14 February 2025, National: Westland Books is pleased to announce the release of Spies, Lies And Allies: The Extraordinary Lives of Chatto and Roy by bestselling author and journalistKavitha Rao.
This book explores the hidden spies, secret missions, and global struggles by Virendranath Chattopadhyaya (Sarojini Naidu’s brother) and M.N. Roy (founder of Indian Communism), who contributed to the freedom struggle but have been forgotten over time. The two jousted with names like Lala Lajpat Rai, Veer Savarkar, Vladimir Lenin, Sun Yat Sen, Chiang Kai Shek, Joseph Stalin, Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru. They also survived assassination attempts by the British secret service. The extraordinary story of these two revolutionaries is set to hit the bookshelves on February 17, 2025.
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Talking about this book, award-winning author and journalist Kavitha Rao said, “Spies, Lies and Allies arose from my fascination for forgotten figures in Indian history, and why they were forgotten at all. As a person who has lived in several countries around the world, I am often drawn to tales of migrants, travellers and nomads. While reading about the unsung heroes of our freedom movement, I discovered that Sarojini Naidu had a forgotten brother: Virendranath Chattopadhyaya. Reading further, I found that ‘Chatto’ had led a thrilling revolutionary life in exile, and was eventually executed by Joseph Stalin. His rival M.N. Roy had also travelled across the world as a revolutionary and protege of Lenin. I was drawn to these early internationalists and cosmopolitans. It was a challenge to condense the sprawling ideas of these maverick men into one book, but I hope my book does them justice.”
Karthika VK, Publisher, Westland Books, said, “Kavitha finds stories that ought to be better known and then tells them in so compelling a manner that it’s hard to imagine these figures were ever forgotten. There’s such a wealth of research and investigation that goes into her work, but she writes with a light touch that brings these people from the past back to life. We’re so happy that this thrilling history-telling by Kavitha Rao is finally going out into the world.”
About the Book
Chatto and Roy. Virendranath Chattopadhyaya and M.N. Roy. Two revolutionaries, one goal—India’s Independence.
Spies, Lies and Allies is a thrilling tale about two forgotten revolutionaries who led lives that defy belief. It takes the reader on a ride through Kolkata, Hyderabad, London, Paris, Berlin, Mexico City and Moscow. One was Virendranath Chattopadhyaya, the brother of Sarojini Naidu. The other was M.N Roy, the founder of Indian Communism. Chatto and Roy meet spies, dictators, femme fatales, assassins, revolutionaries and bomb makers. They encounter Lala Lajpat Rai, Veer Savarkar, Vladimir Lenin, Sun Yat Sen, Chiang Kai Shek, Joseph Stalin, Gandhi and Nehru. They travel in disguise and survive assassination attempts by the British secret service. They have tumultuous love affairs with suspected Communist spies. They flirted with anarchism, then became communists, and Roy would eventually end up founding his own philosophy: humanism.
About the Author
Kavitha Rao is a London-based author and journalist. Her work has appeared in the Guardian, New York Times, South China Morning Post, Mint, The Hindu and various other publications. She is the bestselling author of Lady Doctors.
About Westland Books
Westland Books is an award-winning Indian publisher with a diverse and exciting range of books from popular and literary fiction to business, politics, biography, spirituality, popular science, health, and self-help. Its key publishing imprints include Context, which publishes award-winning literary fiction and non-fiction; Eka, which publishes the best of contemporary writing in Indian languages and in translation; Tranquebar, home to the best new fiction from the Indian subcontinent; the eponymous Westland Sport, Westland Business and Westland Non-Fiction, and Red Panda, which publishes a range of books for children of different ages.
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