Today, 22nd April 2020, is the 75th birthday of one of the most remarkable living Indians: Gopalkrishna Gandhi, public servant, diplomat, writer and scholar,. A thread on his work follows.

The posts Gopal Gandhi has held include Secretary to the President, High Commissioner to South Africa and Sri Lanka, and Governor of West Bengal. He was also the Founder-Director of the Nehru Centre in London. He served in all these posts with distinction, rectitude, and honour.

Gopal Gandhi is also a well-known writer and translator. Among his works are a novel about Tamils in Sri Lanka, “Refuge"; an award-winning Hindi translation of Vikram Seth’s “A Suitable Boy” (published as “Ek Achcha Sa Ladka”); and a superb anthology of Gandhi’s writings.

I admire (and envy) Gopal Gandhi for many things, among them his phenomenal linguistic skills. He is formidably fluent in Hindi, English, Tamil and Gujarati (in that order) and can manage pretty well in Bangla and Urdu as well.

In private life, Gopal Gandhi exudes grace, compassion, and an unselfconscious humility. He has influenced and inspired many Indians younger than him, this writer among them. He has taught me more about modern Indian history and Mahatma Gandhi than anyone else.