Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 9 (UNI) Congress MP and author Shashi Tharoor has said he wrote the biography “The Sage Who Reimagined Hinduism: The Life, Lessons and Legacy of Sree Narayana Guru” with the clear objective of taking the Guru’s ideas and legacy beyond South India.
Speaking at the Kerala Legislative Assembly International Book Festival during the session titled “Distances Traversed Through Words,” Tharoor, in conversation with N E Sudheer, said his years as the Member of Parliament from Thiruvananthapuram helped him realise how deeply Sree Narayana Guru is revered by the people of Kerala.
“In many places, the Guru is worshipped almost like a deity. But outside South India, very few people truly know about him. That gap needs to be addressed,” he said.
Tharoor stressed the need to market the book effectively and called for its translation not only into English and Malayalam but also into other Indian languages, so that people across the country could learn about the Guru.
He also noted that Sree Narayana Guru was the first person in India’s census history to write “human being” in the column meant for caste.
On Indian politics, Tharoor said he considers Jawaharlal Nehru the founder of Indian democracy. Responding to a question on whether the BJP-led union government’s attempts to sideline Nehru stem from fear of his stature, Tharoor replied in the affirmative.
However, he added that Nehru was not beyond criticism. “There were lapses on Nehru’s part in the developments that led to the 1962 war with China. But blaming him alone for everything is unacceptable,” he said, clarifying that he is a fan of Nehru but not an uncritical one.
Sharing personal experiences, Tharoor said he turned to reading at a very young age due to asthma. With no television or mobile phones at the time and frequent sleepless nights caused by illness, books became his only refuge.
He wrote his first short story at the age of six, inspired by children’s author Enid Blyton. His first story was published when he was ten, and he also wrote his first novel around the same age. The biography of Sree Narayana Guru marks his 28th book.
Tharoor observed that while reading habits are declining in many parts of the world, Kerala continues to stand out as a society that values reading. He recalled writing “The Great Indian Novel” in 1989 as a satirical work of fiction at a time when the genre was largely absent in India.
For today’s younger generation, who often cite a lack of time to read, he suggested shorter books with fewer pages as a way to encourage reading.
He also reminisced about his college days at St Stephen’s College, Delhi, where he played Antony in a stage production, with noted filmmaker Mira Nair portraying Cleopatra. The session concluded with Tharoor reciting lines from his poem “How to Sleep at Night.”
