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This Unquiet Land: Stories from India's Fault Lines
One of the most remarkable books ever published about contemporary India, arguably the most complex society on earth, This Unquiet Land tells the truth about the country's secrets and lies, its torments and triumphs and its heroes and villains. This is the first book by Barkha Dutt, India's best known journalist. India's fault lines run wide and deep. Some of them go back centuries, others are of comparatively recent origin. The myriad villains these fault lines have spawned include rapists, murderers, terrorists, prophets of religious hatred, corrupt politicians, upholders of abhorrent caste traditions, opponents of free speech and dissent, apologists for regressive cultural practices and external adversaries who try to destabilize our borders.
All of them are responsible for impeding the country's progress, destroying the lives of numberless innocents, usually the poorest and most vulnerable of our people and besmirching the democratic, plural, free and secular nature of our society. Set against these enemies of our nation's promise are the heroic ones - the poor, illiterate woman who was gang raped but helped change the nation's attitude towards women through her determined fight for justice, the young soldier whose courage and sacrifice in the high Himalayas was an inspiration to his comrades fighting the Kargil War, the wife whose husband was beheaded by Maoist terrorists, yet sought not revenge but succour for the poor and underprivileged and the son of the village blacksmith who was lynched by a mob of religious fundamentalists appealing for an end to discord and sectarian violence.
These stories and dozens of others like them, map our country's fault lines. In this book, Barkha Dutt recounts the ones that have left an indelible mark on her. Taken together, they provide a vivid, devastating and unforgettable portrait of our unquiet land.
Features
One of the finest books ever written on contemporary India
It will make headlines in the national media and receive wide publicity in the days following its release
Barkha Dutt is India's most famous journalist and this is her first book.
All of them are responsible for impeding the country's progress, destroying the lives of numberless innocents, usually the poorest and most vulnerable of our people and besmirching the democratic, plural, free and secular nature of our society. Set against these enemies of our nation's promise are the heroic ones - the poor, illiterate woman who was gang raped but helped change the nation's attitude towards women through her determined fight for justice, the young soldier whose courage and sacrifice in the high Himalayas was an inspiration to his comrades fighting the Kargil War, the wife whose husband was beheaded by Maoist terrorists, yet sought not revenge but succour for the poor and underprivileged and the son of the village blacksmith who was lynched by a mob of religious fundamentalists appealing for an end to discord and sectarian violence.
These stories and dozens of others like them, map our country's fault lines. In this book, Barkha Dutt recounts the ones that have left an indelible mark on her. Taken together, they provide a vivid, devastating and unforgettable portrait of our unquiet land.
Features
One of the finest books ever written on contemporary India
It will make headlines in the national media and receive wide publicity in the days following its release
Barkha Dutt is India's most famous journalist and this is her first book.
336 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 1, 2015
104 people are currently reading
983 people want to read
About the author
Barkha Dutt
7 books35 followersBarkha Dutt is an Indian television journalist and columnist. She works as a consulting editor with NDTV. Dutt gained prominence for her reportage of the Kargil War. Dutt has won many national and international awards, including the Padma Shri, India's fourth highest civilian honour.
Dutt has co-authored the chapter "'Nothing new?':Women as Victims" in the book Gujarat:The making of a tragedy, edited by Siddharth Varadarajan and published by Penguin (ISBN 978-0143029014). The book is about the 2002 Gujarat riots. Barkha later wrote a book "The Uniquet Land" which was released in December 2015
Dutt has co-authored the chapter "'Nothing new?':Women as Victims" in the book Gujarat:The making of a tragedy, edited by Siddharth Varadarajan and published by Penguin (ISBN 978-0143029014). The book is about the 2002 Gujarat riots. Barkha later wrote a book "The Uniquet Land" which was released in December 2015
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April 11, 2018
On the fifteenth of August, 1947, an idea was born – the idea of a nation called India. Even though we claim mythical legitimacy to our nation, the fact is that no “India” existed prior to the British conquest, who administratively grouped together various independent kingdoms under one umbrella so that they could loot them easily. As they left, they left the seeds of disintegration within: they were partially successful in dividing the country on religious lines, and to leave Kashmir as a permanent bone of contention between India and Pakistan: but due to the iron determination of Sardar Patel who stitched the country together and the foresight of our founding fathers who created a democratic constitution to take the republic forward, our country remained as a solid unit and matured into the world’s largest democracy, even as newly independent nations all around either fell to pieces or went into the black hole of despotism and theocracy.
But that does not mean the fissures are not there. Every now and then, an incursion at the border, a bomb blast in a crowded city or an attack on one ethnic group by another remind us how tenuous our much touted “unity in diversity” is. India was born in 1947 – seventy years later, it seems to be going through a particularly troubled teenage which will decide whether it will become a well-adjusted member of the global fraternity or a psychopathic individual torn by internal strifes and contradictions.
Barkha Dutt, whose claim to fame (and notoriety!) is as the firebrand reporter of NDTV has penned this book on what she perceives to be India’s “fault lines” – our rampant patriarchy; the troubled border with Pakistan which makes war more or less a daily business; terrorist attacks; the militant Hindu right which has become vociferous of late; the perennial problem of Kashmir; our politics, caught between an apathetic and entitled liberalism and an opportunistic communalism; and the trauma of the marginalised Dalits and economic have-nots in a country leaping ahead on the wings of neoliberalism. It is written with a journalistic point of view: that is, mostly descriptive and not analytical. But Barkha’s eye for detail and the candour of her writing makes for engrossing reading.
