Pan Macmillan to publish Nathuram Godse's biography

A biography of Nathuram Godse, Mahatma Gandhi's infamous assassin, situates the man and his most defining act in the larger context of modern Indian history and contemporary society and politics.

"Nathuram Godse: The True Story of Gandhi's Assassin" by Mumbai-based journalist Dhaval Kulkarni will be published by Pan Macmillan India in 2022.

The publisher said this investigative account will bring to light hitherto unknown aspects of Godse's life and times, his ideologies and motivations while revealing the complex factors that led to an assassination that would permanently alter the course of India's history.

The book was acquired at auction by Teesta Guha Sarkar, editorial head at Pan Macmillan India, from Anish Chandy, founder of Labyrinth literary agency.

"The book will be a deep-dive account and delve into the cataclysmic chain of events both before and after Gandhi's murder," Kulkarni says.

"It will lay special emphasis on accessing source material and writings in Marathi, which is necessary considering the assassination plot was born and developed in the region that belonged to the erstwhile Bombay Presidency," he adds. Sarkar terms it as a "truly groundbreaking" work.

"With Nathuram Godse being hailed as a patriot by specific factions in the politically turbulent India of today, it has become imperative to newly understand the historical events that have brought us here," she says.

This biography "not only presents an incisive and revelatory portrait of India's most infamous assassin but also uncovers the far-reaching influence of the murder and the motivations behind it on the nation's political journey," she says.

According to Chandy, the book will "cast clear light on a series of personalities who irrevocably changed the trajectory of the nation".

Kulkarni has previously authored books like "The Cousins Thackeray: Uddhav, Raj and the Shadow of Their Senas" and "The Bawla Murder Case: Love, Lust and Crime in Colonial India".

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