Although Shri Nathji did not directly come across incidents of racial discrimination, it was obvious that Indians in London were not entirely free of it. There was an obvious reluctance on the part of landladies and landlords to rent their houses to Indians. Shri Nathji himself was very fair complexioned, and, were it not for his typically Indian dress, and Mateshwari’s saree, he might not have been taken for an Indian. His features were cosmopolitan.
As Shri Bhutt wrote in later years: Your Personality is cosmopolitan and can be acclaimed by people of any faith or thought, for you represent the quintessence of human perfection.
Shri Nathji’s perfect manners would disarm the British. His turban, sherwani and chooridars gave the impression of royalty.
Pran Nath was very sensitive about matters related to discrimination. Being very fair-complexioned himself and in western attire, he had no such problems himself, but he was deeply hurt whenever any coloured people would suffer humiliation on the basis of their colour alone.
There was a time when Shri Nathji and Pran Nath were at a post office. A long queue had formed at the ticket-seller’s counter. A Britisher pushed aside a coloured woman and sought to reach the counter first. Pran Nath could not tolerate the inhumanity of the act. He instantly protested to the Britisher in an angry tone. When the man tried to defend his act aggressively, Pran Nath chided him and, indeed, all the Britishers who indulged in discrimination. It was a brave thing to do. Here he was, alone with Shri Nathji, surrounded by English people, who he was condemning.
“If you don’t like this country why don’t you go back?” said an irate Englishman.
“Why should I? You stayed in my country for over two hundred years!” said Pran Nath.
Everyone marvelled at his boldness and courage. He must belong to a royal family, said someone, seeing his imperious manner on the occasion and seeing Shri Nathji by his side.
Shri Nathji’s spiritual power kept the crowd at bay, and they all listened to Pran Nath’s angry speech with awe, like children being chided.
Pran Nath would stand for the Truth no matter on which side it stood. He was just as bothered by the discrimination as he was by the mean and petty acts some Indians abroad would stoop to. Someone told him that he could derive greater material benefits in the country if only he agreed to alter certain facts. This was anathema to him, and he preferred to live without the benefits.