This remarkable memoir, and history of India after Independence, by one of India’s most distinguished public intellectuals, begins with his memories, at the age of three, of the assassination of his paternal grandfather, Mahatma Gandhi. From this poignant opening note, the book expands into numerous encounters with personalities both Indian and foreign, ‘eminent’ as well as little known, and original insights into key events and turning points of modern Indian history, many of which he was an eyewitness to as secretary to presidents R. Venkataraman and K. R. Narayanan, and as governor of West Bengal and Bihar.