Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
A Princess Remembers: The Memoirs of the Maharani of Jaipur
by
Gayatri Devi
She is the daughter of the Maharaja of Cooch Behar and the widow of the Maharaja of Jaipur. She was raised in a sumptuous palace staffed with 500 servants and she shot her first panther when she was twelve. She has appeared on the lists of the world's most beautiful women. Gayatri Devi describes her carefree tomboy childhood; her secret six-year courtship with the dashing,...more
Paperback, 408 pages
Published
November 8th 1996
by South Asia Books
(first published March 28th 1976)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
This book is not yet featured on Listopia.
Add this book to your favorite list »
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
483)
I visited the Pink City of Jaipur as I traveled through the state of Rajasthan in India. The Pink Palace was alive in all its glory as I read this princess' memoirs. The people and rulers I had "heard" about from our guide in Jaipur were introduced by Gayatri as if they were alive and well, for she was the third wife of the adopted Raja, the last raja before the merger of Indian states fell under the new democratic country of India. Gayatri Devi tells about the enchanted lifestyle of a princess...more
This is a fascinating book about a long gone era. Gayatri Devi's memoirs capture the details of a life few people ever led, that of an Indian Maharani, but her experiences before Indian's independence are all the more compelling when contrasted to her life since 1947. Having spent time in Jaipur myself, and now having in-laws there, this account makes me even more interested in Jaipur's history over the last century.
India, like every country with a long history, cannot be understood from one acc...more
India, like every country with a long history, cannot be understood from one acc...more
view 1 comment
I can't say that I thought this book was very good - it was just ok. It lacked substance. Not that I wanted titillating details of someones life but I'd like to have an opinion that wasn't so PC about everything that went on in India during her life. There wasn't anything introspective either just endless descriptions of all their riches. She spends pages and pages on descriptions of finery in their homes, decorating their elephants, clothing, jewelery etc but only a paragraph on the riots after...more
Such a beautiful book with gold-gilded edges, gold embossed letters and ornaments on black cover pages and a number of beautiful photographs from days long gone.
What a shame that the contents did not live up to the expectations set by the book's design. Naturally, Gayatri Devi was highly educated Maharani and I assume her personality and social status did not allow her to speak freely about her life. Her memoir provides details about the political aspects and history, but provides very little i...more
What a shame that the contents did not live up to the expectations set by the book's design. Naturally, Gayatri Devi was highly educated Maharani and I assume her personality and social status did not allow her to speak freely about her life. Her memoir provides details about the political aspects and history, but provides very little i...more
It's a wonderful book. Almost like a crumbling fairy-tale. A simple, honest recount of a fading life. And of the princely provinces.
What I liked the most was that it gives a fairly good description of the glory of royal India--the days when most of India was under British Raj and/simultaneously that of the Indian kings and princes. It was a glorious time in the history of India. There was no democracy and yet absolute peace, prosperity and a rapport of trust and love between the ruler and the r...more
What I liked the most was that it gives a fairly good description of the glory of royal India--the days when most of India was under British Raj and/simultaneously that of the Indian kings and princes. It was a glorious time in the history of India. There was no democracy and yet absolute peace, prosperity and a rapport of trust and love between the ruler and the r...more
It's like magic when words can make your imagination run. It's like escaping into another world. The memoirs of the Maharani of Jaipur had the power to spill this magic. The story of her life in her words is a work of immense detailing (which any reader fascinated by royalty & history would love to go through), Beginning from her childhood in the Palace of Cooch Behar and all the details about their stays at Palaces and summer houses all over the world.
Her childhood infatuation turning into...more
Her childhood infatuation turning into...more
My elderly aunt picked up a little hardback copy of this book--simple black cover with golden print for the title--in a bookshop when she was wandering in India twentysome years ago. This year she gifted it to me on my birthday with the advice that India is complex and fascinating and I would do well to learn more about the country and visit it someday if possible.
I didn't know exactly where Jaipur was on the subcontinent but I understood who a maharani would be, and when I flipped through the m...more
I didn't know exactly where Jaipur was on the subcontinent but I understood who a maharani would be, and when I flipped through the m...more
This is a slow read.. I generally have a fascination of palaces and grandeur described with minute detailing. This is what Maharani does.. I traveled Cooch Behar, Jaipur and Europe with the book. It remains dreamy in three fourth of the book, which I absolutely dig for and takes a political turn in the last part with the Maharani getting involved in post Independence politics.
An absolutely dreamy read.. and all I could say after putting it down is wish I was a Princess :) :)
An absolutely dreamy read.. and all I could say after putting it down is wish I was a Princess :) :)
The first chapter was kind of interesting detailing the life of the Maharani as a child. Well written and a kind of page turner, the memoir can be taxing and boring sometimes, but the hilarious scenes make up for it! So go for it if you are in for royal stuff and lavish descriptions of palatial buildings. It was interesting to read about a young princess who grows up to become a young woman living her own fairytale romance....
I found it taxing to get through the first few chapters, but it got better later. The book could have used some editing as there were lots of typos and grammatical errors in my copy.
