The definitive biography of Dadabhai Naoroji, the nineteenth-century activist who founded the Indian National Congress, was the first British MP of Indian origin, and inspired Gandhi and Nehru. Mahatma Gandhi called Dadabhai Naoroji the ?father of the nation,? a title that today is reserved for Gandhi himself. Dinyar Patel examines the extraordinary life of this foundational figure in India?s modern political history, a devastating critic of British colonialism who served in Parliament as the first-ever Indian MP, forged ties with anti-imperialists around the world, and established self-rule or swaraj as India?s objective. Naoroji?s political career evolved in three distinct phases. He began as the activist who formulated the ?drain of wealth? theory, which held the British Raj responsible for India?s crippling poverty and devastating famines. His ideas upended conventional wisdom holding that colonialism was beneficial for Indian subjects and put a generation of imperial officials on the defensive. Next, he attempted to influence the British Parliament to