Foreword. 1. Childhood: the early years. 2. Growing up in wonderland. 3. Falling in love. 4. Marriage. 5. Life in Jaipur. 6. Getting to know the family. 7. The changing political scenario. 8. In and after Tihar Jail. 9. Life now. 10. Epilogue. "Rajmata Gayatri Devi traces the life and times of one of the most admired icons of modern India. Educated in England, Switzerland and Shantiniketan, Gayatri Devi of Cooch Behar, 'The Princess from the East', became the third wife of Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II of Jaipur. In a tradition-bound set-up, she participated in religious ceremonies, played tennis with male partners, went swimming and horse riding, and did not miss a single season of polo. She also took it upon herself to bring the women of Rajasthan out of the purdah. Vogue voted her as one of the ten most beautiful women in the world, and with time, the world also witnessed her political courage and her dignified acceptance of life's vicissitudes--the loss of her only Child Jagat, a five-month ordeal in Tihar Jail under Mrs. Indira Gandhi's regime. Rajmata Gayatri Devi is about the continuation of a charmed life despite all odds, about the grace with which a queen of the erstwhile Jaipur State today dons the mantle of the Rajmata or Queen Mother of Jaipur." (jacket)

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