Recently got the privilege of reading the book
"I Ve shed My Tears" - A candid view of resurgant India by D F Karaka
The book was published in the year 1947 and obviously has been written before India got her independence. However the book touches all aspects of the freedom struggle, criticizing its leaders, praising the common man. Yes this book is a celebration of the rise of the common man and his freedom.
The best part about this book is that there are and will be numerous books on Indian independence and its freedom struggle. However I have never come across a book that looks things from a common Indian's perspective. The view of the middle class and the numerous events that are not known to today's Indian are covered in this book.
The book starts like an autobiography and has touches of the author's private life occasionally but the authors maturity seems to grow with the maturity of Indian struggle for independence. The book covers a wide range of topics from women's liberation, inter caste marriage, caste issues and prejudices and it also covers how in course of the freedom struggle people changed.
The achievements of Indian Army in the WW-II and especially in Italy has been well portrayed making every Indian proud while reading.
If one wants to know how the common man approached the freedom struggle this is a good start. The author is like a spectator and commentator watching things as they unfold on a stadium. He does provide his opinion but more importantly provides the right picture.
It is amazing to see that the author has identified the root causes of some evils much earlier before even India got independence. He is very critical of one party exposing corruption and hypocrasy in its ranks - Is there a need to name the party :) In this aspect he has clearly foreseen what is going to happen to this country.
The only drawback, if one has to say is that there is a sudden jump from topics and sometimes it seems one is reading a collection of essays.
Nevertheless it is a must read for every Indian. The book may not be easily available but worth every second in trying to find it. If you are tech savvy then online versions are easily available :)
About the author: http://www8.open.ac.uk/researchprojects/makingbritain/content/dosabhai-framji-karaka
