Barry O’Brien was a school teacher for several years before evolving into a pioneering author of school textbooks for leading publishers, three decades ago. Prolific, and out-of-the-box in approach, he has created several bestselling titles in Literature and Language, General Knowledge, Life Skills and Value Education. His debut work of narrative non-fiction, The Anglo-Indians: A Portrait of a Community, published in 2022, has won critical acclaim from scholars, writers, and readers worldwide. Ruskin Bond has called it ‘a stupendous work’ while several others have referred to it as a magnum opus that has been brilliantly researched and is easy to read. Restless, Barry is neck-deep in his debut novel, and his collections of short stories for children and adults—all this between conducting quizzes, public speaking courses, and motivational sessions. He was nominated to represent the Anglo-Indian community in the West Bengal legislative assembly (2006–11), and has been the elected president-in-chief of the All-India AngloIndian Association (founded in 1876), since 2016. But what keeps his batteries charged is his hands-on involvement with the running of a home for the elderly, and other outreach initiatives of the East India Charitable Trust and the Telegraph Education Foundation in Kolkata.