"A Princess Remembers" gives you a glimpse into the life of a princess (later a maharani), and also into the political turmoil that was rampant in the years after independence. It was an enjoyable read, with the author sharing little details from her life spent in India and abroad. I was particularly surprised to re...more
"A Princess Remembers" gives you a glimpse into the life of a princess (later a maharani), and also into the political turmoil that was rampant in the years after independence. It was an enjoyable read, with the author sharing little details from her life spent in India and abroad. I was particularly surprised to re...more
I just got back from my first trip to India, & found the country to be fascinating. I picked up this book at the bookshop in the City Palace in Jaipur. And now that I am back to my regular routine at home, reading & savoring every page slowly of this book brings me again to the wonders & beauty of everything I saw in India. There are lots of typographical errors though, & not enough pictures.
I traveled to India in May, visiting Delhi, Agra, and Jaipur. It was a wonderful experience. Admittedly I wasn't well versed in India's history, but since my return I have aimed to rectify that oversight.
I checked out this book from the library and couldn't put it down. While I wish many of the names had phonetic spellings included, this autobiography gives you a peek into the princely lives of the maharajas, the role of women (and how it has or hasn't changed in modern India), and, briefly, th...more
I checked out this book from the library and couldn't put it down. While I wish many of the names had phonetic spellings included, this autobiography gives you a peek into the princely lives of the maharajas, the role of women (and how it has or hasn't changed in modern India), and, briefly, th...more
I selected this book because its written by my grandmother .She is the daughter of the Maharaja of Cooch-Behar, and the widow of the Maharaja of Jaipur. Raised in sprawling palaces. She shot her first panther when she was twelve. Later in her life, she won a seat in the Indian Parliament with the most staggering majority that anyone has ever earned in an election. Much prettier than today’s alleged beauties, in her heydays she, was considered by Vogue to be amongst the Ten Most Beautiful Women i...more
This is an autobiography.
I bought this book in India and found her story really engaging. I believe we actually stayed in 'her palace' or part of the old palace that they had turned into a hotel. She and the family lived 'off aways' from the main resort.
When reading it, I was transported back in time and as we are very fond of India, loved reading this.
I bought this book in India and found her story really engaging. I believe we actually stayed in 'her palace' or part of the old palace that they had turned into a hotel. She and the family lived 'off aways' from the main resort.
When reading it, I was transported back in time and as we are very fond of India, loved reading this.
It is interesting in bits n pieces, she tries to keep u gripped to the book as far as possible but then a few pages is OK to miss.
I loved the way she explains her royal life ,makes me want to live one .
The sad part was when she had to be imprisoned during emergency and series of deaths in her house which tore down her family.
I loved the way she explains her royal life ,makes me want to live one .
The sad part was when she had to be imprisoned during emergency and series of deaths in her house which tore down her family.
It is interesting in bits n pieces, she tries to keep u gripped to the book as far as possible but then a few pages is OK to miss.
I loved the way she explains her royal life ,makes me want to live one .
The sad part was when she had to be imprisoned during emergency and series of deaths in her house which tore down her family.
I loved the way she explains her royal life ,makes me want to live one .
The sad part was when she had to be imprisoned during emergency and series of deaths in her house which tore down her family.
This is a very interesting account of a Princess who was born in British India in an area which now borders Bangladesh. She laters marries the Maharaja of Jaipur.This books reveals the complexities of Indian culture and the changes that had to occur when India became. I highly reccomend this book to anyone fascinated by India.
The book gives us a glimpse of a time long bygone. The kings, queens, and their lives. Things have changed very drastically now to really believe that such a world ever existed in our country. But, this book could have been more detailed, giving us more insight in the immediate post and pre-independence era.
Having just returned from India and Jaipur, it was interesting to hear about the life in the palaces and forts that we saw. The Princess describes the transition from having Maharajas to having a national, independent government.
She had an interesting life. While the book was written in 1975 she lived until 2009. I would have liked to read more about her life as it continued with the changes of India and from the wisdom that age brings.
Maharani of Jaipur was a well-known public figure not only in India but also around the world. It was interesting to read about her personal life and her transition from a princess to politician!
A great autobiography from a European educated wife (no. 3) of a real playboy type maharajah.
An absorbing account of a Maharani's life. The wealth of some Maharajas was staggering and many are still fabulously wealthy although the Indian political, economic and social structure that supported them has changed. Gayatri Devi is curiously unreflective and uncritical about her life and times and apparently saw no contradiction between her extraordinarily privileged lifestyle and the poverty around her. Today's privileged travellers can stay in her former palace in Jaipur. Recommended histor...more
This marvelous book is written by the Princess of Jaiphur in central(?) India. It is an absolutely fascinating narrative about an opulent world and lifestyle, the Indian Raj, that the vast majority of us have never even imagined. I found the narrator a dynamic, remarkably humble and interesting woman with a conviction to do good in her life and in her role as a princess in a brutally poor country. I remember really liking this book and have kept it all these years..... in fact I know just where...more
Oct 15, 2012
Reachmrinal
added it
enjoyed reading this book..and also beautiful pictures..
interesting account of a past period in indian history.
About the Rajputana Kings
Simply un putdownable!
Apr 01, 2013
Natasha Borah Khan
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommended to Natasha by:
Namrata
Shelves:
my-favs
this book lets you have a peek into the lives of Indian royals. it also lets the reader to know and learn about the India history pre and post independence. Simply written, this book is for keeps.
I enjoyed this book and the picture of a very "foreign" life and time that it painted. At times the tone is so understated that you have to stop and reread to really think through what a magical and priveleged life this woman lived.
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
