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INDIA CALLING : THE MEMORIES OF

CORNELIA SORABJI

A BOOK REVIEW
BY:
Surabhi KC
20BSL017
BSc. LLB 2020-25
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Table of Contents
Book Review 3
Cornelia: In her own words 3
Cornelia’s views 5
My Purdanashins 6

Bibliography 8
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Book review:
‘India Calling: The Memories of Cornelia Sorabji’ is the first of 2 autobiographies penned by
India’s first female lawyer, Cornelia Sorabji. It was first published in 1934 by Nisbet and Co Ltd.
The eloquently written book explores many different themes and issues surrounding the author’s
life. To say she battled the world of law, as well as patriarchy at large, would definitely not be an
overstatement. The resilience and grit that she possessed, the very qualities that have cemented
her name in the pages of history, also make a frequent occurrence in the book.
The book is divided into eleven chapters, spread over five parts. Cornelia takes us through her
life, her various accolades, accomplishments, and other life events chronologically.
For a clearer and more succinct analysis, it would help to identify the main themes and premises
that Cornelia talks about throughout the book. The three main subjects deliberated on in the book
being:
a) As mentioned above, her life, family and friends, and all her life’s personal events make
a vast and vital component of the book. Her struggle to get a degree, both in India as well
as in England, appears here.
b) The long path she had to traverse to be considered a lawyer or even be able to provide
legal aid to people is explored extensively in the book. She talks about several cases of
Purdanashins that stood out to her.
c) Her views and concerns on the fight for independence, as well as several different
freedom fighters and social and political movements, are extensively discussed in the
book.
Although her personal life, both in India and London, as well as her experiences in college, are
explored, a major portion of the book is about her professional endeavours after her studies.

Cornelia: In her own words

It is essential to understand what Cornelia’s position and status in society were to perceive the
viewpoint through which the book was written. Cornelia’s father was a Parsee who had
converted to Christianity at a young age. Her mother, too, orphaned at a young age, was brought
up by Lady Ford, the wife of a British Administrator. Since her mother owed her education to
Lady Ford, Cornelia says that the Soarbji children were “brought up English”- with English
rhymes, English discipline, and the English way of life. The Parsee community that she grew up
in also had a considerable impact on her life and opinions. So much so that she proclaimed that
she is Parsee by nationality.
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In her opinion, these two factors in her life, her community and the English values that she was
imbibed with, complemented each other. She believed that the Parsee community had no
parallels to the major Indian religions and instead was more similar to the British civilization that
she was familiar with. She also talks about how her community was similar to the British and
helped the development of trade and the improvement of the cities and the public at large. One
can infer from her words that she did not identify with the Indians but rather believed she was an
outsider, not unlike the British.
Her unique family dynamics also bestowed upon her a special privilege- that of education. Her
mother had actually founded the Victoria High School in Pune. Her parents were strong
advocates for education and encouraged her to study. It was through this support that she became
the first woman student at the Deccan College and went on to pass the BCL examination at
Oxford University. This road was, unfortunately, a rocky one, and one filled with several
instances of misogyny and sexism by people from all walks of her life. The book describes her
feelings beautifully during such situations. Her grit and the extraordinary ability to face all the
barriers in her way with vigour and zest are also depicted wonderfully. It can be rightly said that
it was indeed this valour of hers that paved the way for lakhs of women to become lawyers in the
coming decades!
One of the first obstacles that she faced in her life was when she was denied a scholarship to
study in England because of her gender. It was then that a group of English women, with the
likes of Florence Nightingale and Mary Hobhouse, funded her education at Oxford. Thus began
her journey in England.
Although the book does not have many prominent recurring individuals, one can unquestionably
say that England, India, and Cornelia herself, are the three main characters in the book. If I had
to summarise the book in one line, I would say it is a story of Cornelia’s beautiful relationship
with Britain and India!
The book is filled with colourful imagery and enthralling descriptions of her life in London. One
is transported to a place miles away, and a time decades ago. Her days in London were often
spent with people of high regard like Max Muller, Florence Nightingale, Sir Fredrick Pollock,
and more. Their conversations and the insights she gained from them are described to the
smallest detail. A great example of this is her presentation at the court. She says:
“Queen Victoria sent me a gracious message to the effect that “one of my ‘pretty colours’ (not
white) would be permitted”: and I wore an azalea sari something in colour between pink and
yellow. The Queen said she was “glad to see me there” when she gave me her hand to kiss, and
the long sequence of curtseys ended (we did several, in those days, slithering past bunches of
Serene Highnesses), I stood beside Lady (Gerald) Fitzgerald, who had presented me, watching
others through their ordeal.”
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Unfortunately, she also faced racism in London while studying among her mostly Caucasian
peers. It is interesting to note that she brushes off most, if not all, instances of racism as
something minor while at the same time registering every occurrence of sexism. This double
standard stands out very often throughout the book! One can infer that this hypocritical mindset,
as well as her views on the movement of independence all, arise from one notion- her love for
Britain!

