Parmanand was also pursuing his Master of Arts degree at the Punjab University and was teaching history and political science at the D.A.V. College. In London, during his stay at the India House, the quintessential historian that he was, under Vinayak’s guidance, Bhai Parmanand made an intensive research of over an year and a half at the British Museum Library and wrote a thesis on the ‘Rise of British Power in India’, as part of his MA degree from London University. While his guide at King’s College found the thesis compelling, government pressure due to the ‘libellous contents’ of the thesis resulted in it being rejected. Parmanand returned to Lahore in 1908 to resume teaching, writing and working for the Arya Samaj.
Meanwhile, during his teaching stint at St Stephens College, Har Dayal received a scholarship of £200 for three years and in 1905 joined St John’s College, London, to study history. On reaching London, he had to report to Sir Curzon Wyllie and present a choice of an institute of study. Like Shyamji, Har Dayal too became a Boden Scholar at Oxford by 1907. With no intention to join government service, Har Dayal was committed to the cause of Indian independence, but not through the moderate means advocated by Gokhale and the Congress. Like Vinayak, Har Dayal too drew inspiration from Mazzini, while also admiring the philosophies of Karl Marx and the Russian revolutionary anarchist and founder of collectivist anarchism, Mikhail Bakunin. During his visits to London, Har Dayal stayed at India House and this was where he met Vinayak. About these two it is said:
Savarkar and Har Dayal—the twin souls of Pandit Shaymaji Krishnavarma . . . became the magnetic centre of attraction and activity in the years to come. It was, as it were, the manifestation of thunder and lightning, which, on the one hand, gave an alarming shock to the British Rule, and, on the other, startled the beholders with its brilliance. It may not be said that the two patriots of sterling worth were the products of Shyamaji Krishnavarma, though indeed they were his wards. Lala Lajpat Rai has very clearly stated in his biography. It is almost an affront to the born genius of these two patriots, who were themselves the born devotees of freedom, to say that they were the disciples of Pandit Shyamaji Krishnavarma. 21
Har Dayal readily joined Abhinav Bharat and took its oath. Immediately after meeting Vinayak, his ‘studies were shelved’ and he ‘walked out of the Oxford University, abandoning English education of the hated race, whose power over India he had pledged to overthrow’, 22 and sacrificing ‘the last installment of his emoluments therefrom, stating that he disapproved of the English system of education in India’. 23 The Indian Sociologist ’s October 1907 issue commended his example and hoped that ‘the demoralizing effect of the Government of India scholarships, which are offered as a bait to our best men at the Universities, will be perceived by all who wish to see their country rise in the scale of nations’. 24 He returned to India and became renowned for his role as the founder of the Ghadr Party that carried out the task of Indian revolution in America and Canada.
Virendranath Chattopadhyay (1880–1937) was another early convert of Vinayak at India House. Second of eight children of renowned linguist, ex-principal and professor of science at Nizam’s College, Hyderabad, Dr Aghore Nath Chattopadhyay, Virendra graduated from Calcutta University in 1903. ‘Chatto’, as his comrades at India House lovingly called him, was the brother of the famous Indian poet and ‘nightingale’, Sarojini Naidu. He went to England in 1903 to study for the Indian Civil Services (ICS) examinations but failed twice. He then enrolled at Middle Temple Inn to study law. He was very clearly attracted by what could be called the ‘underground movement’ for the liberation of India. It does not seem like he continued his studies after he became closely associated with Vinayak and the activities at India House. From the library he left behind in Sweden, it is clear that he was a very well-read man, with a vast knowledge of several subjects and languages. To make a living, he worked as a freelance journalist and contributed several articles. Jawaharlal Nehru writes about him in his Autobiography:
He was a very able and a very delightful person. He was always hard up, his clothes very much the worse for wear and often he found it difficult to raise the wherewithal for a meal. But his humour and light-heartedness never left him. He had been some years senior to me during my educational days in England. He was at Oxford when I was at Harrow. Since those days he had not returned to India and sometimes a fit of homesickness came to him when he longed to be back. All his home-ties had long been severed and it is quite certain that if he came to India he would feel unhappy and out of joint . . . Chatto was not, I believe, a regular communist, but he was communistically inclined. 25
