Critical Mass Missing

A new book on Homi J. Bhabha brings together some rare pictures and letters,but the masterful spirit deserves a more masterful work...

Homi Jehangir Bhabha was unquestionably one of the most refined modernists of 20th century India. As the architect of independent Indias science and technology institutions,Bhabhas legacy will endure .

He is often cited and always praised. And his name is invoked with reverence,not necessarily for the right reasons. Recall how Bhabhas three-stage programme for Indias nuclear energy development was made the ultimate criterion for judging some of the terms of the controversial civilian nuclear deal with the United States. As an authentic internationalist and cosmopolitan,Bhabha might have been shocked by the provincialism and knee-jerk anti-Americanism of his successors at the Department of Atomic Energy.

As a man committed to scientific temper,he might have been saddened by the uncritical chanting of his three-stage formula,without any reference to the changed conditions and improved knowledge of reactor physics.

Like all historic figures in India,once Bhabha was made into an icon,there was no collective interest in probing his life,reassessing his legacy and reframing his relevance for contemporary India.

Therefore,it is with great excitement that one picks up A Masterful Spirit. It is an exquisitely produced volume that puts together a number of pictures and letters of Bhabha,many of which the public has not seen before.

A Masterful Spirit,however,is also deeply disappointing. A coffee-table book on Bhabha,it whets our appetite,but there is little to chew on. Its a pity. For there is so little published work on Bhabha,whose contributions form part of modern Indias genetic code. Any investigation into the founding of independent India will necessarily run into Bhabha,his ideas on science,technology and development and the institutions that he built in a very challenging environment.

Like physicists elsewhere in the world in the middle of the 20th century,Bhabha had extraordinary influence in the making of national security policy. His close association with Indias first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru is among the many stories that must be told about Bhabha.

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In the last century,it was said that the worlds of science and culture became mutually exclusive. As a painter and connoisseur of the fine arts,Bhabha was one of the few who bridged the two worlds.

The likes of Bhabha dont appear too often. That he is a masterful spirit is not in doubt. But the wait for a masterful book on Bhabhas life and work unfortunately must continue.