Haar Nahi Manoonga: Ek Atal Jeevan Gatha

by Vijai Trivedi

Definitive biography of India's most favourite statesmen and leaderThere is rarely a moment in history where all political parties give their consent to something without any debate or controversy. There is often some amount of unspoken opposition even in unanimity. But when the ruling NDA government decided to confer the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honour, on India's ex-PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee, not a single party raised a voice of dissent. They all unanimously welcomed the decision to honour one of the greatest political leaders of the country who also served the nation thrice as a Prime first for thirteen days, then for thirteen months followed by a five-year term, the first PM outside Congress to have achieved that feat.What is so special about Atal Bihari Vajpayee's persona that makes him so popular across parties and ideologies? Was he really 'the right man in the wrong party'? This biography decodes the statesman, political stalwart, the journalist and the poet who is considered to be one of the most successful prime ministers India's ever had.

356 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 10, 2016

Reviews

[Neelesh Tiwari · Rating 4 out of 5]

अटल नाम ही अपने आप में भारत की राजनीति का एक ऐसा ग्रंथ है जिसे हर व्यक्ति सम्मान और प्रेम की नजर से देखता है चाहे वह कितना ही धुर विरोधी हो,विजय जी ने हार नहीं मानूंगा में अटल यात्रा को बहुत ही दिलचस्प तरीक़े से लिखा है पढते वक्त ऐसा लगता है बस ये यात्रा चलती रहे आंगे क्या होने वाला है इस उत्साह के साथ,इसमें अंदर की बहुत सी कहानियां बाहर आती हैं जो हमें नहीं मालूम मुझे व्यक्तिगत तौर पर यह किताब पूरी होने के बाद अधूरी सी लगी शायद इसका कारण अटल जी से लगाव है,और ज्यादा उनको जानने की लालसा फिर भी यह किताब हर व्यक्ति को पढना चाहिए ताकि वह जान सके हमारा नेता कैसा हो ताकि देश मे रजनीति मे सुधार हो,

[Rahul Sharma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Atal Bihari Vajpayee is one of India's most loved Prime Ministers. Even political adversaries across parties have only respect and appreciation for him. Vijai Trivedi's book 'Haar Nahin Manunga' is a brilliant take on the life of Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Vijai has covered the man closely and he has been a part of all the important moments in his personal and political life.

From his birth to his induction in RSS, from becoming a PM to Kargil and Nuclear Tests and the 2004 defeat; Vijai covers all the major milestones in ABV's life and shares anecdotes and incidents which we haven't really heard usually. The book is in Hindi which makes it even more special because what better language to read in when it comes to the former PM who was an amazing Hindi poet. Vijai also shares some of PM's beautiful poems which work as icing on the cake. Vijai though an admirer of PM doesn't shy away from criticism and in a very balanced manner, shares traits of his personality which might not be entirely positive.

My only issue with the book was that there is no chronological order & some incidents were repeated. At one point we are in the year 1977 discussing his UN speech and immediately in the next paragraph we move to 2000. An incident with Pope for example came in middle of nowhere. Wish this was a bit sorted.

Otherwise, the book is a great read and I would have given 5 stars had it not been for the chronology. The respect for Atal Ji only increases manifold after reading it.

[Chandan · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best book written on such a personality which discusses all spheres of Atalji life. This was my first biography book which I have completed reading on Vajpayee jee. In this book, you'll find how Vajpayee jee started his political and social career and what role RSS, Jan Sangh, and BJP played in his life and how Vajpayee impacted all this organization. This book has discussed his reign in a good way and talked how the first Non-congress government which completed his term and that changed the entire political strategy of contemporary India. This book has also talked about his thoughts which were totally different from RSS ideology as Sangh Pracharak like his views on eating beef, brahmacharya and having alcohol. The best thing which I liked about this book is that this book not only discusses positive side of this personality but also focuses on the negative aspect of his life which we hardly found in any book. This book has discussed how the RSS has impacted the cabinet decision several times and how Vajpayee was being ignored from RSS and Advani was becoming a favourite of Sangh. Will suggest reading to those who is interested in knowing Vajpayee jee personal and contemporary situation of his reign.

[Ajay Vishwakarma · Rating 5 out of 5]

awesome

[Rajat Jain · Rating 5 out of 5]

Atal Bihari Vajpayee is one of my favourite politicians, and I'm glad to have laid hands to this book describing his life. There are many reasons I loved this book.

1. It is in Hindi. For one of the great Hindi poets of the last 100 years, his biography is meant to be written in his language of art.

2. The book is not a hagiography. It highlights the highs and lows of Vajpayee, his strengths and weakness, his political triumphs and his lowest points as a politician. This covers his decision making skills, where as others where his lack of decision making led to disasters.

Highly recommended book for anyone who wants to know about BJP's finest politician.

[Rahul Dangi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Difficult to write new things about an open book Atal ji but Vijay wrote with research and objectivity showcasing Atalji as human and not god. Must read for all Atal fans