Cornelia’s views
Throughout the book, she makes it abundantly clear that she supports the British Raj. In fact, the
autobiography starts with what she perceived India under the British crown to be:
“India, under the Crown, was in the throes of reconstruction: the English machinery of
administration, of education, of development of the resources of the country, had not only been
set up but was in working order.”
Thus, the movement of independence and the rise of nationalism in the country was termed as
nothing but ‘Anglophobia’ by her!
She goes on to criticize the manner in which the Civil Disobedience Movement and the overall
movement against the British took place.
Looking back at her words more than 70 years after Indian independence, it would be erroneous
to assume that the words written were that of a disgruntled Anglophile living through the decline
of the British Empire. Any movement, however noble it is meant to be, is not without its faults!
According to Cornelia, the same was true for the National Movement for Independence. Several
concerns regarding the movement ranging from the exclusionary and sometimes oppressive
nature of the swaraj movement to the spread of propaganda and misinformation about national
and international events, are pointed out evaluated critically. Regrettably, the book does not
delve into the genuine need for the movement and dismisses it as a spiteful action against the
British! It is also suggested that protestors and Freedom Fighters had no aim other than monetary
gains
“I have seen and talked with the Civil Disobedience prisoners in gaols, all over India, and the
answers given to my questions amounted to no more than “Mahatma Gandhi’s orders”, or,
more generally, the confession that obedience was bought, and often bought very cheaply
indeed.
(“Whatever did you do that for? “Huzur, four annas”; or “Huzur, an empty stomach!”)”
Thus, while the concerns put forth in the book are real and legitimate, the book fails to present
the other side of the story- The Indian side. In this way, Cornelia distances herself from India
and, therefore, from Indians.
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My Purdanashins
Cornelia narrates an incident that, at a very young age, made her want to pursue the field of law.
When she was around eight years old, an old Thakurani, a widow, had approached her mother
for advice. The thakurani’s man-of-business had cheated her out of her stridhan, and she was left
penniless. Unfortunately, there was nothing her mother could do. After explaining the incident to
a little Cornelia, her mother asked her, “There are many Indian women in trouble in that way.
Would you like to learn how to help them?”
And this is when pursuing the law became the aim of Cornelia’s life. The Thakurani and her
deleterious situation had a deep impact on her life. Although she came back to India and had
some moderate success in her Legal career, and even went on to successfully defend a murder
charge in 1896. Yet, the memory of the Thakurani beckoned her. She thus devoted her life to
helping the subaltern Purdanashins. Purdanashins were mostly upper-caste women and wives of
Thakurs( hence known as thakuranis) who followed a strict customary Purdah system and lived
in separate closed quarters called the Zenana. The Zenana is described vibrantly and in all its
glory. It is fascinating to see how such a beautiful place can also be a golden cage for the women
trapped there. Juxtaposed to the Purdanashins is Cornelia herself, an unmarried and working
woman who travels all over India, helping the often illiterate Purdanashins in the various
problems they encounter. The importance and relevance of freedom are brought out in all her
retellings of the cases she covered. No woman, however well-fed and tended to, is truly happy
without the freedom to live and breathe and walk around without a heavy veil of patriarchy
covering her.
The disheartening lives that the Purdanashins lead cane be illuminated by a seemingly innocent
question that a little thakurani asked Cornelia when they were talking about roses and how rose
plants grow,
“Are these not picked up off the ground like stones? “
This was the plight of the purdanashins! Often married off at a young age, they were mostly
illiterate and unaware of the world outside. When their husbands died, they would inherit huge
chunks of wealth and property while also retaining the stridhan they received at the time of the
wedding. Vicious hands of a relative or someone close always lurked behind the corner waiting
for the perfect opportunity to snatch and pocket the wealth for themselves, leaving the poor
women utterly destitute with no means of sustenance. A major chunk of the book is about
Cornelia’s adventures helping such women. The legal battles she fought and won while
simultaneously battling a deeply patriarchal institution was no small feat!
While the book does talk about social work and cases other than that of Purdanashins, it mainly
concentrates on one class of society. It is mostly upper-caste wealthy men and women, royals,
thakurs and thakuranis, and viceroys that the book is concerned with. So much so that the
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lifestyle and customs of the purdanashins of zenanas are portrayed as encompassing all of
Hinduism. Women from the lower classes and even working-class women do not find any
mention in the book. Neither do women of other religions. The whole book, therefore, is not
representative of India, but only of the rich, upper-class elite class of late 19th and early 20th-
century Indian society.
Even with all its flaws, India Calling is a fantastic read and gives the reader a glimpse into a
society that was both similar yet very dissimilar to the one we live in today. It also gives us a
deeper understanding of how the Independence movement was perceived when it was its zenith.
It would be a great injustice to look over Cornelia’s work and the impact she had on the legal
system both here and in England because of her contradicting opinions and views of the world
and of India. Cornelia was a pioneer in the field of law and the first woman lawyer of India.
Every female lawyer after her has followed her path and shared their struggles with her. It was
because of her that women finally got the right to practice the law. It was because of her that
Justice Fathima Beevi climbed the steps of the topmost court of the country in 1989, and it is
because of her I am able to pursue the law degree today!
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Bibliography
1. Review: One of a Kind- India Calling: The Memories of Cornelia Sorabji, India’s First Woman
Barrister by Chandani Lokuge and Cornelia Sorabji

Review by: Geetanjali Gangoli

Source: Economic and Political Weekly, Feb. 9-15, 2002, Vol. 37, No. 6 (Feb. 9-15, 2002), pp.
549-550

Published by: Economic and Political Weekly

Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/4411717

2. ‘The Purdahnashin in Her Setting’: Colonial Modernity and the Zenana in Cornelia Sorabji’s
Memoirs

Author(s): Antoinette Burton

Source: Feminist Review , Summer, 2000, No. 65, Reconstructing Femininities: Colonial
Intersections of Gender, Race, Religion and Class (Summer, 2000), pp. 145-158

Published by: Sage Publications, Ltd.

Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/1395854