Seen in the photograph are (from l to r): Ameena Saiyid, Managing Director, Oxford University Press Pakistan; Shrabani Basu; Sheema Kermani, classical dancer, women's rights activist, and founder of Tehrik-e-Niswan; and Asif Farrukhi, literary critic, translator, and short story writer.
Karachi, 27 May: Oxford University Press (OUP) organized a talk and presentation by Shrabani Basu on her recently published book Victoria and Abdul: The True Story of the Queen's Closest Confidant. The book, which topped the bestseller list in non-fiction in India, examines how a young Indian Muslim, Abdul Karim, came to play a central role at the heart of the empire, and his influence over the queen at a time when independence movements in the sub-continent were growing in force. The story charts the course of Abdul Karim's journey from being an assistant clerk at Agra Central Jail to waiting at the tables during Queen Victoria’s royal jubilee celebrations in London to eventually rising through the ranks and becoming Her Majesty's teacher or Munshi, and instructing her in Urdu and Indian affairs. Shrabani Basu in her talk highlighted the nature of the intense friendship between an ordinary Indian and his elderly queen, a relationship that survived the best attempts to destroy it.
While introducing the author, Ameena Saiyid, Managing Director, OUP Pakistan, said that Shrabani Basu has a penchant for history, which inspires her writing and has resulted in her choosing riveting themes for her books. She added that Abdul represents the common roots of Pakistanis and Indians, and his story is bound to appeal equally to both.
Shrabani Basu was born in Calcutta and grew up in Dhaka, Kathmandu and Delhi. She moved to London in 1987, since when she has been the correspondent of the Calcutta-based newspapers Ananda Bazar Patrika and The Telegraph. Besides Victoria and Abdul, she is also the author of Curry: the Story of the Nation’s Favourite Dish, and the critically acclaimed biography Spy Princess: the Life of Noor Inayat Khan.
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