We may be a David in size but we have made a Goliath contribution: Barry O’ Brien

Barry O’ Brien on the Anglo-Indian way of life, and why India owes a great debt to this community, especially in the field of education

In his social, cultural, political and historical biography of Anglo-Indians, a “small community with a large heart,” Barry O’ Brien takes in its sweep the roller-coaster ride it has faced over five centuries in its chosen homeland, India. “We may be David in size, but we have always been a Goliath in our contribution to society, particularly in the field of education,” says O’ Brien, talking about his new book, The Anglo-Indians — A Portrait of a Community. Edited excerpts:

Why do you think that one of the oldest and largest communities of mixed descent in the world is loved and ridiculed, written about and written off?

In pre-Independence days, the community was not considered European or British, and it was also alienated from the native Indian community. It was trapped in the middle, caught in no man’s land. It was misunderstood; people did not know enough about the community or where it was headed. This lack of trust between the British and the Anglo-Indian community on one hand and between native Indians and the Anglo-Indians on the other had made it feel that it belonged nowhere. Thankfully, post independence, the community has been embraced by new India and it is far more comfortable and part of the mainstream.

You write that you were shocked to find that many in the community were “colour conscious and prejudiced”, but this is a thing of the past, isn’t it?

Well, the community was definitely colour prejudiced as I mention in the book. Even within the same family I have heard many people talk about discrimination; obviously over the years that has disappeared. However, I have also said that may be in a few families it still prevails — I refer to them as being “in the closet”.

Post-independence, what could the Indian government have done differently for the community? Why do you consider the withdrawal of the provision for nomination of Anglo-Indian representatives to the Lok Sabha and State assemblies an act of “betrayal”?

The stakeholders, leaders of the community, the various organisations — the All-India Anglo-Indian Association, founded in 1876, for instance — no one was consulted as to why this nomination was being withdrawn. It was a bolt from the blue and that is why the community feels betrayed. The States too were not taken into consideration. In January 2017, when we were invited for a meeting by the government, we were told that the various challenges we faced and our suggestions would be looked into. Then the bombshell came in 2019, that there aren’t enough Anglo-Indians to be represented (296 according to the census of 2011). The community may be small but by any estimates there are still several lakhs of Anglo-Indians who are proud citizens of India, and there are many who are still fighting the odds and need assistance, care, and opportunity. We would like the government to reconsider, but it is not listening, unfortunately.