We have here the tale of Bhanwari Devi, a village activist subjected to gang rape who refused to bow down and was instrumental in setting India’s anti-rape laws into motion for the first time; of Vikram Batra, who charged onto certain death in Kargil shouting “Yeh dil maange more!” (My heart demands more!); Girish Mehta and Tahir Wagle of Mumbai, who both lost sons – one to the Mumbai bomb blasts of 1993, the other to the 1992 - 1993 Hindu Muslim riots in the same city; and a host of people from Kashmir who have lost loved ones to terror and military action from both sides of the spectrum. These are all victims. The perpetrators are a flawed system which has not learned to manage the country and villainous politicians of all colour who fish in troubled waters.
This book is insanely quotable. I am sharing a few which really struck a chord with me:
On Terrorism
On Attacks on Minorities
On Kashmir
On Caste
Finally, she presents the contrasting pictures of two of our political leaders:
In the final chapter, Barkha gives us the picture of a sharply divided country of the ultra-rich and the piss-poor.
Yes, this is the India we don’t want to see. So we sit in our urban middle class homes, sipping chai and watching mindless TV sitcoms or the latest exploits of our well-heeled cricketing heroes or our philandering Bollywood idols. But all the time, the fault lines are getting wider and wider, threatening to tear our country apart.
Is there hope? As a parting shot, Barkha quotes Sartaj, the son of the Dadri resident Akhlaq who was lynched by cow vigilantes:
If we don’t take urgent steps to repair these fault lines, our unquiet land may well become a fractured land.
But that does not mean the fissures are not there. Every now and then, an incursion at the border, a bomb blast in a crowded city or an attack on one ethnic group by another remind us how tenuous our much touted “unity in diversity” is. India was born in 1947 – seventy years later, it seems to be going through a particularly troubled teenage which will decide whether it will become a well-adjusted member of the global fraternity or a psychopathic individual torn by internal strifes and contradictions.
Barkha Dutt, whose claim to fame (and notoriety!) is as the firebrand reporter of NDTV has penned this book on what she perceives to be India’s “fault lines” – our rampant patriarchy; the troubled border with Pakistan which makes war more or less a daily business; terrorist attacks; the militant Hindu right which has become vociferous of late; the perennial problem of Kashmir; our politics, caught between an apathetic and entitled liberalism and an opportunistic communalism; and the trauma of the marginalised Dalits and economic have-nots in a country leaping ahead on the wings of neoliberalism. It is written with a journalistic point of view: that is, mostly descriptive and not analytical. But Barkha’s eye for detail and the candour of her writing makes for engrossing reading.
We have here the tale of Bhanwari Devi, a village activist subjected to gang rape who refused to bow down and was instrumental in setting India’s anti-rape laws into motion for the first time; of Vikram Batra, who charged onto certain death in Kargil shouting “Yeh dil maange more!” (My heart demands more!); Girish Mehta and Tahir Wagle of Mumbai, who both lost sons – one to the Mumbai bomb blasts of 1993, the other to the 1992 - 1993 Hindu Muslim riots in the same city; and a host of people from Kashmir who have lost loved ones to terror and military action from both sides of the spectrum. These are all victims. The perpetrators are a flawed system which has not learned to manage the country and villainous politicians of all colour who fish in troubled waters.
This book is insanely quotable. I am sharing a few which really struck a chord with me:
“You have to deal with your nightmares, you have to deal with the memory of the sixteen hands that groped you, you have to deal with the pain and shame and loneliness that you are going through, because you can’t talk to anyone. If you tell anyone they will always say you asked for it. I don’t feel my face needs to be blurred: I think the men who did this to me should hide their faces. But what bothers me is from the time this happened to me twenty-four years ago till this moment, the attitude of our society has not changed.” – Sunitha Krishnan, rape victim
“(This might be regarded as) politically incorrect, but I would just say this much; I don’t think any soldier would want a war. It’s the developments and the situations, whatever. So basically everybody is just following orders… We kill because of our profession and not by choice, right? If we kill someone, one of ours will also die. So, it’s part of a job. Take it or leave it... “
“I walked away loving the mountains. Mountains don’t see the difference in colour, caste, creed, no Pakistan, no India. They judge everybody the same way. They are pure. It’s we human beings who mess things up.” – Captain Vishal Thapa
On Terrorism
India—the land of Buddha, Mahavir, Ashoka and Gandhi—imagines itself to be a civilization rooted in non-violence. But the fact that these great apostles of peace belong to India only accentuates the terror that has blighted this land for centuries. Unfortunately, the history, geography, composition and reality of Indian society make terrorist violence almost inevitable. This would be true of any society with similar characteristics—a hugely diverse population that is riven with divisions and inequities. And it is our misfortune that we have rarely been blessed with a strong, non-partisan, non-sectarian leadership that can keep turbulence in check.
