The most dangerous man in Bombay Presidency

The most dangerous man in Bombay Presidency
My Grandfather (sitting, left) Narasinhbhai Patel with family. According to British Indian records, he was 'the most dangerous man in Bombay Presidency'. Anand, Kheda District, Gujarat. Circa 1940

My Grandfather (sitting, left) Narasinhbhai Patel with family. Anand, Kheda District, Gujarat. Circa 1940 Image and Narrative contributed by Sandhya Mehta My maternal grandfather, Narasinhbhai was a revolutionary man. Records of British India describe him as 'most dangerous man in Bombay Presidency '. He was exiled from British India for writing proscribed books. Though the Maharaja of Baroda clandestinely supported him. After completing his exile term in Germany and East Africa, C.F. Andrews persuaded him to join Ravindranath Tagore in Shantiniketan . He taught German there for a short time and then returned to his native town Kheda to support Gandhiji's Salt Satyagraha . He became a leader in Kheda district. to mobilise Satyagraha. Standing behind him, first from left is his grandson Dr. Shantibhai Patel who also actively participated in the freedom struggle and later became a successful scientist . Narsinhbhai's daughter, Shanta Patel (my mother), sits, first from right with my father G.P.Patel, standing behind her. My father, G.P Patel supported Narasinhbhai's views, work and philosophy. They all were followers of Gandhiji.

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A Telugu politician’s family

A Telugu politician’s family
My maternal family in Wanaparthy, Andhra Pradesh. 1957

My maternal family in Wanaparthy, Andhra Pradesh. 1957 Image and Narrative contributed by Madhu Reddy This is a portrait of my mother's family. My grandfather was an MLA (Member of Legislative Assembly) at the time from this constituency and had moved recently from Sankireddypalli where they still maintained their ancestral home. My three uncles are in the top line. (from left) Jagdeesh Reddy, Janardhan Reddy and my youngest uncle SriRam Reddy. In the middle is (left) my eldest aunt Vijita Reddy , my grandfather Padbhanabam Reddy, Pramila Devi my grandmother, my youngest aunt Saraswati and Revati Reddy my other aunt. My mom Indira Reddy sits in the front. In the foreground is Raghavlu as he is known, who was part of the family and studied with my uncles. All my aunts and uncles are now live in Hyderabad, most of their children in the US, Canada and India. There are four original copies of this photograph. I'm hoping that one day I can manage to get my hands on at least one of them.

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India’s first Kodak couple

India’s first Kodak couple
My great-great grandparents, Sarala and Dr. PK Roy. Calcutta, West Bengal. Circa 1880

My great-great grandparents, Sarala and Dr. PK Roy. Calcutta, West Bengal. Circa 1880 Image and Narrative contributed by Chetan Roy, UK This photo was used by Kodak India for an Ad campaign in the early 1980s. Sarala Roy was an educationist and is remembered as the founder of the Gokhale Memorial School at Calcutta (now Kolkata), West Bengal. She belonged to the famous Das family of Telirbagh, Dhaka, now in Bangladesh. She was also a member of Calcutta University’s senate and also one of the leaders of the All-India Women’s Conference. The conference was founded in 1927 under the leadership of Margaret Cousins but was soon completely run by Indian women. It was the most important women’s organisation of its time. She devoted her life to the cause of women’s education and also established a Girl’s school & a Women's organization in Dhaka, while living there with her husband. Rabindranath Tagore composed the dance-drama Mayar Khela at her request.   Prasanna Kumar Roy (1849-1932) was a well-known educationist and the first Indian to be principal of Presidency College, Calcutta. He was attracted towards the Brahmo Samaj early in life he was turned out of his home. However, he won the Gilchrist Scholarship to go to England. He graduated from the University of London in 1873. He was awarded the D.Sc. degree in Psychology from the University of Edinburgh and the University of London in 1876. He and Ananda Mohan Bose got together to establish a Brahmo Samaji Indian Association and a library in the UK. He was posted to England for two years as Education Assistant to the Secretary for India.

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