Fatima Bhutto Shares The Need To Be Political Vocal In Today's Violent World

One of the boldest voices of our time, author Fatima Bhutto, in her latest novel, examines the changing Muslim identity. She shares with activist-writer Gurmehar Kaur her influences and the need to be political and vocal in today’s increasingly violent world.

- Gurmehar Kaur

It was a couple of months after announcing to the world that I would be publishing a memoir, about my late father, when I was gifted a copy of Fatima Bhutto’s memoir, The Song Of Blood And Sword (Penguin, 2010). I was told it would comfort me as I was still dealing with the media ruckus I was embroiled in after I expressed my opinion on our freedom of expression on university campuses, and on wanting peace between India and Pakistan. I remember reading her book, cover to cover, in a single sitting, occasionally tearing up. This was a heartbreaking memoir of another daughter who had lost her father way too young and was left to grieve, even as an entire country talked and commented on her most personal tragedy. Her story was a warm hug when I needed it the most, and ever since I’ve imagined many conversations with her.

Bhutto is easy to relate to—not just because of our shared experience but because she is a strong feminist voice who takes on religion, gender, politics and race through her words. She never shies away from saying it as it is, surprising her readers with every publication. At the age of 15 she published her first book, Whispers Of The Desert (OUP, 1997), a collection of poetry. Her second was a work of reportage, 8.50am 8 October 2005, which records real-life accounts from the 2005 Kashmir earthquake. Her memoir followed, creating an uproar—she is, after all, a member of one of Pakistan’s most turbulent political dynasties. And in 2013, she published her first novel, The Shadow Of The Crescent Moon (Penguin, 2013), longlisted for the Baileys Women’s Prize For Fiction. After five years, she’s back with her latest work. The Runaways (Penguin Random House), which releases next month, is a sparkling novel that in its nuance and tale boldly questions the modern Muslim identity in contemporary times.