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Red Jihad: Battle for South Asia
2014 AD: Pakistan has transitioned into a full-fledged democracy and is reconciling with India. However, there are forces working against this fragile peace. A Pakistani jihadi leader, Yasser Basheer, travels to the Red Corridor and enlists the support of an Indian Naxalite commander, Agyaat. Their plan: to unleash Pralay, India's experimental intercontinental ballistic missile, on the subcontinent. As the missile changes course en route, it hits Pakistan and causes collateral damage. In response, Pakistan unleashes war on India.
The battle for South Asia turns murkier as an Indo-Pak war threatens to embroil many other countries in the endgame. Have India and Pakistan sparked off the mother of all wars?
A gripping, award-winning thriller, Red Jihad explores perhaps the most feared nexus in South Asia: between the Jihadis and the Naxalites.
WINNER of "Muse India Young Writer (Runner-up) Award" at the Hyderabad Literary Festival 2013 and "Excellence in Youth Fiction Writing" award at Delhi World Book Fair 2013.
The battle for South Asia turns murkier as an Indo-Pak war threatens to embroil many other countries in the endgame. Have India and Pakistan sparked off the mother of all wars?
A gripping, award-winning thriller, Red Jihad explores perhaps the most feared nexus in South Asia: between the Jihadis and the Naxalites.
WINNER of "Muse India Young Writer (Runner-up) Award" at the Hyderabad Literary Festival 2013 and "Excellence in Youth Fiction Writing" award at Delhi World Book Fair 2013.
266 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2012
5 people are currently reading
111 people want to read
About the author
Sami Ahmad Khan
10 books25 followersDr. Sami Ahmad Khan studied Literature at Delhi University, completed his master’s in English at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), and then went to the University of Iowa on a Fulbright grant. He holds a PhD degree in techno-culture studies from JNU. He has produced features for All India Radio and taught at IIT, JNU, Jindal Global University and Iowa. He currently discusses life, language and literature at GGS Indraprastha University, Delhi.
'Red Jihad', Sami’s debut thriller, won NBT’s National Debut Youth Fiction Award and Muse India Young Writer Award (Runner-up). He also won third prize in the US-based “Islamicate SF Short Story Contest”. His second novel, 'Aliens in Delhi', will be out in April 2017.
Sami's short fiction, research papers and articles have appeared in leading magazines and journals across the globe.
He is a member of the Indian Science Fiction Writers’ Association (ISFWA) and the Indian Association for Science Fiction Studies (IASFS). He can be reached at -
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Sami-Ahmad-K...
Twitter: @SamiAhmadKhan
'Red Jihad', Sami’s debut thriller, won NBT’s National Debut Youth Fiction Award and Muse India Young Writer Award (Runner-up). He also won third prize in the US-based “Islamicate SF Short Story Contest”. His second novel, 'Aliens in Delhi', will be out in April 2017.
Sami's short fiction, research papers and articles have appeared in leading magazines and journals across the globe.
He is a member of the Indian Science Fiction Writers’ Association (ISFWA) and the Indian Association for Science Fiction Studies (IASFS). He can be reached at -
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Sami-Ahmad-K...
Twitter: @SamiAhmadKhan
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
October 26, 2012
Remarkable! "Red" and "Jihad" in a thriller title? I knew I had to read this one.
I got this book today morning and finished it in 1 sitting straight. One word - Engrossing! I couldn't stop myself the moment I had read the first page. Red Jihad draws you into a web of politics, deceit, lies, betrayal, and of course, guns, glory and guts. I loved the intelligent plot, the way it moves forward, and the simple, straightforward narration without any digressions.
Too many books these days get so infatuated with the language, that they forget the plot. Red Jihad steers clear of making a thriller a high-brow literary enterprise - where language/wordplay gets more importance than action. Infact, I read an interview of the author on rediff (http://www.rediff.com/news/interview/...) where he said he was experimenting with a form where there were no characters - only situations and how people responded to it. That is what struck a chord with me. I wanted to read a thriller that talks about war on a macro-scale. A real war. A war that has no heroes. No victors. No memorable characters. Only survivors. War IS the only character here. Which is why I liked Red Jihad and recommend it to all who want to have a good read.
Another thing I liked apart from the High IQ, fast-paced plot was how well the author has given us an insight into the Fauji/Babu/Neta brain. Nice. It has taken lots of research, I can see, and it is commendable. And to top it all, Khan writes about 2014 and talks of how foreign affairs have changed by then. He treats various ideologies very maturely and sensitively. I thought I was crystal gazing into the the future of India and Pakistan - of war but with an inbuilt message of peace. Yes, this book has some flaws - but I didn't mind them - simply because the masala, politically charged and very relevant narrative, plot and treatment more than made up for some minor flaws. I can only hope more young writers step into this sort of writing and herald a new era in Indian thrillers. Good Thriller, and above all, great Youth Fiction, written by the youth and for the youth (better than lovey-dovey campus romances!)
Highly Recommended. Buy it!
I got this book today morning and finished it in 1 sitting straight. One word - Engrossing! I couldn't stop myself the moment I had read the first page. Red Jihad draws you into a web of politics, deceit, lies, betrayal, and of course, guns, glory and guts. I loved the intelligent plot, the way it moves forward, and the simple, straightforward narration without any digressions.
Too many books these days get so infatuated with the language, that they forget the plot. Red Jihad steers clear of making a thriller a high-brow literary enterprise - where language/wordplay gets more importance than action. Infact, I read an interview of the author on rediff (http://www.rediff.com/news/interview/...) where he said he was experimenting with a form where there were no characters - only situations and how people responded to it. That is what struck a chord with me. I wanted to read a thriller that talks about war on a macro-scale. A real war. A war that has no heroes. No victors. No memorable characters. Only survivors. War IS the only character here. Which is why I liked Red Jihad and recommend it to all who want to have a good read.
