Gillian Tindall: The historian who made me fall in love with Bombay through her writings

Gillian Elizabeth Tindall.

The 'Bombay viral' earlier this month made me miss one of the biggest pieces of news - one with a deep personal connect and a deeper personal loss.

The passing of 87-year-old Gillian Elizabeth Tindall - the distinguished British historian, biographer, and chronicler of places - on October 1 marked the end of an era for all of us who believe that cities, like people, have souls.

It was (or rather is) her seminal work, 'City of Gold: The Biography of Bombay', that first made me fall in love with the city l have always lived in. From her works, I re-learnt that Bombay is a city built upon fallen forts and buried skeletons, stitched together with stories of battle, reclamations, struggle, love, and hope.

In today's fast-paced world of reels and shorts, her book, written back in the 1980s, still 'talks' to you vividly. A decade ago, when my rail-fanning and research led me to convert the story of Bombay's railway into a book, her book and writing style were my sole inspiration to unravel the city's past mysteries.

So much so that when I first wrote down the basic idea, I wanted her, and no one else, to go over it. I had no way to contact her and sent her an email to one of the publicly listed IDs.

I had lost hope, but a few days later, she wrote back personally through her team. She said she wouldn't comment on the idea as such, but would need a draft. It was best day of my life - the beginning of some precious, lifetime conversations.

A novice at book writing then, I quickly cobbled together a rough draft and sent it to her. She was overwhelmed by the large attachment - but she still went through it in detail, gently guiding me on structure and language, calling it "confusingly written, dotting around both geographically and historically". She suggested that I get it edited and sanitised, cite examples from my draft and beyond, asked me to use proper historical terminology.

She, however, offered a succinct endorsement of encouragement for my work which made my book: "I admire the [book's] energy and the general enthusiasm for the past."

An inspiring quote from the guru and the inspiration herself.

When the draft was published as my first book under the title, Halt Station India: The Dramatic Tale of the Nation's First Lines, her endorsement remained on the cover jacket of all the editions published till this day.

Coming from someone whose writing had guided me, her endorsement was both humbling and affirming and remains a unique lifetime gift for me.

(Bombay viral- I term it so because it is in the air here, with every bother person down all over the city, due to smoke, pollution, dust, changing season & the relentless construction as the city is in the middle of an once-in-century upgrade)