Gandhi manuscript sells for record Rs 16.2 cr at Saffronart auction

A collection of 688 autographed reflections by Mahatma Gandhi on truth, ahimsa, and service among other subjects to his close associate and freedom fighter Anand T Hingorani was sold for Rs 16.20 crore at a Saffronart auction, setting the world record for an Indian historical document sold at an auction. Written over a span of two years after the death of Hingorani’s wife Vidya, the daily handwritten messages of guidance, reflection, and encouragement were later compiled into a book titled "A Thought for the Day" and stand among the most intimate surviving records of correspondence between the two. The auction, "Gandhi: From the Collection of Anand T Hingorani", featured 86 lots of letters, manuscripts, photographs and personal objects associated with Gandhi.
Spanning more than two decades, Hingorani’s archive brought together personal correspondence, handwritten reflections, photographs, and objects such as a peti charkha that document not only defining moments in India's freedom struggle, but also the friendship, mentorship and deeply personal exchanges between Gandhi and Hingorani.
Dinesh Vazirani, co-founder of Saffronart, said the Hingorani collection was a remarkable record of Gandhi’s life and thought. “What makes this collection particularly compelling is the opportunity to see one of the most significant figures in India’s history through the lens of a close, personal relationship. The exceptional response to Lot 80 reinforces its rarity and historical significance. Together, these reflections offer a rare insight into how Gandhi lived the principles he advocated publicly, making this an especially valuable record of his thought and practice. Hingorani began following Gandhi at the age of 13, swearing to wear only khadi. Nine years later, as a law student in Karachi, he came further under his spell when Gandhi visited Sindh in February 1929.  They met in person at the Lahore Congress of 1929, and Gandhi invited him to come and stay at his Sabarmati Ashram.