“As my time in India approaches its close I realise that, if forced to choose, I would rather live in India than America. And I am shocked. I feel that there is a greater sense of respect and togetherness here. A greater sense of nature and spirituality.”

Famed British comedian and impressionist Alistair McGowan tracing his roots was startled to find that he is an Anglo-India. I know Alistair it is shocking, but the “Everything is Indian” uncle always knew it.

Writing in the Sunday Times, this weekend, Alistair details on how he traced his roots after his father’s death.

When he died (in 2003, aged 74) I had to take the birth certificate to the registrar’s office in order to obtain the death certificate. On the 74-year-old slip of paper, under the word “caste”, was the term “Anglo-Indian”.

I had no idea what it meant. This time last year, thanks to the BBC1 series Who Do You Think You Are? I was about to go to Calcutta to find out.

Besides the fact that we have someone new to write about, what impressed me about this was the way Alistair approached his trip to India.

I look at the group of local boys playing on the graves, sitting on tombs. It all seems wrong – so lacking in respect. I cannot imagine any graveyard in Britain being treated like this. Yet what respect were the Indian people shown, in turn, by these invading British – setting up their fort in what was a holy Hindu site? Bringing their people, their culture, their diseases, their religion, their guns and cannons here.

In this one instance, it seems to me, there is no truer phrase than “what goes around, comes around”. No more fitting word than the one we have taken – like so much – from India: karma.

It is one thing to have a popular person to discover his Indian heritage and brag about it and it is another for one to embrace it the way he did. Alistair, welcome to the club.

TAGS: None