Another thing I liked apart from the High IQ, fast-paced plot was how well the author has given us an insight into the Fauji/Babu/Neta brain. Nice. It has taken lots of research, I can see, and it is commendable. And to top it all, Khan writes about 2014 and talks of how foreign affairs have changed by then. He treats various ideologies very maturely and sensitively. I thought I was crystal gazing into the the future of India and Pakistan - of war but with an inbuilt message of peace. Yes, this book has some flaws - but I didn't mind them - simply because the masala, politically charged and very relevant narrative, plot and treatment more than made up for some minor flaws. I can only hope more young writers step into this sort of writing and herald a new era in Indian thrillers. Good Thriller, and above all, great Youth Fiction, written by the youth and for the youth (better than lovey-dovey campus romances!)
Highly Recommended. Buy it!
August 26, 2012
Loved this book. So fresh, engrossing, nuanced, and mature in its treatment of very sensitive issues like terrorism, naxalism and nationalism. A great thriller that is fast-paced, informative, lucid and engrossing. It takes us to a South Asia of 2014 where as per Murphy's Law, anything that can go wrong, does, at least politically. Intelligent fiction that should be read by those who want to take a break from those campus novels or cheesy romances on love the new writers are dashing out post-Bhagat. Recommended.
November 11, 2012
Sami Ahmad Khan in his debut work brings the horrific possibility of these two thorns, bleeding the sides of our country and by an extension our western neighbor too, coming together. Like the title suggests – Red Jihad is the coming together of these disruptive forces for a common bad. Full review: http://thetalespensieve.wordpress.com...
October 25, 2012
"What happens if the faction of Indians who do not believe in democracy (naxals) join hands with our neighbors who don't want democracy in India?"
This in a sentence is the basic premise of the Red Jihad. "Interesting" and "intriguing" are two words which immediately pop in your consciousness like bubble wrap. And Sami Ahmad does an almost decent job at executing the premise. It is very evident that Sami has spent a LOT of time researching things and all the time and effort comes through in the text when you are reading about the detailed weaponry which the characters use. And I say this because it is no mean feat for anybody to go through scores of online and offline resources to get your facts right. And this is where the good bit stops.
Red Jihad opens up with a young boy sneaking out of the house to play cricket, only to have his cricket pitch bombed by the Americans. The book then quickly and rapidly presents a story which is unnerving and if given enough thought may actually be plausible in the near future. As the story then quickly moves on to India developing an ICBM, rogue elements getting the hands on it and then declaring war. And then like the cliché goes, all hell breaks lose.
Yes, the story is action packed. Yes the story is fast paced. But, does it have a hero? No. An anti-hero? No. Any characters I found who got me to invest in them and inconspicuously ride along with them as they go about thwarting the dastardly evil schemes to ruin everything we know and hold dear? No. Sami Ahmad Khan’s story has several characters. And when I say several, I mean you cannot keep count of them on your finger tips. Characters come, they die. Some stay on to play small but significant roles. I understand that Sami Ahmad wanted to play on the whole everybody is both good and bad at the same time and everybody is grey all the time. But… There were such crippling character inadequacies and inconsistencies that I found myself rolling my eyes. India has a young prime minister who shows some cajones and stands up against the political system and gives out a diktat to the rest of the state ministries to either tread his way or the highway. But soon enough, he is seen to be somebody who is hungry for power and acts like a complete nincompoop. There is a general who has just successfully executed a coup, addresses the nation and then thinks about playing golf. All this while there is a nuclear threat looming in the background. The US is seen to be caught completely off guard about the nuclear threat OR the coup, despite the public address to the nation. These were just some of the character inconsistencies which kept rankling in my head while I ploughed through the story. And then there is the whole issue of the dialogues which the characters spout. They fuse with one another and then merge into the narrative. All the characters seem to have read the same set of books, spout lines from same philosophers, and basically seem to have an IQ of well above 140s. Which is sad because the story could have done with some gaali galoch, default nature clashing with environment. And I guess this was primarily due to the lack of character development and structural problems.
If you ask me, Red Jihad is like state of the art CGI effects wala movie, much like Ra.One. Only difference is that it is made like the final credit sequence of Om Shanti Om and guest appearances in the title song. Don’t get me wrong, I liked Ra.One, Om Shanti Om and Red Jihad (both the story and the premise. Well to be honest, I loved Om Shanti Om).
Maybe this is just me crying over what a great story Red Jihad could have been. I guess it is because of the fact that I am quite used to the age old formula of a hero and villain, dialogues which breathe soul into the characters, and characters making me wanting to care for them. And maybe it was my own myopic view that hindered the immersion in this story. I do hope that Sami Ahmad Khan reads more and writes more.
This in a sentence is the basic premise of the Red Jihad. "Interesting" and "intriguing" are two words which immediately pop in your consciousness like bubble wrap. And Sami Ahmad does an almost decent job at executing the premise. It is very evident that Sami has spent a LOT of time researching things and all the time and effort comes through in the text when you are reading about the detailed weaponry which the characters use. And I say this because it is no mean feat for anybody to go through scores of online and offline resources to get your facts right. And this is where the good bit stops.
Red Jihad opens up with a young boy sneaking out of the house to play cricket, only to have his cricket pitch bombed by the Americans. The book then quickly and rapidly presents a story which is unnerving and if given enough thought may actually be plausible in the near future. As the story then quickly moves on to India developing an ICBM, rogue elements getting the hands on it and then declaring war. And then like the cliché goes, all hell breaks lose.
