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Many in India see the man who derided their patriotism, dismissed Mahatma Gandhi as a “seditious fakir” and failed to prevent the Bengal famine of 1943.

"There isn't one fakir from the north to the south in Kashmir that we didn't meet. My daughters donated their gold jewellery to shrines. We will not give up," Aisha Wagay, Shakir's mother said.

Am I an Indian fakir now, or just an Anglo-Indian faker?

Seemingly miraculous powers have long been ascribed to yogis, fakirs, ascetics and jadoowallahs, or street magicians.

Rushby’s descriptions of the landscape of Ethiopia are rich, and he interviews a slew of characters, including goldsmiths, fakirs and travelers.