it down as usual at the end of that particular tale， but I couldn’t stop and I finished the entire book in a couple of days。 For those interested in history， especially Indian history， this is a tasting menu。 Divide This is a wonderful collection of pieces， collated from Manu Pillai’s various columns in newspapers。 For a long time， this languished on my desk because I would complete an essay and then go off to read another book。 But a couple of days ago， I started another piece， intending to put it down as usual at the end of that particular tale， but I couldn’t stop and I finished the entire book in a couple of days。 For those interested in history， especially Indian history， this is a tasting menu。 Divided into two broad sections — before and after colonial rule in India — it offers stories of interesting individuals in short digestible chunks。 Readers can choose to delve into details using Pillai’s extensive bibliography as a starting point。 I like Manu Pillai’s dry wit and I like his socio-political thinking。 So， I enjoyed this book immensely。 。。。more
Dipra Lahiri
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Short essays on some major and some now-forgotten historical personalities in Indian history。 The breadth of reading by the author is commendable， but I would have preferred longer， more in-depth studies， edited down to maybe a dozen chapters。
dunkdaft
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The most interesting part of this book is how it leaves you with a chuckle every now and then （many a times， sarcastic）。 The language used keeps you entertained and very much 'in present time' while itself being a box of historical events。 However， the choice of topics varies like anything and hence it might not work in every tale。 Some are intriguing and some make you feel - ah， alright， lets move further。 Definitely， the author's work is commendable-gathering unknown stories from corners of th The most interesting part of this book is how it leaves you with a chuckle every now and then （many a times， sarcastic）。 The language used keeps you entertained and very much 'in present time' while itself being a box of historical events。 However， the choice of topics varies like anything and hence it might not work in every tale。 Some are intriguing and some make you feel - ah， alright， lets move further。 Definitely， the author's work is commendable-gathering unknown stories from corners of this vast land of ours - add more to that， unknown stories of well-known personalities。 The art does complement the words too。 Overall， a keepsake， this book is， to read a handful chapters in a while。 That would be more suitable style to read and finish this information overload。 Go ！ Pick it up ！ 。。。more
Uttara Srinivasan
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Reading several reviews on Goodreads for Manu Pillai’s works informs me not only of my lack of knowledge of upcoming， well admired Indian authors with a passion for India’s history beyond the rhetoric but also tells me to be glad that I indeed have been unaware and hence so much better poised to enjoy this outing and many others to the fullestA collection of 61 essays - many of which have appeared in popular daily publications， The Courtesan， the Mahatma and the Italian Brahmin is a work of arde Reading several reviews on Goodreads for Manu Pillai’s works informs me not only of my lack of knowledge of upcoming， well admired Indian authors with a passion for India’s history beyond the rhetoric but also tells me to be glad that I indeed have been unaware and hence so much better poised to enjoy this outing and many others to the fullestA collection of 61 essays - many of which have appeared in popular daily publications， The Courtesan， the Mahatma and the Italian Brahmin is a work of ardent， devoted pursuit of the idea of an India that cannot be defined by anything except the diversity of its populace， a culture that has absorbed， evolved， transformed with every change tuihat those from within and without brought upon it。That it’s author leans left of centre and potentially seeks to set right （pun intended） the wave of right wing nationalism that seems to have swept across the nation - diluting with it the very existence of plurality that is the essence of its fabric， is also just as evident and not necessarily distracting or luring （as the readers own political leaning might be） - assuming of course that those reading are open minded centrists， willing to explore what history textbooks in school so woefully short sellSo here we have stories of men and women both popular and forgotten in history’s long walk down the centuries - a quick but glorious glimpse into the lives of the people behind the image in some cases （Meerabai， Savarkar， Dara Shukoh， Khilji， Jodhabai， Macaulay， Victoria， Viswesaraiya） and the unveiling of those lost in translation and transmission through the ages in others （Balamani， Periyar， Janaki Ammal， VO Chidambaram Pillai， Arthur Cotton， the eponymous Roberto de Nobili）It would serve the reader well to expect bite sized and perfect to illustrate the idea and the importance of context - the author’s cause being championed in this book - and not in depth exploration of cause， effect and impact。 The language Mr。 Pillai chooses is mostly conversational and while spell binding the writing may not be， engaging it most certainly is。 Of particular substance among the 61 pieces are the what ifs on the existence of the Raj and the death of the mahatma， the strong support Shashi Tharoor’s proclamation of inhuman， unapologetic exploration suffered by India receives in the essays on Railways vs。 irrigation， the complete lack of science and knowledge exploration in the Indian narrative of the 19th and early 20th century and finally the many accounts of female agency that women snatched for themselves despite the circumstances around them。 Pick this up when you find yourself wondering about the nation you claim as your own or threaten to disown when it disappoints you。 。。。more
