When Stone Walls Cry: The Nehrus in Prison

Millions in India have long been obsessed with the vicissitudes of the Nehru-Gandhi family’s fate. Inextricably linked to the ups and downs of their lives was the future of the nation itself. It was Jawaharlal Nehru’s leadership that guided India onto the world stage as a modern nation. Despite the varied scholarship of Nehruvian studies, one important aspect-the experiences of the Nehrus in prison during the national movement-has received only scant consideration. This book addresses that omission by highlighting the significance of prison time in shaping the lives of the members of this illustrious family. For Motilal and Jawaharlal Nehru, Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, and Krishna Hutheesing, among others, serving prison time was much more than just a marker of participation in the Independence movement. The grim walls of jail provided the place and time to the Nehrus to reflect on and give direction to the nationalist struggle. Such important literary works as Glimpses of World History and Discovery of India, which remain timeless in their appeal, were crafted in gaol. In tracing the intellectual biography of the Nehru-Gandhi family, this book documents the ethos of an entire era during the colonial period.