The Cambridge Companion to Rammohun Roy

Rammohun Roy (1774–1833) has been variously celebrated–or critiqued–as the 'Father of Modern India', 'the Erasmus of India', the first embodiment of the Bengal Renaissance under British rule, or, indeed, as the first modern Indian intellectual whose dilemmas revealed (to later analysts) the constraints of a colonial formation of politics and economy. He agitated for the freedom of the press, argued against the practice of sati, fought for the Hindu widow's right to inherit property, founded a religious organisation (the Brahmo Samaj) based on Unitarian principles, and gave evidence on Indian issues to the British parliament in 1831. He has been acknowledged as one of the progenitors of modern Bengali prose. His international reputation was unprecedented – much admired in America, he was feted in Britain and France, and the Spanish Constitution of Cádiz was dedicated to him. The Cambridge Companion to Rammohun Roy offers a revaluation of Rammohun's life and work through fresh readings of his life and legacy. It also aims to present a global connected history of modern thought in the early nineteenth century, prioritising local sources in both the English press and Bengali-language publications that were so far unexplored.