Ravinder
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Since I had not read his newspaper columns， it was an interesting read。 There are some observations， points made that are bound to rile the right wingers， and others， the left wingers。To me， one interesting learning was how the 1857 war of independence （or mutiny depending on the perspective） did not have broad support of the people of the country， not even in north India。 Yet， in less than 30 years， by 1885， the Indian National Congress was being formed in Bombay with a pan India representation Since I had not read his newspaper columns， it was an interesting read。 There are some observations， points made that are bound to rile the right wingers， and others， the left wingers。To me， one interesting learning was how the 1857 war of independence （or mutiny depending on the perspective） did not have broad support of the people of the country， not even in north India。 Yet， in less than 30 years， by 1885， the Indian National Congress was being formed in Bombay with a pan India representation。 Those who still blindly respect current members of erstwhile royal families of India would do well to learn more about their actions （or inactions） during the struggle for India's independence。The points related to Gandhi ji and Vivekananda are spot on: both of them have left behind a record of saying one thing and then the opposite， depending on who was the audience。 One way to accept this is to say that they were following the Hindu way。。。in the sense that they were aware that there is no such thing as "one right way"。 It is left to the reader to interpret it the way they want to。 。。。more
Barun Ghosh
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Was a delight to read through this book and come to know the fascinating stories of so many colourful characters from Indian history。 The author has a quirky sense of humour which makes for reading all this matter some with tragic endings a delightful experience。
Archana Kamath
，
Oh my God。 I have never seen such a masterpiece。 Came across many personalities whose names were familiar since childhood， but it was astonishing to get information about them from a different angle。 Thank you writer to bringing these facts in light。 Shall definitely dive into his next writing ' The Ivory Throne' very soon。 Oh my God。 I have never seen such a masterpiece。 Came across many personalities whose names were familiar since childhood， but it was astonishing to get information about them from a different angle。 Thank you writer to bringing these facts in light。 Shall definitely dive into his next writing ' The Ivory Throne' very soon。 。。。more
santosh borse
，
The book is exceptionally well written。 The book covers India's diverse interesting historic facts in a fun and engaging manner。 The book is exceptionally well written。 The book covers India's diverse interesting historic facts in a fun and engaging manner。 。。。more
knots
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This book is like that friend who gives you all the important gossip in 1-2 lines on all the interesting people at the party。 The intention is to hook your interest in Indian history by presenting a plethora of fascinating men and women from historical India。 The titular Italian monk who adopted the ways of the traditional Brahmin priests to promote Christianity， the female mercenary captain and ex-Courtesan who rescued the Mughal Emperor， the Muslim princess who fell in love with a Hindu god an This book is like that friend who gives you all the important gossip in 1-2 lines on all the interesting people at the party。 The intention is to hook your interest in Indian history by presenting a plethora of fascinating men and women from historical India。 The titular Italian monk who adopted the ways of the traditional Brahmin priests to promote Christianity， the female mercenary captain and ex-Courtesan who rescued the Mughal Emperor， the Muslim princess who fell in love with a Hindu god and got her image placed in the temple's sanctum， the mighty Mughal queen Jodhabai who was provoked by the Portuguese， the eccentric Indian kings of the British Raj， the reformers who wanted to do away with the caste hierarchy，the cruel British overlords of the Raj as well as the benevolent British reformers all contribute to the rich tapestry of history of India。 The book is roughly divided to 'Before the British Raj' and 'After'。 The author presents his idea that history is rarely linear， that religious identities were fluid， that the political motives which drove the kings of that age cannot be viewed through with the modern political prism。 The author has succeeded in bringing together stories from all over India。 Also notable is the inclusion of women from all walks of life from mighty princesses and Queens who fight for their rights and suzerainty to the humble peasant women who wants to live with dignity。 。。。more
Harihara
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