---
Every time terror returned to haunt us we tried to seek cover behind that terrible cliché called ‘resilience’. Or in Mumbai’s case, its fabled stoicism. When people turned up at work the morning after a terror strike, we pretended that our collective spirit had stared down the barrel of a gun and had not blinked. But truthfully, life carried on because of a strange combination of compulsion and fatalism. For most, their economic condition mandated what they needed to do; others counted on the law of probability and hoped that it was something that happened to other people. Many of us had grown to be strangely fatalistic about terrorism, a consequence of living in a country that was extraordinarily vulnerable to terror attacks.
On Attacks on Minorities
In that year began the tragic bookending of the Indian debate on secularism with two unspeakable pogroms. From that time onwards the 1984 riots in Delhi that took place on Rajiv Gandhi’s watch and the 2002 Gujarat riots that took place on Narendra Modi’s watch would be used to checkmate one another in what might be called the chessboard of competitive communalism. And secularism, the foundation of the republic, fashioned out of our astonishingly diverse society, would find itself challenged again.
---
In March 2015, sixteen accused policemen were acquitted of their involvement in the Hashimpura massacre, making minorities even more cynical about the promises of justice from secular parties. The case dated back to 1987 when riots had erupted in Meerut. Men from UP’s Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) dragged out young Muslim men, most of them poor daily wagers and weavers, drove them to the Upper Ganga Canal in Ghaziabad instead of to the police station, and threw them in one by one. V. N. Rai, who was superintendent of police in Ghaziabad, wrote a chilling account of how the police—who described Meerut as a ‘mini Pakistan’ and held the Muslims solely responsible for the violence—had behaved. ‘Every survivor who hit the ground after being shot at tried hard to pretend he is dead and most hanged on the canal’s embankments with their heads in water and the body clutched by weeds to show to their killers that they were dead and no more gunshots fired at them. Even after the PAC personnel had left, they lay still between water, blood and slush. They were too scared and numbed even to help those who were still alive or half dead.
On Kashmir
The intricate reality of the state means that there are many simultaneous and seemingly contradictory truths; the inbuilt volatility of the situation creates pressure to take sides and be boxed in by simplistic labels of for and against. If you feel empathy with or admiration for the men in uniform who have over the years battled both venom and violence, dubbed ‘occupiers’ by separatists in a conflict that was not of their making, you are instantly called a jingoist and a status-quoist. If you speak honestly about the emotional alienation in the Kashmir Valley or condemn any violent subversion of the law or extra-judicial killings you are classified as treacherous and anti-national. It was rare to have both labels foisted on the same person—that privilege was mine.
---
In 1990, when the insurgency first erupted, only 1,762 people were diagnosed with mental disorders. After a decade of inexorable violence, those numbers shot up to 38,696. Behind these figures was the fatigue, mental and emotional, of a people both battered and bruised. This was their private hell, one that remained invisible to the cameras and the public gaze, this was the loneliness that came with the feeling that you were losing your mind.
On Caste
When I filed my stories on the ‘Children of the Tsunami’ I had thought there was no special eloquence needed to convey such visceral sadness and loss. Children dead in their thousands in one of the worst natural disasters the country had experienced—this was a story that told itself. But that night, after the telecast, I got a call from a friend who said, ‘Do we really have to watch this depressing stuff on television right now?’—as if life’s grim reality was an optional item on a movie menu in a hotel room and you could pick out only the cheery stuff to view. In several of my reports I actually began editorializing more than ever before, appealing directly to those vacationing in happier, sunnier spots to pause and at least think about these children. The callousness of the well-heeled was eye-opening. To be reminded that for a section of Indian society the deaths of the children of poor fisherfolk mattered not at all was both disconcerting and disturbing.
---
It was sobering to think that the enormous power of the earthquake and the tsunami it had generated had managed to kill 230,000 people in fourteen countries but had still been unable to break down the wall that separated India’s Dalits from their countrymen.
Finally, she presents the contrasting pictures of two of our political leaders:
In the notoriously fickle drawing rooms of Delhi, I had often heard Rahul being described as not-too-bright (in far less charitable terms). But the few times I had spoken with him I had thought otherwise. He was well read, respectful of academic expertise, and keen to meet specialists to mine their minds. His problem was not that he had read too few books—it was that he had a clinical, statistical approach to a profession that was often about instinct and human connections. He was like a man looking for the exactitudes of mathematics in the mysteries of poetry.
---
I have always felt, in the many years that I have observed him, that Modi’s ambitions are personal not ideological. His political career may have had Hindutva roots, but it was clear to me that if he needed to abandon these in the pursuit of a political legacy, he wouldn’t think twice. Given Modi’s amplified sense of self and his well-earned satisfaction at having reached where he has, it would not be an exaggeration to say that what guided him was probably the desire to go down in history as one of the greatest and longest serving prime ministers the country had ever had. But this could hardly be possible if his government remained mired in sectarian and divisive controversies. Why was Modi not reining in right-wing extremists in a visible way? Was he reining them in at all? It was hard to explain how a government that was voted in at least partially on the strength of its effective messaging and communication had lost control over the development narrative so soon. Was it incompetence, ideological confusion or simply a mild contempt for a liberal media that the BJP had in any case always seen as biased?
In the final chapter, Barkha gives us the picture of a sharply divided country of the ultra-rich and the piss-poor.
