BHUBANESWAR: The biography of former chief minister of Odisha Nandini Satpathy, was released at Bakul Library in the city recently. Titled ‘Nandini Satpathy: The Iron Lady of Odisha’, the book has been authored by journalist-cum-writer Pallavi Rebbapragada.
Speaking on the occasion, Pallavi said the story of Nandini Satpathy was the best kept secret in Indian politics, and regretted people like her knew so little about such an inspiring figure. “During a talk with a Congress junior of Nandini Satpathy, she tearfully recounted how 50 years back, 20-year-old girls were out on Cuttack streets, pasting political posters on the wall,” Pallavi said adding the incident inspired her to embark on penning Satpathy’s biography.
Pallavi explained the circumstances that led to Nandini joining the Rajya Sabha at the young age of 31, and her pivotal role in liberation of Bangladesh during which as Minister for Information and Broadcasting in Indira Gandhi’s cabinet, she led the information war with Pakistan through the Liberation Radio of Bangladesh.
“But the most interesting thing about Nandini Satpathy was her relationship with Indira Gandhi. She was seen as her close friend, and identified similarly as Iron Lady. But at the time of Emergency, Nandini opposed Emergency because of which she was dismissed as chief minister,” she said.
Pallavi described several methods she used to learn about Cuttack during the 1970s to understand the milieu of that period. She extensively watched Bollywood and Ollywood movies to capture an authentic portrayal of the era in her book, gaining insights into how people lived and the condition of women during that time.
The book launch was attended by eminent linguist DP Pattanayak, a classmate of Nandini Satpathy, her son and former MP Tathagata Satpathy and other writers. Founder of Bakul Sujit Mahapatra said although Nandini Satpathy has been an iconic figure in Odisha politics and was well-known, very little was known about her.