Spy in the tale

By Pragya Paramita - Kolkata Newsline - New Delhi,India
Wednesday, December 6, 2006

Shrabani Basu talks about why she chose to write about a little-known Indian woman spy in her second novel.

It was a small newspaper article on Noor Inayat Khan that piqued her curiosity to find more about the women. It was this curiosity that led journalist-turned-author Shrabani Basu to pen a book on India’s only woman spy during the Second World War.

The book, Spy Princess, has already gained popularity and is based on the life of Noor Inayat Khan. Noor was the first Asian woman wireless operator who was sent to Germany- occupied France to build the ground work for the Normandy invasion. It was when she was captured and killed by the Gestapo.

“Not only was she the first Asian to volunteer in this service but the first women to become the operator,” says Basu, at a recent launch of the book in a city bookstore.

“Though few in India have heard about Noor she is a famous figure in France. In fact, she was awarded Croix de Guerre, one of the highest French honours, and also the George Cross award by the British government,” says Basu.

Finding out about Noor was not an easy task as she had to leaf through countless war records at the archives in London. That apart, Basu interviewed not just Noor’s family, including her brother Vilayat Khan, but also family members of those who had been her friends during the movement. It was a task that took over three years to finish.

“What fascinated me about her was that she had been a quiet, gentle girl who used to play the harp and write children’s books. Though she was a Sufi and believed in non-violence, yet she joined up to fight in the war in 1942,” says Basu.

Brought up in France by an Indian father [Pir Hazrat Inayat Khan] and an American mother [Pirani Ameena Begum Ora Ray Baker], she firmly believed in the Indian struggle for freedom.

Recalling an incident, Basu says that when Noor was asked by the British intelligence on why she wanted to fight the war on their side in spite of being an Indian, she replied that it was for a greater cause against a bigger enemy and after the Second World War she would join the Indian resistance. “She was not one to mince words. Her forthrightness earned her not just friends but also a lot of respect.”

Today, Basu is happy that her book has brought Noor back in focus, especially in India. “When Pranab Mukherjee visited France he spent over an hour visiting Noor’s family after reading the book,” informs Basu.

The focus is not just on Noor’s life but also on the books penned by her, especially Twenty Jataka Tales whose sales have shot up after the release of Basu’s book. “But I hope she is honoured here. A postage stamp with her picture should be nice,” she says.

For now, Basu is excited that Lord Meghnath Desai has bought the rights for a film which might be a Hollywood-Bollywood venture.

“A music album by New York-based musician called Jeffery Arms has also come out. It is good to see that she is being appreciated after so many years.”