Shobha Nehru, known by her nickname Fori
moved to India in 1935 when she married Braj Kumar Nehru.
Fori's former life as a young Jewish woman in Hungary
receded further and further as she embraced Indian culture,
though she maintained enough of a connection to her past
to seek out her first formal Jewish education at age 90.
Luckily, she had a very capable teacher, Sir Martin Gilbert,
an eminent British Jewish historian.
How did these two people separated by hemispheres
get to become such close friends?
And how did Sir Martin respond to Fori's desire
to learn about her heritage?
Shobha Nehru was born Magdolna Friedmann in 1908 in Budapest
to a highly regarded family
within the Hungarian-Jewish community.
Nevertheless, her father decided to change their last name
to the more Hungarian sounding Forbath, the origin
of her lifelong nickname Fori.
While she was studying at the London School of Economics
Fori met Braj Kumar Nehru, or B.K. as he was known,
a promising student from a prominent Indian family.
Fori and B.K. fell in love and soon married.
She then moved India with B.K. and assimilated fully
as a Hindu woman, leaving behind any trace
of her Jewish and Hungarian roots.
Her in-laws suggested she changed her first name to Shoba
but the people nearest and dearest to Shoba Nehru
continued to call her Fori, often Auntie Fori
as a sign of respect.
With India's independence in 1947
came great social upheaval.
B.K. and Fori Nehru were at the forefront of the efforts
to help stabilize their country.
B.K. led the national departments of finance
and economic affairs, when his cousin Jawaharlal Nehru
became India's first prime minister.
B.K. helped develop the Indian economy
and successfully appealed to new international allies
for aid money.
He would later represent India as ambassador
to the United States and then as the High Commissioner
to the UK.
Meanwhile, Fori joined the emergency committee in Old Delhi
to assist the Hindu and Muslim refugees
fleeing sectarian violence before the partition of India
and Pakistan in August of 1947.
Fori said that she saw disturbing similarities
between the tragedies that befell Hindus and Muslims
during this time and what had happened to her Jewish family
and friends in Hungary under the Nazis.
Over the next 70 years, Fori used her influence
with generations of India's prime ministers to advocate
for refugees and other vulnerable people.
When B.K. and Fori Nehru's eldest son Ashok, attended Oxford,
his friend Martin Gilbert was studying history.
Gilbert was Jewish, born in London and was attending Oxford
on a prestigious scholarship.
In 1957, Martin decided to spend the summer break in India,
a trip that would influence his later writings,
and Ashok gave Martin a letter of introduction
to his parents.
Arriving in Delhi quite sick, Martin made his way
to the Nehru's home.
Fori nursed him back to health,
and they became close friends.
Sir Martin went on to become Winston Churchill's
official biographer, writing six of the eight volumes
of Churchill's life story and authored important works
on the First and Second World Wars.
He also wrote studies on Winston Churchill, the Holocaust,
Jewish history and Israel.
He eventually advised several British Prime Ministers
on Middle Eastern affairs and served
on the Chilcot Inquiry Committee, which examined
the British role in the 2003 Iraq war.
All the while Sir Martin remained in touch with the Nehrus
frequently exchanging letters with his Auntie Fori.
During a visit to India with his son in 1998, Sir Martin
was asked by Fori if he could suggest any readings
on Jewish history.
He asked why she was interested and that's when she revealed
her Jewish past.
Once he got over his surprise, Sir Martin committed
to guide her on this journey.
After returning home to England,
he started mailing lessons to Fori.
For two and a half years Sir Martin wrote Auntie Fori
one letter per week about Judaism.
Each one contained an important topic about Judaism
or an episode from Jewish history,
from the biblical patriarchs
to the founding of Israel in 1948.
Sir Martin's letters cover the history of Jewish
religious practice, the construction and destruction
of temples in Jerusalem, modern anti-Semitism,
the histories of Jewish diaspora communities,
including India's, and descriptions of holidays and rituals.
He published a collection of these letters in 2002
acclaimed around the world as a uniquely personal account
of Jewish history.
Fori Nehru lived another 15 years
to the exceptional age of 108.
She continued to send Sir Martin emails
until his death in 2015.
Auntie Fori and Sir Martin's friendship
and the remarkable book that it produced,
offer us a priceless lesson.
It's never too late to connect with your heritage.
We're launching a new series based on Sir Martin Gilbert's
letters that tells the story of the Jewish people
starting way back with the stories that connect us
to our traditions and ending with modern stories
of the Jewish community.
If you haven't already, why not hit that subscribe button
so you don't miss the upcoming series
or any of our new videos.
(gentle music)