One soul saw the other soul, both recognised a common identity," wrote Dr B.R. Ambedkar in a letter to Dr Sharada Kabir, his soon-to-be second wife, as they shared a common interest in Buddha's teaching. "This is how our hearts met," recalled Sharada Kabir-rechristened Savita after her marriage with Ambedkar-years later in her autobiography.
It was not an easy match. Savita said there were three issues they had to deal with in their marriage. First, she was a Saraswat Brahmin, while Ambedkar belonged to the most-deprived Mahar caste. Second, the 18-year age gap between them. Third, Ambedkar's many illnesses-diabetes, high blood pressure and joint pain.
"But neither our different social backgrounds, nor the difference in age nor again his ill health and his chronic illnesses came in the way of our marriage. The doctor in me was aroused to boundless sympathy, and I accepted Dr Ambedkar's proposal of marriage," Savita wrote in her autobiography, Dr Ambedkaraanchya Sahavaasaat (1990), which was translated into English and titled Babasaheb: My Life With Dr Ambedkar (2022).
Denne historien er fra January 29, 2023-utgaven av THE WEEK India.
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Denne historien er fra January 29, 2023-utgaven av THE WEEK India.
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William Dalrymple goes further back
Indian readers have long known William Dalrymple as the chronicler nonpareil of India in the early years of the British raj. His latest book, The Golden Road, is a striking departure, since it takes him to a period from about the third century BC to the 12th-13th centuries CE.
The bleat from the street
What with all the apps delivering straight to one’s doorstep, the supermarkets, the food halls and even the occasional (super-expensive) pop-up thela (cart) offering the woke from field-to-fork option, the good old veggie-market/mandi has fallen off my regular beat.
Courage and conviction
Justice A.M. Ahmadi's biography by his granddaughter brings out behind-the-scenes tension in the Supreme Court as it dealt with the Babri Masjid demolition case
EPIC ENTERPRISE
Gowri Ramnarayan's translation of Ponniyin Selvan brings a fresh perspective to her grandfather's magnum opus
Upgrade your jeans
If you don’t live in the top four-five northern states of India, winter means little else than a pair of jeans. I live in Mumbai, where only mad people wear jeans throughout the year. High temperatures and extreme levels of humidity ensure we go to work in mulmul salwars, cotton pants, or, if you are lucky like me, wear shorts every day.
Garden by the sea
When Kozhikode beach became a fertile ground for ideas with Manorama Hortus
RECRUITERS SPEAK
Industry requirements and selection criteria of management graduates
MORAL COMPASS
The need to infuse ethics into India's MBA landscape
B-SCHOOLS SHOULD UNDERSTAND THAT INDIAN ECONOMY IS GOING TO WITNESS A TREMENDOUS GROWTH
INTERVIEW - Prof DEBASHIS CHATTERJEE, director, Indian Institute of Management, Kozhikode
COURSE CORRECTION
India's best b-schools are navigating tumultuous times. Hurdles include lower salaries offered to their graduates and students misusing AI