Yes, the story is action packed. Yes the story is fast paced. But, does it have a hero? No. An anti-hero? No. Any characters I found who got me to invest in them and inconspicuously ride along with them as they go about thwarting the dastardly evil schemes to ruin everything we know and hold dear? No. Sami Ahmad Khan’s story has several characters. And when I say several, I mean you cannot keep count of them on your finger tips. Characters come, they die. Some stay on to play small but significant roles. I understand that Sami Ahmad wanted to play on the whole everybody is both good and bad at the same time and everybody is grey all the time. But… There were such crippling character inadequacies and inconsistencies that I found myself rolling my eyes. India has a young prime minister who shows some cajones and stands up against the political system and gives out a diktat to the rest of the state ministries to either tread his way or the highway. But soon enough, he is seen to be somebody who is hungry for power and acts like a complete nincompoop. There is a general who has just successfully executed a coup, addresses the nation and then thinks about playing golf. All this while there is a nuclear threat looming in the background. The US is seen to be caught completely off guard about the nuclear threat OR the coup, despite the public address to the nation. These were just some of the character inconsistencies which kept rankling in my head while I ploughed through the story. And then there is the whole issue of the dialogues which the characters spout. They fuse with one another and then merge into the narrative. All the characters seem to have read the same set of books, spout lines from same philosophers, and basically seem to have an IQ of well above 140s. Which is sad because the story could have done with some gaali galoch, default nature clashing with environment. And I guess this was primarily due to the lack of character development and structural problems.
If you ask me, Red Jihad is like state of the art CGI effects wala movie, much like Ra.One. Only difference is that it is made like the final credit sequence of Om Shanti Om and guest appearances in the title song. Don’t get me wrong, I liked Ra.One, Om Shanti Om and Red Jihad (both the story and the premise. Well to be honest, I loved Om Shanti Om).
Maybe this is just me crying over what a great story Red Jihad could have been. I guess it is because of the fact that I am quite used to the age old formula of a hero and villain, dialogues which breathe soul into the characters, and characters making me wanting to care for them. And maybe it was my own myopic view that hindered the immersion in this story. I do hope that Sami Ahmad Khan reads more and writes more.
September 12, 2012
Red Jihad is a fast-paced, engrossing, gripping thriller that crystal gazes into the future of Indo-Pak relations and how we're all pawns in a greater game. It brings alive our worst fears- Naxalites uniting with the Jihadis to subvert an India-Pakistan peace process. I was reminded of newspaper headlines when I read this- fact has seamlessly been integrated with fiction. It delineates an India-Pakistan war, domestic instability in the country, an epistemological shift in power, and the fate of the world's most wanted man. A very intelligent endeavour. Finally, it contains an Indian perspective on global politics that is very well researched and mature. Highly recommended for lovers for thrillers/military fiction.Red Jihad: Battle for South Asia
September 19, 2013
I wish this had been written better. The premise is intriguing and quite unique - that Maoists and Jihadis can come together. Unfortunately, Khan's turgid prose - sometimes overdetailed and at other times banal takes away from the book. Some of the issues such as the ease with which the red terrorist combine takes over the missile launch site (which presumably also carries nukes) is scary even if it's halfway true.
This book would make a good screenplay for a fast paced movie. Hopefully it will have better writing too.
This book would make a good screenplay for a fast paced movie. Hopefully it will have better writing too.
November 14, 2013
My only problem with this novel is that it is too short and some situations like the war are not properly described. Some situations like the coup seem unrealistic and the author could have developed them more descriptively. But the author has done a fine job in writing about a theme that has been untouched till now. His detailed research also merits appreciation.
October 20, 2012
read the my review on my blog post : http://contemplatingme.wordpress.com/...
July 4, 2013
Best damn military thriller from the subcontinent. Definitely deserves a movie. Loved it.
December 26, 2017
What'd happen if Naxalites and radical Islamic terrorists join hands and launch a prototype ICBM?
That is the pitch of Red Jihad. The good news : Sami Ahmad Khan knows the art of a (thriller) story telling and knows it quite well. The first half of the novel is like a seductive, out of this world entity, not letting you off its hypnotic spell. The premise felt creepy, dangerous and nearly plausible. Makes you pause and think, 'What if...'
The writing is well done. There is an admirable lack of any kind of curse words, sometimes an almost impossible to resist urge for authors writing a military thriller. I wish other writers were this courageous.
The initial plot elements, like the raid on andaman NMRC facility by terrorists, the political and military machinery's response (of both rival countries) to threat, and the mystery elements regarding who, what, why and how about missile, are gripping. more aptly the 'ignition' and 'launch' parts of novel are superbly executed and well thought out. The presence of a hidden agenda, even among the terrorist raid participants and how beautiful it felt... You can only understand that while reading it.
Now the bad news. And by bad I mean very very bad sometimes.
Like other reviewers pointed out
1. A clearly felt lack of 'Show, Don't Tell'
2. The un-necessity of coup in India.
While the coup mechanism was good enough, (The army General takes into account which parts, corps, divisions of armed forces are with him and which are against. The parliament surrounded by men he served with.), there isn't enough distrust, disquiet, protest and chaos among army units about General's intentions, especially for armed forces of a country who never rebelled against political leadership. Media doesn't react, neither does public. The author mentions 'some groups' disagreeing with the coup but they don't leave any impact. Even after General's address to nation, the public remains compliant. (For a man fond of details (and acronyms in parenthesis, repeatedly so) the author failed to mention the effect of coup on Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and SEBI ) and economy in general. The Navy disagrees with the coup. Completely. Yet I was surprised by the miraculous apparition of Naval chief In the next scene at Integrated Defence Headquarters where Army chief of staff takes his first meeting as head of state. And the Naval Chief doesn't speak dissent once.
