India, Sept. 7 -- A visit to Georgia, amid the Russia-Ukraine war raging in its neighbourhood, was exciting and instructive. The Georgians have proclaimed themselves free since the breakup of the erstwhile Soviet Union, of which it was a member right since its 1922 inception. Joseph Stalin, a Georgian himself, played a pivotal role in the merger. He remained at the helm of the Soviet Union for 30 out of the 69 years that the Soviet Union existed. So, if the Georgians consider the breakup of the Soviet Union their liberation, how do they view Stalin's three-decade-long rule? I tried asking people near the Stalin museum in Gori, the village where he was born. Everyone excused themselves, citing a lack of language abilities. Old habits die h...