Thank you Mr Crombie: Lessons in Guilt and Gratitude to the British Author : Mihir Bose ISBN-13 : 978-1911723004 Publisher : Hurst Guideline Price : £25 “Without your letter, I would still have been in India, a millionaire with servants and chauffeurs, who turned left when boarding an aeroplane.” And without that letter from the eponymous Mr Crombie, we would not have had more than 50 books on an astonishing array of subjects – sports, history, biographies, finance, politics and, finally, this very honest autobiography, from Mihir Bose. Bose Da, for I write respectful of my Indian roots, gets straight to the point about what coloured his life from the moment he was born – his unfortunate dark complexion.
He writes with no squeamishness about the cruel realities of tradition and rituals in India. Early chapters are an absolute delight as he reminisces about his extended family and growing up in a chaotic household with a hierarchy of servants. It is telling that he uses no euphemisms – there are no domestic helps, just peons, ghattis, sweepers, drivers and cooks.
Bose Da presents us his very privileged life in India, warts and all. His gentle and affectionate mocking of his mother’s many Hindu fetishes is endearing, but he has no hesitation in admitting he grew up top dog in a very unfair feudal society. “Colonialism made us doubt ourselves,” he says.
So, validation by the former conquerors was craved, and the Thappa, the stamp of British approval, was needed .