The "Autobiography of an Unknown Indian" is the 1951 memoir autobiography of Indian writer Nirad C. Chaudhari (23 November 1897 - 1 August 1999). Written when he was around 50, it records his life from his birth in Kishoreganj, a small town in present-day Bangladesh. The Autobiography is divided into four books, each of which consists of a preface and four chapters. The book relates his mental and intellectual development, his life and growth in Calcutta, his observations of vanishing landmarks, the changing situation and the imminent exit of the British from India.

The first book "Early Environment" deals with the impressions formed in Chaudhari's boyhood days of his birthplace, his ancestral village, his mother's village and England as gleaned from books and pictures that he come across. The second book covers the "First twelve years" of his life till his family left his birthplace Kishorganj. Book III covers his education in Calcutta, his experiences of adolescence till his initiation into scholarship. Book IV brings him "into the world" of an extraordinary and penetrating study of the complex of social, political, racial and religious stresses of 20th century India as seen through the eyes of Mr Chaudhari.

Over the years, the autobiography has acquired many distinguished admirers including Winston Churchill, V.S. Naipaul and many others. In 1998, it was included, as one of the few Indian contributions, in the The New Oxford Book of English Prose.

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