The general also shoots one of the Daagi MPs in the Parliament.
The general also resigns from that post within 24 hours and reinstates the PM, with the assurances given in writing to the whole country about his resignation, with the Missile Crisis still unresolved.
The reinstated PM doesn't lock him up immediately afterwards, or assign anyone else in his position. (How does he know such a man wouldn't disagree with another of his decisions and again dethrone him?).
I guess by now you all know what I'm trying to imply. The whole coup thing was not only unfeasible but also unnecessary and was flawed in 'afterwards... process' . It was, I guess, purely there for shock value or maybe at a decision by someone in marketing department , or to facilitate an ironic dialogue between democratically elected Pakistani president and Deposed by military Indian Prime Minister.
It was UNNECESSARY.
Other than that, there was also the flawed and delayed recognition of intent of terrorists, by Indian leadership. 'Why would they capture a prototype secret missile base?', yeah, if you'd ask that a 14 year old kid, he'll tell you.
Also 'How could they know about a secret missile's secret testing and assembling base location in the first place?' Ask that kid again.
'But our best people in IIT designed the computer security and systems. There's no way any base defense mechanism could come online or missile would be able to fly' read the response of the kid on question #2.
Onto the Impact part. As the third act of a classic '3 act structure', The actual impact of an Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile at Lahore was, more than slightly anti climatic. There are two different characters who suffer from it, apart from hundred others. A child and an old man. The author tries to convey emotional depth and rise of hope among desolated ruins of Lahore before fate snatching it again. The seeming cruelty of modern weapons and old age.
Yet it failed to make an impact. (no pun intended). It distracts. From the big picture. And it doesn't get any bigger than an incoming ICBM. But i guess it doesn't matter. Maybe nothing does (for author) because there are no heroes or major characters in his story. Because the first really beautiful character of the opening sequence who has lots of philosophical questions, whom I was really enjoying, cherishing, gets killed in a firefight with Chinese trained Maoists, without any heroic 'sunny deol-ish moment in border' (his own last thought).
I get it, war is unpredictable, Game Of Thrones have major characters dying left and right. But why ponder over such frivolous ongoings like thoughts of Marxist movements in his head, and us-vs-them if you are going to kill that character in the opening itself? Why waste time? Why not get to the point straight for a change? Even Ned Stark died after 80-85% of the novel was done, and for good reason.
The identity of traitor at missile base was no - brainer. And before 'Comrade Agyaat' agrees to join hands with terrorists, he looks at a picture and at that point, I literally groaned with disgust. Given how clever some of the schemes in the novel are, the twist was totally a spoiler really. But hey, Sami Ahmad likes to play humour in strangest of places. So who knows?
For that matter maoists don't get a lot of action. They serve as a tool for getting Rogue Chinese help ( for helping the plot, more accurately) but no, every major character in the raid is pakistani, we know their thoughts and feelings. The commander is an Ex Pak SSG. He doesn't survive either. So why not have someone from 'our side' express his thoughts about the raid while shooting bullets and throwing grenades at Indian para commandos? There's no specific tactical advantage which terrorists get from naxalite collaboration in Missile Base Raid. That is my biggest complaint from first 2 acts.
2nd, The Point of View shifts rapidly, between Naxalite commander Agyaat and Islamic radical negotiator Basheer. When they meet for the first time. With each shift, it repeats the same theme: distrust, distaste and dislike toward each other. The whole experience feels... forced, somehow, I don't know.
3rd. There's a discussion of good maoists V's. bad maoists in that meeting, in the form of comrade Agyaat torturing another Comrade from different organization. spying for government and agreeing for participating in election process, thereby agreeing to democracy, is the charge. In front of Basheer, He first beats him then shoots him, after a lengthy debate about how communism utopia will come to be. And which faction is right.
Granted the scene is informative enough, intelligent enough. But it too, felt disconnected to the plot. It felt like author was preaching about his knowledge of Marx and Lenin.
The War, like the Indian General's short reign of dictatorship, overs in a blink of an eye. 24 (maybe more) hours of intense fighting and it is done. Finish. I can't imagine two nuclear capable countries fighting a war agreeing to come to terms this early. Not that there are no dissenters. Hell, the former rogue general himself mentions the doubts about pakistani intent. But like the 'groups disagreeing with the coup.', all he gets is an honorable mention.
The actual War part was boring. The author should read 'Line of Control' by mainak dhar. There, the War is not only SHOWN but is strategic as well. Not to mention balanced. Sami's war feels more like reading the report of engagements brought-to-you-by-That-pretentious-sounding- Integrated Defence Command Headquarters.
Don't get me wrong, the author has a good imagination for creative war strategies. Why doesn't he go one step further and actually shows us what happens after applying them in combat, or how it can be countered once detected, frustrated me to no limits.
A particular example readers will notice will be the Tank Engagement somewhere above Rajasthan and west of jaisalmer. The pakistani commanders, aided by PAF, apply brilliant diversion and misdirection tactics to fool an Indian tank platoon and IAF. it works too.
The super intelligent Indian Tank Commander of Platoon, however, STOPS, at figuring this out on his own, in record time.
He doesn't ponder over what he should do to counter such an attack, other than run of the mill :
"He shouted on the radio to regroup and counter-attack"
but he couldn't do even that because of the last piece of Pakistani deception.