One-third of the world’s poorest 1.2 billion people live in India where 1.4 million children die before their fifth birthday—making this the highest percentage in the world. Despite a reduction in the official poverty figures and an improvement in various human development indices, one in four children is still malnourished and 3,000 children die every day from poverty. This is the India that we would prefer not to see, the India that inconveniently comes in the way of slogans and news headlines of India Shining, India galloping forward, India being welcomed to exclusive clubs of the world’s rich and powerful nations.
Yes, this is the India we don’t want to see. So we sit in our urban middle class homes, sipping chai and watching mindless TV sitcoms or the latest exploits of our well-heeled cricketing heroes or our philandering Bollywood idols. But all the time, the fault lines are getting wider and wider, threatening to tear our country apart.
Is there hope? As a parting shot, Barkha quotes Sartaj, the son of the Dadri resident Akhlaq who was lynched by cow vigilantes:
We could all learn from the dignified but strong way in which Sartaj summed up his feelings about Dadri. His words contained within them both the tragedy and the promise of our country’s future. ‘I just want to say a small thing and make a plea. We have all read the song, we all know the words,’ he told me. ‘Saare jahan se accha, Hindustan hamara, mazhab nahin sikhata, aapas mein bair rakhna... If we could just follow the sentiments expressed in this song, we will be fine as a country.’ The words were heartbreaking for the sheer generosity of spirit they displayed. They showed perhaps the only way in which the fault lines of this unquiet land can be mended.
If we don’t take urgent steps to repair these fault lines, our unquiet land may well become a fractured land.
December 17, 2015
This is the most pathetic book i have ever read. Please dont buy it. Completely doctored and manipulated as per the author's whims and fantasies
December 20, 2015
Obviously, no book is as bad as the trolls want you to believe it is. And very few books are as good as their promoters would like you to believe. The same goes for this book.
To anyone who closely follows the news, and has been doing so for the last couple of decades, this book isn't anything new. However, it has been (mistakenly) pilloried by some right-wing idiots thinking it is anti-government.
Surely, that's not true. If anything, the book is anti-establishment. Barkha hasn't done any favours to the erstwhile UPA government or any disfavours to the current regime. However, I'd have appreciated if she had made some attempt to clarify her stand on her alleged responsibility in causing Indian soldiers to die in the Kargil war.
In addition, there wasn't much of a mention of the Radia tapes.
Overall, the book could've been half its size and it felt bloated largely due to the fact that is written in the style that Barkha talks in - overly dramatic and somewhat rhetorical.
However, as a progressive Indian, I agree with her identification of 'fault lines' and also hold the view that we can't go too far as a nation till we address these.
To anyone who closely follows the news, and has been doing so for the last couple of decades, this book isn't anything new. However, it has been (mistakenly) pilloried by some right-wing idiots thinking it is anti-government.
Surely, that's not true. If anything, the book is anti-establishment. Barkha hasn't done any favours to the erstwhile UPA government or any disfavours to the current regime. However, I'd have appreciated if she had made some attempt to clarify her stand on her alleged responsibility in causing Indian soldiers to die in the Kargil war.
In addition, there wasn't much of a mention of the Radia tapes.
Overall, the book could've been half its size and it felt bloated largely due to the fact that is written in the style that Barkha talks in - overly dramatic and somewhat rhetorical.
However, as a progressive Indian, I agree with her identification of 'fault lines' and also hold the view that we can't go too far as a nation till we address these.
December 31, 2015
Barkha Dutt is one of India's finest journalists. She makes her debut as a writer with 'This Unquiet Land' where she recounts several stories that map India's fault lines which go back to centuries. From corrupt politicians to rapists and murderers to prophets of communal hatred - These are the villains in India's fault lines.
Barkha identifies Caste, Communalism, Patriarchy and Terrorism as India's fault lines.
She chronicles her experience as a woman growing up in India and talks in detail about the status of women in the country, the patriarchy that has chained our society and the rapes that shook India. In a deeply moving and brave personal account, she also talks about her brush with sexual abuse in childhood. I was particularly moved by the story of Bhanwari Devi and more than feeling angry I felt sad that even after decades she is waiting for justice.
She moves on talk about the Kargil war with Pakistan and her experience of reporting it right from the ground zero. She also talks in detail about what Barkha calls her obsession - Kashmir. In a very balanced and neutral account; she shares stories from both sides. She laments about the deaths of our jawans at the hands of militants but at the same time she doesn't shove the human rights violations by the Indian Army under the carpet of nationalism. She expresses disappointment with the Indian state's failure to mend bridges with the valley through compassion but at the same time criticizes the average Kashmiri's sympathy towards militants.
Barkha writes about global terrorism and how India has been affected by the same. She mentions the various attacks and her experience of covering the them. I was particularly moved by her account of blasts in Gujarat where most of the victims were children and women. Barkha also writes about the negligence of the Indian police when they arrested innocent Muslims only to release them later.
Last but not the least, Barkha writes about her coverage of Tsunami and her trip to a village in Rajasthan and this is where she 'Shows mirror to the society'. Barkha passionately writes that even in a situation like Tsunami there were deep fault lines which divided people on the basis of caste. She mentions how bodies of children lied rotting in the sea because no one would touch them as they were kids born with the stigma of 'low caste'.
