Mark Tully

“Few foreigners manage to get under the skin of the world's biggest democracy the way he does, and fewer still can write about it with the clarity and insight he brings to all his work.”

“Mark Tully's private life is complicated. In Delhi, he stays with his girlfriend, Gillian Wright, while in London he stays with his wife, and mother of his four children, Margaret. He has presented a BBC television series, "The Lives of Jesus", using India, as well as the Holy Land, to explain the mysteries of Christ's divinity.”

“His understanding of all things Indian did not happen by accident. Mark Tully was born in Calcutta in 1936. The son of a wealthy accountant, he was brought up by a strict European nanny and did not come to Britain until he was ten.”

“I remember, too, the kudos being born in Calcutta gave me by making me stand-out as a rarity when, at the age of 10, I found myself in the highly competitive society of a British boarding school. To boost my kudos even further, I would boast that I was born in the "Second City of the British Empire".”

“Hinduism can survive modern times if only the people learn to bend with the wind. People will have to find a balance between the new and the old.”

“It struck me that a sense of uncertainty about ways of reaching God is what makes Hinduism different. Because of its ability to adapt, so many faiths could thrive here.”

“Though I was born in India (Kolkata), I was taught how not to become an Indian.”

“I hate to lose my connection with the great city of Calcutta.”

“I had rather thought I was yesterday's man.”

“Whenever I go and give a talk on Hinduism, and when I say something nice about it, invariably someone from the audience will object: "I think Hinduism is a disgusting religion because of the caste system."”

“Since I expressed my views...in July last year, I have sought to negotiate a position which would allow me to defend my stance in public, especially when it is questioned. The BBC has required that I do not speak on matters on which my stance is already known. That is not acceptable to me. I have therefore asked the corporation to accept my resignation as South Asia correspondent.”