Deception, Strategy, Tactics all this during the Indo-Pak war remains the Forte of Pakistan. We Indians rely solely on 'Numerical Superiority' and 'Technological Advantage'. Please give me a break!!! Surely we could hatch some schemes of our own, especially since the coup yesterday?
The last 15% part again washed up in haze, it was growing painful for me. But author makes some clever moves, when a joint indo pak raid fails to nail the key perpetrator from Islamic terrorist side. How maoist part was dealt with, we never get to know, just that 'we did it for you. The red corridor is no longer red. Be grateful and hope that in future, there will be no more coups'
Anyway, what was I saying? Ah, yes, so the author makes some good moves and surprise! Its the most wanted man of the world. Back from the dead himself! Who Bought and renamed an underground vessel after 'A lost submarine'.
We get another grating deliverance of reports on tactics employed by Indian Navy, Which baits an aircraft carrier to lure the sub out from hiding by the way. The carrier survives. A destroyer does not. And the Sub surfaces automatically because of magnetic-chemical-intelligent mines.
'Wait! Go back a little! You said Mines? Where the hell did they come from?' you can ask however much you want. But I don't know the answer. Not beforehand at least, there's no mention. After the fact, we get to know Americans helped us. The author did what you can call an 'a$$pull' here.
There's good motive and reasoning given afterwards though. Not all too much altruistic which I liked by the way. Exactly the way capitalists would want to imagine the world and how things should be.
It was brilliant even. Hell, I couldn't believe it was the ending of a novel which i was on the verge of hating.
Except it wasn't the end.
There's another 'Not-so-genuine-or-plausible-but-fuck-you-I' m-gonna-put-it-there-anyway' twist to blow your heads off.
Could give 2.5 stars, 2 for initial 45% and half for last 5%, but can't do that, so just to be on the safe side.
2 out of 5 from me.
Sami Ahead Khan should stick to writing Thrillers and Mysteries and shouldn't confuse Mystery with Military. Its not his cup of tea. And it becomes even more bitter when he serves that tea to others
Edit : Oh by the way, the ballistic missile took 2.5 hours to reach from port blair to Lahore, and have stealth technology so no other modern country could detect it. Let alone build one themselves.
That is the pitch of Red Jihad. The good news : Sami Ahmad Khan knows the art of a (thriller) story telling and knows it quite well. The first half of the novel is like a seductive, out of this world entity, not letting you off its hypnotic spell. The premise felt creepy, dangerous and nearly plausible. Makes you pause and think, 'What if...'
The writing is well done. There is an admirable lack of any kind of curse words, sometimes an almost impossible to resist urge for authors writing a military thriller. I wish other writers were this courageous.
The initial plot elements, like the raid on andaman NMRC facility by terrorists, the political and military machinery's response (of both rival countries) to threat, and the mystery elements regarding who, what, why and how about missile, are gripping. more aptly the 'ignition' and 'launch' parts of novel are superbly executed and well thought out. The presence of a hidden agenda, even among the terrorist raid participants and how beautiful it felt... You can only understand that while reading it.
Now the bad news. And by bad I mean very very bad sometimes.
Like other reviewers pointed out
1. A clearly felt lack of 'Show, Don't Tell'
2. The un-necessity of coup in India.
While the coup mechanism was good enough, (The army General takes into account which parts, corps, divisions of armed forces are with him and which are against. The parliament surrounded by men he served with.), there isn't enough distrust, disquiet, protest and chaos among army units about General's intentions, especially for armed forces of a country who never rebelled against political leadership. Media doesn't react, neither does public. The author mentions 'some groups' disagreeing with the coup but they don't leave any impact. Even after General's address to nation, the public remains compliant. (For a man fond of details (and acronyms in parenthesis, repeatedly so) the author failed to mention the effect of coup on Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and SEBI ) and economy in general. The Navy disagrees with the coup. Completely. Yet I was surprised by the miraculous apparition of Naval chief In the next scene at Integrated Defence Headquarters where Army chief of staff takes his first meeting as head of state. And the Naval Chief doesn't speak dissent once.
The general also shoots one of the Daagi MPs in the Parliament.
The general also resigns from that post within 24 hours and reinstates the PM, with the assurances given in writing to the whole country about his resignation, with the Missile Crisis still unresolved.
The reinstated PM doesn't lock him up immediately afterwards, or assign anyone else in his position. (How does he know such a man wouldn't disagree with another of his decisions and again dethrone him?).
I guess by now you all know what I'm trying to imply. The whole coup thing was not only unfeasible but also unnecessary and was flawed in 'afterwards... process' . It was, I guess, purely there for shock value or maybe at a decision by someone in marketing department , or to facilitate an ironic dialogue between democratically elected Pakistani president and Deposed by military Indian Prime Minister.
It was UNNECESSARY.
Other than that, there was also the flawed and delayed recognition of intent of terrorists, by Indian leadership. 'Why would they capture a prototype secret missile base?', yeah, if you'd ask that a 14 year old kid, he'll tell you.
Also 'How could they know about a secret missile's secret testing and assembling base location in the first place?' Ask that kid again.
'But our best people in IIT designed the computer security and systems. There's no way any base defense mechanism could come online or missile would be able to fly' read the response of the kid on question #2.
Onto the Impact part. As the third act of a classic '3 act structure', The actual impact of an Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile at Lahore was, more than slightly anti climatic. There are two different characters who suffer from it, apart from hundred others. A child and an old man. The author tries to convey emotional depth and rise of hope among desolated ruins of Lahore before fate snatching it again. The seeming cruelty of modern weapons and old age.