If I have to pick one fault line that moved me deeply would be this one. As I sit on my cushioned sofa and write this there is a village in Rajasthan where people still eat grass and leaves because they cannot afford even a simple meal.
One of the best things about the book is that it doesn't take any sides. It is not pro or anti anyone and maintains a neutral undertone. Barkha makes a great debut as a writer and her crisp writing makes it a riveting read. Don't miss this one!
Barkha identifies Caste, Communalism, Patriarchy and Terrorism as India's fault lines.
She chronicles her experience as a woman growing up in India and talks in detail about the status of women in the country, the patriarchy that has chained our society and the rapes that shook India. In a deeply moving and brave personal account, she also talks about her brush with sexual abuse in childhood. I was particularly moved by the story of Bhanwari Devi and more than feeling angry I felt sad that even after decades she is waiting for justice.
She moves on talk about the Kargil war with Pakistan and her experience of reporting it right from the ground zero. She also talks in detail about what Barkha calls her obsession - Kashmir. In a very balanced and neutral account; she shares stories from both sides. She laments about the deaths of our jawans at the hands of militants but at the same time she doesn't shove the human rights violations by the Indian Army under the carpet of nationalism. She expresses disappointment with the Indian state's failure to mend bridges with the valley through compassion but at the same time criticizes the average Kashmiri's sympathy towards militants.
Barkha writes about global terrorism and how India has been affected by the same. She mentions the various attacks and her experience of covering the them. I was particularly moved by her account of blasts in Gujarat where most of the victims were children and women. Barkha also writes about the negligence of the Indian police when they arrested innocent Muslims only to release them later.
Last but not the least, Barkha writes about her coverage of Tsunami and her trip to a village in Rajasthan and this is where she 'Shows mirror to the society'. Barkha passionately writes that even in a situation like Tsunami there were deep fault lines which divided people on the basis of caste. She mentions how bodies of children lied rotting in the sea because no one would touch them as they were kids born with the stigma of 'low caste'.
If I have to pick one fault line that moved me deeply would be this one. As I sit on my cushioned sofa and write this there is a village in Rajasthan where people still eat grass and leaves because they cannot afford even a simple meal.
One of the best things about the book is that it doesn't take any sides. It is not pro or anti anyone and maintains a neutral undertone. Barkha makes a great debut as a writer and her crisp writing makes it a riveting read. Don't miss this one!
November 12, 2016
I don't know who that 'left-wing' intellectual stands on the top of the review list and justifying Barkha's anti-establishment stand. For the left-wing minds in jeopardy, when people in India go anti-establishment, they rush to justify those. However, when someone in the USA wins the elections and becomes president, they abhor him!
This book is as bad as you would want any fool's paradise to be! Just pathetic peddling of lies against one person, one party and one nation. She can do nothing but everything that breaks our nation. Avoid this toxic for the best!
This book is as bad as you would want any fool's paradise to be! Just pathetic peddling of lies against one person, one party and one nation. She can do nothing but everything that breaks our nation. Avoid this toxic for the best!
April 21, 2016
I picked up this book to ascertain if Barkha is "restrained" or "influenced" by "bias policies" of NDTV. However, it turned out to be same rants that we have all witnessed on NDTV. Nothing new here. Her knowledge about "This Land" is limited to Kargil war, Gujarat (only during the rioting period of 2002, neither before nor after), her POV of Kashmir problem. Repeated rants about Dadri, Beef ban, etc.. If you think you know her perspective from NDTV, don't waste your time & money here
April 15, 2016
how can worst news editor and anti-national write a good book?
December 18, 2015
I think book is a revenge act by self assumed TV diva to kill print business of publisher and bring them to her biased TV shows. Nowadays every tom-dick-harry with no talent of writing a beautiful paragraph, can write a book, then contact a publisher(or force them to publish due to "contacts" of writer) and unleash this mess on an unsuspecting world. Many good people wonder why no one reads anymore. Why should they? If this is the kind of stuff they're being subjected to.
This book is nothing but bedroom gossip without any substance or proof. Whole indian TV journalism runs on "sources" so this book also rely on sources to run its fictional plot. It seems that Indian journalists now takes book writing as post retirement pension scheme (as TV business is on death-bed due to social media) or may be a trick to convert black money accumulated via wheeling and dealing (remember radia tapes?) into white money. Publishing a s***ty book doesn't make you an author any more than singing in the shower makes you a rock-star or squeezing your pimple makes you a dermatologist.
Barkha should have hit the reset button on the ghost writer she selected to write this book. It is very poorly written. I admit to skipping ahead in the book from time to time due to the tediousness of the writing and the fact that after reading part of the book, other chapters are very predictable specially if you have watched her TV show even once in your life time. Read a few sentences, see what it is about and then you can guess what the ghost writer is going to write next.
This book should be placed in solitary confinement for lifetime of the author + 60 years. This is to save both time and trees used in printing of this book. Do not even dare buy this book even from a 2nd hand bookstore. Attempting to read this book is worse than watching the grass grow. At least the grass will become something you enjoy. Believe me, do not waste your money.
