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Venkat Forever is a labour of love to which many admirers of Ambassador A.P. Venkateswaran have contributed. They include the family he left behind, celebrities, colleagues in the Indian Foreign Service and a multiplicity of friends from all walks of life. This is a tribute to his sterling qualities and his immense contribution to the making and implementation of Indian foreign policy. His erudition, diplomatic skills, fearlessness and sense of humour are captured here in short, but eloquent accounts. The collection of essays, reminiscences, notes and letters were spontaneous outpourings of feelings at the time of his passing. Very little has been changed in the narratives to preserve their intense personal character.

The volume also contains Ambassador Venkateswarans oral history, recorded by Ambassador Kishan Rana as part of a project by the Ministry of External Affairs and the Indian Council of World Affairs. The addition of this first-person account of his life, experiences and observations has added great value to the book.

The editors, one of whom was a colleague in the Indian Foreign Service and the other his only son-in-law, worked from two continents to put together a volume worthy of the memory of an exceptional human being.

The book has abundant material for analysts of Indian foreign policy and students of international affairs. It will also be an inspiration for the younger generation of diplomats.