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There is perhaps no political figure in modern history who did more to secure and protect the Indian nation than Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. But, ironically, seventy years after Patel brought together piece by piece the map of India by fusing the princely states with British India to create a new democratic, independent nation, little is understood or appreciated about Patel's enormous contribution to the making of India. Caricatured in political debate, all the nuances of Patel's difficult life and the daring choices he made are often lost, or worse, used as mere polemic. If Mahatma Gandhi was the spiritual core of India's freedom struggle and Jawaharlal Nehru its romantic idealism, it was Sardar Patel who brought in the vital pragmatism which held together the national movement and the first ideas of independent India. A naturally stoic man, Patel, unlike Gandhi or Nehru, wrote no personal history. He famously argued that its was better to create history than write it. This is why even his deepest misgivings and quarrels have been easily buried. But every warning that Patel left for India - from the dangers of allowing groups to create private militias to his thoughtful criticism on India's approach to Kashmir, Pakistan and China - are all dangerously relevant today. It is impossible to read about Patel, who died in 1950, and not feel that had he lived on, India might have been a different country. It is also impossible to ignore Patel and understand not only what the idea of India is but also what it could have been, and might be in the future. The Man Who Saved India is a sweeping, magisterial retelling of Sardar Patel's story. With fiercely detailed and pugnacious anecdotes, multiple award-winning, best-selling writer Hindol Sengupta brings alive Patel's determined life of struggle and his furious commitment to keep India safe. This book brings alive all the arguments, quarrels and clashes between some of the most determined people in Indian history and their battle to carve out an independent nation. Through ravages of a failing body broken by decades of abuse in and outside prison, Patel stands out in this book as the man who, even on his death bed, worked to save India. Hindol Sengupta's The Man Who Saved India is destined to define Patel's legacy for future generations. Praise for the book: Sardar Patel was the silent one of the trinity along with Gandhi and Nehru who dedicated his life. In the struggle for an independent India. His lasting legacy is a United India rather than the land which throughout history has-been split in rival warring kingdoms. Hindol Sengupta has given us the story of Sardar's life for the new generations of India so that they could understand and admire a unique personality. Read this book and discover India's history in the first half the last century. And reclaim your legacy. - Lord Meghnad Desai, bestselling author and economist "It is dangerous to put dreamers in power. Sardar Patel's pragmatism was the perfect antidote to Nehru's idealism in the early years of Independence. If only Patel had lived longer, India would have been spared the excesses of the License Raj and the Kashmir problem. This is one of the messages of this lively, highly readable book." - Gurcharan Das, bestselling author The Man Who Saved India is the most authoritative and accessible biography of Sardhar Vallabhbhai Patel, lovingly referred to as the 'Iron Man of India'. In this book, written in his impeccable narrative style, Hindol Sengupta rescues the memory of the beloved leader of India from the vaults of obscurity. This book brings out the true story of independence as well as stability of India following it, which was achieved through sweat and blood of its leaders like Patel. The Man who Saved India reverses one of the historical ironies of modern India through bringing into light many of the unknown facts of the life of Patel, based on the author's field visits, interviews, and extensive research, which is an onerous task in itself considering the fact that Patel neither maintained records of his work nor preserved his documents of communications. Hindol begins the narration of larger than life tale of Patel describing his visit to the birth home of Patel in Nadiad, now in dilapidated condition, an image not unlike the less than optimal public memory of Patel in modern India. Hindol discusses the numerous sacrifices Patel has made in public life bowing to the political ambitions of his peers, while never wavering from his duty to India. The Man who Saved India clearly charts the leadership skills and statesmanship of Patel during the numerous non-cooperation and civil disobedience movements such as Bardoli and Kheda Satyagrahas, and the timely military action in independent India. It was due to the sheer strength of resolve on the part of Patel, which has helped forge the Bharat that was to capture the imagination of the masses of independent India. The hitherto unknown details of Patel's personal life and his complex relations with his peers and other contemporary national leaders including Gandhi, Nehru, and Bose, help understand the grace with which he gave up political positions more than once. In addition, the author also clearly describes the personal sacrifices Patel has made at the altar of mother India, not only of his personal life, but also of the life of his children, even to the chagrin of his family and friends. The amazing result of author's copious research is the emergence of an exceptionally clear picture of Patel's life and leadership in the three decades leading up to the independence of India in addition to establishing Patel's key role in the formative years of India following independence, until his death. The Man who Saved India is a timely and much needed historical account of modern India. The Man who Saved India is a must read for every Indian as well as every person interested in learning the true history of India. - Lavanya Vemsani, Professor, Shawnee State University, Vice President, Ohio Academy of History, President & Cofounder, American Academy of Indic Studies Every nation has its own narrative that is built over time, even centuries. For India and as Indians we claim ancient ancestry and are therefore, civilisational. Yet, we are a new democratic republic trying to find our place in the new tumultuous 21st century. There comes a time when we cannot look forward without revisiting our past to see if the narrative of the past was complete, accurate and fair. For decades, the narrative has been that there were essentially two leaders in India - Mahatma Gandhi and his prot There is perhaps no political figure in modern history who did more to secure and protect the Indian nation than Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. But, ironically, seventy years after Patel brought together piece by piece the map of India by fusing the princely states with British India to create a new democratic, independent nation, little is understood or appreciated about Patel's enormous contribution to the making of India. Caricatured in political debate, all the nuances of Patel's difficult life and the daring choices he made are often lost, or worse, used as mere polemic. If Mahatma Gandhi was the spiritual core of India's freedom struggle and Jawaharlal Nehru its romantic idealism, it was Sardar Patel who brought in the vital pragmatism which held together the national movement and the first ideas of independent India. A naturally stoic man, Patel, unlike Gandhi or Nehru, wrote no personal history. He famously argued that its was better to create history than write it. This is why even his deepest misgivings and quarrels have been easily buried. But every warning that Patel left for India - from the dangers of allowing groups to create private militias to his thoughtful criticism on India's approach to Kashmir, Pakistan and China - are all dangerously relevant today. It is impossible to read about Patel, who died in 1950, and not feel that had he lived on, India might have been a different country. It is also impossible to ignore Patel and understand not only what the idea of India is but also what it could have been, and might be in the future. The Man Who Saved India is a sweeping, magisterial retelling of Sardar Patel's story. With fiercely detailed and pugnacious anecdotes, multiple award-winning, best-selling writer Hindol Sengupta brings alive Patel's determined life of struggle and his furious commitment to keep India safe. This book brings alive all the arguments, quarrels and clashes between some of the most determined people in Indian history and their battle to carve out an independent nation. Through ravages of a failing body broken by decades of abuse in and outside prison, Patel stands out in this book as the man who, even on his death bed, worked to save India. Hindol Sengupta's The Man Who Saved India is destined to define Patel's legacy for future generations. Praise for the book: Sardar Patel was the silent one of the trinity along with Gandhi and Nehru who dedicated his life. In the struggle for an independent India. His lasting legacy is a United India rather than the land which throughout history has-been split in rival warring kingdoms. Hindol Sengupta has given us the story of Sardar's life for the new generations of India so that they could understand and admire a unique personality. Read this book and discover India's history in the first half the last century. And reclaim your legacy. - Lord Meghnad Desai, bestselling author and economist "It is dangerous to put dreamers in power. Sardar Patel's pragmatism was the perfect antidote to Nehru's idealism in the early years of Independence. If only Patel had lived longer, India would have been spared the excesses of the License Raj and the Kashmir problem. This is one of the messages of this lively, highly readable book." - Gurcharan Das, bestselling author The Man Who Saved India is the most authoritative and accessible biography of Sardhar Vallabhbhai Patel, lovingly referred to as the 'Iron Man of India'. In this book, written in his impeccable narrative style, Hindol Sengupta rescues the memory of the beloved leader of India from the vaults of obscurity. This book brings out the true story of independence as well as stability of India following it, which was achieved through sweat and blood of its leaders like Patel. The Man who Saved India reverses one of the historical ironies of modern India through bringing into light many of the unknown facts of the life of Patel, based on the author's field visits, interviews, and extensive research, which is an onerous task in itself considering the fact that Patel neither maintained records of his work nor preserved his documents of communications. Hindol begins the narration of larger than life tale of Patel describing his visit to the birth home of Patel in Nadiad, now in dilapidated condition, an image not unlike the less than optimal public memory of Patel in modern India. Hindol discusses the numerous sacrifices Patel has made in public life bowing to the political ambitions of his peers, while never wavering from his duty to India. The Man who Saved India clearly charts the leadership skills and statesmanship of Patel during the numerous non-cooperation and civil disobedience movements such as Bardoli and Kheda Satyagrahas, and the timely military action in independent India. It was due to the sheer strength of resolve on the part of Patel, which has helped forge the Bharat that was to capture the imagination of the masses of independent India. The hitherto unknown details of Patel's personal life and his complex relations with his peers and other contemporary national leaders including Gandhi, Nehru, and Bose, help understand the grace with which he gave up political positions more than once. In addition, the author also clearly describes the personal sacrifices Patel has made at the altar of mother India, not only of his personal life, but also of the life of his children, even to the chagrin of his family and friends. The amazing result of author's copious research is the emergence of an exceptionally clear picture of Patel's life and leadership in the three decades leading up to the independence of India in addition to establishing Patel's key role in the formative years of India following independence, until his death. The Man who Saved India is a timely and much needed historical account of modern India. The Man who Saved India is a must read for every Indian as well as every person interested in learning the true history of India. - Lavanya Vemsani, Professor, Shawnee State University, Vice President, Ohio Academy of History, President & Cofounder, American Academy of Indic Studies Every nation has its own narrative that is built over time, even centuries. For India and as Indians we claim ancient ancestry and are therefore, civilisational. Yet, we are a new democratic republic trying to find our place in the new tumultuous 21st century. There comes a time when we cannot look forward without revisiting our past to see if the narrative of the past was complete, accurate and fair. For decades, the narrative has been that there were essentially two leaders in India - Mahatma Gandhi and his prot