OF THE RAJ, MAHARAJAS AND ME

DeScriPtionM.A. Sreenivasan (1897-1998) lived through almost the entire 20th century,and was among the very few people who witnessed at close quarters theenormous changes that took place in India during this period. Born in Madras,he belonged to a family that traced its origins to a disciple and associate ofthe great sage Ramanuja. Subsequent generations were Pradhans (ministers)of successive kings of Mysore for 150 years. Sreenivasan himself joined theMysore Civil Service in 1918 and, after a varied career both with the MysoreGovernment and the Government of British India, became a Pradhan ofthe Maharaja of Mysore in 1943. In 1947 he was invited by the Maharaja ofGwalior to become the Dewan of that State. During that momentous year hewas a member of the Constituent Assembly of India and in regular touch withmany of the leading figures (including Mountbatten) involved in the transferof power from British to Indian hands.Much more than an autobiography, Of the Raj, Maharajas and Me is also a rareportrait of India during and immediately after the British Raj. The formerprincely States of India have been neglected by scholars, many of whom havetended to be unfairly critical. There is much in this book on the effectivenessof administration in two major princely States, which redresses the balanceand makes the book a valuable document on the subject. Further, Sreenivasanprovides sharp insights on the negotiations that led to the end of the Raj, andon the new polity that emerged after Independence. This absorbing book willbe of particular interest to students and scholars of modern Indian history