Couple of years ago I read Rahul Pandita’s Our Moon Has Blood Clots and it has remained one of my top non fiction books since then. When @penguinindia sent across Hello, Bastar, I jumped at the chance to read and review it. Much like the former book, this one too has been researched extensively and it shows. As much as I liked this one, I do admit that this book probably wouldn’t work for everyone. But if you do want to know about the birth of Maoism and the slow yet inevitable rise of it, this is probably the best book to learn from.

Rahul Pandita writes crisply and this is what I enjoy most about his books. He introduces the biggest names responsible for the evolution of Maoism and where they derived inspiration from. It’s no secret that India has a severe imbalance of the rich and the poor. The poor keep getting poorer and the rich keep getting richer. Landlords for years have been abusing bonded labourers or tribals for their own benefit and over time they have begun to fight back. Maoism has undoubtedly helped these communities by taking justice into their own hands rather than leaving it up to the judicial system. Because as it so often happens, history has shown how they side eventually with the powerful.

The trials and tribulations of being part of the Maoist community is well known. They don’t have a home of their own and are on constant move, with the risk of being arrested or worse, of being executed. There’s bloodshed on both sides. The government and the Maoists have hands dripping with blood.

I read this book slowly and understood the reason behind their fierce actions. It’s always conflicting to side with either of them but I do understand what Rahul Pandita tries to say through this book. Imagine to what extent did they have to suffer to take guns into their own hands?

Thanks for the copy @penguinindia