This book is nothing but bedroom gossip without any substance or proof. Whole indian TV journalism runs on "sources" so this book also rely on sources to run its fictional plot. It seems that Indian journalists now takes book writing as post retirement pension scheme (as TV business is on death-bed due to social media) or may be a trick to convert black money accumulated via wheeling and dealing (remember radia tapes?) into white money. Publishing a s***ty book doesn't make you an author any more than singing in the shower makes you a rock-star or squeezing your pimple makes you a dermatologist.
Barkha should have hit the reset button on the ghost writer she selected to write this book. It is very poorly written. I admit to skipping ahead in the book from time to time due to the tediousness of the writing and the fact that after reading part of the book, other chapters are very predictable specially if you have watched her TV show even once in your life time. Read a few sentences, see what it is about and then you can guess what the ghost writer is going to write next.
This book should be placed in solitary confinement for lifetime of the author + 60 years. This is to save both time and trees used in printing of this book. Do not even dare buy this book even from a 2nd hand bookstore. Attempting to read this book is worse than watching the grass grow. At least the grass will become something you enjoy. Believe me, do not waste your money.
August 18, 2018
I don't know enough about India to understand all the hate this book has gotten. I found it informative and useful for a quick background understanding of key issues in India such as misogyny, sexual violence against women, terrorism, Hindu nationalism, politics and Kashmir.
October 10, 2016
Straight from the heart of the author. The passion, the aggression and unabashed articulation of thoughts are hallmarks of this book. These facets of the book make it a very interesting read. However, these very facets take away the objectivity that should be the hallmark of such books. Barkha Dutt could have easily chosen some other forum to settle personal issues. She could have also refrained from providing explanations to the personal attacks she faced in her career. Just leave these aspects and and book provides one of the most incisive analyses of the contemporary political and social events in the country, whether one agrees or disagrees with what is written.
March 5, 2019
Admiring ones own halo can be quite a pain in the neck. I got as far as the first chapter which is a typical narrative of the out of whack third wave feminist agenda practiced by elitist incompetent women as a placeholder, after which i gave up.
One might argue my position having not read the entire book, but then again you don't need to eat the whole egg to know its bad.
One might argue my position having not read the entire book, but then again you don't need to eat the whole egg to know its bad.
December 21, 2015
Was totally Anti Barkha dut, But an interview of her , compelled me to pick this book up. It is the best of any previous article written by hersofar. Excellent coverage of Kargil and The description Of Traumas makes us part of the bearer.
Definitely A GOOD READ !!!!
Definitely A GOOD READ !!!!
December 30, 2015
This book brings home the hideous realities of all things wrong with India. It is a rude awakening to all of us who have grown blissfully ignorant of the real problems plaguing our nation. While reading the book, one cannot help but feel deeply anguished about the state of the affairs in India. (I don't know how long this feeling of angst will linger in my own mind before I recede into my carefully constructed bubble of dollar dreams.)
The issues of Sexism, Casteism, Classism, Communalism and Terrorism in India are portrayed in the form of snippets from Barkha's career in journalism. All through the book she remained equally critical of both the Congress and the BJP, while rendering an honest depiction of India's faultlines.
She did not give as much space in her book to analyze these problems as she had given to describe them. Strangely, Corruption, the most notorious and well discussed aspect of contemporary India, is left untouched in the book.
At the risk of sounding preachy, I advise all Indian expatriates to read this book so that they can find compelling reasons to abandon India permanently and settle down in some first world country. (Pun intended.)
The issues of Sexism, Casteism, Classism, Communalism and Terrorism in India are portrayed in the form of snippets from Barkha's career in journalism. All through the book she remained equally critical of both the Congress and the BJP, while rendering an honest depiction of India's faultlines.
She did not give as much space in her book to analyze these problems as she had given to describe them. Strangely, Corruption, the most notorious and well discussed aspect of contemporary India, is left untouched in the book.
At the risk of sounding preachy, I advise all Indian expatriates to read this book so that they can find compelling reasons to abandon India permanently and settle down in some first world country. (Pun intended.)
March 13, 2018
A powerful account of India's various 'fault lines' written from the vantage point of a television reporter at the forefront of it all. Dutt doesn't soften the descriptions of death and devastation that she has seen and creates some very haunting imagery with her writing.
Special mention for the chapters on the condition of women, the Kargil war and the terror attacks on India.
Special mention for the chapters on the condition of women, the Kargil war and the terror attacks on India.
July 21, 2016
4.5 stars!
This Unquiet Land is neither a critical reading of events that have shaped India at the turn of this century, nor is it purely Barkha Dutt's memoir highlighting important issues that she has reported upon.
For me, this book had just the right balance of narratives of personal experience and the chronicalling of issues that have had grave social, religious and hence political importance in contemporary India (including but not limited to The Kashmir issue, Kargil War, Nirbhaya rape case, rise of Kejriwal and Modi, 26/11 Mumbai attacks and the Gujarat Riots).
I was impressed not just by the sheer range of issues that Dutt covers, but also by her acknowledgement of the complexities that muddle most of these issues and hence give rise to a polarizing audience. She also doesn't shirk from accepting the fact that Capitalist funded media houses more often than not, are biased and they pander to the whims of the consumers who have a dangerously short attention span.
Plus points also for the anecdotes that litter the book (for eg: Mehbooba Mufti cheekily comparing Omar Abdullah to a piece of cake fit to be eaten) and (my personal favourite) the humanizing stories of soldiers serving in Kargil.