Interestingly, it is said that the renowned British playwright and novelist Somerset Maugham fashioned the character and narrative of an Indian revolutionary in a chapter of his short-story collection, Ashenden: Or the British Agent , on Virendranath’s activities. 26 He made the acquaintance of an Irish girl whom he lived with for about five years at Notting Hill. A Bengali revolutionary, Chandra Chakraberty, who met him in Berlin in 1915 recounts:
Chatto was one of the ablest revolutionaries I have known. Not only he understood international politics, but he had also a good knowledge of food chemistry, which we discussed very often on the dinner table during my stay with him in Berlin. His relation with the German government was cordial and friendly. He never lowered the national dignity and self-respect as a representative of India. 27
Panduranga Mahadev Bapat (1880–1967), better known as Senapati or Commander-in-Chief Bapat was born into a Chitpawan Brahmin family like Vinayak’s in the Ahmednagar district. After his primary education at his hometown, Parner, he went to study at New English School in Poona. Completing his matriculation in 1899, he secured the coveted Jagannath Shankersheth Scholarship for his proficiency in Sanskrit and joined Deccan College, Poona. Here, he met Damodar Balwant Bhide, who belonged to the Chapekar Club, and who initiated him into the revolutionary path. The politically surcharged atmosphere at Poona shaped young Bapat’s nationalist ideas and vision. After completing his BA, he secured the Mangaldas Nathubai Scholarship and proceeded to United Kingdom in 1904 to study at Herriot-Watt College, Edinburgh. He learnt shooting at Queen’s Rifles Club of the college. Being politically active and interested, he attended several political meetings of British leaders. During one such meeting he met socialist leader John Dingwall who was a leading member of the Labour Party that sympathized with India’s freedom struggle. Bapat made an in-depth study of India’s condition under the British and this moved Dingwall deeply.
Bapat began giving bold speeches on the depravity of India’s alien rule. In 1906, in his paper ‘What shall our Congress do?’, he appealed to the Congress leaders to give up their politics of petitions and prayers and resort to agitation politics. This paper cost him his scholarship. Left with no other option, Bapat moved to India House. This is where he met Vinayak in September 1906 and was deeply inspired by him. In 1907, his paper ‘India in the year 2007’, delivered at Edinburgh, advocated the use of violent means to secure justice and liberation. ‘To secure and preserve high ideals,’ explained Bapat, ‘human killing is perfectly justified.’ 28
Writing about Vinayak’s influence on him, Bapat states:
Before I met Savarkar, I had planned a revolutionary pamphleteer and lecturer’s life for myself. A few months after I met him, I cancelled my plan and took up the idea of going to Paris for learning bomb-making . . . One chief reason for change of mind was the impression that Savarkar made on me by his brilliant writing and speaking. Here was a born revolutionary, writer, and speaker. I said to myself, I may well leave writing and turn to revolutionary work. 29
On Vinayak’s advice, Bapat, along with Hemchandra Das and Mirza Abbas, went to Paris to learn how to make bombs with the help of his Russian friends. Significantly though, despite his close ties with Vinayak and a perfect alignment of thoughts on the issue of armed revolution, Bapat never became a member of Abhinav Bharat despite several attempts by Vinayak. The reason for this is unclear. 30
V.V.S. Aiyar (1881–1925), or Varahaneri Venkatesa Subramania Aiyar, was born in the hamlet of Varahaneri in Trichinopoly in the Madras Presidency. His Brahmin father, Venkatesa Aiyar, had a small banking business and a sales and credit society that specialized in the audit of accounts. He was deeply concerned about the virulent propaganda of Christian missionaries and their proselytization efforts and consequently undertook door-to-door canvassing to bring neo-converts back into the Hindu fold. He even approached the venerable Shankaracharya of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham for permission to reconvert them but failed. Disappointed, Venkatesa Aiyar continued his efforts by word of mouth and through printed leaflets. To combat the rapid loss of culture and reverence for one’s faith among Hindu children, he would take them on tours to the famous temples of Tamil Nadu and narrate fascinating tales of their history and mythology. Born into such a Hindu-conscious family, Subramania too was deeply religious. Passing his matriculation in 1895, he ranked fifth in the entire presidency. He attended St Joseph’s College at Trichinopoly and in 1899 passed his BA examination meritoriously, standing first in Latin.
