Thread time - reproducing an article from Shankar's Weekly. #RememberingNehru
Jawaharlal Nehru must have been naughty as a boy; obstinate, perplexed, chivalrous and cheerful. He did not change. If he were not a political leader or PM, he would have discovered India more,
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Jawaharlal Nehru must have been naughty as a boy; obstinate, perplexed, chivalrous and cheerful. He did not change. If he were not a political leader or PM, he would have discovered India more,
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written more books and gathered more royalties. If he were not writing books, he would have kept himself busy, swapping flies and catching butterflies. They came in endless succession, from morning till late in the night. The more he swapped the flies, the more they came
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to trouble him. The smile changed into a frown, the chin stood out more dauntlessly; he looked perplexed and thoughtful. But he asked the world to hit him hard because he was still the naughty boy who could take it.
And it was safe to hit him hard because he never hit back.
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And it was safe to hit him hard because he never hit back.
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Jawaharlal was not true to type. His smiles and frowns were not typical. Politicians thought he was too honest to be one of them.
He kept his freshness of heart - the dauntless boy; intent on his butterflies, willing to be cheated but incapable of cheating.
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He kept his freshness of heart - the dauntless boy; intent on his butterflies, willing to be cheated but incapable of cheating.
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He mellowed and not withered under age, and though the frame was that of an elder statesman, the heart was that of Peter Pan. India had changed, and more so had Panditji to some extent, but not Panditji's spirit.
The secret of Panditji was that he had a heart of a child,
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The secret of Panditji was that he had a heart of a child,
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a child's freshness, a child's sense of wonder. Guns and planes were wonderful toys to him, productions plans were picture puzzles, crowds meant excitement, exhibitions were wonder lands; travel was a voyage of discovery; colleagues are playmates;
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obstruction was irritation. He would lose his temper, without losing his head and though he would like to commend people, he did it like an old comrade.
He braved, dared, suffered, befriended and succeeded without becoming a cynic.
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He braved, dared, suffered, befriended and succeeded without becoming a cynic.
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Without any group loyalty behind him, he was India's leader when veterans were available; though knowing the West more than the East, he was Asia's symbol.
With his shining vision and stubborn sense of destiny, he became one of the world's leading statesmen.
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With his shining vision and stubborn sense of destiny, he became one of the world's leading statesmen.
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It was not the Prime Minister but Panditji that mattered. Whoever was Prime Minister, we wanted Panditji always with us with his sense of adventure and his sense of fun.
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Found in the book "The Unforgettable Nehru"- By P.D. Tandon
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Found in the book "The Unforgettable Nehru"- By P.D. Tandon
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