Noting that the job of a historian is tough, since it involves processing and verifying past events, Ruchi Verma likens it to that of a journalist except that a historian documents or reports on past events. It is a work fraught with risk and responsibility as reliability emerges as a key factor while confirming records and a historian ought to exercise due diligence.
M G S Narayanan is an Indian historian and academician (left) and Indologist Ram Sharan Sharma contributed significantly to Indian history (right)
The role of historians in documenting and recording events, lives of people even correcting history is a very important one. Often, historians work for government agencies, research organisations, think tanks, publishing houses, academic institutions, etc., and sometimes they are self-employed or freelancers but in all these circumstances, their role remains the same – documenting, recording or reporting events that have occurred in the past.
The role of a historian is similar to that of a journalist except that a historian documents or reports on past events. Some even like to summarise the role of a historian as one who records or documents, researches, analyses, interprets and narrates or tells events from the past timeline.
The job of a historian is not an easy one as the process of recording and verifying events from the past is challenging and fraught with obstacles such as information gaps, unverified sources, lack of verifiable documents, etc. A historian is supposed to perform a lot of research with due diligence.
The challenging role
Sources of information are many but the tricky part is to find out which one is reliable. Also, special skills and a lot of experience and knowledge are needed to interpret data to churn out any relevant and sensible piece of information. A historian usually spends hours, weeks and days to read documents or any data set to verify and confirm a fact from history. Also, more often than not, pertinent information has to be verified from multiple sources, cross-checked with corresponding and contemporary documents from other sources to make it fool proof and reliable.
Only a trained historian or a person with decades of experience can ensure that correct facts go in the records. These records eventually pass on to the next generation making the role of a historian even more important. Historians often use multiple sources to verify a fact.
These may include court records, public records, municipal files, journals of travellers and other historians, newspapers, books, etc. Basically, anything that will verify a piece of information through a corresponding fact.
It is because of the lives and works of stalwarts, leaders and great personalities that India is what it is today. These men and women have contributed in every aspect of national growth and development, in the reformation of the society and in putting India on a global pedestal.
Again, historians have a very important role to play in recording the works of leaders who have shaped the nation, in ensuring misinformation is contained and facts are presented to public.
In today’s day and age, when mobile and internet access has empowered the common man even the poorest and the illiterate to access information, it’s the historian who can sift correct information, facts and truth from propaganda.
Important personalities
Barun De was a well-known Indian historian. He was the Founder-Director of the Centre for Studies in Social Sciences in Kolkata and the Chairman of the West Bengal Heritage Commission.
He wrote Development and Political Culture: Bangladesh and India, Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, etc. The focus of his research was mainly early to late-modern periods of Indian history.
The Founding Chairman of the Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR) and historian Ram Sharan Sharma contributed significantly to Indian history. He was an Indologist and specialised in ancient and early-medieval Indian history. He was also an acclaimed academician and taught at universities in Delhi, Patna, Toronto, etc.
Ram Charan Sharma was born in Barauni in Bihar and Orissa Province of British India and in his lifetime, he authored 115 books that were published in fifteen different languages.
Some of his works include Aspects of Political Ideas and Institutions in Ancient India, India’s Ancient Past, Perspectives in Social and Economic History of Ancient India, Urban Decay in India, etc.
Well-known Indian historian Sarvepalli Gopal and author of Radhakrishnan: A Biography, Jawaharlal Nehru: A Biography, Modern India, etc., was the son of independent India’s first Vice President and second President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan. He was awarded the Padma Vibhushan in 1999 for his contribution to Indian history.
Muttayil Govindamenon Sankara Narayanan or M G S Narayanan is an Indian historian and academician who also served as the Chairman of the ICHR and headed the Department of History at Calicut University in Kerala.
He was born at Ponnani in Malabar district of Madras Presidency and pursued his education at Ponnani, Calicut and Thrissur. He obtained his Master’s degree in History from Madras Christian College and was awarded the Ph.D. by the University of Kerala.
He has authored several books and research papers such as Cultural Symbiosis in Kerala, Calicut: The City of Truth Revisited, etc. He is known to bring fresh perspective to history writing as he has heavily relied on archaeological evidence and written evidence.
Rajendralal Mitra, an expert in ancient Indian heritage was among the first Indian historian who wrote in English. He published Vedic text and wrote a book called Indo-Aryans. He was a significant figure in the Bengal Renaissance and the first Indian president of the Asiatic Society of Bengal.
A stalwart, Mitra was instrumental in discovering and deciphering historical texts, inscriptions and coins. His other major contribution is the study of Indian sculptures which he did while leading an expedition to Odisha’s Bhubaneshwar region. The findings were compiled into The Antiquities of Orissa which is a masterpiece work on Odissi architecture.
Great responsibility
A major role that a historian plays is analysing facts once they have been verified. This is where objectivity takes a backseat as the process is subjective and often leads to biased analysis. At this stage, a historian basically analyses the cause and effect of an event whose facts were established.
The historian then has to interpret the facts related to an event. Events of history are not just important for record-keeping but also to predict the future events. Historical events if interpreted correctly and with the right intention can help evade disasters and mishaps of the future.
With power comes responsibility and historians are no different. Recently, member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister, Sanjeev Sanyal said that the history of India’s struggle for freedom must be re-inked because the role of forgotten heroes and revolutionaries has not been documented properly.
What is set in paper once through the works of historians, remains as such, often unchallenged and accepted without resistance for years even centuries, impacting masses and generations and deciding discourse and actions at many levels.
Works of history or historical writings when challenged or questioned, often lead to friction even violence. For instance, on several occasions the history of India’s freedom struggle has been questioned.
It is a well-known fact that the official narrative of India’s freedom struggle that is floating around in journals, mainstream media, academics, research, etc. is tainted. It states that the freedom struggle was non-violent and the colonial British vacated their priced colony, India, peacefully.
The armed rebellion that was led by factions across India such as those during the Revolt of 1857, the Marathas and more has been conveniently side-lined including the roles of Chandrashekhar Azad, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and many more. It was an equally powerful force that led to India’s freedom.