In the Shadow of Freedom: Three Lives in Hitler’s Berlin and Gandhi’s India

Laxmi Tendulkar Dhaul

Zubaan Books, 388 pages, Rs 495

In the early 1930s, the young journalist Ayi Tendulkar travelled to Germany to study, going on to marry Thea von Harbou, divorced wife of legendary filmmaker Fritz Lang. Thea became Tendulkar’s mainstay in Germany, supporting him in bringing other Indian students to the country. When Hitler came to power, Tendulkar returned to India, getting involved in Gandhi’s non-cooperation campaign, and marrying Gandhian activist Indumati Gunaji. Indumati and Tendulkar’s daughter, Laxmi Tendulkar Dhaul, traces the turbulent lives of her parents and Thea von Harbou, against the backdrop of Nazi Germany and Gandhi’s India.