This Unquiet Land is neither a critical reading of events that have shaped India at the turn of this century, nor is it purely Barkha Dutt's memoir highlighting important issues that she has reported upon.
For me, this book had just the right balance of narratives of personal experience and the chronicalling of issues that have had grave social, religious and hence political importance in contemporary India (including but not limited to The Kashmir issue, Kargil War, Nirbhaya rape case, rise of Kejriwal and Modi, 26/11 Mumbai attacks and the Gujarat Riots).
I was impressed not just by the sheer range of issues that Dutt covers, but also by her acknowledgement of the complexities that muddle most of these issues and hence give rise to a polarizing audience. She also doesn't shirk from accepting the fact that Capitalist funded media houses more often than not, are biased and they pander to the whims of the consumers who have a dangerously short attention span.
Plus points also for the anecdotes that litter the book (for eg: Mehbooba Mufti cheekily comparing Omar Abdullah to a piece of cake fit to be eaten) and (my personal favourite) the humanizing stories of soldiers serving in Kargil.
February 13, 2017
This Unquiet Land is a book that stands out among all the other books I have read and reviewed on my blog, numbering more than a 120 at least. This is also a book that sets a narrative of India that is at complete variance to the one which the people of India would like to read which is that of a vibrant and fast growing India, an India that is on the road to its desired goals of Economic Growth and the promise of a future pregnant with positive developments and fast rapid emancipation of problems.
This is a book that looks at the dark side, the unsavoury stories and realities of India, a side that we would much rather ignore, or a side that we would much rather leave to our fervent hope that things will get better. This is a side of India that is best represented by “out of sight, out of mind”; a side dealt with looking the other way. This book is a book that is deep and dark in its narrative and tome – yet not depressing which is quite an achievement for the author, who has successfully taken on many a dark side of India.
Catch the entire review here : https://reflectionsvvk.blogspot.in/20...
This is a book that looks at the dark side, the unsavoury stories and realities of India, a side that we would much rather ignore, or a side that we would much rather leave to our fervent hope that things will get better. This is a side of India that is best represented by “out of sight, out of mind”; a side dealt with looking the other way. This book is a book that is deep and dark in its narrative and tome – yet not depressing which is quite an achievement for the author, who has successfully taken on many a dark side of India.
Catch the entire review here : https://reflectionsvvk.blogspot.in/20...
January 18, 2016
The book has a fascinating personal account by "the face" of Indian TV (english) news. Some of the chapters make a fascinating read, especially the ones on Kargil, Kashmir and crimes on women. There are other topics which are dealt with in a roughshod manner including the role of media in Mumbai attacks or the role of the corporate/political influence in media.
July 30, 2016
Certainly not a book to be recommended but, anyone in Pakistan, wants to know the other side of story about Kashmir, Kargil & diplomacy must read it!
After reading this book, the decision of creating Pakistan seems wiser, as the class war going on in India is unbelievably shocking in this century!
After reading this book, the decision of creating Pakistan seems wiser, as the class war going on in India is unbelievably shocking in this century!
January 7, 2016
An abridged and concise reading on the recent political history of India. Well narrated and a easy to read book. There is nothing "political" I could sense in the whole book. Surprised why a few "readers" are down rating the books - may be they didn't read it at all.
March 15, 2016
Barkha has been a trailblazer in many ways. She not only redefined the way most viewed journalism in India but also how women journalists were viewed in India. Love her or hate her, there is no denying that she is one of the most eminent journalists of our times who has first hand covered majored events that left an indelible mark on the psyche of our nation.
This book is a chronicle of those times. If like me you have followed news quite diligently then there are going to be passages which will be boring for you. But I am of the opinion that most people are not so anal about keeping up with the news and thus for them, this book will be an insight into the current political landscape and the backstories that are attached to them.
Worth a read? Most definitely. It presents India as it is, no rose coloured views involved.
This book is a chronicle of those times. If like me you have followed news quite diligently then there are going to be passages which will be boring for you. But I am of the opinion that most people are not so anal about keeping up with the news and thus for them, this book will be an insight into the current political landscape and the backstories that are attached to them.
Worth a read? Most definitely. It presents India as it is, no rose coloured views involved.
August 5, 2016
Gutsy, unassuming and down to earth Barkha Dutt's face is familiar to us. She has written about some of the 7 key issues/areas/fault-lines of India namely Women, War, Terror, Riots, Kashmir, Dynasty and Society. Important factor to note is that this is not a bookish, theoretical research based book. It is from the direct on the scene experience based on her assignments as a journalist. It has the quality of being authentic and being insightful. She also seems to be well read, mature and seasoned by now.
It is an important book to educate us on the India's perennial problems. I have finished the first four chapters and currently reading 5th chapter about Kashmir. Kashmir is especially covered in great detail due to her 20+ years of reporting experience on Kashmir...
More to be cntd.
It is an important book to educate us on the India's perennial problems. I have finished the first four chapters and currently reading 5th chapter about Kashmir. Kashmir is especially covered in great detail due to her 20+ years of reporting experience on Kashmir...
More to be cntd.