Yet it failed to make an impact. (no pun intended). It distracts. From the big picture. And it doesn't get any bigger than an incoming ICBM. But i guess it doesn't matter. Maybe nothing does (for author) because there are no heroes or major characters in his story. Because the first really beautiful character of the opening sequence who has lots of philosophical questions, whom I was really enjoying, cherishing, gets killed in a firefight with Chinese trained Maoists, without any heroic 'sunny deol-ish moment in border' (his own last thought).
I get it, war is unpredictable, Game Of Thrones have major characters dying left and right. But why ponder over such frivolous ongoings like thoughts of Marxist movements in his head, and us-vs-them if you are going to kill that character in the opening itself? Why waste time? Why not get to the point straight for a change? Even Ned Stark died after 80-85% of the novel was done, and for good reason.
The identity of traitor at missile base was no - brainer. And before 'Comrade Agyaat' agrees to join hands with terrorists, he looks at a picture and at that point, I literally groaned with disgust. Given how clever some of the schemes in the novel are, the twist was totally a spoiler really. But hey, Sami Ahmad likes to play humour in strangest of places. So who knows?
For that matter maoists don't get a lot of action. They serve as a tool for getting Rogue Chinese help ( for helping the plot, more accurately) but no, every major character in the raid is pakistani, we know their thoughts and feelings. The commander is an Ex Pak SSG. He doesn't survive either. So why not have someone from 'our side' express his thoughts about the raid while shooting bullets and throwing grenades at Indian para commandos? There's no specific tactical advantage which terrorists get from naxalite collaboration in Missile Base Raid. That is my biggest complaint from first 2 acts.
2nd, The Point of View shifts rapidly, between Naxalite commander Agyaat and Islamic radical negotiator Basheer. When they meet for the first time. With each shift, it repeats the same theme: distrust, distaste and dislike toward each other. The whole experience feels... forced, somehow, I don't know.
3rd. There's a discussion of good maoists V's. bad maoists in that meeting, in the form of comrade Agyaat torturing another Comrade from different organization. spying for government and agreeing for participating in election process, thereby agreeing to democracy, is the charge. In front of Basheer, He first beats him then shoots him, after a lengthy debate about how communism utopia will come to be. And which faction is right.
Granted the scene is informative enough, intelligent enough. But it too, felt disconnected to the plot. It felt like author was preaching about his knowledge of Marx and Lenin.
The War, like the Indian General's short reign of dictatorship, overs in a blink of an eye. 24 (maybe more) hours of intense fighting and it is done. Finish. I can't imagine two nuclear capable countries fighting a war agreeing to come to terms this early. Not that there are no dissenters. Hell, the former rogue general himself mentions the doubts about pakistani intent. But like the 'groups disagreeing with the coup.', all he gets is an honorable mention.
The actual War part was boring. The author should read 'Line of Control' by mainak dhar. There, the War is not only SHOWN but is strategic as well. Not to mention balanced. Sami's war feels more like reading the report of engagements brought-to-you-by-That-pretentious-sounding- Integrated Defence Command Headquarters.
Don't get me wrong, the author has a good imagination for creative war strategies. Why doesn't he go one step further and actually shows us what happens after applying them in combat, or how it can be countered once detected, frustrated me to no limits.
A particular example readers will notice will be the Tank Engagement somewhere above Rajasthan and west of jaisalmer. The pakistani commanders, aided by PAF, apply brilliant diversion and misdirection tactics to fool an Indian tank platoon and IAF. it works too.
The super intelligent Indian Tank Commander of Platoon, however, STOPS, at figuring this out on his own, in record time.
He doesn't ponder over what he should do to counter such an attack, other than run of the mill :
"He shouted on the radio to regroup and counter-attack"
but he couldn't do even that because of the last piece of Pakistani deception.
Deception, Strategy, Tactics all this during the Indo-Pak war remains the Forte of Pakistan. We Indians rely solely on 'Numerical Superiority' and 'Technological Advantage'. Please give me a break!!! Surely we could hatch some schemes of our own, especially since the coup yesterday?
The last 15% part again washed up in haze, it was growing painful for me. But author makes some clever moves, when a joint indo pak raid fails to nail the key perpetrator from Islamic terrorist side. How maoist part was dealt with, we never get to know, just that 'we did it for you. The red corridor is no longer red. Be grateful and hope that in future, there will be no more coups'
Anyway, what was I saying? Ah, yes, so the author makes some good moves and surprise! Its the most wanted man of the world. Back from the dead himself! Who Bought and renamed an underground vessel after 'A lost submarine'.
We get another grating deliverance of reports on tactics employed by Indian Navy, Which baits an aircraft carrier to lure the sub out from hiding by the way. The carrier survives. A destroyer does not. And the Sub surfaces automatically because of magnetic-chemical-intelligent mines.
'Wait! Go back a little! You said Mines? Where the hell did they come from?' you can ask however much you want. But I don't know the answer. Not beforehand at least, there's no mention. After the fact, we get to know Americans helped us. The author did what you can call an 'a$$pull' here.
There's good motive and reasoning given afterwards though. Not all too much altruistic which I liked by the way. Exactly the way capitalists would want to imagine the world and how things should be.
It was brilliant even. Hell, I couldn't believe it was the ending of a novel which i was on the verge of hating.
Except it wasn't the end.
There's another 'Not-so-genuine-or-plausible-but-fuck-you-I' m-gonna-put-it-there-anyway' twist to blow your heads off.
Could give 2.5 stars, 2 for initial 45% and half for last 5%, but can't do that, so just to be on the safe side.
