Novelist Manohar Malgonkar dead

Novelist Manohar Malgonkar passed away in Jagalbet, Karnataka, on Monday. He was 97.

A former army officer he was cremated with military honours on his bungalow premises on Tuesday evening in the presence of relatives and environmental activists. He is survived by his son-in-law; his daughter died 12 years ago. His last major work was The Men Who Killed Gandhi.

A multi-faceted personality, he was a professional big-game hunter before becoming an active wildlife conservationist.

According to The Hindu, Malgonkar served in the Maratha Light Infantry and on the army's General Staff during World War II, rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel. He later took to business and farming. He owned and operated manganese mines near Jagalbet.

Born on July 12, 1913 in a royal family that had its roots in Goa, he graduated from Bombay University in English and Sanskrit.

Malgonkar was active in the Swatantra Party, having unsuccessfully contested a general election twice in the 1970s.

At 47, he wrote his first book Distant Drum, where he narrated the spirit of the Indian soldier.

Malgonkar dealt with the freedom struggle and Partition In A Bend in the Ganges. His other works include Combat of Shadows, The Princes and The Devil's Wind, Kanhoji Angrey, Puars of Dewas Senior and Chhatrapatis of Kolhapur, Bombay Beware and Inside Goa.

Manohar Malgonkar's books at the Rediff Bookshop