K.K. Venugopal biography an attempt to come to terms with himself: N. Ram

People write autobiographies for different reasons and motivations—from confession to self-discovery—and the one written by senior lawyer and former Attorney General of India K.K. Venugopal is an attempt to “come to terms with himself”, N. Ram, Director of The Hindu Group, said on Tuesday (March 10, 2026).

Speaking at a discussion on Mr. Venugopal’s book An Accidental Lawyer—My Adventures in Law and Life, Mr. Ram said the memoir sought to find the author himself, and that is what is appealing about it and makes it very readable.

“I think people come to the genre called autobiography for different reasons and motivations. For example, the confessional mode starting with Russo… Gandhiji, of course, with ‘My Experiments with Truth’. There are others who try to find themselves like Jawaharlal Nehru in ‘Discovery of India’.”

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“In writing such a book, you try to find yourself—to see what kind of person you are. That is an interesting exercise,” Mr. Ram said, adding there are others who want to talk about themselves and their greatness.

He said Mr. Venugopal’s book is, in a sense, an attempt to come to terms with himself and not just as a lawyer.

Mr. Ram said that the former Attorney General talks about himself in the book as to how he was an “accidental lawyer”, recounting how he was not a good student and the effective support he got. The memoir touches on things like his family and his wanderlust.

“At the same time, (the memoir talks about) important cases, like the shock of being in Delhi in 1984 during the anti-Sikh genocidal violence. Later on, the violent, barbaric act of Babri masjid demolition, when he says I hang my head in shame…rebuild it, and he was told no, you cannot do that by the then Attorney General, are other interesting cases,” Mr Ram said.

Former MP Subhashini Ali, who also participated in the discussion, said that while Mr. Venugopal talks about issues like the anti-Sikh riots and the Babri Masjid demolition, he has kept quiet about many issues facing the country, especially so when he was the Attorney General of India from July 2017 till September 2022. “There is a silence which is incomprehensible to me,” she said.

Senior lawyer Raian Karanjawala said Mr. Venugopal has many facets, much talent and many sides to his character and each of them is reflected in the memoir.