2 out of 5 from me.
Sami Ahead Khan should stick to writing Thrillers and Mysteries and shouldn't confuse Mystery with Military. Its not his cup of tea. And it becomes even more bitter when he serves that tea to others
Edit : Oh by the way, the ballistic missile took 2.5 hours to reach from port blair to Lahore, and have stealth technology so no other modern country could detect it. Let alone build one themselves.
December 19, 2014
I found the characterisation to be slightly inconsistent with the roles the characters were being portrayed in, to be very honest. That formed the first significant gap in the book, in my opinion. A Chief Of Army Staff would not be on-again and off-again, and would be in control of himself - with General Malhotra is most decidedly not. The entire military take-over does not gel, and comes across as distinctly fictional and out-of-place. Not only that, it is inconceivable the an Army Chief would make so many errors of judgement (in the initial phase), and the Prime Minister doesnt in a security and defence situation. It should have been the other way around - with the Prime Minister advocating caution, and the Army Chied being all for securing the base at the fastest possible moment. An Army Chief, of all people, would be best aware of the dangers of leaving a missile base in enemy hands for any length of time!
What was worse for me is that both the Army Chief and The Prime Minister have been shown losing control, which again does not fit in with the overall characterisation. Not only that, the stiunning reversal in the latter half of the book is also not in keeping with the first half, which confused the character plot to a great degree. It is almost as if we are seeing a different character altogether.
The other thing that did not click for me was the process of the military takeover, and the ease with which it was accomplished without anyone asking any questions. Again, this does not gel with the scenario. Furthermore, it was totally unnecessary in the plot; the book could have been written without it. It was a needless transgression, and further, not in keeping with what we know of the Indian Army, as well as the Indian Defence setup, which makes a takeover virtually impossible. I cannot understand why this was included in the book! It has no place in it whatsoever.
These 2 points apart, the book is a superb one. It is a fast paced adrenalin pumping read, totally devoid of vulgarity. with simple flowing language that is easy to comprehend. The war coverage is tremendous, and the war has been brought forward in both the strategic and tactical aspects with relative ease, which makes this part the saving grace of the book. The gripping narrative in this part goes a long way in helping you forget the gaffes in the first part of the book. The other saving grace is the overall concept - a coming together of the Jihadis and the Maoists, and the successful attempt to bring the 2 nations to war, with active collusion from Pakistani State and Non-State Actors. Read the book for these 2 points alone - you wont regret it! I rate it 2 stars out of 5 in the first half, and 4 stars out of 5 in the second half...
What was worse for me is that both the Army Chief and The Prime Minister have been shown losing control, which again does not fit in with the overall characterisation. Not only that, the stiunning reversal in the latter half of the book is also not in keeping with the first half, which confused the character plot to a great degree. It is almost as if we are seeing a different character altogether.
The other thing that did not click for me was the process of the military takeover, and the ease with which it was accomplished without anyone asking any questions. Again, this does not gel with the scenario. Furthermore, it was totally unnecessary in the plot; the book could have been written without it. It was a needless transgression, and further, not in keeping with what we know of the Indian Army, as well as the Indian Defence setup, which makes a takeover virtually impossible. I cannot understand why this was included in the book! It has no place in it whatsoever.
These 2 points apart, the book is a superb one. It is a fast paced adrenalin pumping read, totally devoid of vulgarity. with simple flowing language that is easy to comprehend. The war coverage is tremendous, and the war has been brought forward in both the strategic and tactical aspects with relative ease, which makes this part the saving grace of the book. The gripping narrative in this part goes a long way in helping you forget the gaffes in the first part of the book. The other saving grace is the overall concept - a coming together of the Jihadis and the Maoists, and the successful attempt to bring the 2 nations to war, with active collusion from Pakistani State and Non-State Actors. Read the book for these 2 points alone - you wont regret it! I rate it 2 stars out of 5 in the first half, and 4 stars out of 5 in the second half...
December 10, 2013
The downsides first. Starts well, but multiple settings in quick succession creates confusion. The narrative lumbers, there’s too much sincerity in trying to TELL, which ends up truncating the SHOW. ‘Show, don’t tell’, might be a paradox of sorts, for many, including me. But like all ‘rules of the thumb’, however much you are sure about its non-relevance, there are times it just pops up to prove why it was founded. It felt so while reading Red Jehad.
Sincerity is replete in the narrative, which I think is a good thing. The plot is intriguing to a certain extent too. To be more precise, to a small extent. Here’s my reason: I think the idea of the Pakistani jehadis and the Naxalities joining hands is a far-fetched one. Though I like the ambition in it, yet, it remains a distant absurdity. Add to that a General who takes over the country and shoots a MP dead in the parliament. As the bureaucrats and the ministers fall in line, he heads to the Integrated Defence headquarters where a team compromising of the DRDO chief, Air Force chief, Defence secretary, Cabinet secretary, Navy chief and others are confronted with the real threat: how best to stop an incoming missile set off by the Pakistani jehadis and their Naxalite partners from Port Blair. The target at first appears to be New Delhi, but recalculations suggest Amritsar, and it finally explodes in Lahore.
The characters are layered, with a lot of background information sewed into the narrative as soon as they are introduced. Sometimes, the back-story gained more prominence, that too right at the start, and that jarred my reading. Too many characters.
