National, July, 2024: Marking the 167th year of Bal Gangadhar Tilak’s birth anniversary on 23rd July , Penguin Random House India announces the release of Tilak: The Empire’s Biggest Enemy, written by Vaibhav Purandare . It is the first comprehensive biography of the formidable leader, who was instrumental in transforming India’s quest for freedom from a political discourse into a powerful mass movement. It is now available in bookstores nationwide and on e-commerce platforms.
Before Mahatma Gandhi emerged as the face of the Indian freedom struggle, Bal Gangadhar Tilak was the revolutionary force behind the surge of Indian nationalism. For the British Raj, Tilak was the most dangerous dissenting voice, leading to three sedition charges against him for his provocative writings in his nationalist daily, Kesari.
Featuring exclusive picture inserts from the 1880s, Vaibhav Purandare traces Tilak’s journey from his early days in Konkan to his influential role in India’s independence movement, spotlighting his relentless fight against British colonialism, his imprisonment, and his steadfast dedication to the cause of Swaraj in the book. Tilak: The Empire’s Biggest Enemy sheds light on a strand of the freedom struggle which has not been covered adequately. The book acts as a much-needed corrective to the not-so balanced narration of Indian history in the twenty-first century.
Vaibhav Purandare, said, ‘Tilak roused the Indian people into collective action against the British Raj and made them aware of ‘rights’, which was revolutionary in late 19th and early 20th century India because, subjugated as they were, Indians – and their chief political organization, the Indian National Congress – were until then speaking only in the language of ‘pleadings’ and ‘requests’. Tilak represents the turning point of India’s freedom struggle, for he single-handedly turned that struggle into a people’s upheaval. He also led the vigorous Indian pushback against colonization of the mind, heart and spirit.’
His biography of Tilak speaks of how India’s massive political revolution and the anti-colonial fight was unleashed and acquired momentum. It tells us how we, as a nation, and individual citizens got to the point where we are today. It’s impossible to understand the freedom struggle and equally our present-day national debates on various contentious issues without looking closely at Tilak’s life’, he added.
Premanka Goswami, Associate Publisher, Vintage & Head Backlist, Penguin, said, ‘Bal Gangadhar Tilak not only dominated the politics in pre-1920 India but also played a pivotal role as an intellectual fountainhead. Tilak, through his life, philosophy and work, left an indelible impression on India’s freedom struggle and on the tallest leaders of India’s independence movement against the British hegemony. Tilak: The Empire’s Biggest Enemy by Vaibhav Purandare throws new light on Lokmanya. With his impeccable narrative style, archival research and access to the primary source, Vaibhav takes the narrative to a new height. I’m thrilled to publish this title and I sincerely hope that this book will interest a huge spectrum of readers for now and the days to come’.
Known as ‘Lokmanya,’ or ‘One Revered by the People, Tilak had boldly declared, “Freedom is my birthright, and I shall have it.” His impassioned writings, relentless activism, and bold defiance earned him the title of ‘the greatest threat’ to British rule. At a time when the British sought to diminish Indian self-worth, Tilak fiercely defended India’s rich cultural heritage and history, awakening a national consciousness that still resonates today.
Tilak: The Empire’s Biggest Enemy serves as a crucial resource for anyone seeking to understand the intricate history of Indian political movements and the legacy of one of its most iconic figures and understanding the role models of early periods of independence, like Tilak.
