Tab Article

Ratings: ★★★★☆ (4.5/5)
Genre: Biography / History / Political Biography

Book Review:
Sheela Reddy's ''Mr and Mrs Jinnah'' is a revelation—a meticulously researched and beautifully written account of one of the most unusual and tragic marriages in the history of the subcontinent. By focusing on the personal life of Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan, Reddy humanizes a figure often reduced to a political icon and reveals the man behind the legend.

The story is inherently dramatic. In 1918, Ruttie Petit, the beautiful teenage daughter of a wealthy Parsi businessman, fled her father's house to marry Jinnah, a Muslim politician twenty-four years her senior. The marriage scandalized Bombay society and horrified both families. For a few years, the couple was happy—Jinnah, the brilliant barrister, and Ruttie, his glamorous young wife. But the marriage soured, and the couple separated, with Ruttie dying young at 29.

Reddy tells this story with sympathy and insight, drawing on never-before-seen personal letters and papers, as well as accounts from contemporaries and friends. She paints a vivid portrait of both protagonists: Jinnah, the solitary, misunderstood figure, and Ruttie, the lonely, wistful young woman who loved him. She also brings to life the society and politics of the time—the world of Bombay's elite, the struggle for Indian independence, the growing communal tensions that would eventually lead to partition.

The critical reception has been overwhelmingly positive. Vogue calls it ''immaculately researched and superbly written.'' The Hindu describes it as ''heavy cocktail difficult to put down.'' The Telegraph praises it as ''crisply written and well researched.'' Outlook calls it ''a tour de force. Mesmerising.'' Fatima Bhutto, in Livemint, notes that ''Reddy sheds fascinating light on a little-known figure of our shared history.''

For readers interested in South Asian history, this book is essential. It adds a new dimension to our understanding of Jinnah, showing him not just as a political leader but as a husband, a man capable of love and loss. For those interested in biography, it's a model of how to bring historical figures to life. And for anyone who loves a good love story—tragic, complex, and deeply human—it's a compelling read.

''Mr and Mrs Jinnah'' is a work of scholarship that reads like a novel. It will inform you, move you, and stay with you. Highly recommended.