After passing a pleader’s 31 examination in Madras in 1902, Subramania settled into a comfortable domestic life. That was when his wife’s cousin suggested that he take up legal practice in Rangoon (Yangon). Despite the taboo associated with ‘crossing the seas’, his father allowed young Subramania to leave for Rangoon. In Rangoon, his friend T.S.S. Rajan noticed Subramania’s talents and suggested that he go to London to study and become a barrister, and also offered to finance his travel. Accordingly, he left for London in late 1907. Aiyar’s search for a vegetarian mess in London took him to India House. It was here that Aiyar first met Vinayak. Vinayak describes their first meeting thus:
In 1907, one day the maidservant at the famous India House in London handed a visiting card to us as we came downstairs to dine and told us the gentleman was waiting in the drawing room. Presently, the door was flung open and a gentleman, neatly dressed in European costume and inclined to be fashionable, warmly shook hands with us. He told us he had been a pleader in Rangoon and had come over to England to qualify himself as a full-fledged barrister. He was past thirty and seemed a bit agreeably surprised to find us so young. He assured us of his intention to study English music and even assured us that he was keen to get a few lessons in dancing as well. We, as usual, entered our mild protest against thus dissipating the energy of our youth in light-hearted pastimes when momentous issues hung in the balance. The gentleman, unconvinced, though impressed took our leave promising to continue to call upon us every now and then. He was Shrijut V.V.S. Aiyar. 32
Vinayak was wrong about Aiyar’s age; he was only twenty-six but looked older because of his sturdy build. Before joining India House, Aiyar was deeply suspicious and resentful of Vinayak and had even said to a few friends: ‘I will have nothing to do with that firebrand.’ 33 But at the Inns of Court, where both of them serendipitously worked together, Aiyar began to realize how wrong his assessment of Vinayak had been. They went on to become lifelong friends. Aiyar soon moved into India House as a permanent lodger and was Vinayak’s second-in-command and trusted confidant. A little later, T.S.S Rajan also left Rangoon for London and joined India House.
M.P. Tirumala Acharya was a Tamil scholar, journalist and patriot. Born in 1887 in Madras, his father M.P. Narasimha Ayyangar was a supervisor in the Public Works Department. His forefathers hailed from Mysore and had migrated to Madras. Coming from a family steeped in patriotic values, young Tirumala joined hands with the famous Tamil poet and nationalist, Subramania Bharati, to run a weekly journal titled India . The patriotic editorials and interesting cartoons—the first in any language in south India—made the newspaper very popular. It also attracted British ire. They decided to arrest Bharati, after which Tirumala Acharya fled to the French territory of Pondicherry. The British government began putting immense pressure on France to ban ‘seditious literature’ and hand over these ‘refugees’.
This marked a turning point in Acharya’s life. To hide his identity, he cut off the pigtail that orthodox Brahmins like him sported, bid an emotional farewell to his ailing father; and in the best interests of the country, decided to leave India. With a small suitcase and merely Rs 300 on him, Tirumala had no idea where to proceed. He first moved to Colombo and from there escaped to England. During the passage, since there was no vegetarian food on board, he kept a fast for twenty-two days. In Paris, he met Moniers Vinson, a professor of Tamil in Paris University who was recommended by a mutual acquaintance as someone who might help him earn a living in the city. But he was sadly mistaken and the professor refused to help. Desperate to find a way to survive in a new city, Acharya met a few Indian patriots whom he was in correspondence with while he co-edited the India weekly. They advised him to leave Paris and go to London to seek refuge at Shyamji’s hostel. At India House, Acharya too came under Vinayak’s spell, becoming an ardent follower. He reminisces about his association with Vinayak thus:
His personal charm was such that a mere shake hand could convert men as V.V.S. Aiyar and Har Dayal—not only convert but even bring out the best out of them. Sincere men always became attached to him whether they agreed with or differed from him. Not only men in ordinary walks of life but even those aspiring to high offices, recognized the purity of purpose in him, although they were poles apart from him, and deadly opponents as regards his political objectives. They even opened their purse for his propaganda. That means Savarkar had a rare tact in dealing with men of every variety. Savarkar’s austerity was itself a discipline to others, which easy-going people hated and shunned. England was a country for amusement and most people wanted to make the most of it. 34
The Bengali ‘ Dada’ (elder brother) as he was called, J.C. Mukherjee was an elderly person and wrote regularly for Gandhi’s Indian Opinion . After meeting Vinayak, his political thoughts changed and he devoted himself to the revolutionary cause.
