I studied journalism formally in 1992. And gave up full-time writing seven years later. But we never studied the journalism or the ethics of stalwarts of Indian Origin in detail except through Rangaswami Parthasarathy's books on the topic. We heard of two icons remotely - M.V.Kamath and B.G.Verghese. Sad to hear both of them passed away in 2014.
M.V.Kamath wrote copiously even after his active press career ended and had columns in many newspapers. He was disciplined and loved to share his love of writing and thirst for knowledge to youngsters. I read some of his books; they are both scholarly and light at the same time - difficult to achieve. I hunted down his books at many places after reading just few like "Letters to Gauri: A passage through history" and "Shirdi Sai Baba". The ones I particularly liked were the biographies of Nani Palkhivaala and M.K.Gandhi. He explored new angles and anecdotal richness in selecting his subjects. For instance, what new light can be thrown on Gandhi? So Kamath chose to focus on his lesser-highlighted dimensions of spiritual quest. Similarly, on Palkhivaala, he chose aspects of greatness of a man that overshadows everything else in the public domain - humility, time management, budget speeches and preparation, writing and lecturing, free forum leadership etc. Kamath wrote biographies of businessmen like Charat Ram and Ramakrishna Bajaj and also on institutions like Central Bank of India. I think the one on CBI was his last. I never stopped searches for Kamath's books. My joy doubled when I stumbled upon his memoirs: "A Reporter At Large" at an obscure bookshop at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. Writing about other people when it is tempting to write about yourself - few are good at it. Kamath revels in this art. He gives such fine recount of famous repartees and retorts with people who live in incandescent bulbs all their life - like Henry Kissinger. Kamath wrote how he got snubbed by the condescending Kissinger and how he levelled with him many years later at a banquet. Kamath kept writing almost till 2009 and wrote books on Amul's Kurien, standards of journalism and a handbook for journalists. He never sought sensationalism unlike some of today's scribes in famous magazines. He knew his limitations, practised his faith and explored the subjects he wrote on till the very last. Poignant that he was born in Udupi and died in Manipal; not many have the luxury of nesting and resting in one pincode while orbiting the world in a lifetime.
B.G.Verghese is another journalist who passed away this year. I have had no idea who he was until I read his book: "First Draft" - one of the finest chronicles of Indian polity through the eyes of an insightful journalist. It competes with some of the best books written on the Emergency Days. My acquaintance with B.G.Verghese has been only through his books. And I read two other books. One was the biography of the magisterial press baron Ramnath Goenka. The third book was his last and I bet many journalists wouldn't have even heard of the book. It got released in 2014 as "Post Haste": a history of India's heritage and geography through stamps. It is a stunning, light-hearted journey of Indian icons and events through more than 3000 stamps issued by IndiaPost. A must-read if you love stamps and history - an engaging combination used by B.G.Verghese. His career looks picture-perfect - education in some of the finest universities in the world, awards like Magsaysay, assignments with the most tumultous political regimes and leading stints with Hindustan Times and Indian Express. Quite an eventful life that.
May their souls R.I.P.
#BGVerghese #MVKamath #IndianJournalism #BooksbyMVKamath #BooksbyBGVerghese