Overall, an average first attempt. My rating 2.5
Sincerity is replete in the narrative, which I think is a good thing. The plot is intriguing to a certain extent too. To be more precise, to a small extent. Here’s my reason: I think the idea of the Pakistani jehadis and the Naxalities joining hands is a far-fetched one. Though I like the ambition in it, yet, it remains a distant absurdity. Add to that a General who takes over the country and shoots a MP dead in the parliament. As the bureaucrats and the ministers fall in line, he heads to the Integrated Defence headquarters where a team compromising of the DRDO chief, Air Force chief, Defence secretary, Cabinet secretary, Navy chief and others are confronted with the real threat: how best to stop an incoming missile set off by the Pakistani jehadis and their Naxalite partners from Port Blair. The target at first appears to be New Delhi, but recalculations suggest Amritsar, and it finally explodes in Lahore.
The characters are layered, with a lot of background information sewed into the narrative as soon as they are introduced. Sometimes, the back-story gained more prominence, that too right at the start, and that jarred my reading. Too many characters.
Overall, an average first attempt. My rating 2.5
June 24, 2013
Sami Ahmad Khan in his early work has made quite a decent effort. The plot is well built and must admit that Khan had a really shrewd mind while setting the plot. The story is written much alike any suspense novel where the author tries to break off the suspense and take you entirely another scene running in parallel in time.
It is disappointing as the author is not able to reach to the nuance of his descriptions. Many scenes are just written to get over with. For instance where the PAF sends there first wave to attack Kashmir and are chased out in a dogfight with the IAF. Such scenes needed more description.
Most of the facts mentioned are available from bharat-rakshak, wikipedia and other leading threads. Not much efforts are noticed from the the authors side to research into the detailed functioning of equipments, operations,etc. Too many characters to give it an Indian touch seems to worsen the interest and constant mentioning of homeland organizations/institutes spoils the suspense.
Done in 2-3 sittings. Overall there is much to look forward to from the author. I just hope the next novel turns out to be as interesting as the cover page.
It is disappointing as the author is not able to reach to the nuance of his descriptions. Many scenes are just written to get over with. For instance where the PAF sends there first wave to attack Kashmir and are chased out in a dogfight with the IAF. Such scenes needed more description.
Most of the facts mentioned are available from bharat-rakshak, wikipedia and other leading threads. Not much efforts are noticed from the the authors side to research into the detailed functioning of equipments, operations,etc. Too many characters to give it an Indian touch seems to worsen the interest and constant mentioning of homeland organizations/institutes spoils the suspense.
Done in 2-3 sittings. Overall there is much to look forward to from the author. I just hope the next novel turns out to be as interesting as the cover page.
January 28, 2015
Ever thought of a Bollywood sequel to a Hollywood movie?
In case this book makes it to big screen, it would be a sequel to Kate Bigelow's Zero Dark Thirty.
It already seems like a literary sequel to the acclaimed "No Easy Day" by Mark Owen.
This military fiction is very well researched technically. However, the story seems a bit cliched and looks more like an Indian war film (minus the masala of course).
The one thing in this book that didn't seem to convincing is that - (SPOILER ALERT)
How can a terrorist play along his role so perfectly that he even has fanatic thoughts like one? I mean, just to make that character devoid of any reader suspicion? That is too far fetched for my taste.
In case this book makes it to big screen, it would be a sequel to Kate Bigelow's Zero Dark Thirty.
It already seems like a literary sequel to the acclaimed "No Easy Day" by Mark Owen.
This military fiction is very well researched technically. However, the story seems a bit cliched and looks more like an Indian war film (minus the masala of course).
The one thing in this book that didn't seem to convincing is that - (SPOILER ALERT)
How can a terrorist play along his role so perfectly that he even has fanatic thoughts like one? I mean, just to make that character devoid of any reader suspicion? That is too far fetched for my taste.
June 3, 2013
India is developing a futuristic ICB missile technology, Pralay, at a secret base in the Andaman Islands. The base is overtaken by a group of Jihadists and Naxals, who have joined forces. Their mission – “To use this missile against India”.
Full review on www.BookGeeks.in here ----> Red Jihad | Sami Ahmad Khan | Book Review
Full review on www.BookGeeks.in here ----> Red Jihad | Sami Ahmad Khan | Book Review
September 22, 2013
a good book. good detailing but lacked the character details of a main lead. i mean, the reasons due to which bashir switched sides was left out. otherwise a really good book. loved it.
Read
December 26, 2012Brilliance
January 18, 2020
All of a sudden I came across this book. I really liked the concept. Good thing of the writer is that he elaborated the jargon end of every chapter which keeps the reader engrossed in the events rather than concentrating on meanings and phrases. The language is pretty easy which is key for such kind a novel. He explained the possible nexus between the Maoist and Islamic extremist in best possible way. He did not drag it for long. He kept everything in check. Only thumb down for me is towards the end it is little boring and dull. It could have been avoided.
December 5, 2022
2 stars because it gets slightly better toward the end. The story has poor writing, poor choices and while it claims to add nuance to people's motives, it paints them in a very one-tone brush. Avoidable, must-avoid.
May 5, 2020
Not worth reading.
Absolutely ridiculous. Not even near to any possibility. Not worth reading. Forced to write review to let others not to be be fooled.
Absolutely ridiculous. Not even near to any possibility. Not worth reading. Forced to write review to let others not to be be fooled.
February 13, 2017
A Gripping thriller.
April 29, 2016
A decade ago, i watched a Bollywood movie where the villain stole a missile while hijacking a base, and planned to release it to destroy India. Reading this book gave me a deja vu of this, and explores the original plot of what if an Indian missile attacks Pakistan due to sabotage. The plot elements are nice(Naxal and Taliban nexus-hence 'Red Jihad') and the mathematical table of options is good. A great read and shows how Indian fiction writers are evolving to one day equal the best in the world
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