Among Vinayak’s closest aides at India House was Madan Lal Dhingra (1883–1909). Madan Lal was born on 18 September 1883 in Amritsar, the sixth of seven sons. His father was a renowned eye specialist and civil surgeon in Amritsar. Two of Madan Lal’s brothers were doctors, while two others were barristers. In 1906, Dhingra went to London to pursue his higher studies—a diploma in civil engineering at University College. Tall, well built and handsome, Dhingra was blithe and jovial and the centre of attraction of young men and women. His friends were as boisterous and often sang romantic songs. Matters of freedom or revolution were the last things on Dhingra’s mind. But he was transformed under Vinayak’s influence. One Sunday afternoon, when Vinayak was delivering a lecture at India House, Dhingra and his friends were creating a ruckus in the adjoining room. An incensed Vinayak barged into Dhingra’s room and gave him an earful about his irresponsible behaviour while millions in his country were dying of slavery. Those harsh words shamed Dhingra so much that he quietly left India House for several days thereafter. After mustering the courage, Dhingra returned to seek Vinayak’s pardon and was further embarrassed when he saw the latter behaving with him as normal as before. He vowed to dedicate himself to the cause of the revolution.
Famously known as the ‘Mother of Indian Revolutionaries’, Madame Bhikaji Rustom K.R. Cama (1861–1936) was one of the high priestesses of Indian nationalism. Her portrait appeared in French papers along with that of Joan of Arc. British intelligence reports state that she ‘was regarded by the Hindus as a reincarnation of some deity, presumably Kali’. 35 Born into a rich Parsi business family in Bombay, Bhikaji was educated at Alexandra Parsi Girls School. Right from her childhood, tales of heroism and the freedom struggle attracted her. Her orientation deeply offended her father, Sorabji Framji Patel, who decided that the best panacea to this was getting her married. So, he chose a handsome young man, Rustom Cama, a lawyer and a pro-British social worker and son of the famous Orientalist and social reformer, Professor Khurshidji Rostomji Cama. It seemed like the perfect, cultured household
that could ‘cure’ the little girl of her madness for revolution and freedom. On 3 August 1885, their wedding was celebrated with much grandeur. However, Sorabji’s strategy failed.
In 1896, when plague broke out in Bombay, Bhikaji wilfully left the comforts of her home and went to slums to serve victims. She had not even been vaccinated and so was afflicted by plague herself. All of this and her frequent dabbling with thoughts of freedom and armed struggle created major rifts in the household. The marriage terminated in 1901 and a thoroughly frustrated Bhikaji decided to leave India for good. Her father wanted to send her to London to convalesce. But Bhikaji had other plans. She plunged into politics straightaway. She stayed in London from 1902 to 1907 and came in contact with Shyamji Krishna Varma. Initially, a proponent of the moderate faction of Congress, she served as Dadabhai Naoroji’s private secretary. But she was soon captivated by the story of Mazzini and other revolutionaries and decided to switch sides to support the Lal-Bal-Pal trio of extremists. She was a regular contributor in the Indian Sociologist . Her propaganda for the cause of Indian freedom took her to New York in 1907. Staying at Martha Washington Hotel there, Bhikaji, when questioned about her political aim, replied:
Swaraj , self-government. No one conceives how we are prosecuted. I could not return to India . . . the most hopeful thing is the enthusiasm that is spreading over our entire people. Starved and uneducated as many of us are, the past few years have shown an increase of millions of patriots. We shall have liberty, fraternity, and equality someday. We hope for freedom within ten years. 36
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