In theory, the image of a house that encloses walls surmounted with an illustrious range of weapons wouldn't seem a welcome site. The flamboyance and bravado of the owner probably being seen showcased along with his exhibits. A view of the antique bejewelled armoury that monopolises the décor of E. Jaiwant Paul's residence quite contrarily depicts his impassioned engagement with a rare and meticulously acquired collection of antiques. An ensemble of swords, daggers and shields that span many epochs (of primarily 'Rajpoot' history), some of them even comprising Paul's inheritance from a lineage of military service to the rulers of Rajasthan. A prolific writer, Paul's eighth book a 'selection and abridgement' of the Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan by James Tod (Roli books) was released recently.
Despite the reservoir of historical material that envelops him and the authorship of numerous biographical and investigative forays on legendary figures and empires, the seasoned author claims he is "not a historian". Indeed he isn't in any conventional sense. Having worked with companies such as Hindustan Unilever and Brooke Bond India (served as a director), among others, Paul claims he never had the time to write while the interest always persisted. It is very difficult to discern a corporate executive in the author amidst the ethos of reverberating Indian history.
The decision to become a researcher and writer wasn't really part of a well thought out retirement plan. "One of my friends, when she saw my collection of weapons, goaded me to write about it since it was a subject that hadn't been covered in India. So I did. I went to a lot of publishers but they stiffly remarked: 'Who would be interested in reading about weapons?'
The author has written two extensively researched and illustrated books about Indian weapons. By My Sword and Shield: Traditional Weapons of the Indian Warrior (Roli Books, 2005) and Arms and Armour: Traditional Weapons Of India (Roli Books, 2005), the latter being par of an international series on Arms and Armour from different countries across the world. "Since then, there have been reprints and international editions along with translations into French and other languages for these books." states Paul.
Some of the arms photographed in Arms and Armour date back to as early as 2000 BC and extend to the reign of the Marathas and many southern kingdoms. "The embellishments on the arms are like jewellery for men," says Paul speaking of the exquisite ornamentation, customary to Rajasthani weapons.
Tracing a veritable pathway towards the evolution of weapons in India took Paul to a number of 'dealers' in weapons, most of them in Rajasthan and some in Hyderabad. "A lot of people are still making weapons, copying the original ones and doing an excellent job at that," he says. According to Paul, these weapons are mainly exported. "The originals have been smuggled to the Arabian nations, the Mughal weapons with their Arabic calligraphy. A lot of the Hindu weapons have been plundered by the French. When I was collecting them you needed to pay a few hundreds. Now the figures run into lakhs," he says.
Demystifying History
The original author of the Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan,James Tod, was a young officer posted in Rajasthan and an ambassador to the Scindhias and later their political agent. He produced the original Annals And Antiquities in two volumes ,1829 and 1832, respectively. "Tod did a lot of original research on the lives of the people in Rajasthan, their chronicles and ballads, especially those of the bard Chand Bardai since he says that bards are the historians of mankind. He has examined the architecture and drawn the genealogies of the Rajputs back to the Puranas and The Mahabharata," says Paul as he walks towards the erudite corpus residing amidst his dense library.
The book(by James Tod) is a fascinating account. While richly embroidered in mythology, legend and cultural intricacies, Tod's documentation, according to Paul, involves a lot of factual, chronological errors, and on many occasions, misguided conceptualisations. This is where our author steers the way with his lucid 'author's notes' which as Paul says, "examine historical authenticity, supplement additional information wherever found necessary, confirming what he has said and repudiate incorrect observations or conclusions."
The motivation behind the condensation of the original magnum opus seems to stem from a squarely personal determination. "Tod's book can be found adorning the shelves of several households but when asked if it has been read I am replied with laugh (at the proposition of reading through a book as voluminous as the one in question). Since I was brought up on this book, it belongs to the part of the world where I come from; I couldn't let it be forgotten," Paul emphasises.
While adhering to the essential structure and style employed (including the anglicised spellings) by the original author, Paul has however, removed "the dreary bits and unnecessary meanderings" that impede interesting reading, beneath the fix of a critical eye. "I wanted to convey the stories of the Rajpoots, the dramatic areas of their history in a readable and accessible form, something that doesn't take years to read."
To a large extent, the general apathy towards history could be contributed to the regimented versions of political accounts that exceedingly fail to entice readership from people outside academic disciplines. In the new wave of revised approaches to representing and reinterpreting history, E. Jaiwant Paul's exemplary works like his intense portrayal of Rani Lakshmi Bai, (Rani Of Jhansi : Lakshmi Bai, Roli Books, 1997) narrated with no less depth and no more inflated rhetoric, seem to redress the issue. Excavating Through The Sands Of Time
Something that doesn't strictly conform to the cannon of History, the way the subject is qualified by the dominant events and paradigms of Empires, is Paul's The Story Of Tea (Roli Books, 2001) which navigates its way through time towards the very origin in China about 5,000 years ago.
Increasing discoveries and perspectives about 'mainstream Indian history' reflect the gross inequities that exist in the arena of scholarship. "A tremendous amount has been written about post Gandhian nationalists. However, there isn't a thing (of much importance) written about pre Gandhian revolutionaries who are the pioneers of nationalism during the 1910s"
Of the many luminaries that have remained in the dark, the turbulent life of one of them is delineated in Har Dayal (Roli Books, 2008), a book authored by both Paul and his wife Shubh Paul. The latter being the granddaughter of the revolutionary Har Dayal. Paul eloquently recounts how the revolutionary "started agitation in India and finally organised what came to be known as the Gadar party. He started ashrams, for training people to fight against the British and was finally exiled to America from where he sent arms to India." Continuing the same spirit, Paul tributes some of the many unsung heroes of revolt of 1857 in his forthcoming work.
Personalities 
In theory, the image of a house that encloses walls surmounted with an illustrious range of weapons wouldn't seem a welcome site. The flamboyance and bravado of the owner probably being seen showcased along with his exhibits. A view of the antique bejewelled armoury that monopolises the décor of E. Jaiwant Paul's residence quite contrarily depicts his impassioned engagement with a rare and meticulously acquired collection of antiques. An ensemble of swords, daggers and shields that span many epochs (of primarily 'Rajpoot' history), some of them even comprising Paul's inheritance from a lineage of military service to the rulers of Rajasthan. A prolific writer, Paul's eighth book a 'selection and abridgement' of the Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan by James Tod (Roli books) was released recently.
Demystifying History
Excavating Through The Sands Of Time
