Page 81 - Leadership in the Indian Army

Rs 7,000 for sons of military officers and Rs 11,000 for others. There was a
stiff written examination at Simla, which required several weeks of
preparation, followed by an oral test. Thimayya had some difficulty with

Urdu, which he had not been able to master, but he managed to pass
because he had done well in the other papers. He was then called for an
interview with the CGS. General Jacob remembered Thimayya as the young
lad who had hit a sixer two years earlier, and the interview was over in a
few minutes. There was now only one barrier to cross—the interview with
the Viceroy himself.
Sixty candidates passed the written examination and the interview with

the Chief of General Staff. Most of them belonged to the nobility or the
land-owning class, and had been chosen for their loyalty to the British. In
the end, only six made it to Sandhurst. Thimayya and his cousin Bopayya
were interviewed by the Viceroy on the same day, and both were selected.
They were overjoyed, and on their return to Coorg, a huge party was held to
celebrate their success. Thimayya’s elder brother Ponappa as well as

Cariappa who, being a Kodandera, was related to him, were present. They
were both subalterns and spoke to the two successful candidates about life
in Sandhurst and the sort of pitfalls they would need to guard against. The
six boys sailed for England in June 1924. One of them was P.N. Thapar,
who succeeded Thimayya as Army Chief in 1961.
At Sandhurst, Thimayya faced British prejudice and snobbery for the first
time, and had several unpleasant brushes with the authorities. His guardian,

a British colonel, had forbidden Indian cadets to dance with local girls.
Thimayya met an English girl at a dance and became friendly with her. One
of her letters to him was intercepted by the colonel, who berated him for
dancing with an English girl against his orders. Thimayya, realising that the
colonel had opened his letter, lost his temper and paid him back in the same
coin. It was customary to hold a ball on the night before students passed out

from Sandhurst, which Indians customarily did not attend. Thimayya not
only decided to go to the ball, but also took with him two British girls,
whose father had served in India and was acquainted with his own father.
The next morning, as expected, he and his guardian had a fearful row.
Timmy told the colonel that he was not accustomed to allowing anyone but
his family to arbitrate his behaviour. When the colonel threatened to report
the matter to the India Office as well as his parents, Timmy told him to go

to hell.