Pyarelal Nayyar (1899–1982) was the personal secretary of
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
in his later years. His sister
Sushila Nayyar
Sushila Nayyar, also spelled 'Nayar' (1914 – 2001), was an Indian physician, veteran Gandhian and politician. She played a leading role in several programmes for public health, medical education and social and rural reconstruction in her ...
was the personal physician to Mahatma Gandhi.
He received his
B. A.
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...
from
University of Punjab
The University of the Punjab (Urdu, pnb, ), also referred to as Punjab University, is a public, research, coeducational higher education institution located in Lahore, Pakistan. Punjab University is the oldest public university in Pakistan. ...
and quit his
M.A.
A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...
studies during the
Non-cooperation movement
The Non-cooperation movement was a political campaign launched on 4 September 1920, by Mahatma Gandhi to have Indians revoke their cooperation from the British government, with the aim of persuading them to grant self-governance.Salt March to Dandi in 1930.
Pyarelal was portrayed by
Pankaj Kapur
Pankaj Kapur (born 29 May 1954) is an Indian actor who has worked in Hindi theatre, television and films. He has appeared in several television serials and films. He is the recipient of several awards, including a Filmfare Award and three Nati ...
in the
Richard Attenborough
Richard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough, (; 29 August 192324 August 2014) was an English actor, filmmaker, and entrepreneur. He was the president of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and the British Academy of Film and Televisi ...
film ''
Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
'' (1982). Then personal secretary to Pyarelal, Dewan Vasdev Khanna (1923–2010), played a key role with Richard Attenborough in completing a script for film "Gandhi", which attained world fame.
Post Gandhi
Nayyar continued his literary work on Gandhi until his last days. Nayyar held privately a large cache of personal papers that belonged to Gandhi which were only brought in to public domain only in 2007.
Writings
He has biographical books on Mahatma Gandhi, on which he was assisted by Dewan Vasdev Khanna(1923-2010). Dewan Vasdev Khanna assisted Pyarelal Nayyar till 1980, before moving to United States of America. Following is a partial list:
#The Early Phase, (Vol. I)
#Mahatma Gandhi : The Discovery of Satyagraha – On the Threshold, (Vol. II)
#Mahatma Gandhi : The Birth of Satyagraha, (Vol. III)
#Mahatma Gandhi : Satyagraha at Work, (Vol. IV)
#Mahatma Gandhi : India Awakened, (Vol. V)
#Mahatma Gandhi : Salt Satyagraha – The Watershed, (Vol. VI)
#Mahatma Gandhi : Preparing For Swaraj, (Vol. VII)
#Mahatma Gandhi : Final Fight For Freedom, (Vol. VIII)
#Mahatma Gandhi: The Last Phase, (Vol. IX)
#Mahatma Gandhi : The Last Phase, (Vol. X)
Note: Vol. IV to VII were competed by Sushila Nayyar.