Fractured Freedom: A Prison Memoir
AuthorKobad Ghandy
CountryIndia
LanguageEnglish
PublisherRoli Books
Publication date
16 March 2021
Media typeHardcover
Pages316
ISBN978-8194969167

Fractured Freedom: A Prison Memoir is a memoir by Kobad Ghandy. The book mainly concerns his imprisonment of over a decade following accusations of being a politburo of the Communist Party of India. The book is divided into three parts: Motivation and Drive Behind Action; a Decade in India's Prisons, and Contemplation and Consideration of Justification. The book was published on 16 March 2021 in English by Roli Books.[1][2] A Marathi translation was released soon after.

Critical reception

English Edition

Kobad Ghandy's memoir was met with critical acclaim. Mahmood Farooqui of the Hindustan Times wrote:

"The importance of this memoir and of being Kobad lies in shedding privilege, in adopting poverty and struggle, in choosing the right life, in suffering wrongs for it, and yet remaining steadfast. Fractured Freedom is a moral lesson for modern India, which both the Left and the Right would do well to heed".[3]

Asim Ali of The Telegraph wrote:

"This is a sincere and lucid book, mercifully free of intellectual jargon or literary pretensions. It is also deeply moving at times, particularly when Ghandy writes about his wife. Whatever one makes of Ghandy's ideas, there are some important insights to be gleaned from his dramatic life".[4]

Marathi Edition

Sukumar Shidore of Loksatta wrote "As the content of the book is multi-dimensional, it is hoped that the discerning reader will delve into its various aspects".[5] Milind Champanerkar of The Wire wrote "Considering the singular images of 'gunmen, burakhadhari', it seems that this book can provide a lot of insight into the reality, breaking through the myths about the extreme left".[6]

Controversy

The Government of Maharashtra withdrew the literature award given by the state government for the Marathi translation of the memoir, citing objections that the book 'Promotes violence of Naxalism'.[7] This initiated a strong reaction in the Marathi literary community, with Anand Karandikar,[8] Shared Baviskar,[9] awardees of the same competition returning their rewards to the government. As a further sign of solidarity with Ghandy, several members of the jury that selects the award-winning books have resigned from the committee.[10]

References

  1. ↑ "Why I am a communist: Activist Kobad Ghandy on ideology and Utopia". Scroll.in. 30 March 2021. Archived from the original on 21 December 2022. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
  2. ↑ "Read an excerpt from Kobad Ghandy's Fractured Freedom, a stirring narrative of his activism and incarceration". Firstpost. 22 March 2021. Archived from the original on 21 December 2022. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
  3. ↑ "Review: Fractured Freedom - A Prison Memoir by Kobad Ghandy". Hindustan Times. 16 April 2021. Archived from the original on 21 December 2022. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
  4. ↑ "Honest reflections". The Telegraph. 12 November 2021. Archived from the original on 21 December 2022. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
  5. ↑ "एका नक्षलवाद्याचे अध्यात्म." Loksatta (in Marathi). 12 November 2021. Archived from the original on 21 December 2022. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
  6. ↑ "अतिडाव्याच्या मनातील परिवेदनेबाबत अंतर्दृष्टी देणारं 'फ्रॅक्चर्ड फ्रीडम'". The Wire (in Marathi). 16 January 2022. Archived from the original on 21 December 2022. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
  7. ↑ "Maharashtra government scraps award, and jury, for Kobad Ghandy's book translation". The Times of India. 13 December 2022. Archived from the original on 21 December 2022. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
  8. ↑ "Row over Kobad Ghandy book: Author Anand Karandikar to return Maharashtra govt award". The New Indian Express. 13 December 2022. Archived from the original on 23 December 2022. Retrieved 23 December 2022.
  9. ↑ "Row over Kobad Ghandy book: Marathi writer Sharad Baviskar returns award in protest". The New Indian Express. 14 December 2022. Archived from the original on 23 December 2022. Retrieved 23 December 2022.
  10. ↑ "Kobad Ghandy book row: Chief of Maharashtra govt.'s language advisory panel, 4 members of literary board resign as protest". The Hindu. 14 December 2022. Archived from the original on 23 December 2022. Retrieved 23 December 2022.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.