April 8, 2016
This is more of a reporter's diary than a autobiography, although the author does throw in vignettes of her childhood and personal lives here and there. Beginning from her early reporting days and ending with the Dadri lynching episode, the author has tried to give her assessment of what happens to be India's fault lines and how they are shaping up the current and future India. Definitely worth a read if you are interested in India.
May 21, 2016
Barkha Dutt is the face of modern journalism that made it's explosive debut (as I believe) when she fearlessly reported from Kargil. It takes gumption to tell dark stories of yourself. But conviction and fearlessness have been Barkha's trademarks. Although we know more than enough of the events she talks of, her own views lend a fresh perspective. She also tries to clear the air of some of the controversies that have dogged her. Convincing, articulate, a must read.
June 29, 2016
This Unquiet Land is a terrifying portrait of 21st century India. It does not make for peaceful bedtime reading, but it does provoke a debate about what the future of journalism might be in India. The book’s not a memoir, but rather a look at India through Dutt’s eyes and experiences, investigating some of the fault lines that have consumed India over four decades: gender, class, caste, religion and terrorism.
April 24, 2020
Shallow. Very few revelations, narcissistic. You can read it in one go. Other than a few interesting anecdotes, pretty boring. Read it a while back, don't even understand what all the noise from the right wing was about when it released. The book is hardly critical, has very little public interest, is too generic and self indulgent
February 14, 2016
Part history,part reporter's diary and part personal musings,Barkha's book is a good read on contemporary India's faultlines. The best parts of the book are her judgements on Narendra Modi and coverage of the Dadri affair.
December 25, 2015
Just an average read. I'm a regular follower of Barkha's shows on NDTV and haven't learn anything new from this book. Wouldn't recommend buying it...
May 16, 2017
It's a heavy heavy read.
December 5, 2016
Enlightening!
Are these stories from India's fault lines or stories created out of Indian journalism's fault lunes!? Its an interesting read!
Are these stories from India's fault lines or stories created out of Indian journalism's fault lunes!? Its an interesting read!
February 24, 2018
I had this book on my to-read for quite some time.
Barkha Dutt, for me, has been synonymous with TV news broadcast since as long as I remember. Although I have not seen TV news for quite some time now (10 years maybe?), I would never forget her coverage of Kargil war in 1999.
This book is essentially a memoir of her experience of covering news of India, a lens she views through her own experience of feminism and later expands to humanism too.
She focuses on the faultlines. The castist, communal, political war, gender etc. Intertwining the events of the time with the larger social issues that we have faced, she raises pertinent questions that we as a society should answer.
Her coverage of Kashmir through these decades has given her a first-hand experience of understanding the issues in the valley. Complexities of Kashmir cannot be only viewed it through India Pakistan territorial complex. The passage on half-widows of Kashmir is heartbreaking. The commonplace experience of the youth to turn militants and then come back to the fold of 'normalcy', however difficult the reality of it is, is very difficult to understand from so far. The anti-national branding of Kashmiris does not help the cause of the people when they have little idea of what being Indian actually is.
Her version of Kashmiri life reinforced my observations of everyday Indian's sentiments, that we majorly view the state as a contention point with Pakistan, and thus our territorial claim on it, and not with any effort to understand the hardships and pain of living the life there. We are quick to brand Kashmiri Muslims as the current political favourite label of calling 'anti-national'. The Indian state policy interventions have been a part of the problem festering there, and not necessarily as a solution.
One should read Barkha's version of India, who happens to be one of the few sane voices in Indian newsroom. The hardline right-wing Twitter users abuse and call her as anti-national, which should give her more power to stand firm on her liberal ground.
A definitive read for any Indian who wants to understand India's faultlines through a journalist's view.
Barkha Dutt, for me, has been synonymous with TV news broadcast since as long as I remember. Although I have not seen TV news for quite some time now (10 years maybe?), I would never forget her coverage of Kargil war in 1999.
This book is essentially a memoir of her experience of covering news of India, a lens she views through her own experience of feminism and later expands to humanism too.
She focuses on the faultlines. The castist, communal, political war, gender etc. Intertwining the events of the time with the larger social issues that we have faced, she raises pertinent questions that we as a society should answer.
Her coverage of Kashmir through these decades has given her a first-hand experience of understanding the issues in the valley. Complexities of Kashmir cannot be only viewed it through India Pakistan territorial complex. The passage on half-widows of Kashmir is heartbreaking. The commonplace experience of the youth to turn militants and then come back to the fold of 'normalcy', however difficult the reality of it is, is very difficult to understand from so far. The anti-national branding of Kashmiris does not help the cause of the people when they have little idea of what being Indian actually is.
Her version of Kashmiri life reinforced my observations of everyday Indian's sentiments, that we majorly view the state as a contention point with Pakistan, and thus our territorial claim on it, and not with any effort to understand the hardships and pain of living the life there. We are quick to brand Kashmiri Muslims as the current political favourite label of calling 'anti-national'. The Indian state policy interventions have been a part of the problem festering there, and not necessarily as a solution.
One should read Barkha's version of India, who happens to be one of the few sane voices in Indian newsroom. The hardline right-wing Twitter users abuse and call her as anti-national, which should give her more power to stand firm on her liberal ground.
A definitive read for any Indian who wants to understand India's faultlines through a journalist's view.
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