Mysuru Rathnagalu: 20 Biographical Sketches - Paperback

In the earlier part of the last century, the princely state of Mysore and the University of Mysore bore witness to some truly remarkable personalities. These stalwarts and their lasting contributions left behind a lasting legacy on the intellectual landscape of Mysore and India on the whole. While there were many in their ilk, the author of this work began focusing on those who were primarily associated with the University, to begin with. These biographical pieces were written as feature articles in an English newspaper in Mysore - "Star of Mysore". V. Seetharamaiah, T. V. Venkatachala Sastry, M. Hiriyanna, M. H. Krishna, S. Srikanta Sastri and Brijendranath Seal are among those featured in these articles. These were suitably well received by the reading public in Mysore. Incidentally, it was the centenarian lexicographer and Kannada litterateur G. Venkatasubbiah who suggested that these biographical sketches be collected in one place and brought forth in the form of a book.

This book is the realisation of such a dream. There are biographical sketches on personalities like Field Marshall K. M. Cariappa who were not directly linked to the University of Mysore. Yet, they were as much a part of erstwhile Mysore state as anyone else in this volume. More than just a chronicle of academicians and writers, this book serves to encapsulate a glorious era in Mysore's history, where genuine merit, scholarship and integrity meant more than base notions of caste, corruption and nepotism. A glimpse in to those times only serves to highlight, rather disappointingly, the slow but inevitable demise of meritocracy in our social polity.